Page 90 of Fatal Strike
Her reaction to the rattler and victory over her fear filled her with relief. No more ophidiophobia. No more nightmarish jeers from her demons to echo in her mind.
You’re a sniper for the FBI?
You’re one of the top three marksmen in the US?
And you’re afraid of snakes?
Leah had killed it. Literally. In a few hours she’d step inside her apartment and see the remains of what had stalked her for years. She could handle it. She basked in the satisfaction of being an overcomer. This victory also felt like a win on the case battlefront, and if those responsible for the Galveston murders had lost one fight, they’d lose another and another.
When she opened her eyes, Jon was examining her face as though it were beneath a microscope.
“Are you okay?” she said.
“Aren’t I supposed to be asking you that?”
“I’m great. The nausea is wearing off.”
“I’m sleeping on your couch tonight.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Everything I’ve read says you shouldn’t be left alone. If you’re refusing my company, then who?”
She thought of Terri, but she didn’t want to bother her. “I’ll be fine.”
“If you’re worried about propriety—”
“Jon, it’s not that. I don’t want to impose.”
“You’re not. I need my partner.”
She moaned. “Tell you what. I’ll set my phone to go off every two hours and give you the times. When I’m alerted, I’ll text you.”
He frowned. “Forget to text me, and I’ll be at your front door.”
“I have no doubt. Would you hand me my phone? I want to check with the agents at the Mendez home.”
He picked up her phone from the hospital stand and gave it to her. “They’re in place. You had dozed off when I received a text. One of the agents reported Rachel Mendez has a bucket of questions. She wants to talk to you. The hour doesn’t matter.”
She pressed in Rachel Mendez’s number. “It’s probably a woman thing. I’ll let you listen in.”
Rachel picked up on the first ring.
“This is Agent Riesel. I understand you wanted me to call you.”
“At whose request were the police officers replaced by FBI agents? I’m not upset, just concerned for my children and mother.”
“We initiated the replacement after a new development.”
“Has there been another murder?” Rachel’s voice rose.
“No. We’ve been told your husband documented evidence identifying the likely perpetrators. We felt precaution made sense.”
“If my husband had evidence like that, I’d have known about it. Nicolás and I employed an open relationship.”
But she’d kept Dylan’s connection to her from him for years. “What if he kept the evidence secret to protect you?”
Silence lingered on the other end of the phone. Finally, “He loved me very much, and his children were his treasure. Please accept my apologies. I want the killers found and prosecuted.”
