Deadly Testimony (Safeguard #2)(7)
Austin had his arms crossed and Weaver was impatiently tapping her fingers against her knee. Both of them were shooting antagonistic glances Diaz’s way.
Fun.
She pulled out her smartphone and texted Diaz. On screen, he glanced down at his phone. “For a basic testimony, it seems standard witness protection procedures would be more than sufficient.” Diaz nodded to the US marshal deputy, Austin and Weaver in turn. “Our services are generally retained for private concerns where the police are not involved.”
Yeun paused in his pacing and looked up at Diaz. She did like that the man at least maintained eye contact when he was going to address people. “I would’ve thought so too. Last night’s incident shook my faith in the police force somewhat.”
“Now wait a minute.” Austin sat forward and stabbed a finger in the air, pointing at Yeun. “If you would do as you’re told, there wouldn’t have been an issue last night.”
Repetitive argument was going to get tiresome too. It was always an exercise in perseverance when she had to deal with the same gripes, defensive commentary and complaints over and over again. Hell, it generally meant she was going to have to consistently reinforce the logic behind every move she made for this mission to both the protective detail and her actual client.
Ugh.
Not that she hadn’t dealt with it before but she didn’t exactly approach those situations with happy anticipation either. She’d established herself in any number of teams throughout her military career wading through this kind of bullshit. What she needed was a reason to willingly walk into it now.
“We’ve covered that.” Yeun apparently didn’t bestow the favor of direct eye contact on everyone. Currently, not Austin. “I do not believe the outcome would’ve been as definitive if those men had come up to the hotel room you all had stuffed me into. At the very least, they’d have been much quicker about threatening me with firearms. I believe you mentioned each of those men was armed and they didn’t seem to have qualms about drawing their weapons.”
True. The men the night before had walked with the confidence of having an employer who’d get them out of whatever legal trouble they got into as a result of their dirty work.
“At least down on the lobby level, they were hesitant,” Yeun pointed out. “They were conscious of onlookers.”
But he’d endangered innocent bystanders. It was a craptastic risk to take.
“Either way...” Yeun handed the tablet back to Diaz. “I felt my life was in danger. They were not going to stop at an intimidation tactic. And none of us anticipated there’d be this kind of effort to keep me from testifying.”
Man had a point there.
“The police force is very busy and last night’s incident isn’t quite enough to convince them of my assessment of the situation. The US Marshal Service follows a minimal force required doctrine which leaves Marshal Decker here working with us alone in the field.” Yeun returned to his seat and looked directly up at the camera. At her. “I’m willing to take action to protect my own interests. If I’m being paranoid and the extra layer of protection is not necessary, it’s only my budget impacted. I think it’s worth the investment for peace of mind.”
Reasonable. Logical. From what she’d seen, there was no particular reason to turn it down apart from a distinct lack of enthusiasm for working with these particular personalities. And that was why she should. There was a job to be done and she hated backing away from anything just because the team might not welcome her. She texted Diaz to let him know she’d take the contract.
Leaving the briefing room, she left the dossier on the table for the time being. She’d ask Diaz to send her the electronic version via encrypted email to study later.
She strode down the length of the office floor, exchanging nods with the one or two other Centurions working in the office today. As she approached the pod, Yeun saw her through the glass and rose.
He beat her to the door and opened it to let her in. “It was also more than worth it to meet you.”
Her dark eyes fastened on him, her gaze coldly neutral. “Seriously?”
Absolutely.
Her hair wasn’t drawn back in the tight bun at the back of her head today, but it was still caught up in a serviceable ponytail. It gave her a severe look, accentuating her sculpted features. Hers was an elegant beauty, though it wasn’t delicate. She held herself with perfect posture and everything about her spoke of strength and assurance.
Trite as it might seem, once he’d encountered her he’d been driven to see her again. Meet her formally. There were few truly interesting people in this world and in less than a minute, she’d proven incredibly fascinating. He’d have spent at least as much as her signing fee just to find her. Had spent as much on the occasional discreet escort.
This woman though, she was a different type of dangerous and he’d decided it was in his best interest to combine his fascination with the expediency of his need for augmented protection. He also figured it’d be prudent not to suggest services other than those specifically outlined in the Safeguard contract for personal security.
He had a strong sense of self-preservation.
The possibilities though, they were crossing his mind at speed now that he was face-to-face with her again. She possessed exceedingly kissable lips.
“I haven’t thanked you yet.” He did his best to keep his gaze locked with hers. No wandering. She’d already proven she reacted rather violently to rude behavior. “Miss?”