Diamond Legacy. Monica McCabe

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СКАЧАТЬ burst out laughing, and Miranda glanced at him like he’d lost his mind.

      He only laughed harder. “I’m sorry. It’s just… Remind me sometime to tell you about the year I changed my college major from criminal justice to veterinary medicine. The comedy of errors that followed had me doubting my sanity.”

      “Well, that proves it.” Miranda smiled wide. “Jason is the best intern at our zoo. And the same will happen for you. Quit worrying about jinxes. You’re good. That’s all you need to focus on.”

      “Even if you are right,” Letta said with despair, “I’m afraid Katanga may be on the verge of sending me off after an incident two weeks ago. It’s why I’m assigned to look after the visiting zoo dentists.” She smiled sheepishly. “Keeps me out of the way.”

      Miranda exchanged a determined glance with Jason. “How long before your residency is completed?”

      “Four weeks.”

      “Perfect,” Miranda said. “Jason and I will return the favor and mentor you through. Stick with us. We’ll tame that jinx long enough for you to gain certification.”

      Jason lifted his glass. “A toast then…to a secret alliance.”

      With a clink of glass and laughter, they drank.

      Miranda’s eyes strayed, and her glance caught on a man in the order line. She frowned as something nagged at her. Sipping her drink, she watched him pay the cashier, then lift his tray, turning her way.

      She promptly choked on her lemonade.

      Mr. I’m-Not-A-Cop? Here? In a Katanga uniform?

      He made his way through the drink line, looking every bit as delicious as he had at the airport, and took a seat at the back with a couple other employees. Dismay filled her as she tossed about possible scenarios for his presence. She didn’t like any of them. Nothing about this could be good. The implications were damning, along with the spike of heated anticipation just seeing him had inspired.

      Jason waved a hand in front of her face. “Umm…see something you like?”

      Miranda scowled and Letta chuckled. “If it’s the handsome one with the sandy-colored hair, he’s new here.”

      “What’s his name?” Miranda asked.

      “Matthew Bennett,” Letta answered. “He’s a janitor and has Katanga females all aflutter.”

      “Aflutter?” Jason snorted. “Know what quickens a man’s heart? Good apple pie, that’s what. Add vanilla ice cream, and we get downright excited.”

      Letta laughed at the joke, but Miranda kept staring at Matthew Bennett. Was he here on an investigation? Was Katanga in trouble? The thought inspired a tremor of alarm, both for the animals in residence and for her and Jason’s chances of returning home unscathed.

      “Want an introduction?” Letta asked.

      Miranda tore her uneasy gaze away and met Letta’s knowing one. She’d meet the man, all right, but on her terms. First she’d lay low and watch, work her own investigation. “Maybe later,” Miranda replied. “Work comes first.”

      “And that’s exactly your problem,” Jason declared. “You really should shift focus once in a while.”

      Her problem was she needed to get out of there before Bennett spotted her. She gathered up her tray. “Shall we get back at it? I’m anxious to look over microchip records of the cheetah in residence. I noticed inflamed gums when he growled at me earlier.”

      Jason groaned. “Man, you never stop. There’s a saying. All work and no play…”

      “Puts you at the top of your field.” Miranda finished his sentence, then gave him a sympathetic grin. “Let’s go.”

      * * * *

      Over the next two days Miranda either followed Matthew Bennett or avoided him. Inside and out, she spied on his every move. And he was good. He had everyone fooled with his cleverly disguised work ethic and friendly attitude. He washed windows, stocked supplies, emptied trash, even tidied up the grounds. No corner of Katanga was left untouched.

      Yet his movements were precise, calculated, his eyes far too alert. More than once she’d had to beat a hasty retreat. The man constantly surveyed his surroundings and not because he was looking for a stray piece of trash.

      What she didn’t understand was why no one else noticed the sharp watchfulness that belied his tousled devil-may-care appearance. Or the muscles that rippled under the shoulders of his too-tight uniform. Or the tan that clearly spelled time spent outdoors. She wasn’t deceived, but it seemed the whole of Katanga was smitten.

      Especially Roz. The chimp trailed his heels like some love-starved waif. And she had far superior radar than Miranda when it came to tracking the bogus janitor. Find Roz and you found Matthew. She’d swear the monkey had a serious crush.

      Miranda forced her attention back to the computer keyboard. Again.

      Her follow-up exam of Estelle revealed a happier and healthier hippo. The pool had been refilled to a comfortable level, the infected incisor was healing nicely, and the lady suffered no ill effects from anesthesia. In fact, Estelle’s whole disposition had greatly improved.

      Miranda noted the success of the procedure into the system. Another growl of her empty stomach had her glancing at her watch, and she sighed. She’d have to hurry. She needed lunch, but Jason and Letta expected her at the animal nutrition center by one o’clock.

      She signed off and left the clinic, going instantly on alert. Truth be told, spying was a highly frustrating business. Despite keeping Matthew Bennett under near constant surveillance, she’d failed to discover any clandestine activity. No secret phone calls, no snooping in forbidden zones, no hint of improper behavior.

      That maddening lack of evidence didn’t change her opinion of his motives, however. Clearly, he was up to something.

      The sound of Roz’s monkey chatter caught her ear. For about a split second she debated against checking it out, but curiosity trumped hunger.

      Scurrying forward into the noisy rotunda, she spotted Roz on the heels of the janitor and followed them into the Kalahari wing. A bank of elevators nestled in an alcove and they’d stopped to wait on a lift. Miranda flattened against the wall, then peered around the corner to see Matthew and Roz enter one of the elevators.

      As soon as the door dinged shut she rushed over to watch the lighted numbers above the elevator. Two…three…stop. Personnel level.

      She hit the stairs and raced up the zigzag staircase before pausing a few seconds at the third floor landing to catch her breath. Her heart pounded as she cracked open the door and peered into an empty hallway.

      Silently she slipped out and made her way to the next bend where she spotted her target standing in front of Victor Keyes’s office. Matthew leaned in close to the door, his hands fiddling at the doorknob.

      He was picking the lock.

      She pulled back and smiled in wicked delight. That was called breaking and entering. Finally, something to nail СКАЧАТЬ