Page 42 of Countdown

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Vince paced from one end of Raina’s small den to the other. He’d brought her home from the hospital and called Holt on the way, to update him and let him know that he’d be staying close to Raina. He hoped he wasn’t being presumptuous, but there was no way he was leaving her alone. Not that shehadto be alone. He wasn’t completely discounting the fact that she had friends who would be more than happy to stay with her if she asked.

Only he knew her well enough by now that she wouldn’t ask and her friends wouldn’t push.

Much.

But hewould, because he believed it was in her best interests for him to do so. He’d just have to do it without her realizing what he was doing.

He dialed the number for his supervisor, James Godfrey, grateful when the man answered on the second ring. “I know it’s late, but I have someone I need you to find.”

“Sure. Who?”

“US Marshal John Tate. He’s most likely assigned in or around the Burbank, California, area, but I’ve seen him in two different security videos following a guy I think tried to kill a friend of mine.”

“Whoa.”

“Yeah.”

“And he didn’t intervene?”

Vince hesitated. “To give him the benefit of the doubt, I’m not sure he could have. The first time, there would have been no reason to, as no attack occurred. The second, he may not have had any idea what the guy was doing.”

“All right. Let me see what I can find out and get back to you.”

“Thanks, James.”

As soon as he hung up, the guilt hit him. The thought of keeping things from Raina made him want to squirm, indicating that it might not be the best plan, but for now, he had to roll with it.

“Hey,” she said from behind him.

He turned and couldn’t help but laugh.

“What?” She planted her hands on her hips. “You think my pj’s are funny?”

“Hysterical. You like reliving your childhood?”

“Wonder Woman was my hero when I was a kid,” she said. “I wanted to be her when I grew up. You can imagine my disappointment when I discovered I couldn’t even visit Themyscira.”

He blinked. “Themy-what?”

“Are you kidding me? The all-woman island paradise, of course. And when I found out Wonder Woman was molded from clay and not even a real person ... well, that about did me in.”

“And yet you wear the pajamas?”

She shrugged. “Yeah. They were a Christmas present from Penny. And they’re flannel, so they’re soft. But most importantly, they’re warm.”

He nodded to her feet. “And the pink flamingo slippers?”

“Warm.”

He pointed to the couch. “The Nancy Drew blanket?”

“Warm.”

“I’m sensing a theme here.”

“Yes, I like to be...”

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