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"How would anyone be? She's scared."

"Do we know it's related?"

Kris smiled sardonically. "You want to take the chance that it's not?"

Earl pressed the intercom. "Cathy, get Jeb on the phone." After talking to Jeb and learning he knew nothing of the incident, he procured Dennis' number from his secretary and called him.

Cutting off the Director's greeting, he asked, "Do you know anything about a shooting incident involving Shelby Carson last night?"

Dennis' stomach sank. He'd gotten busy and hadn't notified his boss yet. "Yes, I do. I was going to contact Jeb..."

"You were going to? When? Tomorrow? Next week?"

"I had to take care of some priorities..."

"What could be a bigger priority than one of our staff operatives getting shot at? I want a copy of the police report, NOW!"

Kris listened to the one sided conversation and narrowed her eyes. She hadn't liked Dennis when she met him, and liked him even less now.

Within minutes, the fax machine in Earl's office began to spew out the report. He read it, then handed it to the operative.

Kris decided the entire incident didn't make any sense. Shelby's car had been parked half way down the lane. She would've been in clear view of anyone who chose to shoot at her long before she ever bent down to pick up the kitten. No professional would've missed such an easy shot. It was much more likely that someone had wanted to scare Shelby and simply waited for the analyst to be close enough to a car to do just that. But why?

She didn't believe in coincidences and her instincts earmarked the shooting as case related. She was glad she'd decided to bring it to Earl's attention because Shelby needed to be protected, and it was obvious Dennis was worthless. It never occurred to her to wonder why she felt so strongly about Shelby's safety.

After waiting for Kris to finish reading, Earl took a deep breath, knowing he was going to piss the operative off and wishing there was some way he could avoid it. "I agree that Shelby should be protected. You're it."

"The hell I am!"

His voice hard, Earl said, "I said you're it, and you are. If anything happens to her, I'm holding you personally responsible. I'll set you both up in a safe house."

"I can't do it."

"Why not?"

Kris forced herself to calm down and in the most reasonable tone she could muster, said, "It'll never work. She doesn't trust me."

"I don't care if she trusts you or not, neither one of you has a choice. So deal with it."

"This is domestic."

Earl knew where Kris was going and stopped her cold. There was no way he was going to involve the FBI. "You want to desk jockey for the rest of your career?"

Kris stood up and sighed. She had wanted Shelby protected, but hadn't anticipated being involved. "Who's going to tell her?"

"After I get a safe house set up, we'll meet in Jeb's office. She'll be told then."

Kris left Earl's office, her mood steadily deteriorating. How in the hell was she going to able to take care of business if she was playing bodyguard? From a safe house, yet? Her inner voice argued back. Why don't you just admit the real problem? You're afraid to be that close to her, aren't you?

She shut out the words and began analyzing her diminishing options as she headed for the canteen, unwilling to return to the office yet. Shelby's suspicion had hurt, but she couldn't afford to become emotionally involved. Cynically, she thought, So what if she doesn't trust me and is afraid of me. Probably better that way anyway. Then what's the problem? Kris couldn't answer that question, so she ignored it.

*  *  *

Shelby sat at her desk, looking at the papers on her desk, her mind far away. I like her...I like her and I hurt her feelings. I'd hate to know what she thinks of me right now.

Standing up, Shelby walked around the small office. Yes, against the odds, she did like Kris and was also attracted to her, which made absolutely no sense. The woman was dangerous. She'd seen it with her own eyes that morning, yet it hadn't lessened her desire to befriend the aloof operative. Shelby relied heavily on her gut instinct and it was telling her in no uncertain terms that she needed to find a way to breach the cool exterior Kris wore like armor. And the tiny doubt that had plagued her just might have done irreparable damage.

Pulled from her thoughts by the ringing of the phone, she watched Kris walk through the door as she answered. "Shelby."

Dennis said crisply, "Earl's called a meeting in Jeb's office. He wants both of you there now."

Shelby's stomach fell. Something was definitely wrong if Jeb and Earl were involved and Shelby worried that she was going to be taken off the case. "Okay. I'll tell Kris." She glanced at the operative only to catch the woman watching her. "I'm sorry. ..."

"Forget it. It's no big deal."

"Yes, it is. To me, it is. I knew it wasn't you."

Kris' defenses cracked at the sincerity and trust shining from the soft green eyes as she looked into their depths. "It's okay," she said reassuringly, "I would've thought about it, too." And deep down, she knew it was true.

Shelby suddenly averted her eyes, the intensity of the moment jarring her. "Um, we've got a meeting in Jeb's office."

Kris just nodded and they walked out the door. Shelby didn't know what to expect and prepared for the worst.

"I guess you know what it's about?"

"Yep. You."

"Oh." Shelby hesitated, then voiced her concern. "Did you ask to work with someone else?"

Kris looked down at the smaller woman in disbelief. If I didn't know better, I'd think she wants to work this case with me. "You're not going to be rid of me that easy."

"You didn't ask to be reassigned?"

From playing bodyguard, yes. "Not from the case."

Shelby looked up at the cryptic answer, but before she could ask another question, they arrived at Jeb's office.

Kris moved her chair against the wall, settled her tall frame comfortably into it, and waited for Earl to begin.

Dennis furtively glanced at Blue. It was the first time he'd seen her without her sunglasses and he wondered if the rumor floating around about how striking her eyes were was true. He found out sooner than he anticipated when icy blue eyes met his gaze, and he quickly looked away, totally unnerved by the cold look Blue had directed at him.

Jeb was sitting quietly behind his desk. He hadn't missed the exchange between Blue and Dennis, and just wished for the meeting to be over. Earl scared him, but the tall woman gave new meaning to the word and he would be very happy when they both left his office.

Earl waited until everyone was seated before beginning. "As you all know, there has been an attempt on Shelby's life. It may be completely unrelated to our work here, but I'm not willing to take that chance."

He directed his attention to Shelby. "You're moving to a safe house today until the completion of this case. Kris is going with you. You don't go anywhere without her, not even just to answer the door. Is that clear?"

Shelby was annoyed that she'd had no input in this decision, and shook her head in simple disagreement. "No. I can't."

"That's not an option. This is for your own protection. You want someone else taking potshots at you?" Earl hadn't wanted to be so harsh, but this was an innocent and she obviously had no idea just how dicey this case had the potential to become.

Kris glared at Earl when Shelby's face paled, and was pleased to see the analyst recover quickly.

"No, I don't want to be shot at. But I don't want to live in some strange house for who-knows-how-long, either. Besides, I have obligations at home." Shelby looked at Kris. "Does she want to?"

Smirking, Kris turned mirth filled eyes toward Earl to see how he was going to handle this. She knew he'd never expected Shelby to say no, although Kris wondered if Shelby's reluctance was because she would have to spend the time with her.