Dark evening chill. Discarded programs and empty cans littering the stands. Caydance buttoned up her sweater. Negotiated the subdued throng of fans leaving Stanford Stadium in the wake of a 24-14 loss that -- with two closing touchdowns -- Washington had delivered.

Brought to the surface, by the grim mood of the crowd, Mackie Alarie was on her mind.

The book-object-without-a-key now elicited an aura of danger that she had not yet seriously confronted. The information that Rich Gold had disclosed about Alarie's past was on her mind, and she was worried about what would be revealed if she found the key and opened the book.

arrow I need to tell Griff what happened with Mackie Alarie, she thought. It was not something that she wanted to do.