The Military K-9 Unit Collection. Valerie Hansen

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ be. Her stalker might very well bring death. And then who would look after her son?

      * * *

      Linc left Star sitting with the Sullivans as he welcomed the tech team and their evidence gathering equipment. “There was definitely an uninvited guest in here,” he told them. “According to the sergeant, the guy was too slightly built to be Boyd Sullivan, but treat this scene as if it could have been him just the same. No sense taking chances.”

      The lead tech was the same one who had inspected the warehouse for him. “You sure this time?”

      “Sure enough,” Linc replied. “He was apparently hiding in the bedroom, and she saw him trying to sneak off. Star and I chased him out the back. He rode away before I got a look at him, but this was no figment of Sullivan’s imagination. Star was hot on a trail.”

      “Gotcha. We’ll start in there.”

      Zoe had been waiting in the background while Linc spoke. He caught her studying him when he turned. The expression on her pretty face didn’t suit him, so he approached. “Look, Sergeant, I understand how all this can seem a bit overwhelming but we’ll get to the bottom of it eventually.”

      “Not if people keep insinuating it’s all in my head.” She sighed. “At least I know your dog believes me.”

      “I have no doubt you saw somebody.”

      “Saw? I had my hands on him.”

      “You what?”

      “You heard me. When he acted as if he was going to go for Freddy with that knife, I rushed him.” She pointed. “We crashed to the floor together right over there. I had hold of his wrist, but he threw me off and ran. I guess I should be thankful he didn’t decide to cut me on his way out.”

      “Stay right there. Don’t move. Don’t touch anything,” Linc ordered. It was only a few strides to the hallway and bedrooms where he called, “One of you get back in here and check for trace evidence. Now!”

      His next words were for Zoe. “What else are you withholding?”

      “Nothing. I wasn’t withholding that.” Her hands were clasped in front of her. “Look. I was in combat mode, okay? Details were fuzzy. Some still are. All I know for sure is that I charged him when I thought he was going on the attack.”

      Linc glanced over at her son. “At least one of you had the presence of mind to call for help.”

      “Did he? Good for Freddy. That didn’t register with me either. Nothing did except the fight I was in. I do remember screaming, probably at you, come to think of it.”

      “Maybe.” Linc shook his head. “You were certainly hollering something when I hit the top of the stairs. Are you always so excitable?”

      “Only when somebody is threatening to kill me,” Zoe countered. She rolled her eyes. “You don’t need to act as if I’m a hysterical female, okay? I’m actually very levelheaded and sensible. Most of the time. I’d have to be to have dealt with the significant others in my life.”

      “Your brother.”

      “And my late husband. But that’s a story for another time.” She stood still as evidence techs inspected her hands and stroked her skin with sterile cotton swabs. “I can’t imagine that there’s anything there.”

      “Maybe not,” Linc said. “But when there is even a remote chance of touch DNA, it makes sense to take samples.” He addressed the technician. “Check her clothing, too. She says she grappled with the prowler, so there may be something stuck to her body, as well.”

      “I wish you’d been this thorough in the warehouse,” Zoe drawled. “There had to be some kind of evidence there.”

      “Yeah. From any one of the hundred or so people who had passed through in the last few weeks,” Linc countered. “This is different. You and Freddy are the only ones living here. If anything from the attacker rubbed off on you, we’ll detect it.”

      “Who do you think it was?” she asked.

      “Well, I’m beginning to doubt it was your brother if that’s what you’re asking,” Linc said. “Knowing that he pulled a knife on you and you tackled him changes everything. If it had been Boyd, I imagine you’d have tried to talk him down.” It amused him to see her rolling those warm hazel eyes again, and he chuckled softly. “Hey, I just tell it like it is.”

      “No,” Zoe countered, “you tell it like you think it is. There’s a huge difference.”

      He decided to humor her now that the techs had stowed their samples and returned to the bedroom where the man had probably been hiding. “Okay. Here’s what I think happened. You hired Portia to babysit, and she invited a young man to keep her company. When he heard you come home, he probably thought you were alone and he hid. Then, when I checked the bedroom and rousted Portia, I failed to let Star search the rest of the room. That’s on me.”

      “You think he was here all that time?”

      “Yes, unless you left your back door open.”

      “Never. There’s a dead bolt and chain on it so Freddy won’t wander out on to the deck.”

      Linc shrugged and spread his hands. “There you have it. You probably scared that guy so badly he’ll never come around again.” To his relief, Zoe began to smile.

      “I sure hope so. He scared me plenty.”

      “Are you okay now?” Although he expected her to affirm her well-being, he hadn’t imagined she would be so candid.

      “Yes,” Zoe said, her smile softening. “I’m okay. You’re here.”

      She averted her gaze, but not before Linc noted the glistening of unshed tears and felt his gut clench in empathy.

       SIX

      “I don’t care what some anonymous blogger wrote. There’s no way Zoe Sullivan faked a prowler to try to distract us from the search for her brother,” Linc told Captain Justin Blackwood. “For one thing, I saw a guy fleeing.” They and others were gathered in the Security Forces headquarters for a meeting of the team assigned to bring down Boyd Sullivan. Besides the regular air force members, there was Oliver Davison of the FBI and Special Agent Ian Steffen from the Office of Special Investigations.

      Blackwood nodded. “All right. We’ll go with that conclusion. I’ve talked to my daughter about the incident, and she’s denied having anyone in the Sullivan apartment with her, but I’ve done enough interrogating to suspect she may be lying.” He shook his head slowly. “Makes me wish I hadn’t deployed so often when she was growing up. I hardly know her.”

      “We can’t go back,” Master Sergeant Westley James chimed in. “If we could, I’d save the lives of my two murdered team members.” He cleared his throat. “Of course, I did end up marrying Felicity after successfully protecting her, so some good did come out of the Sullivan incursion.”

      “True.” Blackwood addressed the group. “Any СКАЧАТЬ