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They rang off Maggie took her seat again at the end of the table, cradling her now sleeping child "This guy gets on the phone, and I’lancing quickly at Jade "By the way, Aidan is just fine, sleeping soundly" She turned her attention back to Lucian "I don’t knohether to be afraid of hi totally confused I knehen you showed up with the luggage that it wasn’t going to be an ordinary night playing cards--but neither did you suggest that you were aware souy was going to call; as soon as he did, I felt soot the intuition I once had Still… it’s so strange I don’t understand what’s going on at all," she said She hesitated "There’s a conflict there… in thethere And yes, a tremendous conflict But in ay… I don’t know It was the same I knew it thearound the table Maggie stared across the roo her head in a way that meant that she didn’t really understand the situation at all either

Jade felt a prickling at her nape; Lucian and Maggie had known one another a very long tiie loved her husband, just as she believed with her whole heart that Lucian loved her But there were tie instincts and Jade couldn’t help but feel a little stab of jealousy She would never have exactly the sae that the two shared

And yet, she loved Maggie as well She was her best friend

They were frequently visitors here, as were a nuether despite a few tremendous differences in their lives It was a wonderful place for friends to get together--an old plantation on the way out froie’s faed to Sean’s It was delightfully big, and far fro odd was really taken note of in New Orleans, but the plantation still offered theuaranteed elsewhere

"What’s botheringto a dead standstill and staring at the three of the really horrible is about to occur… and I’las is a major part of it, and I’ to call He’s dealing with a lot of pride, and, of course, he’s worried about his sense of sanity,at Jade again, then at Lucian "You’re wired like a cat, know so is up, but have no idea what--yet, like me, you knew thestrange about him You haven’t really explained any of this, and it isn’t like you Let’s begin with this--who is this Finn Douglas? The name sounds familiar"

"He’s a local musician He and his wife have done a nuood," Lucian said

"I was interviewing the with ," Jade explained

"As I said, the ," Lucian said "But not what"

Maggie was quiet a long ie asked, staring at Sean

"No"

"You’re certain?"

Lucian looked at her with irritation and reproach "Of course, I’lanced at her husband with a wry smile

Sean told them, "His adult record is as clean as a whistle He had soifted, went through the university with a full scholarship inMegan writes eo, and just got back together last ie asked her husband

Sean shrugged "Lucian asked me to check him out"

"And you didn’t tell me?"

"There wasn’t any reason at the ti on thata cop offered Sean a great deal of inforht not be so available were he not "The police have nothing as yet They’ve interviewed family and friends They know her movement up to the ti, but after she left the bar… she simply vanished Until she was discovered in the water The aed has certainly taken its toll; what trace evidence the criht have found has literally been washed away I haven’t been able to access the exact cause of death yet because the autopsy report hasn’t been released to law enforceie said, still staring at Sean

"Hey!" Sean said softly "I hadn’t even put the two together until now As far as I knew, Douglas was in New Orleans The an

Lucian lifted a hand in a gesture of self-defense "Maggie, I was going on pure intuition"<ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>