Page 108 of Elusive Promise

"If it wasn't for our brilliant skills of detection."

She smiled at his light words. "There's that confidence again."

"Hey, I was including you in that. You were amazing today. You shot Isaac, which prevented him from killing Anika and Jasmine. And you found Neil and alerted the FBI to get the campus evacuated before anyone could get caught in what was about to happen."

"I might have shot Isaac, but you got to Jasmine and Anika before I did. You put your body in front of theirs. Don't think I didn't see that."

He shrugged. "Instinct. You would have done the same. We make a good team."

"We do. We don't even have to talk; we're completely in sync." She paused. "I don't know if you heard, but the café has been a meeting place for Brothers of the Earth whenever they're in New York. They're rounding up a lot more people who could have been potential recruits."

"That's good to hear."

"So, you didn't know?" She gave him a speculative look. "Did the CIA come and shut you up?" She and Jared had been interviewed both together and separately, but there had been a good hour or two when she hadn't seen him.

"They did, actually. I didn't see who came to the bureau, but after making my initial statements, I was left alone in a conference room for about two hours. Then I was told you were done and ready to go. I'm sure you have more information than I do."

"Well, I think you know most of it."

"Tell me about the Raven," he said curiously. "When Isaac said the Raven was going to fly, how did you know it was Neil and it would happen at the college?"

"I knew it was Neil because he made up the story about the raven when I was in school in Bezikstan. It was one of his favorite tales. It's a fable, a metaphor for the struggle of good against evil. A huge hawk comes down and disturbs a nest of ravens and the mother is either killed or disappears. The baby ravens live on the ledge outside of a school classroom. For days on end, the kids give the ravens enough food for them to live, but it's up to them to decide when to fly away. During that time, it's storming, it's dark; the world is a sad place. One day, the bell in the courtyard peals out twelve rings, and on the twelfth note, one of the ravens decides to risk it all and fly. He finally finds his courage. The storms end. The sky opens up to sunshine, and his fellow ravens follow him into flight."

"So, it's basically a story about finding courage."

"And being who you are. A bird is supposed to fly. It has to find its wings." She paused. "It's also about fighting evil. The ravens couldn't cower on the ledge forever. They had to be brave enough to take on whatever big birds might be in their way."

Jared gave her a thoughtful look. "In this instance, the big bird stands for the government of Bezikstan, and the raven stands for the oppressed rebels."

"Yes. It's funny how a childish tale could take on such a different meaning."

"People read into stories what they want, what they need to hear. They put their own personal experience on it, and then it becomes theirs."

"That's true. I can't imagine what Neil must have been thinking when he was forced to put on that vest, when he was told that like the raven he created, he had to fly. He knew he was going to die. But he did it to protect Elizabeth."

"Maybe it was also to protect himself," Jared suggested with a cynical note in his voice. "Who knows how involved Neil was in anything? We'll find out in the days to come, because people will talk. Sara is already talking. Perhaps he would have rather died in a somewhat heroic fashion than go to jail, be painted a terrorist, have to live with that on his name, on his family."

"That's a good point. But I'd rather think it was about protecting his family. That probably makes me a fool."

"It makes you a person who wants to see good in someone who saved her life."

"He did do that. No matter what else he did. And I'm glad that Elizabeth is physically all right, although I'm sure Neil's death and Ben's imprisonment will be very hard on her. But moving on…I wanted to talk to you about Isaac. We haven't discussed what happened in the apartment yet."

"We caught a terrorist; that's what happened."

"Were you thinking about killing him?"

Jared's green eyes darkened as his gaze met hers. "Yes, I was."

She appreciated his honesty. "Do you wish I hadn't shown up when I did? Would it have made it easier to kill him if I hadn't been there? No one would have known. You could have claimed he went for his gun."

"I'd already decided to let him live. I couldn't kill someone who has the kind of information he has."

"Even when it would have meant justice for April?"

"That's not what she would have wanted—as you mentioned back in the apartment," he said, a smile curving his lips.

"I feel like I could have been friends with April."

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