“Oh.” Evie’s smile blossomed. “I’d like that.”
There were only two seats in an aeroplane. That meant Jamie and Evie alone. No Atherton.
Who must be a complete idiot. Why wouldn’t the man move heaven and earth to be with Evie tonight? Why refuse to tell Jamie they had to postpone?
Jamie’s curiosity stirred. If Atherton wasn’t truly an ingenuous fool, then he was up to something.
Jamie motioned with the torch that they should get on with it … before he took Evie into his arms and kissed her. And kissed her. They were quite alone in this room, and there were plenty of shelves, benches, chairs …
The search took another two hours. Each shelf held boxes that were neatly labeled—a typed card on the shelf before them—but there were so many alabastrons in this basement that Jamie had already become thoroughly tired of them. Had the treasure hunters in Greece and Italy left any alabastrons unearthed?
“Wait.” Evie’s excited word dragged Jamie from his thoughts.
“Wait, what?” Jamie peered over her shoulder into the box she’d pulled down.
“I think this is it. Let me see the paper.”
Jamie handed over Blackstone’s description without much enthusiasm. They’d found several alabastrons with ladies trying on jewelry that almost, but didn’t quite, match the one they searched for. None of them had been signed. A potter in ancient Attica must have made a job lot of these, pretending to be the famous bloke.
“Yes—look.” Evie’s fingers fluttered. “The necklaces are the same, the vessels hanging behind her are the same, the letters are the same.”
“Kontos,” Jamie read, his heart beating faster. The potter’s name.
Evie’s hands were steady on the alabastron though her body trembled with elation. “We did it, Mackenzie. We found it.”
Jamie wanted to punch the air, then drag Evie into his arms and kiss her until they both gasped for breath.
He controlled himself with effort. Finding the blasted jar was only the first step. They were a long way from finished.
Jamie tugged a dark cloth from his coat pocket. He took the jar from Evie’s grasp and wrapped it into a tight bundle. “Hold on to that.”
“Certainly.” Evie took the swaddled alabastron from him then watched, mystified, as he pulled a smaller but exquisitely made jar from another pocket. “What is that?”
“Something to keep the box from being empty.” This jar was pretty, painted jet black with tiny red figures on it. It wasn’t quite dry and smelled of shellac, but it would have to do.
“That looks nothing like Iris’s alabastron,” Evie pointed out.
“I know.” Jamie placed it into the box, reflecting that it was a pity Robbie’s work would be lost forever in this basement. He brought out a card and set it in front of the box, taking away the one that identified the vessel they’d just pilfered. Pottery: Red-figure alabastron, 1908.
The new one read Pottery: Red-figure jar, 1908.
“Where on earth did you obtain a piece of Greek pottery?” Evie asked in amazement. “I hope you didn’t steal if from somewhere else.”
Jamie tucked the old card into his coat. “My cousin made it.”
“Gavina?”
“Robbie. Uncle Mac’s son. He’s becoming quite the artist, and is a very good copyist.”
Evie gaped at him. “You asked if he could make an ancient-looking Greek jar for you? What on earth did he think?”
“He was happy to do it. Robbie likes a challenge.”
“Do your cousins do everything you tell them to?” Evie asked in some exasperation. “Lend you lock picks, create a fake pot, ensure the concierge is bringing us food at the hotel?”
Jamie nodded. “Pretty much.”
“You are an interesting man, Mackenzie.”
“And you an interesting woman, McKnight. The lengths you’ll go to, to help a friend.”
Evie flushed. “Which we haven’t done yet. What now? Do we wait until the museum opens in the morning and slide out among the visitors?”
“Not quite. The guards truly are diligent, and it’s only a matter of time before they check down here. We are going to escape.”
He flashed the torch at a dusty window high above them. He heard no response and brought the torch down to find Evie staring at him incredulously.
“Through that window? This is your marvelous idea?”
“There’s a ladder.” Jamie flashed the light on it. “That window emerges at ground level, on the north side of the building, where it’s quietest. Nip around the corner, and you’ll see my motorcar there.”
“Motorcar?” Evie’s eyes widened, blue and full of life. “You really did bring it. Hayden was right about the noise, you know.”
“I thought of that—you’ll understand when you reach it.” Jamie handed Evie the torch and moved boxes he’d piled up by the window as he’d prepared the way this week, revealing the full extent of the ladder. “Off you go. Hide in the back of the motorcar and wait for me.”
Evie started. “Wait for you? Are you not coming with me?”
“It’s a bit of a tight fit for my frame. Don’t worry, I scouted the way—why do you think it took me nearly a week to set things up?”
Evie lowered her voice, which had begun to rise. “Why didn’t you nip in and find the alabastron while you were at it? Saved us much trouble?”
“Because I could only contrive a few minutes down here, and I didn’t want to come too often. We needed a large stretch of time to properly search.”
“Why don’t we hide it down here and retrieve it tomorrow?” she demanded.
“Do you want to risk that? Some efficient charwoman discovering our bundle as she sweeps?”
“No.” Evie clutched the cloth-bound jar to her chest. “Very well. Let us take the thing and be done.”
“Exactly. I’ll make sure you climb out without trouble. There’s a berm right outside the window to give you some cover, but it won’t be a soft landing. Up you go, and I’ll hand you the jar.”
Evie, resigned, relinquished the alabastron and put her foot on the first rung of the ladder. “Wait a minute. How will you get out? Sneak past the guards?”
“I’ll ask them to let me out. I’m going to tell them I was caught in a room looking up something for my uncle when they locked the doors.”
Evie’s gaze turned impatient. “Why can’t we both have been accidentally locked in? Instead of me climbing a ladder and running to your motorcar—in the rain?”
Jamie lost his amusement. “No, lass. What is the first thing they would assume if I emerged from a study room with you? I’m not having this adventure scar your reputation and cause your fiancée’s family to turn you out. As far as the guards will be concerned, I was in here by myself, researching ancient art for Uncle Mac, and you will have nothing to do with any of it. Atherton was supposed to be here to help you, but as it is …”
He watched Evie think it all through. “Oh, very well. Lucky I’m as fit as I am.”
“I thought of that too.” Jamie risked a grin. “Evie, the robust rower. Up you go.”