Midnight Jewels

perversely interested. "What are some of the other things that are ruined with compromise?"
    "Honor, vengeance and love."
    Mercy's eyes widened. "I can see you've given the subject some thought."
    "Yes."
    "Have you ever compromised on any of those things?"
    He looked up from the pale tea. "I'm not totally inflexible. This isn't the first time I've had to compromise on tea. Does that answer your question?"
    But she would bet he had never compromised on honor or vengeance, Mercy filled in silently. She should let this drop right now, she told herself, but she couldn't. Not quite. "What about love? Haven't you ever had to compromise in that department?"
    "No."
    "Have you ever been in love, Croft? Somehow I can't see you overwhelmed by such an emotion."
    "You're right. I've never been in love. I can't see myself overwhelmed by it, either."
    "Ah ha. Then you can't say whether you'd be willing to compromise in that area or not."
    "Don't look so triumphant. I find it unpleasant at this hour of the morning to watch you glowing with triumph. Having to drink this lousy tea is bad enough."
    She ignored the warning. "I'll accept that your philosophical standards are probably set in granite when it comes to tea, honor and vengeance, but it's obvious you can't speak from experience on the subject of love. You shouldn't make rash statements, Croft."
    He raised his eyebrows. "It's possible to have an under standing of the nature of something such as love without having actually experienced it. The obligations, risks and rewards are all quite comprehensible intellectually. And you, lady, are the last person who should be handing out lectures on the danger of making rash statements. You have a reckless streak in you that leaves me breathless. Are you going to eat the rest of that toast?"
    She eyed the two slices of toast that remained on her plate. "No, I don't think so. Help yourself."
    "Thanks." He reached across the table and scooped up the two slices. "Let's talk about a more critical subject."
    "The visit to Gladstone?" She would rather have argued about love, Mercy realized. She was certain Croft needed some straightening out on the subject. But it was obvious he wasn't in the mood for an extended discussion on anything that esoteric. Not at the moment, at any rate. "I don't see any problem. We behave in a perfectly normal, reasonable, honest manner. We're not going there to do undercover spy work. At least I'm not. I'm simply there to sell the man a valuable book and get a start in the antiquarian book business."
    "You don't believe my theory?"
    "That Gladstone might be a reincarnation of Graves? I think it's highly unlikely. Would you recognize Graves if you saw him?"
    "The only pictures I ever had of him were long range photographs. I saw him from a distance the night of the fire. He was running through the flames. It wasn't the best view, believe me. But I would recognize him if he hasn't changed a great deal. Unfortunately, in three years a man can do a lot to himself."
    "Like what?"
    "Gain or lose twenty pounds, grow a beard, undergo plastic surgery. A lot."
    "I see." Mercy considered that, her imagination taking off on a new tangent. "Would he recognize you?"
    "No. He's never seen me."
    "What about the night of the fine?"
    "If he saw anything at all that night, which I doubt, it was only a shadow," Croft said unconcernedly.
    "The shadow of a ghost," Mercy said to herself. "Croft, if by some fluke Gladstone really is Graves, what are you going to do?"
    "Nothing while you're nearby," he said promptly. "The last thing I want to do is have you involved in that old mess."
    "You'll give me your word that you'll behave yourself while I'm conducting my business with him? You won't attack the man at the breakfast table or anything?"
    "I'll try to restrain myself," he said dryly.
    "Croft, I'm not joking. I want to know what you intend doing while we're at the Gladstone place."
    "All I'm going to do is take a quiet look around and try to figure out if mere's any connection between Graves and Gladstone. I just want to answer a few questions."
    "But what will it take to answer your questions?"
    "One thing I'll look at is Gladstone's book collection. Even if he wanted them he couldn't have many of the same books as Graves had because so much of the first collection was unique. It's gone forever. But I'll be able to tell if Gladstone's area of interest and expertise parallels Graves'. That will be a very strong clue."
    "And if a good