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“Has Millard given you reason to believe he’s got someone staked out watching Time in a Bottle?”

Andy grimaced. “No.”

“Me neither. Even if Millard were taking those steps, it’s a mistake to assume other people are as smart and rational as you are. It’s also a mistake to assume people are motivated by the same things you are.”

“Sure, but most people will be deterred by the thought of the pol—”

Quinn was blunt. “You tell me one thing that’s happened in the last two days that indicates we’re dealing with a smart, rational person. Was it smart or rational to attack an old man and nearly kill him? Was it rational to come back two more times knowing the police were liable to be watching the shop?”

“As it turns out, the police aren’t watching as closely as I’d have hoped.”

Quinn was undeterred. “Was it smart or rational to destroy Miriam Labelle’s entire collection?”

No. It wasn’t. Like the attack on Uncle C., the annihilation of Miriam’s snow globes seemed to indicate a violent personality willing to smash anything that got in its way.

“No, that seemed more like frustration than strategy. Or at least as much frustration as strategy.”

“Exactly. And I don’t want you in the path of that…sense of grievance.”

Andy stared. “But we can’t just allow this guy to come and go as he pleases.”

Quinn opened his mouth, then shut it as Hilton returned with their check. “Whenever you’re ready,” she told them.

Andy reached for the leather check presenter, but Quinn simply handed Hilton his credit card. He winked at Andy. “Next time.”

Now there was strategy for you.

Hilton plucked the check presenter from Andy’s unresisting hand and departed.

As if there had been no interruption, Quinn said, “It’s been years since Sirius had to do his own legwork. Assuming, we’re talking about the same guy, when he visited the shop, did he seem interested in any particular items?”

Andy thought back. “At the time I thought he was just looking around. Browsing. But the only items he really paid attention to were the snow globes in the display case. He dismissed them as junk and asked if we had any others.”

Quinn nodded as though this confirmed his thoughts. “Here’s what worries me. Whatever our thief is looking for, it’s no longer in the shop. But he doesn’t know that.”

Andy stared. “How do you know it’s no longer in the shop?”

Quinn smiled grimly. “Because Sirius wouldn’t have left without it.”

Elementary, my dear Andrew!

“Then they’re not working together.”

“I doubt it.”

Which meant…what? Andy wasn’t sure. His thinking felt fogged and unfocused. That was partly lack of sleep—Quinn was right about that. And partly Andy felt overwhelmed by the events of the past few days: Uncle C. fighting for his life, nefarious and violent strangers searching for an item Andy evidentlydidn’tpossess, and the ever-present threat of Marcus looming in the background.

It was a lot. Right now, it felt like too much.

Andy said slowly, “I shouldn’t have hidden the snow globes. I should have hidden the sales ledger book.”

Quinn gave him a keen-eyed look. “Our friend will already have had at least a glance at that ledger, don’t you think?”

Andy stared. The break-in at Miriam Labelle’s. Quinn was right.

Quinn said, “That doesn’t mean he wouldn’t like another closer look. Why don’t we go back to the shop. You can throw some clothes in a bag, grab the sales ledger and whatever else you need, and we’ll head over to my place and figure out our next move.”

Andy hesitated. He didn’t want to think he was a coward, but hewasworried about spending another night alone at Time in a Bottle. It wasn’t even fear so much as not having the physical or emotional energy to deal with another crisis. On the other hand, he really didn’t want Quinn getting the wrong idea. Andy had zero interest in further entanglements of any kind. His life already felt like a fucking Gordian Knot.