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Aurora shuddered, repeating the heinous phrase she'd coo "'He with a black heart who touches the jeill reap eternal wealth, while beco the carrion upon whom, for all eternity, others will feed'" She sed hard "Is Ja us that the curse is real?"
Julian glanced at his wife, clearly aware of her rising apprehension "I doubt it," he said, his voice deep, reassuring "More likely he's warning us that others believe it is; that so long as the diaer Remember, Rory, James had no idea of the dark events and scandal that would follow his death He orrying about his country, not his family"
"You're right" Aurora folded her hands in her lap, fir her trepidation "I'm sorry; I become a bit irrational when it comes to that stone"
"I understand" Julian scowled "The true bafflement here still remains Not for a minute do I believe James went to all this trouble merely to warn us His entire plan—his and Geoffrey's—all their precisely placed clues were designed to lead us to the diamond Well, the underscored words we just read pertain only to the curse, not to its resolution We still don't knohere to look for the stone itself" Restlessly Julian skies
The volume fell open to the inside cover—and the inscription that was scrawled upon it "Aurora—look"
Aurora responded to the urgency in her husband's tone, peering eagerly over his shoulder
Geoffrey, the inscription read, Like the falcons depicted within, you are far greater than you appear—a rock of strength, a giant a men As it is with the hest peak and the key to all life's treasures will be yours Your friend, James
"So, Jaift," Aurora randfather's words
"Ostensibly"
Her head came up "What do you mean, ostensibly?"
"I mean that James was the renowned breeder of falcons, not Geoffrey 'Tis his library that's crammed full of books on birds of prey Geoffrey has nary a one—except this"
"I see where your thoughts are headed" Aurora nodded vigorously "If so someone—ever came upon this text and questioned its unlikely appearance at Morland, that someone had only to open the book and see the personal inscription, at which point he'd presuht have" A puzzled frown as she reread the inscription "I wonder why Ja"
"To begin with, they box: 'Key', 'chart', 'giant', referring to the giants fro we've amassed all the necessary pieces—which we have"
"But pieces to what? To take us where? Back to the Tamar?"
Julian frowned "I think not Still, I don't know—yet We'll have to reread everything we just uncovered, then study the entire book line by line, see what other specific references Jae we found in his strongbox, two additional pages, and an inscription Until we have ht course to take to lead us to the diamond"