Iris Johansen - Eve

Then throw it out and start thinking like the woman you’ve become and not the girl you were.

She drew a deep breath. What had she learned from that call?

Not much. He had admitted he had been in Atlanta at the time of Bonnie’s kidnapping. He had said he had not done it, but the underlying mockery had made everything he’d said suspect. Nate Queen and Army Intelligence evidently knew everything about him, but the odds were that Catherine wouldn’t be able to get anything out of them.

And he’d said that he was unbalanced at times. There had been no mockery in those words.

Crazy. It would take a man who was unbalanced to kill a helpless child, his own flesh and blood.

Bonnie.

The pain was always there, but the possibility of John Gallo’s being her killer had brought the agony alive again.

The agony and the bitterness.

He might well have killed her if he’d been gripped in a fit of insanity. If he had not killed her, then he could know who did.

Damn him.

All these years he had been alive, standing on the sidelines, watching her pain. What kind of monster had he become? If Catherine had not been able to unearth this connection, would he have continued to stand back and monitor the hell Eve was going through?

No way. She knew about Gallo now. There would be no more of his standing in the shadows like a vampire drinking in her pain and loss. She’d jerk him into the sunlight and burn him alive if she found he’d killed Bonnie.

She pulled out her phone and dialed Catherine. “I just talked to John Gallo on my cell. You’re going to find it hard as hell to find out anything from Nate Queen. Gallo says he owns him. I believe him.”

“Shit.”

“But Gallo wants me to meet with him. Somewhere public.”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. I can’t be sure. He says he wants to ‘resolve’ our relationship. It sounds like some kind of whim.” She paused. “He admitted he wasn’t stable.”

“Then you stay away from him. We’ll set up a trap.”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Think about it? You just said he was crazy. That’s the only way to handle it.”

“What if he gets spooked? He said his other choice was just to disappear. Evidently, he’s damn good at that. No one knew he was alive all these years.”

“You’re thinking about meeting him.”

“He may have killed Bonnie. Or he may know who did. It’s possible he could tell me where to find Paul Black. I’d lose all of that if I blow this chance.”

“That’s not all you could lose if you meet Gallo. He felt safe before. You’re a threat to him now that you know he could have killed Bonnie.”

“I can’t blow it,” Eve repeated.

“Stay where you are. I’m coming back to the cottage.”

“Catherine to the rescue? I didn’t say that I’m meeting him. He didn’t even set up a place yet.”

“I know you. I’m tempted to call Joe and tell him to-”

“No!” No threat to Joe. The hint that John Gallo was unbalanced had made the danger even more clear. If Eve was going to take a chance, it would not be with Joe’s life. “Joe can’t be involved, Catherine. I’d keep you out of it, too, but there’s a chance that you’ll be able to find out more from Nate Queen. We need all the help we can get. I’m having trouble getting anything but double talk from Gallo.”

“Then it’s a waste. Stay away from him.”

She wanted to stay away from him. It wasn’t possible. “I’ll try to keep in contact with you.”

“I’m on my way.” Catherine hung up.

Definitely Catherine to the rescue, Eve thought. Well, she would deal with her friend when she arrived. Catherine was at her rental house in Louisville, Kentucky. That meant that it would take her at least four or five hours to reach the cottage. Unless she took a helicopter. Eve wouldn’t rule out that possibility.

At any rate, she’d better marshal her arguments and start making plans to avoid Catherine’s machinations.

The FedEx truck was coming down the lake road to the cottage.

First things, first. She’d set up the skull that the Austin PD had sent her and start the initial measurements. There was no reason to neglect her job because her personal life was suddenly in such chaos.

“You have my package?” She came down the steps as the truck stopped. “I’ll take it. I have to sign for it, as usual?”

“Yep.” The uniformed driver bent down and grabbed the box. The next minute he’d jumped down and was holding the clipboard out to her.

She took the pen and scrawled her name. “Thank you.” Her finger was tingling, and she absently rubbed it against her pants as she handed him back the clipboard and pen. “Always right on time.”

“Not this time. Long overdue.” He raised his head and looked her straight in the face.

She froze with shock.

John Gallo. Different, so different. Yet unmistakable.

“It’s okay,” he said quietly. “Don’t be scared. It’s nothing, really.”

Darkness.

EVE WASN’T ANSWERING HERphone. It was going straight to voice mail.

Not good.

Catherine frowned as she pressed the disconnect. There was a possibility that Eve might be ignoring her call to avoid an argument. But that wasn’t like Eve. She had no problem with confrontation.

She tried to call again. Same result.

Okay, bite the bullet. Eve might not be pleased with her, but Catherine wasn’t going to go against instinct. It had saved her neck too many times to ignore it. She dialed Joe Quinn.

“Catherine,” she said when he answered. “Are you at the precinct?”

“Yes.”

“Do me a favor. Call Eve. See if she answers. I need to know if she’s just not answering my calls.”

“And why would she do that?”

“Because I’m pushy, and she doesn’t want to be pushed. Just do it. Okay?”

Joe hung up.

He called back two minutes later. “What the hell is happening?”

“She didn’t answer?”

“I called three times.” His voice was harsh. “Voice mail. Why were you pushing her?”

“I’m in my car on the way to the lake cottage. But it will be several hours before I get there. Go home and check to make sure everything is okay.”

“Why shouldn’t it be?” he asked. “Dammit, answer me, Catherine.”

“John Gallo called Eve. He wanted to arrange a meeting.”

Joe muttered an oath. “And, of course, she was going to do it.”

“You know Eve. The chances are good. She thinks she should handle this herself.”

“I know. And she wouldn’t listen to you. She won’t listen to me, either. What else did Gallo tell her?”

“That Nate Queen won’t tell her anything. He said they have an arrangement. No, he said he owned Queen.”

“Yes, and that would be the only excuse she’d need. I’m getting in my car now. I should be home in thirty minutes. I’ll call you from there.” He hung up.

The deed was done. If nothing was wrong, then Eve was going to be very upset with her. Catherine sighed as she hung up the phone. At least she hadn’t told Joe the most frightening thing about Gallo’s call. No use worrying him unless necessary. Now all she could do was wait for Joe’s call.

The call came forty minutes later.

“She’s not here,” he said curtly. “The Jeep was still in the driveway. The house was left unlocked. A half-full coffee cup was on the front porch railing.”

“No note?”

“Nothing.”

“Shit.”

“My sentiments. If she went somewhere to meet Gallo, she would have used her own transportation. And she wouldn’t have left the house unlocked. We always use the alarm.”

“You think that Gallo decided he didn’t want to wait to set up a meeting?”