“I see.” She unclenched the chair arm and turned back to Luther. “Are you saying that in addition to hisconsultingskills, Mr.Wingate is also a professional bodyguard?”
Luther contemplated Jack with an unreadable expression. “I wouldn’t call him a professional bodyguard, but he does have a way of anticipating trouble. In my experience, that skill is a lot more useful than the ability to pull a trigger.”
“Am I to understand that you think Mr.Wingate’s plan is a good one?”
“I think it’s the best one we’ve got,” Luther said.
“Very well,” she said.
“I’m sure you’ll be comfortable in Jack’s house,” Luther said, clearly relieved. “It’s got a great view of the water, and there’s plenty of room, so you’ll have privacy.”
“There is one problem,” she said. “As Madame Ariadne I had a certain style when it came to fashion. I sold off that wardrobe when I moved to Adelina Beach and became a librarian. I’ll need some new clothes if I am to resume that role. I can afford a few things, but as I mentioned earlier, I’m on a strict budget at the moment.”
Luther glanced at the wall clock. “There’s plenty of time for Jack to take you shopping this afternoon. Buy what you need. Jack can put it on his expense account. Be sure to pick up an evening gown.”
She stared at him. “What?”
“We need to make certain the press discovers that the notorious Madame Ariadne is in town,” Luther said. “The fastest way to do that is for you and Jack to put in an appearance at the Paradise Club this evening. I’ll make sure the photographers are on hand.”
Prudence got an eerie out-of-body feeling. “This all seems a little... excessive.”
“That’s pretty much how we do things here in Burning Cove,”Luther said. He turned to Jack. “If you need any investigative legwork, phone calls to track down information, that sort of thing, feel free to ask Raina for some assistance. Things have been a little slow lately. She could use the business.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Jack said.
“Who is Raina?” Prudence asked.
“Raina Kirk,” Luther said. “She owns Kirk Investigations, a private detective agency here in Burning Cove.”
“Oh, you mean she’s a real investigator?” Prudence asked. “Not a consultant?”
Luther fixed her with a stern glare, and then he gave Jack the same look.
“Do me a favor,” he said. “Try not to kill each other. Failure Analysis has an excellent success rate of its own. I’d like to keep it that way.”
Chapter 9
Raina Kirk sat down in the chair Luther had just pulled out for her. “How did things go between Jack and the new client today?”
“I swear it was like trying to referee a boxing match,” Luther said. He took the seat on the other side of the small round table. “Within five minutes of meeting in my office they were throwing punches. I can’t even tell you which one started the fight. It’s all a bit of a blur.”
The waitress arrived to take their orders. Raina gave hers and waited as Luther did the same. It was midafternoon. They were in a shady little sidewalk café in the heart of the town’s fashionable shopping district. The offices of Kirk Investigations were a block away in a charming plaza. The wide sidewalks were crowded with visitors from around the country and around the globe. If you were vigilant, you might spot a glamorous star like Cary Grant, a tycoon like Howard Hughes, a notorious mobster, or a bored Europeanaristocrat trying to overcome a severe case of ennui with a vacation in the fantasyland of California.
Burning Cove was a world away from New York and the past Raina had buried there. Like so many others looking to reinvent themselves, she had driven Route 66 west to find a new life, and she had gotten very, very lucky.
Here in the land of golden sunshine, where people were busy inventing the future, she had not only discovered a new future for herself, she had found Luther and the one thing she had never dared to dream would come her way—a soul mate.
The waitress poured coffee and left.
“The important thing is that Prudence Ryland agreed to move into House of Shadows with Jack,” Raina said. “Sounds like you accomplished your mission.”
“She wasn’t thrilled about it, I can tell you that,” Luther said. “But she’s willing to go along with the plan because she doesn’t have much choice, and she knows it. Somehow she managed to get herself tangled up in the murder of the heir to the Dover fortune.”
The waitress returned with a tiered tray of tiny sandwiches and pastries. When she disappeared again, Raina sipped some of her coffee and lowered the cup.
“Tell me the important part,” she said. “How did Miss Ryland react to Jack’s scars?”
Amusement flickered briefly in Luther’s usually enigmatic eyes. “The same way you did when I introduced you to him. She noticed them. Who wouldn’t? And then she just accepted them as part of Jack.”
