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and asked her, she might have an answer.
    That decided, he turned his meditations on Genoveva Jardim herself. Would she be safe? The answer that came back to him didn’t tell him of death, but it certainly indicated a threat. His eyes opened. Surely that meant her attacker would return. Didn’t it?
    He closed his eyes again and sought an answer. Unfortunately, his gift didn’t give him one. That meant that either the situation was too unpredictable, or the person threatening her was. He didn’t like either possibility. He spent some time posing questions one way and then another, trying to figure out what that unpredictable factor was, but failed.
    He rarely asked himself the next question. It seemed indulgent and self-serving, and nearly an improper use of his gift.
    Will I marry Genoveva ?
    For the first time in months, the answer didn’t come back as yes . It wasn’t no , either. It was uncertain .
    Rafael opened his eyes and swung his feet over the side of his bed. Whatever was threatening her safety must also be threatening his future. And he couldn’t let that happen. Not now that he’d let himself begin to care about her. That would be damnably unfair.
    He’d been meditating longer than usual, so he hurriedly dressed and headed for the station. Once on the street, though, he changed his mind. Instead of the station, he headed down toward the Clérigos Church with its tall tower where Miss Jardim attended Mass.
    Since she’d first spotted her attacker a week before as she left Mass, Rafael stayed to the far side of the street and watched as the parishioners began to file out of the church. There were plenty of men who fit the description she’d given, but none seemed inclined to stay about and wait for her to emerge. She finally came out of the church and almost immediately spotted him standing there across the street.
    Rafael gestured for her to go on her way. She nodded once, and began walking uphill toward Boavista and the police station. He trailed her at some distance, catching up while she paused at a café and ordered a coffee with milk. As she stood at the counter sipping her coffee, he came up behind her. “It’s only me, Miss Jardim.”
    “Did you see anyone?” she asked after he ordered a coffee and a sweet roll.
    Rafael shook his head. “He didn’t follow you out of Mass, at least.”
    “Did you think he would come back today?”
    She hadn’t seen the man since the incident, so her question made sense. She likely hoped it was all over with.
    “I had a bad feeling about today,” he admitted. “Nothing more specific than that, I’m afraid. So I thought I should check on you.”
    “You mean you had a bad feeling about me today.”
    He wasn’t going to lie. “Yes, Miss Jardim.”
    The waiter set his coffee on the counter. Rafael picked up the little cup and drank half of it at once. Miss Jardim’s brows rose, but she merely smiled as she took another sip of hers. “Yes, I’m rushing,” he admitted. “I’d prefer not to linger here.”
    This was an indefensible spot, since there was a crowd of people pushed up close together at the counter, standing there to drink their coffee. When she set down her cup, he drank the last of his. He left enough money on the counter to pay for both their tabs, grabbed the sweet roll, and steered Miss Jardim out of the crowd and back onto the sidewalk.
    Once they were on their way again, she said, “You didn’t have to pay for mine, Captain. I can pay you back.”
    Rafael glanced behind them, but didn’t see anyone following them. “It saved time, Miss Jardim.” He tore the sweet roll in half, and offered one piece to her.
    “I’ve become accustomed to skipping breakfast,” she said quickly.
    He hadn’t missed the yearning manner in which she’d eyed his breakfast in the café. “Yes, I’ve noted that you’ve lost weight since you came to work for the police.” She flushed when he said that, but he didn’t back down. He continued to