“JANE MACGUIRE WAS JUST HERE, Millet,” Roland said. “She knows about me. And she probably knows a hell of a lot more. You should have gotten to Adah before it ever came to this.”
“Tough. It’s too bad you can’t hide away like you usually do. But at least we know where she is right now. My man, Nelson, who’s set up a camp in the hills above MacDuff’s Run, said that Gavin and Lina Alsouk arrived there earlier today. What are the chances the MacGuire woman will go there, too?”
“Good. She’ll feel safe there, and she may need some time to examine that tablet. Can we take her before she reaches the castle?”
“No, security is too tight. But we’re working on a way to get access.”
“Do it. No more excuses. Get her.”
“I told you, we’re working on it. I’m on my way to join Nelson right now.” He hung up.
Roland pressed the disconnect and leaned back in his chair.
He should be angrier. It was serious that Jane MacGuire had found out that he was involved. Yet he was experiencing more excitement and anticipation than rage. Some of it was sexual. Their encounter had been challenging, and the woman turned him on. Conflict and the desire to break and conquer was always intriguing. But the greater excitement came from the feeling that he was close, closer than he had ever been to the Judas coins. She had them or would have them. Every instinct was telling him that he had been right about Jane MacGuire being the road to the coins.
And he would run roughshod over that path, and her along with it.
I’ve called in the wolves, Jane.
You should have made a deal before I set them to devour you.
EVE WAS WAITING AT THE HELIPAD at MacDuff’s Run when their helicopter landed at sunset. The wind was blowing her red-brown hair back from her face and her fine white shirt against her body. Her feet were spread slightly apart, bracing against the tornado caused by the rotors.
She looked fragile and strong at the same time, Jane thought as she opened the door. And totally indomitable, like a tree that could bend but never break. A rock in the middle of chaos.
“Eve!” She jumped out of the aircraft and ran toward her.
“It’s about time.” Eve hugged her close, then pushed her back to look at her. “You’re tired.”
“It’s been a rough few days. Is everything okay with you?”
“As well as could be expected.”
“Is Joe still here?”
She shook her head. “In Rome with Venable. Discovering all kinds of nasty things about Millet. The more I heard, the happier I was to hear that you were coming here.” She looked beyond Jane. “Hello, Caleb. Should I thank you for taking care of Jane? Or do you have an agenda?”
“Maybe my agenda is taking care of Jane.” He smiled and took Eve’s hand. “How suspicious you are. But always interesting and a delight.” His gaze went over the massive castle perched above the stormy sea. “It’s quite a place. A fortress.”
“Yes, MacDuff’s family has a history of needing fortresses.” She gazed at MacDuff, who was striding toward them. “But he couldn’t have been kinder or more protective of me.”
“It was my pleasure.” MacDuff was scowling at Jane. “You’re not forgiven, you know.”
“I don’t ask for your forgiveness, MacDuff. I did what I thought best.” She looked at Eve. “But I thank you for keeping Eve and Joe safe.”
“There was no question about that.” His gaze was focused on Caleb. “You’re Seth Caleb? Jock told me some rather bizarre things about you. But I have an idea he still skated over a good many details. Jane thought you would prove valuable to her. Have you?”
“Yes and no.” He smiled. “But at any rate, I account only to her. Ask Jane.”
“I prefer to find out on my own.”
“There are a few things I’d like to find out myself. I’ve been told how secure you are here. Have you seen any signs of Millet?”
“Possible surveillance in the hills.” His gaze went to the rolling hills in the distance. “More than possible. We’re keeping our eyes open.”
“You haven’t sent anyone up there to scout?”
“Of course I have. Signs but no sightings.”
“Who have you got to check it out? What kind of experience?”
“Tim Mactaggert. Royal Marines veteran. Special Forces.” His gaze narrowed. “And I’m the one who is supposed to be questioning you. I believe that we should have a chat.” He gestured for Caleb to precede him. He glanced at Jane. “Will I see you at dinner?”
“Probably not. If Jock managed to get the reference books I needed.”
“You’ll have to ask him. He’s been running around getting Lina Alsouk settled. You’d think I didn’t have a housekeeper.”
“How is Mrs. Dalbrey?”
“The same. A little older, like the rest of us. But that young scamp of a son keeps her bustling. I’ll tell her to serve you in your room.” He turned away. “Coming?”
“Not yet,” Eve said. “We’re going to walk down to the Run. It’s become one of my favorite places since I came here. I want some time with Jane.”
“Is it safe?” Jane asked MacDuff.
“Would I have let her go, if it wasn’t? You’ll be watched from the gates. I’ll see you when you get back to the castle.”
“You’re very careful about my safety,” Eve said dryly, as they started for the path that led around the castle. “But going to see Roland today wasn’t very safe.”
“It was a calculated risk, but meeting with him wasn’t all that dangerous considering that he’s so careful of his image.” She made a face. “It’s not as if he’d rig a trapdoor in his office to spring when an enemy walked through the door. I guarantee that he’s no comic-book-type character.”
“Ugly?”
“In his way as ugly as Millet. But it’s all inside. Neither one of them looks like what he is. I meant to send you a photo of Millet.”
“Joe sent me one when he got Rome, along with photos of a few of Millet’s men in the Sang Noir.”
“You said Joe has been finding out unsavory details about Millet. Anything that I should know about?”
Eve shook her head. “Nothing that has a connection with you.”
“What about Alan Roland? We’ve heard about his public image. We don’t know anything about his personal life.”
Eve frowned, trying to remember. “He’s in his forties. He owns two racehorses. He likes women. He’s been divorced three times. None of his wives appears to have been heavy in the IQ department. No children. He wields a lot of influence. He dabbles in politics, but he’s never run for any office. It’s all behind the scenes.” She shrugged. “But he doesn’t seem as much of a threat as Millet.”
“You’re discounting him. You’re saying he doesn’t give the impression of being a force to reckon with. That’s an asset in itself.”
Eve nodded slowly. “Yes, I guess it is.” She looked at Jane. “This is the bastard who sent your photo to Millet? He just threw you to that maniac like a fish to a shark?”
“You could choose a kinder comparison,” Jane said. “Millet may be a shark, but I’m no helpless, flopping fish. But, yes, Roland sent my photo to Millet.”
Eve’s lips tightened. “Then the bastard is totally without a conscience.” They had reached the edge of the steep cliff that bordered the back of the castle, and she was gazing thoughtfully down at the waves crashing against the limestone over a hundred feet below them. “It always surprises me when I run into people like Roland. It shouldn’t, I suppose. It’s not that I haven’t dealt with my share of monsters.”
“I know.” Jane had watched her battle against those monsters while searching for the killer of her child, Bonnie. She’d had to stand by, wanting desperately to help and not being able to do anything. “But you’ve always had hope. You want people to be good, to do the right thing.”
“Yes, I do. And I have to believe that most people are good. Life wouldn’t be worth living if I didn’t.” She changed the subject. “I do like this place. I never realized why they called this place the Run.” Her gaze wandered around the rough rocks that formed a theaterlike circle around a stretch of green grass. “MacDuff told me that once a year his ancestors hosted games here and invited all the warriors in Scotland to participate. I can almost see those strong, bare-chested lads in kilts running across the green.”
“So can I.” Jane sat down on one of the rocks. “It was my first thought when I saw it a few years ago.” She smiled. “I should have known you’d feel the same way.”
“Yes, we generally have the same response.” Eve sat down beside her and linked her hand with Jane’s. “From the time you were a kid fighting everyone on your block. But I’m surprised that the MacDuffs built this castle on the edge of the cliff. It’s a beautiful view, but you’d think that they’d want an escape route since they were a warrior clan.”
“You’re right, the MacDuffs always thought about the safety of the clan first. But they managed to get around the problem of this cliff. They wouldn’t have built the castle here if they hadn’t worked out an escape route. But I’m sure they were relieved they could have their fortress here and enjoy having this to look at every evening.”
The rays of the setting sun were burnishing the waves far below them, and Jane could feel the cool breeze touch her cheeks. Peace was flowing over her, and she was aware that all the tension and desperation of the last days was beginning to ebb away. How many times had she sat on the porch at the lake with Eve, enveloped in this same sense of peace and contentment?
And love. Whenever she was with Eve, there was always love and the belief that as long as they were together, everything would be all right.
They were silent, enjoying the sound of the surf and the wind. No need to talk. Being with someone you cared about was like being by yourself, with no stress, no need to force the words.
It was minutes later before Jane asked, “How is your reconstruction going?”
“Slowly. Maybe he doesn’t want to be found.”
Jane’s brows rose. “That’s the first time I’ve heard you say that.”
“Just because I want to bring him home is no sign that his parents would welcome him.” She wearily shook her head. “Hell, maybe they’re the reason he ended up in that hole in the ground. Sometimes the parents are responsible either directly or indirectly.”
“But you’ve always told me they’re in the minority.”
“And they are. I suppose I’m just being negative.” She smiled. “By tomorrow, I’ll be back to normal and working my butt off to finish and ship him home.”
“But why are you being this discouraged now?” She gazed at her searchingly. “Is it my fault? I’ve disrupted your life and torn you away from Atlanta.”
“You did no such thing,” Eve said brusquely. “And you know it. It wasn’t your fault that there are crazies out there.” She was silent. “But maybe it has something to do with you. I’m afraid for you. I guess I’m wondering why I’m trying to bring home this poor dead child when I can’t bring you home safe and sound. It’s not a great exchange.” She shrugged. “But we’ll work it out.”
“You’re right, we will.” Her hand tightened on Eve’s. “And you’re not really wondering. You’ve spent years giving solace to hundreds of families of lost children. What you do is damn wonderful.”
Eve gazed out at the horizon. “Wonderful or not, I have to do it. It’s what I am.” She fell silent again. “Now we’ll stop talking about me. We have to go back to the castle soon, but I want you to fill me in on every single detail of what’s been happening to you.”
“I haven’t been keeping anything from you. I tried to be honest with you all the way, Eve.”
“But you were in a hurry, you were in shock, things were happening too fast. Little things get lost when you’re traveling at light speed.” She smiled. “But now you’re slowing down. You can take a deep breath and let yourself remember all those little things. I hate it that I wasn’t there to help you. Maybe if we share, it will make it less painful for both of us.” She urged softly, “Take that breath, Jane.”
“THERE YOU ARE.” Jock was coming down the staircase when Jane and Eve entered the castle. “I was just coming after you. MacDuff said you were watching the sunset at the Run.” He looked at Jane quizzically. “I thought it a bit odd. You haven’t been in the mood for staring at scenery lately.”
But she was still feeling that inner peace and serenity that had surrounded her while she was sitting with Eve on the cliff. “I was in the mood today.”
“I can see that.” His gaze shifted to Eve. “Your influence? Good for you. She looks as if she’s been on vacation.”
“We needed a little downtime. We’re both better now.”
“How is Lina?” Jane asked.
“She couldn’t wait to settle in her room and start to work.” His lips quirked mischievously. “I put her in the Laird’s suite. MacDuff doesn’t use it any longer. It’s too formal for his liking. I wanted her to get a taste of grandeur.”
“Why? She made it plain that she likes to live simply.”
“I couldn’t resist. She informed me very curtly that she didn’t like castles, but she’d put up with it until she finished the translations.”
“I like her,” Eve said. “She has thorns, but you’d always know where you were with her.”
“No doubt about that,” Jane said. “Did you get my books, Jock?”
He nodded. “They’re in your room. Two boxes of Bibles and reference books as requested.”
“Good.” She started for the grand staircase. “I’ll shower and hit the Internet first, then dive into the books.”
“You’re in a great hurry,” Eve said quietly. “You’re safe here. Why the frantic pace?”
She grimaced. “I guess I’m still operating under Millet’s countdown. I can’t believe those bastards are going to let me live past April 1. I feel as if the only way to stop it is to stop them.”
“I wish I could disagree with you,” Eve said soberly. “I’d like to tell you to stay here and let Venable and Joe hunt down Millet and Roland.”
Jane shook her head. “And let those murderers go after everyone I care about? Joe would be a target. Anyone I love will be a target. I can’t hide away.”
Eve nodded. “That’s why I’m not arguing with you. They have to be stopped.” She stopped as she saw the housekeeper coming down the steps. “I was just going to call you, Mrs. Dalbrey. I’m hoping you can persuade Jane to eat something before she starts to work. You know each other, don’t you?”
“Of course, we do.” Nora Dalbrey’s smile lit her plump face. She was dressed in a black skirt, sensible shoes, and a white blouse that should have made her appear serious and practical but somehow didn’t. Her light brown hair was pulled back from her face, but rebellious frizzy ringlets had come loose and hung about her temples. “We met the last time she came to the Run. It’s good to see you again, Ms. MacGuire.”
“You’re looking well. How is your son?”
She made a face. “Sixteen and won’t leave those Nintendo games alone.” Then her face softened. “But my Ian’s a good boy and doesn’t give me any trouble.” She turned to Eve. “I’ll take her a tray with that stew I made for dinner. Don’t worry. I’ll make sure she doesn’t starve herself. I remember the last time she was here, she didn’t eat as well as she should.” She started down the hall. “You have the same room you had before, Ms. MacGuire. I’ll be up there with your dinner quick as the shake of a lamb’s tail.”
“It seems I’m having dinner,” Jane said as she gazed after the housekeeper. “How quick is the shake of a lamb’s tail?”
“Evidently pretty quick,” Eve said. “I’d hurry with that shower if I were you.”
THE LAIRD’S SUITE WAS THREE doors down from the room Jane had been assigned.
Jane hesitated as she went past it, then stopped and knocked on the door.
“Come.”
Jane opened the door. “I just wanted to make sure that you were comfortable.”
Lina looked up from her pad. “I’m not comfortable. This place is splendid, and splendid is cold. But I’ll be fine. You don’t have to worry about me.”
“I’m not worrying.” She looked around the room. The huge four-poster bed and other massive furniture dominated the room. “It’s just that this room is a little overpowering. I could have Mrs. Dalbrey switch you.”
“No, thank you.” There was the slightest glimmer of humor in her expression. “That would disappoint Jock. I’m sure he’s enjoying thinking of me here.”
“His mother was housekeeper before Mrs. Dalbrey. He lived in the village, but he practically grew up here. He can’t understand anyone not loving it.”
“I know he can’t.” She looked back down at her pad. “But I think he tries. Now, please leave. I have to get back to work.”
“How is it going?”
“Well,” she said absently.
Lina had already closed her out, Jane realized.
“I’m three doors down, and Eve is in the tower room. If you need us, just call.”
Lina nodded impatiently, not looking up.
Jane shook her head as she quietly left the room. Lina might be prickly as Eve said, but she was displaying signs of vulnerability. Lina had been married to a wealthy man, and she had experienced all the splendor connected with it. She had been a frightened child, and that splendor must have seemed like an ice palace. No wonder she wanted nothing to do with it.
Yet there had been that slight flash of humor when she had been talking about Jock.
Jane opened her door and looked around her high-ceilinged chamber. It looked the same as the last time she had stayed here. Ancient tapestries, large-scaled, comfortable furniture. Lina was wrong. Rich, yes, but there was nothing cold about this room or any other room at MacDuff’s Run.
Cold was generated by the people who lived in a place. The MacDuffs who had lived and loved in this castle had never been cold. Lina would just have to learn that truth.
And Jane would have to stop fretting over Lina and take her shower before Mrs. Dalbrey got here with her meal. As she headed for the bathroom, she noticed the two boxes of books that Jock had mentioned against the far wall. She felt a surge of anticipation.
She had work to do.
CALEB KNOCKED ON EVE’S door a little over an hour later.
Her brows lifted when she opened the door. “To what do I owe this pleasure, Caleb? I thought you were busy sparring with MacDuff over security arrangements.”
“It didn’t take that long. MacDuff isn’t going to listen to anyone’s opinion or suggestions about his castle and his people. I knew that the minute I met him. But I had to know what the setup was, and it was a way we could take each other’s measure.” He shrugged. “But his security appears to be top-notch. You don’t have to be concerned. May I come in?”
She hesitated. “Why? I’m working.”
“I want to talk to you. I thought it was a good opportunity. Jane is busy on the Internet and Lina is barricaded in that Laird’s chamber, translating.” He smiled. “And it doesn’t surprise me that she doesn’t appreciate castle life.”
“It’s really not my cup of tea either.” Eve hesitated, then stepped aside and gestured for him to enter. “But MacDuff has been very gracious… in his way.”
“You bring that quality out in most people,” Caleb said as he came into the room. “Even I feel the stirrings when I’m with you. Amazing.”
“Bullshit. You’re a chameleon. You’re what you want to be. And I don’t mean that freakish gift of yours. You study the situation and adapt. Now sit down and tell me why you’re here.”
“Blunt and insightful.” He grinned as he dropped into a chair. “I’ve missed you, Eve.”
“You barely knew me. We were only together for the short time we were forced to work at finding that serial killer that we were both after. And it was Jane who drew you like a moth to a flame. It worried me.” She stared directly into his eyes. “It still does.”
“Do you want me to reassure you?” He thought about it. “No, I won’t lie. You should be worried. If it’s any comfort, I’m worried about it, too. I don’t like the thought of destroying her, even hurting her.”
“Go away, Caleb. You’ve done what you promised Jane you’d do. Now leave her alone.”
“I can’t,” he said simply. “The moth to the flame. You’re right, she draws me. I don’t know why. Or maybe I do, and I don’t want to admit it.”
“Hurt her, and I’ll kill you,” she said quietly.
“I know.”
“Why are you here, Caleb?”
“The dreams.”
“What?”
“She has dreams, not the usual dreams. She dreamed about the man in the Guilt painting. I need to know everything there is to know about those dreams.”
“Then go ask Jane.”
“She won’t talk to me about them.” He smiled sardonically. “You’d think that she didn’t have complete trust in me, wouldn’t you? I don’t see why. Do you suppose it’s because she can see more than I want anyone to see? No, she’s not going to tell me anything. She thinks I’m weird, and she doesn’t want to be grouped under the same umbrella. She’s fighting admitting that those dreams are a little on the fey side.”
“Yes, she would. Jane has problems accepting anything that’s not solid and completely no-nonsense.”
“But you have no such problem,” he said softly. “That’s why I came to you.”
“And why should I tell you something that Jane wouldn’t?”
“Because I believe the dreams are the key. I can’t help her until I can unlock the puzzle.”
Eve was silent, gazing at him. “Jane is right, you are weird, and I’m not sure that I should give you any keys. You find out entirely too much on your own.”
“But I haven’t broken the code and gone in and made Jane tell me. That should count for something.”
“Since I have an idea that your code is superflexible, I haven’t got much faith in it.”
“I didn’t yield to temptation. I was tempted, Eve.”
“And I should give you a reward?”
He smiled. “Please.”
She shook her head. “You’re a formidable man, Caleb.”
“But you’re going to help me. For Jane’s sake.”
“Is it for Jane’s sake?”
“Yes,” he said quietly. “That I can promise you. It’s all for Jane, Eve.”
She believed him. He was complex, convoluted, and the chameleon she had called him; but he was telling the truth about wanting to help Jane.
And Lord knows she wanted Jane to have all the help that she could get, no matter where it came from.
She turned away and looked out the window. “I don’t know a lot about the dreams. You’re talking about those special dreams. Right? Jane didn’t confide much, and I didn’t push her. Some of it I found out later, and some I’m sure she’s never told me.”
“When did they start?”
Eve had no trouble remembering when she’d first become aware of them. “She was seventeen. She began to have dreams that were different from the usual run that most of us experience.”
“Like a story unfolding.”
She glanced at him. “It seems she did tell you a little about them. I’m surprised.”
“And suspicious. I did push a little, but I backed away. And I told her I’d done it.”
“How admirable,” she said ironically.
“I thought so. What were the dreams about?”
“Cira, an actress who lived in ancient Herculaneum. The dreams were so real that Jane started to investigate the possibility that Cira had actually existed. She thought that she might have run across something in a book or the Internet that could have triggered the dreams. She was a student, and that made the idea at least plausible.”
“That sounds like Jane. Explore every possibility based in reality before even considering anything psychic.”
“It’s what I would have done. Jane and I are a lot alike.”
“Yes, but there are differences that make both of you fascinating. Was there a Cira?”
“Oh, yes. She was quite famous in her day. There were even statues sculpted of her.” She paused. “And she looked remarkably like Jane.”
“Really? That must have shaken her.”
Eve smiled. “Not Jane. Or at least she wouldn’t admit it. She says everyone has a double somewhere.”
“But she was interested enough to search out everything she could find about this Cira?”
“She had no choice. She’d opened a can of worms when she started probing. Cira had possessed a chest of ancient gold coins that would have been worth millions, perhaps billions. When Jane started the search, it attracted the attention of a criminal, Thomas Reilly, who went on the attack. Jane had to dig in and find out everything she could just to survive.”
“Billions?” Caleb repeated thoughtfully. “Millions I can understand for ancient gold coins. But not billions. Why?”
“There were certain rumors.” She met his gaze. “That there were other coins in the chest. Coins brought by Cira’s slave when he came from Jerusalem.”
Caleb stiffened. “Jerusalem.”
She nodded. “The Judas coins.”
“Shit.”
“It was my first thought when Jane told me what Roland was after. Strange coincidence.”
“Even stranger that Jane didn’t make the connection.”
“When the dreams stopped, she went into denial about those dreams of Cira. It’s more comfortable for her that way. She prefers to block them out.”
“The chest was never found?”
She shook her head. “Cira ran away from Herculaneum during the eruption of Vesuvius and traveled here to Scotland. She and her husband took on new identities and moved to the Highlands.”
“What new identities?”
She smiled. “MacDuff.”
He nodded. “Of course. It’s rather annoying that everyone here at the Run must know about it but me. Sometimes being the outsider is an uphill struggle. But it’s all coming together now. Except for that chest of coins. Are you sure that MacDuff hasn’t found it?”
“I’m sure. It’s driving him crazy that he can’t convince Jane to help him search for it.”
“Too bad.” He was frowning. “The Judas coins. If they’re in a chest somewhere in Scotland, then Hadar’s Tablet isn’t going to help us much.”
“Or maybe it will,” Eve said. “I told you, it’s only a rumor that the coins are in that chest.”
“Connections. Jane dreams about a chest that may contain the Judas coins. Years later she starts to dream about the face of a man who could be Judas. Then she’s hunted by members of a cult who worship Judas. It’s all bound together.”
“Perhaps. Perhaps not.”
“I choose to believe that there’s a connection.” He rose to his feet. “It pleases my analytical soul.”
“It won’t please Jane’s pragmatic approach on life.”
“Then one of us will have to bend.” He started for the door. “And I may have an advantage. Every time she closes her eyes, I may have an ally come out and whisper in her ear.”
“Judas?”
“I don’t know. Judas, the devil, an angel trying to set things right? It’s a mystery.” He glanced back at her as he opened the door. “Thank you for helping me. I know you have some serious doubts.”
She nodded. “And I don’t want you messing with Jane’s mind or will. I only trust you so far.”
“But I trust you to Hell and back. It’s nice being able to feel like that about someone. Good-night, Eve.”
She stood there as the door closed behind him. Those last words had been oddly touching and unexpected. Caleb was always surprising, but she was usually aware of mockery running beneath his words. There had been no mockery tonight.
Particularly when he spoke about Jane. He had been unsure, bewildered about his own emotions toward her, and that had made him seem more vulnerable. His willingness to admit that vulnerability to her had drawn her inexplicably closer to him.
Of course, that could have been pure sham.
But she didn’t believe that was the case. Which made her shifting relationship with Caleb all the more disturbing. She was aware of the ephemeral beginnings of a tentative alliance.
And who in hell wanted to have a vampire for an ally?
IT WAS CLOSE TO NINE that night when Jock knocked on Jane’s door. “Coffee.”
Jane pushed back away from the computer and rubbed her eyes before she got up and crossed the room to open the door.
Jock stood there with a tray. “Coffee and a sandwich. Mrs. Dalbrey said you didn’t eat much of her stew. She’s very disapproving. But even if you don’t want to eat, I figured you’d still need the coffee.”
“You didn’t have to do this.” She stood aside to let him into the room. “But coffee sounds good.”
“I thought it would.” He set the tray on the small table by the window. “You’re sure you won’t have the sandwich? I’m not going to let you get ill. That would cause me all kinds of trouble.”
“I wouldn’t want that.” She sat down in the chair. “I’ll have the coffee. I had enough of that stew to satisfy me. You eat the sandwich.”
He shook his head. “I had a fine meal at dinner. Mrs. Dalbrey’s stew was magnificent, wasn’t it? Though MacDuff would have preferred I eat crow. He’s still not pleased with me.”
“Did he give you a hard time?”
“Moderate. He felt better after I let him interrogate me for a while. He always feels more in control once he knows all there is to know about everything. To be out of control is MacDuff’s prime bugaboo.”
“You told him everything?”
He shrugged. “Why not? We may need him soon.” He paused. “You mean did I tell him what a strange bedfellow you have in Caleb?”
“Strange bedfellow.” The common slang phrase applied to Caleb caused a ripple of shock to go through her. “Yes.”
He nodded. “I decided it was time to break it to MacDuff gently before we ran into a situation where Caleb was slinging bodies down in front of him and making people scream with agony. It might come as a slight surprise.”
“I was a bit surprised,” she said dryly. “To put it mildly.”
“But you haven’t sent him on his way.”
“No.” She had tried, but somehow she hadn’t been able to get him to go. Maybe she hadn’t tried hard enough. Maybe she hadn’t really wanted him to go. “No, I haven’t done that yet. When MacDuff met him, he didn’t give any indication that he thought Caleb was… unusual.”
“I’m not sure if he really believed everything. He’s probably taking everything I said with a grain of salt and making his own judgment.”
“That sounds like him. He and Caleb were definitely searching for flaws and weaknesses.”
“Well, MacDuff won’t find that a lack of determination is one of Caleb’s weaknesses.” He looked at the pile of Bibles that were strewn on the bed. “I see you’re going through all your holy books. Do you have enough?”
“More than I need.” She took a sip of coffee. “You believe in overkill.”
“Have they helped?”
“I haven’t started to go through them yet. I’ve been too busy searching the Internet for information. It’s mostly repetitive, but some sites have more than others do.” She finished her sandwich. “But I’m almost ready to start on the Bibles.”
“Do you need any help?”
She shook her head. “Not unless you’re an expert and can fill in some of missing chinks in these passages.”
“No, my mother always saw that I went to church, but I don’t remember a lot of biblical details.”
“Neither do I.” She swallowed the last of her coffee. “Sorry to kick you out. But if you can’t help, then all you can do is leave me alone so that I can get back to work.”
“I was going anyway.” He turned to the door. “I have to get a tray and take it to Lina. It seems my present duty is just to be a waiter.”
“You do it very well. You’re taking care of everyone.”
He smiled as he opened the door. “Not Caleb. He can get his own tray. I have to draw the line somewhere.”
“I’m glad you didn’t draw it before you brought mine. That caffeine is making my brain start to function again.”
He studied her face. “I don’t think that your mind is too dull at the moment. You’re excited.”
She nodded. “I’m learning things. That’s always exciting.” She got to her feet and started toward the computer. “Thank you, Jock. I’m glad you’re checking on Lina. Though she may kick you out.”
“I’ll risk it. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Yes, good-night.”
The door closed softly behind him, but she wouldn’t have heard it anyway. She was already absorbed in the theories surrounding the man whose face had haunted her until she’d been forced to put it on canvas.
Thirty shekels of silver.
Judas hanging from the willow tree.
The field of blood…