Silent Run

in it. She couldn’t remember her dreams. Maybe Jake’s presence had chased the nightmares away.
    The hot water from the shower felt good on her head and shoulders, and she stayed under the spray for long, luxurious minutes, almost dreading the moment when she would have to confront another day of uncertainty. But as Caitlyn’s sweet face appeared in her mind, Sarah knew there was a very good reason for getting on with things. She did not want to spend another night without her daughter back in her arms.
    Twenty minutes later she was dressed and ready to get down to business. She moved over to the table, where Jake seemed absorbed by whatever he was reading on the screen.
    â€œWhat’s up?” she asked.
    â€œI found some information on Shane Hollis."
    â€œWho is he?” Sarah asked, sitting down next to Jake.
    There was new energy in his voice this morning, as well as an eager light in his eyes. Whatever he’d discovered had certainly gotten him charged up.
    â€œHe’s a Harvard graduate, for one."
    â€œNo,” she said in disbelief. “The guy in the beanie who tried to kill me several times went to Harvard?"
    â€œOn scholarship. He was part of a grade-school class sponsored by a wealthy businessman who promised to put them all through college at his alma mater."
    â€œAre you sure you’re talking about the right Shane Hollis?"
    â€œListen to this and then tell me what you think.” Jake flipped to a new screen and started to read. “ ‘A group of students thought to belong to one of Harvard’s most secret societies, the Eye of the Tiger, were questioned today regarding the recent suicide of one of their members, Daniel Haggarty, under suspicion that there was some type of hazing involved. Shane Hollis and Timothy Fontaine, the grandson of Harold Fontaine, the state senator from Connecticut, were the first to discover their friend’s body. After lengthy questioning and a review of Daniel Haggarty’s psychological records, no charges were filed in the case."
    â€œEye of the Tiger,” she repeated, the name echoing through her head.
    â€œExactly. That would explain the tiger tattoo you saw in your dream."
    Sarah pushed back her chair and stood up, feeling unsettled, but she didn’t know why. “What else?” she asked.
    Jake flipped to another screen. “Once I found the tiger connection, I started researching the group. There were at least five to six guys involved, as far as I can tell. All, with the exception of Shane Hollis, were rich, well-connected, privileged young men who, according to other students, were arrogant, cocky, and felt they were better than everyone else. Their activities were shrouded in secrecy, most involving college-type pranks, until Haggarty’s suicide."
    â€œOkay, but what’s the connection between Shane Hollis and me?” Sarah asked.
    â€œThat’s what we have to figure out. But here’s at least a small link: After college, two of the men opened an art gallery in Chicago."
    â€œGo on."
    â€œThe gallery quickly became a huge success. Apparently the men’s Harvard connections were happy to invest in the art that they sold. They were also good-looking guys, playboys, who had no trouble finding beautiful women to come to their parties. They quickly became the toast of the town."
    Sarah’s pulse began to speed up as something teased at the back of her brain. “What was the name of the gallery?"
    â€œWhite Tiger. They were apparently hooked on the tiger theme. What gets even more interesting is that it turns out the gallery was a front for black-market art and drug smuggling. One of the boys was half Russian and apparently had some contacts back in Russia who had gotten their hands on some stolen art secreted away since World War Two. But they weren’t satisfied with just selling priceless paintings on the black market. They also got involved with smuggling heroin within the frames. The DEA got wind of the deals, and two of our Harvard boys went to prison."
    Sarah swallowed hard, a thick knot growing in her throat. She wanted to tell Jake to stop talking. He was going too fast. It was too much. And yet it wasn’t enough. There were a million questions hovering at the back of her mind, but she couldn’t get the words out.
    â€œThat was eight years ago,” Jake added, looking her in the eye. “The same time you disappeared from Chicago. I’m