in their bags. 'They were all full of moral indignation and piss and vinegar and thought they'd run him down in a few hours. Now they're probably scared and trying to pretend they're not.'
'It's only been one day,' Jane said. 'And Kistle is the one on the run. No one should be scared yet.' Her gaze narrowed on Joe's face. 'Isn't that true?'
'Ask them.' Joe started the SUV and backed out of the parking space. 'I'm sure they think they have reason.'
'And so do you,' Eve said. 'What's been happening here, Joe?'
'I've made reservations for you at the Brown Hotel,' Joe said. 'Its about four blocks from here. Dodsworth recommended it.'
'Joe.'
'And the FBI should be in town later today to assist. That forest should be crawling with agents by tonight.'
'And you're not happy?'
'No.' His lips twisted. 'That local posse is enough to worry about. The FBI can be a hell of a lot more efficient and lethal. I don't want Kistle dead before he tells you what you want to know. I'll be damned if Bonnie is going to haunt us for the rest of our lives.'
Eve stared at him in shock at the harshness of his words. 'She doesn't have to haunt you, Joe. It's my problem.'
'No, it isn't.' He pulled into the parking space in front of the hotel. 'What you feel, I feel. That's the way it is.' He got out, opened the car doors, and handed them their luggage. 'I'll call you later. I'm going back to Clayborne Forest.' He glanced at Jane. 'Take care of her.'
Jane nodded. 'Always.' She glanced from Eve to Joe and then started toward the entrance. 'I'll check us in, Eve. Ask the desk clerk for the room number.'
'She's being diplomatic. She thinks we're going to argue.' Joe started to turn away. 'I'll call you later.'
'Don't you drive off,' Eve said. 'You didn't answer me. There's something going on that you're not telling me.' She braced herself before adding, 'And there's something I should tell you. Montalvo nudged Venable into getting the FBI involved. He said that he wanted the best and most experienced men after Kistle.'
Joe turned to look at her. 'Montalvo called you and told you that?'
'Yes.'
'And did you tell him it was none of his business?'
'No, I don't care who is involved if it means we can catch Kistle.' She met his gaze. 'I did say I didn't want to meet with Montalvo.'
'But he wouldn't listen, would he? Is he on his way here?'
'He might already be here by now.'
Joe nodded. 'Why not? It's the perfect opportunity for him to bond with you. When Venable told me that Montalvo had made a deal with him, it was clear as glass.'
She stiffened. 'You already knew that Montalvo was responsible for the FBI being here? Why didn't you tell me? Was this some kind of test?'
'No.'
'I think it was.'
He shrugged. 'Maybe I was curious.'
'For God's sake, after all these years don't you know I wouldn't lie to you even by omission?'
'Yes, you would. Maybe not about another man, but you'd do it for Bonnie.'
It was the second time he'd mentioned Bonnie with that same bitterness. 'Not if I felt you were on my side, Joe.'
'I'm always on your side,' he said roughly. 'And that sometimes means I have to be against Bonnie. Because your damn obsession is going to kill you someday.' He opened the car door. 'And that day could be today or tomorrow or next week. Kistle is fixating on you like a mad dog. It's only a matter of time before you end up with a stake through your heart too. I won't stand by and wait for it to happen.'
'Stake? What are you talking about?'
'Kistle killed two deputies last night. He led them to a bog and when they were struggling in the quicksand, he shot them. Then he left notes on stakes he stabbed into their hearts.'
'Quicksand,' she whispered.
'Aren't you interested in what he wrote on those notes? Just three words.' He paused. '
The words tore through her like a knife thrust. 'No!'
'He wanted to hurt you. It does hurt you, doesn't it?'
'Of course it does,' she said unevenly. 'It makes me feel… responsible.'
'I knew you'd feel like that.' He added bitterly, 'That's why I didn't want Dodsworth to tell you. I wanted it to be done gently by someone who loved you. I do love you, but I can't be gentle right now.' He started the SUV. 'So I end up by hurting you too. Kistle would be proud of me.'
She watched him back out of the parking space, filled with a bewildering mixture of horror, sadness, anger… and fear.
Quicksand.
Those two men had died in that bog and Joe was on his way to Clayborne Forest now. She wanted to call him and tell him to come back.
It would be no use. She had never seen Joe this driven and bitter. She could almost feel the explosive emotional energy that was tearing through him.
And she was in little better shape. The shock of Joe's revelation and the raw harshness of his words had shaken her. Get over it. She was here in Bloomburg for a purpose and that purpose would be accomplished. She had to believe that Joe would be able to take care of himself.
Yeah, since she could do nothing about it anyway, she thought dryly. Joe wasn't about to do anything she asked him to do. He had his own agenda and believed she was some kind of fluttering, suicidal bird flying to destruction. He might understand that Kistle could be the one to bring her peace and closure, but he didn't really accept it.
'It's good to see you, Eve. Though I wish it was under kinder circumstances.'
She whirled to see Miguel Vicente coming out of the hotel. The last time she had seen him he had been bedridden from the torture he'd received at the hands of the drug dealer who had also almost taken Joe's life during those nightmare weeks in the jungle. Though it was impossible to ever say Miguel was subdued, he'd definitely been under the weather. Now he looked like the young man she had first seen at that armed compound in Colombia. Tall, dark, handsome, and filled with a wicked sense of understated humor that could be both endearing and exasperating. 'Hello, Miguel. Montalvo told me you were here.' She frowned as she looked at his bandaged hands. 'And I told him to send you back to the hospital.'
'If I'm careful, all is well.' He smiled. 'For instance, I will not offer to carry your bags into this hotel. Though it offends my sense of gallantry, I will let you take them in yourself.' He tilted his head. 'Of course, I could go inside and prod the doorman, who should be out here to do his duty.' He beamed. 'Yes, that would be much less boring. Wait here.'
'No,' she said firmly. She knew exactly how lethal Miguel could be even with those wounded hands. 'I'll do it myself.'
'That one box looks very familiar,' he said. 'Another skull?'
'Yes.'
'Anyone I know?'
'No, a child no one knows right now.'
His smile faded. 'I meant no disrespect. As you know, it's my nature.'
'Why are you here, Miguel?'
'One, to make sure you're comfortable. Two, to make sure you stay alive. Montalvo said the latter was more important than the former.' His boyish demeanor suddenly dropped as he turned to the bellman leaning against the reception desk and gestured to Eve's cases. 'I believe you have a job to do,' he said softly. 'I'll be very displeased if it isn't done quickly.'
