“We had a deal, remember?

“I help you out, and you let me be there when my brother is arrested.”

Dominic narrowed his eyes. “The deal was, you help, and I do my best to keep Michael alive. That’s all there was to it. It’s not safe for you to be involved with the arrest.”

Jessica stiffened her spine and squared her shoulders. “If I want to be target practice for the bad guys, that’s my business, not yours. Look, Mr. U.S. Deputy Marshal. Michael trusts me. If I’m there, maybe he’ll turn himself in without a fight.”

“And maybe he won’t. Until I know you’re safe, you’re not leaving the marshals’ custody.”

“Oh, yes, I am!” She glared at him and headed for the door, but Dominic wasn’t moving. He was big and strong and looked absolutely magnificent as he blocked the door. A hint of attraction swept over her, and she gritted her teeth.

The last thing she wanted was to be attracted to this tall, bullheaded deputy.

KATHLEEN TAILER

is an attorney who works for the Supreme Court of Florida in the Office of the State Courts Administrator where she works on programs that are designed to enhance and improve dependency courts throughout the state. She previously worked for the Florida Department of Children and Families handling child abuse cases both as a line attorney, and in the DCF General Counsel’s Office. She and her husband have eight children, five of whom they adopted. When not in the office, Kathleen spends most of her time cheering for her kids at different events or spending quiet time (hah!) at home. Kathleen has previously published two articles for Fostering Families Today, a magazine for foster families, and self-published a book entitled Children in the Wind, available through Amazon.com. She also plays drums on the worship team at her church.

Under the Marshal’s Protection
Kathleen Tailer

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

—Philippians 4:6–7

For my husband, Jim, and all of my wonderful children: Bethany, Keandra, Jessica, Nathan, Joshua, Anna, Megan and James. You are all a tremendous blessing to me.

Also for my parents, Ken and Jane Ingham, who always supported me in every endeavor and encouraged me to reach for the stars.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

EPILOGUE

LETTER TO READER

QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

ONE

Dominic knocked on the white screen door and took a step back. His eyes swept back and forth between the wide front porch of the aging country home and the spacious yard that surrounded it. An enormous live oak tree dominated the yard, and a wooden swing suspended from the lowest branch swung softly in the breeze. It was summertime in Tallahassee, Florida, and the grass was deep green and fragrant due to all of the recent afternoon rains. Dragonflies darted around the bushes, and a group of yellow butterflies congregated on the ground near the driveway. The setting was picturesque and almost looked like a Norman Rockwell painting.

It would have been a great place to sit and relax, if he wasn’t on such an important mission.

Dominic turned and knocked again, bending slightly to see if he could catch a glimpse of anyone at home through the large open window. He didn’t hear anything except his own feet making the porch floorboards creak and the soft squeak of the screen door as it moved slightly on its old rusted hinges.

He saw the barrel of the rifle out of the corner of his eye just a split second before he heard the woman’s threatening voice coming from the side of the wraparound porch.

“Freeze, buddy.”

He turned and raised his hands slowly. A woman dressed in faded jeans, an old burgundy T-shirt and a Florida State baseball cap approached him pointing a rifle straight at his heart. Her eyes were an electrifying blue that seemed to drill right through him. They were angry yet fearful at the same time, and her gaze swept over him very carefully, taking stock of him from head to toe. Her blond hair was pulled back and lay in a long braid down her back, and her lips were set in a thin line of determination. When she spoke, her voice was low and threatening. “You want to explain what you’re doing on my front porch?”

Dominic kept his hands up, hoping his passive stance would put the lady at ease. “U.S. Deputy Marshal, ma’am. I just want to ask you a few questions.”

The woman’s eyes narrowed. “Prove it.”

“Okay. I have my badge and ID in my back pocket. Can I reach for it without you shooting me?”

She eyed him warily but finally nodded, keeping the rifle trained on his chest. Dominic could tell she had noticed the 9 mm pistol strapped to his hip and was keeping a close eye on his hands. He slowly reached his right hand behind him and pulled out his ID wallet. He flipped it open and held it up to her.

“Drop it and step back.”

Dominic obeyed, considering whether or not it was worth it to try to make a grab for the rifle when she picked up the wallet. Although he was sure he could overpower her and wrench the rifle out of her hands, from the way her eyes were filled with hard, gritty determination, he wasn’t entirely certain he could do it without hurting her. He made his decision and took a step back, keeping his hands held high. At this point, it wasn’t worth the risk. After all, she wasn’t the fugitive he was searching for. She was just the missing man’s sister.

He let her get the wallet without incident and watched as she examined his credentials. She looked back and forth between the photo on the ID and his face, her suspicious blue eyes carefully studying his features.

“I think you can get a badge like this on eBay for about five bucks.”

Dominic shook his head and smiled, hoping to pacify her. “No, ma’am, you can’t. It’s a real badge, and I’m a real U.S. Deputy Marshal. Look, lady, if I wanted to hurt you, I would have done it already. I’m just here to ask some questions. That’s it.”

The rifle never wavered in her hands. “Just take your fake ID and get off my property. I don’t want to answer any of your questions no matter who you are.”

“Actually, you don’t have a choice. Please put the rifle down, ma’am. You’re threatening a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon. That’s a felony, you know.”

He watched her eyes carefully and could see her actually considering his words and weighing out the truth of them. There was wariness in those blue depths, as well as a strength of purpose that he actually found himself admiring.

A moment passed, then another. Finally his words seemed to sink in, and she made her decision and took a step back. “I don’t want any trouble. I just want you to leave. Like I said before, you need to just take your questions and get out of here.” She motioned with the barrel. “Get off my porch. Now.”

The balance of power seemed to shift ever so slightly with her small retreat. Dominic took advantage of it and took a step forward, then another. He was a large man, nearly a foot taller than the woman’s five foot six inches, and he used his height to tower over her with an intimidating stance. He was focused on one thing and one thing only at the moment, and that was getting that rifle away from her before someone got shot.

“You can answer my questions here or you can answer them downtown. Either way, you’re going to put that rifle down.” He took another step. “You must be Jessica Blake. You’re a schoolteacher, right? Well, Ms. Blake, like I said, you’re assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon. All I want to do is ask you a few questions. Put the gun down.” He paused, his hands still up in a sign of surrender. “Please, Ms. Blake. I’m not going to hurt you. I promise.”

He watched her carefully, but her aim still didn’t waver, despite his plea. What had her so spooked? The whole scenario didn’t make sense. He could tell she was scared of him, but he couldn’t figure out why. If she didn’t think he was a legitimate marshal, who did she think he worked for?

“Ms. Blake, please give me a chance. I only need a few minutes of your time, and then I’ll be out of here.”

Jessica gritted her teeth and finally raised the barrel so it was no longer pointing at his chest. Her anger was evident in her stance, as was her fear. “You’d better not be lying.”

Dominic swiftly eliminated the remaining space between them with two large steps and pulled the rifle from her hands, then flipped on the safety and ejected the cartridges. It was a Winchester .38 with plenty of kill-power, and he wasn’t about to take any chances. When he was sure the gun was empty and safe, he handed it back to her but pocketed the bullets.

“Is that how you greet all of your visitors?” he couldn’t help asking.

Jessica bit her bottom lip, suddenly appearing vulnerable for the first time in their encounter. She leaned the rifle against the wall and took a step back, then looked nervously around her as if seeking a route off the porch and into the trees if she needed one. She definitely didn’t trust him, that was for sure, and Dominic wanted to know why. This was not the normal reaction he received when he was just out asking questions.

He took a deep breath, then slowly put his hands on his hips, trying to make his movements as nonthreatening as possible as he considered Jessica Blake. The woman before him was an enigma. He’d read all the information they had on her before coming. He knew her middle name, her date of birth, her social security number and all about the speeding tickets she’d gotten when she was sixteen. But nothing in her file mentioned just how striking her eyes were. He’d never seen anyone with eyes like that, and he felt a surge of attraction, even though she had a smudge of dirt on her cheek and was wearing faded and shapeless work clothes. Still, he couldn’t help but notice the fine sheen of perspiration that covered her skin, in spite of the cool breeze.

Dominic studied her carefully from a law enforcement officer’s perspective, trying to figure her out. She kept moving her hands in a nervous gesture, and her eyes were darting around as if she was expecting someone or something to jump out on the porch with them. There was clearly something going on here that was way out of the ordinary. He’d had guns pointed at him before, but certainly not by country schoolteachers with long blond hair and pretty blue eyes. The way she held herself and her expressions made it look as if she were hiding something, but Dominic had absolutely no idea what it could be. He had come expecting to ask a few questions and leave, but now he was intrigued, and couldn’t leave until the puzzle of Jessica Blake was investigated and solved.

“Okay,” she said roughly, breaking his train of thought. “You’ve got my bullets now. Ask your questions and be on your way, Mr. U.S. Deputy Marshal.”

Dominic motioned toward the door, enjoying the way the words “U.S. Deputy Marshal” rolled off her tongue. She had the local Southern drawl, and without her threatening tone, her voice was now sweet and melodious, despite the slight tremor it still contained. He took a step toward her front door. “Could we sit down for a minute?”

Jessica shook her head and quickly blocked the doorway, nearly tripping as she hurried to keep him away from the door. What was inside that she didn’t want him to see? Dominic raised an eyebrow.

“What’s going on, Ms. Blake?”

Jessica shrugged, trying to appear carefree but failing miserably in the attempt. She was evidently not very good at subterfuge. “You said you only needed a few minutes. Just ask your questions out here.”

Dominic sniffed. “Is that gas I smell? I think you might have a leak. That can be really dangerous, you know. I’d better take a look before the house explodes.”

“Wait…” She grabbed his arm and pulled, but she was no match for his strength, and he moved effortlessly by her. He stopped just inside the door and froze, taking in the scene.

The place had been ransacked. The couch had been ripped to shreds, and foam stuffing was strewn throughout the living room. Glass dishes and knickknacks were smashed in little pieces all over, and books and a myriad of other items littered the floor.

He turned to Jessica, his eyes filled with concern. “Is there anybody else in the house?”

She shook her head. “Not anymore. I live alone, and whoever did this is long gone.”

Dominic stepped over a broken radio and headed toward the kitchen. It too had been destroyed. The table and chairs were broken, and damaged appliances and kitchen utensils had been dumped on the light blue linoleum floor. The cabinet doors were open, and canned goods and staples had all been swept from their shelves. He left the kitchen and slowly checked the rest of the house. Each room had a similar level of destruction. It looked as if a tornado had blown through and left nothing but devastation in its wake.

He blew out a breath and shook his head. No wonder she was scared. Someone had definitely sent her a message, and he had the uneasy feeling that he knew exactly who that someone had been. This case was getting more complicated by the minute.

Jessica had followed him into the kitchen but didn’t follow him through the rest of the house. She went back on the porch and waited patiently for him to come back outside. She couldn’t look at the inside of the house anymore without crying anyway. Everything she owned, with few exceptions, was now in pieces and totally destroyed. What made it even worse was that there was a law enforcement officer in there right now surveying the damage, and she couldn’t explain the mess without putting her brother’s life in danger.

She sank down on the steps, frightened and unsure. It was all she could do not to grab her keys and drive away as fast as her truck could carry her. But. There was always a but. In this case, running wouldn’t solve anything. She knew that. She closed her eyes and leaned against the front porch rail, rallying her strength for the battle ahead and trying to figure a way out of her predicament.

A few minutes later she heard the screen door open and close and the creaks of the porch as he crossed to sit down beside her. Several moments passed before he spoke. “That’s quite a scene in there.”

Jessica nodded without looking at him. It was hard to meet his eyes now that he’d seen the damage and would undoubtedly want an explanation. “That’s why I didn’t want you to go in there.”

“Yeah, I guessed that.” He paused. “Do you know who did it?”

“No.”

“Do you know why they did it?”

Jessica took a deep breath. She didn’t have any proof, but she had her suspicions. She didn’t want to lie to the man, but until she knew more, she couldn’t tell him the truth either. She chose to evade the issue. “Don’t worry about it. It’s my problem, okay?”

“No, it’s not okay. Would you like for me to call in the crime tech guys and have them search for fingerprints? They might not find anything, but I’ll make the call if you want me to.”

For the first time, she met his eyes, deep gray and so gentle and concerned that she almost cried. But she couldn’t trust him. She couldn’t trust anyone when there was so much at stake. “No. I’m not filing a report or pressing charges. I’ll deal with it myself. Like I said, it’s my problem.”

“Is that why you pointed your gun at me?”

She looked away again, embarrassed. She was a schoolteacher, after all. She didn’t usually go around threatening people with a high-powered rifle, especially law enforcement officers. Deputy Dominic Sullivan was no small man either, and had broad shoulders and a muscular build that testified to his strength. His closely-cropped blond hair and chiseled features gave him a tough, military appearance, and the more she thought about it, the more she realized how foolhardy her actions had actually been. This man was a formidable foe. “Yes. I’m sorry about that.” She could tell he wouldn’t leave without a better explanation, but she also knew she’d have to keep it vague. “I was working out in the barn earlier when somebody hit me over the head and knocked me out. When I woke up, I came up to the house and found it like it is now. Then I heard you out on the porch, and I didn’t know what to think.”

Dominic gave her a friendly smile. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” He paused, as if considering his options, then pushed forward. “I came here today because I’m looking for your brother Michael Blake. I need you to help me find him.”

Jessica looked up quickly, her eyes filled with suspicion. “Why?”

Dominic drew his lips into a thin line. “Well, that’s actually rather difficult to explain.”

Jessica crossed her arms, undaunted. Why was a U.S. Marshal looking for her brother? She had to find out and make some sense out of everything that was happening to her today. “Why don’t you try and simplify it for me?”

Dominic paused a moment, then nodded. “Okay. I can give you the basics. Michael Blake has been working at a company called Coastal up in Atlanta.”

“Coastal? I’ve never heard of them before. What kind of company is that?”

“Pharmaceuticals. Sales and distribution, mostly.”

“And?” she pressed.

“And he’s gotten into some trouble with his employer, and I need to ask him some questions.”

“Some questions about what?”

Dominic grimaced. “That’s between me and your brother.”

Jessica shook her head. “That’s not good enough. I need to know what’s going on.”

Dominic raised an eyebrow. “What’s going on, Ms. Blake, is that I have a warrant for your brother’s arrest.”

Jessica glared at him, then quickly stood and headed back in the house. She would have slipped back inside but Dominic was right at her heels and wouldn’t let her avoid the situation by running away. He grabbed her arm gently and held her from escaping his questions.

“Ms. Blake. Please help me. Your brother’s life may depend upon it.”

She scowled at his hold, then raised her angry eyes to meet his. “You need to get off my property, Mr. U.S. Marshal. I have nothing more to say to you.”

TWO

“Look. My name is Deputy Sullivan. Deputy Dominic Sullivan. I’m not the enemy. My job is to find Michael Blake and bring him in before he gets hurt. He’s in a lot of trouble right now.” He let go of her arm but remained blocking the doorway. “If you care about your brother, you’ll help me.”

“Goodbye, Mr. Sullivan. Thanks so much for stopping by.” Her voice dripped with sarcasm, and her glare burned straight through him. Maybe from her point of view, he was the enemy after all.

“Wait,” Dominic stated quietly, holding up his hands again in a motion of surrender. He couldn’t just let her walk away. And he certainly wasn’t going to leave her alone in that disaster area of a house. He changed tactics. “Are you sure you’re not going to report this mess?”

Jessica nodded. “I’m sure.” Apparently the last thing she wanted was even more policemen on her property.

“I’ll help you clean up then.” Before Jessica could even protest, Dominic passed into her house again and the screen door banged shut behind him, not quite masking the sound of Jessica’s exasperated sigh behind him.

By the time she came back in, he had already righted the couch frame. With the cushions shredded, there wasn’t much he could do for it beyond that, so he started putting books back on the shelves. “Any particular place you want these books?”

“What do I have to do to get you to leave?” she asked icily.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he answered with another innocuous smile. He held out a stack of books. “So, where do you want these?”

Jessica shook her head wearily. Apparently she’d finally gotten the message that he wasn’t going to go away. This was about more than finding Michael, however. There was no way he was going to leave Jessica Blake alone and terrified in her own home, especially without verifying who had done this to her house, and why.

“You don’t give up easily, do you?”

Dominic grinned, hoping to thaw her resistance a little. Many people had told him he had a wonderful smile. He hoped that by using it now, he could break the ice with the woman before him.

He shook his head. “Now you’re getting it.”

The smile must have worked because she gave in with a sigh. “Just stack them back on that shelf, if you don’t mind. I’ll go get some trash bags and a broom.”

Dominic smiled again, pleased at her surrender, and looked at some of the titles as he placed the books back on the built-in shelf. She seemed to own a large collection of mysteries, as well as an art history book or two and several books on drawing and painting. It appeared that Ms. Blake was an aspiring artist. He was pleasantly surprised by the revelation and actually a bit curious about her talent. He had a deep appreciation for art, even though he was convinced he had absolutely no talent of his own in that department.

Jessica returned with a medium-sized cardboard box and a large box of trash bags, then pulled out one of the bags and opened it with a snap. She handed the bag to Dominic. “Are you sure cleaning up my house is in your job description?”

He shrugged. “It is today.”

If she couldn’t get rid of him, she’d just have to ignore him. Turning her back on the marshal, Jessica started picking up the larger pieces of glass and other debris off the floor and tossing them into the cardboard box.

She hadn’t owned anything of great monetary value, but she had attached great sentimental value to quite a bit in her home, and it was difficult to see it all destroyed. Nothing had been spared, including the decorative flowerpots that her fifth grade class had given her last year and the shiny blue ceramic bookends that had belonged to her parents. They were now in shards on the floor. The ruined couch cushions and pieces of stuffing started filling the bags, and tears came to her eyes when she tossed the broken frames that had been hanging on her walls into the box of trash. She quickly blinked the droplets away, determined not to cry in front of the law enforcement officer. There would be time to lament later. For now, she needed to concentrate on appeasing this marshal and getting him out of her house. She paused a moment and once again gingerly touched the bump on her head, then winced. The injury seemed to be throbbing more and more with each passing minute.

Dominic noticed. “Whoa there. Let’s check that out.” He reached for her arm and led her to sit in one of the few chairs in the home that hadn’t been destroyed and gingerly removed her cap. “There’s only a small cut, but that swollen knot on your scalp must be pretty painful. Stay right here and rest for a minute.” He looked around the room, thinking. “I might have some aspirin in my car.”

“There’s probably a bottle in the bathroom medicine cabinet, if they didn’t ruin that, too.”

“Sounds good. I’ll check it out.” He left her and returned a few moments later with two aspirin and a glass of water. “Here. Take this.” In his other hand he carried a plastic quart-sized bag filled with ice, covered with a damp washcloth. He watched her swallow the medicine, then gingerly placed the ice pack on her wound.

Jessica’s eyes defiantly met his. “I’m still not going to answer your questions.”

Dominic shrugged. “That’s not my primary objective right now.”

“What is your primary objective?”

“Helping you.”

“Even if I refuse to help you?”

Dominic nodded. “Yes. Even if you refuse to help me.”

Jessica let that sink in. When did anyone ever do something for nothing? She wanted to believe him, even though she was rather skeptical. She looked closely at the U.S. Marshal. There was concern in his eyes, but there was no way she could trust the law enforcement officer before her. She leaned back and closed her own eyes for a moment, the ice soothing the throbbing pain.

She had to handle this problem on her own. That was the bottom line. There was no one else to lean on, and this U.S. Marshal was certainly no knight in shining armor come to rescue her from her problems. Somehow, she would figure all this out and find a way to fix it. She had to. She had no other choice.

The phone suddenly rang, and she started in surprise. It rang again and she jumped up, frantically looking for the cordless receiver. She had been carrying the phone around with her for days ever since Michael’s last call, but the events of the morning had thrown her out of her routine and she had to search to find where she had left the handset. She was so preoccupied that she didn’t even notice Dominic stand up and follow closely behind her.

“Hello?”

The voice on the other end was low and threatening, and even though she didn’t recognize it, it nonetheless sent a cold chill down her spine. “Jessica Blake?”

“Yes, this is Jessica.”

“How do you like your house?”

She took a deep breath and her hands started shaking. “What do you want?”

“We want what your brother took from us. We want our computer disk back.”

“What disk? I don’t have your disk,” she said forcefully, her voice tight. “I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”

“It’s very simple. We want what your brother took from us.”

“I don’t know where my brother is, or anything about what he took from you.”

“Find it,” the sinister voice ordered. “Find your brother, and find the disk. You have three days. If you don’t return the disk, you’ll be dead, along with your brother.” There was a click, and Jessica knew she was alone on the line. Her ears started ringing and she felt incredibly light-headed. Her knees began to tremble and if Dominic hadn’t caught her, she would have crumpled to the ground.

He carried her back over to the chair and set her down gently. Her whole body felt cold despite the June heat, and he rubbed her hands in a soothing gesture. “So? Who was that on the phone that scared you so badly?”

Jessica met Dominic’s gaze, her own eyes rounded in fear and her breath coming in gasps. She shook her head, not knowing what she should do or say.

“Easy,” Dominic soothed. “Take a deep breath.” He demonstrated by exaggerating his breathing. She finally followed his lead and matched her breathing to his own. “That’s right. Take another deep breath. You’ll be okay in a minute or two. Deep breaths. That’s it.”

Jessica concentrated on calming down, but the task seemed impossible. She was gripping Dominic’s hands without even realizing it, and a numbing fear seemed to paralyze her. They were going to kill both Michael and her in three days if they didn’t get what they wanted. She didn’t doubt the caller’s words for one minute. There had been a coldness in his voice that gave truth to his words.

She finally looked down and noticed their entwined hands and weakly tried to push his away. She didn’t know this man, and in many ways, he seemed to be a threat to her as well. “You have to go now, Marshal. I need to be alone. I need time to think.”

“No way,” Dominic stated forcefully, clasping her hands and stilling their frantic motion. “You need to tell me what just happened on that phone call.”

“I can’t,” she said softly, her voice shaking. “I can’t tell you anything. Don’t you see? They’ll kill him, and they’ll kill me, too.”

“They’ll probably try to do that now anyway.” He squeezed her hands gently, but his stormy gray eyes were like steel. “You’ve just become a liability. These people don’t leave a trail, Ms. Blake. They’ll use you and dispose of you once you no longer serve their purpose. There’s a bigger picture here that you don’t understand. I can help you. The FBI and the Marshals have been going after these guys for a long time now. We know a lot about them and how they operate, but we can’t get them to stop without your help.” Their eyes locked and Jessica felt as if the deputy could see straight into her soul. “Trust me,” he pleaded quietly. “Let me help you, Ms. Blake. Please.”

Jessica tightened her own grip on his hands and gritted her teeth. One thing she was sure of, she couldn’t fight this threat on her own. It was too big, and she was going to need help. Men that killed on a whim were way out of her league.

She heard a small voice in her heart. Come back to Me. Let Me help you. She sighed inwardly and resisted the voice. She wasn’t ready to let God back in her life. Not yet. The best she could do was grab hold of the hope that the marshal was offering.

“Promise me you’ll help me save Michael,” she whispered.

Dominic nodded. “I will do everything in my power to keep him alive.”

Jessica shut her eyes, trying to gather the courage to trust the man before her. “I don’t even know you,” she said, more to herself than to the deputy who was kneeling by the chair.

“I’m sorry there isn’t time for me to build your trust. I promise you, though, that I will do everything I can to keep Michael alive, and I’m a man of my word.” He shifted, still not letting go of her hands. “Tell me about the phone call. Did you recognize the voice?”

Jessica shook her head, plunging ahead before she had time to really think and reconsider her actions. All the doubt and misgivings seemed to suddenly disappear as she opened her eyes and looked forcefully at the marshal. She was scared, and at the moment, Dominic seemed like her only option. She didn’t really have a choice; not if she wanted to stay alive. “No. It was a deep male voice, that’s about all I can tell you. He took credit for the damage to my house. Then he said that he wanted me to find some sort of computer disk. He said I had three days, and if I didn’t give the disk back, then he would kill me and Michael, too.” She swallowed convulsively. “I believe him. He’ll come after us if I can’t give him what he wants.”

Dominic nodded. “Did he say anything else?”

“No, he just wants that disk.” She locked eyes with Dominic. “What’s on that disk?”

“Everything we need to convict the major players in a counterfeiting scheme, we hope.” He gently squeezed her hands. “Ms. Blake, please tell me the truth. Do you know where Michael is?” He met her eyes with his own, probing.

Jessica bit her bottom lip. She needed this man’s help. Michael needed his help. She had to trust someone. She took a deep breath and pressed forward, knowing full well that there was no going back once she had stepped over the line. “Michael called me a few days ago and told me that he was in serious trouble. He didn’t go into details, but he asked me for help. We got cut off before we could finish our conversation. He sounded desperate, and I’ve been really worried about him ever since.” She paused and looked away, then a moment later brought her eyes back to meet Dominic’s once again. “I don’t know where he is, but I have a cell phone number for him. I got the impression from some of the things he said that he’s in the Tallahassee area, but I’m not sure. In the past, if I needed to contact him, I left him a message on his cell and he would always call me back, usually within an hour or so. Since I got that last call from him though, I’ve left a message every day, but he still hasn’t called me back. I don’t know what to think.”

Dominic stood. “Does he normally call you back at your home number or on a cell?”

“Could be either, but I keep the cell charged and with me at all times, just in case.”

“Good. Pack a bag. You’re coming with me, and bring that cell phone and a charger with you.”

Jessica stood, confused. “Where are we going?”

“To a safe house. I’m not taking any chances with you. Once you’re protected, we’ll have you call Michael with a frantic message of your own. When he calls, we’ll use our equipment to trace his call and discover his location.”

“You’re not going to hurt him, are you?”

Dominic grimaced. “I don’t want to hurt him, Ms. Blake, and neither do the people I work with, but he will be arrested. Michael is a fugitive, and it’s my job to bring him in. Does he carry a gun?”

“He was carrying a pistol like yours the last time I saw him, but that was a long time ago. He’s always liked hunting and is pretty good with a rifle.” She came up to Dominic, stopping only inches away, and gave him a beseeching look. “I want to be with you when you arrest him. I want to make sure he’s okay.”

Dominic immediately shook his head. “That’s not how it’s done, Ms. Blake. You could get hurt or caught in the middle.”

Jessica’s eyes narrowed. “Then I’m not calling him,” she said defiantly. “You need to meet my terms, Deputy. I have to be there. That’s all there is to it.”

“You’re pushing too hard, Ms. Blake. I can let you talk to him after we have him in custody. That’s the best I can do.”

Jessica clenched her fists. “He’s my brother,” she said icily, her voice filled with determination. “If you can’t meet my terms, then I’ll go it alone.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” Dominic said roughly. “You have no idea how unscrupulous your enemy really is. You don’t stand a chance without my help, and if you think about it, really think about it, you’ll know that I’m right. If you try going it alone, you’ll be dead in three days. That’s a guarantee.” He lowered his voice, his eyes intense. “You’re really not in a position to be demanding anything, Ms. Blake. But I work with a good group of deputies. We always do our best to make our arrests in the safest way possible, for the suspect and for the deputies. I told you I’m a man of my word, and I meant it. I give you my word that we’ll be as easy on him as we can. Our goal is to have him testify against Coastal. That company has been distributing counterfeit medicine on a huge scale, and from what we know so far, Michael was right in the thick of it. We want him on our side.”

Jessica’s eyes rounded. “What if he won’t agree to go on your side?”

“Then he’ll end up in prison, but at least he won’t disappear without a trace or be murdered in the street. You’ll know he’s alive.”

Jessica knew Dominic was right, but that didn’t make it any easier to accept what he was saying. Oh, what she would give to start this day over! She looked into his stormy gray eyes and saw strength and professionalism, and she knew down deep that her choices were few. She sighed.

“All right, Marshal. I’ll pack a bag.” She grimaced, the full impact of his words weighing heavy on her mind. “How long should I plan on being away from my house?”

“Figure four or five days or so for now. If we need to, we’ll find a washing machine somewhere.” Dominic stepped back, looking relieved that she had agreed to work with him. He stood over her shoulder, watching her pack a duffle bag as if he expected her to change her mind at any moment and run. Well, if that was what he expected, he was in for a surprise. If the marshal was going to bring her brother in, then she wasn’t going to let anything stop her from being by his side when it happened. Michael was going to live through this. She’d make sure of it.

And she’d work with whoever she had to in order to make it happen.

THREE

“So where is this safe house of yours?” Jessica asked quietly. Dominic was relieved to hear her speak. They had been driving for almost twenty minutes, but she hadn’t said a word since they left her house. Her hands had been constantly in motion, however, and he’d seen her move a small, silver ring from finger to finger at least a dozen times.

“We’re almost there,” he assured her. “And in case you’re wondering, you’re doing the right thing.”

She glanced out the window again, then turned and looked thoughtfully at the deputy. “I hope you’re right.” She bit her bottom lip. “What do you know about Michael? Tell me more about what he’s gotten himself into.”

Dominic straightened. “The charges against him are interstate counterfeiting medicine and conspiracy.”

Jessica sighed heavily. “And you said all this happened in Atlanta?”

“That’s right.” Jessica winced and touched the sore on her head again. “But you said you were a U.S. Marshal. Why is a marshal interested in Michael? I thought you guys took care of the witness protection program and courthouse security, that kind of thing.”

Dominic nodded. “We do those things, but we also collaborate with the FBI and other governmental agencies on certain cases and track down interstate fugitives. Michael was able to arrange a bond, but then he disappeared. We want him back.”

“Well, what does counterfeiting medicine actually mean? I’ve never heard of that type of crime.”

“It can mean a lot of different things. In this case, Michael has been working for a pharmaceutical company named Coastal Pharmaceuticals for about the last two years. Coastal owns several pharmacies in and around Atlanta, but they are also one of the major distributors in the business, and they supply medicines throughout the eastern seaboard. Apparently someone at Coastal has been diluting medicines, repackaging them and then selling the new bottles for profit.”

“And the FBI thinks Michael is responsible?”

“If he isn’t, then he knows who is,” Dominic answered, his tone matter-of-fact. The district attorney had indicted four men in the Coastal case. Their first arrest had been Don Levine, a former Coastal employee, and when squeezed, Levine had pointed to Michael, Ross Kelley, who was Coastal’s CEO, and Jeff Martin, Kelley’s right-hand man, as the three other conspirators. A few days after the indictments had been handed down, Levine had been viciously murdered. Although the marshals didn’t suspect Michael for the murder, they did believe that he had been a major player in the counterfeiting, just as Levine had suggested. The district attorney had leaned heavily on Levine’s testimony for the indictments, and without him, the AG wasn’t sure he could convict the other players. When Michael had been arrested, he had refused to talk to the feds, but when he had disappeared after he had bonded out of jail, rumor had it that he had disappeared with a computer disk filled with scans of paperwork that laid out the whole operation. That same disk and Michael’s testimony could very well be the proof the FBI needed to reestablish their case and break up the counterfeiting ring once and for all.

Jessica shifted, frowning. “But Michael could be innocent, right?”

Dominic gave her a small smile at her hopeful tone. He could well understand why Michael’s sister would want to defend him. She loved her brother. It was as simple as that. “We’ll know for sure once we talk to him, but I wouldn’t get my hopes up.”

Jessica took a deep breath and wrung her hands. “Did anybody get hurt because of the bad medicine?” She stilled, waiting for his answer, looking incredibly afraid of what she would hear next.

“There was a boy who was hospitalized because of the switch, but so far, we’re not aware of any fatalities. We don’t know how much of the counterfeited medicine was distributed though, which is another reason why we need to talk to your brother. We need to find all of the diluted medicine that made it into the market before it does kill someone.”

Jessica sighed with relief, but seemed to still be reeling from the magnitude of what Michael had gotten himself into. She pulled the silver ring off of her right hand and slipped it on to her left. “I doubt my brother could pull something like this off all by himself.”

“I happen to agree with you, and so does the FBI, but like I said, we need to talk to Michael to discover the facts and find out the full extent of his involvement. We think Michael knows a lot of valuable information that could help us with our investigation of Coastal. He could very well end up being our key witness at trial if he cooperates.”

“I can’t believe he would be involved in something like this,” Jessica said quietly, then slumped in her seat as the full implication of the deputy’s words hit her. She closed her eyes and sighed heavily, then her eyes popped back open as a new thought occurred to her. “So why are you looking for him instead of a bail bondsman?”

Dominic shrugged. “The bondsman is probably looking for him too, but we do our own manhunts. Like I said, Michael could easily turn out to be the key witness in the investigation.”

She raised her eyebrow, obviously churning all of this new information over and over in her mind. “Coastal is a legitimate company, right?”

“It appears to be from the outside, but we need to talk to Michael to see just how far inside the conspiracy has spread. Right now, it seems like there are only a few major players that are actually involved with the counterfeiting and distribution.” He paused. “I know hearing all of this must be hard to swallow, but there is a lot more to it that I’m not at liberty to discuss.” Don Levine’s murder weighed heavily on Dominic’s mind. The marshals were convinced that Ross Kelley at Coastal was the mastermind behind the whole scheme, and that Kelley had ordered Levine’s death to protect himself once the counterfeited drugs had been discovered. If Kelley was silencing everyone who could testify against him, then Michael was definitely next on the list.

Dominic was also concerned about the mystery surrounding Levine’s murder. Levine had been under police protection, yet he had still been viciously killed. How had the murderer gotten past the security detail? The case was still being investigated, but no matter what the result, the bottom line was that they needed to find Michael fast, for his sake, and to save their case against Coastal.

Dominic let the silence ensue for a moment, then stopped at a red light and turned toward his passenger. “So when was the last time you saw Michael?”

Jessica looked up and narrowed her eyes, apparently acutely aware that he had finished answering her questions and was now ready with some of his own. “It’s been about a year, I guess.”

The light changed and Dominic turned his eyes back to the road. “That surprises me. I thought you two might be closer than that.”

“We used to be,” Jessica said softly. “Believe it or not, Michael started out as a really good kid.”

“What happened?” He knew a lot of Blake’s background from the file, but it couldn’t hurt to get his sister’s side of things. In fact, he might just learn something important about his quarry.

“What happened is that my parents both died in a terrible accident and I was left to raise Michael. I did my best to give him a Christian home with Christian values. But somewhere during his high school years, I must have messed it up. Michael got in with the wrong crowd and started changing. At first he was just staying out too late, but one thing led to another, and he barely managed to graduate. He became sullen and defiant, and the older he got, the less he included me in his life. Then a few days after his commencement, he packed up his car and moved away from Tallahassee. I’ve heard very little from him since.”

“How many times have you seen him since he moved out?”

Jessica sighed. “Only twice. He would never tell me much about his life or what was going on with him. Now I guess I know why.” She closed her eyes for a moment, then continued. “I wish I’d had some help, you know? Like an uncle or an aunt to go to for help when his life started to get off track.”

“You don’t have any extended family?” Dominic asked, even though he already knew the answer.

“No one.” She bit her bottom lip again and looked away. “Look, Michael has had his share of problems, but even when he turned sullen and secretive, I still always knew he had a good and gentle heart buried down deep inside.”

Dominic didn’t answer her, so she pressed on. “He’s not a bad man, Marshal. You probably hear that all the time, but it’s true. I know it in here.” She tapped her chest for emphasis. “He must have just gotten mixed up in something bad and not known how to get out of it. He would never hurt someone intentionally. It’s just not in him.”

Dominic still didn’t answer, and when she spoke again, her voice took on a desperate plea. “I don’t think Michael can survive in prison, even if he was involved with the counterfeiting. I’ve seen the news, and Hollywood is filled with horror stories of what goes on behind bars.” She paused for breath. “How long would he have to stay in prison if he gets convicted?”

“That all depends on the extent of his involvement and what he can testify to in court,” Dominic answered. “It also depends upon what information he has on that disk. It must be valuable or Coastal wouldn’t be going this far to retrieve it.” He glanced at his passenger and noticed the turmoil that was etched into her face. It was obvious that Michael was in way over his head, and all of a sudden, so was she. This went way beyond teaching history and social science to fifth graders. When she had gotten up this morning, it had probably just been a normal Wednesday. Now her whole life was in shambles and she was filled with fear for herself and her brother. He decided a diversion was in order, and he swung through a drive-thru at the first fast-food restaurant he came across.

“What would you like? Once we get to the safe house, it may be awhile before we can grab something else.”

She shook her head. “I’m not that hungry. I’m not even sure I can eat anything right now.”

Dominic nodded, understanding. Her stomach was probably tied up in knots with worry and stress. “Okay, how about just a chocolate milkshake? That will at least keep you from starving.” He gave her a grin, hoping to reassure her. What woman didn’t like chocolate?

She hesitated but finally nodded, and he ordered the food, then paid and passed her the shake. He watched her carefully as she took her first sip and had to admit that she was handling everything he had told her today with amazing strength. Despite her negative assessment of her parenting skills, by all accounts Jessica had done a great job of taking care of Michael after their parents had died. She was seven years older than her younger brother and had worked hard to meet his needs, keep a job and put herself through school to earn her degree. According to his research, she had been a fifth grade teacher at the local elementary school for a few years, and apparently she raised and trained horses on the side now and then to supplement her income. Everyone spoke highly of her, and even he found himself admiring her and her accomplishments. Her life could not have been easy. He bowed his head and said a short silent prayer, both for the food, and to ask God to help Jessica persevere, then drove away from the restaurant and continued on his way to the safe house.

They were a few miles down the road before Jessica spoke again.

“So you’re a praying man?”

Dominic nodded. “Yes, I’m a Christian. How about you?”

Jessica shrugged. “My parents took me to church when I was a kid, and I used to be really strong with my faith. After Michael started having problems, though, I pretty much fell away from it all. I ended up giving up on God since God seemed to have given up on Michael.”

He took a sip from his drink and looked at her thoughtfully. “How did your parents die?”

“Car accident. I was nineteen. Michael was twelve. It turned my world upside down.”

“I bet it did. I’m so sorry,” Dominic said gently, his voice caring. “I know what it’s like to lose a parent. My father died a couple of years ago and I still miss him. I guess I always will.” He took a bite of his sandwich, then another swallow of soda. “Don’t you miss having God in your life?”

She considered his words for a moment, then shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I haven’t really thought about it in long time. I still pray sometimes, but my heart isn’t always in it.”

Dominic nodded. “Everyone goes through dry spells. If you ever want to get reconnected, there are some great fellowships here in town.”

She smiled nervously at his enthusiasm, yet a wave of longing swept over her that took her by surprise. It had been years since she had gone to church on a regular basis, and she couldn’t remember the last time she had cracked open her Bible. She still held on to her beliefs in some small part of her heart, but she hadn’t practiced her faith in years. It had been too hard in the aftermath of losing her parents and watching Michael drift further and further away from her. She’d made up her mind that she wouldn’t need anyone—not even God. But now she was wondering if she’d made the wrong decision. Would some of this mess be easier to bear with faith to see her through?

“I’ll keep that in mind,” she said softly. She took another sip from her milkshake, surprised that she was even discussing this subject with a virtual stranger. Something about this marshal was approachable and accepting. She usually didn’t feel comfortable talking about her faith with anyone, but for some reason, talking to this man about the subject didn’t make her feel odd. “Let me guess. You’re one of those ‘the glass is half full’ guys, right?”

Dominic grinned. “How could you tell?”

She liked his smile. It lit up his entire face and made her feel like everything was going to be okay, even if the opposite was true and everything seemed to be falling to pieces around her. She took another sip, a small peace invading her. “Michael has made some bad choices. Sometimes I get really upset about him and the life he’s chosen, and I feel responsible. What did I do wrong, you know? I tried my best to raise him, but look at him today. He’s a fugitive and, according to you, responsible for putting counterfeit drugs on the market that are hurting people.” She brushed the hair out of her eyes and blinked back tears. “How could he really be involved with something like that? I just don’t know how he could do such a thing.”

“Your parents taught him right from wrong and gave him a strong foundation. You supported him along the way. At some point, Michael has to take responsibility for the choices he makes, as well as the consequences of his actions. You can’t live his life for him.”

“Deep down, I know you’re right, but it doesn’t make it any easier to accept. I want the people I care about to be successful and happy. I love him too much to see him throw everything away like this.” A silent tear rolled down her cheek, but she wiped it away angrily and resolved not to cry in front of the stranger. The marshal seemed like a nice enough man, but he was clearly interested in finding Michael because of his job, not because he truly cared about him. It was up to her to look out for Michael’s best interests. But how could she do that without talking to Michael first? She wished she could know more about what was really going on and hear his side of the story. She pulled out her cell phone and double-checked that it was on and the batteries were fully charged. She needed to talk to Michael. Then somehow, someway, they were going to make it through this. All she needed now was to figure out how.

FOUR

Jessica paced back and forth in the narrow hotel room, thinking that if she stayed in this small space much longer, she was going to go stir crazy. She’d been here for two days already, and the waiting was starting to get to her. A hotel room was a hotel room. There wasn’t much to do except watch TV, and she found little pleasure in television, even if she did have fifty channels to choose from. She had made six desperate calls to Michael in the last twenty-four hours, but so far she still hadn’t heard from him. The fact that he hadn’t responded made her wonder if Michael was even still alive, especially knowing what she did about Coastal and the danger he was in. The fear twisted in her stomach and made it even harder for her to sit still in the small, confining room.

During her short time in protective custody with the marshals she had met two new deputies. Jake Riley was apparently the technology expert and had all the equipment set up to trace the call if and when Michael finally contacted her. He also seemed to be the leader of the group but let the others do their jobs with very little interference. Dominic and Chris Riggs had been taking turns keeping watch over Jessica and continuing their search for Michael via other means. They had tracked down an address where Michael had lived two months ago in a small suburb of Atlanta, and had local deputies talking to neighbors and trying to discover where he had moved to next. It was tedious work, and Jessica could tell from their discussions that their leads were fading fast. She was definitely their best chance at finding her brother.

A knock at the door sent Chris to the peephole, and a few seconds later Dominic entered carrying breakfast and a plain brown paper sack. He passed out warm sausage biscuits and coffee, then little packages of sugar and cream to those who wanted them.

“What, no donuts?” Jessica joked. She was surprised by how glad she was to see him. Although she had only known him a short time, she felt inexplicably safer with him nearby.

“Funny,” Dominic smiled, then handed the paper sack to Jessica. “I know you’re bored. I got these for you to help pass the time.”

Jessica opened the sack and was surprised to see a selection of mystery novels by her favorite authors whose books had lined her shelves at home. She was truly touched by his thoughtfulness. There was even a book about drawing technique and a small sketch pad with pencils included in the bag. “I can’t believe you noticed,” she said with a smile. “Thank you so much.”

“You’re welcome, Ms. Blake.” He grinned at her. “I’ve done this enough to know that it takes more than a TV to pass the time.”

So he had noticed that, too. “Please call me Jessica.” She grinned back at him and felt herself actually relaxing for the first time since she had come to the hotel.

Suddenly her cell phone rang, and she jumped, then grabbed it and looked at the caller ID. “I don’t know the number.”

Dominic gently touched her shoulder. “It’s okay. Answer anyway.” They had already established that several of Jessica’s friends called her cell phone number on occasion. The call could be coming from any one of them.

Jessica nodded and pushed the answer button on her phone. “Hello?”

“Jess! Are you all right?”

Jessica sank down to the bed. The speaker was young and frantic, and it was unmistakably the voice of Michael Blake. She nodded to Dominic who had picked up a headset and was listening to the call. Across the room, Jake started to run the trace.

“I’m okay, but, Michael, somebody came to my house and tore it apart. Then they called and threatened me. They said you stole some sort of computer disk. Michael, did you do that?”

“Oh, Jess, I’m so sorry. I had no idea this would come back on you.”

Jessica sighed. “Michael, answer my question. Do you have their disk? What’s all this about?”

A beat passed, then another. “I can’t explain right now. It’s…it’s complicated.”

Jessica noted that Michael’s voice had changed and a wave of dread swept over her. His tone was hesitant, and he was obviously avoiding the truth. It wasn’t the time or place to argue about it, though. Somehow she needed to convince Michael to turn himself in. Then they could sort all of this out together once and for all. She looked over at Dominic who was motioning with his hands to keep the conversation going.

“Michael, I need to see you. Tell me where you are.”

Again there was silence on the other end of the line. Finally, he spoke. “I can’t, Jess.”

“You don’t have a choice,” she answered vehemently. “They said they were going to kill you and me in two more days if you didn’t give them the disk. I need to understand, Michael. I want to try to help you.”

“Oh, Jess…”

“Tell me where you are. I’ll come and get you and we’ll figure this out together.”

Dominic shook his head at this one, but Jessica pushed forward, ignoring him. “Michael, I don’t want you to get killed, and I’m in no hurry to die, either. This is a huge problem you can’t deal with by yourself. Let me help you. Please.”

Silence met her plea for such a long time that she thought he might have hung up. Finally, he spoke. “Are you still at the house?”

“No, I didn’t feel safe there, so I’m in Tallahassee with friends. They tore up my home pretty badly anyway. There’s not much left.”

“Meet me at the bagel shop in two hours. You know which one. Come alone, Jess. Don’t bring your friends.” The phone clicked, and Michael was gone.

Dominic was furious, but doing his best to hide it. He paced a few times, then strode over to Jake. “Did we get him?”

Jake shook his head. “He’s in northern Tallahassee, but I didn’t have enough time to narrow the field any closer than that.”

Dominic paced some more. What was Jessica doing, arranging to meet Michael in person? The last thing he wanted was to include her in the arrest. Involving civilians in arrests was unpredictable at best, and downright dangerous at worst. He rubbed his neck with his hand and rounded on her. “What were you thinking? I told you that you weren’t going to be a part of this and I meant it.”

Jessica stood and put her hands on her hips. “And I told you I’m his sister, and I want to make sure that he doesn’t get hurt.”

“This isn’t the way we do things, Ms. Blake.”

“So we’re back to ‘Ms. Blake’ again, are we?”

Dominic gritted his teeth. “You’re not listening to me.”

“No, you’re not listening to me,” she said forcefully, poking him in his chest with her finger. “He’s my brother, and I’m the one who is being threatened. I’m involved already, and I’m going to stay that way. Especially when it comes to bringing my brother in. You don’t even know what bagel shop to go to without my help. You need me.”

Dominic took a step forward so that he was mere inches away from her. He towered over her in an intimidating stance. “Actually, you need me,” he said in a deceptively soft tone. “I’m the one trying to keep you and Michael from getting killed, remember? A little cooperation here wouldn’t be out of line.”

She had to bend her neck back to meet his eyes, but she did it, her own eyes spitting blue fire. “Yes, I remember. And I’m the one betraying my own brother. Did you remember that?”

He acknowledged that she had a point, but he still didn’t like it. Unfortunately, she had left him with little choice. Two hours was barely enough time to get a plan together for an arrest in such a public location. Finding an agent to be her double just wouldn’t be possible in that time frame. He narrowed his eyes and when he spoke, his voice was deadly serious. “You will obey every command I give you out there, do you understand?”

She nodded, clearly knowing she had won, but wanting to leave his pride intact. “Yes, I understand. I’ll do whatever you ask.”

Dominic straightened, then grimaced. “Okay. To start with, tell me which bagel shop we’re talking about. We need to plan this out.”

They sat down across from Jake and Chris and started talking over their strategy. Chris was assigned the task of going immediately to the bagel shop so he could call them and give them the lay of the land, as well as establish himself as a customer. Jake called and coordinated their efforts with the local police department and made sure they had communication devices so they could all keep in contact. Dominic went over the plan with Jessica until he was sure she was prepared for every contingency. He was still uncomfortable with having her participate with the arrest, but couldn’t convince her to stay at the hotel, even by promising her a chance to talk to Michael after he was taken into custody.

Dominic had no choice but to move forward with the plan, and hope that the sinking feeling in his stomach wasn’t a sign that everything was about to go terribly wrong.

What seemed like only a short time later, a female marshal named Whitney Johnson, dressed in civilian clothing, dropped Jessica off in front of the bagel shop. The two women waved at each other as if they were old friends, then Jessica turned and glanced around the parking lot. The bagel shop was at the end of a busy strip mall that housed several different boutiques and two larger clothing stores. The lunch crowd was starting to come in, and several of the wrought iron tables on the sidewalk outside the store were already filled with customers enjoying their designer café and deli sandwiches. Jessica saw Chris eating alone at one of the tables. He appeared to be engrossed in a magazine and didn’t acknowledge her, nor did she expect him to.

She opened the door and went inside, again noticing that the place was busier than she expected. The shop had about fifteen small tables that each seated either two or four customers, and at least half of the tables were filled with a wide assortment of people. One little girl, approximately four years old, was bouncing around a table next to her mother who was trying to spoon-feed some baby food to a fussy infant. Two older men were playing chess in the corner, and four lively women were having a vibrant conversation about local politics at another table. She studied the faces of the other customers but didn’t see her brother yet. Hopefully he would get here soon, and this whole affair would be over. She dreaded Michael’s arrest, but she had to agree it was definitely better than finding him dead in an alley somewhere.

Customers waited cafeteria-style for their turn in line so they could have their food made to order, and she joined the line, waiting for her turn. Racks of bagels lined the walls behind the counters, and twin refrigerated compartments, containing various beverages for sale as well as fruit and tubs of eight different flavors of cream cheese, met customers before they reached the cash register. Jessica studied the menu that plastered the wall above the bagel racks. Although her stomach was in knots, she wanted to order something so that she would blend in with the other customers. She finally chose a chocolate chip bagel with low-fat cream cheese and a cranberry juice, then paid the cashier and took her snack to a table near the back that faced the front door. She wanted to have a clear view of everyone who went in and out of the restaurant, and this table seemed to have the perfect vantage point.

The little bell over the door rang and caught her attention, and she noticed Dominic come in. He was dressed very casually in jeans and an old polo shirt with a faded Marlins baseball cap pulled low over his eyes. Even in that getup, he was incredibly handsome. She quickly looked away, but not before a whisper of attraction swept through her. She grimaced, unhappy with the direction her thoughts had taken her. Since when was she attracted to pushy law enforcement officers? She shrugged to herself and kept an eye on the door, bringing her thoughts back to the task at hand.

Each time the bell rang she waited expectantly, hoping that she would see her brother’s face come through the door. She didn’t have long to wait. After about ten minutes, a rangy blond man walked in wearing khaki shorts, a long-sleeved navy button-down shirt, a fishing hat and a pair of dark tortoiseshell sunglasses. He was thin, probably a little too thin by Jessica’s estimation, and his face was haggard and covered in a scraggly beard and mustache, but there was no hiding his identity from his sister. He noticed her right away and went directly to her table. Jessica jumped to her feet and gave him a rambunctious hug.

“Michael! Thank God! I was so worried about you.”

“Hey, Jess. Thanks for coming.”

They sat down and in her exuberance, Jessica knocked over her drink. Michael jumped back, missing the spray of cranberry juice, just as the first bullet drilled into the wall behind him.

FIVE

The second bullet nicked Jessica in the arm as the two dove for the ground and pushed the table over to use it as a shield. Utter chaos reigned. People were screaming as another gunshot was heard by the front door, and the shooter went down hard. Jessica felt a heavy weight over her and realized Dominic had crawled over and was protecting her body with his own. Their eyes met—Jessica’s filled with fear and Dominic’s filled with worry.

Jessica looked toward where Michael had landed but saw no sign of her brother. The long-sleeved navy shirt he had been wearing was in a heap on the floor, as well as the sunglasses and hat. She looked around the bagel shop—at least, as much of it as she could see from this angle. Most of the patrons had taken refuge under their tables, but screaming continued and several people had run out of the restaurant through the back emergency exit, which had set off an obnoxiously loud shrieking alarm.

Dominic pulled back, visually checking her for other injuries. “Are you okay?”

She nodded, then winced as she moved her arm. Her entire shoulder was throbbing. “Michael is gone.” She looked down at her wound and for the first time seemed to notice that blood was seeping through her fingers. “Wow. That really hurts.”

Dominic glanced around, his weapon drawn, but seemed to calm down as he realized that nobody else had fired since the man near the door had gone down. Jessica guessed that meant the downed man was a lone shooter. Dominic returned his weapon to his ankle holster and turned his attention back to Jessica. “Hopefully, someone grabbed Michael on his way out. I don’t think he was injured.” He examined her bleeding arm, then pulled out a handkerchief and applied pressure to the wound. “Hold this on it. You’re going to need a few stitches, but the bullet just grazed you.” He gave her a smile. “It looks a lot worse than it is, I promise. You’re really going to have to stop trying to catch bullets with your arm.” He brushed the hair out of her eyes. “Will you be okay for a minute or two while I check in with everybody?”

Jessica nodded while Dominic spoke into a small microphone that he had clipped on his shirt and listened intently to the small earpiece that connected him to the other marshals outside. He reported Michael’s disappearance and Jessica’s wound, then sat silently for a moment as he listened to the other reports coming in. He gave her a piercing look. “It’s over. Michael escaped. Stay here and sit tight while we try to calm everybody down. Then we’ll get you to a hospital so we can take care of that arm.” He reached for her hand and squeezed it, then stood and started walking around the tables.

She watched as he went from person to person, identifying himself and reassuring them as he helped them get to their feet and settle down. She couldn’t help but be impressed by the care and concern he showed as he gently led them to the front door and tried to block their vision as best he could of the dead shooter lying on the floor. Every few seconds he glanced back at Jessica to make sure she was still where he had left her.

Chris and Jake were also talking to customers and the restaurant staff, and Jessica saw that the initial officers from the Tallahassee Police Department had arrived on the scene and were also interviewing people outside. Suddenly the alarm was silenced, and she could hear sirens outside just barely above the din of voices and other noise in the restaurant.

She looked over at Michael’s abandoned clothes and glasses. Upon closer inspection, she noticed what looked like a wad of hair and glue near the shirt. Apparently Michael had learned a thing or two about disguises, and the scraggly beard and mustache had been fake. After the first bullet had been fired, he must have changed his appearance and his clothing so he could slip out unnoticed during all of the confusion. She had to give him credit for thinking ahead and having an escape plan in the first place. Obviously, he knew his life was in danger and had prepared for that contingency. She, however, was not used to living in fear. Her hands started shaking as the full impact of what had just happened hit home and the adrenaline surge started to ebb.

Apparently someone had known Michael was going to be at the bagel shop today and wanted him dead right away. Did that mean Coastal had already found the disk, and his life was now worthless to them? Had the shooter been trying to kill her as well? She needed to talk to Michael and get some insight, but would he trust her again? Question after question came rushing to her mind. She tried to take a deep breath to calm herself, but she couldn’t seem to stop shaking.

Everything she knew in her life had come crashing down within the last forty-eight hours. She had never bothered anyone and had always lived a quiet existence. How could someone suddenly be trying to kill her?

Jessica had been wrong. She couldn’t handle this situation on her own, or even with the marshal’s help. Dominic was doing his best to protect her, but he was only a man and could only do so much. She needed more than just someone to keep her safe anyway. If nothing else, the last few hours had shown her with absolute clarity that she needed God back in her life, and the pull on her heart was strong. This time, she wasn’t going to resist.

Jessica closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Her prayer was short but heartfelt. I know I was wrong to shut You out, Lord. I’m so sorry. Thank You for not giving up on me and for loving me, even though I’ve stayed away for so long. Please forgive me for my mistakes and come back into my life. She slowly opened her eyes and felt a warm, peaceful feeling come over her. For the first time, she finally understood that God wasn’t going to erase her problems, but that He would always be there to go through the problems with her. It was a very comforting thought.

Finally, Dominic returned to her side and strong arms lifted her to her feet. Instinctively she leaned into his strength, raising her head to give him a weak smile of thanks. He met her eyes and seemed to see that something had changed. “Are you okay?”

Jessica gave a small laugh. “Actually, I feel better than I’ve felt in years. God is good, did you know that? I just felt His presence for the first time in a very long time.”

Dominic smiled and squeezed her hand. “That’s really good to hear,” he said, beaming at her.

“Now, it’s time to get you to a doctor. Come on, let’s get you out of here.”

Dominic’s admiration for Jessica went up another notch when her spine noticeably stiffened and she gained control of her shaky emotions. This was one tough lady. It was horrible that something so violent had happened to her, yet he couldn’t help being pleased that it had brought her back to God. It was always amazing to him that what men meant for evil, God could use for good.

He led her out the back door of the restaurant so they wouldn’t have to walk past the dead body and also to avoid the gathering crowd that was filling up the parking lot. Chris was just getting out of the car he had brought around for them when they arrived. He tossed the keys to Dominic, gave him a nod and headed back into the bagel shop. The other marshals would be there for a while as they processed the crime scene with the local police. Even the FBI had joined the party and had sent over their liaison, since they were also working on the Coastal task force. But Jessica Blake was Dominic’s responsibility, and right now that meant getting her out of there.

“Stay safe,” Chris said over his shoulder.

“You too,” Dominic answered. He opened the door for Jessica, got her situated and then circled the car. A few moments later he got behind the wheel and pulled away from the parking lot, leaving the aftermath behind them. He constantly surveyed the road and surrounding area as he drove, keeping his eyes open for threats as they headed to the hospital.

“So what happened back there?” Jessica asked quietly.

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