Gage studied the gold, turning it over and over in his hand. “Have you had it assayed?”
Abby nodded. “Twenty-four karat. Ninety-nine percent pure gold.”
He rubbed his thumb over the stamp mark. “I recognize this style of writing. It’s Spanish, very old. It’s called Italica. I ran across documents written in this style when I was digging around in some archives in Seville.”
“You’re right. Italica was used by the Spanish from 1550 to 1800. In this case, the P stands for Peralta. That was in the letter my grandfather left with the map.”
A letter he most surely wanted to read. “According to the legend,” Gage said, “it was the Peralta family who found gold in the Superstitions and started the mine in the 1700s. They worked it for years, brought out gold worth millions today. As the story goes, they were using mules to transport a number of gold bars to Mexico in 1847 when the family was attacked by a group of hostile Apaches.”
Abby nodded. “Legend says the family was completely wiped out. Along with any notion of where the mine was located, a secret they’d guarded for generations. That’s the basic premise, or at least one of them. I figured you’d know something about it.”
“I know a little about all the most valuable lost treasures in the world. Not much about that one.”
“So what do you think? Are you interested now?”
He looked down at the map, thought of King Farrell and the man’s absolute conviction the treasure existed. The X on the map wouldn’t be easy to find, but it might be possible. And Abby was going—with or without him.
“I have his notes,” she added, those amber eyes sparkling like the gold he held in his hand.
“I’ll just bet you do,” he said, fighting not to smile.
“There’s an overlying map King drew that has longitude and latitude points along the route.”
“That’s a definite plus.” He set the gold down next to the map on the table, rose, and once more extended his hand. “Looks like you’ve got a deal—partner.”
Abby grinned and shook his hand.
CHAPTER FIVE
EXCITED, BUT NOT REALLY SURPRISED THATGAGE HAD SWALLOWEDthe tempting lure she had cast, Abby returned the gold and the map to the box.
Gage frowned. “You haven’t been keeping that here? That much gold is worth a lot of money. You’ve already had a break-in that could have gotten you killed.”
“It was in a safe deposit box at the bank until I picked it up this afternoon. I wanted another look at my grandfather’s notes, and I figured I’d be needing the gold for our meeting in the morning.”
“Which leaves us with a problem tonight.”
“You’re worried about the guy at the museum.”
He nodded. “There’s no way to know if it was the same man who attacked you. If it was, he must have followed you. If he followed you, he knows where you live.”
A shiver crawled down her spine. She remembered the attacker’s fierce, lean strength. She might not be as lucky the next time.
“I have a pistol,” she said. “A .38 revolver. If he breaks in, I’m not afraid to pull the trigger.”
Gage shook his head. “I still don’t like it. I’ve got a couple of spare bedrooms. My room is way down the hall.” He smiled. “You can bring your pistol. If I misbehave, you can shoot me.”
Abby laughed. The man could definitely be charming. His gaze ran over her, and there was something in his eyes that could only be described as heat. Renewed sexual awareness slipped through her, which wasn’t good. Their association was strictly business. Abby wanted to keep it that way.
“I’ll be all right,” she said. “I’ve been living by myself for years. If the guy breaks in, he’s going to be very sorry.”
One of Logan’s dark eyebrows went up. “What if this time he doesn’t come alone?”
Unease trickled through her. Abby didn’t reply.
“I’ll tell you what. If you don’t want to spend the night at my place, I’ll stay here. I can sleep on the sofa. Believe me, it’s a lot more comfortable than some of the places I’ve slept. If your visitor returns, there’ll be two of us to deal with him.”
Just the thought of Gage sleeping only partly dressed on her sofa sent a curl of heat into her stomach. “I don’t know . . .”
