or accident simulations is absolutely amazing,” she replied. “But I still trust my abilities to use pencil and paper and sketch based on the eyewitness interview for the purposes of identification.”
He didn’t reply because it only would have led to an argument that he didn’t think she would want to have right now.
“You said you were at the FBI before. How long have you been a marshal?”
He didn’t really want to give an exact answer. “Not very long.” He could feel her gaze on him as he drove.
“Hey, don’t tell me I’m your first witness.”
He smiled. “Okay, I won’t tell you that.”
“Wow.” She blew out a breath. “I am your first witness.”
“That’s true, but I’d been with the FBI for a decade. It’s not like I’m new to law enforcement, so I’m not a true rookie.”
“I can imagine that working as an FBI agent in the gang unit is a lot different than guarding a witness, though.”
“Don’t give it another thought. You’re safe now, and you’ll stay that way.”
“No offense, but we just met. You’re asking me to put a lot of faith in you.”
“I know. But that’s the way it has to be. No one else on our team has the same knowledge of the threats to you like I do. I’m thankful that I got assigned to your case and was able to connect the dots, or this afternoon might have ended very differently.” He paused as he pointed to a house up ahead. “We’re here on the right.”
“This looks like a regular neighborhood.”
“That’s exactly the point. We’re trying to blend.”
He’d actually never been to this safe house before during his training, but he was getting the idea that they were all generally the same. This was a two-story house, painted a pale blue on a nice-size lot.
He pulled the sedan all the way into the driveway and stopped the car.
“Can I get out?” she asked.
“Yes, but first let me just do a quick security check. You stay here and keep the doors locked.”
Before she could answer he had jogged up to the front door and opened it. He quickly surveyed the house, conducting a security sweep. Satisfied it was all clear he went back outside to get Sydney. Her expression appeared unreadable as she sat in the passenger’s seat. He really wanted to know what was going in that head of hers.
He opened the car door for her, and she stepped out bedside him. She was a pretty woman, no doubt, with a simple and natural beauty about her. But she gave off a very strong vibe. One that said loudly, “Back off.”
“This way,” he said. He took her arm and escorted her to the front door, even though he got the feeling she didn’t appreciate him invading her personal space. “Another marshal will be over in a bit with dinner and everything you’ll need for tonight and tomorrow.”
“You aren’t leaving, are you?” she asked as she made direct eye contact.
“No. I just didn’t want you to think we were going to be totally shut off from the outside world without the things you would need.”
“What I really need is to be at my own home.”
“I understand. Let’s get through your testimony in the morning, and then we can reevaluate.”
“I’ll hold you to that.”
He walked over to where she stood in the living room. “I promise. And I won’t make you promises I can’t keep. I hate it when people do that to me and—”
A loud crash rocked the room as glass flew against his body. His face burned and he felt blood trickling down his cheek. Smoke surrounded him. He dove toward Sydney, hoping it wouldn’t be too late.
Smoke filled Sydney’s lungs as she tried to draw a breath. Max was on the ground beside her, and his face was bleeding. Then she noticed the shards of glass littering the floor around them, and realized he must have been hit by one.
Max gripped her waist and pulled her up off the floor. “We’ve got to move.”
Trying to catch her breath, she took a step and pain shot through her leg. Blood covered her right arm as it throbbed at her side. But now was not the time to worry about that. They were literally under attack.
The smoke was clearing a little so that she could see. But that also meant they could be seen by whoever had attacked them.
A gunshot rang out, and Max pushed her back down to the ground.
“Where did that come from?” she asked.
“I’m not sure, but it sounded like it was from outside. We’re going to move farther in to the interior of the house.”
Her heart raced as, on their hands and knees, he guided her further away from the windows and toward the center of the house. I don’t want to die. She’d been through so much in her life. She wasn’t going to give up now. She could handle this, too. Taking a deep breath, she crawled toward the bathroom door.
Pulling her in, he shut the door and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. She couldn’t help but flinch as he touched her—but it wasn’t from the pain.
“What hurts?” he asked.
“My arm and my leg. But I don’t think it’s too serious.” She paused and looked up at him. “Your face is bleeding.” She reached up and touched his cheek, trying to determine where the blood was coming from. “Looks like you got hit on the side of your face with a piece of glass.”
“Yeah, I think it’s just a nick. I’ll—”
His remark was cut short by a deep male voice that rang throughout the house. “Anyone here?”
Max put his fingers to his lips indicating that she should not respond.
“Preston, are you there? It’s Davies.”
She watched as Max’s shoulders visibly dropped. “He’s one of ours,” he told her.
“Back here, Davies.”
Max helped her to her feet and opened the bathroom door.
Through the clearing smoke she saw a man and woman both dressed in suits approaching them. “The suspect was able to flee,” the tall blond man said. “We wanted to make sure the package was secure.”
“Are you okay?” the woman asked.
“A bit sore,” Sydney replied. “But I guess it could’ve been much worse.”
The
