Page 2 of Gabriel's Promise (Gabriel's Inferno 4)

In the darkness of the hospital room, Gabriel resolved to protect, love, and care for his wife and his daughter, no matter the cost.

Chapter Two

One week later

Mount Auburn Hospital

Cambridge, Massachusetts

It began with an email.

It was a small thing—the checking of email. Perhaps it was one of the smallest, most inconsequential of actions. One tapped the screen of one’s phone and email messages appeared.

A wise Canadian once wrote, The medium is the message. And in this case, the email and its contents were incredibly important.

There had been whispers.

The community of Dante specialists was not particularly large, and Professor Gabriel O. Emerson was well known. He’d been the top student to graduate from his program at Harvard, and in a very short time he made a name for himself at the University of Toronto.

Then he’d been besieged by scandal—a scandal involving his beloved Julianne, who also happened to be his graduate student. There had been an investigation. A tribunal. A ruling. A resignation.

The university kept the matter quiet. Julianne graduated and began doctoral studies at Harvard. Gabriel accepted a position as full professor at Boston University. They’d married on January 21, 2011.

But still, there were whispers. Whispers from a former graduate student named Christa Peterson, who claimed Emerson was a predator and Julianne was a whore.

Although Gabriel had done his best to silence Christa and to combat the rumors, the whispers continued. Now, a few months away from their second wedding anniversary, Gabriel kept his own counsel, not wishing to give voice to his worries. But in truth, he feared he’d tainted Julianne’s career. At this time, the academic community was far more forgiving of its male senior faculty than its young female graduate students.

Gabriel knew this. Which was why he stared for some time at the email message he’d received.

The message was from a group Gabriel had heard of but never met. He read the message and then once more, just to be sure he hadn’t misunderstood.

A strange feeling washed over him. His skin prickled. Something momentous was about to happen. . . .

“Gabriel?” Julianne’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “Do we have everything? Rachel took home the flowers and balloons.”

Gabriel opened his mouth to tell his wife about the email he’d just received, but was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Dr. Rubio, their obstetrician. She had a habit of popping up, like gray-eyed Athena in Homer’s Odyssey. Dr. Rubio appeared, made pronouncements, and vanished, sometimes leaving havoc in her wake.

“Good morning.” She greeted the Emersons with a smile. “I need to go over a few things before Julia and Clare are discharged.”

Gabriel returned his cell phone to his jacket pocket. He’d received the scare of his life a few days previous, when he mistakenly thought Julianne hadn’t survived the delivery. Anxiety still clung to him, like a hangover he could not shake.

Which was why, upon hearing Dr. Rubio’s lengthy list of admonitions and instructions, he promptly forgot about the very important email and the absolute necessity of revealing its contents to his wife.

Chapter Three

What is she doing?” The Professor peered into the rearview mirror at his wife, who was seated behind him, next to Clare.

His handsome face was boyish and his blue eyes danced. He was finally bringing his family home from the hospital. He had difficulty containing his excitement.

“She’s still sleeping.” Julia bent over the baby carrier and lightly stroked the infant’s cheek.

The baby’s rosebud mouth pouted while she slept. Wisps of dark hair peeked out from beneath the purple knitted hat she’d received as a gift from the hospital auxiliary. She was a beautiful baby, with a button nose and pudgy cheeks. Her eyes were large and indigo blue, when she deigned to open them.

Julia’s heart was full. Her baby was healthy and her husband was even more supportive than she’d imagined. It was almost too much happiness for one person.

“If she does something cute, let me know.” Gabriel’s tone was eager.

Julia laughed. “All right, Professor.”