Concern lined his features. While the coughs had momentarily ceased, her lungs were still angry, and she didn’t trust herself to speak. She squeezed Kurt’s hand and tried to smile so he’d know she was okay, but he didn’t let go. They made their way to a decorative boulder in the front yard and sat side by side. An ambulance and fire truck rushed down the street toward the property.
She began to shiver even though it wasn’t cold. She blinked rapidly. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. Had the flowers blown up? Kurt dropped her hand, wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. His lungs must’ve hurt, too, because he still made no effort to talk. His warmth kept her teeth from chattering.
Logically she’d known that someone wanted to kill her. She’d known it from the time they’d escaped the truck underwater. She’d known someone was capable of murder after seeing Levi. But somehow she’d deluded herself into thinking that the truck incident was going to be the worst of it. The bomb meant they were against someone equipped with ingenuity and a brazen determination.
It was time to face the truth. Whoever was behind this wasn’t going to stop until she was dead.
* * *
Kurt kept a protective arm around Rebecca while the firemen poured out of the emergency vehicle. He didn’t trust himself to speak. If he did, words he might regret would be targeted at the officers who’d allowed the vase to pass inspection.
His court security officers would’ve never allowed something like this to happen. Of course, he’d trained them personally, and they had the ability to scan and x-ray everything that tried to come into the courts. But still. How could the police officers have missed a bomb in the vase unless one of them was in on it?
Rebecca turned into him, her cheek resting against his chest. She’d had faith in him, she’d said. He couldn’t help but feel he’d failed her. Yet she didn’t act repulsed by him. Maybe it’d hit her later. He’d learned long ago that people only believed in you when you were doing something that benefited them.
She lifted her chin and her eyes met his. A million emotions he couldn’t identify unfurled within his chest. “Are you okay?” he asked. He sounded a little like a bullfrog, but the irritation in his throat was lessening with the fresh air.
She blinked slowly. “Yes. Thank you.” She coughed again and he patted her back in a poor attempt to help.
“I’ve been shot at, choked and knifed. Never did I ever imagine I’d be almost taken out by flowers.”
EMT workers who looked familiar rushed to their side. Kurt answered a barrage of questions about pain, not able to keep up with the answers Rebecca was giving her respective technician. Their vitals were taken and Rebecca waved away an oxygen mask. “I’ll be fine. I think whatever was in that smoke irritated my lungs.”
The man in uniform sunk to one knee and handed her a water bottle. “Well, drink this down and then we’ll make the call about whether we should give you a ride to the hospital or not.”
They handed Kurt his own water bottle, even though, aside from some bruised muscles and brown paint drying on the back of his neck, he felt fine.
“Adrenaline can mask pain,” the EMT said. Kurt knew that but didn’t reply.
The EMT in front of Rebecca seemed to have eyes only for her. “I may not be in law enforcement, but it seems pretty obvious somebody isn’t happy with you.”
She gave a small laugh in reply.
His entire body tensed and his blood boiled. Why did everyone need to keep reminding him that he was in law enforcement? He knew already, and he knew that meant he shouldn’t let himself have feelings for Rebecca.
“Sir, your heart rate and pressure just spiked. Are you okay?”
Kurt hadn’t even realized the EMT sitting next to him had a blood pressure cuff on his right arm. “I’m fine. I need to speak with her alone. Is she cleared?”
Rebecca turned wide eyes on him.
The EMT nodded. “We’ll give you a minute and come back and check your vitals again.”
“Did you see something?” she asked.
“Do you have a boyfriend?” His voice sounded louder than he intended.
Her eyes narrowed. “Why? Do you have a girlfriend?”
He pursed his lips at the ludicrous question. Why would she even ask? “No, and I would think it was obvious why I need to know. There’s a chance we’re barking up the wrong tree. Could this be personal? Flowers might indicate—”
“Oh.” She bit her lip and shook her head. “Sorry. I’m not thinking clearly yet. No, there’s no one. I travel a lot. Nothing ever serious.”
“I didn’t mean to bark.” He blew out a long breath. “For a moment there, I was scared I’d los—”
“Don’t say it. You saved my life. Again. That’s what matters.” She gestured at the firemen pouring out of her grandfather’s house. “And stopping whoever did this from trying again.”
A fireman pulled off his face mask and pointed at Kurt. “You the deputy marshal?”
Kurt stood and recognized the man as the fire chief. The handlebar moustache was a dead giveaway. “You got something for me?”
“We got the fire out,” the chief answered. “My men are making sure it can’t start back up again. You’d be surprised how many times we get called back on a relit. It’s a nightmare.” He gestured backward. “The structural integrity of the house seems sound. You can thank the vaulted ceilings for that. It had enough force it could’ve shifted the house off its foundation, but the open layout allowed for dissipation. The kitchen is in pretty bad shape, though, and the living room windows and the main door to the garage were blown off, but all the walls are there.”
That was good news for Judge Linn as it likely meant a relatively fast repair and remodel, but it didn’t help Kurt get any better an understanding as to what happened. “How does a bomb go unnoticed in a flower vase? I’m assuming that’s where it came from.”
“Babette!” Rebecca jumped up, her face ashen. “My grandpa owns a cat. Was she—”
A police officer approached, holding the Siamese cat. “Are you looking for this girl?” The man scratched behind Babette’s ears. “She’s been keeping us company at the gate all day.”
“Oh, thank you.” Rebecca leaned forward and pulled the wiggling cat into her arms. “I imagine Grandpa will be glad you are a little escape artist now.” Babette had likely escaped when Delaney had come around the last time.
Kurt’s fist tensed at the sight of the officer who had insisted the flowers were safe.
The man’s eyes widened. “I’m telling you, I looked right down in the vase. There was nothing there but water.”
The chief held up his thumb and index finger about four inches apart. “It was a small conical device that made this mess. It could’ve been designed to match the vase. You think you’re looking at the bottom of it, but really you’re looking at the top of the bomb.”
Kurt exhaled. “How would you know that?”
“I found the cap and the threading used in the device. I’m no expert, so don’t quote me. I’ve taken some classes, and we have a SWAT guy that keeps us updated on all the different methods of bomb making.” The chief hitched a thumb over his shoulder. “One thing I know for sure. Whoever put that together knew his stuff. ATF is on the way for the investigation.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives would be the best choice to answer Kurt’s questions, but they’d take too long to reach a conclusion.
The chief leaned forward with conspiratorial posturing. “So when I tell you this is my unofficial opinion, I mean it.” He dipped his chin to level his gaze, making sure Kurt understood. “I believe I spotted evidence indicating the bomb had a remote detonator.”
Great. Kurt was doing such a bang-up job at protecting Rebecca that all he needed was a homicidal bomb expert to come after them. The judge would love that news
. He rounded his back, hunched his shoulders and let his sarcastic thoughts wash over him.
Hating the threat didn’t make it go away, though. If someone set it off remotely, then they should be searching the area. He straightened and pointed to the officer. “Tell me you have the driver’s license of the floral van.”
“Absolutely. Scanned it and the plates when he pulled in.”
Finally. Something had gone right. Technology updates had slowed many things down in law enforcement with extra training and glitches that had to be fixed with each upgrade, but the ability to share information in a heartbeat was invaluable. “Text it to me and send the alert out to police and the Sheriff’s Office.” He rattled off his phone number as the officer tapped rapidly on his own phone.
Kurt received the text and zoomed in on the license. The man looked like the body-builder type. He had a thick neck covered in tattoos and a beard covering his chin. “This is exactly how he looked?”
The officer shifted uncomfortably. “Well, not exactly. He had a ball cap on and said he’d shaved his beard off and lost some weight. But otherwise, he looked pretty similar.”
Kurt tried to hold in his groan. While photos could be old and people changed, he didn’t feel convinced they weren’t looking at a false identification.
“Did he have the same tattoos?”
The officer’s face gave him answer. He hadn’t noticed. At least the tech guy at the courthouse had done an excellent job duplicating Kurt’s previous setup on the new smartphone. The tools he used to check the fugitive database were right where he wanted them. Thirty seconds later he got the “not found” message, which meant the guy wasn’t a known fugitive...yet.
“Can I see?” Rebecca leaned over his shoulder, trying to get a good look.
He flinched, hopefully not enough that she noticed. She seemed to be comfortable getting close to him, on a regular basis. “Here, take Babette first.” She dumped the cat into his arms before he could even object.
The officers and chief had amused smirks as they looked between him and Rebecca, as if they knew something he didn’t. He wanted to wipe the grins off their ugly mugs. “I hate cats,” he mumbled. “You want it back?” he asked the officer.
Rebecca slipped the phone out of his hand. “Oh, but she likes you.”
“I’ve got to get on this APB anyway,” the officer said and walked away.
Babette stretched her neck and rubbed her white fur against his chin. It had to be prickly with his five-o’clock shadow. Maybe the cat wanted a scratching post. Or did cats claw a scratching post? His uncertainty was evidence that he didn’t care enough to know. “Can I let her down to roam?”
“Too many birds of prey around here,” she answered. “I’m thankful she’s stayed safe this long.”
The chief pointed to the road. “I think the ATF is almost here.” He sauntered off with a grin.
Rebecca stretched her fingers over the screen until the man’s photo filled the screen. She adjusted her grip until her fingers could cover most everything but his eyes. She shook her head and sighed. “It’s not the guy.”
Kurt’s gut tightened, and the cat responded by purring and curling up into his chest. Rebecca’s eyes looked moist as she looked up into the clear sky, marred only by a few coiled tendrils of remaining smoke. “It might’ve been the guy if he used a fake identification of someone just similar enough to pass it off.”
He’d already considered that. The cat had the audacity to fall asleep in his arms. Well, he wasn’t having that. “Take her back.” He bent over and tried to shift the cat, who seemed to have no intention of waking up, into her arms. His face brushed up against her forehead during the clumsy exchange. His neck heated and the idea of Rebecca curled up against his chest instead proved difficult to forget.
He straightened and took his phone from her. Their fingers brushed and a soft smile crossed her face. Was it possible she was attracted to him? He cleared his throat and turned toward the house. He waved his arm at the expanse of hills and trees on one side of the property. “Whoever did this had plenty of places he could hide and watch to set off the detonator. From there, someone could see us pull in to the garage.”
The cat wiggled in her arms and complained vocally with warbling meows. Rebecca ignored her. “The bomb went off maybe a minute and a half after we pulled in to the garage.”
“Exactly. Someone waited until they thought we would be inside.” The bomber’s plan had nearly worked.
A white SUV with dark-tinted windows drove down the street. While he couldn’t be certain until it got closer, it was probably Delaney. The vehicle in the garage couldn’t be driven until the windshield was repaired and the rest inspected. It was designed to handle gunshots, so hopefully it would be roadworthy soon. For now, they’d have to rely on Delaney as their ride. Even though she was a newbie, she’d had the smarts to add darkened windows to her personal vehicle.
The window rolled down at the gate and the officers waved the vehicle inside. Sure enough, Delaney pulled up right next to them. “At this rate we’ll have to be borrowing CSO cars.” She tossed Kurt her keys. “You can drive mine for now. The Spokane office is considering sending us reinforcements.”
It was about time. “And the hesitation?”
“Whether it’s deemed a true threat to the court.”
He gritted his teeth. “What do they call a bomb in the judge’s house? Sounds credible to me.”
Delaney’s eyes flicked to Rebecca, who acted as if she wasn’t listening while she petted Babette. “They’re reviewing the case and the judge’s request. There’s some question as to whether it would’ve happened at all if the judge was here, or if his granddaughter was in Ohio.” Her voice remained low, but Kurt felt certain by the way Rebecca sucked in a sharp breath that she’d still heard. Delaney held up a hand. “What if we called the county’s victim-witness coordinator?”
And she’d just proved the reason Judge Linn had requested him. A newbie had yet to learn all the ins and outs of interagency cooperation. “Their hands are tied unless a felony has already been filed.”
She sighed. “Okay. I’ll stay and run point here,” Delaney said in a much stronger voice. “Your new base is at the motel. Rooms are already set up. I’ll come by, as soon as I have another vehicle, with clothes for you, Rebecca. That’ll give Kurt a chance to gather his clothes.”
He pointed at the cat. “Pretty sure they don’t allow animals.”
“That’s okay,” Rebecca said. “We can drop her off at the vet. I know for a fact they’ll spoil her rotten in boarding. They’ve nicknamed her the Queen B.”
She might envy the cat when she saw where they were going, then. Sometimes staying safe on a government budget meant discomfort. He hoped it would be worth it.
SEVEN
Rebecca stared at her grandfather’s property fading into the distance as they rounded the curved road. “Some of my best childhood memories were at that house before Dad got too nervous about us visiting.” She pointed at the steep hill that led to the lake. “The house used to have a rail system. My parents were on an anniversary getaway and—” she smiled at the memory “—Grandma let us climb into the tram to ride down to the dock to the speedboat they used to own. Mom and Dad showed up as we were heading down, arms in the air, like it was a roller coaster.”
“There aren’t very many of those left in the area, but the ones I’ve seen don’t go very fast at all.”
“No, but neither does the Small World ride at Disneyland. As a kid, I might as well have been on a dragon, I thought it was so cool.”
“Your grandma sounds like a spitfire.”
“She was.”
“So you took after her.”
She felt her eyebrows jump. Had she? Her grandma was fearless, fiercely committed, and supportive of Grandpa and his work. She glanced at Kurt’s profile. Could she ever be l
ike that? Delaney’s words ran through her head. She bit her lip and blurted, “Maybe it would be better for everyone if I got back to Ohio.”
“That’s a bad idea.” Kurt’s voice rose. “If you leave now, I can’t guarantee your safety. I’d be hard-pressed to get you round-the-clock protection from the Marshals if they conclude the threat isn’t against the court.”
“Isn’t that what we’re all thinking? It must be linked to Vista Resort Properties. So when you agree with the rest of them, I’ll lose your protection, as well.”
He shook his head. “I won’t accept that. It may be a gray area, but I can choose to accept the judge’s request to guard you. Whoever is out there isn’t only a threat to you but society. And for all we know, he’ll target the judge to get to you. So don’t worry about protection. I’m not backing down until I’m convinced you’re safe.”
She leaned back and admired his passion for his work. That’s all it was, a drive to make sure he did a job well done. Still, her heart warmed from his words. Despite the danger, she felt physically safe with him by her side. Her heart was another matter.
It was time to get logical. If she went back to Ohio, her firm would only send another auditor to the valley to make sure the truth was uncovered. Whoever followed her footsteps wouldn’t have a judge as a relative who could ask for special protection. Right, Lord? I want Your wisdom but need You to make it abundantly clear.
The police chief might be willing to offer protection if they had enough evidence of foul play. How likely was it they could keep another auditor safe when they’d allowed a bomb to go right past them? To be fair, it sounded like even the marshals wouldn’t have spotted it. What kind of person knew how to do such things? How were they ever going to win against someone like that?
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