Читать книгу Under the Marshal's Protection - Kathleen Tailer - Страница 9

“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.