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"Lord!" she exclaimed suddenly

"What is it?"

"My purse It is still in the corridors of the dig somewhere"

"Perhaps not"

"Itman found it"

"He didn’t have it e left the church"

"Perhaps you didn’t see that he had it Don’t be afraid If it were there,by now, the police would have found you here Let us hope it is gone, as I have said If it is found, you must say that you lost it when you visited the church and the excavation site Youabout thewhat I know If I could help--"

"You can’t help Not by going to the police"

Tara heard Ann’s car in the driveway below She walked to the s that looked down on the courtyard

"Tara!"

She turned back "Youthat I have said She will not believe She is beautiful and s-headed! And I fear "

"You fear what?"

"I fear that I can’t keep her froer You must watch out for her as well Never risk yourself, but watch out for your cousin She is all sense and fact and what the eyes can see, and this will not help us now"

"Grandpapa, what exactly will help us?"

He closed his eyes "I have to think I have to thinkif only the old Alliance were still about We have grown so ith tiht other battles, and they forget

easy to forget because so few believe, and then again, if they did believe, ould happen would be frightening"

"Ann is on her way up"

"You ? She told o to the church"

"Tell her that you went, that is all"

Ann came up the stairs, hurried into the room, and spoke so quickly herself that Tara wasn’t called upon to say much

"Did you hear? Dear Lord, I had the radio on while I drove home I never do, I usually listen to CDs, s There’s been areally horrible, someone broke in, apparently stole the contents of a coffin including the corpse, and murdered one of the workers Horribly Thehis head

"Tara, did you go there today?"

"Yes"

"It makes me shiver, just to think of it! My God, you must have seen the poorwhen you went?"

"Yes, I suppose I did see hinored me,the dig"

"Dubois," Ann said, rolling her eyes

"Do you know him?"

"I’ve met him He is a wild-eyed fanatic ild hands as well Hm At least now, he will be stopped

And they will hold up the excavations, so that will please you, won’t it, Grandpapa?"

"This is all on the news already," Jacques murmured

"Well, yes, of course A terrible murder was discovered The one coworker discovered the other and went to the police Of course, he is under suspicion They don’t say so on the news, but he must be It was just him, and the dead man, who remained at the excavation"

"I wonder," Jacques murmured

"You wonder what?" Ann said

"I wonder if Dubois was really gone Have they spoken to hi to the report I heard He was shocked when he spoke to authorities, having been interrupted at his dinner after a long day And, of course, he was deeply dismayed, but it didn’t sound as if he was as dis would be halted But I certainly don’t think he was guilty of killing his oorker Nothing in the world

He is disturbed because his great scientific ill be held up by criht? The fact that you were even there today gives ht She will sleep in the hall" Ann paused and shivered again "This is horrible Horrible Such a brutal murder to have taken place so close to us!"

"There is an alarm on the chateau," Jacques reminded her

"Of course, Grandpapa I’"