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I went back into the house and automatically locked the door behindure this out Eric said I could stop hi with Freyda "But it can’t be just that I love him, because I told him that, and he knows it," I whispered "So, it’s not how I feel, it’s some act I need to perfore?

I could kill Freyda; however, not only would that be a horrible thing to do, since she’d done nothing more than desire the man I loved, but any attempt to kill the powerful va Eric would hardly produce a happy ending, and that was the only other way I could i hih Eric had said Felipe would punish both of us if Eric re Freyda, I seriously considered hoould go about appealing to the king What response would he have? He knew I’d saved his life once upon a ti proh with theh when I went down on ht to honor Appius’s wishes and let Appius’s child eous match

In return, I was sure Felipe would be favored in any subsequent dealings between Oklahoma and Nevada or Arkansas or Louisiana

All in all, I really couldn’t see any chance at all that Felipe would agree to let Eric remain in Shreveport Eric’s worth as a sheriff couldn’t equal the huge plus of having his into Freyda’s ear

Okay, begging Felipe was out I can’t say I wasn’t relieved

I was still poking at et it to spit out an idea, while I showered and put on htshirt Eric had been so sure I could stop the Freyda-Felipe deal How? It was like Eric thought I had atucked up h an arhtshirt bunched aroundmoment

Eric knew about the cluviel dor

Chapter 15

I sat up all night

My brain ran through the sae I always ended with the saet me to admit I had the cluviel dor What would have happened if I’d understood hiht, if I’d admitted it? Would he have taken it froht it for himself, or if Freyda would barter the cluviel dor in return for Eric’s services, or if Eric si to Oklahoma

And here’s what happens when you have too much tiht have engineered this whole episode with Freyda to get me to reveal the location of the cluviel dor That was a sickening possibility If I hadn’t experienced past betrayals, such an idea would never have crossed h I had accepted the world as it was, it -terht seemed to be worse than the previous one

I lay in the dark watching the clock change

I tried to think of things I could do, so besides lie in this bed I could run across the cemetery to talk to Bill, as surely up That was a terrible idea, and I discarded it the first ten tiot out of bed and walked to the back door before I made ht now, soret-and that wasn’t fair to me or Eric Not until I knew for sure

(I really knew for sure)

I opened my purse and took the cluviel dor into my hand Its warm, smooth surface relieved my pain, cal or not, but it was far preferable to my previous h the house I couldn’t bear the idea of explaining the situation, so I didn’t let him knoake

When he was safely upstairs, Irooht was lightening gradually into day I slept sitting up on the couch until I woke four hours later, a craot up, feeling like I i I unlocked the front door and stepped out onto the porch I heard birds singing, and the heat of the day ell advanced Life was trudging onward

Since I couldn’t think what else to do, I went into the kitchen and started a pot of coffee At least I didn’t have to go to work today, since Merlotte’s was closed on Sunday

The night before, I had tossed our weekly local newspaper on the table unread, so while I sipped the coffee I took off the rubber band and spread it out It was only a few pages, a little tube compared to the Shreveport daily paper, which I also read Often the Bon Teh That was the case today Bear in Local Woods? read the headline I skimmed the article hastily, and my heart sank, if there were any lower depths to hold it

Two deer carcasses found by local e predator did this," said Terry Bellefleur, who happened upon one of the killing sites while training his dog "It didn’t exactly look like a bear or panther kill, but this deer was killed by so"

Dammit I’d warned Bellenos to stick to h to worry about," I said, rising to pour so else"

"What are you worried about?" Claude asked

I screa

When I could speak, I said, "You Do Not Do That To Me" He h the unlocked front door He had keys, anyway, but I would have heard the

"Cousin, I’m sorry," he said contritely, but I could see the amusement in his eyes

Oh, shit Where had I put the cluviel dor?

I’d left it on the coffee table in the living room It took every bit of self-control I had not to break and run for the living roo hile you were gone" I struggled to makelittle vacations" I pointed to the paper "I guess Derans You should read this" If he hadn’t coht not have seen Dermot’s car

Claude poured himself a cup of coffee and obediently pulled out a chair

His actions weren’t threatening, but I was looking at the man who’d sent Kym Rowe to her death; for all I knew, he was the one who’d killed her when she hadn’t gotten Eric to do the job Claude’s sudden reappearance-without Niall-would have been enough to raise the hair on my arms even if I hadn’t known about his collusion with Jannalynn

Why had Claude returned by hi in his face that hadn’t been there before I illing hiive ical object