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intended to see any of them again, yet here he was with two of them. They'd let Emily down. His sister was dead and these two women were alive. They were beautiful, energetic— one with a family and children, the other a doctor.
    Emily hadn't lived to see her twentieth birthday, hadn't had a chance to fall in love, get married, or have children. His stomach churned at the injustice.
    "Cole?" Natalie's questioning voice made him turn to her.
    "What?"
    She tipped her head toward the door, and he realized the line had moved. A few moments later they entered the bookstore and caught their first glimpse of Garrett Malone. The author sat at a large oak table, a pile of books in front of him, an assistant standing next to him, preparing each book for his signature. Malone looked exactly like the photo on the cover of his book. A brown beard covered most of his face, thick eyeglasses made him appear supremely intelligent, and neatly styled brown hair was just long enough to give him a creative, artistic look.
    "Do you recognize him?" Natalie asked.
    He shook his head. "Do you?"
    "There's something familiar ... I don't know what though. He's too old to have been a student with us or to have been at the party that night. He must be in his mid-forties. That would have put him in his mid-thirties back then. Anyone that age would have stood out."
    "I agree. That doesn't mean he didn't have friends. Hell, maybe even a daughter," Cole said abruptly. "He could be older than you're guessing. He could be fifty with a twenty-nine-year-old kid who was nineteen and a college sophomore that night."
    "I suppose. I don't remember any Malones."
    "Let me see that book." He took the copy from Laura's hand and opened it to the copyright page. "That's interesting. The copyright is in the name Pen Productions."
    "Sounds like a business name. Why is that interesting?"
    "I don't know yet."
    The line moved again, and they drew within a few feet of the table.
    Garrett Malone looked up as a woman with a baby on one hip bent over her stroller to get a copy of the book. He glanced at the line and smiled, a very self-satisfied smile. Cole didn't like him. He was up to something. Something that might hurt his family.
    Malone's gaze moved toward Cole. There was a split second of eye contact between them, but no clear recognition on Malone's part. If he knew so much about Emily, why didn't he recognize her brother? Cole wondered. Then he saw Malone's gaze shift, and he realized the man was looking at Natalie now, or maybe Laura. Suddenly Malone was on his feet.
    "He's getting up," Natalie said. "Is he coming over here?"
    "I think he saw us," Laura added.
    Malone said something to his assistant, who looked surprised and worried. A moment later Malone left the table entirely, walking briskly toward the back of the store and away from the line— away from them.
    "Where's he going?" Natalie asked.
    Before Cole could move, the assistant stepped up to the table and raised her hand for quiet. "Mr. Malone is feeling ill. He's very sorry, but he can no longer continue the signing." She paused, clearing her throat, obviously upset by the sudden change in events. The crowd of people began to complain. The store manager stepped up and offered those in line ten percent off their purchases.
    Cole didn't wait to hear more. He headed toward the back of the store, knowing he was too late when he saw the door leading to a back parking lot.
    "Is he gone?" Natalie asked, almost tripping over his heels as he stopped.
    "Looks that way. Damn."
    "Do you think he's really sick?" Laura asked.
    "Hell, no."
    "He ran away," Natalie said. "He ran away when he saw us."
    "When he saw you," Cole corrected. "He looked right through me, but he knew one of you, maybe both of you."
    "But we don't know him," Laura said. "Do we, Natalie?"
     
* * *
     
    Natalie was still thinking about Laura's question as they walked into the Starbucks next to the bookstore. She wasn't quite sure why she'd agreed to