10
While Sarah slept, Adam returned to the house. He found Ruthven alone in the parlor on the couch with the papers from the safe strewn about the coffee table.
Adam looked around. “Where’s Cate?”
Ruthven didn’t look up. “Upstairs with her kitten.”
Adam grabbed a chair and scooted it up to the short side of the table where he took a seat. “What do you make of it?”
Ruthven pursed his lips as he shook his head. “I don’t know. Many of the papers are merely financial dealings, but this-” he held up a slip of smooth paper, “-this is unusual.”
Adam took the paper and furrowed his brow as he studied the makeup of the parchment. “Vellum?”
Ruthven nodded. “Yes, and of a very high quality.”
Adam perused the written contents. There were four lines of text. He read them aloud.
Have
