His eyes were flickering, shifting, changing.
Help me, Bonnie. Help me, baby.
He stepped back, and the hand with the knife fell to his side.
Eve let out the breath she hadn’t known she was holding.
The moment of danger had passed… for now.
Had she convinced him? Or had Danner’s madness, which always seemed to be hovering in the shadows, just retreated?
Or had Eve been given the help for which she’d prayed?
It didn’t matter. Danner’s eyes were clear, his expression as close to normal as she’d experienced since he’d taken her. She moistened her lips again. “You do believe me. That’s good. I’m glad that you’ve gotten over that particular misconception. I don’t usually have to defend myself against the charge of being a demon, and I have to really reach to do it.”
He was gazing at her in bewilderment. “You’re joking with me.”
“Purely involuntary. I admit to being a little shaken, and that’s how I generally handle it.”
“You’re frightened,” he said slowly.
“You caught me off guard. A knife usually has that effect on me.”
He was staring at her with an expression that had an odd element of regret. “I do have to kill you. I can’t do anything else. You didn’t seem afraid before. I was… surprised.”
“Get over it. As I said, you caught me off guard. This time self-preservation kicked in.” Her lips tightened. “You’re worrying that I’ll break my word about making it easy for you? You’re wondering if it’s worth it to you to wait and take me to where you want to… do it.”
“Yes.”
“I won’t lie to you. I’m not afraid to die. Sometimes there seems to be more waiting for me there than here. But that’s only sometimes. Self-preservation, Danner. If I can live, I’ll do it. But you won’t have to worry about my being difficult for you until after you’ve taken me to where I can find my daughter.” She met his eyes. “I’m not as sure as you are that she wants what you want. I’ll have to see.”
He didn’t speak for a moment. “You’re… honest. I knew that from the moment I met you when you were just a kid. You were pregnant and alone, and you were still fighting and telling the world to get out of your way.”
“I wasn’t entirely alone. There are good people in this world, Danner. I thought you were one of them. You would have helped me if I’d asked, wouldn’t you?”
“You didn’t ask. You didn’t want me. You didn’t want John.”
“Is that why you killed my daughter?” Her hands clenched. “You did kill her, didn’t you? Tell me.”
He didn’t answer. “I thought you were right, that John would want to be free if he came back from Korea. I was glad you didn’t want him to marry you just because you were having his kid. I would have helped you, but I didn’t want you hanging on John, keeping him back.”
Memories of that time were bombarding her. Nights of passion with John Gallo. The first moment she’d seen Bonnie at the hospital. This was becoming incredibly hard.
“I never wanted to hurt John,” she said unevenly. “But I did hurt him by keeping my daughter to myself. I never realized that until later. I was given a special gift, and I wouldn’t share it. Did you realize that I’d hurt him and wanted to strike back? I just don’t understand.”
“I’d never let you hurt John,” Danner said roughly. “I’d never let anyone hurt him.”
She’d struck a nerve. “Yet you’re doing it now. Don’t you know how John feels about what you’re doing? He loves you, and he can’t understand what you’ve become.”
“I know.” Danner’s voice was low and threaded with pain. “But I have to do it. I have to give the child what she wants so that she’ll go away and stop the torment.”
“Bonnie,” Eve said between set teeth. “I’ve told you-” It didn’t matter what he called her. Why argue with him? “You’ve told me yourself that John is probably right behind us. What will you do when he catches up? You may have to kill him to keep the demons away.”
“No, I won’t do that. He won’t catch up. We’re almost there.”
She jumped at the sentence. “Where?”
“Providence.” His lips twisted. “Did you think you were tricking me? It doesn’t matter if you know. Not now.” He turned and started up the trail. “Come along, Eve. By this time tomorrow it will be over.”
Providence. The only Providence she knew was in Rhode Island. Was it a real place they were going or a figment of Danner’s imagination? Or was it a term he was using to describe the situation? The last few minutes should have taught her how unstable he could be. Providence. Truth or fantasy, it was the only clue, the only weapon she had.
If she could find a way of using it.
“WHERE ON EARTH IS HE taking us?” Father Barnabas gazed at Ben, who was climbing the hill several yards ahead of them. “It seems as if we’ve been going around in circles for the last few hours.”
“We have,” Joe said. “We passed that triangular rock twice.”
The priest shook his head. “Then the boy doesn’t really know where he’s going. Why didn’t you give up and stop him?”
“Because there’s a chance he does know. There was no uncertainty about what he was doing. He took every turn with perfect confidence. I believe there’s a possibility that Danner took this route when he led Ben to his place.” His gaze was fastened on Ben’s back. “He liked the boy, but he wouldn’t entirely trust him. He’d be afraid he could be fooled or manipulated. So he took him on a route that would make anyone with him think he didn’t know where he was going and give up on him.”
“Interesting theory. But how long do we consider it a valid premise?”
“As long as we can. Look at him. He thinks that he knows where he’s going. I’d bet he subconsciously counted every twist and turn that Danner made and is repeating them.” His lips twisted. “Have a little faith, Father.”
“That was unfair. I have faith. But perhaps I’m like Danner and not sure how the boy’s mind works. You seem to be a step ahead of us.”
“I’m guessing.” He only hoped that he was guessing right. Why was he so certain that Ben was the key to finding Eve? Just because that smile reminded him of the sketch of Bonnie? Because he seemed to shine when everything around Joe was in darkness? He should be thinking analytically, not relying on instinct.
Screw it. Instinct was all he had right now.
“It’s just ahead.” Ben was looking over his shoulder at him. “I’m glad we got here before dark. The ground is rough for the last stretch. I fell twice when Ted was leading me up here.” He didn’t wait for an answer, but lengthened his stride and disappeared around the curve.
The way to the top of the hill was as treacherous as Ben had said. Slippery shale alternating with sandy ground that gave away from beneath their feet. Joe had to stop twice to pull Father Barnabas back on the trail when the shale had thrown him into a skid. The last yards, which should have taken a few minutes, stretched into almost twenty.
The sun was going down in a blaze of scarlet when they reached the top of the summit.
Ben was looking out at the hills and ridges surrounding them. “Beautiful.” The sun was bathing his face with a soft glow. “Isn’t it beautiful? Ted couldn’t see it. I don’t know why. I tried to tell him how it made me feel. But Ted said it was a trap, and demons lurked everywhere.”
“Did you believe him?” Joe asked quietly.
“The first night he brought me here. It scared me. But then I found out that he was wrong.”
“How did you do that?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know. I just woke up in the morning and looked out at the ridge and knew there was nothing bad out there.”
“The ridge?”
Ben pointed to the ridge to the far north. “I think that’s where Ted went when he left me. He said I had to stay here and not follow him, or the demons would get me.”
