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.” He took a short breath, thinking hard.“That was most prompt of you.I confess, you’ve caught me off guard.I’m very sorry to have troubled you.”“Nothing to worry about.Anything else I can do for you?”“I have two guests coming in tonight.In fact they should be arriving any moment I’d appreciate it if you’d pass their names on to your officer: Jared MacNeill and Margaret Kincade.Do you have that?”“I’ll radio the information through right now.Wouldn’t want any false arrests.”“Absolutely not.” Once in a night was more than enough, Jared thought irritably.“By the way, I’d like the name of your man on duty.Just to thank him properly.”“Detective-Sergeant Adam Wakeford.Let us know if you have any more problems, my lord.”“Indeed, I shall.Good night to you.”Jared rang off, staring out into the rushing darkness.There was no possibility that Nicholas Draycott had called for police presence without notifying Jared first.He would phone Nicholas in London later to be sure, but Jared was certain this little scenario was a warning.It was their friend from London, once again proving he could stay a step ahead in the twisted game he had initiated.Jared shoved the cell phone back into his pocket.Suddenly the night’s silence had turned threatening.“He checked out?” Maggie wiggled closer.“Is it okay to go inside now?”There was a leaf dangling from her hair, and her eyes were huge.Jared felt a wave of anger tear through him.He had underestimated their enemy back in London, but he would not make the same mistake again.“He checked out perfectly.”“But why is the police car here?”“It seems Nicholas called them.”Maggie frowned.“And he didn’t tell you? That doesn’t sound like something he would do.”She was too sharp, Jared thought.“He probably tried to call me, but the cell phone was out of range.It happens quite often, I’m afraid.”She looked down at her locked hands.“I … see.”She didn’t believe him.Jared could feel the tension emanating from her, half buried beneath her exhaustion.He turned away, careful not to touch her again.He didn’t want to feel her thoughts.Right now he didn’t even want to feel his own.~ ~ ~Detective-Sergeant Adam Wakeford was young and tired.He lurched from his car as Jared crossed the drive toward the bridge.One hand locked anxiously on his belt as Jared rolled down his window.“Officer Wakeford, I believe?”“That’s correct.And you would be whom?”“Jared MacNeill.This is Ms.Kincade.Lord Draycott phoned for you to expect us.”Some of the stiffness left the officer’s shoulders.He peered briefly inside the car, then nodded.“Go right on up, Mr.MacNeill.It’s all quiet out here.No sign of any trouble tonight.” He stifled a yawn, clearly irritated at a useless assignment.Jared wished he felt half so confident.He maneuvered the long, twisting drive, remembering other nights and other visits to the old abbey.Quiet dawns.Lazy afternoons of silence spent trying to recuperate after Thailand.He looked at Maggie, who was bravely struggling to keep her eyes open.“Right now all you have to do is fall into bed and sleep until you feel like waking.I’ll bring up your bags.”“Sounds like heaven to me,” she mumbled, hiding a yawn.They stopped before the weathered granite walls of the gatehouse.Moonlight dusted the windows and lay like snow across the quiet courtyard.Maggie looked behind her.“Fortunately, there don’t appear to be any madmen in backhoes jolting up the drive.” She opened her door and started toward the house, one bag under her arm.“I’ll take that,” Jared muttered, shifting Max to his other arm.“Thank you, Jared.Right now I’m too tired to fight.” She frowned.“But maybe in the morning you’ll tell me the real reason that police car was waiting down by the bridge.”CHAPTER EIGHTEENDamask roses in cut crystal vases.What appeared to be genuine Constable landscapes on the wall by the French doors.Maggie took a long, slow breath.“So you’re not in Kansas anymore,” she whispered to an empty room.She was feeling edgy and she could have told herself it was from the emotional backlash of the last two nights, but Maggie knew the source lay in this ancient home, in the aura that clung to every corner.Even a person with no imagination could feel the weight of history in rooms where kings had plotted and wars had been launched.Here long generations of Draycotts must have dabbled in court intrigues from rooms with secret tunnels for swift escapes.History? But why did it feel so familiar?Maggie sank slowly back into the antique poster bed.Draycott Abbey was compelling, but so far there had been no more strange lapses of awareness.Wind brushed her neck, and she turned to see a sleek form pacing over the floor.The gray cat moved regally, his amber eyes keen and unblinking.“I hope I’m not taking your room.” Somehow it seemed perfectly normal to speak to the cat.“Where did you come from?” As if in answer, the French door creaked open, pale curtains floating in a ripple of cold air from the balcony.The cat stopped beside the bed and stared up at Maggie, as if waiting for an invitation.“Be my guest.”The bright eyes blinked.Ears back, the creature jumped onto the silk coverlet, circled once, then sank into a ball.As a rule, Maggie wasn’t a cat lover, but there was something different about this one.Like the rest of the great house, he seemed keen.Still.Waiting…Which made no sense.She had simply gone too long without a decent rest, and her nerves were in a state of meltdown.That was the only explanation for this odd fantasy she was weaving about a simple cat.Except that looking into those unblinking amber eyes, Maggie had the definite impression this was far more than a normal cat.She turned as Jared appeared at the door, barefoot and minus his jacket.To Maggie’s disgust he looked good enough to eat.“I see you’ve met the abbey’s real lord and master.”“The cat? He certainly does make himself at home.I hope this wasn’t his room.”“Every room at the abbey is his, according to Nicholas and Kacey.Good thing that I left Max asleep back in my room.I’ve had enough excitement for one night.” He bent to the bed.“Yes, my big friend, you’re special and you know it, don’t you?”Gray ears perked forward.A long, liquid meow rippled through the room as Jared worked a hand over the intelligent head.“I didn’t even hear him come in.” Maggie studied the French doors, still rocking in the wind.“I suppose one of the latches came loose.”“I’ll check it.” Jared just kept petting.He looked mesmerized.Maggie crossed her arms.“So?”No answer.“Was there something you needed to see me about?”“Nothing in particular Just to check if you needed anything.”“I’ll be fine.” She studied the gleaming silk walls.“But there’s a sort of feeling here.Something I can’t put my finger on.”“Welcome to the club.” Jared pushed to his feet with silent grace.“The more you see of the abbey, the tighter it will hold you.No one ever understands all its secrets, not even Nicholas.”Maggie’s brow rose.“You don’t have to do the haunted manor routine with me.”“I’m not.” His voice was dead sober
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