“I can’t be that impersonal about it. I loved that shell. I want it back.”
Bonnie sighed. “We’ll talk about it later. You’re too emotional about Joe right now. It’s throwing everything out of kilter. Perhaps when Joe is safe, you’ll be more reasonable.”
When Joe is safe.
The words jarred Eve back into the fear and panic. Was there a chance that Joe would be safe?
“Go in and talk to Jane and make her feel better,” Bonnie said. “She’s scared about Joe, and now she’s scared about you too.”
She didn’t want to go. Her times with Bonnie were rare and special, and she didn’t want to leave her.
“But you want to be with Jane too. I’ll always be here for you, Mama.”
“I know. Sometimes it’s hard to remember.” She got up from the swing and moved toward the door. It was time to go back to the world. Jane needed her. Joe needed her.
And, as Bonnie had made clear, she needed them too.
ZILCH, CALEB THOUGHT, AS he turned on Northside Drive.
He’d been cruising the city for hours, and he’d not come up with anything. Not a hint of Jelak’s presence.
Why the hell was he bothering? The chances of his being able to sense Jelak in a city of this size were astronomical. Too many people to interfere with his focus. Even if he caught the trail, it would be blurred.
Did he have any choice? He had to go on unless Jane called him with another lead. Jelak had hit a bull’s-eye with Joe Quinn. Eve would not be held back for long from going to Jelak if she could see no other way of freeing Quinn.
The Jelak he had studied for years would not have realized Quinn’s value. He’d been riveted in one direction, seeing only the blood and not the other pieces of the game. Jelak would claim that he was so close to his resurrection that his mind was open and a thousand times sharper. Caleb wished to hell that he could—
Jelak.
His hands clenched the steering wheel.
It was only a tendril of sensation, gossamer thin. He concentrated. Come on, Jelak, give me something.
A blurred wisp of recognition.
Where?
South.
He turned down the next street.
Stronger. Still blurred but a tiny bit more defined. Then it was gone.
Dammit.
No, it was there again.
Hold on to it . . .
THE YOUNG GIRL, MARY LOU, hadn’t stirred in the last ten minutes. Joe only hoped that Jelak hadn’t given her an overdose. He doubted it. Jelak was an expert, and there was no telling how many victims he’d overcome with that same sedative. He’d be very careful. What was the use of having a weapon if you destroyed it by carelessness? Joe should be hoping the kid stayed unconscious for a little longer. The only thing waiting for her when she opened her eyes was stark terror.
And the only thing waiting for him was a choice he didn’t want to make.
“You’re bleeding. All those cuts . . . He hurt you.”
His gaze flew to the corner of the room. Nancy Jo was huddled against the wall, her arms folded tightly across her chest as if to keep from shaking. “Yes, he hurt me. What are you doing here?”
“She . . . came. Eve. She said I had to help you.”
“Eve?”
She nodded jerkily. “I didn’t want to do it. It was worse than last time. It wasn’t only seeing him. I knew I had to come. He’s here, isn’t he?”
“Probably in the next room.”
She closed her eyes. “I feel him. My blood is pounding so hard that I feel dizzy. I want to be brave, but all I can think about is his knife cutting across my throat.”
“You are brave. You came anyway, didn’t you?”
“Yes.” She opened her eyes. “I had to do it. Daddy told everyone you saved his life. I couldn’t let you die.”
“Your father is okay? I wasn’t sure.”
“He’s in the hospital. He’s worried about you. He’s worried about everything. But I think I made him feel better. Bonnie helped me.”
“Bonnie helped you do what?”
“She taught me how to make him dream. She said that’s the first step. He can’t see me or hear me yet, but gradually it could happen. Then he won’t be so lonely,” she added unevenly. “And I won’t be so lonely. But Bonnie says it can’t be because of me. It doesn’t work that way.”
Mary Lou stirred and muttered something.
