Iris Johansen - Eve

“Only Bonnie.” Joe lifted his cup to his lips. “That’s like saying only a Cat 5 tornado.” He leaned back against the cockpit door. “And if he’s using Bonnie, then I need to move fast. I have to find him before he contacts Eve again.”

“Maybe he won’t contact her. He left her when he knew we were coming.”

“Which was the smartest thing he could have done. He put himself in the position of avoiding confrontation and hurting people she loved. Now, by running away, he’s also lost his home, friends, and way of life. And Eve is feeling sorry for him, dammit. How the hell can I fight that?”

She smiled. “You’ll manage. You’re already thinking about it. What are you going to do?”

“Go after Hanks. I had to let him go, but he’ll be easier to find than Gallo. I’ve just been on the phone with a friend in the Bureau and asked him to e-mail me a dossier and any records of Hanks’s relationship with a John Gallo.”

“Hanks said he didn’t know where Gallo is.”

“Even if it’s true, he’s been with Gallo for years. I might be able to trace, connect, and reach a possible destination.”

“I’d think Judy Clark would be a better source.”

“Then you go in that direction. She’s very loyal and fierce about Gallo. I’d rather deal with Hanks.”

Catherine smiled and nodded. “A regular pepper pot.”

“He seems to have a way with the ladies,” Joe said dryly.

“Judy didn’t impress me as being able to be swayed by charm. Neither is Eve. It could be they’re seeing something there that we can’t.”

He finished his coffee and threw the cup in the waste container. “You’ll have to tell me whether they’re right when you meet him.” He started down the aisle toward Eve.

Catherine watched him sit down beside Eve and fasten his seat belt. Eve smiled slightly, then looked back out the window, where the purple clouds were being touched with the gold of dawn.

Yes, Eve was definitely quiet and a little remote, Catherine thought. Eve was thinking, weighing, and feeling very much alone.

That could be dangerous.

WHEN THEY REACHED ATLANTA,Catherine walked Eve and Joe to their rental car before getting back on the jet to be flown home to Kentucky. She fell back with Eve as Joe went around the car to get into the driver’s seat.

“If you need me, call me,” she said quietly. “I’m here for you no matter what. I may argue with you, but in the end I’ll do whatever you want me to do. That’s what friends are all about. Don’t close me out.”

“I know you and Joe want the best for me.”

“You’re thinking of us as a team. We worked together because it was necessary.” She made a face. “And because a lot of the time we think alike. But we’re not joined at the hip. Remember that, Eve.”

“I will.” She opened the passenger door. “Have a good trip home, Catherine.”

“I’ll be placing a few calls to Venable and seeing if I can get a handle on where to find Hanks and Judy Clark.” She gave Eve a hug and looked at Joe as he started the car. “Take care of that arm, Joe.”

“Right, say hello to Luke for me.”

“If I can tear him away from the Lost Cities of the Ancient World. Since he found that book, he’s been glued to it.” She stepped back. “I think he may be planning on finding a couple of them. Luke is so independent, it wouldn’t surprise me if he got a plan together and took off on his own. But I’m going to work at it and make sure he includes me in that expedition. That may be my chance at bonding.” She turned back to the plane. “I’ll call you if I find out anything from Venable.”

Eve watched her as Catherine climbed the steps and boarded. Then she glanced at Joe. “She’s already in work mode again.”

Joe shrugged. “She’s CIA. And she has a personal interest. I’m glad to have her on board.”

She smiled faintly. “Because you think alike.”

“Yeah.” He drove out of the airport lot onto the street. “With some exceptions. She’s more inclined to giving the benefit of the doubt.”

He was talking about John Gallo.

She didn’t answer. It was difficult defending John, and she was too tired and drained to make the attempt.

She turned away and watched the skyscrapers and domes of the great city flow by the window.

“WHY DON’T YOU TAKE A NAP?” Joe asked Eve as he unlocked the door of the cottage. “You didn’t sleep on the plane at all.”

“I tried.” Eve looked at the blue-and-white notice she’d taken off the door. “FedEx tried to deliver my skull from Texas. I’ll have to call them and tell them to redeliver.” It seemed such a long time ago when she’d waited out on the porch for that delivery. She put the notice on the kitchen bar. “You didn’t stop at a hospital to have that wound looked at.”

“I’ll do it on the way to the precinct.”

“You’re going in to work?”

His brows lifted. “I do have a job.”

She gave him the ghost of a smile. “When I don’t interfere with it.”

“You could hardly help it in this case, could you? I’ll shower and change and be out of here.” He went past her down the hall.

She went back out on the porch and sat down on the swing. She would try to sleep in a little while, but she was too wired right now. She would sit here and let the peace of this familiar, beautiful place sink in and quiet her spirit.

Had Gallo gotten in the habit of going back to his place in the mountains for the same reason? To heal wounds and quiet his soul after the storms of life? But he no longer had a place to go for sanctuary now.

And she was identifying with him again. She mustn’t do that if she was to get what she wanted from him. Joe thought Gallo was the enemy, and perhaps that was true. But not for the reason that Joe feared.

She set the swing gently rocking, watching the morning breeze stir the tops of the trees.

Help me, Bonnie. I don’t know what to do. Everything is more of a mystery than I dreamed. I believed him, but is it true? If it’s not a lie, did you come to love him? And if you loved him, does that mean I have to help him? You healed his wounds and kept him sane. Is that what you want from me?

No answer.

No sudden wonderful, loving vision of her daughter to give her any of those answers.

Of course not.

Bonnie never came on demand, dammit. That would be too easy.

So work it out for yourself, Eve thought. That’s what life is all about. No easy answers.

“What are you thinking?” Joe stood in the doorway, looking at her. “You’re frowning.”

She forced a smile. “I was thinking that there are no easy answers. And that I was ready for a lightning bolt to flash down and illuminate all the darkness.”

“But that would be an easy answer.” Joe moved over to the swing and stood looking down at her. “Did I ever tell you how beautiful you look with the sunlight on you?”

“You’re blind. I’ve got to have circles under my eyes, and my hair looks like a haystack.”

“It doesn’t matter. You glow from inside out. And then the sun touches you, and it shows how your eyes shimmer with life and every character line.”

“Those are called wrinkles, Joe.”

“Those are called beautiful.” He bent down and gently brushed her lips. “Trust me.”

Lord, she loved him. She pulled him down and held him close. “Why are you saying this? Why now?”

“Because I looked at you, and I remembered that, no matter how many problems we have, it would be worse being apart,” he said gruffly. “I can’t be easy. It’s not my nature. But it’s my nature to love you.” He kissed her quick and hard and released her. “That’s all. Remember that when I’m being a surly son of a bitch and out to hold on to you through hell and high water.” He turned and ran down the porch steps. “Go to bed and try to get at least a little sleep before you call FedEx to bring back that skull. You don’t need to dive into work without any rest. I’ll call you later and bring home dinner.”