Sworn to Protect. Kimberly Van Meter

      That he did. William “Bunny” Roberts, like about half the population of the reservation, was out of a job and he self-medicated his depression with plenty of alcohol. Sundance often had to take Bunny in on domestic charges because the man wasn’t exactly soft and cuddly when he was in this kind of state. “Copy that,” he answered into the radio. He returned to Chad. “Duty calls. See you tonight?”

      “I wouldn’t miss it.”

      Chad followed him outside the building and Sundance locked up. He didn’t wait to see where Chad went from there, he had more important things to do. Like keeping Bunny from pissing off his wife so much that she blew his head from his shoulders with that 12-gauge shotgun Sundance wasn’t supposed to know about.

      Iris wasn’t surprised when Mya showed up on her doorstep later that evening after the clinic had closed. She suspected Mya had been after Sundance for details and now that Iris was no longer petrified to leave her bed, she probably figured it was safe to visit.

      She opened the front door and found Mya bearing food—as usual—however, this time, Iris offered a genuine smile and invited her in to stay for a while. She’d missed Mya but she hadn’t realized just how much until she read the relief in her best friend’s eyes.

      “You look better,” Mya said, trailing behind Iris as they walked to the kitchen so Iris could dish up the casserole Mya had brought. “How are you feeling?”

      Ever the doctor, Iris mused silently. She smiled. “Healing, I guess,” she answered.

      It’d been almost four weeks since the attack. The worst of the bruising had faded to a pale and sickly yellow but at least the swelling had gone away. There remained one thing she needed to fully put the situation behind her and she wouldn’t get that for a few more days. Mya surmised the direction of her thoughts and said quietly, “The morning-after pill should have prevented…anything from…”

      Iris risked a tremulous smile. Great Spirit forgive her, but she hoped and prayed every day that whoever had attacked her hadn’t planted a baby in her womb. She wanted babies someday but not like this. “I know. It’s okay.” She choked down a lump and forced the tears from her eyes. Iris wasn’t going to waste her visit with Mya on crap like this. For heaven’s sake she just wanted to feel normal again. And that included indulging in conversation that wasn’t weighted by sadness and grief. She wiped at her eyes and handed Mya a plate that she almost refused but Iris wasn’t about to eat alone. She’d had enough of that. “Come on now, you brought enough food to feed the entire tribe. The least you could do is sit with me and enjoy it.”

      Mya’s smile widened with joy. “I’d be happy to.”

      They spent the next hour eating and enjoying each other’s company in a basic bid to reconnect after a horrible tragedy.

      Iris hugged Mya and held her tight. “Thank you,” she whispered, tears leaking down her face. “I’m sorry for locking you out.”

      “Don’t apologize,” Mya said fiercely. “I wasn’t going anywhere. I was just waiting until you were ready.”

      They broke the embrace and Iris wiped at her eyes. She had Sundance to thank for dragging her into the present. Saaski wandered in from her bedroom to settle at her feet. Mya’s eyes widened at the sight of the dark, dangerous-looking dog. “Oh, my, is that…?”

      Iris laughed and leaned down to scratch between Saaski’s ears. “Yes, my new personal security system. Isn’t he beautiful?”

      “Beautiful, yes. Scary, absolutely,” Mya said, eyeing Saaski with a bit of fear. “Wherever did Sundance find such a dog?”

      Iris shrugged. “I don’t know. He said he knew the breeder.”

      “A regular dog wouldn’t have done the trick?” Mya asked.

      “Sundance must’ve known I needed something with bite. He’s perfect,” she said with admiration, suddenly clarifying, “the dog, not Sundance.”

      “I know what you meant.” Mya pushed her plate away and rose to clear the dishes. There was more than her mild concern over Iris’s new dog reflecting in her eyes, and Iris had a feeling it wasn’t good news.

      “Out with it, Jonson. You’re terrible at keeping secrets,” Iris said, half joking. “Whatever it is, I can handle it.”

      Mya flashed a pained smile and Iris loved her all the more for her desire to shield her from whatever was weighing on her mind. “The toxicology results came in right as I was leaving the office.” Iris held her breath and waited. Mya sighed unhappily, continuing, “Your blood tested positive for ketamine.”

      “That accounts for the memory loss,” Iris murmured, her dinner sitting like lead in her stomach. “What else did you find?”

      Mya shook her head. “Not much. DNA analysis came back negative for matches.”

      “So basically, aside from the drug he used, we’ve got nothing useful to catch this person?” At Mya’s nod, Iris swore softly but otherwise tried to keep a level head, which was near impossible when inside she was screaming. “Well, that’s the way it goes, I guess.”