Guardian Of Justice. Carol Steward

around, talking to other officers and jotting more. From the firm set of his jaw and shoulder, she knew he wouldn’t be easy to convince. He kept his emotions carefully guarded.

      She knew from her brothers’ comments that officers had to secure the premises before allowing anyone into a volatile scene. What were the chances that Kira would have ended up in the line of fire while waiting outside? “It couldn’t be any worse inside, could it? We have a job to do.”

      “It’s getting done. You need to calm down.”

      “I am calm,” she argued.

      “Yeah, I see that.” One side of his mouth turned up. It wasn’t quite a smile, but maybe he was one of those brooding types that didn’t smile. “Calm down some more, then.” He quirked an eyebrow, revealing a sense of humor in his blue eyes.

      Kira looked around at the half-dozen officers who were making their presence known in the neighborhood. “I will point out I followed your orders to a T. Am I supposed to be a robot and not get a bit riled after being scared out of my wits?” That’s all it was, she reassured herself. It was no more frightening than when her brothers jumped out at her from around the corner in the dark basement.

      But it was different, her ugly conscience reminded her. This wasn’t in the security of her adopted family’s basement. This was….

      She wasn’t going to let herself think about it. Not now.

      “I need to get in there, Officer Brooks. The last place I should be is out here twiddling my thumbs.”

      “We’ll go, in a few minutes. I just know it’s too soon to jump right back into the middle of the situation. A little more time wouldn’t be a bad idea. We’re trained to always prepare for the unexpected when responding to a domestic disturbance, but…” Dallas cleared his throat. “I shouldn’t have…” He couldn’t even think of what he’d done wrong. It was just a bad situation.

      “I’m not blaming you.” She felt bad for razzing him now. She hadn’t expected him to take it personally. His sensitivity caught her off guard, and she felt the warmth of his hand holding hers all over again. “The guy could have come barreling out of the back room of the house,” she said quietly. The last thing Dallas needed right now was for the other officers to hear her comforting him. “You didn’t know. If Child Protection had received the call, I’d have been here without a police escort at all.” She needed to take her mind off how handsome Dallas was and get back to work. “For now, could I at least get out of this car?”

      He paused just long enough to make her wonder whether something else was happening. He gave a quick scan of the area, then moved out of her way. He took the blanket as it fell from her shoulders, and wrapped it around her again. “It’s getting a little chilly. Why don’t you keep this with you?” His gaze lingered a moment too long before he broke the connection. She knew it was dangerous to let her feelings show and to let herself read anything into Dallas’s gaze.

      Kira stretched and shook her legs out, as if she’d been cramped in the car for ages. They had left the station a little over an hour ago.

      She walked around the car and saw the gouge in the door where the sharp rock had dented the steel. “If the crazy guy hadn’t been so high, he probably would have hit his target.”

      “Yeah,” Dallas responded somberly. “Remember not to touch the car anymore. We’ve called for an investigator to come get prints. Do you need anything?”

      She shook her head.

      “Listen, I have to get back inside and talk to the mother. I want to get a little more information about the situation before I bring you in and frighten them with Child Protection. It’s nothing personal.”

      She regarded him with a speculative gaze. Somehow it felt personal. “Just make sure someone’s out here with me, and I’ll be fine.” She felt another chill go up her spine, and wrapped her arms across her chest, tugging the blanket tighter. “Officer…”

      “Dallas.”

      Yeah, it definitely felt personal. Kira stuffed the attraction deeper inside. She didn’t want another cop in her life. Her dad and three brothers were enough. “I’m sorry I broke protocol, with the radio and everything.”

      “Don’t worry about it. You did the right thing,” he said quietly.

      His clear blue eyes were full of life and pain, yet she saw warmth there, too. He forced a tight-lipped smile before turning away. He was solidly built, but didn’t seem to have that tough-guy mentality, as she had initially presumed. Kim realized she was staring, and nodded.

      “Officer Williams will stay out here with you to watch for the guy, though I doubt he’ll return tonight.” Dallas gently patted her arm, and Kira noticed a hint of a smile. “It’s going to be okay.”

      She tried sitting in the cruiser again, but couldn’t shake the edginess. How long would it be before she’d forget the madman’s eyes staring her down? Kira got back out and leaned against the front fender, watching the house like an anxious puppy.

      To the left, two officers visited, pointing down the block. Did they see someone? Other than a few neighbors peering out their darkened windows to see what was happening, all appeared quiet again.

      Officer Williams kept his distance, but several times asked if she was doing okay. She jotted notes to be used in her study and glanced up, hoping Dallas would emerge. She was getting worried. She studied the house, wondering what was going on inside.

      Behind a round bush, a light appeared suddenly, as if it had risen out of the ground. Kira shrugged the blanket off and dropped it on the grass. She stepped closer, examining the foundation of the house for windows. Keeping her distance from any shadowed areas where someone could be lurking, she stepped past the corner of the house, but the light was gone. Were officers searching the basement? Why were the other windows not lit?

      Suddenly, Kira spotted a little girl’s face in the glow of the streetlight. A curly haired blonde was peering out of a basement window. Frightened eyes looked around suspiciously, then disappeared. Seconds later a tattered stuffed animal flew from the window well. Kira watched for a moment.

      Dallas obviously didn’t know the little girl was there, or she’d probably be in a bigger hurry to get out of the house. Officer Williams was busy searching the front yard for evidence. Even if the police did know she was in the house, Kira reasoned, if the child slipped out the small window, they might not be able to catch her. I’m doing him a favor.

      She hurried forward and offered her hand. “Hi there. I’m Kira Matthews. Do you need some help?”

      The little girl dropped back into the house as if she was on a park slide.

      How’d she do that? Kira couldn’t believe her eyes. The child had disappeared in an instant. Kira hesitantly stepped closer, then knelt down and peered into the dark basement. “It’s okay, honey, I can help you. I’m with Social Services. Are you okay?”

      “Un-huh,” a small voice answered, so quietly Kira could hardly hear her.

      She kicked back into her social worker role. “Are you hurt?” When there was no answer, she asked the girl’s name. Kira felt her chills return.

      She heard scuffling from inside the basement. After a long pause, the girl finally answered, “Betsy.”

      “That’s a really pretty name. How old are you, Betsy?” She heard soft sniffles. The little girl was frightened.

      “Betsy, can you come back up here so we can talk?” Kira asked. She wanted to get out of these shadows before the madman returned. With the light beaming out of the basement, she felt as if she had a spotlight trained on her.

      Nothing but whimpers broke the silence.

      “Can you tell me why you are sneaking out of the house, Betsy?”

      “Mama told me to,” she whimpered.

      Kira