Period. Bottom line.'
'And what does her conscience dictate, Quinn? I've heard Eve Duncan's conscience is a little more encompassing. What would she say?'
'I'll never know. Neither will you, Soldono.' He hung up the phone. Keep cool. He'd already let Soldono get under his skin or he wouldn't have answered the phone.
'Who's Soldono?'
He turned to see Eve, wrapped in a terry robe, standing in the doorway. 'No one important.'
She frowned. 'If he weren't important to you, he wouldn't be able to make you this angry.'
'I'm not angry.'
'Who's Soldono? An officer at the precinct?'
'No.' He placed the garlic bread on a plate. 'We've got to both eat this to cancel the odor out. Maybe garlic wasn't such a good idea. Of course, it's supposed to keep away vampires.'
'Is Soldono a vampire?'
'Drop it, Eve.'
'Why?' She sat down at the table. 'I've an idea he may be one of the reasons you were on the attack tonight. Who is he?'
He put her bowl of stew in front of her. 'CIA. Satisfied?'
'No. Is that all I'm going to get?'
His lips lifted in a sardonic smile. 'Soldono says that it's not. But it's all you're going to get now.'
Her forehead wrinkled in thought as she remembered something. 'When you came into the house, you turned the phone back on. No comment. You just turned it on.'
'Jane couldn't get in touch with you.'
'But you didn't ask me why I turned it off.'
'You were working.'
'Joe.'
He didn't answer.
'Talk to me. You knew about my call from Montalvo, didn't you?'
'Yes.' He poured some coffee. 'Why didn't you phone me and tell me about it?'
'I thought it would wait until you got home.' She grimaced. 'Okay, I didn't want to think about him. It was interfering with Marty. It was just a kind of follow-up call to see if I'd changed my mind. And he didn't exactly issue any firm threats.'
'You should have called me. I don't like being shut out.'
'Neither do I. What does Soldono want with us?'
He didn't answer for a moment. 'He doesn't want us. He wants you.'
'What?'
'He wants you to go down to Colombia and do the reconstruction Montalvo is asking.' His hand tightened on his cup. 'He doesn't give a damn that once you're down there, your chances of getting out alive stink. If knowing the identity of that skull is important to Montalvo, he's not going to want anyone else alive and walking around to share that knowledge.'
'You're preaching to the choir. I've no intention of going down there.'
'Good. Then we'll forget both Montalvo and Soldono. Eat your stew.'
'We won't forget it. Why is the CIA involved with Montalvo? You said he was a crook.'
'The CIA sometimes has strange bedfellows.'
'I want to know, Joe.'
'Okay.' His lips tightened. 'Soldono called me because he couldn't reach you and he was on the hot seat. Montalvo called you because he expected Soldono or one of his superiors to have already put the screws to you.'
'Why would they do that?'
'Soldono had an informant, Pedro Gonzales, in Montalvo's camp. Montalvo found out about him and has been holding him locked up in his stockade. He offered to release Gonzales if Soldono could get you to come.'
'And if he couldn't?'
'What do you think happens to traitors?'
'He'd kill him,' she whispered.
'He's a dirtball,' Joe said harshly. 'Even Soldono admitted that Gonzales was every bit as much a criminal as Montalvo. He just wasn't as smart. That's why he was trying to find a way to get him out that wouldn't involve an innocent U.S. citizen.'
'He was helping the CIA.'
'For money, Eve. For money.'
'Yes, but he…' She moistened her lips. 'Life is precious. I could save him.'
'And get killed yourself.'
She rubbed her temple. 'I know. I'm just trying to think of a way…How much time do we have?'
'Not enough.'
'How much?'
He glanced at his watch. 'Twenty-five minutes.'
Shock jolted through her. 'My God, and you weren't going to tell me?'
His lips twisted. 'Evidently I was or I wouldn't have done it. Maybe I was just trying to save my ass when you found out later.'
'Call Soldono.'
'No, you're not going.'
'I didn't say I was. Tell Soldono I'll talk to Montalvo. Maybe I can stall him until the CIA can free Gonzales.'
Joe stared at her without speaking.
'Dammit, Joe. I don't care if he's a crook. Maybe he was trying to change if he was working with the CIA. What do we know? What will it hurt me to make the attempt to stop him from being killed?'
'I don't know and I don't want to know.'
'Don't do this.' Her hand clenched into a fist on the table. 'There's too much pain in the world. I don't want anyone hurt or killed if I can prevent it. It's only a phone call, Joe.'
He hesitated and then took out his phone and dialed. 'It had better be only a call.' When Soldono answered the phone, he said curtly, 'Tell Montalvo she'll talk business to him if he wants to call her back.'
'Jesus, you cut it close enough. I've only got fifteen minutes.'
'Then get off the line and talk to him.' Joe hung up. 'This is a mistake, Eve. He'll take it as a sign of weakness.'
'I don't care.' She picked up her coffee cup and cradled it in her hands. The warmth felt good to her. 'I don't want to enter into a battle of wills with the bastard. I just want to buy a little time to save a life.' She looked at the telephone. 'I suppose I should expect a call from him tonight.'
'Yes.' Joe stood up and pushed his chair back. 'And I want to hear every word. Put him on speaker.'
She nodded. 'I'd record it but I don't imagine he'll say anything incriminating. You said he was smart.'
He nodded curtly. 'I wish you'd have been as smart.'
