Chapter 12
IT WAS THE FAINT CLINK OF METAL OUT ON THE CONCRETE balcony that had alerted him. Even a very small amount of impact noise traveled in steel-and-concrete buildings.
Sam waited in the kitchen, watching the balcony from the shadows of the refrigerator.
He gripped his most recent invention in his hand.
It resembled a cell phone, but the crystal-powered device had a very different purpose.
He was pretty sure that the theory behind the design was solid, but he had not yet had a chance to conduct any real-world experiments.
Tonight promised to provide the opportunity for a field trial.
His intuition had been riding him hard all day. It had spiked into the hot zone after dark. He had the sense that things were moving fast, and that Abby was in danger. He had not even tried to sleep tonight. He had spent the night mentally and psychically standing guard.
Out on the balcony, a dark shadow appeared.
It dropped easily down from the floor above.
For a second or two, the newcomer dangled on the rope he had used for the descent.
Then he stepped nimbly onto the railing and down to the floor of the balcony.
It was clear he had done this kind of thing before. An expert.
He left the rope dangling and moved swiftly to the sliding glass doors. A small tool of some kind appeared in his gloved hand. A moment later, the sliding glass door slid silently open.
Chilled night air and faint currents of psi whispered into the room when the intruder entered.
A talent of some kind, Sam concluded, and definitely a professional.
It was a good bet that he had gained access to the building via the parking garage, always the weak point in the security system of any condo tower.
Once inside, he would have had access to every floor and the roof.
The intruder moved across the room, going directly to Abby’s desk with the certainty of a man who knew his way around the condo. That raised some intriguing questions, Sam thought.
The guy had a second-story man’s sense of style. He had definitely nailed the cat-burglar look. He was dressed from head to toe in tight black clothing. A black stocking cap concealed his hair and all of his features except his eyes.
At the desk, he stopped, flicked on a small penlight and began to sort through the mail.
Sam walked out of the kitchen and around the end of the dining counter.
“No need for that,” he said. “Abby went through her mail earlier this evening.”
“What the…?” The intruder swung around, spearing the shadows with the penlight. “Who are you?”
“A friend of Abby’s.”
“No, you’re not. Abby doesn’t have any boyfriends. Who are you, and what are you doing in her place?”
“I was just going to ask you the same question.”
“Like hell.”
The intruder sprinted for the open slider.
Sam was already moving. He managed to seize the man’s shoulder and succeeded in touching the crystal device to his arm.
He sent energy into the fake cell phone.
There was a small flash of paranormal lightning.
The intruder grunted and started to crumple.
He struggled to straighten and resume his flight to the balcony, but he fell slowly to his knees, arms wrapped around his midsection.
Sam yanked off the stocking cap, revealing platinum-blond hair cut in a short, crisp, vaguely military style.
“What the h–hell d–did you do to me?” the intruder got out, teeth chattering.
There was a sharp, excited yip. Newton charged into the room. He went straight to the intruder and started licking his face.
“Hell of a guard dog, all right,” Sam said.
Abby appeared. She had taken the time to pull on a robe. She had a large object clutched in her hands.
“Sam.” Her voice was tight and anxious. “Are you all right?”
“Yes,” he said. “Get the lights.”
She flipped a wall switch, illuminating the heavy lamp she carried. Her eyes widened, first in shock and then in outrage, when she saw the man shivering in the middle of her living room.
“Nick?” She put the lamp down on the coffee table. “What in the world are you doing here?”
Nick gave her a disgusted look and continued to shudder. “Your taste in boyfriends is going downhill, Abby. This one just tried to kill me.”
Abby glanced at Sam, frowning. “Whatever you’re doing to him, you can stop, at least until I decide whether or not to call the cops.”
“He’ll be all right in a few minutes,” Sam said. “Probably.” He pocketed the crystal device. “I just temporarily shocked his senses. You know this guy?”
“Nick Sawyer,” she said. She regarded Nick with seething irritation.
“And yes, I know him. You could say we’re colleagues of a sort.
We both work the book market, but Nick isn’t quite as selective as I am when it comes to clients.
I was, however, under the impression, until tonight, that he was my friend. ”
Nick muttered something unintelligible. Newton bounced around him, waiting for the new game to begin.
“Give him a minute,” Sam said.
Nick managed to get to his feet. He was still shaky.
He was about the same age as Abby, a lean, athletically built man with the sort of clean, chiseled features that could have ensured him a successful career in modeling.
His silver-white hair and artificially tanned face served to enhance the vivid blue of his eyes.
He shot a hooded look at Sam, did a quick assessment of the situation and evidently concluded that his best option lay in an appeal to Abby.
“Sorry about this, sweetie,” he said. “I thought you were out of town.”
“That’s supposed to excuse what you just did?” Abby waved a hand toward the open slider. “You just broke into my home. You’d better start talking, and fast, or I’m going to call the police, I swear it.”
Nick exhaled heavily and leaned over to scratch Newton behind the ears. “Take it easy, sweetie. I can explain everything. You know you’re not going to call the cops.”
“Before you say another word,” Abby warned, “if you call me sweetie one more time, I will use that lamp on your head.”
“It’s a little complicated, sweet—uh, Abby.”
“I think we can uncomplicate this thing real fast,” Sam said. “Tell us why you broke in here tonight.”
Nick scowled. “Who is this guy, Abby? I can’t believe he’s a new boyfriend. Definitely not your type.”
“Talk,” Sam said. “Fast.”
Nick shot him an irritated look. “I didn’t break in, I let myself in.”
“That wasn’t a key you used to open the slider,” Sam said.
“Abby and I are old friends.” Nick turned back to Abby and flashed a smile that was as brilliant as his hair. “Isn’t that right?”
“We both know that I never gave you a key to my home,” Abby said. “Gwen has a spare, but you don’t. Why are you here?”
“Believe it or not, just looking out for you. There’s a real hot book floating around.
Some kind of lab notebook dealing with crystal experiments.
It’s supposed to be about forty years old, and rumor has it that it’s encrypted.
If that’s the case, there’s a good chance that some of the people who are after it will be trying to hire you. ”
“Don’t give me that blather about looking out for me,” Abby snapped. “You’re trying to locate that book yourself, aren’t you? You came here hoping that you would find a lead.”
“So you are working that job.” Nick jerked a thumb at Sam. “He’s a new client, isn’t he? What’s going on here? You never let clients into your home.”
“You know, I really don’t have to answer your questions,” Abby said. “You are supposed to be explaining why you are here in my living room.”
Nick shrugged. “Like I said, just looking out for your best interests.”
“I got that much,” Abby said, bristling with impatience. “Tell me the rest of it.”
“Okay, okay, calm down. I don’t know a whole lot more than what I just told you. I don’t have a client yet, but the word on the street is that the book is worth a fortune to more than one person. Figured if I got to it first I could hold an auction. This could be the big one for me.”
“Where did you hear the rumors of the book?” Sam asked.
“Like I’m going to tell you that,” Nick muttered.
Sam took the aura-suppression device out of his pocket.
Nick looked bored. “The rumors cropped up in the usual places online. Tell him, Abby.”
Abby folded her arms. “There are chat rooms where collectors and dealers exchange gossip and leads. I haven’t had a chance to check out the usual suspects lately, because I’ve been preoccupied with my own problems. Guess I’d better visit some of the online sites.”
“What have you heard about the collectors who are after the encrypted book?” Sam asked.
“Damn it, who is this guy, Abby?” Nick demanded.
“The name is Sam Coppersmith,” Sam said.
He was still trying to get past the comment about not looking like Abby’s type.
It occurred to him that no one would think it odd if a cat burglar fell from a tenth-floor balcony while engaged in an act of breaking and entering.
Stuff happened. Abby, however, would probably not approve of that disposal plan.
She clearly had a history with Nick Sawyer. So did Newton.
“Coppersmith.” Nick frowned. “Name rings a faint bell. How did you find Abby?”
“She found me,” Sam said.
“You’re a talent of some kind.” Nick gave him an accusing look and then turned back to Abby. “You never trust strangers.”
“Sam was referred to me by Thaddeus,” Abby said. “Or maybe it would be more correct to say that I was referred to Sam. Either way, Thaddeus vouched for him.”
“Okay, so Webber approved him. That still doesn’t explain what he’s doing here in your apartment at two o’clock in the morning. You never let your dates stay over.”
Abby flushed. “I thought I made it clear, Sam is not a date. My arrangement with him is strictly business.”
“You never let clients do sleepovers, either. What the hell is going on here, Abby? Why did Webber send you to him?”