Under the Marshal's Protection. Kathleen Tailer

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СКАЧАТЬ finally nodded, keeping the rifle trained on his chest. Dominic could tell she had noticed the 9 mm pistol strapped to his hip and was keeping a close eye on his hands. He slowly reached his right hand behind him and pulled out his ID wallet. He flipped it open and held it up to her.

      “Drop it and step back.”

      Dominic obeyed, considering whether or not it was worth it to try to make a grab for the rifle when she picked up the wallet. Although he was sure he could overpower her and wrench the rifle out of her hands, from the way her eyes were filled with hard, gritty determination, he wasn’t entirely certain he could do it without hurting her. He made his decision and took a step back, keeping his hands held high. At this point, it wasn’t worth the risk. After all, she wasn’t the fugitive he was searching for. She was just the missing man’s sister.

      He let her get the wallet without incident and watched as she examined his credentials. She looked back and forth between the photo on the ID and his face, her suspicious blue eyes carefully studying his features.

      “I think you can get a badge like this on eBay for about five bucks.”

      Dominic shook his head and smiled, hoping to pacify her. “No, ma’am, you can’t. It’s a real badge, and I’m a real U.S. Deputy Marshal. Look, lady, if I wanted to hurt you, I would have done it already. I’m just here to ask some questions. That’s it.”

      The rifle never wavered in her hands. “Just take your fake ID and get off my property. I don’t want to answer any of your questions no matter who you are.”

      “Actually, you don’t have a choice. Please put the rifle down, ma’am. You’re threatening a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon. That’s a felony, you know.”

      He watched her eyes carefully and could see her actually considering his words and weighing out the truth of them. There was wariness in those blue depths, as well as a strength of purpose that he actually found himself admiring.

      A moment passed, then another. Finally his words seemed to sink in, and she made her decision and took a step back. “I don’t want any trouble. I just want you to leave. Like I said before, you need to just take your questions and get out of here.” She motioned with the barrel. “Get off my porch. Now.”

      The balance of power seemed to shift ever so slightly with her small retreat. Dominic took advantage of it and took a step forward, then another. He was a large man, nearly a foot taller than the woman’s five foot six inches, and he used his height to tower over her with an intimidating stance. He was focused on one thing and one thing only at the moment, and that was getting that rifle away from her before someone got shot.

      “You can answer my questions here or you can answer them downtown. Either way, you’re going to put that rifle down.” He took another step. “You must be Jessica Blake. You’re a schoolteacher, right? Well, Ms. Blake, like I said, you’re assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon. All I want to do is ask you a few questions. Put the gun down.” He paused, his hands still up in a sign of surrender. “Please, Ms. Blake. I’m not going to hurt you. I promise.”

      He watched her carefully, but her aim still didn’t waver, despite his plea. What had her so spooked? The whole scenario didn’t make sense. He could tell she was scared of him, but he couldn’t figure out why. If she didn’t think he was a legitimate marshal, who did she think he worked for?

      “Ms. Blake, please give me a chance. I only need a few minutes of your time, and then I’ll be out of here.”

      Jessica gritted her teeth and finally raised the barrel so it was no longer pointing at his chest. Her anger was evident in her stance, as was her fear. “You’d better not be lying.”

      Dominic swiftly eliminated the remaining space between them with two large steps and pulled the rifle from her hands, then flipped on the safety and ejected the cartridges. It was a Winchester .38 with plenty of kill-power, and he wasn’t about to take any chances. When he was sure the gun was empty and safe, he handed it back to her but pocketed the bullets.

      “Is that how you greet all of your visitors?” he couldn’t help asking.

      Jessica bit her bottom lip, suddenly appearing vulnerable for the first time in their encounter. She leaned the rifle against the wall and took a step back, then looked nervously around her as if seeking a route off the porch and into the trees if she needed one. She definitely didn’t trust him, that was for sure, and Dominic wanted to know why. This was not the normal reaction he received when he was just out asking questions.

      He took a deep breath, then slowly put his hands on his hips, trying to make his movements as nonthreatening as possible as he considered Jessica Blake. The woman before him was an enigma. He’d read all the information they had on her before coming. He knew her middle name, her date of birth, her social security number and all about the speeding tickets she’d gotten when she was sixteen. But nothing in her file mentioned just how striking her eyes were. He’d never seen anyone with eyes like that, and he felt a surge of attraction, even though she had a smudge of dirt on her cheek and was wearing faded and shapeless work clothes. Still, he couldn’t help but notice the fine sheen of perspiration that covered her skin, in spite of the cool breeze.

      Dominic studied her carefully from a law enforcement officer’s perspective, trying to figure her out. She kept moving her hands in a nervous gesture, and her eyes were darting around as if she was expecting someone or something to jump out on the porch with them. There was clearly something going on here that was way out of the ordinary. He’d had guns pointed at him before, but certainly not by country schoolteachers with long blond hair and pretty blue eyes. The way she held herself and her expressions made it look as if she were hiding something, but Dominic had absolutely no idea what it could be. He had come expecting to ask a few questions and leave, but now he was intrigued, and couldn’t leave until the puzzle of Jessica Blake was investigated and solved.

      “Okay,” she said roughly, breaking his train of thought. “You’ve got my bullets now. Ask your questions and be on your way, Mr. U.S. Deputy Marshal.”

      Dominic motioned toward the door, enjoying the way the words “U.S. Deputy Marshal” rolled off her tongue. She had the local Southern drawl, and without her threatening tone, her voice was now sweet and melodious, despite the slight tremor it still contained. He took a step toward her front door. “Could we sit down for a minute?”

      Jessica shook her head and quickly blocked the doorway, nearly tripping as she hurried to keep him away from the door. What was inside that she didn’t want him to see? Dominic raised an eyebrow.

      “What’s going on, Ms. Blake?”

      Jessica shrugged, trying to appear carefree but failing miserably in the attempt. She was evidently not very good at subterfuge. “You said you only needed a few minutes. Just ask your questions out here.”

      Dominic sniffed. “Is that gas I smell? I think you might have a leak. That can be really dangerous, you know. I’d better take a look before the house explodes.”

      “Wait…” She grabbed his arm and pulled, but she was no match for his strength, and he moved effortlessly by her. He stopped just inside the door and froze, taking in the scene.

      The place had been ransacked. The couch had been ripped to shreds, and foam stuffing was strewn throughout the living room. Glass dishes and knickknacks were smashed in little pieces all over, and books and a myriad of other items littered the floor.

      He turned to Jessica, his eyes filled with concern. “Is there СКАЧАТЬ