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was on the floor, quite out of range.
Then there came such a stream of vile filth from Judith's mouth that
Mike turned to her wearily and said shortly, 'Shut up, before I shut
you up.' He didn't raise his voice, but her words were suddenly cut off
as if a door had been closed.
Dee just sat like a small child on the floor by the bookcase she'd been
shoved into, with fallen books all around her and fair hair tousled
from the unexpected way she had been thrown about. Her hand went
to her cheek in reflex as the stinging didn't go away, and when she felt
something sticky, she brought it away and looked at the red on her
fingers. The bullet sent her way must have winged her slightly.
Darrell asked, 'Is everyone all right?' and looked her way along with
Mike and, incidentally, Howard and Judith. She heard an exclamation
and Mike started for her, but what she mostly heard was Judith.
'Pity,' the other woman said maliciously, 'I hadn't meant to miss.'
Then Mike was right beside her, putting a gentle arm around her and
reaching into his pocket with the other free hand, extracting a white
handkerchief which he pressed carefully to her cheek, blotting the
blood-flow. He pulled back the handkerchief and inspected her
cheek.
'It isn't bad at all,' he told her, gently reassuring. 'It's only about an
inch long, and it should stop bleeding in a minute or two. Here, take
this and press it to the cut and I'll go and get the first aid kit.' Dee
obediently took the soiled handkerchief and kept it in place while he
disappeared. As Mike then applied stinging antiseptic to her sore
cheek and placed a band-aid against the small wound, Judith and
Howard picked themselves up, while Howard mopped up his face as
best he could. No one really seemed to notice him much, or care if he
bled all over himself like a pig. But then, Dee mused, Howard always
had been overlooked. It was the story of his life.
She found to her dismay that her cotton protection was beginning to
wither away, and reaction was setting in. She crept over to the
curtains and pulled them open the rest of the way. The others were
talking and Mike and Darrell seemed to be making plans, but she
wasn't paying attention. She was busy trying to understand just why
she was feeling so utterly lonely, so terribly shaken up, when the only
thing that had happened was what could have been expected. She
could handle it. She wasn't the type to have hysterics. Still, she
thought, her mouth shaking as she stared fixedly out the window, it
wasn't every day that one gets shot at and nearly killed, and I've
nearly died three times in as many days. It's enough to get anyone
upset.
But what she found herself trying to cope with, and failing miserably,
was how Mike had omitted to tell her of his plans. He had not only
placed her in a position of severe jeopardy, but he had manipulated
her with a fine arrogance, not even respecting her enough to tell her. It
made her so very angry she wasn't sure what she would do if he came
too close, too soon. She wasn't in control, she found, as she gripped
the heavy curtains, white-knuckled, at her side. Then she heard
footsteps come up behind her, and knew who it was going to be. She
knew quite well who those footsteps belonged to, and he was coming
too close, too soon, for she didn't have her anger leashed yet. It was
like a crouching animal, unfettered, ready to strike. Watch out, she
thought, don't touch me or I'll blow up right in your face. I'm too
furious, just too outraged at what you did to me . . .
. .. And his hand came down gently on to her shoulder, just as she'd
known it would, massaging the rigidity of her neck muscles, and the
white-hot fury in her exploded, just as she'd known it would. For the
second time in less than a week she swung around, hand tight in a fist,
and totally without remorse hit him as hard as she could in the jaw.
And as he staggered back that one step for balance, she was off and
running for the door and shooting out into the hall faster than she had
ever moved in her life.
CHAPTER NINE
DARRELL leaned casually against the couch and surveyed Judith and
Howard sitting in two chairs, the gun propped in one hand. He said
mildly, 'See? I told you she'd be sore.'
Mike looked at him, white and stern, and said harshly, 'Shut up, will
you?' He shot for the door, calling over his shoulder, completely
unaware of the contradiction in his commands, 'And get busy and call [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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