until we can figure out what’s going on here.”
She raised an eyebrow but then did as she was told, returning to the living room a few minutes later with a small rolling suitcase. She also grabbed a portfolio from her desk and added several papers and a couple of files from the filing cabinet. The fear was still radiating in her eyes, but he could see that she was determined to push forward and put this incident behind her as best she could. His admiration for her went up a notch. She really was tough. He liked that. It had been a long time since anyone outside of law enforcement had impressed him on any level. He was used to dealing with the dregs of society, and Mackenzie’s strength was a welcome ripple in a sea of viciousness he dealt with on a constant basis.
He started leading her out to his car. “So here’s the plan. I’ll take you to a hotel for the evening, one that our office uses a lot. We know we can trust the folks that run it. Then tomorrow morning, I’ll pick you up around eight a.m. and bring you to my workplace so you can describe those two men to our sketch artist and maybe look at some mug books. Will that work for you?”
She nodded. “That will do nicely. I actually already have a meeting scheduled there tomorrow anyway. I can do both in one fell swoop.”
Jake raised his eyebrows, surprised. “Really? Anything you care to share?”
“My new video project is about the working of the local US Marshals office. I’ve been hired to do a documentary for them. I was already scheduled to meet with Chief Deputy US Marshal J.T. Austin. He runs the unit I’ve been assigned to work with. Do you know him?”
Her words stopped Jake cold. He froze and turned slowly to meet her eyes. “J.T. Austin is my boss.” He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. “You’re doing a movie about our office?” He could tell the gruffness of his voice shocked her, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. Surely she was mistaken. His boss wouldn’t really sanction this type of project, would he? A documentary would put his life and the lives of others who worked with him at risk. They didn’t need the exposure, and they didn’t certainly need to be worrying about the safety of someone who was following them around while they were doing a very dangerous job. Jake also had a full caseload and a heap of work on his desk. He didn’t have the time to push all of that aside to help with something as extraneous as a public service video.
“Yes, it’s all been arranged. They didn’t tell you I was coming?”
“No, they neglected to mention that.” Again, his voice was frosty, even to his own ears. “I’m sure we can sort it out tomorrow, though. There’s no way you’re making a documentary of my unit. That’s just not gonna happen.” He’d make sure of that. He’d set Mackenzie Weaver up with the mug shot books and then meet with J.T. and voice his concerns. Jake Riley wasn’t going to have any documentary made about him or the work he did, even though the videographer was an old family friend who had become a beautiful woman. He’d put a stop to the film the first thing in the morning.
Mackenzie dared another glance behind her and opened the door to the local office of the US Marshals. As she entered the building, she wasn’t sure if she was being watched or not. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone had their eyes on her and was paying attention to her every move, despite the presence of Jake Riley, who followed just a few steps behind. Last night she had stayed at the hotel suggested by Jake, but she had been truly surprised at the change in his attitude, which seemed to have gotten distinctly frostier once she’d mentioned the documentary. He’d turned into an iceberg in two minutes flat, and arriving to pick her up this morning, he hadn’t said more than a handful of words to her or even met her eye.
She shouldn’t really have been surprised at his behavior. As a kid, she had done her best to garner Jake’s interest, but he had largely ignored her. Nothing had changed. Sure, they were both adults now, but it was painfully obvious that he still found her to be a nuisance. His distaste for her seemed even worse than when she had been following him around as a teenager. She didn’t know what she had done to offend him so, but at this point, she didn’t want to dwell on it. She had moved on years ago.
Maybe she was just being too sensitive. She hadn’t slept very well last night. The feel of the man’s gun under her chin was still too real, and the entire experience from yesterday still had her nerves on edge. But life had to go on, and she had two meetings in this office today—one with Jake Riley to look at mug shots, if he still wanted her to do so, and one with the chief to go over her action plan and start the wheels turning on her video project. As she expected, Jake Riley disappeared soon after their arrival at the building, so she asked for the chief at the front desk and was soon ushered back into a small conference room.
J.T. Austin, Chief Deputy US Marshal, came in with a warm smile and his hand out, ready to shake. He was a large man who exuded authority, with a tough-as-nails appearance. Yet his smile was genuine, and Mackenzie felt instantly at ease, incredibly glad that he was more receptive to her project than Jake Riley was. She stood to greet him and then sat back down and pulled out her portfolio.
“I’m so glad we’re going to be working together, Chief Austin. I’ve heard great things about your unit and its amazing closure rate. You must have a truly excellent team.”
“We do indeed,” Austin agreed.
The door opened and Jake Riley reappeared. Mackenzie smiled at him but was met with a scowl. He still refused to meet her eye.
“I believe you already know Deputy Marshal Riley,” Austin intoned.
Mackenzie was a bit flustered by Jake’s icy expression, but she took it in stride. “Yes, he actually saved my life last night. A couple of men broke into my apartment and held me at gunpoint, but Deputy Marshal Riley scared them off before they could do any serious damage.”
Austin raised an eyebrow. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
He leaned back as Jake took a seat at the conference table. “Looks like you were in the right place at the right time, Jake.” He smiled. “Mackenzie Weaver is the videographer we are working with to create our documentary. We’d been keeping the project under wraps until we worked out all the details, but now that we have a contract in place, we’re ready to move forward. Ms. Weaver is making a one-hour special that will be broadcast on one of the biggest networks in the country. It should bring the agency some wonderful exposure from a media standpoint and may even help us with our budget requests. The more the legislature knows about what we do and how we do it, the better likelihood we have of getting properly funded. This movie is really important to us and will make a big impact. It’s good to have her.” He turned to Mackenzie. “Ms. Weaver, I’ve assigned you to Jake and his team so you can make your documentary. He’ll be showing you the ropes and answering your questions as you go through the filming process.”
Mackenzie expelled a breath, hoping her disappointment didn’t show. She’d hoped Chief Austin had been planning to assist her personally, especially after Jake’s negative comments the night before. She dared another glance at Jake and was still surprised at his frigid expression. He obviously didn’t want to be working with her. The question was, why? Had she said or done something last night to turn him off or insult him? Did he still think of her as a lovesick tomboy from high school? She needed his cooperation for this film to become a success. She decided to put her best foot forward and let her professionalism shine. “I’m so pleased to be working with you, Deputy.”
Austin stood. “I’ll leave you two to get to work. Ms. Weaver, if you need anything, my office
