Covert Evidence by Rachel Grant Read Free Book Online Page A

steak tartare—in case she was likely to react to the dish.
    The waiter returned, and John ordered more food based on her preferences, then taught her the names of the dishes she’d enjoyed the most. Heat infused her as she faced him across the intimate table and sipped her wine. How far should she let this go?
    “Tell me about your research,” John said. “What do you hope to find in Van?”
    “I won’t be staying in Van. I’m heading south.
    “South? There isn’t much south of here. Except Syria.”
    She pressed her lips closed and wondered how much she should tell him. “There’s a lot of real estate between Van and the border.”
    “And you expect to find…?”
    “Nothing during this trip.” That was mostly true. “I’m just here to line up contacts. Pave the way for conducting a Lidar survey of an area where I hope to find things next year.”
    He raised an eyebrow. The simple gesture was infused with sexuality. “Lidar? What’s that?”
    “It’s a type of remote sensing. With Lidar, you measure distance by illuminating a target with the laser. The reflected light is analyzed. It was developed in the ’60s, but the technology has really improved. The applications for archaeology expand every year. With a Lidar survey, I’ll be able to find cisterns and underground aqueducts that were lost over a thousand years ago—ones I believe were an important part of illicit trade routes.”
    “You’re talking about the Silk Road?”
    “I’m talking about a Silk Road bypass .”
    John sat back in his chair. He looked impressed. “That would be something.”
    She leaned forward, warming to the subject, which, after all, had been her obsession for months. “I think dyes, precious metals, gems, spices—you name it—were traded using underground passages. With Lidar mapping, I can find those cisterns and aqueducts and prove my theories.”
    “You really think there are hidden tunnels in the Eastern Anatolia hills?” His tone was skeptical.
    “Have you ever heard of the Gadara Aqueduct?”
    John shook his head.
    “It was Roman, built to supply water to the city of Gadara in modern-day Jordan. It’s the longest known tunnel from antiquity. Construction began around AD 90 or 100, and it took a hundred years to build. The underground sections are sixty-six miles long. The tunnel is about two meters tall and one and a half meters wide.”
    “Yes. But people know about it. You know about it. Nothing that big could remain hidden for two thousand years.”
    She grinned. “That’s where you’re wrong. Gadara was discovered in 2004. By an archaeologist.”
    That handsome mouth curled into a sexy smile, and his eyes lit with warmth that said he didn’t mind being told point-blank he was wrong. “Seriously?”
    “Yep.”
    “What makes you think there’s something like that here?”
    Cressida leaned back. No one knew the complete answer to that question. Most of her fellow students were good people. Friends. But that didn’t mean they wouldn’t try to beat her to making such a significant discovery by submitting grant proposals of their own. She took a sip of wine. Tonight it would remain her secret. “Tell me about your work, John. What are you doing in Van?”
    He laughed. “Touché.” He lifted his glass in a toast to her and took a drink. “As for what I’m doing in Van, right now, I’m having dinner with a beautiful woman.”
    Heat pooled low in her belly. This first date was going awfully well. But numbering it implied there could be more. And there couldn’t. Wouldn’t. She was here to work.
    What made this date special was its singularity. This was a one-time fantasy come to life. A no-strings, one-night-only, once-in-a-lifetime fling with a hot man in Turkey.
    Anything more than that was just asking for trouble.

    I an almost wished the date were real. If it were, he wouldn’t hesitate to act on the ready invitation in her eyes. Lulled by the food, dim lighting, and fine wine, she had