everything Christina would like to teach me.'
She didn't give him time to argue with her. 'I'm going to change my clothes. We must leave soon.'
Caine, she noticed, was glaring at Lyon when she took her leave. Jade quickly changed into her black gown. She carried a cloak with her. The hood would shield her brightly colored hair in the lamplight.
They walked most of the way to the War Office. The building was across town, but they used the hired hack for only half the distance. When they reached the alley behind the building, Jade moved to Caine's side. She took hold of his hand while she stared up at the top floor of the brick structure.
'Something's wrong, Caine.'
'What?' Sir Richards asked from behind her back. 'Your instincts, my dear, or…'
'There's a light in the third window on the right,' she explained. 'It shouldn't be showing any light.'
'Perhaps the guard at the entrance…'
'The entrance is on the other side,' Jade interrupted. 'That light comes from the inner office.'
Caine turned to Lyon. 'If someone's in there going through the files, he'll use the back door when he leaves.'
'Let him pass when he does,' Sir Richards directed. 'I'll follow him.'
'Do you want me to go with you?' Lyon asked. 'If there's more than one…'
Richards shook his head. 'I'll see who the leader is and follow that bloke. You're needed here. We'll
meet back at Caine's, no matter what the hour.'
They moved to the shadows a fair distance from the back door, then patiently waited. Caine put his
arm around Jade's shoulders and held her close.
'You don't want me here with you, do you, Caine?' she whispered when his grip became almost painful.
'No, I don't want you to be here,' he answered. 'Jade, if there's trouble inside…'
'Lyon will take care of it,' she interjected before he could finish his thought. 'If there's any killing done, God forbid, then Lyon should be the one doing it. He's used to it.'
Lyon heard her announcement and raised an eyebrow in reaction. He wondered if she'd read Caine's
file all the way through. It was a fact that Caine was every bit as capable as Lyon was.
Their whispers stopped as soon as the back door squeaked open. While they watched, two men scurried outside. In the moonlight, Jade could see their faces clearly. She couldn't contain her gasp. Caine clamped his hand over her mouth.
The second man out turned and locked the door. How had he secured the keys? Jade wondered. She
held her silence until the men had turned the corner. Sir Richards left to follow them.
Then she turned to Caine. 'The security is deplorable,' she whispered.
'Yes,' he agreed. 'You recognized them, didn't you?'
She nodded. 'They are two of the three men who waylaid Nathan's carriage. The bigger of the two is
the one who hit me on the head.'
The look on his face frightened her. She thought he might very well go after the two men then and there. 'Caine, you must be logical now, please. You can't chase after them.'
He looked exasperated with her. 'I'll wait,' he said. 'But when this is over…'
He didn't finish that statement, but took hold of her hand and led her over to the door. With the special tool Harry had given her for her tenth birthday, she was able to get the lock undone in quick time. The second latch took only a few minutes longer.
Lyon went inside first. Jade followed, with Caine taking up the rear. She nudged Lyon out of the way
and took the lead. They went up to the third floor by way of the back steps. Jade remembered the squeak in the fourth rail on the second staircase, motioned for both men to avoid it, then felt Lyon's arms on her waist. He lifted her over the step and put her down. She turned to smile her appreciation before continuing on.
The guard wasn't sleeping at his post behind the desk in the outer office. He was dead. Jade saw the handle of the knife protruding from his shoulders. She took a quick step back. Caine's hand immediately covered her mouth again. He must have thought she was going to cry out.
Through the glass window of the door, they could see two shadows. Caine pulled Jade over into the corner, motioned for her to stay there, and then followed Lyon into the inner office. She was impressed by their silence. The two of them would make proper thieves, she decided.
They were taking too long, though. She stood there with her back pressed against the cold wall, wringing her hands together while she waited. If anything happened to Caine, she didn't know what she would do. Until she had to leave him, of course, she qualified in her mind… God help her, she needed him.
She didn't realize her eyes were squeezed shut until she felt Caine's hand on her shoulder. 'Come on, we're alone now.'
'What about the men inside?' she whispered. 'And for heaven's sake, lower your voice. We're at work now.'
He didn't answer her. Jade followed Caine inside the sanctuary, tossed her cloak on the nearest desk while Lyon added another candle to the lights.
She noticed the two men on the floor in the corner then. She couldn't contain her gasp. 'Are they dead?' she asked.
She couldn't quit staring at the bodies sprawled atop each other. Caine moved to block her view. 'No,'
