Even as he said it, Tyson wondered how true it was. Yes, they'd grown up together, but even as a child, Ty had been detached from others around him. Ed had enjoyed their outdoor trips, but they didn't move in the same social circles. h.e.l.l, Ty didn't have a social circle. "Leave it to me. I'll take care of it."

"No! Stay away from him. You already came close to dying." Sam paled considerably. "You don't think he could have had anything to do with your harness failing, do you?" He covered his face briefly. "Maybe you're already in danger because of me."

"I doubt he could have gotten to the harnesses, Sam."

"Well, if he did, no one's likely to ever know it, now that the evidence has disappeared. I still can't believe it disappeared right out of Jonas's car in front of everyone."

Tyson shook his head. "No one's seen it. Most likely a kid in the crowd took it out of the Jeep before the police had the area roped off. Everyone was so curious and a kid would be tempted to take a souvenir, at least Jackson said so when I called him to ask about it. Jonas is still in ICU and I doubt if anyone's been able to question him yet."

"So much for the Drake sisters and their miracles," Sam said. "You dodged a bullet on that one."

Tyson turned back to his work, hiding his expression. "You know, Sam, it seems a little strange that someone would attack the sheriff without a reason. I think someone wanted that harness." Ty voiced the conclusion his mind just wouldn't let goof.

"I doubt his attackers knew he was a sheriff. He wasn't in uniform and he wasn't in a marked car. There were a lot of people around. It was dark, but you'd think someone would have noticed." Sam shrugged. "If Edward Martinelli's people had anything to do with it, they could probably pull it off though. They're pros."

"Jackson said the area was roped off as soon as possible and the forensic people went over everything so maybe they'll turn up fingerprints, or whatever they do. I just don't see how anyone could have gotten near the Jeep without someone noticing."

"When did you talk to Jackson?" Sam asked.

"I wanted to know what happened to the harness. Brannigan called twice about it as well as talking to you and I thought we needed to make certain we followed up so I called this morning."

"Well, it's scary that it disappeared like that," Sam said. "We're all using those harnesses and if one was defective, we're all in danger. Everyone's nervous about it. The CDF has been testing the harnesses and so is the manufacturer. So far, no one's found any problems. I don't know, Ty, whoever has to be the next dope on a rope isn't going to be happy and I can't really blame them."

"It had better not be you," Tyson said, meaning it. "I can't afford to lose you, Sam. You're the only family I have."

There was an awkward silence. Sam flashed a sudden grin. "You mean I'm the only one who'll put up with you." The smile slowly faded. "Seriously, Ty, don't contact Martinelli. I'm not up to planning another funeral."

"I put in a call to him first on another matter, Sam. He knows I want to talk to him, but I'll avoid him until I calm down." Tyson glanced at his watch. "Aren't you late for your date?"

"d.a.m.n, she's going to be angry." Sam struggled to sound upbeat, abandoning his argument with Tyson. When Ty dug in his heels there was no swaying him. "Since you're not going with me to foot tonight's bill, and you're getting all sappy on me, I could use some cash. Do you have any on you?"

"I thought you said you just pulled out a huge stash and put it in the upstairs office just for incidentals. Use that."

"I didn't pull out enough for a date."

Ty patted his pockets with a small frown. "I think I left my wallet upstairs. I have no idea what's in it, but you should have plenty in your account if I don't have enough cash on me."

"I think I'm overdrawn. I haven't had a chance to make any deposits with everything going on."

Tyson shrugged. "Just use the family account then." He turned away from Sam on the pretext of getting back to work, but he was furious that Edward Martinelli had virtually threatened his cousin. Sam might not want him to get involved, but he was definitely going to be sorting out the problem. Martinelli had endangered the two people in the world that mattered to Tyson-Sam and Libby.

He had no idea why Libby had always been so important to him, but since the moment he'd first laid eyes on her, she'd always been there, at the back of his mind, not dominating his thoughts, but never forgotten.

It had been like that for him since the day he'd seen her with the accident victim at Harvard. Before that, he'd been happy enough to just watch her, see the expressions chasing across her face, listen to the sound of her laughter. Libby Drake was meant for him. She didn't even know how much a part of his life she'd become.

"YOU can't see her," Sarah said, her voice low but firm. She planted herself squarely in the doorway to prevent Tyson from getting around her.

Ty glared at her, not in the least intimidated by the oldest Drake sister. Their clash had become a daily ritual. "I'm beginning to think you're holding her prisoner in this house. I want to see her with my own eyes to make certain she's all right."

"Has it occurred to you that she might not want to see you?" Sarah asked bluntly.

"I have no idea why you're being so hostile." He itched to shake the woman. She just stood there studying him as if he were a foul smelling bug under a microscope. He had always enjoyed watching the Drake sisters together, but now he just wanted the eldest to disappear. He let his breath out slowly and changed tactics. "I only want to see her for a few minutes just to make certain she's all right. I'm not kidnapping her." He'd considered it just to get her away from her family.

Sarah raised her eyebrow. "It must have crossed your mind if you think you have to a.s.sure me you aren't here to kidnap my sister."

"Why are you so hostile?" Tyson repeated. "I'm not exactly a stranger to you."

"The gate was locked. How did you get here?"

He rolled his eyes, sick of the delays and her obstinacy. He had no patience for what he considered total idiocy. It was difficult enough to work on the niceties without having to put up with Sarah Drake's obstinacy. He detested having to be socially correct just to get past the door to see Libby-and the more difficult they made it for him, the more he dug in his heels, determined to visit her.

"I drove my car, parked it below in the drive and walked right up. The padlock was on the ground and the gate was open. In any case, Sarah, the fence isn't all that high and I've been known to go mountain and rock climbing. I doubt if your little gate or fence would stop me."

Sarah stared at him as if he'd grown two heads. "The padlock was on the ground?"

He clenched his teeth. "You aren't slow-witted are you? Because if you are, I'll speak more distinctly and enunciate every word."

Her gaze narrowed. "If you're trying to be funny, you aren't succeeding."

"I want to see Libby now." He tried not to sound belligerent, but his tone made even him flinch. He was definitely at the end of what little patience he possessed.

Movement behind Sarah caught his eye and he stepped closer, expecting Sarah to give way, but she held her ground dead center in the doorway.

"Quit skulking like a little coward, Libby," he said. "I'm tempted to pick your sister up and toss her into the shrubs."

Sarah snorted derisively, but stepped back when Libby squeezed by her.

Libby's appearance shocked him. She had always been pet.i.te, but now she was gaunt, so thin and pale she looked a wraith. There were dark circles under her eyes and shadows in them-but she was glaring at him. "Are you threatening Sarah?"

"Not yet, but I was considering it."

"Sarah would flatten you if you touched her," Libby said.

"Maybe, but you don't look in any condition to flatten me, so I'll take my chances with you." He lifted her into his arms, removing her from the doorway and striding right into the house.

He felt a curious shift under his feet as he entered, but before he could think about it Libby turned into a bundle of fury, thumping hard on his chest. He waited for the pain from his broken sternum to jar him, but surprisingly, he felt nothing at all.

"What the h.e.l.l do you think you're doing? I'm not some rag doll for you to toss over your shoulder so you can strut around like a he-man."

It took great effort not to smile. He liked her furious; she seemed to get that way only around him, and that was far better than no reaction. Tyson put her down in the middle of the living room, steadying her as she rocked away from him. He searched for some way to break the ice and, as always, obscure facts were the first thing that came to mind. "Did you know that Shamans used dolls for healing? Some painted dolls red in order to raise the dead. And in parts of Alaska, the Shaman carved a woman's figurine to cure infertility."

"Tyson." Libby interrupted him, fists on hips, her head tipped back to look up at him. "You've finally gone completely insane. You force your way into my home, toss me over your shoulder like some ridiculous caveman-"

He held up his hand to stop her. "There's no need for melodrama. Stick to the facts, Libby. First off, I didn't force my way in, I stepped across the threshold like any other man. Second, I didn't toss you over my shoulder. I cradled you against me with enormous care, despite my broken ribs, I might add."

As he talked, he walked around the room, examining first the mosaic on the floor and then studying the walls.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "He's all yours, Lib. If you need me, just call. I'll be with Kate up in her room. Getting rid of bodies is a specialty of hers. Just a little thought to leave you with."

Tyson frowned after her. "I thought Kate was a writer."

"Of murder mysteries," Libby said with exaggerated patience.

"Oh, that's right. I read one of her books once. It wasn't a bad story."

Libby gritted her teeth. "Did you come here for a reason, or just to annoy me?"

He heaved a sigh. It wasn't going very well. "Of course I came here for a reason. I just gave your sister a compliment. I don't see how that could possibly annoy you unless-" He drew the word out, his face brightening. "You can't be jealous? Kate's engaged and I'm pretty old-fashioned about that kind of thing. If a woman's engaged she's off-limits."

"Good to know." Libby gave up and sank into a comfortable chair, watching him prowl around her house, a bit reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes. "Are you looking for something?"

His gaze went back to the mosaic on the floor. "I don't know, bat wings and eye of newt. The supermodel with a cauldron."

Libby hissed her breath out between clenched teeth. If she wasn't careful her teeth were going to shatter from the pressure. "My sister's name is Hannah and at the moment she's at the hospital with Jonas where she's been for the last week and a half, night and day along with one of my other sisters. Tyson, I'm running out of patience."

He wasn't scoring any points with her. He didn't seem to be able to censor himself, although he was trying. He was just so shaken up by the sight of her starkly white face. She seemed almost ethereal, as if a good wind could blow her away. And she held herself stiffly, her arms wrapped around her middle, as if her chest was sore. There was wariness in her eyes and he realized the things he'd said so abruptly about her sister had really hurt her.

Tyson turned around, his piercing blue eyes resting on her face, his expression suddenly lost. "I came to see how you were doing. You scared the h.e.l.l out of me, Libby, and your sisters wouldn't tell me how you were doing." He stepped closer, towering over her, shadows stealing into the depths of his eyes. "Ten days. I haven't been able to sleep or eat or even work the way I should. You put me through h.e.l.l."

Libby opened her mouth to respond and abruptly closed it. Part of her wanted to yell at him to just go away, but he looked and sounded so vulnerable.

He raked both hands through his hair in frustration. "I'm so inadequate at this. I say and do all the wrong things, Libby, and I can see it upsets you." He picked up a thin blanket that was lying over the back of a chair and tucked it around her.

The action was so unexpected and his hands so gentle, that for a moment she couldn't speak. She stared up at him, shaking her head while she tried to hold on to her annoyance. "Why are you so angry at my family?"

There was a small silence. Tyson dropped into a chair opposite her. "The modern term family comes from the Latin word famulus, which means servant. In Arabia at the time of Mohammad, the word for marriage was nikah, which literally meant s.e.xual intercourse. In the Koran, it was also used to mean contract. Marriage was conceived of as a contract for s.e.xual intercourse."

Libby's eyebrow shot up. "I'm not touching that one, Ty. I don't even want to know what you meant by that."

He shrugged. "I didn't mean anything in particular, I just thought you might find it interesting."

Libby let her breath out in a slow rush of air. Tyson used facts as a defense mechanism. The moment he was uncomfortable with anything, he threw out random facts, distracting himself and anyone around him. He'd probably been doing it since childhood when his parents weren't really interested in the things he wanted to talk to them about, so he'd developed a way to shift his brain from emotional to intellectual instantly to protect himself.

Libby's heart went out to him. She didn't want to feel the way she did, all soft inside when what he really needed was a lesson in manners. "Why do you care at all, Ty? You've hardly spoken to me over the years."

"I've spoken to you, you just never heard me."

Libby frowned. She'd been attracted to him for years. Secretly maybe, but she would have noticed if he'd shown an interest in her. "That's not true."

"It's true, you just didn't notice someone like me."

"Someone like you?"

"You're repeating things. Do you need something? Water? Tea? You always drink tea. You look more like a ghost than you usually do." He jumped up again and rested his palm against her forehead.

Libby jerked her head away, scowling. "A ghost? I look more like a ghost than I usually do?"

He crouched down in front of her so they were eye to eye. Up close she could see he looked haggard and worn and his concern for her was etched into the lines of his face. "You're repeating everything I say." He enunciated each word carefully.

"Because I can't believe you would say such a thing, even if you're thinking it."

He rocked back on his heels. "What did I say wrong this time?"

"Do you think a woman wants to be called a ghost? News flash, buddy, women don't take that as a compliment. It makes me feel like a zombie walking."

"That's silly," Ty replied, exasperated. "You know you're beautiful, Libby. You can't possibly think anything else. You're incredibly intelligent, you actually understand what I say when I'm talking to you and when you smile, everyone around you wants to smile with you. You are pale right now. I'm thinking of calling a doctor and having you examined. What's wrong with everyone here that they don't see you're ill? You need someone to take care of you."

Libby knew her mouth had fallen open. She could only stare for a long moment, hoping a fly didn't buzz by. The man was impossible. He was always either saying something that made her want to hit him-or something that made her want to kiss him. Right now she wasn't certain which she wanted to do the most.

"I am a doctor," she reminded him, striving for a balance. There was no maintaining any kind of equilibrium around Tyson. She felt too much compa.s.sion, too much physical attraction and she was so annoyed she wanted to scream. No one in her life had ever torn her in so many directions. "If I needed treatment, I'd get it, Ty. And my sisters love me very much. They definitely would make certain I received any medical care needed." The moment the words left her mouth she thought of Hannah. She hadn't seen her sister losing weight and she certainly hadn't helped her.

Tyson caught her chin, the pad of his thumb running over her lips. "Now you're looking sad. You have the most expressive face. I used to sit in cla.s.s and stare at you. I could for hours, you know, even when you're looking at me like I'm crazy. Why are you so sad all of a sudden?"

"I was just thinking I should have helped one of my sisters with a problem she has. She always looks after all of us and we didn't notice when she needed us most."

He patted her knee. "Tell me what she needs and I'll take care of it for you."

"Why would you want to do that?"

"So you won't worry anymore."

Libby shook her head. "I have no idea what to think about you, Ty. My family is my life. I've seen the way you curl your lip when you talk about us and I know you think we're all con artists. And then you go and say something like that." She drew a deep breath. "I love my sisters and my parents. They're part of me-a big part of who I am."

"I know that." He sighed and stood up. Things hadn't gone at all the way he needed them to go. "Do you mind if I come back to see you again tomorrow? We can go for a walk."

"Did you really go without eating or sleeping?"

"That's not nearly as important as the fact that I couldn't work. Nothing interferes with my work. Well, with the exception of you."

He ran his hands through his hair again, leaving him looking more like a rumpled professor than ever. She pressed a hand to her stomach, not liking the feeling of her insides melting. "You couldn't work?"

His eyes narrowed again, his gaze on her face. "You sound faint. Should I get your sister for you?"

"You couldn't work because of me?" If he spouted a factoid instead of answering her, she might really name him as a candidate for a rocket to Mars. On the other hand, if he answered, she was going to do something stupid like kiss him again.

"d.a.m.n it, no, I couldn't. Work is important to me. I don't need you doing this to yourself so I have to be obsessed over your health. You're a doctor, Libby, you should know better."

There wasn't going to be any kissing. She raised her voice. "Sarah? Do we have any Tums in the house?"

"You don't use too many antacids, do you? You certainly don't want to end up with kidney stones. The most common elements of calculi are calcium, oxalate, phosphate and uric acid."

Libby turned her face away from him, afraid the laughter was far too close. He'd done it again. She doubted if he was even aware of it. "Thanks for that information. As a doctor, it's certain to come in handy."

He frowned at her. "I'm going to let you rest, Libby. I need to actually get some work done, but I'm coming over tomorrow to take you for a walk."

"How can you work when you have broken ribs?" Her palm brushed lightly over his ribs, generating that same heat he'd felt before when she touched him.