The Last Target by Christy Barritt Page B

his collar and spoke into the wire there. Suddenly, his grip on her hand tightened. She looked up and saw his gaze darting around the parking lot. Every sense seemed to be on alert.
    “What’s going on?” Rachel whispered, throat tightening. She pulled Aidan closer.
    “Come on. We’ve got to go.” Jack’s gentle tug on her hands became an urgent pull. In two heartbeats, he grabbed Aidan and whisked them across the parking lot. He pushed them into the SUV just as a man threw himself against the windshield and began banging on it frantically.
    Rachel sucked in a breath.
    It was George Anderson.

ELEVEN
    “S tay down!” Jack barked.
    Rachel didn’t have to be told. She hugged Aidan, trying to shield him from the chaos around them.
    George beat against the windshield. “Rachel! Rachel!”
    Rachel tried to block out George’s voice, the desperation she heard there. Had he been behind the attacks this whole time? Had he tried to kill her?
    Yells sounded outside the window as Denton and Luke grabbed George off of the SUV. George flailed, slugging Luke in the mouth. Finally, Denton caught him in a choker hold, while Luke came to his senses and cuffed him.
    Rachel closed her eyes and hugged Aidan even tighter. Was this it? Would George be arrested and this nightmare finally end?
    “Stay put,” Jack ordered, his hand on the door handle.
    What choice did they have? She had no desire to go anywhere near George.
    Jack climbed from the SUV and approached George. Rachel strained to make out their conversation but couldn’t.
    “Who was that man, Mommy? Was it Mr. George?”
    Rachel’s throat burned. “Yes, honey. It was.”
    “What’s wrong with him?”
    “I have no idea. Maybe Mr. Jack can tell us, though.”
    “Because Mr. Jack is a superhero?”
    She ruffled her son’s hair. “He’s not really a superhero, sweetie. You know that, don’t you?”
    “I like him, Mommy.”
    She rested her chin atop his head. “I’m glad, honey.” Why did hearing Aidan say that cause her heart to do strange things? Aidan was becoming attached to Jack. She could tell by the light in Aidan’s eyes when he looked at Jack. Soon, hopefully, they’d be safe, and Jack would be out of their lives. Rachel had a feeling, though, that it would be a crushing blow to her son when that happened.
    Jack knocked at the window and Rachel cracked the door open. No sooner had it opened when she heard George in the background. “Are you okay, Rachel? Are you hurt?”
    Rachel looked at Jack, confused, desperate for answers.
    Jack stepped closer to her. “He claims you were abducted.”
    Rachel tilted her head. “What?”
    “He claims you were abducted and he was trying to save you.”
    “You mean, he’s not working for Apaka?”
    “Luke and Denton are taking him down to the FBI office for questioning, but he’s claiming to be on our side.”
    “I see.”
    “And he wants to talk to you.”
    Rachel just wanted to go back to headquarters and hide in her room. On the other hand, maybe she needed to hear George out, find out what he’d been thinking. Finally, she nodded. “Okay. I’ll talk to him.”
    A moment later, Denton brought a handcuffed George to the SUV. He shoved him into the front seat. “We patted him down. He’s got nothing on him,” Denton told Jack.
    George—thirty-something, short and wiry with a shaved head that hid a receding hairline—turned toward the backseat.Sweat covered his brow, and his gaze looked almost frantic. “Rachel, are you okay?”
    “Am I okay? I’m fine. What are you doing, George? How did you know I was here? What were you planning to do?”
    “Rachel, you disappeared. Your office was blown up. I knew something was wrong.”
    “How’d you know I was at the zoo today?”
    “You told me that you’d be here today the last time I talked to you. I decided to see if you would show up. What’s going on? Who are these goons?”
    “They’re not goons, George. They’re protecting me.”
    “What’s