The Target by Catherine Coulter Read Free Book Online

He remembered the feeling of being watched. Had it been real?
    He turned at the sound of a low moan. Another nightmare. He leaned over and touched her face. She moved her cheek against his palm, then stilled. He ruffled her hair and cupped her small chin in his palm. She opened her beautiful light blue eyes and blinked up at him. He saw her fear slowly disappear. Her eyes warmed. In that instant he knew he wasn’t going to let anyone else have her until he knew for certain that she’d be safe.
    â€œYeah, yeah, so I’m a big Jell-O. But you know what? Jell-O isn’t bad. Another thing, not only are you the best-dressed kid in the Ferengi Range, you’re the cutest.”
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    T HE next afternoon when he came in from out of doors carrying an armful of logs, she flinched and ducked back behind the sofa.
    He stopped immediately. “What’s up? What’s the matter?”
    She tried to smile, but it fell away.
    â€œI surprised you?”
    She nodded, relieved that he’d explained it as she’d wanted him to. He smiled. “I’ll knock next time. I cut us some more wood for the fireplace and the woodstove. Now, after I get this all set, how about you and I go out into the meadow? I want to show you your surprise. While you were trying on your jeans, I got you something really neat.” It was, he knew, the only way he was going to get her outside. Since they were in town, she’d refused even to step out onto the front porch. It was time to get her into the fresh air.
    Still, she hung back, her small face pale, her expression wary.
    â€œIt’s really neat,” he said again, not acting all that excited, “your surprise, I mean. You need your blue down jacket. It’s a little cold out there.”
    She looked adorable in her stiff new jeans, her orange sneakers as bright as neon lights, red socks, and a bright orange shirt with lime green apples all over it. He was braiding her hair better each time he tried. She looked fresh and sweet and scared. He hated this fear in her, but it had only been a week since he’d found her. Both of them had made strides.
    Had the man gotten her easily because she was mute and couldn’t scream for help?
    â€œIt’s a really great surprise. Hey, would I lie to you? Nah, put on your jacket. You can take it off when you work up a good sweat.”
    She still hesitated. He just set the fire, rose, and waited, leaning his shoulders against the mantel.
    Finally, she nodded and ran to fetch her jacket that was hanging next to his. Of course she couldn’t reach it. He got it down for her and helped her into it. It fit her great, except for the too-long sleeves that he rolled up.
    â€œYour surprise is going to have you running around. Soon you’ll want to take it off.”
    He led her out into the middle of the meadow and pointed to a dragon-tail kite. He’d spread it out on the ground in all its glory. She just stood there and stared, then smiled, a huge smile that deepened her dimples. It was the first time he’d seen a smile like that.
    â€œYou ever fly a kite before?”
    Even without her squealing with pleasure, he knew he’d scored big. She was so excited she could barely keep still. He handed her the rod, waited until she picked up the red diamond body, and arranged the long glittery dragon tail out behind. She let out some of the string.
    â€œYou’re good at this.”
    She smiled and let out some more string.
    She knew what she was doing. Who had taught her? Her mother? He yelled, “Okay, let her rip!”
    She began running across the flat meadow, feeding out the line. He released the kite when he felt it catch the wind. He shouted, “You’ve got liftoff!” She stopped running, drew back a bit, and turned the rod a bit to the left. The long multicolored tail whirled about in a big circle.
    â€œGreat, let’s see you do some more.”
    She was a lot better at flying