5

      THE STREET IN front of Piper’s apartment had returned to normal. Tourists and shoppers strolled along the sidewalks, some stopping to peer in windows. Nell noted that both Duncan and Reid were in full bodyguard mode, walking on the outside as they escorted the sisters across the street and along the sidewalk to the café.

      They stopped just in front of the table where she and Piper had sat earlier. Reid made sure that she was just a bit behind him and to his left. That way he could shove her out of the way with his left hand and draw his gun with his right. Perfect, Nell thought. She had to stifle the urge to stop and make a note of it on her pad.

      “Tell us what happened, Nell,” Reid said, “just as if you were writing it. And we’ll act it out.”

      Nell pointed to the street. “Piper, you were right there.”

      As Duncan and Piper moved into position between two parked cars, she said, “I heard the horn first and I glanced down the street to see this car holding up traffic. He was double-parked in front of the art store, and the driver behind him was getting impatient. I was about to join Piper when the woman came up to me with the book.”

      “And you signed it?” Reid asked.

      Nell shook her head. “No. I was reaching for it when the horn distracted me again. Then everything happened at once. I heard the motor, saw the blur of motion, and I just ran toward Piper.”

      Reid took her arm and drew her with him toward the art store. When they reached it, he glanced up and back down the street. Then he signaled Piper and Duncan to join them.

      “Nell says the car was stopped here blocking other cars when she first spotted it,” he explained. “But he couldn’t have been here long. Too much traffic.”

      “I bet he was illegally standing in that loading zone two stores down,” Nell said. He could have idled there until Piper stood up. Then he pulled out into traffic and waited. That’s the way I would have written it.”

      Reid glanced at her. “You could be right.”

      Nell heard something in his tone that she’d never heard before. Surprise? Admiration? Whatever it was, it sent a little stream of warmth through her.

      “I’m sure she’s right,” Duncan said. “The guy’s been watching her every movement since she arrived in town. He was watching her in Louisville, too.”

      “I’ll bet the loading zone offers a good view of the café,” Nell said.

      When they reached the empty space two stores down and stepped into the street, Nell continued. “From here, he could see Piper drop the money on the table.”

      “Then I just walked away,” Piper said. “I was totally focused on calling my boss to tell him I’d be late. Family emergency.”

      Reid could picture it very clearly in his mind—the driver pulling out and blocking the traffic. He should have seen it before. The problem was that his brain had been working in slow motion ever since he’d looked into Nell’s eyes again. He had to change that—and fast.

      “I’m about to join her when the woman comes up to me with the book,” Nell said. “If it weren’t for a driver who was heavy-handed with his horn, I wouldn’t have turned to look. He would have had a clear shot to hit Piper.”

      “Gutsy bastard,” Reid murmured. He pictured the acceleration, the collision. He frowned. “He wouldn’t have been able to build up much speed. He couldn’t have been certain he’d kill her.”

      “He didn’t have to. All he had to do was make me think he could kill her.”

      They all turned to stare at her.

      “He clearly intended to hit her. She could have been killed,” Duncan pointed out.

      “But hit-and-run is sloppy,” Nell said. “Especially in Georgetown traffic. I think his real goal is to make me believe he’s ready to pick off my family one member at a time so that I’ll find the sapphire necklace for him and hand it over. Which is what I’m going to do.”

      “I don’t think he’s quite as nice a guy as you’re imagining him to be,” Reid said. “My guess is that he had murder on his mind, but he wasn’t a professional.”

      “If he’s anything like Deanna Lewis, he’s not nice at all,” Piper said. “Nell, it’s too dangerous for you to go to the castle. You’ll stay here with me, and we’ll get protection. It’s going to be all right.”

      Nell took her sister’s hands. “You’ve been telling me that all my life. Now it’s my turn to tell you this. I’m going to fix this. He’s given me forty-eight hours. The clock is ticking. It’s the oldest plot device in the world. But it works. So I’m going to the castle, and I’m going to find Eleanor’s necklace. He’ll follow me up there, because the Stuart sapphires are what he really wants.”

      Piper looked from Duncan to Reid and back to Duncan again. “One of you has to talk some sense into her.”

      Reid glanced at his brother, then said, “The thing is, she’s making sense. At the very least, she has to go to the castle and go through the motions of looking for the necklace. That will buy us forty-eight hours to put an end to this. I’m going with her.”

      “In the meantime, we’ll beef up protection for the whole family,” Duncan added.

      * * *

      “IT’S GOING TO be all right,” Nell said as she checked her suitcase for the last time. She was beginning to really enjoy saying those words to her sister. What she wasn’t enjoying was the fact that Piper was so worried. Though there wasn’t much space in the small bedroom, Piper was pacing just as she always had when something was really bothering her.

      Nell glanced into the bathroom, checked the shelves one last time. The rest of her family would worry also. Duncan and Reid were filling them in on the plan right now. At least Aunt Vi wasn’t alone at the castle. Daryl Garnett, her fiancé, who headed up the domestic division of the CIA, was with her. He’d taken some time off when Adair and Cam had left for Scotland to help Vi run the wedding business and make sure she was safe.

      Piper stopped her pacing, sat on the foot of the bed and patted the space next to her. When Nell joined her, Piper said, “I just wish I could go with you.”

      “Your big trial starts on Monday. You need to be here. You’ll be safer here.”

      “So will you. There are so many ways to sneak onto the castle grounds. And there’s a wedding scheduled there on Saturday. A rehearsal tomorrow. Those will provide ample opportunity for someone to get close to you.”

      “I’ll have two agents watching over me. And I’ll know that Duncan will keep you safe.”

      Piper frowned at her. “Only because you’re drawing this person away. You’re making a target out of yourself.”

      “I’m also making a target out of Reid. I can’t believe whoever this is will be happy that I’m taking a Secret Service agent with me. Deanna’s partner will follow me to the castle, and I think he’ll keep a close eye on me.”

      “You’re not making me feel better,” Piper said.

      “I’m just thinking of their side of the story. Clearly they believe they have a right to those jewels, and if they turn out to be descendants of the Stuarts, they could be right.”

      “But we’re Eleanor’s descendants,” Piper said.

      “Exactly.” Nell beamed a smile at her. “It will all boil down to a classic case of conflicting narratives. You deal with that in court every day. The thing is, they may have a more powerful claim