Chapter One The man on the cliff was watching Cassie again. Fear made the muscles tense in Lily Deslin's stomach. She stood on the deck of the beach house for only a few moments longer, then rushed down the steps, her pace quickening until she was running along the beach path toward Cassie's small figure playing in the surf. She was being foolish. The man presented no threat, Lily told herself. Though he had been there on the cliff every evening for the past three days, she was sure he had not attempted to speak to Cassie. He merely had sat on the boulder on the cliff and watched her daughter play on the deserted beach. Waiting. It seemed he was just waiting. No. She was blowing this all out of proportion. The man was no more than a dark silhouette against the blazing scarlet of the sky. She couldn't even see his features, so how could she know that he had any purpose here other than to enjoy the spectacular view over the water of the Oregon sunset? She knew. "Cassie!" Lily tried to keep the panic from her voice as she crossed the last few yards separating them. "Time for supper. Come along now." "In a minute, Mom." Cassie kicked at the foam ruffling the waves. "It's nice now. Sort of . . ." She hesitated. "Peaceful. Don't you feel it?" Lily forced a smile. "It will be just as nice in the morning. You're going to be as pruney as the raisins in that crazy TV commercial if you don't get out of the water." She reached down and picked up Cassie's crimson Peanuts beach towel, on which a moody Schroeder played his toy piano. "Okay." Cassie heaved a resigned sigh and turned and trudged toward the beach. "But it won't be, you know." Lily quickly draped the towel around Cassie's shoulders. The man was still watching. She could feel the force of his gaze as if it were a touch. "Won't be what?" she asked as she lifted Cassie's single brown braid free from the folds of the towel. "Just as nice in the morning. You said that it would be just as nice then as it is now." "Sorry. I guess I lost my train of thought." Lily gave her daughter a gentle push toward the path leading to the beach house and said jokingly, "Old age setting in, I reckon." Cassie's brow creased in a thoughtful frown as she started toward the path. "I used to like mornings better here when we first came, but I don't anymore. During the last week I decided that this time of day is best. It makes me feel . . . beautiful." Cassie was beautiful, Lily thought with a sudden rush of passionate tenderness. Oh, perhaps not picture-book pretty, but small and sturdy, endearingly freckled by the sun and gleaming with the golden sheen of childhood. Lily tugged teasingly at her daughter's damp braid. "I guess you're not so bad." Cassie shook her head. "No, inside. I feel beautiful inside. Warm and sort of glowing and filled with something"--she made a helpless gesture with one hand, as if reaching for words--"special. Kind of like when I play Brahms." "Sounds more like Mozart." Cassie made a face. "You're making fun of me." Lily shook her head. "No way. Just trying to make you think in more precise terms. Mozart can be peaceful. Brahms has more sweep and power. Which is it?" "Maybe a little of both." Cassie nodded with satisfaction. "Yes, two parts Mozart and one part Brahms." Lily's laughter pealed out. "Well, that's precise enough." "I want to put it down on paper." Lily tried to hide a start of surprise. Cassie hadn' Excerpted from Magnificent Folly by Iris Johansen All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
