Chapter 4
“I’ve scanned in Luke’s photo.” Eve looked up from her computer. “It’s good that it’s a frontal shot. It will help with the progression. But I need more than this.”
“I know. Family members. I don’t have much that you can use.” She slipped from her stool. “I’ll be right back. I left an envelope in my rental car.” She ran out of the house and down the steps. She was back in a few minutes and handed Eve a large manila envelope. “The photos are all of my husband Terry’s family. I don’t know anything about my mother’s background. I tried to trace my father, but I haven’t been able to find out anything about him. Not even his name.”
“That’s not good.”
“I tried,” she said fiercely. “I can’t help it that I was dropped into this world and everyone just walked away. It’s not my fault, and it’s not Luke’s. Work with it.”
“I will. It just makes it more difficult. What do you know about age progression?”
“Only that it’s easier if you have a battery of photos from both sides of the family. I tried to give it to you. It just wasn’t happening.”
“The reason that we like to compare the child’s photo with any available photos of family members is that there may be a resemblance to the features of a grandparent or uncle or another relative that’s stronger than to the parents. And if we had a photograph of any of them at the same age as Luke, eleven, it could help.”
“But maybe not. My husband always said Luke looked like me.”
Eve gazed at the photo of Luke on the screen. Beautiful, faintly tilted dark eyes with long eyelashes. The lips appeared close to the same shape. She couldn’t tell about the cheekbones. Luke had too much baby fat for her to be able to determine the shape.
“Well?”
“There is a strong resemblance, but we can’t be sure that it will still be noticeable at his present age. The shape of the face changes.”
“We can’t be sure of anything. But it’s something to work with.”
Eve nodded. “But this is Luke at two. When a child is born, the bones of the skull and neck are not nearly complete. The growth process doesn’t complete until a person is twenty-five or older.”
“So?”
“The proportional changes in the amount of the lower face are fundamental. Young children’s faces grow downward and forward. The forehead changes from a bulbous look to an upright and flattened appearance. The lower half of the face drifts downward and either forward or outward. The upper and lower jaws are constantly increasing in size and changing form. They become more prominent and-”
“You’re telling me all the difficulties. Can you override them?”
“I can only try.” She opened the envelope and spread the photos on the table. “Which one was your husband?”
“The man in the brown bomber jacket. He doesn’t look anything like Luke.”
“I can see that.” The man in the photo was tall, broad-shouldered, and had thinning gray hair. “He was quite a bit older than you.”
“Sixty-two, but age doesn’t matter.”
Sixty-two to Catherine’s seventeen.
“It doesn’t matter,” Catherine repeated. “Age is only a number. Venable sent me to Terry as a mentor when I first joined the CIA, and he taught me, guided me, he even saved my life once. He was very good to me. That’s the only thing that was important.”
“Your relationship is your own business. I was just surprised.”
“He was kind, we were partners, he gave me a child. Infinite riches. How could I ask for more?”
Didn’t every woman deserve a young and heady passion at least once in her life? “He has a nice face.” She went to another picture. “Who is the child?”
“Terry, at age six. The other picture is his mother, Gail. She doesn’t look like Luke either. So you may be stuck with me. I was four when that picture of me was taken in Shanghai. My mother had to furnish it for the entry papers.”
Eve picked up the photo of Catherine. It was amazingly similar to the photo on the computer screen before her. The child Catherine was thinner, her manner solemn and a little defiant, but the resemblance was unmistakable.
“Will it help?” Catherine asked.
“Yes, I think it will. I don’t know how much.” She bent forward and began to run feature programs on the photo of Luke before her. “Let me go to work.”
“I won’t bother you.” Catherine was once more gazing down at Cindy’s bones. “If I can do anything more to-”
“I’ll let you know.” Eve was staring at the lower part of Luke’s face. Such an enchanting child, full of life and mischief. Some of the magic of early childhood would fade when she added years to his picture.
Catherine had missed that magic, she thought suddenly. How she must have loved this child. She would have regretted every year that passed and cheated her of those beloved changes. Eve had had Bonnie for seven years, and she had memories of every single one. Catherine had nothing past that second birthday.
Time to get to work.
Eleven. She had to clear her mind of that wonderfully engaging two-year-old and think eleven…
It was close to five when Joe walked into the cottage. Eve had called him back and explained briefly what had occurred since he had left, and he had been royally pissed. Now she took one look at his expression and murmured to Catherine, “You said you were ready to face responsibility for your actions? Here it comes.”
Catherine sat up straighter on her stool, her gaze on Joe Quinn. “Will it upset you? I can handle him alone.”
“Indeed?” Joe asked silkily.
“It won’t upset me,” Eve said. “It will interest me.”
Catherine slipped from the stool and moved across the room to stand before Joe. “You’re angry. I had to do it, you know. I had to get Eve alone to talk to her. You had to be removed.”
“You’re damn right I’m angry. You interfered with my life and my job. You broke into my home. You somehow managed to brainwash Eve into doing your job. Get the hell out of here.”
“If that’s what you want. But Eve is going to help me. We both know she always keeps her word. And I’m helping her, too. It will be easier for her if I stay here until it’s done.” She moistened her lips. “It won’t be long. Eve says that two or three days, and she’ll have the progression completed. I won’t get in your way. I’ve brought a tent and sleeping bag. I’ll camp out in the woods until she’s finished. The minute she stops for the day, I’m out of your house and won’t come back until the morning.”
He stared at her without speaking.
“I’ve heard that she cares about you. She’s stayed with you a long time, so that must be true. I always knew that you could be the one who would get in my way. You might be able to persuade her to not help me.” She looked him in the eye. “But I don’t think you will. She hasn’t had any luck finding her own child. She has a chance to help find mine. That would have to make her feel a sort of healing. I’d think that you’d want that.” Her voice lowered. “I don’t care how you feel about me. Yes, I’m selfish and self-serving, but I’m not hurting her. Just let me stay for a little while.”
Joe didn’t speak for a moment, and his gaze never left Catherine’s face. “Eve?”
“Her son was only two when he was ripped away from her. He deserves to come home.” She paused. “And he could be alive, Joe. Maybe for once the bad guy hasn’t triumphed. She’s right, I need this.”
Joe muttered a curse and turned on his heel. “Okay, you’ve got it. Just don’t let her pull you into anything else.” He headed for the bedroom. “And you will sleep in your tent and stay out of my hair, Catherine. I won’t have you insinuating your way into my house. Once the progression is over, you’re out.”
“You don’t have to worry about that. Once I know what my son looks like, I’ll be out of here and on the hunt.”
