John was right. Her husband was an asshole.

And yet Meg had agreed to meet Daniel. To discuss reconciliation. Head spent the past six months in therapy, dealinga"allegedlya"with his fidelity issues. He claimed that head changed. That head grown.

Head been sending her and Amy giftsa"surprise packages, flowers, wine. And child support checks that were four times the amount Meg had requested.

He sent her email nearly every day. He wanted his family back. But apparently only on his schedule.

aEven busy people have to eat,a John told her. aCome on, I know this really great little Italian place thatas completely off the tourist route. We can get something quicka"a pizza if you want . . .a Meg wasnat sure what she wanted, but as tempting as Johnas dinner invitation was, she knew that the last thing she needed was to have dinner in a quiet little Italian restaurant with a twenty-five-year-old man who kissed like a dream.

aIam having dinner with Daniel next week,a she told him. aWeare going to be talking about getting back together, so . . .a John didnat miss a beat. aThen you really need to have dinner tonight with a friend.a Meg just looked at him.

aYeah, Iam disappointed,a he admitted. aBut thatas the last youall hear of it. If you donat want me to, I wonat hit on you, Meg. I wonat even bring the subject up again. I can do friends. We can play it that way. We did it before, right?a aDid we?a she had to ask.

He put on a pair of sunglasses, hiding his eyes. aYeah,a he said. aRight up until the end, we were great as friends. And as far as me kissing you . . .a He shook his head as he smiled tightly. aIave spent about six months trying to figure out the best way to apologize, but Iam damned if I know how to do it. To be honest, Iave had a real bitch of a week, I got into DC late last night, got up too early, and got ready for an oh-seven-hundred meeting that was postponed four times and finallya"fifteen minutes agoa"pushed off until the day after tomorrow. Besides you, I donat know a soul in DC, so if you turn me down, Iall end up having room service while I watch TV in my hotel room. Please, please, have dinner with me and let me try to apologize. Iave missed you, Mega"I want us to be friends again.a Meg had agreed to have dinner with him. She knew all about being lonely. She was a sucker for sincerity, too, and his had seemed off the chart.

aIave missed you, too,a shead told him, and lied again. But that time her lie hadnat been to him. Her lie had been in telling herself that she could handle friendship with this man, in convincing herself that up until that last night in Kazbekistan her feelings for him had been that of a sister. Shead let herself pretend that they could easily slip back into that safe, well-defined relationship.

She should have known better than to believe herself.

As Osman Razeen continued to snore softly from the back of the car, Meg gripped the steering wheel more tightly and headed south as swiftly as she dared.

Once again leaving John Nilsson behind.

aNana, Iam so hungry.a Amy was trying desperately not to cry.

Theyad awakened a half hour ago to the scent of eggs frying and some kind of corn bread being toasted.

The ropes that had been tied around Eveas ankles and wrists dug into her skin. Her stomach growled and there wasnat a single muscle in her body that didnat ache.

Last nighta"with their hands tieda"theyad eaten the last of the lunch theyad prepared for their picnic by the Smithsonian. The man named the Bear had brought Eveas bag in from the van. Tossed it to them after rifling through it. The sandwiches had been smashed, but Amy hadnat complained. Now all that was left was a pack of butterscotch candies.

The Bear came into the room with a plate of food, but then sat down in the only chair, and proceeded to eat it himself.

aPlease,a Eve started to ask for something for Amy to eat, but he sharply shook his head, holding his fingers to his lips, glancing almost furtively back toward the kitchen.

The others were back therea"the three men and that awful woman.

As the three other male kidnappers started talking again, arguing about God knows what, speaking in that unintelligible language over the incessantly blaring TV, the Bear leaned toward Eve, his own voice low. aWeare running low on supplies. Donat ask for food, thereas none to spare. If you stay silent and make no demands, then killing you is far more difficult a prospect than simply letting you sit. If you start asking for food, that all changes. Donat give us a reason to take you out into the swamp.a He scowled then as if he regretted his words, his semikindness. He had one of those faces that was almost entirely covered with beard. The rest seemed to be all big bushy eyebrows and darkly tanned skin.

When he scowled it was not at all ineffective.

The Bear focused his glower at his plate as the woman with the dead eyes, still carrying her enormous gun, came through the dining room and stopped in the doorway to look in at them. She was silent, and the Bear didnat even glance up at her. He just kept on eating, methodically cleaning his plate.

Eve tried not to look at her, tried to shield Amy from her soulless gaze. She tried to pretend they both were invisible, tried to look as if they werenat even using up very much oxygen.

Finally the woman went away.

The Bear kept on eating, finishing up the last of his eggs as Amy tried not to cry.

aNana, my hands hurt.a aShhh.a Eve could hear the woman clumping up the stairs, heard her door slam shut. From the kitchen came the sound of the TV. They wouldnat be seeing much more of the other three men until Howard Stern was over.

Abruptly the Bear stood up.

He put his empty plate down on his chair. As he came toward them, Eve tensed. But although he grabbed them roughly, he only cut their wrists free. He was still scowling as he snapped his jackknife shut and returned to his seat.

It was possible that this young man still had a bit of a soul, a morsel of conscience.

Eve rubbed Amyas wrists as she leaned back against the wall, holding the little girl close.

aDo you want to hear more of my story?a she pretended to ask Amy, when in fact, she was asking the Bear.

But he didnat move. He just kept on glaring at the floor.

Amy nodded yes. But then, with a glance in the Bearas direction, she whispered, aMommy must be worried about us.a Eve could only imagine the panic Meg had to be feeling right now. Still, getting Amy upset about that wasnat going to help. aI think shead be very proud of how brave youare being.a Another glance at the Bear, and Amy leaned closer, lowered her voice even more. And spoke in French, God bless the child for her cleverness. aWhat are we going to do?a Eveas own French had never been particularly good. She didnat have Megas or Amyas natural gift for languages. She remembered the year that Meg was twelve, shead invited the girl to visit her in England for the entire summer. Two weeks after shead arrived, Eve had discovered her granddaughter carrying on a conversation in Welsh with the woman who came in daily to clean the house. Two weeks and shead already learned enough to chat. By the end of the summer, she was speaking like a native.

However, after more than fifty years and many trips across the Channel to France, Eveas French could be described as shaky at best.

But she knew enough to be able to communicate with Amy. aWe wait,a she told Amy now, in her patchwork French. aIf I tell you to do something, if I tell you to run, you donat ask, you just do it, do you understand? You run and you donat stop running. You go get help and let the police come back for me.a Amy nodded, her small face so serious, her mouth a tight little line.

Children were growing up much too quickly these days. Eve thought of the sixth grade girls in Amyas school, taunting the fifth graders because they were virgins. How the world had changed since she was a child.

aYou must try very hard not to cry,a Eve continued in English. It didnat matter that the Bear overheard this part. Besides, shead used up most of her broken French. aEspecially if that woman is around. We must be very quiet then.a Amy nodded again. aI wonat cry.a Her lip trembled.

Please, God, help me keep this child alive. Eve glanced at the Bear. He was glowering at them again, and had been ever since Amy had first spoken in French.

aWhere was I in the story?a Eve asked calmly.

aRalph spent about a week teaching your brother to box,a Amy remembered, awhile you hid from him.a aThatas right,a Eve said. aAnd then it happened. The awful day Iad been dreading. Ralph finally sat down with Nick and a reading primer.a She settled Amy more comfortably against her. aI was going into the library, thinking Ralph and Nick would be safely ensconced in the garage practicing their jabs and hooks. My plan was to take a book and lose myself up in the orchard until Ralph had gone safely back to town. But they werenat in the garage, Nick and Ralph. They were there in the library. And as I went in, Nicky bolted out of there so fast, he knocked me over. Literally. I went flying. Arse over teakettle right there in the corridor.a Amy only managed a wan smile at Eveas use of the A-word.

aHe didnat stop to see if I was dead or alive,a Eve continued. aHe just shouted, aMake him go away,a and bolted, the little beast. But Ralph had been right on Nickas heels, and although he managed not to step on mea"which I honestly appreciateda"he had to do what Iam positive was the worldas very first triple lutz. It was beautifula"or it would have been if he hadnat skidded on a throw rug and landed hard on his butt.a Thank God shead been wearing her blue jeans. It would have been horrendously embarrassing if shead been lying there with her skirt up over her head.

aAre you all right?a Ralph scrambled to his feet, sliding a little more on the throw rug as if he were part of some slapstick vaudeville act, before he managed to regain an upright position.

Eve had smacked the back of her head on the floor. It was throbbing and she felt a little queasy, but she wasnat about to tell him that.

aNick!a she called in the direction her brother had vanished. aGet back here, you little creep!a aNo, let him go,a Ralph said. aI mean, well, heas already gone, and it was . . . it was entirely my fault for . . . for . . .a As he helped her to her feet, she knew without a doubt that head never seen a woman in blue jeans before. He looked stunned.

aDid you call him stupid?a She glared at him. aI may be a girl, but I swear, if you called my brother stupid, Iall throw you off this property with my bare hands and then Iall get a gun and shoot you if you try to come back!a aDidnat you just call him names yourself? Something like . . . little creep, it was, I believe.a aPlease leave.a Eve could do haughty quite well. It had been one of her motheras specialties, too, used on those rare occasions when things werenat happily going her way.

aI didnat call him stupid,a Ralph told her calmly. aIad never say such a thing to a child. He was the one who used the word. And I informed him he was wrong, that I happen to think heas uncommonly bright. He then proceeded to call me stupid and ran from the room. Iam going to go track him down and give him the rest of the day offa"tell him to go find young Rupert Harrison from down the lane and spend the afternoon fishing. What are you wearing? Itas lovely but I think you mightave misplaced your six guns and cowboy hat somewhere west of the old Chisholm trail.a aWomen wear trousers like this in California all the time,a Eve told him defiantly. That wasnat exactly truea"movie actresses like her mother had worn blue jeans at times, because they created such a stir. Eve wore them because they were comfortable. And they reminded her of home.

aI see.a Ralph nodded. aMy mistake.a He cleared his throat. aTell me, have I done something to offend you? Youave managed to avoid me quite admirably this past weeka"one would think youad trained for years with Scotland Yard. However, if thereas something I should apologize for . . . ? a Eve felt herself blush. aI just thought it might be easier for you to do your job if I werenat around. I was . . . trying to help.a aThatas very kind,a he said. aBut unnecessary. In fact, I think Nick was a little disappointed that you didnat come to watch him box.a aBut I did watch,a she told him. aNicky knows. I told him I . . .a Shead told him she didnat want to get too close to his tutor. That her plan to get rid of him depended on her remaining something of a mystery.

Ralph smiled at her. aWell, then,a he said. aOne of us was definitely disappointed. If it wasnat Nick, it mustave been me. Look, if youare still keen on helping, I could use some todaya"some real help, that is. I need a ride into towna"if youare not in the middle of something else. Like a roundup of the herd of longhorns on the back forty.a She narrowed her eyes at him.

aI have to confess to an addiction to American dime novels,a he admitted with a smile. aIf you give me a ride, I promise Iall make no more cowboy jokes.a He wanted a ride. aWell,a she said. aSure, I can drive you to town. What for?a He didnat seem at all put off by her less than gracious inquiry.

aItas a long story; Iall explain in the car.a He was already halfway down the hall. aLet me set things straight with Nick, and Iall meet you by the garage in ten minutes. Is that long enough for you to change?a Eve crossed her arms and lifted her chin. aWhy would I change?a He turned back to face her. aYou should, of course, wear whatever you like. Of course.a aBut . . . ?a The word was there, dangling unspoken, so Eve said it for him.

Ralph cleared his throat delicately. aYou will, however, cause minor traffic accidents in your, ahem, current outfita"as well as make it difficult for fifty percent of the population to concentrate on the task at handa"myself included. And no doubt the other fifty percent will spend some not small amount of time giving you thoroughly disapproving looks.a aIam American,a she said. aI get thoroughly disapproving looks from Englishwomen as soon as I open my mouth and speak.a aI apologize for that.a He took several steps back toward her. aOf course, I must add that I doubt your generalized statement is entirely accuratea"surely there are one or two Englishwomen out there who donat automatically disapprove of beautiful young Americans, but nevertheless, I do apologize.a aThe way I figure it, if most of you English are going to disapprove of mea"and itas not just the women, itas the men, tooa"I might as well wear whatever I damn well want, right?a aNow, thereas a good American attitude. Your ancestors mustave been those fellows who threw all the tea into Boston Harbor,a he told her. aAnd by the way, have I mentioned how completely, utterly, entirely I approve of both what youare wearing and the fact that youare an American? If you like, Iall even sing a few bars of your aStar Spangled Bannera while I salute you.a Eve laughed. She couldnat help it.

aDonat you dare change your clothes,a he ordered her. aDrive me into town just like thata"Iall be the envy of every man within a hundred mile radius. And weall stick our tongues out and recite your Pledge of Allegiance to anyone who disapproves. Howas that?a He was serious.

Well, half serious, anyway.

And Eve knew shead been right in keeping her distance from Ralph Grayson. She liked him. Much too much. She liked the idea of him here for the entire summer. But head already started trying to teach Nick to read, and even though he hadnat called her brother stupid, Ralphas lesson had made him feel stupid.

It wasnat going to work.

Make him go away.

Eve still had the power to do just that.

Shead let them be seen in public together. Shead hang on his arm and flirt with him mercilessly. Shead lean close and gaze into his eyes so that anyone who saw them would assume they were romantically involved.

And then shead tell him how old she really was.

aIall meet you by the garage in a few minutes,a she told Ralph.

His smile was warm and immediate.

And Eve felt like a snake.

aIt wasnat until we were in the car,a she told Amy and the Bear, who was definitely listening, aand I was about to make the turn to go into Ramsgate, that he told me to take a different road entirely. And I realized then that when head said head wanted a ride into town, head meant Town with a capital T. He wanted to go to London. Of course, I was terrifieda"Iad never driven into the city before.

aI pulled over to the side of the road, ready to cop to the truth, about to have a panic attack. I was about to confess that I didnat have a driveras license, sure that he would realize I wasnat really twenty years old, but he didnat even blink when I told him he was going to have to drive. He thought I was nervous about driving in the citya"didnat give my reasons a second thought. We just switched seats, and he took over the wheel.

aAnd while I was catching my breath,a Eve told them, ahe told me that we were going to London to do some research at one of the larger libraries there.a She could see him as clearly as if it were yesterday. The window was open and he rested his arm on the door. The wind tousled his hair as he turned to her and smiled and said, aHave you ever heard of something called word blindness?a Mystified, shead shaken her head no.

aRalph believed that Nick was dyslexic,a she told Amy and the Bear. aBut this was back in 1939, remember, and it wasnat called dyslexia at the time. And it was pure lucka"no, I take that back. It was conscientiousness and a desire to be informed about everything under the sun that made Ralph read an article about the innovative work several doctors were doing with people who couldnat read. People for whom their inability to read seemed due to physical limitations rather than lack of intelligence. Apparently theyad discovered some new techniques that helped these people. But Ralph had read only one small article, and we were going into London to find out as much about this as we possibly could.

aHe told me that he hadnat mentioned anything at all about this to Nicka"he didnat want to get his hopes up. Ralph wasnat sure how this new teaching method worked, if it even would work with Nick, or if Nick truly was afflicted with this word blindness.a aThe only thing I know for certain,a head told her in the car that afternoon, with the wind blowing through his hair, looking like the poster boy for all of England, ais that your brother is not stupid.a They talked about Nick, nonstop, all the way to London. Ralph had been impressed, just from talking to the boy, at how well-read he was for someone who couldnat get through a babyas primer. Nick had told him that Eve read to him. At least an hour, sometimes more, usually two, every day. But in the weeks since he returned from that awful boarding school, head avoided their nightly sessions. It seemed to make him angrya"as if having his sister read to him was proof that he was stupid.

Eve admitted to Ralph that she had also written for Nicky in the past. He had a vivid imagination and he would dictate long, complicated, fascinating stories while Eve wrote it all down, longhand, as fast as she possibly could.

aMaybe heas not merely not stupid,a Ralph speculated. aMaybe heas some kind of genius.a And if that werenat enough to win her heart forever, when they were on their way back home, after many exhausting hours finding far too little information, Ralph broke the silence in the car by turning to Eve again.

The sun had long gone down, and she knew he mustave been tired, but he didnat look it in the darkness.

aIave been thinking and it seems to me that the first thing we need to do is restore Nickas self-confidence,a he told her. aWe need to figure out a way to renew his spark, to make him want to learn againa"to learn about everythinga"not just to read. Even if he never does read, Eve, he has to realize that doesnat make him stupid. And there are other ways for him to gain the knowledge he needs to be a well-rounded man. Weall just have to be a little creativea"and make him understand that thereas nothing wrong with listening while someone reads aloud. Iad be in heaven,a he admitted with a smile, ato have you following me around, reading to me all day.a aHe pulled up the drive,a Eve remembered, aand stopped the car outside of the garage. We both got out of the car, and he started getting ready to ride his bike back into town. It was very latea"the Johnsons had already gone to bed and we were alone, and I was unable to stop myself. I thanked Ralph for all he was doing, all head already done, and I found myself sort of launching through the air, toward him. It was strange. I knew it was the last thing I should do, but there I went. Right into his arms. And I hugged him, and thanked him again, and even cried a little bita"I was so overwhelmed at the thought that he might actually be able to help Nicky, that we might have found someone who was on our side.

aHe was surprised, I think mostly because I was suddenly so emotional. Itas one thing to have a girl in your arms when youare standing out under the moon, but itas another thing entirely when sheas all weepy. But he was very kind, and he held me closea"although he was still very much the gentleman.

aI told him that I had been trying to think of ways to make him leave, but now I hoped head stay forever.a Ralph had laughed at that, but when head pulled back to look at her, his eyes were very serious. aForeveras a long time,a he whispered.

His arms were still around her, and he was holding her so tightly she could feel the taut muscles in his shoulders and chest. He wasnat much taller than she was, but he was solid.

On the passenger ship from New York, a boy named Horace Wilkins had asked her to dance. He was seventeen and skinny and head held her much too close. Shead been afraid if she leaned too hard on Horace, head snap in half.

That wasnat so with Ralph. Ralph made her feel almost small and delicate.

And instead of smelling like the gin Horace had guzzleda"showing off, no doubta"Ralph smelled like the butterscotch candy head bought for her in London and theyad shared in the car on the way home.

Would he taste sweet as well, she wondered wildly, if he kissed her?

His eyes were dreamy as he gazed down at her, and she realized he was touching her, running his fingers through her hair.

aI want to kiss you,a he murmured. aAll day long, Iave been dying to kiss you.a Eveas heart was already hammering in her chest, and now it got so loud, it seemed impossible he didnat hear it, too.

She stood there, frozen, just staring up at him.

And yet he didnat move either. He just looked at her. aI think Iam waiting for permission,a he finally said breathlessly.

How could she give him permission to do something that would get him into such trouble?

Eve shifted back slightly, and he released her instantly. She put even more space between them, determined not to repay his kindness this way. aI . . . have to go inside.a He was uncertain and embarrassed. He tried to hide it behind a smile, but she could see it in his eyes, clearly illuminated by the full moon.

aIam sorry,a he started to say. aThat was stupid of me. Iam a complete idiot and . . .a He thought she didnat like him.

With her hand on the knob of the door leading into the house, Eve knew she should tell him the trutha"that she was only fifteena"but she also knew that if she did, head never tell her that he wanted to kiss her again. Instead, she blurted out a different truth.

aI want to kiss you, too,a she told him, needing him to understand, wanting his uncertainty to be banished.

The fire that leapt in his eyes was immediately hot. aThen why are you over there when Iam over here?a He started toward her.

She opened the door, about to bolt inside and slam it behind her. aBecause you scare me.a As she watched, wary, Ralph forced himself to stop, to take a step back, away from her. aI do? Iam sorry, I didnat mean toa"a aNot that way,a she tried to explain, but she was just making this worse. aItas not your fault. Itas nothing you do. Itas me. Itas . . . this way you make me feel. As if when Iam with you nothing is bad, nothing could go wrong.a aBut, Eve, thatas wonderful.a aNo, itas not,a she told him, wanting to stamp her foot and cry. Wanting to throw herself into his arms and tell him the truth, wanting him to kiss her anyway to reassure her that it didnat matter, nothing mattered except for the fact that head fallen madly in love with her, too. aItas complicated and . . . and . . . You donat understand. Thereas no way it could work between us.a That was one of her motheras lines. Thereas no way it could work between us. Shead usually said it to appease some ardent young man who was convinced their week of passion should be immortalized by marriagea"or at least another week of passion.

When her mother said it, she always added a tragic sounding sigh and an expression of desperate resignation.

Eve had to add nothing. The quaver in her voice was completely real. So was the sudden rush of tears to her eyes.

aGood night,a she said with as much dignity as she could muster, going inside and shutting the door on both Ralph and the moonlight.

Nine.

NILS SAT IN the hotel room that had been Megas for just a few hours before she left the premises with side arm in hand and a notorious Kazbekistani terrorist in tow.

Head been turning this over and over in his head, and he couldnat believe that Meg was motivated by anything but fear for her daughter.

Someone had kidnapped Amy.

That much had to be true.