'Obsession?'
'That won't be enough for Joe or Montalvo.'
'Laura Ann?'
She couldn't deny that would draw them on a possible wild-goose chase. 'It's not enough. Not after you almost blew us all to kingdom come. Give me some proof that Act Two isn't just going to lead to Act Three if you don't kill us.'
He was silent a moment. 'This is a two-act play, Eve. I don't have to give you proof, but you'll not find that island barren soil. It was a perfect place to hide a body. And I may decide to hide yours there as well.'
'Let me talk to Laura Ann.'
'Of course, I promised you, didn't I? Come along, little bitch, speak up.'
A few seconds passed and then a wisp of a child's voice. 'Hello.'
Relief poured through Eve. At least Kistle had told the truth about Laura Ann. 'Listen, baby, my name is Eve and we're going to come and get you. But you're with a very bad man and you mustn't make him angry. Try not to talk to him at all.'
'He doesn't like that either. Will you tell my mama that I'm sorry? She told me not to get in a car with a stranger, but he told me he was Daddy's friend. I wanted to see my daddy. I thought maybe he wanted to see me too.'
'I'll tell her.' Her eyes were suddenly stinging. 'I'm sure she'll understand. She gave me a message for you. She said to tell you that she loves you and is very proud of you. She'll see you soon.'
'Enough.' Kistle was back on the phone. 'I'll let you talk to her again when you reach the swamp. The clock is ticking, Eve.' He hung up.
She slowly pressed the disconnect.
'What did he say?' Joe asked.
'You were right. It's an island in the Okefenokee. We're to check the bulletin board at the visitors' bureau. Laura Ann is still alive.' She swung her feet to the floor and got out of bed. 'Call Montalvo and tell him, will you? We're going to need all the information Miguel gathered about the swamp.'
'What if this is another blind alley?'
'That's what I asked him,' she said jerkily as she headed for the bathroom. 'He said this was the final act and I wouldn't find barren soil on that island.'
'And you believe the son of a bitch?'
'Yes. This time I believe him. I think that island's somebody's burial ground.' She closed the bathroom door behind her. Take a shower, get dressed, and use that time to think. She had already decided that they couldn't go blindly into Kistle's traps, that something had to change.
Dear God, and she had known all along what that change had to be. She had just refused to admit it to herself. But she couldn't ignore it any longer.
The clock was ticking.
THE RESIDENCE WAS A PLEASANT little house in Morningside with a wide front porch and pots of ferns hanging from the arches.
'This is crazy, Eve,' Joe said harshly. 'I know you're desperate, but this isn't going to do anyone any good.'
'You're right, I'm desperate. I want insurance.' She got out of the SUV. 'You almost died at Chattahoochee. I don't want to have to go into that swamp blind.' She nodded at Montalvo, who had just pulled up behind them, then she turned and walked up the path to the front door. It was barely six in the morning and the house was still dark. They were probably asleep. Should she wait before she-
She rang the doorbell.
No answer.
She rang it again.
A small, thin man opened the door. His hair was mussed and he wore a red robe. 'Yes?'
'I have to see Megan Blair. I'm Eve Duncan. You must be her Uncle Phillip?'
He nodded. 'Megan's still sleeping. Can you come back later?'
'No, I have to see her now. Will you wake her?'
He stiffened. 'I'm not sure I should. It took her three days to recover from-'
'It's okay, Phillip.' Megan was coming down the hall. She wore only a Falcons T-shirt and red furry scuffs, but she was definitely wide awake. 'She wouldn't have come at this hour unless it was important.'
'Important for her,' he said. 'Maybe a problem for you.' He shrugged. 'I'll make some coffee. Go into the sunroom.'
Megan nodded and moved down the hall. 'Though there's not much sun in the sunroom at six in the morning.' She opened the French doors. 'Sit down.' She curled up on a shabby green-and-white-print cushioned couch. 'And I don't think you'd notice anyway.'
Eve's gaze went around the small room as she sat down in a rattan chair. As Megan had said, the room was dim and shadowed. 'This is nice. Comfortable.'
'We like it.' She met Eve's gaze. 'But you didn't come here to compliment our interior decorating, did you? They haven't caught Kistle yet?'
'No, he's moved out of Clayborne Forest. He's here in this area. You saw the news story about Laura Ann Simmons?'
Megan stiffened. 'He's got her?'
'But she's still alive. I talked to her on the phone only a few hours ago. He's using her as bait to draw me into the trap.'
'Where?'
'Okefenokee Swamp. He gave me two days, but I've already wasted too much time on a wild-goose chase.'
'And why come to me?'
'I think you know.'
She nodded slowly. 'But I wouldn't be any good to you. Unless he's already killed her.'
'You said you hear these voices in places that echo tragedy or high distress. For God's sake, what Laura Ann is feeling must be the highest distress. She must be scared out of her mind.' She paused. 'And he said I'd find Laura Ann in the same place he'd used as a burial spot. Bonnie must be there.'
'He could be lying.'
'Yes, but I don't think he is. Not this time.' She moistened her lips. 'But he'll try to trick us. I know it. We need you.'
Megan said nothing. She just looked at her.
'I know what I'm asking. I know what you went through in Bloomburg.'
'No, you don't,' Megan said curtly. 'You don't know anything.'
'Maybe not,' Eve said. 'But I'm asking it anyway. Will you come with us?'
She was silent a moment and then said wearily, 'Hell, I was going to tell you no when you came to me.'
'You knew I'd come? I didn't know myself until this morning.'
Megan's lips twisted. 'Oh, I don't have any gift for precognition. But I have a friend, Renata, who can judge cause and effect with wonderful accuracy. I don't have her talent, but it didn't take much analyzing to realize what your next step would be.' She added, 'And you're lying to yourself if you think you weren't planning this all along. If it hadn't been for Laura Ann and Kistle, you'd still have come to get me to help you find Bonnie. You couldn't help yourself.'
Eve stared at her a moment as her words sank home. Dear God, it was true. It had been there beneath the surface and she had not admitted it to herself. 'I was fighting it. I didn't want to do it. I know how it will hurt you.'
'When you started to believe me about Bobby Joe, it was only a matter of time before you'd want me to find your Bonnie.' Megan shook her head. 'It's wrong. I shouldn't do it, Eve. Not only for my sake but for yours. You know she must have died horribly. Do you really want me to bring that all back to you?'
'I want to bring her body home.'
