Lullabies and Lies - By Mallory Kane Page 0,26
he was right. Reluctantly, she stepped over to the door. “At least stand outside until the bomb squad gets here, please? You’re not going to be any good to—to me if you get blown up.”
Griff sighed and rose.
Sunny’s limbs went limp with relief. She did not want this man’s blood on her conscience. It was suddenly terribly important to her that he stay healthy and whole.
It was probably because he seemed to know what she was going through. He seemed to care about finding Emily as much as she did. But as he’d stood, and his thigh muscles rippled under the crisp khaki of his pants, she’d been surprised by the tiny thrill that slid through her. How wonderful it would be to have a man like Griff to care for her, to hold her during the scary times, to share the good times.
Reluctantly, she turned her back and left the house, listening to be sure he followed her.
When the bomb squad got there, one lanky, buzz-cut guy immediately took charge of the scene, dispatching uniformed officers to knock on doors up and down the street.
Lillian answered her door. Immediately she pointed toward Sunny and said something to the officer, who shook his head, and led her down the street, away from Sunny’s house.
Sunny waved reassuringly at her.
“Go on,” Griff said. “Go with Lillian.”
“I want to stay here.”
“That’s not a good idea.”
Sunny glanced up at him. “I’ll go when you go.”
Griff scowled at her.
The buzz-cut guy was still barking orders and gesturing. All at once her attention zeroed in on his hand. He was missing two fingers. Memories of that awful night washed over her.
She’d almost forgotten the distinguishing feature she’d noticed on her attacker. Through the leather gloves, she’d had the impression that her attacker was missing a finger—maybe two.
She couldn’t pinpoint when or how she’d come to that conclusion—something about the way the leather had flopped against her chin as the note had been stuffed into her mouth.
She resolved to tell Griff as soon as she had a chance.
From her vantage point next to Griff, Sunny watched two men suit up in protective gear and carry a device from their truck, down the sidewalk and up the front steps to her door.
“That’s an X-ray machine,” Griff said. He stood beside her, his arms crossed, his foot tapping. He obviously wanted to be in the middle of the action.
“Have you seen many bombs?” she asked.
“A few.”
“Are you going to feel silly if it’s the box of business cards I ordered?”
“No. And it’s not.”
“It’s the right size.”
He cut his eyes over to her. “Too light.”
She nodded, swallowing nervously, as the two men who’d delivered the X-ray machine to her front door retreated, leaving the officer in charge alone in her house with a potential bomb.
She hugged herself, cringing, expecting an explosion any second.
A voice distorted by static crackled over a mobile telecom unit. She couldn’t make out what it said, but one of the suited-up men jogged up the street from the police van to her house and went in. Through the door, she could see him and another man crouched near the package.
They seemed to confer for a long time. Then the officer in charge took something from his pocket.
“He’s going to open it,” Griff said softly. He took her arm and gently led her farther down the street, toward the bomb squad’s van that was parked about sixty yards from her house. “You should always be at least as far away as the bomb squad members. They know what a safe distance is.”
Sunny looked back over her shoulder at her front door, seeing the forms disappear as she and Griff moved farther away.
A sudden shout startled her and she grasped Griff’s hand.
“That was a warning to clear the area around the house.”
Her shoulders tensed and she leaned in toward Griff. His arm slipped lightly around her shoulders. The air reverberated with tense silence.
Then she heard a muffled pop.
The officers in the van didn’t move.
After what seemed like a very long time, a silhouette appeared in Sunny’s doorway. He took off his helmet and yelled, “All clear.”
Sunny’s breath whooshed out in a huge sigh. “Wh-what was that pop?”
One of the bomb squad members heard her. “A blasting cap, ma’am.”
“Agent Stone.” It was the officer in charge.
Griff let go of Sunny’s shoulder and headed toward the house. Sunny followed.
The officer took her in at a glance as he began talking to Griff.
“Blasting cap. We identified wires and the cap on