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Bruno was shocked

He couldn’t speak

"I don’t knohat hotel or etically "But there aren’t really many places to stay in all of Napa Valley, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding her"

"No trouble," Bruno said shakily

"Does she know anyone in St Helena?"

"Huh?"

"I just thought ested

"Yes," Bruno said "I think I know just where she is"

"I’m really sorry about the death"

"What?"

"The death in the family"

"Oh," Bruno said He licked his lips nervously "Yes There have been quite a few deaths in the family the past five years Thank you for your help"

"No trouble"

He hung up

She was in St Helena

The brazen bitch had gone back

Why? My God, as she doing? What was she after? What was she up to?

Whatever she had in ood That was for da soan to call the airlines at Los Angeles International, trying to get a seat on a flight north There were no cohts were already booked solid He wouldn’t be able to get out of LA until tomorrow afternoon

That would be too late

He knew it Sensed it

He had toIf he stayed behind the wheel all night and kept the accelerator to the floor, he could reach St Helena by dawn

He had a feeling his life depended on it

He hurried out of the bungalow, stu the front door wide open, not bothering to be careful, not taking time to see if anyone was nearby He sprinted across the lawn, into the dark and deserted street toward his van

After they enjoyed coffee with brandy in the den, Joshua showed Tony and Hilary to the guest roo bath at the far end of the house froe and pleasant, with deepsills and leaded glass s like those in the dining roohted Hilary

After they said goodnight to Joshua and closed the bedroom door, and after they drew the drapes over the s to prevent the eyeless night froether to soothe their aching muscles They were quite exhausted, and they intended only to try to recapture the sweet, relaxing, childlike, asexual pleasure of the bath that they had shared the previous night at the airport hotel in LA Neither of them expected passion to raise its lovely head However, as he lathered her breasts, the gentle, rhythle and sent wonderful shivers through her He cupped her breasts, filled his large hands with theh the soapy foam that sheathed the slis, her buttocks For Hilary, the world shrank to a shts and sounds and exquisite sensations: the odor of lilac-scented soap, the hiss and patter of falling water, the swirling patterns in the stea as water cascaded over his well-defined rowth of hishiotten how tired they were, they had forgotten their aching muscles; only desire rele lamp, he held her and kissed her eyes, her nose, her lips He kissed her chin, her neck, her turgid nipples

"Please," she said "Now"

"Yes," he said against the hollow of her throat

She opened her legs to him, and he entered her

"Hilary," he said "My sweet, sweet Hilary"

He drove into her with great strength and yet with tenderness, filled her up

She rocked in ti the outlines of his ized In only a ht never stop, just rise from peak to peak, on and on, forever and ever, without end

As he moved within her, they became one body and soul in a way she had never been with any other man And she knew Tony felt it, too, this unique and astonishingly deep bonding They were physically, emotionally, intellectually, and psychically joined,that was far superior to the suism--which neither of them had experienced with other lovers--Hilary knew that what they had was so special, so i as they lived As she called his naain and as he began to spurt within the deep darkness of her, she knew, as she had known the first time they’d made love, that she could trust him and rely on him as she’d never been able to trust or rely upon another hu; and, best of all, she knew that she would never be alone again

Afterwards, as they lay together beneath the covers, he said, "Will you tell me about the scar on your side?"

"Yes Noill"

"It looks like a bullet wound"

"It is I was nineteen, living in Chicago I’d been out of high school for a year I orking as a typist, trying to save enoughEarl and Emma rent for my room"

"Earl and Emma?"

"My parents"

"You called theht of them as my father and mother"

"They must have hurt you a lot," he said syot"

"If you don’t want to talk about it now--"

"I do," she said "Suddenly, for the first time in my life, I want to talk about it It doesn’t hurt to talk about it Because now I’ve got you, and that makes up for all the bad days"

"My family was poor," Tony said "But there was love in our house"

"You were lucky"

"I’m sorry for you, Hilary"

"It’s over," she said "They’ve been dead a long tio"

"Tellthem a few dollars rent each week, which they used to buy a littleelse I earned as a typist Every penny Not rew in the bank I didn’t even spend anything for lunch; I ithout I was deteret an apartment of my own I didn’t even care if it was another shabby place with dark little roo and cockroaches just so Earl and Emma didn’t come with it"

Tony kissed her cheek, the corner of her h I was ready toto be on my way"

She trembled

Tony held her close

"I came home from work that day," Hilary said, "and I went into the kitchen--and there was Earl holding Eun The barrel was jah a very bad siege of Do you knohat delirium tremens are?"

"Sure They’re hallucinations Spells ofthat happens to really chronic alcoholics I’ve dealt with people who’ve been having delirium tremens They can be violent and unpredictable"