Fatal Judgment Read Online Free PDF Page A

target. For now, that didn’t seem to be the case.
    “The agent’s a good guy, though. Mark Sanders. Heads up the SWAT team. Used to be on the HRT.”
    Jake arched an eyebrow. Impressive. The FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team was the nation’s most elite civilian tactical force. If things got dicey, Sanders would be a good guy to have around.
    The door to the waiting room opened, and Spence stuck his head in. The grim set of his jaw kicked Jake’s pulse up a notch, and he stood. “Gotta go, Cole. Maybe I’ll see you at the house.”
    He strode toward the door as he slid the phone back onto his belt. “What’s up?”
    “The ICU called. They’re taking the judge’s sister back to surgery. She’s hemorrhaging.”
    Muttering a word he rarely used, Jake joined Spence in the hall. The man fell into step beside him as they headed toward Liz’s room.
    “Did you hear anything from her all night—or what was left of the night?”
    “No.”
    When he reached her door, he gave a soft knock.
    No response.
    He knocked more firmly.
    Still no response.
    Furrowing his brow, he twisted the handle and pushed the door partway open.
    The room was dark, the faint light of dawn nothing more than a pale outline around the blinds on the far window. But the light spilling in from the hallway illuminated Liz as she lay curled into a protective ball facing the door, her hair falling across her cheek.
    “Let’s try to round up some coffee.” Jake spoke softly, keeping his gaze fixed on her. “And see if you can find someone who can give us an update.”
    As Spence motioned to one of the officers a few feet away, Jake entered the room and eased the door shut behind him. He continued to the bathroom, where he flipped on the light above the sink. That provided some illumination in the room without the need to turn on the harsh bar fixture over the bed.
    Moving close to Liz, he was struck by her pallor. And her puffy eyes suggested she’d cried herself into an exhausted sleep.
    He wished he had better news to give her. But delaying it wasn’t going to change the inevitable.
    “Liz.”
    She didn’t stir.
    “Liz.” He touched her shoulder.
    Emitting a troubled sigh, she tried to shift away.
    Lightly grasping her shoulder, Jake gave a gentle shake and increased his volume. “Liz.”
    Her eyelids flickered open. For a brief moment she stared straight ahead. Then, with a sharp gasp, she bolted upright, her disoriented eyes wide with fear, her chest heaving, her posture rigid.
    “Liz, it’s okay.” Jake grasped both her shoulders and put his face close to hers, his fingers absorbing the tremors coursing through her body. “It’s Jake. You’ve been resting in the hospital near your sister.” He spoke slowly, giving her a chance to shake off the mind-muddling effects of her exhausted slumber. “Take a few deep breaths.”
    As she followed his instructions, the haziness in her green irises cleared. Only then did he pass on the news.
    “I’m sorry to wake you. But your sister’s been taken back to surgery.”
    Her breath hitched, and she shrugged free of him to swing her legs to the floor. One side of the scrub top slipped off her shoulder as she stood, but she either didn’t notice or didn’t care.
    “What happened?”
    “We’re trying to get you some details now. All we know is there was some additional bleeding in the brain.”
    Her response was a small, deep-throated moan that seemed sourced in her soul—and tugged at his gut.
    Holding onto the mattress with one hand, she righted her discarded brown pumps with a toe and slid her feet inside. “How long ago . . .”
    The knob on the door twisted, and a second later Spence pushed it open to admit a woman in scrubs with a stethoscope around her neck. She headed toward Liz and held out her hand.
    “Judge Michaels, I’m Susan Grady from neuro-intensive care. I’ve been asked to give you an update. Would you like to sit?”
    “No.” Liz folded her arms across her chest.
    The