Monday's Child Read Online Free Page B

me with his fingers.”
    “I see.” He looked at Luke. “And where were you?”
    “He was standing right there, all right, Inspector? Both of them were. I hadn’t gone off on my own. I resent this protection thing at times, but I’m not stupid.”
    Wilcox stared at her, then looked back at Luke. “Well?”
    “I was as close to her as I am now. We both were. We thought the guy was window shopping.”
    “We’ll talk more back at the chalet. Sara, DC Lomas will drive you and Luke back now. Chances are Austin knows where you’re staying, especially after last night. So I want you to pack. We’ll move you out tonight.”
    “But it wasn’t Austin.”
    Wilcox gave her a long ‘I’m not going to be argued with’ stare.
    Sara sighed. It wasn’t Austin she’d seen the previous night. It was Jamie. He’d found her, only no one believed her, so she wasn’t going waste her breath. “All right. Where am I going?”
    “Let us worry about that. You and Luke go home and pack. There will be uniformed officers outside. If Austin knows where you are, there’s no point in concealing the uniforms, but we’ll maintain the illusion of husband and wife. That’s essential for the duration of this protection program.”
    Sara let Luke lead her out to the car. She gave him the bags and got inside, wrapping her arms around her middle. She didn’t care what Austin did to her…but her baby was another matter. She sat there in silence as Luke got in next to her, and Lomas drove back to the chalet.
    Sara carried the bags from the car and struggled to pull out her key. Her trembling hands made unlocking the door impossible.
    “Let me.” Luke took the key from her, his fingers warm against her frozen skin, and opened the door. “Go and start packing. Mine won’t take long. Would you like more coffee?”
    Still shaken, and surprised by the gentleness in his tone, Sara agreed. She walked into the bedroom and laid her new clothes straight into her case. She pulled all her old clothes from the drawers and wardrobe, and shoved them into a black rubbish sack. She picked it up and went into the lounge. She glanced at the officers there. “This needs throwing out.”
    “Here.” Luke swapped the sack for a mug of coffee. “We’ll take that out for you.”
    “Thank you.” Sara returned to the bedroom, setting the mug down on the dresser. She packed up the rest of her things in a blur. Once again, her entire life was turned upside down in the space of a few short hours.
    Setting the case on the floor, Sara curled up on the bed, the gold framed photo of Jamie in her hand. She let out a deep breath. She’d seen him. She wasn’t crazy. He’d been standing right there, and they’d chased him away. Now she was leaving. She might never see him again. Not that there wasn’t a shred of hope. He’d found her once. Could he find her again? Just as Austin had?
    Sara shivered. Which one would get to her first? Lord, keep me and my unborn child safe.
     
    ****
     
    Luke opened the door. Wilcox stood there with another officer. “Lieutenant Luke Nemec, this is Sergeant Dave McArthur. He’ll be your partner for the duration of this case.”
    Luke held out a hand, taking a second to form a first opinion. Around the same height as him, Dave had short brown curly hair and a matching beard. His hands were rough, indicative of hard work somewhere in his past. His dark eyes were warm and echoed the smile on his face.
    As they shook hands, Luke allowed the firmness of his grip to illustrate the fact he didn’t take any nonsense from anyone. He learned a lot from shaking hands, and it was a good point to give back as much as you learned from it, especially in his line of work. “It’s nice to meet you.”
    “And ye,” Dave replied in his soft Scottish lilt.
    Wilcox spoke again. “We’re relocating you and Sara to Tannoch where Sergeant McArthur lives. I want you to be on a first name basis—which you would be as partners, anyway. You met