Iris Johansen - Eight Days To Live

“Yes, call Gillem and tell him that I’ll need a helicopter to take me to Damascus.

His smile faded. “You’re going to Caleb?”

She nodded. “That pilot, Faruk, is the key. I have to make sure that Caleb doesn’t break the man before he can unlock the doors to the temple.”

“I’d prefer to go with you.”

“Why? To protect me from Caleb? I thought you were over that.”

“I don’t believe he’d hurt you intentionally. But he’s volatile, and it might happen. I can’t predict what he’s going to do. It makes me uneasy.”

She couldn’t predict Caleb either. “He can get Faruk to tell us about the location and layout of the temple. He may be able to use him to take us in with some of those members he’s supposed to be flying in. That’s worth being a little uneasy.”

“But you don’t want me with you.”

“We’ll need what amounts to an army if we have to attack that temple. Wait until you hear from Venable that they’ve arrived in Damascus, then join them. Millet will have all his top goons there for the Offering.” She smiled. “You’d make a fantastic general, Jock.”

He shook his head. “That’s MacDuff. I’m better at guerrilla tactics. You’re sure?”

“I’m sure.” She did not want to have to referee any conflict between Caleb and Jock. She could handle Caleb better on her own. The intimacy that was growing between them wasn’t easily understood. Not even by me, she thought. She couldn’t afford any interference. Every moment was a challenge. He held a power she had to learn to wield if she was to get through this nightmare.

And, together, they could find a way for her to dream again.

Day Seven

CALEB STROLLED UP TO HER helicopter as it came into the small airport on the outskirts of Damascus, where he’d told her to land. “I’m flattered.” He helped her out of the aircraft. “I only left you a matter of hours ago. You obviously couldn’t wait to be with me again.”

“You’re right,” Jane said dryly. “Waiting for anything isn’t on my agenda at the moment.”

“And you wanted to be here to remind me that I mustn’t follow my natural instincts. You didn’t trust me.” He reached out and gently touched her cheek. “How wise you are, Jane.”

Her skin was warm, tingling beneath his fingers. She wanted to step closer…

She shook her head to clear it and stepped back. “I thought I could be more useful here than waiting in Tel Aviv. As I told you on the phone, everything is in motion now.”

He glanced at his watch. “And in an hour you should be receiving your call from Millet.”

She nodded. “He’s not going to allow me much time. I’m not going to be able to stall him. We have to find a way to get Eve out before whatever time he gives me runs out.”

“That’s why I’m here, isn’t it? Faruk? It shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Can you get him to actually take us to the temple?”

“As I said, no problem.”

Hope suddenly surged through her. It was the first bright beacon in all the hours since she’d found the coins. “Then we’d better go find him. Did you check his home address on the Net?”

He nodded. “But we won’t bother to go there. After all, you’re pressed for time.”

“What do you-” Her gaze narrowed on his face. “This airport. Faruk uses this airport?”

He nodded. “He has two cargo planes parked in that hangar over there.”

“You couldn’t have just told me that’s why you wanted me to come here?”

“It was convenient. You had to land somewhere.” He glanced away from her. “And maybe I was a little irritated that you tied my hands. I didn’t feel like sharing.” He smiled. “Not that way.”

Intimacy.

Push it away.

“Too bad. This isn’t about you… or me. It’s about Eve. Have you contacted Faruk yet?”

He shook his head. “He’s not here. He went to downtown Damascus after he came back from dropping off Millet and Eve. He should be back soon. I spent the last hour or so talking to mechanics and Nasra, the receptionist at the office, gathering information. Faruk seems to be pretty ordinary. Early forties, unmarried, quiet, doesn’t talk much to the other pilots or mechanics. He’s considered a good pilot. Definitely not a troublemaker.”

“Just a good-old-boy cult member who likes to watch people stabbed to death.”

“How often have you read stories about serial killers whose neighbors say they can’t believe their friend is the same man who did those killings?”

“Point taken. Where do we wait for Faruk to appear?”

“Definitely out of sight.” He drew her into a hangar a few yards from the small brightly lit main office. “If your picture was circulated among the cult members, Faruk has probably seen it.” He leaned back against the metal wall. “We don’t want to put him on his guard. It will make things difficult.” He saw her expression and smiled. “No, I’m not on the attack. I’ll handle him gently. You’ve slapped my hands. How could I do otherwise?”

“Let me count the ways. You let me come blindly on his turf. You weren’t worried about his recognizing me then.”

“I was on watch. And I knew he wasn’t due back yet. I took a chance.” He made a face. “Though maybe I wanted an excuse to go after him. Who knows?”

“All I want from him is information. Faruk’s a pilot, not one of Millet’s killers. He’s no real danger.”

“We’ll see.” He was studying her. “You look as if you’ve been stretched on a rack. One touch, and you’d break. How long do you think you can go on?”

“Until we get Eve back.” She gazed out at the tarmac. “And I won’t break.”

His intent gaze remained on her face. “It makes me angry seeing you like this, you know.”

Her gaze shifted back to his face. “Why?”

He shrugged. “I’ve been wondering that myself. I thought I’d left all that protective bullshit behind me. But it appears that there are some tendrils of emotion that can’t be uprooted. You… stir me.”

She stared at him, speechless.

“I just thought you should know.” His lips twisted. “You’re always saying you don’t understand me. Now you can see in what direction I’m heading. I don’t think it’s just the sex. I wouldn’t have let you take me off the hunt for Faruk if it was only that.” He held her gaze. “Though I could be wrong. I keep thinking of all the ways I want to have you.”

She was suddenly vibrantly, physically, aware of everything about him. His hand resting on the doorjamb, the muscles of his chest and shoulders relaxed but possessing a catlike readiness, his eyes… Her chest was so tight that she couldn’t breathe. “And that’s supposed to make me understand you?”

“Maybe not. I thought I’d try. Sometimes, I think, I get lonely. Though I thought I’d put that behind me, too.” He suddenly chuckled. “But understanding me might cause you to shun me even more. Maybe I should count my blessings.”

She was feeling an aching, almost tender, impulse to reach out, to comfort. It bewildered her. Surely no one on earth had less need for either of those emotions. He had even laughed at himself as he had said those words. Somehow that only made them more poignant. “ I… don’t shun you.”

“Because I keep coming at you. It’s easier for you to come to terms than push me away.”

Damn, he could read her. “Right now I can’t deal-”

“He’s here.” Caleb straightened, his gaze on the hangar across the tarmac. “Tall, a little plump, mustache. That’s the description I got from Nasra, the receptionist.”

Jane’s gaze focused on the man in neat gray trousers and brown leather flight jacket who was unlocking the door of the hangar. As Caleb had said, Faruk looked very ordinary.