Twin Targets Read Online Free PDF Page A

Pittsburgh.
    They’d check on it. Just like they’d check on hundreds of other details. And in the meantime, the shooters were out there on the loose, maybe waiting for another crack at killing Jade.
    “Is that all?” She glanced up at him, looking like a kid longing to hear that an ordeal was over. Unfortunately he couldn’t believe that hers was. “Not entirely. We’d like to move you to a safer location for a time. If you’ll pack what you need—”
    “No. I’m not going anywhere.” That soft jaw managed to look amazingly stubborn. “This is my home.”
    “You’re not safe here. Let us take care of you.”
    Anger flared in her eyes. “The way you took care of my sister?”
    His fists clenched. “Those men could come back. Do you want to face them on your own?”
    Her face whitened, but she didn’t drop her gaze. They stared at each other, wary as strange cats, and he felt the force of her determination pushing against him. Footsteps thudded on the front porch, and the county sheriff came in, knocking snow off his boots.
    “There you are, McGraw. We’ve got some good news for you. Looks like you’re not going to have to worry about those two gunmen anymore.”
    “What do you mean?”
    And why was he talking in front of a witness? Overweight, overage and out of shape, the man was obviously too full of his news to be discreet.
    “I don’t know where they were for the past couple hours, but a few minutes ago they tried to run a roadblock we’d set up out on the highway.”
    “You’ve got them?” Maybe now they’d get some answers.
    “Well, not exactly.” The man’s pudgy face expressed disappointment. “Thing is, they tried to bust their way through the barrier, lost control of the vehicle, ended up wrapped around a utility pole. One’s dead, the other’s on his way to the hospital in critical condition.”
    And probably not able to talk, the way their luck was running. “You’ve got a guard on him?”
    “Of course.” The sheriff looked offended.
    “That means I’m safe,” Jade said, drawing his attention back to her. “There’s no reason why I have to go.”
    All his instincts screamed at the thought of leaving her here alone, no matter what had happened to the shooters.
    “You’d still be safer in a hotel in Billings.”
    Her jaw set. “I’m staying here.”
    “Well, shoot, we’ll look after Ms. Summers, Marshal. We think highly of her around here.” The sheriff beamed. “You federal boys don’t need to think we can’t take care of our own.”
    He’d argue, but he was on shaky ground. Jade could be right, and the threat to her could be over. The sheriff could be right, and he was capable of looking after her. Could be. But he doubted it.
    He looked at Jade and imagined her lying on a cold concrete floor with two bullet holes in her. His gut twisted. He nodded. “I’ll be in touch,” he said. It was all he could do.

THREE
    The briefing seemed to be stagnating, and Micah shifted restlessly in his chair. They’d gone over and over the little they knew about Ruby’s murder, and it seemed to him they were no further.
    Phillips tapped a pen on the tabletop, the only sign of frustration he allowed himself. “Mac, what’s the scuttlebutt from Pittsburgh? Does the organized crime team there have anything?”
    Mac Sellers straightened at being appealed to. Years behind a desk had softened his belly and soured his disposition, but he’d learned how to work the complicated threads that bound law enforcement agencies together, and that could be invaluable.
    “Nothing that moves us forward. No indication that the Pittsburgh Mob was interested in sending any messages by tracking her down. Why would they? The guy she put away was a low-level soldier, easily replaced.”
    “What about him?” Phillips snapped. “He might be carrying a grudge.”
    “That’s more promising.” Mac seemed to like drawing out his moment of attention. “Joey Buffano, his name was. Seems Joey got