wrath of the Sea Queen (256 page)

Neither man was fooled.  Vin knew that C
a
eli's hand should be covering Salma's eyes. 
Ben
simply had a gut feeling
.  He and Vin could tell that the ladies were sharing a silent conversation, so they moved over near the door to give them some privacy.

"
Any idea what
's
going on
?  It's not about Salma's shoulder,
"
Ben asked
.

"
Not yet.  C
a
eli wouldn't give me any details
. 
Max said something to her about Salma
, but C
a
eli
wouldn't say anything
further
about it. 
She
wanted to come see Salma before we did anything else,
"
Vin answered.

"
Oh my!
"
  Salma exclaimed out loud as her eyes shot open.

C
a
eli removed her hand, smiling at Salma.
  Not only had she shared the news, but C
a
eli finished healing Salma's shoulder while she was at it.

"
Interesting, don't you think?
"

"
Thank you for that, but
I think I would like to test your
theory
.  Come on,
let's
find out.
"
  The ladies got up to leave, almost forgetting about the t
wo men blocking the room's exit.  Neither
one
budged as the women drew near.

"
And where do you think you're going in such a hurry?
"
  Ben asked.

"
C
a
eli and I are
going to
run a
test.
 
Do you mind stepping aside,
Dear
?
"
  Salma answered.

"
What exactly are you going to test?
"
  Ben wanted to know before he moved.

"
You know how I am when I get an idea in my head.  I simply have to deal with it. 
Why don't you stay here and talk to Vin.  We won't be long,
"
Salma suggested.

"
Not a chance,
Love
.  I go where you go,
"
Ben insisted without hesitation or room for negotiation.

Vin didn't have to say anything.  C
a
eli already knew he wasn't leaving her side.

"
Ok then, come along. 
You
will be
bored," Salma said with a shrug of her shoulders.

Ben opened the door and followed Salma out.  C
a
eli put her arm through
Vin's
arm
and leaned her head against him as they followed behind.

"
What are you up to, C
a
eli?
"
  Vin asked quietly.

"
Sorry, can't tell you.
"

"
Whatever it is,
Ben's onto you. 
It d
idn't take him long at all.  I told him that Max said something to you about Salma.  I
t's only fair
that I let you know that
I'm going to help him figure it out.  You can't put a mystery
like that
in front of us and expect us to let it be. 
Y
ou
wi
ll have to
fool both of us
in order
to keep your secret.
"

"
Of course Ben's onto us.  He wouldn't be a very good detective if my poor ruse fooled him.  And I knew he
would
get whatever details
he could from
you
.  T
hat's why
I didn't tell you
. 
G
o ahead, g
uess away.  You'll never get
it
,
"
C
a
eli seemed sure of whatever she and Salma were doing, and she wasn't giving away any clues. 

They reached the small lab and
propped
the door
open
fully
. 
Ben and Vin agreed to wait on the long bench in the hall so the ladies would not be crowded while they worked.
  They were both busy for the first twenty minutes
.  O
ccasionally
,
one or the other would mov
e
out of sight at the end of the room
, but not for very long
.  They were running various machines
.  They even b
rew
ed
a pot of coffee, which they shared with
the guys
, who
understood that
this was m
eant
to distract them.  The girls were trying to confuse them, keep them puzzled about what they were really doing.

Vin watched
C
a
eli
intently, but she
didn't reveal much.  F
or the
next
twenty five minutes, C
a
eli mostly stayed put on a tall stool, leaning her head in her hand, barely keeping her eyes open while Salma worked diligently around her.

"
I can't tell for certain,
"
Vin said
at last
.

Ben smiled slightly, not taking his eyes off the room.

"
They are testing Salma's blood," Ben asserted.

"
How do you know that?
"

"
Never were very good at the shell game, were you?  It's simple.  Max said this was about Salma
, so
I've been watching Salma.  You
ha
ve been watching them both and everything they are doing.  You let them distract you.  Look at Salma's left arm.  She
ha
s a small
piece of
cotton
tape
d
where they drew blood.  The rest is just fluff.  I don't have any way to tell what type of tests they are running.  The only theory I've come up with so far is t
hat maybe they think Max is
related to Salma
. 
Of course, t
hat would make him related to C
a
eli, too. 
So, t
hey could have tested C
a
eli
's blood
for that
.  I can't figure what it is specifically about Salma that they need
ed
to test,
"
Ben explained casually as he relaxed on the bench.

"
Ben, you're a
wise man, but, u
nfortunately, you're wrong.  C
a
eli already knows the answer to that question, and so do I.  The answer is yes, they are related, but not how you might expect.
"
  Vin filled Ben in on that story while they continued to wait.

"That
certainly
explains a lot
of what we've seen between them this week
, but my theory
could
still hold.  Maybe
Salma is attempting to get proof of the relationship
, especially after the change in Max's appearance
," Ben suggested.

"S
alma
does like all that scientific evidence. 
Naturally, she
woul
d want proof. 
Your mind never ceases to amaze me, Ben."

"
Coming from someone who
ha
s seen
the things
you have, that's quite a compliment,
"
Ben grinned.

"
Well, don't get too big of an ego.  You did get one thing wrong,
"
Vin added.

Ben raised a questioning eyebrow at Vin, who gladly obliged him with an explanation.

"
Max told C
a
eli something about Salma.  C
a
eli did not say it
only
involved Salma.  Look closer at C
a
eli's arm.  She has already removed her gauze, but there is a spot where they drew her blood, too.  Looks like both
ladies
gave blood for testing
,
"
Vin supplemented Ben's facts.

"
Well, then either my theory is right or the plot thickens.  Then again, our
gals
could be trying to put one over on us, and this is
an
incredibly simple
matter
that we are overcomplicating,
"
Ben laughed.

Just then a glass hit the floor in the lab.  Ben jumped up and rushed inside.  He
had
watched
when
both ladies move
d
off to the far end of the room
together,
but could not see what happened.