Kat marched across the room, pausing at the door and looking both ways before stepping outside.

  “Straight into the car. Okay?” Ethan said, not at all in the bossy tone he’d used yesterday, but with soft encouragement.

  Near the door, she remembered her camera and tote bag. “I have to get my things. I left them in the foyer.”

  “Already in the car,” he said.

  She nodded and stepped outside. The warm sun and a tantalizing aroma drifting from a nearby bakery belied the potential danger surrounding them. A cute young woman Jennie recognized as Dani left the idling vehicle while shoving her phone in her pocket. Cole, feet planted wide apart, held his position near the driver’s door. Both wore dark glasses, keeping Jennie from making eye contact and offering her thanks.

  Kat urged Jennie past Dani and toward the SUV. Jennie waited for Cole to glance at her as she slipped by, but he kept his gaze straight ahead, adding to his bad-boy look that contrasted with Ethan’s clean-cut appearance. Cole’s hair was lighter and longer than Ethan’s, curling over the collar of his denim shirt, and he looked as if he needed a shave.

  Jennie climbed into the backseat. Ethan slid in next to her, his eyes watchful. Kat soon slipped in on Jennie’s other side and Dani claimed the front passenger seat as Cole took the wheel. These brave men and women silently moving about with confidence and assurance proved they knew what they were doing. She was lucky to have them on her side and was so grateful.

  Tears pricked her eyes again. She’d been alone all her life; now she was surrounded by a family. A loving, caring family. If only they could be hers to keep.

  Cole headed the car down the alley, and once on the main street, Dani swiveled. “Ethan didn’t mention that you were his Jennie.”

  “He didn’t tell me, either.” Kat gave Ethan a pointed stare. “I had to find out the same way.”

  “It’s not relevant to the job,” Ethan ground out between his teeth as if this were the last thing he wanted to discuss.

  His sisters shared a knowing look, obviously getting the message to drop the subject. “Derrick called while you were inside,” Dani said and pulled out her phone. “He has some news about Linda Becker that he wants to relay.”

  Eager to hear something that might help them end all of this, Jennie sat forward. “I hope it’s good news.”

  “Could be.” Dani turned her attention to dialing and soon put her phone on speaker. “Go ahead, Derrick.”

  “I’ve finished my preliminary investigation of the gallery staff. They’re all squeaky clean except Madeline’s assistant. She has a serious drug problem. Been in and out of rehab since she was a teen. Her finances reflect her struggle. She makes good money at the gallery, but she’s swimming in debt. I’m wondering if she was desperate for money and was paid to make that call to the newspaper.”

  “But why?” Kat asked. “I mean if the point of all of this is to keep the show from opening, announcing it will open as scheduled makes no sense.”

  “I think it was a knee-jerk reaction by our suspect,” Derrick replied. “If he heard the break-in didn’t stop the show, he’d need to do something else to scare Jennie.”

  “And he was probably hoping with a public announcement like this,” Dani interrupted as she often did with her twin, “Jennie would think he’d come after her again and she’d run scared, canceling the show before he had to do anything else.”

  “I suppose that’s possible.” Kat still looked skeptical.

  “We need to interview Linda again,” Ethan said.

  “No offense, big brother.” Kat eyed him up. “But since she shut you and Cole down last night, maybe it would be best to send a woman to talk with her.”

  “I’ll do it,” Dani jumped in quickly.

  Ethan studied his little sister and seemed to war with a decision. “You’ll let us know if anything’s out of the ordinary, and if there’s any hint of danger, you’ll call me.”

  Dani tensed under his demanding tone, but she nodded.

  “Okay, Dani will do the interview.” Ethan spoke with authority. “Derrick, how are you coming on vetting the Photos of Hope staff?”

  Jennie bristled at the thought that they would investigate the people who worked so hard to help children, but she knew they had to do this, so she didn’t comment.

  “Nothing remarkable yet. I haven’t investigated Caldera since you already asked Patrick to vet him.”

  “Speaking of Patrick, any word from him?” Ethan asked.

  “He’s on his way to talk with Caldera right now,” Cole offered. “I expect to hear something from him this afternoon.”

  Ethan nodded. “Everything quiet at the gallery, Derrick?”

  “Yeah, boring, actually.” Jennie could hear the disappointment in his tone.

  What was it with law-enforcement types? Always wanting to be in on the action. She’d be perfectly happy to get as far away from this as possible.

  “It’ll give you plenty of time to keep looking into Linda Becker’s background.” Derrick didn’t argue with his brother, but said goodbye and disconnected.

  Ethan settled back, his eyes coming to rest on Jennie. She chose to ignore his questioning look and peered out the window. The photographer in her enjoyed seeing street after street of older homes before they pulled up to a historic brick building with ornate iron scrollwork over the massive oak door. Windows hinted at three floors and the place reminded Jennie of an old apartment building.

  She itched to capture on film the way light bounced off the brick, but the moment she stepped out of the SUV, Kat and Ethan rushed her up the stairs and into a large open foyer spanning two floors.

  “This way,” Kat said and set off down a long hallway.

  Jennie and the other Justices followed, passing door after door encased in thick oak molding. At the end of the hall, Kat turned right. Jennie stopped just inside the door to admire the room, and the others slipped past her. The same oak trim circled the ceiling and windows. A large brick fireplace anchored the far corner of the space furnished with a long teak conference table and chairs. Modern artwork hung on the walls, mixed in with a screen and audiovisual equipment.

  Ethan set her bags on the table before joining the other Justices in a small kitchenette. Dani flipped a switch on a professional coffee machine and chatted with Ethan. Cole grunted his acknowledgment every now and then, and Kat filled a tray with mugs and a plate of cookies. As a nutty aroma from the pot filled the air, they worked seamlessly together, proving that this day, though terrifying for Jennie, was routine for them. She loved watching them. Seeing their connection. Hearing their concern for each other. Seeing them joke. But she had to remind herself that she wasn’t a part of it—and never would be.

  As the pot gurgled, Ethan crossed over to her. “You can go ahead and have a seat, Jen.”

  “This is a fabulous building.” Looking around the space to keep her mind off the family who seemed to be worming their way into her heart, she took a chair near the middle of the table.

  “Our parents bought it a few years back with the intention of turning it into apartments,” Kat said, setting the tray on the table. “We just repurposed it after they—”

  A sudden quiet came over the room. She’d have to be blind not to see how much they still missed their adoptive parents.

  “We should get started.” Ethan pulled out the chair next to Jennie and sat.

  Dani and Cole joined them with a steaming coffeepot and sat across the table. Without a word, they started filling mugs and passing them around.

  “Before we begin,” Cole said as he looked up from pouring and met Jennie’s gaze, “if you don’t mind my asking, wouldn’t it be simpler just to delay the gallery opening until after all this is resolved?”

  “How would that stop the guy who’s after me? It’s the picture he wants, and I’m the one who has it, whether I display it or not.”

  “True,” Cole agreed, “but if you’re willing to wait on the exhibit, we can get you out of town to somewhere safe and bring you back to have the exhibit once the situation is under control.”

  All eyes turned on her. “Madeline’s gallery is booked for the rest of the year, so rescheduling—assuming she’d even agree to that—would severely delay raising funds for the kids.”

  Cole gave her an appraising look. “And that would be worse than being in the sights of a guy who’s desperate enough to kill?”

  His critical tone had Jennie pulling her shoulders back. “No one is more upset about what happened to Ashley than me, but we need these sales. The money has already been allocated.” Her voice broke and she took a moment to look away and stem off tears hovering near the surface since finding Ashley. She spotted a computer and projector. Pictures of the children could better explain what motivated her to continue even after someone had shot Ashley.

  She looked at Ethan. “Can I use your projector?”

  He arched an eyebrow.

  “It will help me explain why I have to go through with this exhibit no matter what.”

  He nodded, though he seemed hesitant, and went to the computer.

  She dug in her gadget bag and pulled out the CD her friend created this morning when he’d scanned her negatives. She handed it to Ethan as he sat down behind the computer. “Select the slide show and start it playing.”

  He opened the file, punched a few buttons on the projector, and Sonya Estevez’s sweet face filled the screen on the far wall.

  “This was Sonya. A child who could’ve benefited from the Photos of Hope program, but her parents were reluctant to participate.” Jennie looked around at her audience and saw all eyes riveted to the screen. “She lived in a twelve-by-twelve, one-room house in Mexico. She shared the space with grandparents, parents and four siblings.”

  The slide changed to Sonya and her family standing proudly outside their patched and dilapidated home.

  “There were seven children in the family,” Jennie continued, “but two of them died last year from very treatable illnesses.” She let this thought age until the next picture displayed the unsanitary pit they used for cooking. “They cook outside, when they have food, and their bathroom is an outhouse.”

  When the slides advanced and Sonya’s face, gaunt from an untreated illness, filled the screen, Dani and Kat gasped.

  “This was Sonya a few months ago. Just days before she died from an acute respiratory infection. An infection that was easily treatable.” She paused and looked at each person one at a time. “Parents in that part of the country often can’t afford proper medical care. They’re wary and untrusting of free clinics. Photos of Hope works on educating people like the Esterez family, teaching them that there are ways to treat illnesses like Sonya’s. That their children can be saved. But it’s slow going. And it costs a lot of money. This is why I can’t postpone the show. There will be too many Sonyas in the time it takes to reschedule and raise the money.” Tears pooled in her eyes for the loss of the sweet little girl, and she had to look away.

  “We’ve seen enough.” Ethan switched off the projector, stood and headed for the door.

  Openmouthed, Jennie watched him march out of the room. Was he running away from this? The Ethan she knew wouldn’t do something like that, but maybe he’d changed and she didn’t know him anymore.

  His siblings didn’t seem surprised, but Jennie’s mouth hung open until moments later when he returned and tossed bulletproof vests on the table.

  “We’ll be needing these.” He gave his brother and sisters each a glance. “Anyone want to argue?”

  No one said a word.

  “Good, then we’ll stop questioning the decision to proceed with the show, and we’ll start talking about how to keep Jennie safe.” He pulled out Jennie’s chair. “Have a seat while we work out the logistics.”

  His compassion thawed some of the chill from the shooting, and she returned to her chair. They understood the need to move forward. Some of the weight of carrying this burden all alone for so long lifted from her shoulders.

  She looked at the vests on the table and couldn’t begin to thank them for risking their lives for her. For these children. She wished things were different, but she knew without a doubt that when they finalized this plan and left the safety of their office, they’d all be putting their lives on the line.

  * * *

  Ethan went to the whiteboard and tried to ignore the feelings swimming in his gut, but he failed. Jennie needed to do this. He got it. But he didn’t like it. At all. He finally understood that she’d let nothing stand in the way of helping these children. She wouldn’t back down. That’s why he’d had to leave the room for a few minutes.

  Sure, he wanted to make a point with the vests, but leaving was more to compose himself than anything else. Letting his emotions get the best of him was a surefire way to get Jennie killed, and that was the last thing he wanted to happen. He needed to focus on logistics and come up with a plan.

  “So,” he said, looking at the group, “since I know Cole brought you up-to-date on the case this morning, I’d like to get straight to formulating a plan and assigning tasks. Any discussion before we start?”

  Murmurs of no traveled around the table so Ethan continued. “Our suspect has proven he’s desperate to recover Jennie’s negatives. We had them scanned this morning so we now have the pictures on CD. I’d like to get started on reviewing them.” He wrote Review Pictures on the board with a red marker then turned back. “Kat, you know how to work photo software. Is this something you can take on?”

  “Absolutely,” she answered. “But I’m sure Jennie is better at enhancing digital photos than I am.”

  Probably so, but he didn’t think it was a good idea for Jennie to see these photos in her current frame of mind. “Give it a go,” he said to Kat. “Jennie can review the pictures you think are important and add her input.”

  He didn’t wait for agreement, but turned back to the board and wrote Kat’s name next to the item then jotted down number two, Police Follow-Up.

  He turned back to Kat. “Anything new here?”

  “No.”

  “Keep after it.” Ethan jotted Interview Linda on the board. “I’d like you to conduct the interview this afternoon, Dani.”

  “No problem for me, if she’s available.”

  “She might be hard to find. Madeline was so miffed at her last night that she fired her.” Ethan hadn’t shared that fact with Jennie, and a flash of concern lit her face, but he moved ahead, writing Javier Caldera on the board and Cole’s name next to it. “Let us know as soon as you hear from Patrick.”

  Cole gave a clipped nod.

  “Our last item to review is Jen’s schedule for the next few days and to coordinate the security details.” He met Jennie’s gaze. “The stakes have been raised, Jen, and we’ll need to impose those additional restrictions I mentioned yesterday. From this point on, you can have no contact with anyone outside of our agency without our prior approval. No email, no cell-phone use. It’s too easy these days to hack into email and trace calls. It probably goes without saying, but you can’t tell anyone where you are or who you’re staying with.”

  “In other words, I’m cut off from the outside world,” she said, sounding sad.

  “Unless we approve. Are you okay with that?”

  She nodded.

  “Okay, so moving on to printing the pictures for the show. It’s obvious you can’t go back to the darkroom at the Grotto. Have you thought of an alternative place to do your work?”

  “No, but there are several other rental darkrooms in town. I’m sure one of those will do.”

  “Since our suspect didn’t find your negatives, they’ll assume you have them and will find another place to work. They’ll start with rental darkrooms. We’ll need to find a place that isn’t open to the public.”

  “I have friends with darkrooms.”

  “Friends these men can’t easily connect with you?”

  She lifted her eyes to the ceiling as if thinking. “There’s a guy, Michael. He just moved here a few months ago. I met him at the Grotto, but he’s not officially a member of the place, so no one will connect us.”

  “Good,” Ethan said. “Let’s take a break so you can call him and then we’ll be able to work out logistics.”

  Jennie nodded and dug out her phone.

  “I’d like you to use the landline, please.” Ethan slid the agency’s telephone toward her.

  While she called, Ethan went to Cole, who’d stood and stretched.

  “I want you and Derrick to take extra precautions with Madeline. I don’t think she’s in any direct danger, but these creeps might think they can get to Jennie through her.”

  “One more concern.” Kat approached them. “If they figure out we’re providing protection, they’ll likely put surveillance on the office. We should avoid bringing Jennie here in the future.”

  “Agreed.” Ethan looked at Jennie and worry gnawed at his gut again.

  “You may not know it yet, bro,” Cole said, “but you’re still interested in her.”

  Kat nodded. “You could be too close to the situation. We might need to change protective details.”

  Ethan certainly wasn’t on board with that. He watched Jennie as she chatted on the phone. Even after the trauma she’d just experienced, her face was animated and lively. Hard to believe it was just yesterday that Madeline had asked him to take Jennie’s protection detail and he’d balked at it. He didn’t feel that way today. Not at all. Maybe because he thought he was the best one to protect her. Or maybe Cole was right. Maybe he did still have a thing for her. Maybe.

  She hung up the phone and crossed over to them. “Michael said he’d meet us at his house to give us a key whenever we need him to.”