2 The Dante Connection Read Free

going to have an argument while you’re driving.”
    “I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said and opened the passenger door for me. There was too much I wanted to say to him at that moment. Eventually I simply groaned and got into the high seat of his SUV. I took juvenile pleasure in pulling the door out of his hand and slamming it.
    As soon as Colin pulled away from the curb, he pushed a few buttons on the dashboard screen. The sound of a phone ringing filled the car.
    “Allô,” a tinny, but distinctly male voice answered. He sounded awake.
    “Paul? This is Andrew Marvell.” Colin gave me a quick smile. I shook my head at his false identity. His use of the names of seventeenth-century English poets was how I had exposed him in the first place. I knew that if I checked, Andrew Marvell would also be an English poet.
    “Andrew?” The voice laughed. “It’s been years. How are you?”
    “Still invisible. How are you?”
    “Still the best.” His English was exceptional, the French accent barely audible. There was a slight pause. “It’s two-forty in the morning. I take this is not a social call?”
    “Unfortunately not. I have a friend with me who needs medical attention. She needs it without any paperwork.”
    “Done. How bad is she?”
    “She’s been badly beaten. Maybe some broken ribs, hopefully no internal bleeding.”
    “You know where to bring her. I’ll be waiting for you.”
    “Thanks, Paul.” Colin glanced at his watch. “We should be there in another five minutes.”
    Unsurprisingly the streets were empty. This time of the morning was too late for the night owls and too early for the early birds. About the only time that there was a lull in the constant movement of the city. Knowing that there was a killer in the backseat, I thought it was a good thing there were no witnesses.
    After four months of fretting about Colin’s safety, three months of Vinnie’s absence and two weeks of Francine avoiding me, I now found myself cocooned in this SUV with them. Reunited. And infuriated. I had so many arguments that I didn’t know where to start. “I’m not going into the hospital.”
    Colin smiled. “That only took thirty seconds.”
    “You timed me?”
    “I had a bet with myself.”
    “That doesn’t make sense. How can you bet against yourself? There will be no winner.” I caught myself before I digressed further. “I’m not going into the hospital.”
    “So you said.” He glanced at me. “Why not?”
    I inhaled, but didn’t get a chance to speak.
    “And don’t tell me it is because Francine killed two men. We still don’t know the whole story and I do not believe you are so judgemental that you won’t give Francine the opportunity to explain. I can also understand that you are extremely angry with me and with Vinnie, but you still wouldn’t let that keep you from being there for your friend.” His voice softened. “What is the real reason, Jenny?”
    I might be the one with degrees in psychology and nonverbal communication, but Colin had a natural ability to see deep into people’s psyches. It annoyed me that he knew me so well. Especially since he had not been in my life for the last four months to know me any better. Yet he knew when to push me for explanations and when to leave me be. I wished he would leave me be about going into the hospital.
    “Ignoring me won’t work,” he said as he turned into a narrow street.
    “I don’t like hospitals,” I said.
    “Why not?”
    “I don’t want to talk about it.” I turned away from him.
    We entered the parking lot of an upscale medical clinic. Colin parked close to the entrance and turned to me. “I’m sorry, Jenny. The last four months have been hell. Part of that hell was the decision to exclude you from what was happening. I will explain everything to you as soon as Francine is taken care of. Until then I sincerely hope that you can see how much I regret all this time we’ve lost.”
    I studied his face in the