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He stood just within the church He hadn’t gone in far?there was so little light
No candles burned now
Down the stretch of the aisle, they could just make out the altar It appeared to be empty
Every instinct in Jordan screaain, but she couldn’t believe her eyes; astonishment made her travel down the aisle quickly, determined to see the altar, and around it
"Hey, Jordan, allora!" Raphael cried "Stop! This building has been closed down until repairs can be nored hin of Tiff Not a speck of blood
"She was here!" Jordan said
"Who?" Raphael de you, she was here, and her head had been cut off" Raphael walked down the aisle He pulled out his keys, flashing the ht attached to them around the area
"Jordan," he said very softly "There is nothing here"
"There was!" she insisted
"Jordan, Anna Maria was right I should not have put things into your head?"
"Da you, I caht Tiff was playing a joke on e to meet her here And there she was, on the altar
So I walked up to it, yelling at her, telling her to quit fooling around Then I?I touched her, I tried to shake her by the shoulders Her body came up; her head?her head stayed down It wasn’t attached
Then I saw Ragnor at the door, and thenso not to appear skeptical
"Do you think that you were so afraid for Tiff that you rushed here, tripped, hit your headand iined the rest?"
"No! I didn’t take any trips to Oz!"
Raphael stared at her blankly
"I’"
Raphael flashed histo be seen anywhere
Not even a rat scurried across the floor
"You saw Ragnor"
"Yes"
"In front of you?"
"At the door"
"And he walked up to you and hit you on the head?"
"I?no!" she nor, yes He had been shouting at her, hadn’t he? Telling her to co at hima hymnal
"I don’t know"
The church was very dark, and ht flashing around He shivered
"Let’s get out of here"
"Wait, one second!" she whispered She walked back to the altar, running her fingers over it "Raphael, she was here! There’s not a speck of dust on this altar Look at this place?if soet the police," Raphael said
Maybe Roberto Capo would be back in the station at last Whether they mocked her or not, she had to tell the this area Things? change around here, far too quickly" He nodded, "We’ll call froet out of here" They started down the aisle?two rational huait She sped up a little to catch up with hi by the time they reached the door and burst out upon the steps
Jordan nearly tripped She would have done so, and sprawled right down on to the fountain if Raphael hadn’t been there to catch her
He kept her arravely
"I didn’t co out and trip and wind up knocked out by the fountain," she told hi her temple
"Not there! On the back of my head How could I have stumbled forward and hit ed "We’ll call the police"
"Make sure you get the right station, and ask for Roberto Capo" They walked to the edge of the campo where there was an enclosed public phone Raphael called the operator, then frowned
"Which is the station you want?"
"Near the Danieli! I’m a tourist, I don’t know the address You should know!"
"I’ citizen I never call the police"
"Roberto is your friend! You should know"
He swore softly in Italian "Si, si, I have the nu to the operator; she put hih He spoke for a minute, then covered the mouthpiece "Capo won’t be in today; he has a fever"
She could hear so into the phone Raphael winced "Alfredo Manetti is on the line" Jordan threw up her hands Convincing hi was impossible She’d have to deliver her own head on a silver platter for hi
Raphael started speaking He talked a long tilances, and talked so," he told her "Coet you a drink?"
"I don’t want a drink; no alcohol"
"Youbuht But a cafe or te?we’ll probably have a few minutes to wait I told hier at the le" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>