Trove (The Katie Walsh Mysteries)

by KJ Montgomery

  ****

  After a quick dinner of frozen waffles, canned fruit and coffee, she spread out her laptop, the dossier, and Laura’s data on the coffee table, determined to give the translation another try. It had completely frustrated her this afternoon, and she’d had to take a break. She’d played some music and loosened up by dancing around her condo and ended with a mediation session, giving her body and soul a much needed playtime.

  Her never-give-up attitude forced her to continue with the rune translation even after the way she’d been treated earlier. She really wanted to discover what Alec was looking for. She’d already put in ten hours on the translation today alone. Plus, she had to admit, she’d just love to throw the completed translation at him by Friday, even if the “throw” would be an email. Not that it would make any difference to him on a personal basis. That’s all he wanted, she thought, her shoulders drooping slightly. Hadn’t he proven that today when he’d sent her packing but let Lucy hang all over him? Lord, she was so confused when it came to him.

  She scrutinized the runes for the umpteenth time and sighed in exasperation. They didn’t make sense, but in a strange way they did. She was convinced now that these runes were incomplete, that whoever included them in the dossier deliberately left out several important symbols. Without the missing runes, it would be impossible to provide a viable translation. She was no expert but she knew that with retail photo manipulation software almost anyone could create a realistic photograph, convincing the viewer that what they were looking at really existed in that form. This had to be what she was looking at. The only way to finish her work would be to see the original pictures before they were doctored, or see the original runes in person.

  After hours of trying different substitutions for the missing runes, she threw her hands up in frustration. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed to ask for help. She picked up the phone then hesitated. She blew out her breath. “Get over your ego, Katie Walsh, and finish what you started.”

  Straightening her back and holding her head high, she dialed Alec’s number. On the third ring, his voicemail engaged: “You want me, you got me. Leave a message, and I’ll be in touch.” She was about to hang up when she heard the beep. “Alec, this is Katie. I need to ask you some questions regarding the dossier you’ve assigned me, in particular the source of the runes.”

  She hung up the phone and checked the time. It was a quarter to ten. She headed for bed determined to give her eyes a rest for a few hours.

  R

  Chapter Six

  Alec and Robert strode out of the conference room. “You know, Robert, this really isn’t a bad quarterly meeting. I’ve been to some real dog shows, but this is nice. The dinner was delicious and the presentations were enjoyable, for the most part, and there’s an open bar.”

  He stopped and faced Robert. “But I really think I should be home, near Katie. I’ve left her alone and unprotected.”

  “Relax. You’ve left Willie at your place making sure no one shows up unexpectedly,” Robert replied.

  “Any chance she would go out on a last-minute date?” Alec asked.

  “No, she’s not seeing anyone right now and she’s not into casual relationships.”

  Even though he’d hooked up with her seemingly out of the blue, Alec knew she didn’t casually sleep around. Hell, she even confessed that fact to him before they got busy getting to know each other. He often wondered why they honed in on each other that night. He shrugged. “Somehow I can believe that.”

  “I thought you said we could get something to drink, not this fizzy Kool-Aid they’re handing out here,” Alec said as a waiter passed by with a tray full of champagne.

  “Come on. The full bar is in the next room.”

  Alec ordered two whiskeys and returned to Robert. Robert reached for one and Alec pulled his hands away. “These are mine. Go get your own.”

  Robert returned with a single glass in hand. “You should slow down with the drinking, Alec. I’m starting to think you may have a problem.”

  Alec shrugged. “I don’t have a drinking problem, so relax.” I have a logistics problem by the name of Katie Walsh, he thought. “Everything ready for tomorrow night?” he asked as he emptied the first of the two shot glasses.

  Robert nodded. “All set. You just make sure she’s well protected.”

  “Take it down a notch, will you? You’re acting like an overprotective father. I’ll take good care of her.”

  Robert snorted. “Father? That the best you could come up with? I’m only eight years older than her.”

  “What is it with you and Katie?” Alec growled. “Are you asking me to back off? I told you, we have a history, which is more than I can say about you, bro.”

  “Katie doesn’t deserve you. She deserves better. You always leave a trail of collateral damage like a tornado behind you. Add to that the fact that Katie’s life is potentially in danger and I think you should just go take a cold shower. A really long cold shower,” Robert said.

  Robert watched as Alec drained the second shot glass. “You’re drunk. If you weren’t I think I’d have to knock some sense into you. You just make sure she’s safe. That’s as far as you go with her. Got it, Alec?”

  Alec looked at his brother and realized he was right. Katie’s safety trumped everything else at this point. He put her in harm’s way. She was his responsibility. He exhaled. “Yeah, I got the message, loud and clear.”

  “Come on,” Robert said, “let’s head to my place. We can smoke some nice Havanas on my terrace while you sober up.”

  “It’s been a while since I had a Havana. I won’t even ask how you managed to get them.” Alec laughed. “Let’s go.”

  R

  Chapter Seven

  Katie slept a few hours and then tossed and turned for the next three. She knew that trying to sleep now was just wishful thinking. She glanced at the clock. The red digital numbers of 3:45 were taunting her, reminding her that another night’s sleep was slipping through her fingers. She got up and dressed in black jeans and a bright pink T-shirt before calling Eric in England.

  “Hi, Eric.” She smiled as his webcam turned on.

  “Hi, Katie. Up late or couldn’t you sleep?”

  “Couldn’t sleep. I wanted to go over the overlay project. I thought I’d work on it today.” She pulled the laptop closer. “What’s up with the wrinkled brow?”

  “Do you think all this encryption and coding is necessary?” he asked in a half whisper.

  She frowned. “We need to protect our work. You know as well as I do that some of our colleagues are waiting for us to fail. They complain that we’re hogging too much supercomputer time. Others are just waiting to steal our findings and sell them to the highest bidder.” She took a deep breath. “If we’re successful, we can apply this methodology in search of a multitude of ancient sites. I just want to protect what is ours until we’re ready to unveil it.” She bit her lip, then asked, “I don’t think I’m being irrational here, do you?”

  He shook his head. “No I guess not, but technically it is only partially our work. Nordstrom holds the controlling interest, at least initially.”

  Katie sighed. “I know. I just don’t want someone pulling it out from under our noses. We’re doing all the modeling and testing. I want us to get the credit.”

  “I understand that, but don’t you think it is a bit much with the encryption? What if something were to happen to you or me? How would anyone access our work?” Eric asked.

  She could see the hesitation on his face. Thanks to the webcam, it was like he was in the room with her. Technology, in the right hands, was a wonderful thing. “Eric, I need to do this. Besides, you have all the access codes, and just in case, Dr. Austin has a master password that can access all files on the network. Maybe I’m a bit paranoid but I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Alec shows up in London, asks about Norland, and becomes my boss all in the same evening.” Never mind all the other currents swirling around me, she th
ought.

  Katie didn’t tell him everything that had transpired in the last twenty-four hours. It would only upset him and possibly throw off the timetable she had established for the overlay project. Plus, there was nothing he could do to help.

  “I agree it was very odd. I’m just not convinced that he’s here to steal your work,” Eric said. “He seems like a decent chap.”

  “Think about this for a moment.” She looked straight into the webcam, as if she could squeeze herself into the lens and show up beside Eric to give him the reassurance he so desperately looked like he needed. “Here is this archaeologist and, granted, you know how I feel about them, but here he is asking about Norland. I’d never heard about him before that night in London, even though I am best friends with his brother. I mean, it’s like he crawled out of the woodwork.” She laughed. “Or the very least out of one of his holes.”

  Eric laughed. “Lassie, that is not nice,” he replied after he stopped laughing. “I can’t help but wonder if you would be any nicer to him if he wasn’t a digger.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said between snickers, “but my bad attitude regarding archaeologists has rubbed off on you. You’re now calling them by my pet name.”

  Eric’s frown returned. “All joking aside, do you really think he’s after our work?”

  Katie thought for a moment and then looked at Eric’s worried face. “For the time being I have to assume he is. I don’t think we know the whole story behind Alec MacGowan and his well-timed appearance, though I did verify that he does hold a doctorate in archaeology focusing on Celtic and Nordic societies in the British Isles. It just bothers me on several levels that Robert never bothered to mention he had a brother. I really need to ask him about that.”

  “Could his not telling you have anything to do with your general disdain for archaeologists?” Eric asked.

  Maybe Robert didn’t tell her because she knew he wanted to be more than friends and she wasn’t interested in him that way. Perhaps he worried that if he told her about Alec, she would have found Alec more attractive. Katie could believe that of Robert. He was a nice man, but he was rather shy around women. She doubted Alec ever lacked for female companionship. She peered into the webcam and said, “Not enough to hide a brother’s existence from his best friend. Would you do that to me?”

  He sighed. “Nae, I wouldn’t. I guess I understand your distrust.”

  “Good. Now let’s move on and review the latest status. I’ll go first.” As she was about to start, the doorbell rang. The building had twenty-four hour security, so it had to be someone who lived there. “Hold on, Eric, must be one of my neighbors, though it is an odd hour.”

  She opened the door and there Alec stood in all his male glory. She looked him up and down and swallowed hard. He was dressed in a black tuxedo, bow tie draped casually around his neck. His shirt was unbuttoned a third of the way down his taut torso. His chest, at least what she could see, was covered in the hair she wound her fingers through that night. Her fingers flexed with the desire to bury themselves in that lush carpet. She could almost feel the downy soft fur beneath her fingertips. Her nose twitched and she inhaled involuntarily while the heat rose on her face. His scent was intoxicating, a wonderful rich mix of sandalwood, spice, and… and cigars. She looked down and saw the final few inches of one glowing between his fingers. She rested her hand on her hip. “This is a non-smoking building. You need to put that out now.”

  He brushed past her and into her condo. “Got an ashtray handy, KitKat?”

  She inhaled and straightened her spine. “No. And do… not… call… me… that… again. Now leave and take that cigar with you. I don’t want to smell like one. It’s probably already stinking up my hair.”

  “Let me check,” Alec said as he leaned down and buried his face in her hair. “I smell lavender, I think, and just a hint of cigar.” He chuckled. “Sorry, Katie, too late. Besides, I got your message. Figured it was important or were you just seeing if I was on a date?”

  “You’re drunk. Go home. I’ll call you a cab. You shouldn’t be driving.” She picked up the phone. “What’s the address?”

  “Three doors down.”

  “I didn’t ask what your favorite country song was. I asked you where do you live.”

  “And I told you, Katie, three doors down. I leased the condo down the hall. It’s three doors down from you.”

  “What?”

  “I leased the condo—”

  She cut him off. “I heard you the first time. I just can’t believe what I heard.”

  He grinned. “Come down the hall and I’ll give you a tour, especially the bedroom.”

  She ignored his offer but he didn’t ignore the heat spreading across and darkening her face.

  “Why, Katie, is it hot in here or is it just you?”

  She just glared at him and hated herself as she felt her face flame hotter.

  “Put that stinking cigar out now or I’ll put it where the sun don’t shine. And I’ll give you a hint, you’ll feel the burn.”

  He laughed and headed for the kitchen. She rushed to keep up.

  “Don’t put that stink in my sink. Take it home and stink up your own abode.”

  Alec reached over, turned on the faucet, and stuck the cigar under the running water. As a final measure, he ground the cigar in her sink to make sure it was out.

  She looked down at the stain in her previously spotless sink. “You pig. Clean that up right now.” She reached under the sink and pulled out the cleanser. “Start scrubbing, mister.”

  He tilted his head slightly, looked down at her, and followed her pointing finger to the mess he created in her sink. He exhaled audibly and grabbed a paper towel off the roll hanging under the cabinet. With the cigar in one hand and the paper towel in the other, he did the only thing he could think of before he took the cleanser from her hand. He turned the hand that was pointing to the sink palm up. Before she realized what he was doing, he deposited the wet, soggy, smelly remains of the cigar in her upturned hand. Her eyes blazed as he stepped back, leaning his torso out of her immediate reach.

  “You insufferable bastard. You did that deliberately,” she seethed.

  He should have remained silent. He didn’t. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to do with it.”

  “So you thought that the best solution would be to put that disgusting thing in my hand.”

  “Yes,” he replied sheepishly, a contrite grin spreading across the lower half of his face.

  She dropped the cleanser in the sink. “Well, guess what, geni-ass. That was the absolute wrong thing to do.” She took a step toward him, reached up and pulled on his open shirt with her now free hand. With the other hand she took the cigar and smashed it onto his chest, determined to smear it across those luxurious hairs, trying to coat each one with the stink. Her final act was to drop the remains down his shirt and pat it with a resounding smack where it stopped at his cummerbund. The dark brown stain spread outwards quickly. She stepped backed and smiled, pleased with her artwork.

  Alec looked down and saw what appeared to be a brown Rorschach blot spread across his shirt. He raised his head and glared down at her. “Dammit, Katie. This silk shirt cost me two hundred dollars.”

  She laughed and shrugged her shoulders slightly. “So?”

  “So… so, you need to replace it.”

  “When hell freezes over. Now go home.”

  “Not until you pay me for my shirt.”

  “You’re insane if you think I’m paying for that. Besides, I don’t walk around with that amount of cash on me.”

  “Then I’ll take payment in kind.”

  “What the hell does that mean?”

  “It means this, KitKat,” he growled as he wrapped one arm around her waist, pinning her against him. With his free hand he raised her chin, bent his head, and locked on her lips like a heat-seeking missile.

  Katie pushed against his chest, wriggled her torso, and tried to free herself from his embrace. He
pulled her closer, held her tighter, while his lips coaxed hers into submission. She tasted the cigar and whiskey, inhaled his scent. It was heady, overpowering her senses and her sensibility. Again the memories of his touch came roaring into her head and heated her body. He folded her body into his, sliding his hand down her back to cup her backside and pull it tight into his body. She moaned and thrust her breasts against him. Slowly, he released his hold on her as she pulled hungrily on his lower lip with her teeth, sucking on the fullness of it. He pulled back and gazed down into her slightly dazed eyes.

  “Mm, consider that a down payment. I’ll collect the rest on the installment plan.”

  She shook herself out of her fog and jumped back. His head was tilted slightly and he was grinning. She was going to wipe that smug look right off his face. She raised her hand and then connected her palm with his cheek with a resounding slap. “How dare you?”

  “Why, you little wildcat,” he said as he rubbed his face where she could clearly see her hand imprint appearing as if by magic.

  “Get out of here now or so help me...”

  “Don’t make idle threats, Katie,” he said, his voice dropping to a deep, low tone.

  “I never make idle threats. So help me if you don’t leave, I’ll file sexual harassment charges against you. In case you forgot, Dr. MacGowan, as you so demonstrably showed me earlier when you expelled me, you are my boss and I am your employee.”

  Katie watched as he straightened and towered over her. “You wouldn’t dare. You liked it as much as I did, otherwise you wouldn’t have responded like you did. Besides, it would be your word against mine and it would only serve to start the rumor mill spinning.”

  “Actually, it would be Katie’s and my word against yours.”

  Alec whirled around. “Who the hell is that? Is there someone here?”

  “It’s Eric Murray and I heard every word. So I suggest you do as Katie asks and leave.”