Blind Trust. Laura Scott

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СКАЧАТЬ even she could tell the face lacked depth.

      It could have been anyone. Even Joey.

      “How does it look?” Finn and Abernathy crossed over to see the portrait. She imagined Finn was disappointed, but he didn’t say anything. “Thanks, Joey.” He took the drawing and handed it to another officer. “Calvin, I need you to spread this sketch around to the rest of the precincts, so all cops can keep an eye out for him. He’s the one who stole one of Stella’s puppies.”

      Calvin looked surprised at the directive, but then nodded. “Yeah, sure. I can do that.”

      Eva knew when she was being patronized and couldn’t prevent a flash of anger. She jumped up from the plastic chair, grabbed her purse off the back and threw it over her shoulder. “I told you this wouldn’t work. I told you I didn’t get a good look at him. It wasn’t well lit inside the building and everything happened so fast.”

      “It’s okay,” Finn began, but she’d had enough.

      She turned quickly and made her way through the various desks of the precinct toward the door.

      It wasn’t until she was outside and walking away from the police station that she realized she was more upset with herself than with Finn Gallagher. She should have tried harder to get a good look at the guy. She knew the limitations of her vision but hadn’t attempted to compensate for it.

      Instead of trying to stop the big hulk of a man with nothing more than her keys, she should have studied his features, memorizing them for future reference.

      Her shoulders slumped with defeat. It would be her fault if Cocoa was lost forever.

      * * *

      Finn was flabbergasted by Eva’s abrupt departure. What had he said to set her off like that? He couldn’t imagine. He knew civilians didn’t have the same observation skills that were drilled into new recruits during their training at the academy. Having her come work with the sketch artist had been a long shot, but he’d felt it was worth it.

      He hadn’t expected her to become so angry and upset.

      “Wow, you must be losing your touch,” Joey said dryly. “What happened to the infamous Gallagher charm?”

      “No clue,” he admitted. He wasn’t necessarily proud of his reputation with women but hadn’t actively done anything to change it, either. He dated often, but never more than a few times with one woman before moving on. Despite that, he hadn’t left a trail of broken hearts behind. He’d worked hard to make sure the women he went out with knew he was all about fun and nothing more serious. He had Christian values after all, so he’d never crossed the line. And they’d always parted as friends.

      But Eva was different from the women he usually went out with. Not just because she was stunningly beautiful, but because of the many complex facets to her personality. Layers he was dying to peel away in order to catch a glimpse of the real woman hiding beneath.

      Not that he would be getting that chance anytime soon, he thought wryly. Which was too bad, since she intrigued him in a way the others hadn’t. Unfortunately, he wasn’t relationship material. His dad had been a cop and his mother had left them both when he was just a kid. He remembered being huddled in his bed, listening to his parents fight. His mother had railed at his father that sitting around waiting for him to get home wasn’t fair, especially when she wasn’t even sure he’d come home safely. She’d screamed at him that the reality of being a cop’s wife wasn’t what she’d signed up for and that she was leaving.

      Finn’s mother had never come back.

      “She’s a looker. You gonna just let her leave like that?” Joey asked, breaking into his thoughts.

      “No. Come, Abernathy.” He followed Eva outside, figuring that once she’d got outside she’d change her mind and wait by the police-marked SUV for him to take her home.

      But he was wrong. Emerging from the building, he headed toward the spot where he’d left his vehicle, then stopped when he noticed Eva wasn’t waiting by the SUV. In fact, she wasn’t anywhere in sight. He frowned, sweeping his gaze over the area, trying to imagine which way she’d gone. Had she called a car service?

      A glimpse of golden-blond hair caught his gaze, and he was shocked to see that Eva was already several blocks away. Did she really intend to walk all the way home? Or was she heading toward the subway station?

      Was she familiar with the Jackson Heights area? He wasn’t sure.

      Muttering under his breath, he and Abernathy picked up the pace in order to catch up with her. Not because he believed the neighborhood was dangerous, but he had promised to take her home. She’d been assaulted just a few hours earlier, and it didn’t sit right to have her leaving on her own like this.

      “Eva!” He called her name, hoping she’d stop and wait up for him. But the streets of New York were always packed with people and, from what he could tell, she didn’t act as if she heard him.

      She seemed to be heading toward one of the subway stations, so he tried to move faster, bumping into people as he attempted to navigate around them.

      “Excuse me. Pardon me. Sorry,” he said as he jostled the pedestrians around him. Abernathy kept up with him, as if sensing they were on the hunt. “Eva! Wait up!”

      She hesitated, turning to look behind her. He waved, hoping she’d recognize him.

      But she simply turned back in the direction she’d been going. He scowled, wondering if she was purposefully leading him on. He’d never chased a woman in his life and wasn’t sure why on earth he was doing it now.

      For some illogical reason, he didn’t want her to go off alone. The dognapper was probably long gone—the perp had no reason to stick around—but Finn still didn’t like it. Abernathy brushed against his legs as they attempted to close the gap between them. Eva paused at the next intersection, her gaze focused on the subway station up ahead.

      “Stubborn as an ox,” he said to Abernathy as they reached the same intersection. He’d only taken two steps when he heard her shriek.

      “No! Let go of me! Help! Help!”

      “Eva!” Finn managed to shove past an older guy standing in front of him as he attempted to catch up to her. His gaze narrowed when he realized there was a big man tugging on her arm. Realizing the man was trying to get her into a waiting car, he yelled again. “Police! Let her go!”

      Finn barreled through the crowd just as Eva was pushed backward directly toward him. He took his eyes off the assailant in time to catch her.

      “It’s Finn. I’ve got you!” He clutched Eva close to his chest, breathing hard. His heart—or maybe it was hers—thundered against his ribs. The man jumped into the car and it took off, disappearing into traffic. Finn squinted in an effort to see the license plate, but the cars were too close together. Hopefully he’d get something off one of the cameras nearby. Frustrated and worried, he turned his attention to Eva. “Are you all right?”

      “I think so.” Her voice was breathless, and he was grateful she made no move to push him away. He wanted—needed—to keep holding her, making sure she was truly not harmed. Abernathy sniffed at her, his tail wagging as if he was also glad she was okay.

      As СКАЧАТЬ