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It was a good story. By all accounts, Derrek was good at stories too. He was a charmer. He lured women to their deaths by making them believe he was a good guy. A lost soul.

Had his son inherited the same trait?

I made three more passes in front of the bookshelf. On the fourth, something caught my eye. If I hadn’t been staring at the same thing in my own office all week, I wouldn’t have seen it. When I did, a cold sweat broke out on the back of my neck.

It was nestled between a book on architecture and a travel guide to Europe. Its black spine was weathered. One corner had been ripped away. But I recognized the logo of the small rising sun.

I reached for the book and slowly pulled it out.

The Traveler’s Guide to Oblivion, by J. Marvin Sherman.

My pulse raced. This wasn’t a coincidence. Professor Pollack’s words echoed through me. There were less than a thousand copies of this book in existence. It wasn’t the kind of thing one might casually pick up by happenstance.

But there it was. The same book that contained the words uttered by Geneva’s attacker.

Atrō te benedicto.

I turned the book over in my hands. I wanted more time to inspect it. Instinct took over and I started to put the book in my bag.

“This isn’t a library!” Raven had moved so stealthily, I hadn’t heard her come up. I was startled when she ripped the book out of my hands.

“That isn’t …” I stopped myself. What could I say?

“Boone won’t have any more time for you. He told me to apologize. But you need to leave.”

I couldn’t tear my eyes from the book clutched in Raven’s hands. I wanted it. Something inside me told me it meant something. It had to.

“I can wait,” I said.

“No, you can’t,” she said. “Boone’s already gone. He went out the back door. He’s on his way to a job site. He has nothing more to say to you. Please leave.”

Short of tackling Raven and snatching the book out of her hands, there was nothing I could do. Frustration tasted bitter in my mouth.

“Goodbye,” she said, taking a step toward me.

I had no choice but to retreat. Regroup. Boone and Raven may have thought they were finished with me. But I was far from finished with them.

Chapter

Twenty-Seven

It was well past six by the time I made it back to Helene. It surprised me to see the lights still on at the office. I figured Dad would have bummed a ride back to the island with Kobe by now. That was the plan if I hadn’t returned by five.

I could see him from the conference room window, standing over the table, his palms resting on it. He was deep in concentration. I startled him when I walked in.

“Sorry,” I said after Dad jumped back.

“Mercy. Thought I’d lost you out in the field. How’d it go?”

I filled him in on my conversation with Boone. Then I told him about the book in his possession.

“That’s not a coincidence,” he said.

“I know.”

Dad stepped away from the table. He had copies of Sidney’s fan letters spread out.

“Do you think Derrek Jr. was involved out at Deadwater Lake?” Dad asked.