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Authors: Elizabeth Lowell
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his headset over to line 4, Steele said, “And?”
“The river guide who saved Lane’s life just called. Someone gave her a screw-off-or-die note.”
“Interesting. Where is she?”
“Mesquite, Nevada. Eureka Hotel casino when she called, now locked and bolted into her room, same hotel. Zach Balfour is our closest bullet catcher.”
Steele’s light, clear eyes absorbed information from his screen. Zach was St. Kilda’s valued utility infielder and a man whose instinct for when an op was going south was legendary.
“Unhappy ex?” Steele asked, skimming Jill’s file.
“She didn’t say.”
“Call Faroe.”
“Just put in his number, line two. Zach Balfour hasn’t picked up his—there you are, Zach. It’s Dwayne. You’ve got a code two waiting in Mesquite, Nevada, Eureka Hotel, 435, Jillian Breck, death threat. You’ll know more when we do. Move it.”
Dwayne hung up in the middle of Zach’s rant about bimbos and bullet catching.
14
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
SEPTEMBER 13
11:28 P.M.
G race picked up Faroe’s phone, saw who it was, and switched on the scrambler before putting the phone on speaker. “Grace, here. Joe’s busy driving.”
“How bad can traffic be at this time of night?” Steele asked, his voice crisp.
“It’s not the traffic, it’s the fact that she’s having the baby!” Faroe said loudly. “Lane, how long since the last contraction?”
“Two minutes, twenty-eight seconds.” Lane’s voice was tight, deep. Like Faroe’s. “How you doing, Mom?”
“Will you both shut up?” Grace asked pleasantly. “I can’t hear the ambassador. And slow down unless you want a police escort.”
Steele’s surprisingly warm laughter came from the speaker. “I take it all is under control, Judge?”
“Yes, but you couldn’t tell by talking to my men. My doctor is on the way in to the hospital, the staff is ready, and apparently so is the baby. What do you need?”
“Jillian Breck just called for Joe.”
“What?” Lane said. “Is she all right? Is she hurt? Does—”
“Belt up, Lane,” Faroe said. He knew his son had a crush onJill—what healthy young man wouldn’t?—but that wasn’t the point. “Where is she?”
“Mesquite, Nevada. Eureka Hotel. Room 435. Safe enough for the moment. She’s had a death threat.”
“Craptastic,” Faroe said, checking the intersection again as he accelerated through a yellow-going-red light. The Mercedes SUV gave a happy roar. “Never rains but it bloody pours.”
Grace started to say something, then shut up as her abdomen clamped down back to front, hard and long, pushing the baby closer to the moment of birth.
“Time,” she said to Lane between her teeth.
“Oh, god,” Lane said, his voice thinning. “They’re coming too close!”
Grace felt the same way herself. This baby was in one big hurry. She knew that for most women a second baby came faster than the first, but with a sixteen-year-gap between pregnancies, she hadn’t expected the rule to apply to her.
“Zach Balfour is our closest free operative,” Steele said. “Until we know the exact nature of the threat, we’re going with an intelligent bullet catcher.”
Faroe grunted. “Good. I like Zach’s style. But the last time I talked to him, he was packing for a vacation. He change his mind?”
“No, I did. He was about forty miles from Mesquite, Nevada, heading south in the morning. Now he’s heading north.”
“Works for me.”
“I doubt if it worked for him,” Steele said dryly, “but he’s on the way to Ms. Breck just the same.”
Faroe almost smiled. “Did you get him out of bed?”
“He’s recovering from babysitting DeeDee Breitling.”
“Jesus. Give him double pay. Whatever. Just get him to Jill fast.”
“I’ve seen the man drive,” Steele said. “He’ll be there fast.”
Faroe slowed for another red light, scanned the intersection,gunned through it without stopping, and turned hard right. “We’re almost at the emergency
“The river guide who saved Lane’s life just called. Someone gave her a screw-off-or-die note.”
“Interesting. Where is she?”
“Mesquite, Nevada. Eureka Hotel casino when she called, now locked and bolted into her room, same hotel. Zach Balfour is our closest bullet catcher.”
Steele’s light, clear eyes absorbed information from his screen. Zach was St. Kilda’s valued utility infielder and a man whose instinct for when an op was going south was legendary.
“Unhappy ex?” Steele asked, skimming Jill’s file.
“She didn’t say.”
“Call Faroe.”
“Just put in his number, line two. Zach Balfour hasn’t picked up his—there you are, Zach. It’s Dwayne. You’ve got a code two waiting in Mesquite, Nevada, Eureka Hotel, 435, Jillian Breck, death threat. You’ll know more when we do. Move it.”
Dwayne hung up in the middle of Zach’s rant about bimbos and bullet catching.
14
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
SEPTEMBER 13
11:28 P.M.
G race picked up Faroe’s phone, saw who it was, and switched on the scrambler before putting the phone on speaker. “Grace, here. Joe’s busy driving.”
“How bad can traffic be at this time of night?” Steele asked, his voice crisp.
“It’s not the traffic, it’s the fact that she’s having the baby!” Faroe said loudly. “Lane, how long since the last contraction?”
“Two minutes, twenty-eight seconds.” Lane’s voice was tight, deep. Like Faroe’s. “How you doing, Mom?”
“Will you both shut up?” Grace asked pleasantly. “I can’t hear the ambassador. And slow down unless you want a police escort.”
Steele’s surprisingly warm laughter came from the speaker. “I take it all is under control, Judge?”
“Yes, but you couldn’t tell by talking to my men. My doctor is on the way in to the hospital, the staff is ready, and apparently so is the baby. What do you need?”
“Jillian Breck just called for Joe.”
“What?” Lane said. “Is she all right? Is she hurt? Does—”
“Belt up, Lane,” Faroe said. He knew his son had a crush onJill—what healthy young man wouldn’t?—but that wasn’t the point. “Where is she?”
“Mesquite, Nevada. Eureka Hotel. Room 435. Safe enough for the moment. She’s had a death threat.”
“Craptastic,” Faroe said, checking the intersection again as he accelerated through a yellow-going-red light. The Mercedes SUV gave a happy roar. “Never rains but it bloody pours.”
Grace started to say something, then shut up as her abdomen clamped down back to front, hard and long, pushing the baby closer to the moment of birth.
“Time,” she said to Lane between her teeth.
“Oh, god,” Lane said, his voice thinning. “They’re coming too close!”
Grace felt the same way herself. This baby was in one big hurry. She knew that for most women a second baby came faster than the first, but with a sixteen-year-gap between pregnancies, she hadn’t expected the rule to apply to her.
“Zach Balfour is our closest free operative,” Steele said. “Until we know the exact nature of the threat, we’re going with an intelligent bullet catcher.”
Faroe grunted. “Good. I like Zach’s style. But the last time I talked to him, he was packing for a vacation. He change his mind?”
“No, I did. He was about forty miles from Mesquite, Nevada, heading south in the morning. Now he’s heading north.”
“Works for me.”
“I doubt if it worked for him,” Steele said dryly, “but he’s on the way to Ms. Breck just the same.”
Faroe almost smiled. “Did you get him out of bed?”
“He’s recovering from babysitting DeeDee Breitling.”
“Jesus. Give him double pay. Whatever. Just get him to Jill fast.”
“I’ve seen the man drive,” Steele said. “He’ll be there fast.”
Faroe slowed for another red light, scanned the intersection,gunned through it without stopping, and turned hard right. “We’re almost at the emergency
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