as a scythe. No reason to kill Len? You have no idea how wrong you are, Hannah.
Her breath stuck in her throat at what she saw in his face. At that moment he reminded her
chillingly of Len. Dangerous. Distant. Ruthless.
But in one thing youre right, Archer said. I didnt kill Len. Where were you when he died,
Mrs. McGarry?
She met his eyes straight on, as controlled and remote as he was. I didnt kill Len. You
had a better motive than most. If I wanted his death on my conscience, all I had to do was
walk out on him. What does that mean?
Hating me kept him alive. Loving pearls almost kept him sane.
Almost, Archer repeated softly, understanding much of what Hannah didnt say. Even ten
years ago, Len had gone off on rages of laughter or drinking or screwing. Or mayhem. Yet
you stayed with him.
Youre either very brave or very stupid, Hannah.
Im neither. Life happens one day at a time, like water dripping on stone. You dont notice
the change except over years. She rubbed her aching eyes. As for the rest, no one deserves
all the good or the bad that comes their way. You just take it the way it comes, one day
at a time.
Echoes of a missionary upbringing?
She shrugged and stuffed a slippery piece of hair behind her ear. I no longer thank God
for the good that happens or blame my inborn evil for the bad. I just... Her voice faded.
Survive, Archer finished.
Yes. What else is there?
Everything.
For some people, perhaps. Not for me.
There was no self-pity in Hannahs voice, no anger. She accepted, and from that acceptance
she drew the strength to survive. It hadnt always been that way. Len had very nearly
destroyed her.
What do you want from life? Archer asked before he could think better of it.
What Ive earned: the Black Trinity. But to find it, I we will have to find Lens
murderer. Whoever killed him took the pearls. If you help me find what has been lost, Ill
give you half of whatever we get for it.
Hearing all that Hannah hadnt said in the tension of her voice, Archer wondered who else
knew about the pearls, who had killed to take them, and who would kill again to keep them.
She rose, gathered plates, and took them to the sink. When she turned, he was watching
her, waiting.
Whats the Black Trinity? he asked.
An unstrung triple-strand necklace of black pearls. The whole necklace is worth three
million American, wholesale.
Archer whistled softly through his teeth. Three million?
That would be some necklace. Especially since the Aussies took the steam out of the
Tahitian black pearl market when they learned how to make Australias huge silver-lipped
oysters produce big black pearls.
The Black Trinity is worth at least three million, Hannah said evenly. The smallest strand
is twenty inches long, with twelve-millimeter pearls. The middle strand is twenty-two
inches, with fourteen-millimeter pearls. The longest strand is twenty-four inches, with
sixteen-millimeter pearls. All of the black pearls are round and color-matched within and
across their strand.
Luster?
Superb. The pearls have a surface that is as close to flawless as nature gets. If nature
doesnt provide it, I try.
Youre a pearl doctor? he asked, surprised. Softly, softly, sanding a pearl down through
layer after layer of nacre in the hope of finding a less flawed surface was like rolling
dice with the devil. When you lost, you lost it all. It took guts and confidence to peel a
pearl as patiently as the oyster had created it in the first place.
If the stakes are high enough, I doctor pearls, Hannah said. Its rather like sculpting.
You remove whatever gets in the way of the vision. Sometimes your vision is clear and you
end up with something beautiful. Sometimes you end up with a pile of sawdust.
Soapy sponge in hand, she began washing the lunch dishes. The food had helped her
physically. Her hands were much more sure. Not that it mattered. Her dishes were the
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