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directly to Mr. Barrett.
    He glared at her a moment with those cold blue eyes before he growled„"Only the smart-assed ones." The door was shut with emphasis.
    "Brute," Erin muttered when he had gone.
    "Mr. Barrett?" Melanie asked in an astonished voice.
    "Why, he's the nicest man I've ever met! Except for Ken, of course."
    Erin looked at her in puzzled shock. "You can't be serious! He's practically taken over the control of your house and your life. He issues orders like a drill sergeant and expects everyone to scurry to obey them. He has invaded your privacy to the utmost extreme."
    "He's only doing his job, Erin," Melanie said quietly.
    "Ken is in a lot of trouble, you know. When Mr. Barrett came here, he was apologetic for his intrusion. During the long hours he questioned me, he was a perfect gentleman, and put me at ease when I was frightened and heartsick with worry over Ken and what he had done. He coaxed me into remembering things I never could have otherwise; things that might help them track Ken down. I'll do anything I can to help them. I want them to find Ken and bring him home. I want to know that he's safe."
    Erin sympathized wi th the young woman and even con curred with her hope that Ken Lyman would soon be found. But she was stunned to hear Melanie describing Lance Barrett in such glowing terms. Words like "gentle-man," "apologetic," "coax" didn't fit the manner in which the man had treated her.
    What made Erin a suspect in crime when he obviously didn't think Ken's wife was in collusion with him? He had abused her physically and verbally since her arrival. What had she done to provoke such harsh treatment?
    MELANIE INSISTED that, in spite of everything, Erin's appearance in the house called for a celebration. She cajoled Mike into allowing Erin to leave the study and help her set the dining room table. Using her best tablecloth, china, and crystal, Melanie set the table with the detail required for an important dinner party.
    Her attempt was touching and somehow pathetic. She seemed far younger than her twenty-four years. Even though she gave lip service to the seriousness of Ken's theft, Erin doubted that Melanie really grasped it. Naivete and blind trust were readily apparent in everything she said and did.
    The three of them were laughing at a recalcitrant napkin that refused to stand at attention in the china plate as Melanie wanted it to, when Lance came through the door of the dining room.
    He wore a scowl of disapproval when he leveled his hard gaze on Erin. Leaving no question of his displeasure at seeing hereout of the room where he had sequestered her, he bore down on Mike.
    "Uh . . . I . . . she .. . that is, Mrs. Lyman thought . . . " Mike stammered before Lance mercifully cut him off abruptly and said, "Let's eat this before it gets cold."
    Mike breathed a visible sigh of relief and cast an eye toward Erin as if blaming her for his transgression. He was quick to hop to Lance's aid in relieving him of some of the cartons of Chinese food. The white pasteboard was incongruous with the fine linen tablecloth and shimmering crystal, but no one seemed to notice as they took their seats around the table.
    Erin watched with stunned eyes as Lance helped Melanie into her chair. He was solicitous in manner, and his eyes softened discernibly whenever he looked at her." Erin graciously accepted Mike's help with her own chair. She smiled up at him and said, "Thank you," missing the hard, quelling look Mike received from his superior.
    Melanie explained to Lance her reason for going to the trouble of using the best dishes and setting the table in the dining room. "It's not every day that one finds out they have a beautiful, sweet sister-in-law. If Ken were here,"
    her voice quivered slightly, "I'm sure that he'd want to celebrate her sudden appearance."
    "Did your husband ever mention having a sister that was separated from him?" Lance asked her softly. His tone was deceptive and for Melanie's benefit alone.