“Should I be flattered you're paying more attention to my warning than the odds?”
“No, I'm paying attention to keeping Jane safe and to hell with the percentages.” He looked him in the eye. “So tell me what you can do that makes it worth my while to keep you close to Jane.”
Trevor's smile faded. “For one thing just my presence here is a minor deterrent. Aldo knows me and he'll be a little more cautious about moving on her.”
“Only a little cautious?”
“Take what you can get. Sometimes a hesitation can save a life. You should know that.” He added crisply, “And I gather you've arranged other protection for Jane. You could let me handle the day-to-day coordination of the security team. I know something about reconnaissance and sentry detail.”
“So I've heard.”
“It would keep me from under your feet and out of your hair. And that would free you to work more closely with your department to track Aldo.” His voice was soft but emphatic. “And I guarantee no one would sleep on their watch if I was in charge. When are they supposed to get here?”
“In a couple hours.”
“Then I'm just in time to break them in right, aren't I?”
Joe studied him for a long moment and then nodded slowly. “But remember these are private citizens, not mercenaries. No rough stuff.”
“I'll be gentle with them.” Trevor smiled. “As gentle as you'd be if you found them slacking. You SEALs are always prone to discuss and persuade rather than take violent action.”
“You son of a bitch.” But Jane could see his lips twitching. “That was a long time ago.”
“Not that long.” He turned and started for the door. “Oh, by the way. I'm posting someone of my own out front to guard the cottage. His name is John Bartlett and he'll try to be unobtrusive.”
“You said Bartlett was on the case before. But why the hell should I just accept him on your say-so?” Joe asked.
“You shouldn't. Check on him with Scotland Yard. But you'll find he has a motivation that's a recommendation in itself.”
“What motivation?”
“His ex-wife was Ellen Carter. She was one of the first women killed by Aldo in London. He couldn't stand living with her, but he still loved her. Having her burned to death made him very upset. So upset he was willing to put up with me to have a chance at finding Aldo.” He glanced back over his shoulder at Jane. “He's the one who found your photo in the paper. He's had a vested interest in you since he brought that clipping to me. He found out everything he could about you and Quinn and Eve. He's not exactly bodyguard material, but I wouldn't let him close to you if I didn't think he'd be the best man for the job. He won't let anything suspicious get past him. But if you don't want him, send him back to me.”
“I will.”
But he didn't hear. He'd already left the cottage and was going down the steps.
“He was doing everything he could to try to control the situation, wasn't he?” Jane asked. “You'll have to watch him.”
Eve looked at her in surprise. “I thought you wanted us to bring him in.”
“I did. I still think it's a good idea.” How could she explain the dichotomy of her feelings for Trevor? While part of her had been amused and admiring as she had watched Trevor insinuating himself into the fray, she'd still had the impulse to step between him and Joe and Eve. She had never lost the awareness of the volatility and danger that had struck her from the first moment she had met him. “Just watch him, Joe.”
Ms. MacGuire?” The man who had knocked on the door smiled. “I'm John Bartlett. I was the one who did the background research on you and your family. And later I had the honor of watching you myself to make sure you were safe. I feel as if I know you already.”
“I imagine you do.” Bartlett definitely wasn't what she had expected. He was plump, no more than five foot seven, with rosy cheeks, thinning brown hair, and huge blue eyes that were looking at her with a sort of troubled innocence that reminded her of . . . someone.
His expression clouded at the dryness of her tone. “I know I violated your privacy. I only meant to help. And I don't mean to be intrusive now. I'll try not to bother you. But Trevor thinks I can help in guarding you—” He made a face. “Well, not really guarding you. That denotes a certain talent for violence I don't possess. That's Trevor's forte and he does it well. But there are other ways I can help.”
“And what are they?”
“I've got great skills of observation.” He added earnestly, “I promise nothing and no one will get past without my noticing.”
Winnie-the-Pooh, she realized suddenly. He reminded her of Winnie-the-Pooh. That same wide-eyed, cuddly frankness. “That's very comforting.”
He nodded. “It's one of my better qualities. It's not very exciting but being comforting isn't bad. I've got three ex-wives who'll give testimony to that.” His expression was suddenly shadowed. “Two ex-wives. Ellen isn't around to give anyone recommendations anymore.” He started to turn away. “I just wanted to let you know I'd be on the job.”
“Wait.”
He turned to look at her.
“Would you like a cup of coffee?”
“No, thank you.” His smile lit his plump face with a kind of boyish radiance. “You're very kind but I've got to go on duty now.”
She was smiling too as she watched him go down the steps.
“Was that Bartlett?” Eve came to stand beside her.
“I think so.” She shook her head. “Or maybe it was Peter Pan or Winnie-the-Pooh.”
“What?”
“Why don't you go see for yourself? Take him a cup of coffee.” She added solemnly, “He was on duty and wouldn't come in.”
Eve watched as Bartlett picked up a pebble and sent it skimming across the lake. “Maybe I will.” She turned and headed for the kitchen.
For the rest of the day Jane didn't see Trevor except at a distance. He seemed very busy and intent as he talked to Singer and his men. In spite of Joe's cautioning, she couldn't see any signs that Trevor was being overbearing with any of the security team. There was no question that he was in charge but he appeared to be handling them with respect and humor.
It was fully dark when he drove up to the cottage. He spoke for a moment to Bartlett before he got out of the SUV, his arms loaded with catalogues and packages. “I brought your mail,” he said as he climbed the porch steps. “I checked for it earlier. Does it come late in the afternoon every day?”
She nodded. “About four.” She set her computer aside and held out her hand for the bundle. “Thank you. But you didn't have to pick it up.”
“Yes, I did. Your mailbox is three miles away on the main road. I wanted to make sure that there weren't any surprises. Since Aldo was camped out in the woods he probably checked out your mailbox occasionally. It's what I would have done. You never can tell what will come in handy when you're on the hunt.” He sat down beside her on the swing. “But there didn't seem to be anything to worry about. Most of it's for Eve.”
“It's usually that way. Eve's very famous and she has a lot of requests for her services. And she wouldn't like you going through her mail.”
“Like I said, I didn't want any surprises.”
“What did you expect? A cobra in the mailbox?”
“No, that wouldn't fit Aldo's pattern. But Julia Brandon was killed by poison gas. There are ways of making an envelope deadly.”
Her mind jumped immediately to the aftermath of 9/11. “Anthrax?”
“Or something else. I didn't think it likely he'd want to rob himself of the pleasure of a close-up kill, but he's not always predictable.”
