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"Listen toher down onto the sofa "No, don’t say anything, just listen I want you to stay right here, do you understand?"

Herto fold in on herself, but she slowly nodded

"Don’t move I oing to search the house If you see anyone or hear anyone, yell as loudly as you can, all right?"

Again, she nodded

Savich looked back at her once again before he left the living roo straight ahead at nothing in particular One of the thin straps of her summer dress had fallen off her shoulder Su into the next Every single light was on, and as that? Who would want to hide in a lighted rooe kitchen, then into a ht side of the wide hallway, he looked through a library, a study, a half bath, and a s room that looked like an old-fashioned wo desk, a plush love seat, and a lovely Persian carpet on the wood floor There were lots of file cabinets in the roo anywhere He checked every inch of the first floor

The one, and that made sense, of course She’d escaped him to find help The man knew that and had run hi rooht where he’d left her, her hands still on her knees, still staring, this time into the fireplace

"There’s no one here, at least on the first floor The ot to tellto kill you? Are you certain it’s not a burglar, and you surprised hi you?"

She didn’t make a sound Slowly, she turned to look up at hi

It was then he saw the wedding ring on her finger Where was her husband? "You’ve got to talk toupward Savich frowned as he looked up at the ceiling as well It was a good nine, ten feet up, with handso

Suddenly, a noise sounded overhead, a thump of sorts, solid, loud, like a man’s heavy footsteps, or perhaps a piece of furniture someone had knocked over But how had she known even before he’d heard anything?

Savich felt a spurt of fear so strong his breath caught in his throat He brought up the SIG and stared upward at that ceiling There was nothing usted with hi hi deep breaths, when there was another noise, but not a thump this time, he didn’t knohat it was

All he kneas that soht above their heads

His mouth was bone dry when he said, "Is the asping breaths, full of fear too deep to understand

"You stay here," he said "Do you understandto take a look up there"

Savich walked to the wide staircase Why were there no lights on upstairs? He cli every couple of steps to listen

There it was, another sound He was pissed now Soames that reminded him a bit of the hth to let it in But it wasn’t Ta dead

The steps weren’t carpeted, just bare solid oak, beautifully finished, and his footsteps echoed loud in the silent air He felt the weight of each step, sure his feet were sinking just a bit into the heavy planks

He reached the top of the stairs and paused athe wall until he found a light switch He flicked it on and the long corridor lit up Here the floor was carpeted with thick old broadloo long empty, except for a well-used boy’s rooroups on every wall, all sorts of toys and ga the surfaces There weren’t any clothes strewn about and the bed was ned football fro in the e master suite, the bed made, the whole space neat as a pin He opened a closet to find a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt lying on the floor, and a pair of wo atop the other He went into each of the five old-fashioned bathrooms, searched more closets than he cared to count, and finally he eased into a den of sorts, the walls covered with prints of London and Paris There was no big media center, just a TV on a stand in the corner and what looked like a TV Guide lying precariously on top, a pool table, several easy chairs, and one ratty leather sofa that looked like it had been used for at least two generations