Please Review!
Chapter 7 – More Questions
They began to stroll down the street, but after a second Eva set a quick pace. Tintin quickly matched her stride, and in the uncharacteristic second it took him to figure out what to say, Eva began to speak.
"That message this morning, did you find out who it was from?" She spoke casually, glancing up at him with a smile.
"Not yet." Tintin smiled back. "I've been trying to find out all day."
"It's that interesting then?" Her voice was playful as her blonde curls danced.
"I wouldn't exactly call it interesting, but it's certainly something that needs answers. I'm a journalist, you see."
"Oh? For a big newspaper?"
Tintin thought he saw her glance back, then responded. "I wouldn't say it was a large newspaper, but a fair size."
"And what are you working on now?" At this, she glanced at him with real interest in her eyes.
Tintin questioned Eva's interest, and after a second dismissed that thought. "A certain Mr. Hartley died, and was supposed to leave a great deal of money to charity. It turns out he's left it to some distant relatives, and there's a great deal of unanswered questions about it all. That's where I come in." Before she could continue, he added, "Eva. Is there a last name that goes with that?"
"Harrison." Eva replied with a smile. "Eva Harrison. I suppose it was a little unconventional of my to introduce myself by my first name, but then again, you don't strike me as someone who's usually in conventional circumstances. Comfortable with them, yes, conventional by nature, yes . . . but not someone who's often in conventional situations."
Tintin chuckled. "You're quite right, you know. You . . ." his voice trailed off.
Eva had pulled a mirror out of her pocket and was pretending to use it to check her appearance. Putting it away, she said quietly "We're being followed."
Tintin didn't turn, but quickened slightly. "We?"
"I don't know if they're following you or me." She replied, her sweet voice changing to a much more serious note. "Turn left here."
Turning down a side street, Eva let go of his arm. "I don't know if they're following you or me, but either way it's nothing good. You're in this all the way now, and I don't expect you to trust me."
She abruptly pulled Tintin around a right corner, and he saw that the light in her eyes had turned deep and pensive. They stopped, and for a second he searched her face. "What do you know?"
"I know Mr. Hartley was murdered, and I know that this very minute his home is being searched to find his real will." Eva tilted her chin up defiantly.
"How?" Tintin pressed, his gaze as intense as her own.
Eva put a finger to her lips as they heard the voices of the men who followed them starting to echo between the buildings. From the opposite direction, they suddenly heard Snowy barking. They both immediately looked down, and found the clever dog gone.
The echoing footsteps increased in tempo, coming closer. Not thinking, Tintin flattened himself almost completely against the wall for a second as they ran by.
Listening to their footsteps recede, Eva and Tintin both let out the breath they were holding as Tintin eased himself away from where he had pinned her to the wall.
Looking back up at her, he asked squarely, "How do you know."
Eva's eyes searched the ground with an almost panicked look, then steadied as she turned her eyes to Tintin.
"Because," she replied, "I'm his daughter."