Beyond Compare by Candace Camp Page A

done before the height of their art. This glass is unusual, though. Typically, they used carnelian and turquoise.”
    “I don’t think it is glass, Papa. I believe it is a black diamond, just unfaceted.”
    “Really?” He looked up from the box, surprised. “Black diamond, eh? Never seen one.”
    “Neither have I,” Rafe told him. “But your daughter seems to know her jewels.”
    “Oh, my, yes.” Broughton chuckled and cast a glance of affection at his daughter. “That’s my Kyria. Well, well, my dear, this is very interesting. I would say it is quite a special piece, given the intricacy of the carving and the rarity of the jewel. Of course, they wouldn’t have been able to facet it back then.” He pushed at the top of the box. “That’s odd.”
    “What is?” Kyria asked.
    “I thought it would open,” her father replied. “It certainly looks like a box, but it doesn’t seem to have a lid, or at least, one that will open.”
    “Really?” Kyria took the box and examined it closely. “I can’t see any line of separation, but with all this carving, it could easily be hidden.”
    “Surely it’s not solid,” Rafe put in. “It doesn’t seem heavy enough.”
    “I wouldn’t think so,” the duke agreed. “It must open. There must be some hidden catch or something.”
    “Is that typical of Byzantine artifacts?” Rafe asked.
    Broughton shrugged. “Frankly, dear chap, I don’t know. You would need an expert in the field. Someone like Dr. Jennings or…who else? Dr. Atkinson. Early Eastern religious art is one of his specialties, if I remember correctly. Perhaps Uncle Bellard knows someone else.”
    “How old are we talking about here?” Rafe asked. “If I remember my history correctly, the ByzantineEmpire was during the time of Constantine and Justinian. Am I right?”
    The duke nodded. “Yes, I would say sometime after A.D. 500 and before the Turks, say, 1400 or so. I’d lean toward the earlier time rather than the later, say, before A.D. 1000. Of course, you would have to talk to an expert in the field. How did you come by it, Kyria? I had no idea you had an interest in artifacts.”
    “I don’t. I mean, I think it’s beautiful, but I don’t know anything about it. I had no idea how old it was or where it came from until you told me just now,” Kyria replied. “I don’t know where it came from. A man came to the house tonight. Papa, it was awful. He was attacked as he approached the house, and he was killed.”
    “Killed!” Broughton exclaimed, staring at Kyria, then turning toward Rafe.
    “I saw it happen,” Rafe told him. “I chased the attacker off and brought the man inside, but he died soon thereafter.”
    “Sweet heaven! What a shocking thing!”
    “I told Smeggars not to tell anyone about it,” Kyria explained. “I don’t want Olivia and Stephen to know. I don’t want anything to spoil Olivia’s wedding day.”
    “No, of course not. You’re quite right, my dear.” The duke set the box on the table, then sat on the nearest chair. “This is terrible. Who was he? And what does he have to do with this box?”
    “The man had it on him,” Rafe explained. “He was carrying it in a bag that he had tied around his waist. Obviously, it was very important to him. And apparently he was bringing it to Lady Kyria.”
    “Kyria! But why?”
    “I don’t know.” Rafe told him the man’s dyingwords. “I assume that he must have been coming here to deliver that box to her.”
    “But who would send you something like that, Kyria? Why?”
    “I don’t know,” she admitted. “The only thing I can think is that it is from Theo.”
    “Theo! Well, I suppose that would make some sense,” her father agreed.
    Kyria turned to Rafe. “Theo is my oldest brother, Thisbe’s twin. He travels all over the world, and he often sends presents home, particularly for Con and Alex. With them, it’s usually exotic animals, but he has sent other things that caught his eye—some piece of