Erik thumbed the pages absently for a few seconds, and then looked up as the others did, watching Archibald Devane shuffle away.
The silence following began to pound in all their ears. As had happened before—when the six were exploring the house together—a gentle rise in energy seemed to animate the room—all in a muted, pent-up, erotic fashion.
“Well, I guess we have our answer,” Erik broke through the quiet. “Simple enough. I think we could have guessed as much.”
“Simple! You think that is simple?” Laney seemed quite close to exploding. “It’s perverted.”
“Better not condemn yourself, Laney,” Jason said. “You heard what the old man said about fear and desire.”
“This has nothing to do with my fear and desire,” she said.
“Well then, you won’t have any problem hearing what it says in
