“I’ll get my purse,” she muttered and turned back toward the counter. He stepped out onto the sidewalk as she moved away from him. It was the lack of music from the bell rather than the sound of it that warned her he was gone again.
When she emerged onto the sidewalk a moment later and closed the door firmly behind her, the bell chimed as brightly as ever. Her unusual customer spoke as she turned the key in the lock.
“Doesn’t that damn bell annoy you?”
She glanced at him in surprise. “It lets me know when someone’s entering or leaving the shop. It’s not an annoyance, it’s a warning.”
“I would find it a definite nuisance. It’s unnecessary. The sound it makes isn’t even very pleasing. And there are other ways of knowing someone’s around.”
She had known he was around even though the bell hadn’t rung when he had entered the shop the first time, Mercy reflected. She frowned. Then she dropped her keys into her red leather shoulder bag, letting them jangle as she did so. The small action was deliberate. She just knew that he would never jangle a set of keys. They would slide silently into his pocket.
“What I would like to know,” Mercy announced with a touch of aggression as she set a brisk pace down the street, “is why that bell didn’t make any noise when you were entering or leaving.”
“I told you,” he said, moving silently along beside her, “I don’t like the sound it makes.”
Mercy glanced at him sharply but he wasn’t paying any attention. He was examining the deliberately quaint, tree-lined, unmistakably prosperous street. Most of the boutiques and shops were closed for the day. The storefronts were elegantly rustic, the goods in the windows discreet and expensive. The few cars that were still parked at the curb tended to fall into the BMW-Volvo-Mercedes category. The people on the sidewalk were casually dressed in polo shirts with little animals embroidered on them, designer shorts and name brand sport shoes. They looked sleek and healthy.
“I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced,” Mercy pointed out.
“My name is Croft Falconer.”
“Where are you from, Mr. Falconer?”
“Call me Croft or Falconer if you prefer, but skip the mister. I’m from Oregon.”
“I see. Then you really haven’t come such a long way for Valley after all, have you? Oregon is just a three- or four-hour drive.”
“Not all distances are measured in terms of miles.”
She couldn’t quite decide how to respond to such a cryptic comment so Mercy decided to change the subject. She was aware that she was no longer afraid of him, but she was very definitely feeling wary of the man. He didn’t fit into any category of male she could identify and label. That fact was as intriguing as it was unsettling. “What about your car? Are you sure you want to leave it here on the street?”
“It should be reasonably safe for a while, don’t you think? Ignatius Cove doesn’t look like the sort of place where gangs start stripping cars on the main street five minutes after the sun sets.”
“Well, no, but—”
“Don’t worry about the car, Mercy.”
“I won’t,” she assured him tartly. “After all, it’s yours, not mine.”
Mercy led the way for two blocks, past the small plaza and fountain at the end of the street, and then turned left, away from the view of the cove, to climb the hill toward her apartment. By the time she reached the end of the rather steep street, she was breathing a little heavily, as usual. The walk home was definitely something of a workout. As she stopped in front of her apartment building she was well aware that Croft’s breathing hadn’t altered. The knowledge irritated her. The man must have some weakness, she rationalized.
“What is your field of interest, Croft?” she asked as she dug the keys back out of her purse.
He gave her a quizzical look. “My field of interest?”
“Your book collection,” she said impatiently as she walked up the single flight of stairs that led to her second-story apartment. “You’ve come all this way to see Valley, so you must be a collector. What’s your chief area of interest?”
He smiled for the first time. It wasn’t much of a smile, just a faint lifting of the corners of his firm mouth. Mercy got the impression he didn’t have a lot of experience in smiling. But it was a genuine smile and she was rather pleased with herself for having drawn it from him.
“You mean you want to know why I’m trying to obtain Valley of Secret Jewels?” he asked in mild amusement.
Mercy gave a small cough to clear her throat and opened her front door. “Well, it is a rather unusual specimen.”
“It’s erotica, pure and simple,” he stated flatly. “Some of the best ever written.”
“Yes.” Mercy wasn’t quite certain what else to say. Uneasily she remembered her earlier image of meeting Croft in a darkened bedroom. Talk about erotica. Deliberately she made herself ask the logical question. “Is that what you collect? Erotica?”
“No, Mercy. My interests lie in another direction.”
“Which direction?” She turned just inside her doorway to face him, aware that she was feeling nervous again. She quickly tried to analyze her reactions and came to the conclusion that, while she wasn’t physically afraid of him, she simply couldn’t shake the dangerous frisson of sensual awareness he seemed to evoke in her.
She reminded herself that ghosts, even the ones that weren’t actually threatening, always sent chills down the spine.
“I suppose you could say that my main field of interest is the philosophy of violence.”
He walked through the door and closed it behind him before Mercy could assimilate the meaning of his words. She stepped back, automatically giving him room. Her eyes widened.
“Violence?” she whispered.
“I’m something of an expert on the subject.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The author of over 50 New York Times bestsellers, JAYNE ANN KRENTZ writes romantic-suspense, often with a psychic and paranormal twist, in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick) and futuristic (as Jayne Castle). There are over 35 million copies of her books in print.
Building on the success of her Arcane Society Series, Jayne is kicking off three new paranormal series in 2012.
The Dark Legacy books are set in present day Washington state and delve into the paranormal crystal mining world and the Coppersmith Family. The first book, COPPER BEACH is available now.
The Ladies of Lantern Street novels are set in Victorian England and follow the adventures of the Flint and Marsh Agency employees. These ladies are not your average paid companions. The first book, CRYSTAL GARDENS is available now.
The Rainshadow novels started, unofficially, with the release of CANYONS OF NIGHT. These stories are set on a small island on the planet Harmony in the not so distant future. The second novel in this series, THE LOST NIGHT, will be available in September 2012.
When she's not writing, Jayne can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/JayneAnnKrentz
You can also learn more about Jayne at her website, http://www.JayneAnnKrentz.com
MORE BOOKS BY JAYNE ANN KRENTZ
eBooks
Gift of Gold
Shield’s Lady
Midnight Jewels
Contemporary (written as Jayne Ann Krentz)
Copper Beach
In Too Deep
Fired Up
Running Hot
Sizzle and Burn
Historical (written as Amanda Quick)
Crystal Gardens
Quicksilver
Burning Lamp
The Perfect Poison
The Third Circle
Futuristic (written as Jayne Castle)
The Lost Night (September 2012)
Canyons of Night
Midnight Crystal
Obsidian Prey
Dark Light
Gift of Fire Page 34
