and Jo eased a little closer to the rail to see him catching Sam's arm as she made for the stairs. "Decker wiped her memory and put it in her head that she's tired and wants to sleep. Leave her be until morning. You might stir some of her memories if you talk to her tonight.
They'll be more likely to stay wiped if you leave
her until morning."
"Are you sure?" Sam asked, sounding worried.
"So long as she doesn't see Nicholas or Leo's son again, those memories should stay buried," Mortimer assured her. "Now come on. I need to call Lucian and I'd rather not be too far away from you until we're sure Leo's son isn't still prowling the property."
"Is there a possibility he is?" Sam asked with dismay.
"We think he's fled. The gate was open when the men went to search. We think he slipped back through the woods while Nicholas and Jo were kiss ing and slipped out through the gate when Bricker left his post to investigate the noises he heard."
"Nicholas and Jo were kissing?" Sam asked as if Mortimer had said they'd been having sex on a coffee table in the living room in front of the whole party. Jo understood, however; she was a little shocked at this news herself. She'd been kissing some guy she didn't know but who'd saved her from some guy who'd attacked her?
"I'll explain in a minute," Mortimer promised. "I really have to call Lucian.
Come on."
"But why were they kissing?" Jo heard Sam ask as Mortimer led her away from the entry and into the library.
Much to Jo's regret, the door closed before Mortimer could answer. She would have liked to have heard that answer herself.
Jo stayed where she was for another moment, her mind spinning a little.
Most of what had been said made no sense to
her. Decker had wiped her memory and put it in her head that she was tired?
She'd been attacked by a rogue, whatever
that was, and some fellow named
Nicholas, also a rogue, had saved her... apparently risking himself in some way to do so? And she'd been kissing him?
It was the bit about wiping her memory that bothered her most. What did that mean? And how could it have been done?
Oddly enough, however, while she wondered about that, Jo was also having strange flashes of memory in her head, just bits of memory that were very disjointed and didn't make a lot of sense.
Mostly she just kept seeing the dark-haired
man's face.
Raising one hand to her head, Jo closed her eyes as the headache she'd been suffering suddenly increased tenfold.
Forcing herself to breathe deeply and not think at all, she waited for the intense pain to ease a bit. It had just reduced to being bearable when she heard the front door of the house open again.
Jo stiffened where she stood as what sounded like a small army stomped into the house. She heard the library door open then and Mortimer asked, "Well?"
"All clear. He definitely got away," someone answered.
"Right. I want two men on the gate in future. We stop all vehicles between the gates and do a thorough search, inside, outside, under, and on top before the vehicles are allowed past the second gate from now on. I don't want this happening again. Understood?"
There were several murmured agreements and then Mortimer sighed.
"Nicholas is locked up, but I couldn't reach Lucian.
I left a message, but he and Leigh have been traveling a lot since she lost the baby and it could be a couple hours before he gets back to us. So, in the meantime, I want you..."
Jo couldn't hear the rest of what he said. His voice had grown fainter, as if he'd turned back into the library, and the sound of shuffling feet as several people moved out of the entry completely muffled the rest of his words. The men had followed him into the library, she supposed, and peered cautiously down over the railing when the sound of a door closing was followed by complete silence.
Sure enough, the entry was now empty.
Jo stared at the closed library door for several moments, and then began tiptoeing down the stairs. She didn't know
They'll be more likely to stay wiped if you leave
her until morning."
"Are you sure?" Sam asked, sounding worried.
"So long as she doesn't see Nicholas or Leo's son again, those memories should stay buried," Mortimer assured her. "Now come on. I need to call Lucian and I'd rather not be too far away from you until we're sure Leo's son isn't still prowling the property."
"Is there a possibility he is?" Sam asked with dismay.
"We think he's fled. The gate was open when the men went to search. We think he slipped back through the woods while Nicholas and Jo were kiss ing and slipped out through the gate when Bricker left his post to investigate the noises he heard."
"Nicholas and Jo were kissing?" Sam asked as if Mortimer had said they'd been having sex on a coffee table in the living room in front of the whole party. Jo understood, however; she was a little shocked at this news herself. She'd been kissing some guy she didn't know but who'd saved her from some guy who'd attacked her?
"I'll explain in a minute," Mortimer promised. "I really have to call Lucian.
Come on."
"But why were they kissing?" Jo heard Sam ask as Mortimer led her away from the entry and into the library.
Much to Jo's regret, the door closed before Mortimer could answer. She would have liked to have heard that answer herself.
Jo stayed where she was for another moment, her mind spinning a little.
Most of what had been said made no sense to
her. Decker had wiped her memory and put it in her head that she was tired?
She'd been attacked by a rogue, whatever
that was, and some fellow named
Nicholas, also a rogue, had saved her... apparently risking himself in some way to do so? And she'd been kissing him?
It was the bit about wiping her memory that bothered her most. What did that mean? And how could it have been done?
Oddly enough, however, while she wondered about that, Jo was also having strange flashes of memory in her head, just bits of memory that were very disjointed and didn't make a lot of sense.
Mostly she just kept seeing the dark-haired
man's face.
Raising one hand to her head, Jo closed her eyes as the headache she'd been suffering suddenly increased tenfold.
Forcing herself to breathe deeply and not think at all, she waited for the intense pain to ease a bit. It had just reduced to being bearable when she heard the front door of the house open again.
Jo stiffened where she stood as what sounded like a small army stomped into the house. She heard the library door open then and Mortimer asked, "Well?"
"All clear. He definitely got away," someone answered.
"Right. I want two men on the gate in future. We stop all vehicles between the gates and do a thorough search, inside, outside, under, and on top before the vehicles are allowed past the second gate from now on. I don't want this happening again. Understood?"
There were several murmured agreements and then Mortimer sighed.
"Nicholas is locked up, but I couldn't reach Lucian.
I left a message, but he and Leigh have been traveling a lot since she lost the baby and it could be a couple hours before he gets back to us. So, in the meantime, I want you..."
Jo couldn't hear the rest of what he said. His voice had grown fainter, as if he'd turned back into the library, and the sound of shuffling feet as several people moved out of the entry completely muffled the rest of his words. The men had followed him into the library, she supposed, and peered cautiously down over the railing when the sound of a door closing was followed by complete silence.
Sure enough, the entry was now empty.
Jo stared at the closed library door for several moments, and then began tiptoeing down the stairs. She didn't know
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