The guard rushed over to them. 'Detective Buchanan, did Mr. Smith tell you what I found out about the gun?'
'Yes, he did.'
'What should I tell them? They're going to be here any second.'
Dylan could see the guard was nervous about the procedure. 'You don't have to do anything but give them the gun. They'll handle Roger MacKenna.'
'Shouldn't they be warned about him?'
'They have been warned,' he assured him. 'They know what they're doing. You just stay out of their way.'
'Yes, sir.'
'Anderson is going to try to keep all of them in his office until the police arrive, but if Roger insists on leaving, he'll walk down with him. You won't have to face him alone.' The guard still looked worried. 'Or you could wait in your office…' Dylan continued.
Instantly relieved, the guard answered, 'If that's what you want me to do, sir, then I'll wait in my office.'
He nodded. 'Okay, Kate. Let's go.'
She didn't move. Her look of astonishment was priceless, and he almost laughed.
'The gun surprised you?' he asked.
Surprised? Oh, please. She'd gone way past surprise in the attorney's office. Like an Irishman at an Anglican wake, she had this totally inappropriate urge to laugh. The brothers just kept getting worse.
'Roger brought a gun to the attorney's office?' She took a couple of steps toward the door and stopped. 'Who would bring a gun to the reading of a will?'
'Apparently Roger MacKenna would, and in fact did. The police will take him to the station and have a little chat with him. They'll run the gun, too,' he added. 'Hopefully, Roger will do some heavy sweating in jail. That would be pretty sweet, wouldn't it?'
'Shouldn't you be waiting for the police? They might have questions…'
'No, we're not waiting. We're getting away from here as quickly as possible. Unless you want to run back upstairs and kiss the cousins good-bye.'
She shuddered with repulsion. She'd rather eat glass.
'No, thank you,' she said politely. 'I'd just as soon leave.'
He grinned. 'I thought you might.'
A clap of thunder greeted them when they stepped outside. It was already drizzling, but the clouds were dark and heavy. A hard rain would come any second now.
'Want to make a run for it?' he asked.
He didn't give her time to answer. He grabbed her hand and took off. By the time they reached the corner, the drizzle had turned into rain.
She was keeping pace with him, which was no small feat. 'I would prefer that you bring the car around.'
They sprinted across the street as he said, 'No way, Pickle. You're staying with me, and we're getting out of here.'
They raced along the path through the park. Dylan was scanning the area, looking for anyone or anything that didn't belong. His hand rested on the handle of his gun.
Kate's high heels were taking a pounding and killing her, but pride kept her from complaining or asking him to slow down. She'd keep up or die trying.
When they reached the car, Dylan opened her door and practi-cally tossed her inside. He removed his jacket and, just as he was handing it to her, the skies opened up. He managed to make it to the driver's side without getting completely soaked.
Kate folded his jacket and carefully laid it on the backseat. After placing the thick binder and the envelope on the floor behind her, she sat back and tried to calm her racing heart. She couldn't get the cousins out of her thoughts. She felt as though she'd just spent the past hour whirling in a blender.
Dylan checked the street and the buildings beyond. The rain had chased pedestrians under the awnings and into doorways. Two pickup trucks drove by, but the drivers didn't look their way.
They were safe… for the moment.
A police car sped by and turned the corner. It came to an abrupt stop in front of Smith and Wesson.
Dylan started the engine and said, 'Okay, let's go.'
The windows were beginning to steam up as he pulled onto the street. He flipped on the air conditioner.
Kate wasn't paying attention to where they were going until she noticed he missed the turn that would take them to the highway. When she pointed that out, he nodded but kept going.
It seemed to her that he turned left or right at nearly every corner. She soon lost her sense of direction. She thought they had started out going north, but he'd made so many turns she couldn't get her bearings.
'Where are you going?'
'Nowhere yet. I'm making sure we aren't being followed.'
She quickly turned around and looked out the back window. 'I don't see anyone.'
'Neither do I.'
'Then why…'
'Just being careful.'
The rain was already letting up. Dylan spotted a baseball field and pulled into a parking lot adjacent to a set of metal bleachers. There wasn't a soul around, no doubt because of the weather, but the sun was already moving in, and with it came a renewed wave of heat and humidity. Steam rose up from the concrete path that circled the lot.
Dylan put the car in park, unhooked his seat belt, and loosened his tie. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
Kate waited a moment before saying, 'Dylan? Do you remember I told you I couldn't think of anyone who would want to kill me?'
A hint of a smile softened his expression. 'I remember.'
'I believe I could come up with some names for you now.'
Chapter Twenty-six
Kate seemed to have a knack for always knowing just what to say to take the edge off. And one of her smiles could cut right through the tension.
Dylan knew she had to be afraid. She'd already been through hell and still carried the bruises as a reminder that someone was trying to kill her, but when she got her back up, she was a force to be reckoned with. She was an amazing woman.
He, on the other hand, was a basket case. Real nice admission coming from a detective.
Her uncle had put Kate in a very dangerous position. Dylan didn't care about the money or what the man's motives had been. Knowingly or unknowingly, Compton MacKenna had given his nephews more than eighty million reasons to get rid of her.
The thought of anyone hurting her enraged him. And terrified him. Not good, he realized. Not good at all. He'd gotten too emotionally involved, damn it. Too… attached. Now how in blazes had that happened?
Kate studied Dylan's face. He was glaring through the windshield at nothing in particular.
'Dylan…?' she began.
'I'm not going to let anyone hurt you.' The promise was given with such intensity, his voice shook.
Kate jumped to the conclusion that he needed reassurance. 'Do you think I'm concerned about your ability to protect me because you were shot in the line of duty?'
Man, was she dense. He actually laughed. 'Yeah, that was my worry, all right.'
'I'm aware of all of your commendations,' she said. 'And I know you're excellent at what you do. I'm not at
