Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology) (111 page)

The captain's heavy sigh was
unmistakable. "Yes. I do. He's an idiot, mostly a harmless one. Do
you have a picture of her in the file?"

"No, I don't."

"Right, and he wouldn't have gone to
the trouble of digging one out. He's too damn lazy for that.
Chances are someone else did it. I just don't know who yet. The
station did admit this information came from a different source
than the one who provided the ring – which confirms Dillon's
story."

"Christ, what a mess." Knowing the
captain agreed didn't help any.

"Brandt – you know what has to
happen. I'll deal with Dillon. You have to get her to a safe
house."

Brandt laughed a short angry bark.
"That's not as easy as it sounds. She's not going to be
happy."

"To hell with keeping her happy. At
this point, I'm only concerned with keeping her alive. If she won't
come willingly, you know what to do."

The captain rang off, leaving Brandt
glaring at the phone in his hand.

Someone had deliberately put Samantha
in danger. Whoever had done this might as well have pointed a gun
at her head and pulled the trigger himself.

What if that was exactly what this
asshole intended? Deputy Brooker came to mind. The more he thought
on it, the more his suspicions grew. It shouldn't be too hard to
pick him up. Adam had been working on tracking where he was staying
earlier today. Brandt quickly made a couple of phone calls. Within
minutes, an APB was put out on the vehicle, and Adam was heading
into the office to pull a photo off the database to circulate as
well. Then he'd be taking the photo to the newsroom to confirm
Brandt's suspicions.

Could anyone else have done this? Sam
said only a few people knew about her skills. After today's mess at
work, that select few had grown considerably. Several of those
might have wondered about her skills before – not after today. God
damn it. He highly doubted Kevin would have done something like
this, particularly after seeing Sam in action today. Besides, he'd
have never put the department at risk.

"What won't make me
happy?"

Startled, Brandt turned around to
find Sam, with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders, leaning
against the doorway. Tousled and tiny, she appeared so lost Brandt
couldn't help himself. He walked over, tugging her into his
arms.

He didn't want to tell her. Brandt
grimaced. There was no way around it. She had to know.

"That was the captain. One of our
detectives has fessed up to telling the media that you were helping
the police with this case. He swears that's all he said. But on the
news tonight there was a little more to it than that."

"Exactly how much more was there?"
Her voice was quiet, too quiet. So were her eyes.

His heart sank. She already
knew.

"Your name and picture."

She froze. Brandt rubbed her back
soothingly. "It's okay. I won't let anything happen to
you."

Stiff and unyielding, Sam didn't
answer. After a few moments, Brandt tilted her chin so he could
gaze into her eyes. Searching deep, he tried to find out what she
was thinking.

Her eyes were frozen
blanks.

"Oh, God, Sam. I am so sorry." Brandt
tugged her closer, rocking her gently in his arms. "Captain
Johansen wants you to go to a safe house where we can keep an eye
on you."

Sam shook her head vehemently. "I'm
not going."

Brandt winced. "I'm afraid it's not a
choice."

Sam reared up, glaring at him.
Brandt, damn his hormones couldn't resist noticing the gentle sway
of her breasts. Now that he knew what those God-awful sweaters
covered up, he whole-heartedly approved of them. He didn't want
every other male getting an eyeful. Christ, she was gorgeous when
she was mad. Peach flushed her normally pale skin, giving her a
lively bloom that was so often missing from her skin.

"Like hell. You can't force me," she
declared defiantly.

He sighed and tried to tug her down
against him, only she was having nothing to do with it.

"Actually, I can, but I don't want to
have to." He shifted slightly, realizing his body's interest in her
nude state wouldn't be received well at the moment, but knowing
there was damn little he could do about it. "Sam, try to be
reasonable. The killer now knows who you are and it won't take him
long to find where you live."

"Do you realize what you've done?
It's not just the killer. It's my job and my friends." Sam stopped,
a stunned look on her face. She snorted. "Okay, so they may not be
friends in the 'forever' sense, but they were friendly to me. Why
is it, I'm only just understanding what that means, now that I'm
about to lose them?"

"Not everyone will see the
news."

Sam snorted. "This is a small town.
Whoever doesn't see the news will be told by 9 am
tomorrow."

She was probably right. "That doesn't
mean they will treat you any differently." Besides, he couldn't let
anything else matter. She had to stay safe. Nothing else was
acceptable.

Fine tremors ran through her. "I
don't think I can I live here if I'm an outcast again."

Brandt ran his fingers through his
hair. He couldn't imagine what her life had been like up to now.
She'd built herself a life here. He didn't want her to lose
that.

"I can understand how you
feel."

An angry laugh escaped. "Can
you?"

Brandt could feel the slow burn he'd
stomped on earlier, start to flare up. Her anger was nothing in
comparison. He couldn't let it be. This was beyond serious. She had
to leave and now. Staring out into the black of night, he realized
they didn't have much time. The killer could already have found her
location and be on his way. His voiced his thoughts. "You have to
consider that he could be on his way right now."

Sam aged before him. His heart went
out to her.

"I'm sorry, Sam. But this is the way
it has to be."

Sam blurted out, "The animals. I
can't take them to a safe house. Soldier needs this place as much
as I do. To take him anywhere else will slow his rehabilitation,
magnify his trust issues if you take him away from his new
home."

She had a point – just a small one.
He was concerned about her though, not the dog.

"Staying here is out of the
question."

"Why?" she interrupted.

"There's too much cover for a
predator. It would be hard to defend."

"Not true," she answered shaking her
head. "Someone could stay in the house with me."

"We don't want to use you for bait.
He's going to come looking for you and you know that. If we take
you to a safe house, he won't be able to find you."

"Really? You mean until another
detective leaks that information too. Thanks but no thanks. I
didn't trust the police before, and the behavior out of your office
hasn't changed my opinion one bit." Sam walked over to curl up on
the couch with the blanket wrapped around her body.

Sadly, he watched as those beautiful
curves disappeared from view.

"Besides, if he can't find me, he'll
just kill other women. You..." her voice choked, "or someone else
has already set me up as bait. So you might as well make good use
of the opportunity." Bitterness edged her voice.

Shit. Brandt sat down beside her.
"Sam, I'm wondering if this isn't part of Deputy Brooker's
machinations. If the killer found you, it would be an easy solution
to his problem."

Sam shot him a considering look. A
sweater lying over the couch caught her eye. Dropping the blanket
to her waist, she pulled the sweater over her head, tugging it down
under the blanket. Oddly enough, it was that action that made him
suddenly very nervous.

"God
damn it Sam.
I
didn't set you up. You know what a media frenzy is like. Once
they sniff out a story like this, there is no letting
go."

"Thanks, but I don't need
the reminder." Sam curled into a tiny ball and stared out into the
night.

***

3:15 am

Now fully dressed, Sam curled up in a
small ball in the corner of the couch where she could look out.
Darkness still blanketed the valley, giving it an eerie glow. She
wasn't going to leave her home. The police had created this
situation, so they could damn well fix it. She wasn't being
stubborn; she was being sensible. They wanted to protect her, fine.
They could do it here.

Moses pushed his cold, wet nose
against her arm. "Hey boy. That's right, isn't it? We couldn't
possibly move you and Soldier. He's just starting to adapt to this
place as it is."

She peered around at the simple room.
This was her home and she wasn't leaving. She knew better than most
what this killer was capable of doing.

Brandt walked down the stairs. Her
heart twanged. She didn't want to see him. She didn't like this
sense of betrayal. If Brooker had done this, then it wasn't
Brandt's fault. Except he'd promised to keep her name out of this.
Unfair or not, there it was.

She geared up for the fight to come.
Still, the feelings of resentment were hard to maintain as he
walked toward her. Her nostrils flared. Her heart and mind flooded
with images of last night. It couldn't be. She refused to be swayed
by sweet memories. Damn it.

Ruthlessly, she forced down
tears.

Brandt gingerly stepped over the
sprawled dog to sit on the couch with her.

"You may not be feeling very generous
toward me at the moment, however, I need you to understand and
believe in one thing – I didn't set you up. I wouldn't – couldn't –
do that to you. And I will do everything in my power to keep you
safe."

When she stared at him, but stayed
quiet, his shoulders sagged.

"Please," he whispered, "Just believe
in me, in us, that much. We'll work out everything else. I
promise."

This time, she couldn't hold back the
tears. They pooled at the corner of her eyes before slowly running
down her cheeks. Burying her face in her arms, she tried hard to
stifle the sniffles. When his arms wrapped around her, lifting her
to his lap, the dam broke.

Brandt held her tight, murmuring
nonsensical things in her hair.

Finally, her sobs ran down until she
rested quietly in his arms. Where did she go from here? How to go
on? She'd lived so isolated for so long, she didn't think she could
handle being pointed and laughed at again. She shook her head
slightly. Tough as that might be, losing Brandt would be the worst.
For the first time, she was experiencing this connection, this
sense of belonging with another person. He fit like her other half,
making her whole.

"Honestly, I don't think many people
will recognize you. Apparently, it's an old picture."

Sam stilled then tilted her head.
"Did you read my mind?"

He smiled and dropped a tender kiss
on her nose. "No. I figure that's your department."

She leaned against him, not sure how
she felt anymore. She hadn't really thought he was to blame. That
responsibility belonged with the asshole who'd released the
information. Still, how much did she really know of Brandt? Sure,
her mind mocked. You only know him well enough to have wild,
uninhibited sex with him. Sam winced at the reminder.

"What's the matter now?"

Deciding to be honest, she answered,
"I'm realizing that I've only known you for a few days."

His arms tightened. "You know all
that matters."

She wondered about that.

***

6:10 am

Several sleepless hours later, Brandt
walked into the kitchen expecting, even spoiling, for a fight. "I
hope you've reconsidered."

She pulled the bread out of the
toaster and buttered the two pieces and didn't answer.

"I hope you're prepared to be
reasonable." Brandt knew he should shut up, yet found himself
aggressively defensive. He needed her to understand, to care about
staying safe.

She shot him a look. "Reasonable?
Take another look at what has happened to my life, then tell me
that."

"Damn it, I have. I wouldn't have
wished this on you for anything. But it doesn't change the facts.
You have to be protected, and we have to catch this asshole. This
could be the same guy I'm hunting, or it may be an entirely
different asshole. I don't care – we have to get him off the
street. You have to stay safe." His voice rose at the end of his
sentence. He visibly struggled to regain control, but it was tough.
She was fighting him over something that was inarguable.

She finished buttering the toast on
the plate and carried it over to the table. "I don't have a death
wish, but I do want this to be over. I can't live in a cell, and I
have to have some space for my..." Out of words, Sam wafted her
hand in the air. "For my abilities or whatever you want to call
them. I can't live the same as everyone else. Don't you understand?
These things happen and I don't know when they will. I have to feel
safe in my world." Glancing around at the cabin, she added, "It's
not much, but it is home. I feel good here, rested. Being in the
real world all the time hurts me." She paused briefly. "I don't
want to leave this place."