FAITH WASN’TSUREwhat had woken her. She slid her hand under the covers—slowly, silently—toward the gun under the pillow to her left.
It wasn’t there.
She lay still, eyes closed, wide awake. Had she put it there? She’d been completely exhausted by the time she got home. But not too tired to remember to put a gun under the pillow when there was so much at stake.
“I’m not planning to hurt you, Agent Malone.” The voice was soft. Spoken in a tone chosen carefully not to frighten her.
As if stealing into her bedroom, getting her gun, and then, based on the sound, hovering between her bed and the door wasn’t terrifying.Lord, I don’t want to die. Help me. Please.
There was still so much to do. So much life to live.
So many people to love. One in particular.
“I hear you’re looking for me, and I need to set the record straight.” The voice hadn’t moved closer, but that brought no comfort.
Her eyes were wide now, and she was desperate for them to acclimate to the darkness and give her some hint of who her visitorwas. It had to be either David Lee or the mysterious Tiger. Unless it was someone else entirely. “I would have been happy to chat in the office.” Faith tried to keep her voice as calm and soft as his, as if they were both trying not to wake a sleeping baby.
“Well, your office isn’t known for being an ideal location for people like me.”
“And why is that?”
“You law-enforcement types get all antsy and jumpy. It’s not like I’m walking around with a dirty bomb in my pocket.”
A dirty bomb? A fresh horror chilled Faith, and she couldn’t stop the shiver that rippled through her and rattled the bed frame against the wall. Had he killed the bomb maker? What other kinds of bombs had been in that workshop?
“It was a joke, Agent Malone. I’m not the one trying to kill the Secret Service agents.”
She wasn’t so sure about that, but she’d play along. “Then who is?”
“An injured party.”
“What kind of injury?”
“The kind you need revenge to heal from.”
“Mi Cha.” In some way, everything came back to Mi Cha.
“And now we’ve come to it.” The voice was closer and softer.
Faith took a breath and blew it out, slow and steady.Think.If he lunged at her now, he could trap her under the covers and suffocate her with her own pillow. Or he could shoot her in the head. Either way, she couldn’t do much to protect herself.
She had to stay alert for any quick movement. “Do you mind if I sit up?” She didn’t wait for him to answer. If he came for her, at least her arms would be free and she could fight back. She scooted herself into a seated position.
“Be my guest.” He spoke in a courteous way. If there had beenanyone to overhear their conversation, they never would have suspected he’d broken into her home and was holding her hostage in her own bedroom.
“Thanks.” She crossed her legs and arranged the blankets off her knees in what she hoped appeared to be random movements. If he had night-vision goggles, then he could see every move she made.
Her phone was buried in the folds of the blankets. She’d fallen asleep with it on her chest between the sheet and the blanket, and now it was in front of her.
“I truly mean you no harm, Agent Malone. If he survives, that Agent Powell you got so friendly with in the parking lot would hunt me down. I’d rather not go to the trouble of killing him.”
Her intruder had been watching them? How? No one could have seen them in the car. Not in that rain. How could he know? No one knew. Well, Hope knew.
Faith played with the blankets and the folds, hoping he assumed she was nervous and this was her way of dealing with the stress. If he knew she was repeatedly pressing the power button on her phone, then she was in big trouble.
“You keep saying you don’t intend to harm me, but following me around, eavesdropping, and breaking into my house in the middle of the night? These things don’t give me a feeling of comfort and security.”
He laughed. “You’re just embarrassed because you got caught making out in a parking lot like a teenager. Don’t worry. I didn’t see anything. Just put two and two together.” He chuckled again. “You make a nice couple.” He spoke in a conciliatory tone. “I’m sure you’ll be very happy together and make very pretty babies. If he lives.”
