The Protector

PART SEVEN. Threat Elimination
1

"Take off your shirt. Put this on." Cavanaugh reached under the cover on the Taurus's backseat and pulled out the bullet-resistant vest he'd hidden beneath it. "Your shirt's loose enough that it won't be obvious you're wearing the vest. Then put on your jacket to conceal your pistol."

The Taurus was parked in a shadowy area at the back of the motel's parking lot. Using the car for concealment, Prescott did what he was told. The brief glimpse that Cavanaugh got of Prescott's reduced stomach and developed chest muscles surprised him.

When Prescott put on his jacket, Cavanaugh grabbed a roll of duct tape from the rear floor. "Now get in front. While I drive, wrap this around your ankles."

Prescott looked suspicious.

"Make it appear secure," Cavanaugh said. "Then use this." Cavanaugh opened the driver's door and picked up the Emerson knife from where Prescott had insisted he put it, along with his pistol, near the car's pedals. With his thumb against the tab on the back of the blade, Cavanaugh flicked the knife open and gave it to Prescott. "Cut the tape on the inside so the force of your legs can break it if you need to."

Prescott continued looking suspicious.

"This close to you, don't you think I could have taken that pistol from you and killed you?" Cavanaugh asked. "While you're with me, you're safe. Wrap the tape around your ankles; then use this knife. Be careful. The blade's sharp."

Cavanaugh got into the car, picked up the pistol on the floor, holstered it, and waited for Prescott to join him. Prescott had to muster more resolve before he got in.

Immediately, Cavanaugh drove two blocks to a brightly lit grocery store he'd noticed when he and Prescott had gone to the motel. open 'til midnight, its neon sign read. He ran in and came back five minutes later with a paper bag, which he emptied on the seat.

As Cavanaugh drove away, Prescott peered down at four objects: a bottle of colorless corn syrup, a bottle of red food dye, a plastic bowl, and a large plastic spoon. "What are these for?"

"Stir some of the corn syrup and food dye together in the bowl." Cavanaugh steered toward Highway 1. "For God's sake, why?"

"Without a professional makeup kit, that's the best way to imitate scabs and drying blood."

They joined headlights moving south on Highway 1. Despite his impatience, Cavanaugh stayed exactly at the speed limit. The dashboard clock showed 10:40. Needing to be at the rendezvous site as quickly as possible, they'd already lost twenty minutes.

Prescott finished stirring the mixture and reached into his jacket, pulling out a gray metal tube. Cavanaugh tensed. "Is that…"

"The hormone?" Prescott nodded. "You were right. I didn't use it on you at the beach because the breeze would have blown it away from you. If I twist the cap, there's a safety delay of twenty seconds. Then the pressurized contents are released." "You plan to use it at the rendezvous?"

"Position us so the wind's at our backs."

"Suppose that's not possible. If I get a whiff of that stuff, I won't be able to help you. Or what if Grace and her partner react the way the Rangers did in Florida? Instead of running, they might fire in panic. Jamie might get shot."

Prescott didn't respond.

"No," Cavanaugh said.

"But-"

"Put it on the seat."

Prescott stared at him.

"Do it," Cavanaugh said. "Leave it there."

Prescott put the tube on the seat.

"Because of that stuff, for the first time I understand what fear is," Cavanaugh said. "Is there a neutralizer?" He hoped the question seemed casual.

"Of course. Otherwise, even with the safety delay, the weapon might affect whoever triggers it."

"The antidote doesn't take away fear?"

"Only the fear the hormone causes."

"I want you to give it to me," Cavanaugh said.

"I can't."

"Why?"

"I don't have the antidote with me," Prescott said. "But even if I could give it to you, it wouldn't make a difference right now."

"What are you talking about?"

"You'd still be afraid for your wife. Once you love somebody, you start fearing something might happen to that person. Fortunately, that's one fear I've managed to avoid. Now you'll get to find out."

"Find out?"

"What it takes to be brave."