As the jet and itspassengers winged their way to the northeast, Anya mentally replayedthe sleight-of-hand techniques Veronica had taught her. She couldn’tavoid replaying Veronica’s untimely departure from the flight, butshe tried to banish that thought from her head. There were too manyother things needing her attention, and she didn’t needdistractions like a dead woman who enjoyed pretending to be French.
Gwynn leaned over. “Uh,Earth to Anya. Where are you?”
She shook off themental film roll playing in her head. “I am sorry. I was thinkingabout my last flight.”
Gwynn checked acrossher shoulder. “Well, how about staying in the moment . . . with me?I’d like to make the full round trip.”
“Do not worry. Iwon’t let the big, scary man hurt you.”
Gwynn scowled. “Don’tmake me shoot you in the eye.”
It was Anya’s turn tocheck for prying ears before she leaned near her partner. “You willnot shoot me in my eye because I am now federal police officer likeyou, and it is federal crime to kill me, remember?”
“I’ll claimself-defense, and everyone will believe me.”
The landing was lesselegant than before, but the pilots got the jet safely back on Earthand parked on the ramp at Yarmouth.
Unlike the firstflight, the flight attendant gathered everyone’s passports andhanded them to one of the pilots. He held up the little bluebooklets. “I’ll check us in, and you’ll be able to get off in afew minutes. It won’t take long.”
Anya turned to Volkov.“We did not have to do this last time.”
He subconsciously shota look at Gwynn and back to Anya. “Sometimes, this is necessary. Itwill not take long. It never does.”
The pilot returned witha customs agent who followed him onboard the Hawker.
The agent gave acursory glance around the interior. “Does everyone speak English?”
Heads nodded, so hecontinued. “Welcome to Yarmouth, Nova Scotia. Enjoy your stay.You’re free to deplane whenever you’d like.” With that, hehopped down the stairs and disappeared inside the terminal.
The pilot stepped fromthe cockpit again and handed Volkov his passport. He held up theother two. “I’ll hang onto these until we leave the country. Wewouldn’t want you losing them all the way up here.”
Neither passport wasauthentic, so Gwynn and Anya offered no argument. Everyone deplanedwithout issue, but Volkov spent another long moment conversing withthe pilots.
Gwynn’s eyes lit upwhen Sascha stepped from the Land Rover.
He ambled over,ignoring Anya. “Well, hello, Gwynn. What a treat this is. I washoping to see you again.”
She shot a look atAnya, then turned back to Sascha. “This place is beautiful. Do youlive up here?”
He looked around. “Thisis an airport. You’ve not seen beautiful yet. Just wait until weget to the lake. It’s breathtaking.”
Volkov and Anya climbedinto the back while Gwynn slid onto the passenger’s seat beside thescientist. She was as enamored by the scenery as Anya had been on herfirst trip from the airport to the lab. Sascha manipulated thesecurity keypads just as he’d done before, and they drove throughthe sally port and into the enclosure. Once inside the lab, Volkovled Anya directly to Shel’s workshop, where they found the old mannapping in an upright position in his chair.
Volkov cleared histhroat several times with increasing volume each time.
Finally, the diamondcutter opened one eye and then the other. “It isn’t polite tointerrupt an observant Jew during his prayers.”
“The only thing youwere praying to was the inside of your eyelids. It’s time to go towork, you old relic.”
“I’ll have you knowthat without this old relic, you’d still be”—he paused and gaveAnya a glance—“doing whatever you did before I made you rich.”
Volkov pointed to asecond rolling chair behind Shel. “See if you can keep him awakelong enough to cut my diamonds.”
She took the seat andpulled a pen and paper from the desk. “I will draw for you firststone.”
When she finished, Shelheld the paper at arm’s length and studied the sketch. “This is abeautiful work of art. I hope I can turn this ugly old lump of carboninto something close. Young men who think they are master diamondcutters rely on electronic mapping software to plan the marking andcutting for them. A true master needs only his eye, his imagination,and his willingness to listen to the stone. They whisper to me, evenin my sleep.”
He went to work shapingthe rough diamond and inspecting every surface after only seconds onthe wheel. Two hours later, he wiped his hands and the stone with adelicate cloth and laid the diamond in Anya’s palm.
She clamped the stoneand studied its every surface through her loupe. “It is perfect,Shel. You are truly a master of your craft.”
He blushed and rosefrom his chair. “An old man has to visit the water closet moreoften than a young man. By the time you have another sketch, I willbe back and refreshed.”
They repeated theprocess five more times with precisely the same result every time.Shel studied Anya’s drawings and listened to the stones as theyclaimed their shapes under the master’s hand.
When they finished,Shel looked as if he’d aged a decade. “I have reached my limitfor the day, my dear. If you have more diamonds in your beautifulhead, they will have to wait until morning.”
She stood and helpedhim from his chair. A kiss on each of his cheeks seemed to revitalizehim as the worn expression drained from his eyes.
“You know,” hesaid, “I once knew a woman as beautiful as you. She broke my hearta thousand times before she became an old woman. And then, she brokeit a thousand more. I’ve been married to her for twice as long asyou’ve been alive. Goodnight, my dear. Whatever you’re doing,please be careful. There are wolves afoot.”
30
ETOGAZ
(IT’S A GAS)
Gwynn stretched andforced her eyes open. “Where have you been?”
Anya whispered, “I amsorry to wake you. I have been working.”
“Working? On what?”
“Go back to sleep. Iwill tell you in the morning.”
Gwynn pawed at thenightstand and lifted her cell phone. “It’s already morning. Tellme what’s going on.”
Anya sat on
