“Raina wasn’t sure if you would show up today,” Luther said. “I told her you would. I’ve had more experience figuring out what people are likely to do, you see. Raina is still new at the management end of things.”
“What does that have to do with— Oh, never mind. I’m here.” Lyra straightened her shoulders. “And, until Raina returns, I’m in charge.”
Luther nodded once and ripped open the envelope. He pulled out the note and read it in a single glance. Then he read it again.
When he looked up there was ice in his eyes.
“Do you know what this says?” he asked.
“No,” Lyra said. “But I gather it’s a very short message.”
“Here.” Luther thrust the note into her hand. “Read it yourself.”
The note was written in Raina’s elegant secretarial school script. It was, as Lyra had suspected, quite short. She read it aloud.
Dearest Luther,
I have been called away on an urgent, personal matter. I do not expect to be gone more than a few days at most. I will telephone you at the earliest opportunity when I have a better understanding of the situation. In the meantime, please forgive me for my hasty departure.
Sincerely,
R.
P.S. Kindly do not interrogate my apprentice. She doesn’t have any answers for you.
Lyra looked up and found Luther watching her with the cold, fierce intensity of a predator.
“She’s in trouble,” Luther said.
“I agree,” Lyra said. She folded her arms. “And since you raised the subject, I may as well tell you that I have opened an investigation.”
Luther looked stunned. “Into Raina’s disappearance?”
“Yes.” Lyra sighed. “I was worried, you see. She did not seem to be her normal self this morning. I’m well aware that there are some serious issues involving professional ethics here. Raina is my employer, after all, and she did make it clear that she was leaving town on a personal matter. I have a duty to uphold Kirk Investigations’ reputation for honoring client confidentiality. However—”
“The hell with professional ethics and client confidentiality. Raina isn’t a client anyway. She owns the firm.”
“Yes.” Lyra brightened. “There is a lot of gray area here.”
“There’s nothing gray about it. We’re going to find her. Did you get anywhere in yourinvestigation?”
Lyra went around behind Raina’s desk and opened the large,leather-bound desk calendar. “Her appointments last week and yesterday were all routine, assuming you can call the Adlington caseroutine.”
“Except that she sent you to the Adlington interview.”
“She thought it would be good experience for me. It seemed like a simple, straightforward client interview.”
“Go on. What else did you check out besides her calendar?”
Lyra closed the calendar and opened the center drawer of the desk. She took out a notebook. “She uses this to record memos of telephone conversations with her business contacts and her clients. Unfortunately, she keeps the notes in shorthand, but the dates are plain to read, and so are the phone numbers and addresses. The last note is about the Adlington case. There’s nothing after that. I was in the process of going through her files to see if there has been any recent activity. She keeps very good files.”
“Raina used to work for a small law firm in New York that was in the trust and estate business for several generations,” Luther said, his tone impatient.
“Yes, she mentioned that.”
“Did she?” Luther’s brows rose. “I’m impressed. Raina doesn’t usually talk to people about her time in New York.”
“Well, I tend to ask a lot of questions. Besides, one can hardly miss her classy East Coast accent.”
