Eve (26 page)

“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.”

She watched him get into the car and back out of the driveway.

No, he’d never be easy. Joe was brilliant, complicated, and wary. He made friends with extreme caution and kept them forever. Dear God, how lucky she’d been that he loved her and wanted to keep her in that same golden circle.

Joe’s car turned the curve in the road and disappeared from view.

As a golden circle could be broken, as a life could so easily be lost.

Joe …

The key John had given her. Why hadn’t she told Joe and Catherine about it? At first, it had slipped her mind, but later it had been a conscious decision. But why had she made that decision?

She took out the cell phone that John Gallo had handed back to her in that bedroom. He had said that it was to communicate with Joe, but had he really meant that to be the purpose? She had come to realize that nothing about John was clear and absolutely straightforward. He had abandoned her to Joe and Catherine tonight, but wasn’t that the best way to avoid the complications he had been trying to skirt?

And then he had given her back her phone. Had he also given her a choice?

She slowly scrolled back to John Gallo’s call the first day that he had phoned her.

Choice?

She wasn’t prepared to make that choice yet. She was tired and emotionally drained. She had to give herself time to think and make sure she wasn’t going to stampede herself into doing something as impulsive as that sixteen-year-old kid she had been might have done.

She started to put the phone back in her pocket, then stopped and dialed the number of FedEx. She would have the skull delivered as soon as possible and start work.

Doing the reconstruction would remind her of who she was and how far she had come from that girl in the Peabody Housing Development.

*   *   *

JOE DIDN’T COME HOME UNTIL
almost midnight. He’d called her late in the afternoon and told her he was going to have to work late on a murder case in Vinings.

He quietly slipped into bed. “Awake?” he whispered.

“Yes.” She yawned and cuddled closer. “I was working.”

“I saw the reconstruction on your worktable. I told you to take a nap.”

“I wanted to work. I didn’t do much. Only started the measurements.”

“Have you named him yet?”

“Dale.”

“Do you want to talk about him?” His hand was stroking her hair.

“Dale?”

“John Gallo.”

“No. Unless you want me to talk about him.”

He didn’t answer for a moment. “Not right now. But we’re going to have to do it. You’re behaving … I don’t know.” He pulled her tighter. “But I don’t like it.”

She didn’t like it, either. She didn’t like the fact that she had worked for hours trying to block thoughts of Gallo and Paul Black out of her mind and hadn’t succeeded. She didn’t like that she felt a tension building whenever Joe mentioned Gallo’s name.

He kissed her and nestled her head into the hollow of his shoulder. “We’ll work it out. Go to sleep.”

She closed her eyes, feeling the pounding of his heart beneath her ear. Life. She brushed her lips against his warm, smooth skin. She wanted to feel the textures, breathe the scents of him. She wanted to cherish this moment.

Because she could feel the choice approaching.

*   *   *

SHE GOT UP WITH JOE AND HAD
coffee with him before he left for work. Then she started working on the reconstruction of the little boy. More measurements. Concentrate. They all had to be correct.

But she couldn’t concentrate. By eleven she knew there was no way she could block the decision any longer.

She shook her head as she gazed at the skull on the easel. “I’m sorry, Dale,” she said softly. “It’s not that you’re not important. But you’ll have to wait a little longer.”

She took out her phone and walked out on the porch.

Choice.

He had handed her the phone and must have realized what that meant.

She rolled back the calls and brought up the number from where he’d called her.

She pressed the button for return call.

It rang once, twice.

On the third ring, Gallo picked up.

“Is Joe Quinn standing at your shoulder?”

“No.” She had to gather her thoughts. She hadn’t been sure that he would answer. “I can’t involve Joe any more in this. He was shot last night.”

Silence. “I know. Hanks called and reported after he left the compound. I didn’t want that to happen. Is Quinn okay?”

“Yes. But it did happen. He was hurt. He could have been killed. This is your responsibility. Make it right. Tell me where to find Paul Black.”

He chuckled. “You’re using guilt to get your own way? That’s very ruthless, Eve.”

“I’ll use whatever I have to use. I have to find Bonnie’s killer. I won’t have Joe sacrificed on the altar of my obsession.”

“Yet you can’t give up the hunt.”

“No, and that’s my guilt.”

He was silent. “We’re a fine pair, aren’t we, Eve?”

“Tell me,” she said. “You said you didn’t want to destroy me. But can’t you see? I’m destroying myself and Joe. I have to find him. I have to find
her.
”

“You won’t let me do it for you?”

“I have to know. I have to be certain.”

“And you can’t trust me.”

“I don’t know you. I’ve never known you. How can I trust you?” She paused. “But I know that, in spite of what you said, you wanted to leave the door open for me. You wouldn’t have given me back my phone. You wouldn’t have answered the call.”

“My door is always open for you, Eve.”

“And you gave me that key. How did you know I wouldn’t turn it over to Queen?”

“I had to take the chance. I knew Queen would take advantage of what I’d done to make his move. You had to be protected. Has he contacted you yet?”

“No.”

“He will. He didn’t find what he wanted at the house, and he’ll start exploring possibilities.”

“He made me angry.” She paused. “He burned your house.”

“Hanks told me. Judy managed to get out everything that was valuable from the office.”

“Senseless. Queen wanted to hurt you.” She paused. “Did he do it?”

“Yes.” He didn’t speak for a moment. “Stupid. I knew with my head that it was just a shell made out of brick and wood. I knew it could be taken away from me like everything else. I was prepared for it. But I’d never really had a home, even as a kid. I guess I wanted one. Funny. I suppose it sort of crept in when I wasn’t looking. Primitive instinct. We’re all savages once you tear away the trappings.”

“It was a lovely place.”

“It’s gone. Don’t think about it.”

“Is that your philosophy? I don’t think so. Bonnie is gone. You’re still thinking about her.”

“That’s different.”

Yes, everything about Bonnie and her life and death were different and special. “Did Paul Black kill her?”

He didn’t answer immediately. “I believe he did.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“No, but I know how to bring him to me.”

Her hand tightened on the phone until the knuckles turned white. “Then tell me where you are. I have to be with you.”

He didn’t speak.

“I’m not going to plead with you. But I swear I’ll give that key to Queen. Maybe he knows something about Black that he didn’t tell Catherine. And I’ll let Queen use me as bait to try to get you. I don’t think you’d want me to do that.”

“You’d be crazy to deal with him,” John said roughly. “Your just having that key will tell him that you know too much. That was your insurance policy.”

“He’s an Army Intelligence agent. He might have you targeted, but I’m a private citizen. He’d have a difficult time trying to harass me.”

“I’m not talking about harassment.” His breath expelled with exasperation. “I’ll say you’re not pleading. Back off, Eve. This isn’t a good move.”

“I can’t back off. Tell me how to reach you.” She had to persuade him. “I have a right, John. No one has a better right than I do to catch that bastard. You know it, and I know it. Isn’t that the real reason you made contact with me? You say we’re all savages. Maybe that primitive instinct told you that this was something we had to do together.”

He was still silent, and Eve wasn’t sure that she’d made an impact.

Then he said, “Take the Delta flight to Milwaukee this afternoon. When you get in, call me, and I’ll come and get you. Queen will probably have someone following you. He won’t stop you because he’ll hope you’re leading him to me.”

“And I will be.”

“I’ll take care of that when you get here. Be careful.” He hung up.

It was done.

Eve hung up and stared out at the lake.

“We’re going to find you, Bonnie,” she whispered. “This is the time, isn’t it? This is how you wanted it.” Why was that certainty growing within her? She could be fooling herself because she wanted it so much, and the search had gone on so long. She was taking a chance on John Gallo. Joe and Catherine were right that he was the ultimate wild card.

And she had taken a chance on him once before, and it had changed her life. He had given her Bonnie.

Stop questioning. The decision was made.

She got to her feet and moved toward the door. She would make her airline reservations, write a note to Joe, and try to get a couple hours’ sleep.