The Sacred Bones Read Online Free PDF

proposal, Aldrich had volunteered her services for a highly secretive project. Few things could divert Evan Aldrich from his work, especially when the request required him to hand over his best researcher.
    Clearly this was one of them.
    At thirty-two, Charlotte was a lithe five-nine with striking emerald green eyes and a smooth, healthily tanned face framed by shoulder length curls of chestnut hair. With a rare balance of intellect and charm, she'd become her company's chosen spokesperson for an industry typified by gray scientists. Human genetics was often misunderstood and always controversial. With BMS aggressively promoting its latest gene-mapping technology, the right public image was important.
    Recently she had added media appearances to her arsenal of talents-- talk shows and news programs. Aldrich had told her that the Vatican priest mentioned seeing one of her most recent interviews concerning the reconstruction of maternal lineage through mapping mitochondrial DNA, prompting his request for her services.
    Now that her time was split between research and public relations, she wondered exactly what role she'd be asked to play here. After all, the conservative papacy was surely not one of her biggest supporters.
    Her thoughts drifted back to Evan Aldrich.
    Aldrich had abruptly shifted his career ten years ago, abandoning his secure tenure as a Harvard professor of genetic science to enter the uncertain world of business. And he had handled the switch brilliantly. Not for the first time, Charlotte mused about what made Evan tick. Not money, though when BMS eventually went public he would make a great deal of it. What really drove the man was his sense of purpose, his belief that the work they did and the choices they made really mattered. It was his passion and genuine charisma that first attracted her to him. The fact that she thought he looked like a movie star didn't hurt either.
    Almost a year ago, she and Evan had begun dating, both very cautious about the potential work-related conflicts such a relationship might bring about. But if there could exist a natural fit between two people, Charlotte had certainly found it-- like the inevitable laws of physics she found herself hopelessly drawn to him. Only four months ago, things between them seemed perfect.
    Then fate decided to throw a curveball at her.
    A routine blood test taken during her annual physical detected abnormally high protein levels in her blood. Further testing followed that included a painful bone biopsy. Finally came the devastating diagnosis: multiple myeloma .
    Bone cancer.
    At first, she was angry. After all, she was practically a vegetarian, rarely drank, and exercised like a fiend. It just didn't make sense, especially because at the time, she felt perfectly fine.
    That wasn't the case now. Just a week earlier, she began taking Melphalan-- her first round of low-dose chemotherapy. Now she felt like she was battling a permanent hangover, complete with intermittent waves of nausea.
    She didn't have the heart to tell Evan. Not yet, at least. He had already been talking about a more permanent future, even kids. None of that seemed possible now and it crushed her. Over the past few weeks, she had grown more despondent. In all fairness to him, she needed to be absolutely certain that she would be among the ten percent who actually beat this disease before she could commit to anything more serious.
    A discreet knock pulled Charlotte from her thoughts.
    Reaching the door in four strides, she opened it to see a bespectacled bald man barely her height, dressed in a black suit and shirt. His complexion was smooth and pale. Maybe in his late forties or early fifties, she guessed. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the white priest collar.
    "Good afternoon, Dr. Hennesey. I'm Father Patrick Donovan." His English was flavored with an Irish brogue. Smiling pleasantly, he extended a thin hand.
    My Vatican admirer, she thought. "A pleasure to meet you,