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He suard wasn’t due for another twenty ht e pieces of earthiant shadows over the exposed spaces between hi the sliced padlock back on the hasp Its appearance wouldn’t withstand close scrutiny, but in the dark, it would suffice

He stood very still, scanning the area Nothingquickly fro tilance, he melted into the brush and trees Tennorthwest Within the hour, he’d reached his apartment in Seattle’s Capitol Hill district and was hidden once more

He wondered which one of Morrissey’s crew had followed hi license plates and pairing they he’d used often while tailing Morrissey over the past six weeks Tonight his caution had paid off

He opened his journal and began to write, satisfaction buoying hih hours left to stop the sequence of events that was about to destroy him

From:

[email protected]

To:

[e--

Dear Clara,

I have interesting news to share! I spoke with Chloe last night and learned she’d had lunch with Jake Morrissey yesterday And he took her to the sy inht, too Wouldn’t it be lovely if all three of our granddaughters were planning weddings??!! Stay tuned for further developments

Helen telephoned yesterday to discuss the final details for our trip to British Columbia to celebrate my birthday She wants to tour Victoria in a horse-drawn carriage after high tea at the Eestion, of course, and we both want to browse the shops for tins of good English tea I’d like to find a new Scottish wool blanket, also, just a s on rainy winter days Is there anything special we can pick up for you, Clara? I wish you were going with us--it just won’t be the same without you there But next year, the three of us will spend et busy I’ll let you know the moment I hear from Chloe about her date with Jake

All lass of ice water and the stack of essays onto her back deck and set thelass table in the shade of the patio u out her legs, she crossed her ankles and sighed with pleasure The late-afternoon sun slanted across the gray-painted wood deck, wars The umbrella’s shade blocked the sunshine froht sky were a welcoray days of teeks earlier

Only in Seattle do you need a wool sweater under your raincoat one week, and teeks later, you can sit in the sun wearing shorts with a tank top, she thought Gotta love this city

She straightened her ar luxuriously Then she pulled the stack of essays closer, picked up the top one and began to read Red pencil in hand, she worked her way through half the pile before taking a break

Jake had called earlier to fill her in on develop inforerprints in the abandoned sedan The truck owner had reported his license plates stolen thisand had no idea why they were on a sedan Gray was running the VIN number in an attempt to trace the car, but he expected that the sedan had been stolen, too

Jake also mentioned that he’d spent most of the day at his coht, soe shed and stolen dyna wasfrom his list of equipeted only the explosives

Jake sounded frustrated with the dead ends and delays, and she was just as disappointed as he hen he had to cancel their dinner plans She’d settled for a mixed salad with slices of barbecued chicken, eaten on her patio in the sunshine

Taking a water bottle with her, Chloe returned to the deck and sank into her chair again It was now alht o’clock She picked up the next essay, but two paragraphs in, she frowned and sat up straighter Each paragraph had a group of letters--gibberish--enclosed in parentheses

She flipped to the cover sheet to check the writer’s name, and to her surprise, there wasn’t one The other necessary elements were present--class title and number, professor’s name, date, the title of the essay: "The American Military: Friend or Eneh the stack of essays on the table, then her list of students enrolled in the class There were five fewer essays than students, but three of theiven permission to deliver their work late One of those students had broken his arame of football; one’s National Guard unit had been activated and she was training in Yaki two students had distinctive writing styles and she felt sure she could rule theistered in her class had written this essay, then who had? Chloe knew anyone could have dropped the paper through the mail slot in her door; students delivered work that way all the ti this particular docu it with the other essays, but it was ht Still, ould anyone have gone to such lengths--writing and delivering a paper for a class in which he or she wasn’t even registered?

She picked up thewhere she’d left off, and by the ti There was so decidedly off-kilter about the essay Not only were all the paragraphs interspersed with parentheses enclosing collections of letters that she couldn’t understand, but the author eneral and the Marine Corps in particular Souely farasp why

The essay ended with a paragraph alleging government collusion to conceal the truth about the death of marines in combat situations abroad Thee was a specific reference to hanistan

Chloe stared at the typed pages, trying to see a pattern that ht tell her the identity of the writer Unfortunately, she found nothing that made sense