his power could easily advance or sidetrack any career.
"Thank you, Ewan."
"You're welcome." He gestured at her with his pipe. "I don't suppose they allowed you to keep your notes, did they?"
The subtle change of subject didn't surprise her. Ewan always kept the best interests of the Institute at the forefront of anything he did. "Actually, they did. That and something else."
"Something else?"
"It was in Charlie's belongings. A coin."
"Good God," Ewan exclaimed.
"Well, it's not like I knew it was there," she snapped in a defensive tone. "It's not my fault the authorities didn't find it when they searched through everything."
This last statement held more than a trace of bitterness as she remembered her ordeal in Cairo and the way her things had been recklessly tossed into several large boxes. Ewan sent her a sympathetic look.
"I can't imagine they made it easy for you. I take it they brought up the subject of your parents as well?"
"Yes."
She bobbed her head and glanced away from him. The rawness of the pain still lingered beneath the surface even after five years. Charlie's murder had brought it all back. The memories she'd managed to keep at bay. There hadn't been anything unusual about the dig she and her parents had been excavating. Everything had been quite normal until the night her mother and father failed to show up for dinner. When it grew late, she'd ordered the men to spread out and find the couple. Kareem had been the first one to find her parents. Even now, she could still hear his wailing cry of terror. She crushed the dark memories and turned her head back to Ewan. A look of assessment darkened his brown eyes.
"So where is this coin?"
"Let me go get it," she said as she gulped down the rest of her whiskey and unfolded herself off the couch. "I'll be right back."
Heading down the hall to the study, she half expected her mysterious stranger to materialize out of thin air. She certainly didn't like the disappointment that flared through her when he didn't appear. As she entered the office, she glanced to her left, fully expecting to see the knife still stuck in the wall. But it was gone.
Startled, she came to an abrupt halt. It had been in the wall when Ewan had rung the doorbell. She turned toward the desk. The knife sat on top of the papers covering the desktop. Her stomach lurched with apprehension as she sprinted forward.
Pushing papers first to one side and then to another, she realized the worst had happened. The bastard had let her answer the door while he came back here to take the coin. Furious, she slammed her fists into the desktop.
Chapter 4
THE rain eased slightly as Ares DeLuca stood in the shadows surrounding the Zale house.
The Emma he'd just met bore no likeness to the dry information in her file. She was feisty, vulnerable, and intelligent, with a bite of sarcastic humor. That, and a body designed by Titian.
Id damno. If he didn't get his head back on straight, he'd make an even bigger mess of things. He'd made more mistakes tonight than in the entire time he'd been Legatus of the Order's Chicago guild. Mistakes like knowing zip about Emma's special ability.
How in the hell had Sandro and Octavia missed that? Her file mentioned nothing about a psychic trait. He frowned as he studied the dark window of her study. With just one touch, she'd learned far more about him than she needed to know. Knowledge was power, but it was also dangerous if you didn't have all the facts. And Emma was a babe in the woods when it
"Thank you, Ewan."
"You're welcome." He gestured at her with his pipe. "I don't suppose they allowed you to keep your notes, did they?"
The subtle change of subject didn't surprise her. Ewan always kept the best interests of the Institute at the forefront of anything he did. "Actually, they did. That and something else."
"Something else?"
"It was in Charlie's belongings. A coin."
"Good God," Ewan exclaimed.
"Well, it's not like I knew it was there," she snapped in a defensive tone. "It's not my fault the authorities didn't find it when they searched through everything."
This last statement held more than a trace of bitterness as she remembered her ordeal in Cairo and the way her things had been recklessly tossed into several large boxes. Ewan sent her a sympathetic look.
"I can't imagine they made it easy for you. I take it they brought up the subject of your parents as well?"
"Yes."
She bobbed her head and glanced away from him. The rawness of the pain still lingered beneath the surface even after five years. Charlie's murder had brought it all back. The memories she'd managed to keep at bay. There hadn't been anything unusual about the dig she and her parents had been excavating. Everything had been quite normal until the night her mother and father failed to show up for dinner. When it grew late, she'd ordered the men to spread out and find the couple. Kareem had been the first one to find her parents. Even now, she could still hear his wailing cry of terror. She crushed the dark memories and turned her head back to Ewan. A look of assessment darkened his brown eyes.
"So where is this coin?"
"Let me go get it," she said as she gulped down the rest of her whiskey and unfolded herself off the couch. "I'll be right back."
Heading down the hall to the study, she half expected her mysterious stranger to materialize out of thin air. She certainly didn't like the disappointment that flared through her when he didn't appear. As she entered the office, she glanced to her left, fully expecting to see the knife still stuck in the wall. But it was gone.
Startled, she came to an abrupt halt. It had been in the wall when Ewan had rung the doorbell. She turned toward the desk. The knife sat on top of the papers covering the desktop. Her stomach lurched with apprehension as she sprinted forward.
Pushing papers first to one side and then to another, she realized the worst had happened. The bastard had let her answer the door while he came back here to take the coin. Furious, she slammed her fists into the desktop.
Chapter 4
THE rain eased slightly as Ares DeLuca stood in the shadows surrounding the Zale house.
The Emma he'd just met bore no likeness to the dry information in her file. She was feisty, vulnerable, and intelligent, with a bite of sarcastic humor. That, and a body designed by Titian.
Id damno. If he didn't get his head back on straight, he'd make an even bigger mess of things. He'd made more mistakes tonight than in the entire time he'd been Legatus of the Order's Chicago guild. Mistakes like knowing zip about Emma's special ability.
How in the hell had Sandro and Octavia missed that? Her file mentioned nothing about a psychic trait. He frowned as he studied the dark window of her study. With just one touch, she'd learned far more about him than she needed to know. Knowledge was power, but it was also dangerous if you didn't have all the facts. And Emma was a babe in the woods when it
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