soon. I'm in New York between planes. I'm arriving in Atlanta in a couple hours. Will you meet me?'
'Jane, why didn't you stay in-'
'Because you're my family and I'm going to be with you. Now can you meet me?'
'Of course.'
'Delta 231. I love you. 'Bye.' She hung up.
Eve pressed the disconnect. The conversation had been disturbing. In her heart she had known that Jane had felt that Eve had not loved her as she did Bonnie, but Jane had always denied it. Now it was out in the open and they would have to face it. Yet Eve wasn't feeling apprehensive. It was almost a relief, and she and Jane were so close now that they could deal with anything.
Lord, it would be good to have Jane home. Just the sound of her voice made Eve feel more cheerful. She quietly opened the bedroom door and moved toward the bathroom to start dressing.
'WHERE ARE YOU GOING?' JOE asked sleepily as she came out of the bathroom. He rose up on one elbow. 'It's still dark outside.'
'Go back to sleep.' Eve bent and gave him a quick kiss. 'I'm going to the airport to pick up Jane. She called me from New York where she's making a connection.'
'I thought I'd convinced her to stay in Paris.' He yawned. 'She probably hopped the next plane.'
'More than likely. She wasn't pleased that we'd lied to her.'
'I lied to her. You didn't.'
'It's the same thing.'
'Is it?'
She smiled. 'Oh, yes. United we stand…' She brushed her lips across his forehead. 'I should be back in a couple hours. I'll stop at Dunkin' Donuts and get a supply of sinful sweets for breakfast. Maybe they'll be a mellowing influence on Jane.' She headed for the door. 'Though that's a tough one. Jane is definitely not mellow.'
'Like you,' Joe said. 'And donuts never fazed you, Eve.'
'Maybe I'll develop a liking for them. You're right, I could use a little mellowing too.' She waved her hand and was gone.
Joe slowly lay back down as he heard the front door shut behind her.
Mellow. Eve didn't understand the concept of mellow. She was storm-driven, with flashes of humor and affection that filtered through the clouds.
And he didn't know how long he could survive living in the center of that storm. He would destroy himself and he could destroy Eve. She'd had tragedy enough in her life and she didn't need to deal with the bitterness and fury that was tearing him apart. She would never give up her search for Bonnie and he could never feel anything but frustration and despair whenever he thought of Eve's child. The bitterness would grow and eventually it would make him walk away from her. But not before he might have hurt her beyond healing.
Don't think about it. Eve was with him now and for a little while there would be peace. That would change, the search would start again. He'd decide then whether he'd try one more time.
He closed his eyes. Try to sleep. In a few hours Eve and Jane would be back and he needed to pull himself together so that Eve wouldn't know this conflict was so near the surface. He didn't want to hurt her before he had to do it…
OPEN.
'No!'
Megan sat upright in bed, her heart beating so hard she thought it would jump from her chest. She swung her legs to the floor.
'What is it?' Phillip had opened her bedroom door and was frowning with concern. 'You called out.' He turned on the light and moved toward the bed. 'And you're crying.'
'Am I?' Megan wiped her cheeks on the back of her hands. 'Just a nightmare. I'm sorry I bothered you, Phillip.'
'You didn't bother me.' He dragged the easy chair up to the bed. 'And it's natural that you'd be upset. It's the first night home after that god-awful experience. What were you dreaming about?' He paused. 'The island?'
'Not exactly.' She drew a deep breath. 'It was… strange. It was the voices.' She got out of bed. 'I'm going to get a glass of water.' She held up her hand when he started to speak. 'No hot chocolate. Water. Just give me a minute. I'll be right back.'
She drank a full glass of water and then leaned against the vanity and took deep breaths. She would have to go back to Phillip soon, but she needed this moment to herself.
Just lingering words from the voices in the nightmare. But they were words she couldn't remember hearing from the voices of the children on the island.
Yet she had a panicky feeling that she should remember them.
She wiped her face with a cool washcloth. She had to get back to Phillip before he became any more concerned.
He was frowning when she came back and slipped into bed. 'I feel better. Go on to bed, Phillip.'
'Soon.' He leaned back in the chair. 'You've had nightmares about voices before, but I don't remember you getting this upset. You're usually… sad.'
'This was different.'
'You said that about the shock trauma you went through this time. Is this a residual effect?'
'Go back to bed, Phillip.'
'Nope.' He smiled. 'You wouldn't let me go to the island, but I'll be darned if I'll be closed out of helping with the fallout. You're uneasy and we're going to talk it out.'
'I'm not uneasy. Well, maybe I am. But it doesn't make any sense. The Listening was terrible, but everything could have been worse if that damn Pandora had kicked in. It didn't. I didn't hurt Eve. There's no reason for me to-'
'What were the voices saying?'
'Hear. See. Open.' She ran her hand through her hair. 'They kept pushing. I wouldn't answer and they wouldn't give up. I fought and fought, but they kept pushing. Couldn't they tell I wasn't with them any longer?'
He frowned, puzzled. 'Then where were you?'
'What?' Then she realized what she had said. 'I don't know where I was. I just wasn't- Oh, my God.'
Phillip leaned forward. 'What is it?'
'That was the time when I was unconscious.' Panic was rising within her. 'I didn't remember when I came out of it. But that was why I wouldn't come back. I was struggling, fighting, and they kept coming at me.'
'The children?'
'Yes, the children. I thought Listening was only echoes. Maybe it is. But those echoes wanted to be heard. They couldn't reach me. They couldn't make me open my mind and listen to them. So they kept pushing and pushing.'
'It's over, Megan,' Phillip said gently. 'And all that's left is a nightmare. We can get through those together.'
He was right. Of course he was right.
No, he wasn't.
Dear God.
'You don't understand,' she whispered. 'Even though I was unconscious I was upset. I was fighting. I was
