Twice Dead - Catherine Coulter [61]
Sam stared up at her, sniffing, but as usual he didn’t say anything.
“Smells weird, huh, Sam? Hey, here are some friends of Adam’s. This is Sherlock and her husband, Savich.”
Sherlock went down on her knees in front of the little boy. She made no move at all toward him, and said after he’d studied her for a bit, “Hi, do you like my name?”
Sam didn’t step back, but he did lean his head back a bit. He gave Sherlock a bit of a smile and eyed her hair. He reached out two fingers and patted the top of her head.
Savich came down beside her. “We’ve got a little kid, Sam, a lot younger than you are. His name is Sean and he’s only six months old. He can’t pat the top of his mama’s head yet. He doesn’t even talk yet. But he is growing teeth.”
“Teeth are good,” Sherlock said, “but all that drool is a pain.”
That drew Adam up really fast. These two had a kid? Well, why was he so surprised? Most men his age were married and had children. He’d been married once, and he’d wanted a kid, lots of them as a matter of fact, but Vivie hadn’t been ready yet. A long time ago now, five years, nearly long enough to forget her name, if it hadn’t sounded like a song out of Cabaret.
Becca said easily, “Sam doesn’t talk much, Sherlock. I think it’s because he’s always thinking so hard.”
“I like a kid who thinks a lot,” Savich said. “Do you want to come to the kitchen with me and we’ll find you a goody to eat?”
Sam didn’t hesitate, lifted his arms. Savich scooped him up and carried him away on his shoulders. “I don’t think I’ll even have to burp you, Sam. I’m really good at that. Sean likes to burp a lot.”
Sam grabbed Savich’s hair, and Becca saw the smile on his face. Then he turned his head and looked at Adam, at his bandaged arm. He shook his head, frowning, looking confused, then afraid.
Adam said, “It’s okay, Sam. I didn’t hurt my arm bad, only a little bit. Becca fixed me right up.”
“Yep, and I did a good job, Sam, don’t worry.” Then Sam and Savich were gone, and Tyler said, “What happened here? No, Becca, don’t try to lie to me.”
She thought of Tyler and Sam and the two of them accidentally being in the line of that madman’s fire, and said, “The stalker found me. He fired at me and Adam. I shot him, but he got away. We’re okay, but I’m worried about you and Sam coming here. It’s not a good idea, Tyler.”
He shook his head at her and said, “He shot the door?”
“He fired through it a couple of times, really messed it up. I don’t want the sheriff to see it. He’d ask too many questions.”
“Don’t worry, Mr. McBride,” Sherlock said. “Things will be under control, but you know Becca’s right. It’s best if you keep Sam away from here until we bring this guy down. It could be dangerous until we catch him.”
Tyler looked both angry and determined. “Yeah, I’ll go but I want Becca to come with me and Sam, either to my house or away, maybe to California. I want her kept safe.”
“No, Tyler,” Becca said, lightly touching her fingertips to his arm. “We’ve got to clean it up. There are lots of people here now to help me.”
Tyler turned to Adam. “Who are you, really? And you?” he added to Sherlock.
“Dillon and I are FBI, Mr. McBride. Adam here is on special assignment to protect Becca.” That sounded like he was with the Bureau as well, Adam thought, which was probably for the best. An independent security consultant didn’t sound like he’d know what to do with a madman. FBI did.
“You never told me,” Tyler said to Becca, his voice low. “You didn’t trust me. You let me think he was your cousin. Why did you do that?”
Becca couldn’t think of a thing to say that wouldn’t make everything worse. She hadn’t meant to hurt him, to keep him in the dark, to make him feel unimportant to her, but—
“Get over it, Tyler,” Adam said. “This isn’t fun and games. It’s serious business. You’re not trained to do this sort of thing. We are. Besides, you’ve got Sam. He’s got to be your first priority.”
Tyler said, his hands fisted at his sides, “You’re not gay, are you?”
“No, not any