Page 37 of Once a Hero

“I hear you. You’d think he’d split up the brooches if they held the map to some of the Amber Room panels.”

“Exactly.”

“In any case, I’m sorry we lost the three-amber brooch.” Jake knew he had to go back to San Francisco to retrieve the one-amber brooch that he and Earl had kept in a safe-deposit box at the bank.

“Yeah, that was super careless of you, Jake.” Helen didn’t mince her words.

“You blaming Earl too?”

“Both of you should be reprimanded.”

“You wouldn’t believe how sorry I am.”

Helen didn’t smile. “I forgive you.”

“You’re not smiling.” Jake recalled someone else who did smile. “Let’s talk about Beatrice Glynn. Who is she? Why is she here? We’re working in parallel so much that I’m getting a bit suspicious.”

“You want to hold her close?”

“What?” Jake would have fallen off his chair if he were on a chair. But he was on this sagging motel bed.

“I meant you want to keep your enemies close.”

“Right. But I don’t know if Beatrice is an enemy.”

Helen raised an eyebrow. “Beatrice, huh?”

“That’s her name. I told her to call me Jake.”

“Tired of living undercover?” Helen asked.

“Maybe.” In many ways he was. “Tired of being tired, to tell you the truth. I’ve been chasing Molyneux for so many years that I just want to be done.”

“Don’t we all? The sooner the better, before she kills again.”

“About that, doesn’t it strike you as weird that she hadn’t bombed any city in a year?” Jake could not recall any news reports.

“It just means she’s gathering her troops.”

“Or she’s short on funds.”

“If she finds the Amber Room, she will sell the panels on the black market. Even though Mr. Buchanan is gone, there are other arms dealers who would take his place.”

“If she sells such a historic masterpiece in the underground, the world will never see the original Amber Room again,” Jake said.

“Those pieces they found in Crete are all they have left of it,” Helen said.

“I remember your story.”

“It didn’t end there. There were so many unanswered questions.”

Jake nodded. “Which is why I think I need to work with Beatrice.”

“What do you have to offer her?”

“That’s the million dollar question.” Jake yawned. “Let me decompress for a little bit, and I’ll think of something.”

“In other words, you’re going to take a nap while Beatrice et al raid the cabin.”

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