The Crusader ("The Crusader" Prequel to "Kingdom Come") (36 page)

"Your
presence isn't necessary, I assure you," Corbin said calmly. "If you
remain in California, Dietrich and Osgrove know where you can be reached and
you are far more valuable if you stay where you are. Should you come to London,
you'll simply be chasing after them like the rest of us."

Some of
the color returned to Becker's cheeks as he came to grips with his shock.
"Mr. Corbin, have you ever heard of a cell phone? Dr. Dietrich can get a
hold of me anytime, anywhere, whether I’m in London or Southern
California."

Corbin
knew his argument had been weak from the beginning and Becker's condescending
tone only served to fuel his irritation. "As you say, Dr. Becker,"
since debating the man was useless, he endeavored to return the conversation to
a civil tone. "I look forward to meeting you in person. But until that time,
if you hear from Dr. Dietrich, you will please let me know. The Hage family
simply wants the body returned and I promise I will do all that I can to ease
the charges against Dr. Osgrove."

Becker's
razor-sharp mind was already thinking ahead to his trip, the course of action
to take. He didn't have any more time for Corbin's blather. "I appreciate
the offer, Mr. Corbin. I shall be in London with the next two days."

"A
lot can happen in two days, Dr. Becker. I'll do the best I can until you
arrive."

Becker
paused, hating the fact that Rory and Bud's only hope would rest in the hands
of a shark for the next forty-eight hours. But he had no choice. "If I
hear from Dietrich, I'll let you know."

"Good,"
Steven couldn't help smiling. "I shall await your call, Dr. Becker. And thank
you."

Staring
off into the dimness of his study as he lit another cigarette, Corbin simply
smiled.

***

Becker
didn't acknowledge the Corbin's sickeningly polite farewell; he simply hung up
the phone. As Sylvia sipped her glass, he rounded the desk, his hazel eyes
focused intently on the once-beautiful woman. She caught his movement, turning
her attention to the aged features.

"Well?"
she asked, her speech faintly slurred. "What has Rory done this
time?"

Uriah's
jaw ticked. "She's stolen the body of the knight she uncovered at
Nahariya. The lawyer representing the Hage family says she and Bud are running
from the law and in very serious trouble," he sighed heavily, at a
complete loss to understand. "We simply didn't need this. The department
is already in danger of losing funding from the university and with this little
escapade... Good Lord, we just didn't need this. We're going to lose everything
if words gets around."

Sylvia
stared at him, finally tearing her gaze from his stone-like features and taking
another drink. "Damn her," she hissed. "I always knew she was
irresponsible, but this goes beyond what even I believed her capable of. Why
would she do this?"

Becker
cocked an eyebrow. "Why? Who truly knows? The only person who can tell us
is Dietrich, and apparently he's running with her. He said she was upset when
Corbin claimed the body from the airport and maybe she was upset enough to
somehow retaliate. But until I talk to Bud, I just don't know why your daughter
has become a fugitive."

Sylvia
toyed with the rim of her glass, rolling it along her lower lip as she stared
into the fading light of the room. "She's going to ruin everything,"
she muttered. "The Nahariya dig had finally become a success with the
discovery of the crusader. Why would she jeopardize everything she's worked
for? I simply don't understand her."

"That's
the problem," Becker tapped the glass in her hand, his jaw ticking with
disgust. "You never did. The harder she tried, the more pressure you put
on her. You were never satisfied with her and maybe she's finally reached the
point where she doesn't care any longer. Hell, Sylvia, you're not concerned
with Rory. You're only concerned with the shame she'll bring down on you by her
actions."

Sylvia
turned to him as he walked away from her. "That's not true. Why do you
think I petitioned for funding for her dig? She's brilliant and beautiful and
deserves everything I can give her."

"She
deserves your love," Becker paused by the desk, jabbing a finger at his
niece. "You act as if she has to earn it."

Sylvia
slammed the glass down to a small mahogany table. "Damn you. How dare you
tell me how to respond to my own child!"

Becker
shook his head, turning away from the swaying woman. "Somebody needs to.
Since the day she was born you've held her illegitimacy against her like a
weapon. If she didn't make anything of herself, then you could blame her for
your shame. And if she did make something of her life, then you could find the
false pride to overlook your own shortcomings. All that crap about her father
dying in Vietnam is the most shameful secret I've ever kept, Sylvia. Have the
guts to tell the woman the truth someday if for no other reason than she
deserves to know. Her father wasn't a decorated fighter pilot; he was a married
sailor on leave."

Sylvia's
gaze was wide with drunken emotion. She tried to respond, but in truth there
was nothing to say. Shaken and dazed, she collected her glass and drained the
last few drops.

"Bud
was supposed to keep an eye on her," she muttered, wandering aimlessly
away from her uncle. "You said he would be perfect for her."

"Bud
Dietrich is the finest field archaeologist I know," Uriah said softly.
"A bachelor, without any family and completely dedicated to his work. When
we saw how he was attracted to her, you agreed that Rory needed his experience
and guidance if her project was going to be a success. And I saw a person who
would finally show her the pride and compassion she needed. Even if Greek and
Roman culture was Bud's specialty and not biblical archaeology, still, I wanted
him on the dig. I wanted him with Rory."

Sylvia
snorted softly. "I was hoping his level character would calm her eccentric
nature somewhat."

"She
is only eccentric because she's spent her entire life trying to capture your
attention."

Sylvia
looked away, refusing to be roped into the familiar argument yet again.
"Do you think Dietrich suspected that we were trying to make a
match?"

"Who
can say? But if he's willing to protect her from the British authorities, it
must mean something."

"Certainly
it does," the once-beautiful woman was colored with bitterness. "It
means that he's let her ruin his life just like she ruined mine thirty years
ago. Now with the abduction of this... this corpse, she’s trying to finish me
off."

Becker
sat behind his desk, ignoring his drunken niece. The story was always the same
with her; over-achievement in the field of Ministry and Education to make up
for the fact that she had conceived a child out of wedlock and she fully blamed
Rory for the secret of shame she had been forced to hide. Blame in the form of
harsh discipline and scholastic pressure that had all but ruined a truly gifted
young girl, and apparently drove her to do something rash.

As
Sylvia poured herself another drink, Becker moved to pick up the phone when it
suddenly rang. His eyes widened with surprise and relief as he acknowledged the
caller, the conversation abruptly moving from cordial to exceptionally serious.
More dialogue as Becker tried to remain calm, assessing the situation and agreeing
upon an immediate course of action.

Ending
the call that had come from the outskirts of London, Becker didn't even hang
the receiver up before he was dialing Corbin's private number.

***

Rory
awoke alone in the large bed, snuggled under mounds of covers. The sun was up,
the day bright, and she sat up in search of Kieran. But he was gone and,
disappointed, she stumbled into the bathroom and turned on the shower.

Soaping
her body, she could still feel his touch and found herself wishing he was in
the shower with her. Her chest was tight with the warmth of happiness, her
limbs languid and weak. Never in her life had she felt so much joy, so much
fulfillment, as if everything in her life was finally right

It was
as if the void Kieran had described in her soul no longer existed, filled by
the emotions and adoration of her knight. Smiling happily as the warm water
rinsed the soap clear, she turned off the shower and dried off.

Suspecting
Kieran was probably downstairs eating everything in sight, she hastened to put
on her makeup and dry her hair. Donning jeans and a pretty white top, she was
putting her shoes on when a soft knock rattled the door. Thinking it was
Kieran, she threw open the door only to be confronted by Bud's grim face. And
by the expression on his features, there was no doubt that he knew everything.

"Uh...
hi, Bud," she said, feeling extremely uncomfortable under his intense
gaze. "How are you feeling?"

He
pushed into the room without being invited. Rory stepped aside, raising an
eyebrow when he locked the door behind him. Only then did he turn to her.

"Let's
get something settled right now," he said in a tone she had never heard
before. "I finished being your stooge and I’m done with your manipulative
mind games. I want Sir Kieran's journal and I want to know what you've done
with his body.
Now!
"

He had
actually shouted. Rory jumped, her eyes wide with surprise and a certain
measure of fear. "But... I told you what happened to Kieran. You've been
with the man for over a day; can't you see the truth of what's happened?"

The
veins on his temples were pulsing. "The only truth I see is that you're
playing me for an idiot. Tell me what I want to know or I swear I'll call the
police this minute and turn you in myself. Do you hear me?"

Rory was
shocked. But she was also angry. Bud was using the situation to punish her for
not returning his feelings and she resented his bitter attempts at
manipulation.

"Fine,"
she lowered her voice, the hazel eyes sparking. "Go right ahead. But I'll
tell them what I've told you; I don't have the body. The body they're looking
for is alive and well. Whether or not the authorities believe me, it's the
God-honest truth."

His
features tensed and he brought up a hand and for a brief, horrifying moment, Rory
actually thought he might strike her. But that didn't fit the character of the
man she knew so well; still, she was relieved when the raised hand moved to his
head and scratched at his scalp in a frustrated gesture.

"I'm
not going to listen to any more of this," he said, his tone suddenly
hoarse with emotion. "I thought we had more respect between us to continue
this lie. But I guess I was wrong. About a lot of things, in fact."

She
refused to allow him to use guilt against her. "Bud, you're my dearest
friend, but we can't plan who we're going to fall in love with. You didn't plan
to fall in love with me, and I didn't plan to fall in love with Kieran. But I
did and I'm sorry if you're hurt."

"Hurt?"
he snorted, an odd smile coming to his lips. "Hell, Rory, you pulled me
into bed with you the night we arrived declaring that you needed my comfort, and
then you spend all last night hitting the sheets with your... friend. What is
it with you? Do you have to control all the men around you like some sort of
sick game?"

Her
cheeks flushed and she took a deep breath to steady herself. "I'm not
trying to control anyone. When I asked you to sleep with me, I really did need
the warmth and comfort of another human being. You even asked me if I was
trying to seduce you and I told you that I wasn't. I apologize if I led you on,
Bud; I didn't mean to. I really don't know what I was thinking at the
time."

"And
you don't know what you're thinking now," he fired back. "God only
knows how that guy has managed to bewitch you, but it's got to stop. For your
own sake, this has all got to stop."

"Who's
going to stop it? You?" she shook her head. "Will calling the police
on me somehow give you the revenge you need against my spurning your
feelings?"

He
stared at her, the rage in his eyes cooling somewhat. "It has nothing to
do with that."

"Bull."

"Damn
you, Rory. Why do you think everything has to revolve around my feelings for
you?"

"Because
it does. Everything you've ever done since the moment we met has revolved
around your attraction to me. It started the day you agreed to the dig, placing
your reputation on the line for a woman determined to chase biblical
myths."

His fury
continued to ease, the truth of her words weighing heavily on his heart. After
a moment, he sighed and looked away. Rory relaxed slightly, feeling his pain
and again so very sorry that she had caused it.

"Kieran
and I are returning to Nahariya for the crown, Bud," she said softly.
"I would like you to come with us."

He
snorted softly. "I don't think so. I'm finished with all of this, Rory."

"But
I need you."

"No,
you don't. You have your Kieran, or whoever in the hell he really is."