“With Cira.” Lisa nodded. “But I’ll try to make certain you’re not disturbed by things like this again. You’ll have to make decisions, but I can do the donkey work.”
MacDuff studied her for a moment and then smiled. “We’ll see how it goes. You don’t remind me of any donkey with whom I’ve made an acquaintance.”
“But she does remind me a little of her brother,” Jock said quietly. He lifted his cup in a mock toast to Lisa. “Drive and determination. Long may it reign.”
“It will,” Lisa said. “You know Seth. Are you friends?”
“Sometimes. We have a good deal in common.” He finished his coffee and set his cup aside. “We understand each other as much as either one of us can bear being understood.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Lisa was frowning as her gaze searched his face. “I want Seth to have friends. He’s always been alone. If you understand him, then you should realize that he’d be a good friend.”
“And if you understood him, you’d realize that he’d still be alone even if I called him my friend.” His smile was suddenly gentle and lit his face with a warm radiance. “But it’s good that he has you, Lisa. You give him a gift beyond compare. That’s one thing that we’ve both learned to appreciate.” He got to his feet in one lithe movement. “And now it’s time we got to the task of giving MacDuff a gift beyond compare.” He turned to MacDuff. “Come on, you’ve indulged yourself too long. We have to get to work. Do you believe that treasure is just going to emerge like Venus from her shell?” He grabbed his backpack and headed toward the north bank.
“I wasn’t the one who had seconds on those pancakes,” MacDuff called after him as he got to his feet. He gave a half bow to Lisa. “My compliments to the chef.” He glanced at Jane. “Keep an eye on her. She’s one of those who will go until they drop.”
“I know,” Jane said. “But it didn’t stop you from taking advantage of that gourmet breakfast.”
“She wanted to be tested.” He grinned. “So we tested her.” He headed down the bank after Jock.
She turned away from watching them to look at Lisa. “And how did you survive the test? You look … normal.”
“Pretty normal. A little rouge on the cheeks helped quite a bit.” She was watching Jock and MacDuff. Her back was ramrod-straight and there was a smile fixed on her lips. “And I believe I came out of the test with flying colors. I gave them something wonderful to eat, we got to know each other a little better, and they know that I won’t stop until I’m part of Gaelkar.” She watched the two men disappear into the mist. Then she gave a deep sigh, her smile vanished, and she slumped over. “But the test is done now.” Her hand was shaking as she put her coffee cup down. “They’re very, very smart. Both of them. Did they see through me?”
“Probably. But they liked what they saw,” she said. “Did you eat anything yet?”
“No. I was onstage. Besides, I was afraid I’d get sick.” She swallowed and said wryly, “I wouldn’t tell anybody else that. Aren’t you lucky?”
“I think I am.” She put bacon and a small bit of egg on a plate. “Eat this. Do you need that wound rebandaged?”
“No. I told the truth. I’m getting better. I’m healing.” She was eating the bacon. “And I spent time last night concentrating on repairing. Seth taught me how to do that.”
“Well, good for him. Now all he has to do is teach you how to avoid exhaustion.” She took two slices of bacon herself and then one of the pancakes. The pancakes really were excellent. “What’s this about Munich contracts?”
“It’s something of value for me to give. Food is good. But I had to go a step further.” She finished the eggs. “And it was easier for me to get MacDuff to talk about it after he’d eaten his breakfast.”
Jane chuckled. “Lisa, I believe you may have the makings of a temptress. I’d never have believed it, from where we began.”
She made a face. “That kind of thing is easy. It’s more like business negotiations than seduction. And you only saw me when I was fighting for Seth’s life. You couldn’t expect me to act reasonably around Santara.”
“Which you certainly didn’t.” She sat back on her heels. “Are you planning on doing this every morning?”
“Yes. It’s a gift I can give. I’d judge people like MacDuff and Jock like to return gifts.” She smiled. “Even though MacDuff’s already given me one in this safe haven here.”
“But you want something else,” Jane said. “Cira?”
“Cira. It’s something to look forward to, something to work for,” she said simply. “It’s going to drive me crazy worrying about Seth until I’m well enough to go to him. I have to keep busy. Nothing about Cira is easy.”
“You’re right. Not one thing.” Obviously, Lisa had been captured like the rest of them. “So by all means wriggle your way into working with MacDuff and Jock in the mist if you can.”
“You won’t mind?” She hesitated. “I won’t try if you do. After all, Cira does belong to you.”
Jane laughed. “Cira belongs to herself. If anything, she sees that we belong to her. By all means, if she welcomes you, then who am I to put obstacles in your path?” She looked out at the lake. “Eve told me that I might have been chosen to find and save you. That sometimes we’re given those choices. It’s strange that all this happened at the same time I was planning on going into the mist to find Cira’s treasure.” She smiled. “Maybe you were chosen, too, Lisa.”
“That’s all a little too mystical for me,” Lisa said as she unfolded one of the blankets beside the fire. “All I want is to keep busy until I’m ready to go help Seth. Cira will do that.” She lay down and pulled the blanket over her. “But one step at a time. First, I have to prove myself so that when I’m ready, MacDuff will be ready for me. I got too tired today and I have to take a nap. It’s only smart to ration my strength. When I wake up, I’ll make out a grocery list. Can you send one of those guards to a town close by and fill it for me?”
“If you don’t get too fancy with ingredients.”
“I won’t. But I think I’m going to need some kind of portable oven, too. It was kind of hard today. I’ll have to think about it.” Her eyes closed. “And while he’s gone, I’ll tackle those Munich contracts.”
“You do that.” Jane got another cup of coffee and sat back down, her eyes on Lisa. She could see that the girl was drifting off. She’d planned to go down into the mist herself today, and she might later. But right now it seemed to be more important to get Lisa settled at the camp. Or maybe just to do what MacDuff had said and keep an eye on her. She was settling in herself at lightning speed and probably doing too much. She might not be able to stop Lisa, but she might be able to modify her behavior. Lisa was being more thoughtful and accommodating toward her than she had dreamed possible. Astonishing in a girl as willful as Lisa. At moments she had touched her and amused her and frustrated her, but she had not bored her. Of course, she might be lulling her into a false sense of security, but somehow she didn’t think so. She thought perhaps Lisa was beginning to reveal facets of her personality that were as complex and changing as the sketches she had made during that last week.
So she’d sit here and have her coffee. Then she’d work on Michael’s sketch.
And when Lisa woke, she’d set herself to doing what was necessary to keep her promise to Caleb to take care of his sister.
And explore what new facet Lisa was going to show her next.
*
There was no way I’d be able to make the shot, Santara thought with frustration as he sighted his rifle carefully on Lisa Ridondo lying by the fire. The distance was much too far and MacDuff’s men would be on him the minute he fired. He had reconnoitered the entire area and the damn place was an armed camp, he thought sourly. And besides, Teresa Romano didn’t want a dead girl; she wanted something to trade.