by Jayne Blue
“Good. That’s real good.” I took my badge away and slid it back into my pocket. “So maybe I was just hearing things because I thought I overheard you calling a lady judge we both know something very rude. Now, am I wrong?”
Jerry shook his head; his jowls vibrated and he took a step back. Spreading his hands palms up, he gave me a nervous smile. “I think you are. I’ve got nothing but respect for the judges in this building.”
“Good. That’s the right attitude. Now you tell your boss, I expect the same level of respect. Do you understand what I’m saying to you? Because if I find out that you, any of the Moldonados, or anyone who so much as knows you does anything disrespectful to Judge Key, then we’re going to have a different kind of problem, you and me. And it isn’t going to end with you spending a couple of hours in jail. Do you get what I’m telling you?”
“You’ve been hearing things that aren’t true, man. I don’t know where you’re getting your information.”
“Well, that may be, Jerry. But as long as you and I are on the same page.” I reached out and smoothed his lapels again. “And in the meantime, unless you’ve got court in this building in the next five minutes, I’m going to strongly recommend you take your client, what was his name? Shitheel Bart? You take Bart over there and find somewhere else to talk. Okay?”
Jerry nodded. Bart got up and nodded too. I hadn’t even touched that creep and he looked like he was about to piss himself. As I walked up to Jerry to make the last of my points, the building fire alarm went off. A few of the other Deputy Marshals started running toward the courtrooms.
“Get the fuck out of here, Jerry,” I said, but when I turned, Jerry and Bart had already slipped out the stairwell door. Jerry gave me one last look over his shoulder before heading down. The fucker looked smug. My heart racing, I tore across the hall toward Jillian’s courtroom.
Witnesses and lawyers filed out of her courtroom while I shoved past them. I caught a glimpse of Rhonda’s shoulder as she hustled Jillian back into her chambers. One of the other marshals passed me and I grabbed his sleeve. “What the hell’s going on?”
“Evacuation,” he said, shrugging. Then he leaned down and whispered into my ear. “Bomb threat. Probably bogus.”
The hair raised on the back of my neck. One thing mattered and one thing only. I had to get to Jillian. Now.
Rhonda had her sequestered in her chambers. Jillian’s face flushed red as she paced near the doorway. When I burst through, her shoulders dropped with what I read as relief. Then she quickly stiffened again and looked at Rhonda.
“Is this really necessary?”
“Yeah. It really is,” Rhonda said. She looked at me. “We go out the service entrance. Our evacuation point is the building down the street.”
I nodded. I knew the protocol. Still, something about this felt off. Maybe it was just seeing Jordan in the building, but the sooner I had Jillian out of here, the better I’d feel.
Gemma came into the office carrying her and Jillian’s purses. She handed Jillian’s to me and I put an arm around Jillian. “Let’s go. I want you on the move.”
Jillian took her purse from me and the four of us took the exit through Jillian’s private bathroom. A few of the other judges and court staff were already filing down the stairwell at the back of the building. No one was in a rush and I suppose that was a credit to the dozens of drills they did every year. But with each step we took, the more agitated I got. Something just didn’t feel right to me.
We reached the ground floor and started to follow the crowd toward the office building across the street. The judges would sequester in a conference room there away from the general public until the courthouse was cleared.
“Rhonda,” I said; tugging on her sleeve I pulled her aside. “Do me a favor, go on ahead with Gemma. I’m going to take Judge Key down the street.”
Rhonda stopped. “Huck, there’s a protocol.”
“I know that. That’s what I don’t like.”
Jillian was a few steps ahead of us talking with Gemma. They followed the traffic flow with the rest of the court staff and hadn’t realized I’d stopped to talk with Rhonda. I scanned the street up and down. While the members of the public filled the street to the west of us, the court staff headed south and started crossing the street toward the office building past a row of parked cars.
“What are you thinking?” Rhonda asked.
“It’s probably nothing,” I said. “But that white powder was sent on court administration letterhead through office mail. It was somebody who knows a little about courthouse procedure. This just has a weird vibe to me. It’s probably nothing but I don’t want to take any chances.”
“Got it. Good thinking. If you’ve got Judge Key, I’ll go with the others. She’s not the only judge in the building who could be a target if that’s what this is.”
“All right. But stay in contact with me.”
Nodding, Rhonda put her fingers to her lips and let out a short, sharp whistle. Gemma and Jillian stopped and turned. Rhonda gave me a half smile, patted me on the shoulder, then trotted to catch up with them. I motioned to Jillian and she came to my side; that crease formed a deep line between her brows. Gemma gestured toward us and looked worried but Rhonda had a firm grip on her arm and led her away.
“I want you to follow me,” I said. “I’ll explain later.”
I put a solid but gentle grip on Jillian’s upper arm and led her away from the flow of foot traffic. With each step we took, my senses heightened. It was probably nothing. Most courthouses had a few bomb scares a year. Most of the time they were false alarms. Crackpots trying to get out of jury duty, punk kids, you name it. But where Jillian was concerned I wasn’t about to take any chances.
I shook my head when she started to ask questions about where we were going. Sighing, she let it drop. In her heels, she struggled to keep up with me as we made our way down Liberty Street. I planned to double back after the next block and make a run for my SUV. Having her out in the open like this raised every alarm bell in me.
“Huck, what the hell?” she asked as we nearly broke into a run. Jillian stumbled once and I grabbed her, pulling her close to me. She pressed her palm to my chest and looked about to murder me when her eyes filled with a reflected orange glow. The percussion of the blast knocked us both forward.
On instinct, I threw myself over Jillian, protecting her with my body as we fell to the sidewalk. She flailed beneath me as I looked to the source of the chaos. Car alarms went off everywhere.
But there, two blocks down, directly in the path of the court staff running for cover in the office building, tongues of flame licked the sky. One of the parked cars had blown sky high and burst into a fireball.
Chapter Twelve
Jillian
“No! No! I need to be with her!”
Huck’s answering voice came to me as if he were speaking underwater. Some detached part of my brain wondered if the blast had punctured my eardrum. But I couldn’t remember. Those few moments of chaos came to me in a blur of images. Screaming faces. Streaked tears. Then Rhonda and Gemma.
They lay in a heap of tangled limbs. Blood dripped down the side of Gemma’s face. Head blood is like that. God. I heard my father’s voice as I stood beside him only seven years old. He butchered a buck on a long table. It was so cold. Its eyes staring sightlessly at me. But no, Gemma moved. She nodded when I spoke to her. I blinked hard, trying to sort out the image in front of me.
Rhonda lay face down, her leg bent at a wrong angle. I wanted to go to them. All around us, people ran in all directions. But I wanted to join those running toward the danger. I knew Huck’s instincts told him to do the same. He held me back instead. Lifting me off my feet, he threw me over his shoulder. The ground came up, bobbing before me as he ran.
I don’t know how long it took. Time seemed to pass in bursts and stretches like an accordion. Some events took an eternity, like the time it took for Huck to strap me into the front seat of his car. The
n we were on the move, roaring through the streets of downtown Ann Arbor at breakneck speed. Huck went the wrong way down one-way streets through residential neighborhoods, his siren blaring.
He barked orders into a walkie he held as he took hairpin curves one-handed. I couldn’t get the images of Gemma’s blood and Rhonda’s bent leg out of my mind. I wanted to scream or cry; instead, I just gripped the dashboard, half doubled over as if I were in an airplane crash position. And that was exactly it. I braced myself for the hard landing I knew would come.
“Jillian!” Huck’s shout penetrated the fog of my brain. I looked up at him, bewildered. Somehow, he’d parked the car in my own driveway. He filled the open doorframe of the car, peering into my face, checking for wounds I knew weren’t there.
I shook my head, trying to clear the ringing and the cobwebs. He took me by the hand and tucked me under his suit jacket as he ran with me toward my own front door. Two other deputies stood at the doorway waiting for us. Huck barked orders at them, something about taking positions at the front and back. Then he led me inside.
“Are they dead?” My words ripped from my throat. “God. Tell me the truth. Don’t lie to me.”
“What?” He had me seated on the couch, holding a glass of water in front of me.
Suddenly, I had a timeline again. My heart slowed to a manageable rhythm. “Are they dead?”
Huck handed me the glass and took a seat on the couch next to me. “No. I told you a hundred times. Rhonda’s got a busted femur. She’s going to need surgery, but she’s a tough one. She’ll be okay. The EMTs on scene said she was mad as hell, yelling and asking about you.”
I sank against Huck’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. My brain is fuzzy.”
“You’re in shock. Just keep drinking water. In a little while I’ll make you something to eat.”
“What about Gemma?”
Huck leaned back on the couch. I straightened my back and shifted so I faced him. He put up a hand in surrender when he saw my expression harden.
“She’s okay too. Banged her head on the curb pretty hard when she fell. They’re keeping her overnight at U of M for observation. Concussion, they think.”
“Oh God. What about the rest of them? Was anyone else seriously hurt?”
Huck’s eyes darkened and bile rose in my throat. “Yeah,” he said. “No fatalities. Not so far. There was a secretary that was pretty close to the blast. She suffered some serious burns. It’s touch and go.”
I pressed the water glass to my forehead. “How did you know?”
Huck let out a breath. “I didn’t. I just had a bad vibe. That’s all.”
“Was this because of me? Tell me the truth? Was I the target?”
Huck ran a hand through his hair. “We don’t know anything yet. So don’t get excited and don’t jump to conclusions. They think the bomb was detonated by remote and that’s the bit that’s got everyone squirrelly right now.”
“So they knew we’d be walking out that way. They waited for us. That’s what the bomb threat was all about.”
Huck pursed his lips together. “That’s one theory.”
“You saved my life. And Gemma and Rhonda are in the hospital because of me.”
“Jillian, I told you. We don’t know anything like that yet. It could have been random. It could have been some radical group with a political agenda we don’t even know about. We might never know. But right now, you’re safe. Gemma and Rhonda are safe. They’re going to be fine.”
I put the glass down and buried my face in my hands. “I feel about as far from fine as a person can be. I want to go to the hospital. I want to be there when Gemma and Rhonda wake up. I want to talk to their families.”
“Nope. Not happening. And they of all people will understand why. Right now, you’re staying put if I have to sit on you. And you’re not going back to that courthouse any time soon. In fact, I’d feel a lot better if you let me take you somewhere besides this house. I can tell you right now I’m working on it. I’m waiting to hear back from my boss with a game plan.”
I got up and started to pace. “I thought you said we shouldn’t jump to conclusions. That this whole thing might very well have nothing to do with the death threats I’ve been getting. Are you bullshitting me?”
Huck rose and blocked my path. “No. I’m not bullshitting you. What I am is doing my job. Protecting you. So what I’d like you to do is pack a few things. I’d like to get you the hell out of Ann Arbor for a few days until things settle down and the FBI can tell me more about what the hell we’re dealing with.”
“I’m safe here. You said I was. That’s why you have marshals stationed all around the house.”
Huck sighed and pressed a thumb against his eye. “Yes. For the time being. Yes. But …”
“Then I’m staying put. Tonight at least. Tomorrow. Fix it so I can see Rhonda and Gemma.”
“Jillian!”
“Huck!”
“Be reasonable.”
I pushed past him and started pacing again. Then I turned on him. “Whether I was a target or not, those women are in the hospital because they work for me. I’m not going to turn tail and abandon them. Are you telling me the federal marshals can’t keep me safe long enough to pay a visit to the hospital?”
I expected him to fight me on it more than he did. Instead, Huck just let out a sigh and put his hands on his hips. “Is there anything on God’s green earth that you don’t think you can control?”
I stopped pacing and squared off with him. “Nothing, Huck. Today showed me I can control nothing. That’s why I need to see my friends. Will you take me?”
He shook his head but I knew I’d won the argument. He lifted his head toward the ceiling and sighed. “Fine. But you’re wearing a baseball cap and whatever else I tell you. If I let you look like … well … you, you’ll stick out like a sore thumb.”
I couldn’t help but smile up at him. An exasperated Ray Huckman could break hearts. God, I needed him. It scared me how much. Two of the closest people to me in the world were lying there hurt and I couldn’t go to them. I couldn’t say it to Huck right now—hell, I could barely admit it to myself—but I needed him on my side now more than ever.
“Thank you,” I said. “For everything. Things got kind of intense back there but I know you’re looking out for me.”
“Always,” he said, his voice taking a deeper tone than normal. The intensity of his gaze nearly made me flinch. I’d been so wrapped up in my own head, it hadn’t occurred to me how scared Huck might have been through all of it. I knew what he was thinking without him even having to say it. He might blame himself. There were others who needed help today. It would be in his nature to want to go to them. But he pushed all of that aside and stayed by my side.
I did something I shouldn’t have. I reached up and touched Huck’s cheek. A muscle in his jaw jumped beneath my fingertips. He brought his hand up to cover mine. It was just a moment in time, but it meant everything. We were both okay. He hadn’t left me when it counted.
Afterward, Huck made runny spaghetti and made me eat it. I have to admit it tasted like heaven going down but I nearly fell asleep in it. We talked about boring things. The Farmer’s Almanac called for a harsh winter, another Polar Vortex, they were calling it. I asked Huck whether he needed to call his own family. Details about the car bomb were surely all over the news by now. I wanted to turn on the television but Huck insisted we shouldn’t. He said half the shit they’d report would be wrong until a few more hours went by. I knew he was right.
My phone wouldn’t stop ringing. Huck took every call, assuring various colleagues that I was safe and sound. Each call was recorded and I felt that cold sense of dread seeping into my bones again. I wasn’t safe. Not really. If today was about me, whoever targeted me had failed. They were still out there somewhere and would try again. Each attempt got more serious. More people could get hurt around me.
I buried my face in my hands as Huck took the last of the calls and put my pho
ne on silent. He came to me, running his hand along the curve of my skull. Such a simple, intimate gesture, but it calmed me just a little.
“Don’t let your head spin, Jillian. We’re going to get to the bottom of this. You’re safe now and you’re going to stay that way.”
“What about the people around me? Gemma and Rhonda are going to be fine but they aren’t right now. It could have been so much worse.”
“But it wasn’t.”
“Only because of you.”
Huck knelt in front of me. “You just have to hold it together. That’s all. Smart people with vast resources are working every side of this problem. We’re just going to stay here for now and work our side of it. That’s keeping you out of sight for now. Period. And you need to get some rest. Hell, I need to get some rest. It’s been a long day.”
The minute he said it, drowsiness fell over me like a blanket. He stood up and held his hand out for me. Giving him a weak smile, I took it. Huck talked me into taking a shower and going to sleep even though it was barely past eight.
He was right. As I toweled off and slipped on a nightgown, I realized just how right. I was exhausted in a way I’d never been before. My mind, my body just needed to quit for a while. As I slipped on my robe and headed back into the hallway, Huck was waiting there, leaning against the wall.
“Thank you,” I said simply. “You were amazing today.”
A slow smile lifted the corner of his mouth. “So were you.”
I laughed. “Liar. Sack of potatoes comes to mind. You know, the part where you tossed me over your shoulder.”
Huck shook his head but his eyes sparkled. “Just part of the service I provide, ma’am. Now on behalf of the Marshals Service, I’m hereby ordering your ass to bed. I didn’t mind it just the one time, but I’m not about to carry your tired ass around town tomorrow too.”
I flashed him a half-hearted middle finger as I stepped around him to my bedroom door.
“Of course, it’s a mighty fine ass, if I do say so myself, your honor.”
