Page 59 of Visions in Blood
“Why do I have a feeling this has to do with my daughter?”
“If you mean Cressa, you’d be correct.”
She sighed.“It’s that damn necklace, isn’t it?”
“Several nights ago, she wore it to bed.”
She’d been staring at the napkin that was crumbling under her tight grip, but now her gaze flashed to him.The mixture of fear and concern confirming all he needed to know.
“Why didn’t you tell her the danger it posed?”
She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear, and for a moment, he saw the woman she’d been when Cressa was only a child.“Ras said she should wear it all the time.He’d been adamant about it.But three days after he left us, she had her first nightmare.”She lifted her chin and didn’t waver, though her hand trembled as she lifted the glass and gulped a couple swallows.“There’s nothing you can say that would make me believe Ras knew that would happen.”
“I agree.”
Her lips twisted, and her eyes narrowed.“Then why are we playing this game?”
“I need to know where I can find Ras.”
Her laugh was harsh.“That would be like chasing the wind.”
“I don’t understand.”
“No.You wouldn’t.Ras was a unicorn.A leprechaun.A man as mysterious as the lost city of Atlantis.”She glanced away, and when she turned back, her eyes glistened with shattered memories.“He was the love of my life, who gave me a beautiful daughter, then disappeared into the night.”
“Is he still alive?”His heart hammered against his chest.
She gave him a half shrug and leaned back.“I don’t know.Does Cressa know you’re here?”
He didn’t answer.
She tapped a nail against the stem of the wineglass and met his stare.“What is it you want?”
“Is there anything you can tell me about the necklace?Or maybe someone that can explain the dreams.”
“And why should I tell you?Who are you to my daughter?”
“Her protection.”His tone hardened as did his gaze, and though her gaze flickered, she held her ground.
Her laugh was broken.“That’s good.It’s more than I can do.”She reached into a pocket and pulled out a business card.She rubbed her thumb across the face of it, and he sensed she might put it back, but then she handed it to him.“Something told me when Christopher asked where the necklace was that old debts were about to come due.I told him I hadn’t seen it in years.That it probably got lost somewhere along the way, but he instantly blamed Cressa for stealing it.”She laid her palms open.“There wasn’t anything I could say that wouldn’t confirm she had it.So, I played dumb, hoping he’d never find her.”She sniffled, but it was so low, it might have been his imagination.
“Then Cressa came looking for you.”
Her smile was filled with pride.“It had been so long since I’d seen her.I’d forgotten how much she looked like him.”
“Thank you for what you’ve been able to do.”He collected the pictures and shoved them back in the envelope, sorry he’d had to play that hand.Once the envelope was back in his inner pocket and the unread business card tucked away in his outer pocket, he gave her his most sincere look.
“Underwood has partnered with very dangerous people.If there’s any way possible, I would suggest planning a way out.”
Her chuckle was dark, the sound throaty.“I’ve been planning it since that lunch on this very patio.”
He nodded.“Thomas will see you back out through the main entrance so no one will be suspicious about who you might have been meeting.He’ll also give you a number.It’s a burner, so it can’t be traced, but someone will always be monitoring it.In case you need help.”
She finished her wine and stood, her back straight and her head held high as she turned toward Thomas, who waited a short distance away.After a couple of steps, she glanced back to him.“You never gave me your name.”
“It will be safer for you if you don’t know.”
ChapterTwenty-Two
