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She shook her head "No, but I know him by reputation"

"But you've never seen him"

"No"

"Then how do you knohether the man we knew as Tom Ambrose wasn't an impostor?"

"All right," said Marquez "Suppose he was a fake and working with those crazy bikers How do you explain that fact that he would have surely drowned if you hadn't showed up?"

"That's right," Pat interjected quietly "There's no way he'd be tied to a criminal conspiracy if the killers tried to murder him, too"

"His fellow assassins screwed up" There was a cold certainty in Pitt's voice "Theyprofessional hardrock e too powerful for the job Instead ofoff the tunnel, they collapsed the rock holding back an underground river, diverting it into the lower levels of the mine A miscalculation that fouled up their plans The shaft and the chamber with the skull flooded before they could detour around the cave-in on their bikes to rescue their chief"

Marquez stared up at theTelluride that were outlined by the light of the evening stars "Why cause the tunnel roof to collapse? What did they gain from that?"

"The perfect murder," answered Pitt "Theyyour brains in with rocks Then they would have buried your bodies in the debris from the cave-in When and if your remains were ever found, your deaths would be written off as aaccident"

"Why kill us?" Pat asked incredulously "For what purpose?"

"Because you posed a threat"

"Luis and I a threat?" She looked confused "To whom?"

"To a well-financed, well-organized secret interest who didn't want the discovery of the chae"

"Why would anyone want to cover up a ical discovery?" said Pat, completely off balance

Pitt turned up the Palesture "That's where conjecture stops But I' to bet the farm that this is not an isolated incident That a trail of bodies leads to other fords of this nitude"