“Why?”
Colin lifted Joshua’s hands to his lips. “You go afteranypublic official, and the law throws the book at you! Judges, cops, prosecutors—we’re all protected. There are enhanced penalties for crimes againstanypublic official, specifically designed to deal with threats like Lexi’s and protect guys likeme.”
Joshua lowered his head, the fear plain on his face, but his hands stayed steady in Colin’s grasp.
“Baby, you need to trust in me,” Colin whispered. “I know this is upsetting. But we have the entire law enforcement system working for us. Protecting us. All Lexi Moreno did was casually mention his bullshit threat, and he’salreadyon his way to the supermax.”
Joshua nodded. Fear flickered in his eyes, but his voice was steady. “What does Esther think? What does she want to do?”
Colin breathed out a long sigh. “It hasn’t been finalized yet, but…” He glanced up at Joshua and winced. “She’s talking about moving us to a downtown hotel… temporarily.”
Joshua reared back. “Why?”
“Because it’s a more confined space, easier to set up security.”
“Security—as in…”
“As in law enforcement officers specially trained in protection procedures. Josh, I can talk her out of it. As long as nothing else happens and Moreno stays where he is, we won’t have to move.”
Joshua stared at him and nodded, then swallowed hard.
Colin’s hands tightened on his. “I know it’s pointless to say ‘don’t worry’, but babe, Moreno’s threat will probably come to nothing.” He drew Joshua closer. “Listen to me. Prosecutors get threatened all the time, and it’s incredibly rare thatanythingever comes of it. In the past century,there have only beeneightprosecutors killed in the line of duty.” He touched Joshua’s cheek and kissed him. “Those are pretty decent odds.”
“Please don’t expect me to find that comforting,” Joshua replied with a wan smile. “You havealwaysdefied the odds.”
There was a sudden movement next to him, and Colin winced, startled.
“What’s up?” Nate chirped from the grass beside him.
“Jesus, Nate! Don’t sneak up on me like that!”
Puzzled, Nate peered at him. “Colin? What’swrong?”
Colin eased Joshua back and turned to face their friend. “Where’s David?”
“He’s coming. Why? What iswrongwith you?”
“I need to talk to both of you.”
CHAPTER TWO
THREATS AND PROMISES
Colin laid out the situation for David and Nate, then leaned forward, arms wrapped around his knees. “I just wanted you both to know what’s happening.”
“Well, first off…” Nate leaned forward. “Screw going to a hotel. Stay with us!”
“Absolutely out of the question,” Colin told him. “I’m not going to put the two of you at risk on top of what we’re already going through. I won’t do it.” He touched Nate’s arm. “Buddy, the hotel they send us to will be picked for a reason—one entrance, upper floors, hard to get in or out. They’re designed to be locked down. Defensible. Your house isn’t.”
David nodded in agreement. “Colin’s right. Those hotel suites are set up for security. They’ve got one guardable entrance, and the windows are ten stories up. They’d be just as well off in theirownhome as we would in ours!”
“Well, that’s certainly what I’d prefer,” Joshua mumbled. “That we stayhome!”
“And hopefully that’s how it’ll work out, Josh,” Colin said, drawing in a deep breath. “We’ll know more on Monday. Esther might insist we stay at the hotel for security, given Moreno’s threat.” He turned, covering Joshua’s hand with his. “Baby, youknow I’d rather be at home. But for now, while this is under investigation, I have to go along with what my bosses decide.”
“Oh my god, Colin!” Nate blurted, fear sharp in his voice.
“Nate, it may come to nothing,” Colin assured him. “But with threats like this, they have to investigate to determine if the threat is credible. That means putting us somewhere secure—someplace easy to protect.” He squeezed Joshua’s hand and shrugged at David. “She’d never let us stay with you.”
