Chapter 87

The walls were bare, with one exception. On the wall above the TV hung a case that contained a rather old, battered sword. I stepped closer to read the small plaque that was screwed into the bottom of it, and was startled by the inscription: “Owned by Basil Rathbone, and used by him in Captain Blood, The Adventures of Robin Hood, and The Mark of Zorro.”

Mark was interested enough to own a sword with such a provenance? Now that was an intriguing bit of information.

The television was muted. Did Mark enjoy swashbucklers? I recognized Tyrone Power, dressed as a Spanish grandee. He hurled his sword to the ceiling of the room he was in, and it buried itself in the wooden beams, quivering from the force of his action.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a dog standing guard in the corner and whirled to face it, laughing at myself when I realized it was an extremely lifelike statue. I crossed to it and crouched beside it to examine the excellent rendition thoroughly.