Matchbox Girls Read Online Free PDF

the physical after-effects of the adrenaline rush. Score one for medical science.
    “What pills are these?” asked the interested voice of the lawyer. “Are you ill, Miss Claviger?”
    “No!” She glared up at him and maintained her grip on the girls. Now she could see the face beneath the sweet concern that was painted on like clown makeup. Under the glow of good intentions, he was impatient, careless, and stressed. The twins had been told to call her. She ran her mind over the previous conversation and found more questions, more inconsistencies that troubled her. Zachariah's cellphone. The children's ignorance. But none were so disturbing as the overwhelming pressure she’d felt when he looked at her.
    “No. You’re lying, Mr. White. About something... maybe about everything. Go away. I’m going to take care of the girls until their uncle comes for them.” Somehow.
    He looked taken aback. “That could be a while.” She shrugged. He studied her and then shook his head. “No. I can’t trust you. You can’t even stand up straight. Do you really want to fight me on this? Because I’ll win, and it won’t be good for you.”
    Marley raised her chin defiantly. “Bring it.” She realized another man had moved in from the other side of the park, lurking just out of earshot. The new guy was tall, dark-haired, and ragged-looking, just like the crows that took to the air ahead of him. He stared at her so intently that she thought he must be associated with the lawyer. An enforcer. There was somebody in the minivan, too, draped over the steering wheel. She remembered her vision of the study in disarray and wondered if the lawyer meant a real, physical fight, right now. What had happened to Zachariah?
    Jeremy moved closer again and dropped his voice to a near whisper, as if he wanted to make sure nobody overheard them. “Believe me, Miss Claviger: You do not want to fight me on this. My allies are more dangerous than you can imagine. They are also exceedingly powerful. If you cooperate, we will compensate you for the inconvenience you've suffered thus far.”
    “No!” Once again, his urging seemed genuine, and Marley couldn’t bear it. She rose to her feet and ducked around him, pulling the kids after her. Why, oh why was the park so empty of the normal family groups? Would the people at the baseball diamond hear her if she screamed?
    Jeremy White followed her, as if he didn’t believe the conversation was over. She went to her car and opened it, pointing inside. Kari balked. “I want to see Uncle Zach. I'm tired of this game.”
    “I can take you,” said the lawyer quickly. “Miss Claviger can come, too. I'm sure Mr. Thorne and his companions would like to speak with her. We've plenty of room in the van. Or you could follow us.”
    “Uncle Zach can call us, Kari. And I'm sure he will when Mr. White tells him I'm being stubborn.” She looked nervously at the lawyer as he put his hand in his pocket, but he only pulled out a smartphone.
    Lissa leaned to Kari and whispered, “Marley's the one who will take care of us, Uncle Zach said. And that man is weird. Look at...” and they both looked up at Jeremy. Kari frowned. Then she turned and climbed inside the car, Lissa following her. Marley shut the door and turned to look at him.
    “Gonna make any calls on that? Direct to Zachariah?”
    He glanced at the phone, tapped the screen, then said irritably, “I said he was on a plane right now. And not the sort that allows incoming calls.” He studied her in apparent puzzlement. She stared back, as fiercely as she could. Finally, he shrugged. As he resettled his jacket, the tattoo flashed again. “We’ll meet again, Miss Claviger.”
    “Bring a bailiff next time.”
    He touched two fingers to his brow in an absentminded salute as he turned away.
    She watched him until he got into his vehicle. He had a discussion with the other person, and then the van drove away.
    After it was out of sight, she looked around the