Shiver

code being entered eased the tension. Footsteps could be heard crossing the kitchen, and then Sanders appeared in the doorway. He was dressed in the usual dark suit and tie, with the usual grumpy expression on his face. As the marshal in charge of the security detail, it wasn’t out of the ordinary for him to appear at times other than the shift on which he stood guard, but there was a kind of tension in his demeanor that told Sam something was up.
    What alarmed her was that he was looking at her.
    “I got a call just a few minutes ago,” Sanders said without preamble, stopping just over the threshold and folding his arms over his chest.
    Uh-oh, Sam thought.
    “About what?” Marco leaned forward to fix Sanders with an intent gaze.
    “Her,” Sanders said. Sam had known it. She felt her stomach tighten. “She’s out of here. The kid, too. Tomorrow, eight a.m. Transferred to the custody of another team. Deputy Marshal John Romeo will take charge.”
    Sam couldn’t help it. She immediately glanced at Marco, expecting him to say something along the lines of no way in hell. But he didn’t. Instead he just looked at Sanders kind of thoughtfully.
    “Wait a minute.” If she had to stand up for herself, she could. After all, she’d been doing it practically all her life. “Don’t I get a say in this?”
    “No.” Sanders’s reply was blunt.
    “To hell with that,” Sam said hotly, shooting to her feet and glaring at Sanders. “I’m not going to—”
    “Sam, hold up.” Marco’s quiet interruption had her glancing around at him. Still seated on the couch, he met her gaze. “This is a good thing. You and Tyler need to go.”
    “What?” Realizing how much she didn’t want to leave him rattled her. “Aren’t you the one who kept saying we were safer with you?”
    Sanders snorted derisively at that, but Sam paid no attention to him. Her attention was all on Marco. Her hands wereclenching into fists at her sides, and that would be, she realized, because she was in full combative mode. And also because she was scared. And, so deep inside that she could barely even acknowledge the emotion was there, maybe even a little hurt. No, more than a little. A whole hell of a lot hurt.
    “That doesn’t apply anymore.” Marco looked at her steadily. “Veith found the safe house in St. Louis. The longer we stay here, the more likely it is that they’ll find this one, too. Having you and Tyler here just isn’t smart anymore.”
    “There you have it,” Sanders seconded.
    “So why don’t we move on? As in, all of us?” Sam demanded accusingly of Sanders, who shrugged.
    “Got no orders to move. But I do have orders to hand you off. And that’s what I’m going to do. Eight a.m. sharp, so be ready.” As if to forestall any further argument, Sanders turned and walked away, heading back the way he had come.
    “No way —” Sam would have gone after him, but Marco grabbed her hand. This time his grip felt very different: he wasn’t letting go.
    “Wait. Listen. Sam, hear me out. This is for the best,” Marco said as her furious gaze skewered him. “You remember how you called where I am ground zero? You were right. It is. They’re after me. You and Tyler are better off somewhere else.”
    “You didn’t think so before!” The beep of the code being entered into the security system again announced that Sanders was already on his way out the door and out of her reach. Desperate to confront him while she could, she tugged at her hand. Marco held fast.
    “The situation has changed.” Marco’s expression was grim.
    From the corner of her eye, Sam saw Abramowitz giving them a once over. Clearly he hadn’t missed the fact that Marco was holding her hand. As if he realized that she was looking at him looking at them, Abramowitz cleared his throat noisily. Then as she transferred her glare to him he said, “Uh, you need any help with that?”
    Sam realized that he was referring to Marco’s determined possession of her hand, and that he was offering to step in to protect her if she needed it. It was a decent thing to do, and she would have appreciated it more if she hadn’t been so damned mad.
    “No,” she snapped. With a shrug, Abramowitz retreated back into the den.
    After he was out of sight, Marco continued in a soft and urgent voice, “Look, I know this John Romeo, okay? He’s a good guy. You and Tyler will be safe with him.”
    “No.” Sam shook her head. The thought of being separated from