9

      THE ROAD TO HELL WAS PAVED with good intentions. Less than two hours later, Duncan pictured his most recent one being crushed by the wheels of his car as he parked it in front of Edie’s Diner. The restaurant sat on the main street of Glen Loch, and its wide front window offered customers a view of the lake and Castle MacPherson across the water. From what he could see, the place hadn’t changed. His mother had brought them to Edie’s frequently during the summer that she’d worked on her book at the castle.

      The setup inside was typically fifties and provided seating at tables, in red leather booths and on stools along a polished white counter. Beyond that, the kitchen was open to view. People, locals as well as tourists, could come to Edie’s for the food and the latest in news and gossip. As he recalled, both were the best in town.

      He and Piper had come for neither. They’d come to talk to Patrick Lightman.

      Sheriff Skinner’s call had come a half hour after they’d gotten back to the castle. By that time Piper had checked in with her aunt Vi and passed on the news about the earring, and Duncan had used the number Cam had given him to fill Daryl Garnett in on the discovery, as well as the person who’d followed them into the cave. Cam’s boss didn’t like it any more than he did. Daryl assured him that as soon as Vi finished her wedding presentation at the mall in Albany, they’d drive straight back to the castle.

      He and Piper had been about to resume their work on the Lightman files when the castle phone had rung. Skinner’s message had been brief. A man had just walked into his office and asked him to arrange a meeting with Piper.

      The man had identified himself as Patrick Lightman.

      Skinner had insisted that they meet at Edie’s Diner. After turning off his car’s engine, Duncan reached over the gearshift and linked his fingers with Piper’s. “You don’t have to go in.” Earlier, he’d argued vehemently and unproductively that he could take the meeting for her. He’d already contacted Adrienne and informed her of Lightman’s whereabouts.

      “I’m going in. This is my chance to see him in person. He could say something, do something that will put me on the right track to sending him back to jail. Plus, I want to know why he’s come all this way to see me. And why he’s doing it in this public way.”

      That was one of the questions he’d given some thought to on the drive into town. “Cam has a great deal of respect for Skinner. Meeting here at Edie’s will broadcast Lightman’s presence to the entire local community. Within an hour of the time Lightman leaves the diner, everyone in town will know who he is and why he’s here. If he’s planning on staying in Glen Loch, everyone will have his description and be on the lookout for him.”

      “But it was Lightman’s idea to approach Skinner rather than just knock on the castle door,” Piper pointed out. “He doesn’t have to report in to the sheriff. He’s a free man.”

      “He’s also a brilliant man. This way, if he hangs around no one can accuse him of stalking you. Even if that’s his intention. We could be playing right into his hands.”

      Piper shook her head. “No. It doesn’t fit his pattern to be so public. He’s not here to stalk me. And he’s not as smart as he thinks he is. He may be playing into our hands.” She smiled at him. “He’s a meticulous planner, but I’ll bet he didn’t expect me to bring an FBI profiler with me to this meeting.”

      His lips curved slightly. “You’re trying to make me feel better about this.”

      “I’m trying to make me feel better, too.” On impulse, she framed his face with her hands and pulled his mouth down for a quick kiss. But any temptation she felt to prolong the kiss and feel even better was halted by the sound of a voice hailing them from across the street.

      “Ms. MacPherson?”

      The man striding toward them was the handsome blond man who’d visited the castle that morning. Piper used the few seconds that it took her to climb out of Duncan’s car to gather her thoughts and search for a name. “Mr. Arbogast. From Architectural Digest.”

      “Russell, please.” His smile beamed. “I’m so happy to run into you like this. I was trying to get hold of you a couple of hours ago, but no one picked up the phone at the castle.”

      “Duncan and I were out for a while.”

      Russell nodded at Duncan. “Good to see you again, Mr. Sutherland. You’re Piper’s stepbrother, right?”

      When she felt Duncan stiffen, she said, “Why did you call?”

      “I hoped to schedule that interview you promised. That way you could give me your take on growing up in the castle that Angus MacPherson built for his true love. I’m particularly interested in the stone arch and its legend. We’ve made arrangements to do a feature on the old Campbell castle in Scotland, and we were thrilled to discover what must be the original stone arch in the garden.”

      “Really?” Piper asked.

      “We’re as certain as we can ever be about something like that. I could tell you all about it if you’d join me for dinner. I hear there’s a lovely little restaurant over by the college with a porch that overlooks the lake.”

      “Ms. MacPherson has other plans for dinner,” Duncan said. “And we’re on our way to a meeting right now.”

      The next thing she knew Duncan was pulling her across the street. “Tomorrow,” Piper called over her shoulder. “We’ll talk when you come to the castle tomorrow morning.” And she was relieved when Russell’s smile didn’t waver.

      As they walked up the steps to the diner’s entrance, she spoke in a low undertone to Duncan. “You were rude to him. He’s doing an article on the castle that could be instrumental in building Adair’s and Vi’s destination wedding business.”

      “Until we figure out exactly what’s going on here, you are not having drinks and dinner with a stranger.”

      She shot him a sideways glance. “I would have insisted that you come along. And one of the perks of on-demand sex is that there’s no reason to feel jealous.”

      “Well,