Grace Under Fire (Buchanan-Renard 14)

“It’s over two million now,” Dylan answered. “This isn’t going to go away. I hope she’s ready for what’s coming.”

“What are you saying?” Nick asked.

“They’re already trying to get to her.”

“Who’s trying to get to her?” Michael demanded.

“People who want something from her.”

“To hell with that,” Michael snapped.

“Meaning?” Theo asked.

“Isabel isn’t ready for all that,” Michael said.

Everyone looked at him. “How would you know what she’s ready for?” Nick questioned.

“She just killed a man,” Michael reminded. “She needs time to get through that.” He took a breath and then said, “Ah hell. The shooting isn’t on YouTube, is it?”

“Everything’s on YouTube,” Alec remarked.

Noah did a quick search, and sure enough, someone had posted the video of Isabel. Fortunately, her name wasn’t there. They all watched the video without making any comments. When it ended, no one needed to see it again.

“That video should have been taken down by now. I’ll make sure it is,” Nick said. He picked up his cell phone, found the contact he was looking for, and started texting.

Noah turned to Dylan. “Did you teach her how to shoot?”

Dylan nodded. “She liked going with me to the shooting range. It was the only time it was just the two of us and she could talk things out.” Shrugging, he added, “I’ve become her big brother, I guess, and Kate tends to lecture her instead of listening. When Isabel went off to college, we were all she had. Their mother had just died. Kiera, the oldest, wasn’t available. Getting through a grueling residency had to be her focus.”

“Isabel didn’t take a gun to college with her, did she?” Nick asked.

“Of course not,” Dylan said. “But every time she came home on break she wanted to go to the shooting range, and since I’ve got to keep my skills up as chief of police, I took her. That’s when I would find out what was going on in her life,” he added. “Funny thing is, she hates guns, but she knows how to take them apart, clean them, put them back together, and shoot. Man, can she shoot,” he praised. “I also taught her how to defend herself, and I encouraged her to take a couple of self-defense classes. I kind of pushed her. I mean, come on,” he continued. “Look at her. Men are gonna hit on her. She needed to know how to protect herself.”

“All girls should know how to protect themselves,” Nick said. “I dread the day Samantha wants to date.”

“When will that be? When she’s forty?” Noah asked.

“That’s right,” Nick agreed.

“That gives you thirty-five years to worry about it,” Noah remarked.

Everyone laughed. Then Theo said, “I’m glad I don’t have to think about that. My biggest worry is how to get the twins to sleep at the same time.”

“I’m gonna tell you something, but you’ve got to keep it down. No cheering.” Nick made the statement. “Noah knows, but I haven’t told anyone else.”

“Okay, what is it?” Michael asked.

“Laurant’s pregnant.”

Everyone took turns congratulating him. Then Michael said, “That’s great... isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Nick said, smiling. “She had a hard time with the last pregnancy, and she knows I’ll worry, so she hasn’t told me yet.” He laughed then and said, “I’m not sure she’s ever going to tell me.”

“How did you find out?” Dylan asked.

“I’m an FBI agent. I’m trained to find the truth.”

“So, who told you?” Theo asked.