Holly tossed and turned before kicking the sheets to the foot of the bed. There was no way that she would fall asleep after all that had just happened. She got up and pushed open the French doors leading to her private terrace. The storm had finally subsided and all that was left was a warm breeze carrying the heady scents of the flowers and vines from the garden.
She sat into a long chair and looked up at the starry sky. Roger was back with the agency. That is what he had been hiding from her. Nothing shady, nothing illegal. She felt relief flooding through her body.
Still, the fact that he had kept it from her rattled her badly. When she had asked him why, he had dodged her question, saying that he only wanted to prevent her from getting involved in the case and possibly hurt. In the heat of their argument, she had not realized that it made no sense. When Roger had divorced Amanda and joined the agency, Holly had not yet been involved with Richard. There must be another reason for him to want to keep the information from her. What could it be?
Well, she thought, there was only one way to find out. She looked at her watch, which indicated two o'clock.
"No time like the present", she muttered, making her way back into the house.
She left her room and ended in the darkened hall, where she realized that she had no idea where Roger slept. She knew that it was on the same floor, but there were five doors facing her, and all of them were closed. She tiptoed to the closest one and rapped lightly against the solid wood. When there was no answer, she tried the doorknob and pushed the door open. The room was empty.
Sighing in frustration, she turned to the next door, again knocking quietly. This time, she heard noises inside before someone came to the door. To her dismay, it was not Roger who stood in the doorway, but Raymond, in stripped pajamas. She took a few steps back, ready to turn on her heels.
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to wake you."
Raymond rub his eyes and grinned. "Oh, I'm sure that you didn't mean to wake ME, indeed! Roger sleeps over there," he said, pointing to a door at the end of the hall.
Holly felt her face burning with embarrassment. "I'll be on my way then. Sorry for waking you." She was about to leave when he put a hand on her arm. "Since you're here, though, would you mind stepping in for a minute? I'd like to have a word with you."
Holly glanced at Roger's door then followed Ray inside his room. He gestured for her to take the armchair while he sat at the foot of the bed. "I'm not in the habit of meddling in other people's business, Holly, except when their business could impact on my work. I think that might be the case here."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't think that tonight is the right time to resolve your unfinished business with Roger. He's my best agent and I need him to be totally focused on his task."
"Maybe you should have thought of that before asking me to stay," Holly replied drily.
"I'll admit it was a gamble on my part, but I decided that it would be more beneficial to keep you around than not. There will be plenty of time for you and Roger to talk things out after our mission is completed."
Holly sighed. "I guess you're right. The last thing that I want to do is to jeopardize the success of the mission. It's just that I came here to get answers, and all that I have now is more and more questions!"
"What kind of questions? If you don't mind sharing, of course."
Holly hesitated, but something about Raymond inspired trust. "I wonder why Roger decided to hide the fact that he was divorced and back with the CIA to his daughter and me. I just don't understand what his motives could be."
Raymond scratched his head. "Well, I'll have to let him answer that in his own words. All I can tell you is that Roger and I have talked a lot before he decided to come back to us. He needed to make a fresh start and I think he felt he had been a negative influence of your live long enough. Maybe he was afraid to rock you boat by telling you that he was once again a free man, seeing as you are happily married."
"I'm not married anymore and Roger knows it. But he still won't tell me the truth!"
Raymond raised an eyebrow. He appeared to be genuinely surprised. "Is that so?"
Holly nodded.
"That's…unexpected," Raymond added, "but knowing Roger, he must have an honorable reason. You're very special to him, Holly, that much I can say for certain."
"Does he ever…talk about me?"
Raymond smiled. "Rarely, but he keeps a picture of you in his wallet. I asked about it once when we first met, thinking you might be Amanda. He just shook his head and said that your name was Holly, and that you were the only one who had ever mattered." He got up and walked to the door, and waited for Holly to exit the room.
"I hope that your other questions will keep now that I've answered the most important one. Goodnight, Holly. We have a big day ahead tomorrow."