Sworn to Protect Read Online Free PDF Page B

said from her position on the sofa.
    Their voices rose.
    “Of course if your father hears the roar, a couple of kids may go to bed hungry, and those burgers smell real good.”
    That did it, and the combination of her warning and the movie quieted all of them.
    “Smart move,” Lucy said.
    Sandra didn’t reply. She detested the woman who now stood in the doorway, even if she had fronted the money for Sandra to get across the border. For three years, she’d worked as a maid for free until Lucy decided the money had been paid in full. Shortly after Toby’s death, Lucy found her a job with Danika and Tiana. But the woman who owned a maid and nanny service cared only about herself and what went into her bank account.
    Lucy sat on the sofa beside Sandra. “Are you and Danika still more friends than employer and employee?”
    Sandra’s stomach nearly revolted. “My personal relationship with my employer is none of your business.”
    “Where’s the respect I deserve for taking good care of you?”
    “I spent it on toilet paper.”
    Lucy gripped Sandra’s arm and leaned close. “I thought you liked your job, living in a nice house like you were a real person.”
    Sandra pried Lucy’s fingers from her flesh. “Go ahead and fire me. Danika will keep me on.”
    “Not if she learns you’re illegal.”
    Sandra took a deep breath. She’d tolerated Lucy’s condescension long enough, feared what she could do, and avoided being alone with her. Sandra’s realization of what the law would do to Lucy changed things. “You don’t want to know the trouble I can cause. Think about it.”
    Sandra stood and walked from the room. Her legs barely held her frame, and heat flooded her face. For three years, she had worked like a dog for free. She’d paid her dues and didn’t owe Lucy a thing.
* * *
    Shocked to see the truth glazing over Nadine’s eyes, Danika gave her niece a hug and left her alone with Jacob.
    The sound of ice chinking into glasses didn’t block the bellowing revelation slamming against Danika’s head. Where had Nadine gotten drugs? How did she pay for them? Was that the cause of the argument between father and daughter? Did the teen think she could hide drug abuse from her parents? The questions bombarded her senses, and Danika couldn’t pose a single one of them to Barbara and Jacob. Maybe Danika had misread the signs. . . .
    Barbara lined the ice-filled glasses on the kitchen counter. A frosty pitcher of iced tea sat nearby. “Thanks for going out there. I could see Jacob’s face soften, and Jake said he asked for Nadine.”
    “So they argued earlier?”
    Barbara hesitated before pressing the button on the refrigerator for more ice. “She wanted to go out with friends tonight, and Jacob wanted to know if any of them were boys. Nadine said it was none of his business, and it went from bad to shouting from there.”
    Danika watched Barbara fill three more glasses. She couldn’t allow the truth to go unchecked. After eight years as a Border Patrol agent, she knew what high looked like, but so did Jacob. Barbara couldn’t possibly be that naive either. Danika wanted to be wrong, so very wrong.
    “Has she been sick?” Danika reached into the fridge for a pitcher of lemonade.
    “A little. Allergies, I think.” Barbara stole a glance out the window to where Jacob and Nadine were talking. “She’s been a bit pale lately and not eating, but I think that’s from the constant quarreling with her father. Maybe I should take her to the doctor. She may have a summer cold with her runny nose and hacking cough.”
    The more Barbara talked, the more the evidence stacked up against Nadine. “A checkup is always a good idea,” Danika said. “She shouldn’t have to suffer through not feeling well on her summer vacation.”
    “I agree.” Barbara sounded better.
    What a dysfunctional mess. If this weren’t Danika’s family, she’d stay away. But this was her family. “Hard to believe she’s going to be