“Do you need my help this afternoon, now that you’ve lost Caleb?”
He shook his head. “Caleb was here long enough to get us to the point where we start installing the transformers. That’s going to be a long and tedious job. And since those Australian components are so damn complicated, it’s better if we take our time with them.” He waved at MacDuff, who was coming out of the mist. “And you don’t have to worry about MacDuff grilling you about Caleb. He’s so absorbed right now in the hunt for Cira’s treasure, that’s all he’s seeing. He got what he needed from Caleb and that’s all that was important to him.” He turned and moved toward the campfire. “We don’t actually need you right now, either, Jane.” He glanced back over his shoulder and grinned. “I’ll let you know when MacDuff feels like you should be around to invoke Cira to bless his treasure hunt.”
It was like Jock to analyze the situation, accept it, and then try to smooth out all the bumps along the way. “Are you trying to get rid of me?”
“Just giving you an opening. I know you’ll be here for MacDuff when the time comes.”
“I wouldn’t think of doing anything else.” It was nice of Jock to set up a scenario where she was free to leave the camp, but he didn’t realize that she had nowhere to go now that Caleb had refused to let her go with him to Rome.
Nowhere to go? She was suddenly filled with self-disgust. Let her go? Caleb couldn’t stop her from doing anything she wanted to do. Yes, he might be able to get more information on his own, but that didn’t mean he controlled what she did. And who the hell knew if Rome was the right place to track down the Romanos or Santara or anyone else? She had her own resources in the sketchbook and the conversations she’d had with Lisa. Now was obviously the time to analyze and try to come up with something of value.
“I’ll keep that in mind, Jock.” She turned and strode toward her tent. “In the meantime, I have to do a little research and a lot of thinking. Have a good afternoon. I’ll see both of you at supper.”
CHAPTER
6
For the next few hours she studied every one of the sketches down to the last detail. Since she was seeing what Lisa was seeing, everything about the natural surroundings and the rooms in the house should be totally accurate.
She hoped.
Don’t hope. Assume that Lisa is being allowed to reach you for a reason. Eve had said Jane was chosen. Okay, then there had to be something here she could use.
If the mountains were the Alps, where were they located?
Question mark.
The island?
Not a large island, but it seemed to have a long, curving road up the side that Lisa was facing. The lower side to the east jutted out in a flat, triangular fashion. Lots of trees.
The cliff was steep, but not completely impassable if Lisa had made it down to the rocks and beach. Definitely sea. Not a river.
What sea?
Lisa had been kidnapped at her guardian’s estate in northern Italy. She’d been taken on a helicopter to her destination. She hadn’t mentioned any stops to refuel.
What direction?
The sea …
Try south.
She pulled up the map on her computer.
“Okay, Lisa,” she murmured. “If I’ve been chosen, tell me where the hell I’m going.…”
A few hours after Lisa regained consciousness, she’d reached her destination. But who knew if she’d been unconscious for hours before that time. She might have had time to reach Morocco, on the African coast.
Then again, the helicopter would probably not have been chosen for a long-distance journey. Wouldn’t Santara have switched to another plane?
Okay, time to go back to the sketches and conversations. She was becoming blurry from looking at maps and computer screens.
But she needed a breath of air and a few minutes outside the confines of this tent. She was getting claustrophobic.
She dropped down outside on the bank and looked out at the lake. She tried to relax and just absorb all that information she’d gathered about helicopters and the Mediterranean and the Aegean and the distances from the Romanos’ estate, and a hundred other details she’d crammed into her mind.
Let it go. Just take this moment.
Her gaze shifted to the north bank, where Jock and MacDuff were probably moving, working, somewhere in that eternal fog. Looking for the treasure, searching for the end of the rainbow, searching for the end of the story.
Searching for Cira …
The lake was as beautiful as always and the late-afternoon sunlight was casting a luminous golden glow over the mist. Jane always loved it at this time of day, when it was almost like—
She stiffened, her breath leaving her body. “Oh my God!”
She jumped to her feet and ran into the tent to get her computer.
8:40 P.M.
Her hand was shaking as she punched in Caleb’s number. “You come and get me. I’m heading for the Edinburgh Airport. Don’t argue with me. Just get in that fancy jet of yours and come and pick me up.”
“Something’s wrong? I told you that—”
“Something’s right. And I don’t care what you told me. You come and get me. I’m not going to go through another night wondering what’s happening to Lisa.” She hung up.
Then she turned and went to Jock, who was back now and sitting at the campfire. “I need your car. Will you give me the keys?”
He immediately took them out of his pocket and tossed them to her. “Am I allowed to know when I get it back?”
“It will be at Edinburgh Airport. Thanks, Jock.”
“No problem. I offered. If you need anything else, let me know.”
“I will.” She headed up the incline. “I hope it will all be over soon.”
“I think you should know that Eve was on the phone with MacDuff earlier this evening. He didn’t tell me why. Is she concerned about this?”
“Eve is always concerned about everything if it has to do with family.” But Jane was surprised that Eve had thought she had reason to contact MacDuff. “But if he mentions anything, tell him we’re taking care of it.”
“You and Caleb?” He was smiling that warm, radiant smile. “That makes me feel better. I didn’t like the idea of your bolting out of here by yourself. Even though I can see you’re full of vim and vigor and ready to conquer the world.”
“Only a small part of it,” she called back to him. “But I’m praying that may be enough.”
EDINBURGH AIRPORT
Three hours later, Jane was standing at the private terminal when Caleb’s Gulfstream 650 pulled up at the hangar. The moment the stairs were lowered, she was climbing them, and she met Caleb as the aircraft door opened. “Turn around,” she said curtly. “I don’t want to waste any time. Get back in the air.”
“A good many orders seem to be being hurled around,” he said silkily. “Am I going to be allowed to pilot my own plane?”
“Yes, I told you to get back in the air, didn’t I? You know I don’t fly.” She went past him into the plane. “It seemed like a long time for you to get here, but it really wasn’t. You must have started right after I called.”
“I’d hardly dawdle when you were so adamant.” His lips tightened. “I was afraid something had happened to you.” He went ahead of her to the cockpit. “Though you were obviously not prepared at the time to confide in me.”
“I had to get you here in a hurry. You have a tendency to play games or argue with me.” She took out the bottle of water she’d bought at the airport and took a long drink. It tasted good going down, though she probably should have brought coffee. The adrenaline was fading and she might need a stimulant. She dropped down in the copilot’s seat. “Could we please leave now, Caleb?”
His lips quirked. “Shouldn’t I file a flight plan?”
“Why? You’ve been known to change them en route.”
“True.” He smiled mockingly. He was taxiing down the runway. “What’s this about? Did you by any chance get a hint from Lisa about where we can find her?”