The terrace doors burst open, shattering glass. “Put up your arms.” The order was authoritative, delivered in English with a classy French accent. Doug didn’t wait for the outcome, but shoved Whitney behind a chair. He saw Barns grab for his gun. The grin was blown off his face.
“The house is surrounded.” Ten uniformed men trooped into the library, rifles at the ready. “Franco Dimitri, you are under arrest for murder, conspiracy to commit murder, kidnapping…”
“Holy shit,” Whitney murmured as the list lengthened. “It really is the cavalry.”
“Yeah.” Doug let out a breath of relief, holding her warm beside him. It was also the police, he reflected. He wouldn’t exactly come out smelling like a rose himself.
He saw, with a feeling of inevitability and disgust, the man with the panama walk through the doors. “I should’ve smelled cop,” he muttered. A man with a shock of white hair strode into the room with an air of impatience.
“All right, where is that girl!”
Doug saw Whitney’s eyes widen until they seemed to cover her whole face. Then with a bubbling giggle she sprang up from behind the chair. “Daddy!”
C H A P T E R
16
It didn’t take long for the Malagasy police to clear out the room. Whitney watched the handcuffs being snapped onto Dimitri’s wrist below a fat emerald cuff link.
“Whitney, Mr. Lord.” Dimitri’s voice remained soft, cultured, calm. A man in his position understood temporary setbacks. But his eyes, as his gaze passed over them, were as flat as a goat’s. “I’m sure, yes, quite sure we’ll see each other again.”
“We’ll catch you on the eleven o’clock news,” Doug told him.
“I owe you,” Dimitri acknowledged with a nod. “I always pay my debts.”
Whitney’s gaze met his briefly, and she smiled. Once again, her fingers trailed down to the shell around her neck.
“For Jacques,” she said softly, “I hope they find a hole dark enough for you.” Then she buried her face against her father’s clean-smelling jacket. “I’m so glad to see you.”
“Explanations.” But MacAllister held her fiercely for a moment. “Let’s have some, Whitney.”
She drew away, eyes laughing. “Explain what?”
He struggled with a grin and huffed instead. “Nothing changes.”
“How’s Mother? I hope you didn’t tell her you were trailing after me.”
“She’s fine. She thinks I’m in Rome working. If I’d told her I was chasing our only daughter all over Madagascar, she wouldn’t have been able to play bridge for days.”
“You’re so clever.” She kissed him, hard. “How did you know to chase me all over Madagascar?”
“I believe you’ve met General Bennett?”
Whitney turned and faced a tall, rangy man with stern, unsmiling eyes. “Of course.” She offered her hand as though they were at a well-mannered cocktail party. “At the Stevensons’ year before last. How are you, General? Oh, I don’t believe you’ve met Douglas. Doug…” Whitney signaled to him across the room where he was mumbling out a tangled statement to one of the Malagasy officials. Grateful for the respite, he went to her. “Daddy, General Bennett, this is Douglas Lord. Doug’s the one who stole the papers, General.”
The smile turned a little sickly on Doug’s face. “Nice to meet you.”
“You owe Douglas quite a bit,” she told the general and poked in her father’s jacket for a cigarette.
“Owe,” the general blustered. “This thief—”
“Secured the papers, keeping them out of the hands of Dimitri. At the risk of his own life,” she added, holding up the cigarette for a light. Doug obliged her, deciding he’d leave the explanations to her after all. She sent him a wink as she blew out smoke. “You see, it all started when Dimitri hired Doug to steal the papers. Of course, Doug knew right away that they were priceless and had to be kept out of the wrong hands.” She drew in smoke, then waved the cigarette expressively. “He virtually took his life in his hands to secure them. I can’t tell you how many times he told me if we found the treasure, what a priceless contribution to society it would be. Isn’t that so, Doug?”
“Well, I—”
“He’s so modest. You really must take credit where credit’s due, darling. After all, securing the treasure for General Bennett’s foundation nearly cost you your life.”
“It was nothing,” Doug muttered. He could see the rainbow beginning to fade.