Eve smiled as she watched Joe and Cara stroll down the path that led around the lake. It reminded her of the many times she had watched Joe and Jane over the years. Cara wasn’t speaking, and her attitude was reticent, but that was how Jane had been in the beginning, defensive, wary. It had taken months for her to accept Joe after they had taken her off the streets. She and Eve had an instant rapport, but Joe was different. Jane had been in so many foster homes that she didn’t trust anyone. But Joe had changed that, Joe always managed to change everything.
She turned away and went back into the house. It was good to be home, but she had things to do. She had to check her messages and see if there was anything pressing. She had put her other assignments on hold to do the reconstruction of Cara’s sister, Jenny. There were probably several impatient messages asking when she was going to complete their projects.
She got a cup of coffee and picked up her phone to start going through them.
She’d just begun to scroll down when her phone rang.
Jane.
She hadn’t heard from her since before she left for California, when Jane had arrived back in London.
A little odd that she was calling her the minute Eve returned?
“Hi, Jane. What’s been happening? Have you been settling into—”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were in the hospital?”
Apparently not odd at all. “It wasn’t important. A little knock on the head. I’d have been in and out of the ER except Joe overreacted.”
“Joe tends to do that with you. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have called me.”
“I was hoping you would never know about it. For heaven’s sake, you’re in London. Why worry you about nothing?” She added grimly, “However, someone evidently saw fit to do that. Should I guess?”
“Margaret.”
“That was my first guess.”
“She thought I should know. She said that you’d sent her on her way, and she didn’t think that you and Joe should be left without reinforcements. Good God, what have you gotten yourself into?”
“I’m certain Margaret told you in detail.”
“Of course she did. I wouldn’t have it any other way.” She paused. “What about this little girl? How is she doing?”
“As well as can be expected. Cara’s very strong, she reminds me a little of you.”
“I haven’t been very strong lately. No wonder you didn’t trust me. I practically fell apart on you before I left Atlanta.”
“You had a right. Trevor was shot and killed before your eyes. And you knew it was because he was trying to save you. It takes a long time to get over a trauma like that. I don’t believe you ever really get over it. You just learn to live with it.”
“Yes, and it’s a tough lesson. But I didn’t have to worry you as I did.” She changed the subject. “But that’s my problem. We’re talking about yours. How do you want to handle this? Do you want me to come back there? Or do you want to come here?”
“Neither.”
“It’s one or the other. I’m not leaving you to face this without me.”
“Back off, Jane. We’ll handle it.”
“Like you always back off when I’m in trouble? We’re family, and you know I can’t do that. Choose.”
“Jane.”
“I’ll go along with whatever you say, but I really think you’d be better off coming across the pond. I agree with Margaret that you should be running and hiding rather than staked out for Salazar in a cave where he can corner you.”
“It’s a very nice cave, and you spent a number of years holed up here.”
“I loved it. If I didn’t think I’d cling too much to you and Joe, I’d be back there right now.” She went on brusquely, “But as I said, you’d be safer here. Well, not here in London, but I’m planning on meeting MacDuff and Jock in Edinburgh in a few days, then we’ll go directly to the Highlands.”
“Oh, yes, the great treasure hunt. Your friend, Lord MacDuff has been trying to talk you into looking for Cira’s gold for years.” Cira was the ancestress who had come to Scotland from Herculaneum centuries ago and had founded the MacDuff dynasty. There had been legends that she had brought with her a chest of gold coins that would have astronomical value today, but it had never been found. MacDuff and his best friend, Jock Gavin, had been searching for it for years, and MacDuff had reasons to believe that Jane might be able to help them. But Jane had only agreed in the past weeks because she needed the distraction to cope with the depression, Eve knew. “And I believe it’s a great idea. Is Seth Caleb going along?”
“No, I haven’t seen him since I got back to London from Atlanta.” She added flatly, “And I certainly didn’t invite him.”
Jane’s tone was distinctly cool, Eve noticed. But that didn’t surprise her. Caleb and Jane’s relationship had been volatile since the moment they had met years ago. Caleb was an enigma, and Eve never knew which way he was going to turn. She did know that he probably felt something for Jane that he didn’t feel for anyone else on earth. “Since when did Caleb require an invitation?”
“I’m trying to change the status quo in that regard. Look, that’s not important. This whole idiotic treasure hunt isn’t important. I’ll put it off if you want me to come back. Otherwise, you come here, and we’ll get lost in the Highlands while Joe is trying to set up a way to make Cara permanently safe from Salazar.”
“And I’m supposed to involve you in this mess? No way.”
“I’m already involved. The minute Margaret told me what was going on, I was involved. Accept it.”
“I won’t accept it.”
“Yes, you will, maybe not this minute, but it will happen. I’ll hang up, and you’ll think about it. And you’ll realize that we’re family, and what happens to one happens to all of us. That’s what you taught me when I was growing up, and nothing has changed.”
“A lot has changed. You’re grown-up, you have a career, you have a life outside—”
“We’re family. Make a choice. Call me tomorrow. Or I’ll be on the next plane back to Atlanta.” She hung up.
She sounded totally determined, Eve thought in frustration. Once Jane made up her mind, there was no changing it. She listened, she looked at the problem from all sides, then she came to a conclusion and forged ahead. This time she had not indulged in the usual analyzing but jumped in with both feet when she’d heard Eve might be in danger.
Which was exactly what Eve would have done.
Family. Because family was everything.
Eve wanted to strangle Margaret. She had probably known exactly what effect recounting what had happened would have on Jane. Eve had known that, too, which was the reason she hadn’t been in contact with her since she had left here for California.
And now she had to find a way to deal with Jane as well as everything else that was going on in her life.
Her hand instinctively went to her abdomen.
See, I told you it was crazy out here. And sometimes the craziness comes from the people you love the most. And if Jane knew about you, she’d be more difficult than ever.
But she didn’t know, and Eve wasn’t about to tell her. She had a better chance of dealing with the situation the fewer disturbing elements that were present. The presence of this child in her life was definitely disturbing.
Disturbing and yet comforting in a strange way. It was a sign that there were wonderful things in a world where darkness always seemed to be present.
But she still had to fight that darkness, so stop standing here and brooding about what Jane might or might not do. She had until tomorrow to make a decision, and she’d have to talk to Joe anyway.
She sat down on the couch and started to go through her messages.
* * *
“You two were gone a long time.” Eve looked up from the Hamburger Helper she was stirring on the burner when Joe and Cara came into the cottage. “I hope you worked up an appetite.”
“She had a lot of questions,” Joe said. “And yes, I’m hungry. What about you, Cara?”
She smiled and nodded. “What are you fixing?”
“Just Hamburger Helper.” She made a face. “I’m not much of a cook. Joe and I are working most of the time. We do a lot of takeout.” She smiled at Joe. “But Joe is great on the barbecue grill. He’ll have to demonstrate soon.”
“My pleasure,” Joe said. “But we may be a little too busy in the near future.” He looked at the simmering skillet. “How soon will that be done?”
“Thirty minutes or so. As usual, I tossed everything in it to make it more palatable. I’m letting it simmer.”
“It usually turns out pretty good.” Joe turned toward the door. “I have an errand to run. I should be back by then.”
“Where are you going?”
“I have something to pick up.” He opened the door. “Lock up behind me and don’t go out on the porch. Okay?”
Her gaze flew to his face. “Was everything all right out there?”
He nodded. “No signs. But it doesn’t hurt to be careful.” The door closed behind him.
“You’re afraid someone would be here waiting for us?” Cara asked.
“No.” She shrugged. “But Joe is right, it doesn’t hurt to be careful.” She moved toward the door and locked it. “Are you tired from that long walk?”
“You’re trying to distract me.” She was smiling. “I’m used to locked doors. It was a rule at the apartment.” She moved over to the stove. “I sometimes put cheese in the Hamburger Helper. Did you try that?”
“Not this time.” She looked curiously at her. “You cook?”
“I did most of the cleaning and cooking at the apartment. We divided up the jobs. It was only fair. Elena was working most of the time just to pay the bills.” She looked in the refrigerator and got out some Brie cheese. “Okay, if I put some of this in it?”
“Be my guest.” Eve watched her as she carefully cut up some cheese, then blended it in the mixture. “What else did you cook?”
“Oh, hamburgers, lasagna, stew, spaghetti, mostly easy stuff.” She put down the ladle. “But I learn fast. If you want anything else, I’ll make it for you.”
She chuckled. “We didn’t bring you here because we wanted a chef.”
“I don’t expect you to keep me unless I make myself useful. Why would you? You don’t owe me anything.” She said soberly, “And I have to stay with you. You might need me.”
“Because you had a dream, and Jenny told you that you had to do it? I know you told me that.” Eve shook her head. “We want you to stay with us but not because you think you have to do it. Jenny isn’t with us any longer. She died a long time ago.”
“But I still love her,” she whispered. “I’ll always love her.” Her gaze was clinging desperately to Eve’s. “And I think she loves you, too, Eve. I told Margaret I thought you dream about Jenny, too. Do you?”
“No.” What could she tell her? Certainly not that she actually had experienced the spiritual presence of her sister, that she’d seen her, talked to her. It would be too much for her to handle. She was only eleven years old. “But I became very close to Jenny while I was working on her reconstruction. I felt as if I knew her very well.” She paused. “I still do.”
“The reconstruction,” Cara repeated. “Margaret told me about what you do. It sounds … strange.”
“I thought so, too, before I started to learn about it. Then I realized it wasn’t strange at all. It was a way that I could bring the lost ones home to the ones who loved them. I just had to be taught that everything was there waiting to be brought out and how to do it.” She met Cara’s eyes. “And that’s what I did with Jenny. In the end, I brought her home to you, Cara.”
“Yes, you did.” She smiled. “And Margaret told me how wonderfully it turned out. May I see it?”
“I don’t have it. It’s still being held by the Sheriff’s Department in California.” And actually seeing the skull from which she’d sculpted the reconstruction might still possibly have a negative effect. She thought that Cara understood but she preferred to introduce her slowly to her work and not on such a personal level. She shook her head. “And I don’t think you should see it anyway. Memory is always better.”
“You worked on it here?”
Eve nodded at the worktable across the room. “Over there.”
Cara walked over to the worktable and touched it with her fingertips. “I think you’re right. I don’t need to see that reconstruction. She’ll always be with me.” She looked across the room at Eve. “She saved me, you know. Elena had managed to get Jenny and me away from Walsh, but he almost found us in that forest. We heard him coming. Jenny told me to be quiet, and everything would be okay. Then she ran away from Elena and me toward Walsh. I didn’t know what was happening. But Elena did and grabbed my hand and made me run and run and run. She was crying…” She swallowed. “Did you know that?”
“Yes,” Eve said gently. “But I didn’t know that you did.”
“Sometimes I did. Sometimes I didn’t. I didn’t want it to be true. So I tried not to remember.” She moistened her lips. “But then the nightmares came, and it would all be there again.”
“Do you still have the nightmares?”
She shook her head. “No. For the past few weeks, I’ve just seen Jenny in my dreams and not that night in the forest. She talks to me and smiles, and I’m not afraid anymore.”
“That’s wonderful. She wouldn’t want you to be afraid. She was very brave herself.”
“It seems as if I’ve been afraid all my life. But I have to get over it. Being afraid didn’t keep Elena from being killed. It won’t keep Salazar from trying to kill me. I have to be like Jenny.”
“No, fear never helps, but it’s hard to fight. We’ll work on it together.” She paused. “You remember that night when Jenny died. Do you remember anything else? Did Elena tell you anything about who kidnapped you? Or why you couldn’t go to the police?”
“Elena didn’t know what happened that night. She thought maybe we’d been given something in the food we had for supper, and when she woke up, we were in a truck with a group of workers … and Walsh.”
“Did she recognize Walsh?”
Cara shook her head. “Elena worked and lived in our house. She didn’t know anything about any of the men who belonged to the Castino or any other cartels. But she could tell Walsh was in charge and that he was … bad.” She moistened her lips. “Her only thought was to find a way for us to escape. But her family had raised her to know that going to the police was an automatic death sentence. She wouldn’t risk it. Any more than she’d risk taking me back to Mexico. She said that if my father’s enemies had been able to reach me once, they could do it again.”
“And how do you feel about your mother and father?”
“I don’t remember them. Sometimes I have a vague memory of a woman with dark hair and a lovely smile. But she smiled more at Jenny, than at me.” She added simply, “And Elena was my family. I didn’t need anyone else.”
“You were lucky to have her.” She added gently, “I hope you can be as happy with us.”
Cara nodded. “If you’ll let me stay with you.” She turned and moved back across the room toward the kitchen. She stopped as she saw a painting on the wall of the living room. “That’s a painting of you.” She gazed at the portrait of Eve in her blue work shirt. “I like it. It looks … warm.”
“It was done by my daughter, Jane. She’s an artist and very, very good. She gave the portrait to Joe as a gift.”
“Is she very famous?”
“No, she’s young and just starting out, but people are beginning to know her name.” She started to stir the hamburger again. “She lives in London because that’s where her agent and gallery are located.”
She went closer to the portrait and peered down at the scrawled signature. “It’s signed, but it’s not—”
“Not mine or Joe’s last name? Jane MacGuire. She’s adopted. She was ten when she came to us.”
“You must have loved her very much to have chosen her.”
“Yes. But we kind of chose each other.” She tasted the hamburger and put the lid on it. “The cheese definitely helped. Good job, Cara.”
She smiled. “We did it together.” She came toward her. “What else can I do?”
“Get some rolls out of the freezer and put them in the oven. I’ll get down the plates.” She shook her head. “I should have put those rolls in before. This Hamburger Helper is almost done.”
“I kept you too busy,” Cara said as she opened the freezer. “I asked a lot of questions.”
“Yes, you did. And I asked you a few, too.” She added, “It’s a process called getting to know each other. How do you think we did?”
“Pretty good.”
“Me, too. Dinner can wait a little while. Joe isn’t—”
Even as she spoke she heard the key in the lock, and Joe came into the house.
“Hi. Just in time,” she said. “Cara and I did a joint experiment, and it’s very close to—” She stopped as she saw what Joe was carrying. “Is that what I think it is?”
“I called the music store from the airport and asked them to choose the best one they had in stock and have it ready for me.” Joe came toward Cara and handed her the black-leather case. “I hope it will do. I don’t know anything about musical instruments. I had to trust them.”
“I don’t care. It will be wonderful.” Cara’s eyes were glittering with excitement as she took the case and ran to the couch to open it. She carefully took out the violin and ran her fingers caressingly down the glossy surface. “It’s beautiful.” She began to tune it. “Beautiful…”
“I think we’ve lost her,” Eve said to Joe. “I believe I’ll even wait to put in those rolls.” She took a step closer to him. “You constantly surprise me.”
“I just thought it was better she had it sooner than later. She’s had a lonely life. Her music was probably a closer friend to her than anyone but her Elena.” He smiled as his gaze lingered on Cara’s absorbed face. “Until she regards us as good friends, the violin will have to do for now.” He glanced back at Cara. “I think we’ll give her an hour to become acquainted with it. I’m going to take a look around outside.”
Eve walked him to the door. “Have you heard anything from Mexico City?”
“Not yet.”
“Kevin Roper might not be connected to Salazar. You said there was a chance.”
“A chance.” He shrugged. “I have a hunch he is. He was too cool, too bold.”
“I hope you’re wrong. We need time.”
“We may not get it.” He paused. “And how are you feeling?”
“Fine. Why shouldn’t I be? Joe, I’m barely a few weeks—” She shook her head. “I’m fine.”
“Mentally as well as physically?”
She glanced back at Cara, then gave him a quick kiss. “Later.” She pushed him out the door. “Be careful.”
She drew a deep breath and moved back toward Cara. She’d wanted her discussion with Joe to be private but they could probably have had an in-depth conversation and Cara would not have heard a word. She was totally absorbed, and she might have been on another planet. Eve didn’t want to take that chance. What she had learned this morning about having a child was only between the two of them and not to be touched by all the other madness that was going on in her life.
Only this morning. It seemed incredible that such a short time had passed since that moment when her entire life had been turned upside down.
But that time had been filled with worry and adjustment and Cara. And that adjustment was still going on.
I had the music, she had told Eve. She’d had loneliness and fear and death, but she’d also been given the gift that had made all that tolerable. Now she had it again, and it was all there in her face and the loving delicacy of her fingers on the strings.
Joe was a very wise man.
She took her coffee and dropped down on the easy chair across from the couch where Cara sat. She was silent, watching her.
She’d get up soon and put away the food. Supper could wait. Cara needed this nourishment more than any food.
* * *
No sign of any intruders, Joe thought as he knelt to examine the grass beside the trail. It was still early in the game. They had moved fast and left the hospital only earlier today. Salazar or his man would have had to move equally quickly to track them down and position themselves for any assault. But Joe had no doubt that assault would come, and he would have to be ready for it.
He wanted it over.
He had anticipated that this nightmare that had tormented them would extend past the killing of Walsh. He had fully expected it. Walsh had only been a hired killer, and Salazar was still hovering on the horizon. Joe had been planning on parking Eve and Cara somewhere safe and going after Salazar himself. But that had been put on hold by the news that Eve was with child. He had been caught off guard, and he had to think and look at all the options.
Just as he had told her she had to look at her options. He knew her, and he knew how she would—
His phone rang. Detective Juan Manez, Mexico City.
“It’s about time,” he said when he picked up. “I thought you’d contact me sooner. What did you find out?”
“That you should be more respectful of both our friendship and the fact that my sources are not limitless. It should have taken me days, not hours. You’re fortunate that I have a forgiving nature.”
“And that you want to bring Salazar down with a solid crash.”
“I’d prefer Castino, but Salazar will do. If you can’t arrange a double event.”
“Right now, I need you to focus on Salazar’s group. Did you find a Kevin Roper.”
“No.” He paused. “But I found a Ramon Franco. You would find him interesting.”
“One and the same?”
“You tell me. I’m sending you a photo.”
“So tell me about him.”
“A very nasty predator who pretends to be a follower, but I’d bet we’ll have to contend with him in the upper echelons of the cartel in a very short time. The word out is he’s very ambitious and willing to take out anyone who gets in his way.”
“He’s just a kid.”
“Nineteen, almost twenty. Did that make you less lethal when you were his age?”
“Good point. Give me his history.”
“Grew up on the streets of San Diego, father a drug runner, mother a prostitute. Ramon was acting as her pimp by the time he was ten. But he had a temper, and he caught his mother stashing some of the money for herself. He pushed her down a flight of stairs and broke her neck.”
“Charming,” Joe said dryly.
“He lost a meal ticket, but he learned from it. No more whores and no more losing his temper. Instead, he ran across the border and started trailing after the drug runners from Salazar’s cartel, doing errands, making himself generally useful. By the time he was twelve, he’d graduated to collecting debts for Salazar. He became a sort of protégé of the mob. From then on it was straight up the chain. He dedicated himself to learning everything a good assassin should know, from explosives to poison, to his favorite, the machete. At last report, he’d killed at least fourteen, and that was business. He’s smart and not shy of showing muscle to anyone in the cartel who causes him trouble or might get in the way of his rise to the top.”
“Faults?”
“Temper, he likes to torture his victims if it doesn’t get in the way of completing the job, and vanity, he believes he can talk anyone into doing what he wants.”
“He may be right about that. Very smooth.” He heard a ping and accessed the photo. Ramon Franco was gazing up at him, smiling recklessly. “You hit it,” he told Manez. “It seems Salazar turned loose his pet tarantula on Cara.”
“God help her.”
“He has so far. Eve and I are attempting to offer a little assistance in that direction.”
“She’ll need it.” He paused. “You’ve verified through that reconstruction that the child found in that grave was Jenny Castino?”
“If I said yes, you’d be obligated to tell your superiors and they’d be obligated to take action about returning her sister, Cara, to her native country.”
“True. But it might also cause Castino to take down Salazar. Or Salazar to take down Castino. Either would be beneficial for us.”
“I’m not prepared to sacrifice Cara to do that. We’ve already lost Jenny.”
“I sympathize.” He was silent a moment. “But we have a war down here. I don’t know how long I’ll be able to keep silent.”
“You’re warning me.”
“I’m telling you that unless you can figure out a way to give me the result I want without bringing back Cara, I’ll have to reconsider going to California and officially verifying Jenny’s identity myself.”
“How much time are you going to give me?”
“A week should give ample time to someone of your capabilities.”
“Hardly ample.”
“All I can afford. The only reason I’m giving you that much is because I remember how Castino and his wife treated those two children before Salazar kidnapped them. They were cared for by nurses, and I had reports they rarely saw them. Castino’s wife, Natalie, would trot out the older girl, Jenny, to play the piano at her parties. But other than that, they scarcely had anything to do with them. Natalie was only interested in her parties and shopping. Castino never wanted to admit that anything he owned wasn’t the best even though he wanted a son.”
“You know a lot about them.”
“I know a lot about all of the cartel bosses down here. That’s why I’m on the hit list of practically every one of them. It’s not only that I wish to break their power, it’s sheer self-preservation. Get a plan together. One week.” He hung up.
Succinct and to the point, Joe thought as he shoved his phone into his pocket. Manez would do exactly as he said he’d do. He was a good cop, and he’d do the best job he could to protect his people. He had no problem with that, he’d do the same under like circumstances. But it left him less time than he’d hoped to keep Immigration away from Cara.
Get a plan together.
And he would. He just had to line up the enemy and see how to take them down.
In one week.
Not impossible, just difficult. And he had to make sure there was no threat to Eve or Cara.
And no smiling tarantula hovering around them to take his bite.
Well, he was almost sure the tarantula wasn’t on the move here and now. There was no way of being certain, but that was what instinct was all about. Joe had checked the cars, boats, exterior of the house. If Franco was on the property, he was keeping a safe distance and only observing. There was no telling about tomorrow but tonight was—
Music.
He stopped on the trail, his gaze on the lights of the cottage just ahead.
Exquisite, diamond-sharp, velvet-soft. Intricate and complex and yet simple enough to stop the heart. The music wasn’t being played, it was being newly created with every note.
“My God,” he murmured.
He stood there and let the music flow over him. The composition was familiar, but he wasn’t sure what it was. He didn’t care. It was enough that it existed. It was enough that the little girl who was playing it existed.
Oh, Cara, what the hell have Eve and I brought into our lives?
* * *
Eve was in bed but not asleep when Joe came into their bedroom. Cara was still playing in the living room but they could hear it only faintly back here in the bedroom. “I was beginning to worry.”
“I stayed outside for a while listening. I didn’t want to disturb— No, that’s not true. I just wanted it to go on.” He started to take off his shirt. “Is she as brilliant as I think she is?”
“Yes, I don’t know about brilliant, but if that’s the ability to tear the heartstrings, I think that’s Cara. I finally came back here to the bedroom because I thought she might want to be alone with it. She’s intensely personal with her music.”
“Isn’t that the way it is with any artist?”
“I don’t know. But I’ve been lying here thinking about her sister, Jenny. She loved her music, too. I wish I could have heard her play the piano.”
“I was talking to Manez, and he was saying that Jenny’s mother always made her perform to entertain her guests. Jenny must have been a prodigy as talented as Cara.” He’d finished undressing and got into bed and pulled her close. “And I’m sure Cara would be designated the same role if she was sent back to Castino.”
“No!”
“Just a comment. It’s something we have to face.”
“No, we don’t. Not if she doesn’t go back.”
“I thought that was the way you were heading.”
“There’s no other way to go. We both agreed that it would be both dangerous and cruel to submit Cara to what she’d go through if she had to be shipped back there. We’ll keep her with us until we can work something out.”
“That’s short-term; if it goes long-term, we’d have to deal with a girl who is quite possibly going to turn out a prodigy. That could be a headache for people as busy as we are. Are you prepared for that?”
“No, I’m not prepared for anything. How could I be? We don’t even know if she’d want to stay with us. All she knows is that she had a dream about Jenny, and she wanted her to stay with me.”
“A dream? She didn’t actually see Jenny as you’ve been doing?”
She shook her head. “If she did, she prefers to think of it as a dream. Kids these days are bombarded by television shows about ghosts and supernatural stuff. I’m sure that Cara thinks that Jenny’s coming to her is like one of those stories, only more real.”
“Maybe. Did you tell her that Jenny actually appeared to you?”
“No. The last thing I want is to encourage the fantasy. She needs to face the real world and get on with her life. She’s gone through enough tragedy.” She paused. “The violin was a master stroke, Joe.”
“We promised it to her.”
“And you fulfilled the promise.” She moved closer to him. “We have another problem. Jane called me while you were gone.”
“Why is that a problem?”
“Because Margaret got in touch with her and filled her in on what was going on.”
“Yes, that makes it a problem. Reaction?”
“What do you think? She was upset. She pulled the family card.”
“Uh-oh. And that means?”
“Ultimatum. One way or another, she’s going to be with us. She’ll either come here, or we’ll go there.”
“London?”
“No, Edinburgh. And then the Highlands. She’s going on that treasure hunt for Cira’s gold that MacDuff has been nagging her about. Remember? I told you she might when she left here.”
“The Highlands … wild country. Who’s going with her? MacDuff and who else?”
“Jock Gavin. You know how close he and MacDuff are. Jock grew up in MacDuff’s castle, and they’re like brothers. She said that Seth Caleb was not coming, but I imagine he’ll show up whether she likes it or not. I don’t know who else.”
“Quite an entourage…”
“Why are you so interested?”
“She offered us an ultimatum. I’m exploring the possibilities.”
“We need to get her to stay out of this.”
“Yes. What do you think the odds are?”
Eve sighed. “She gave us until tomorrow.”
“Then we’ll have to think about it.” He paused. “I heard from Manez. He identified the kid who accosted Cara at the hospital. Ramon Franco, nineteen, a very ugly customer who very likely killed his own parents and certainly murdered fourteen other people. He works for Salazar.”
“You thought that he did,” she said. “That means that they’re moving very close to Cara.”
“And to you. Salazar regards you as a problem he has to remove, or he wouldn’t have given Walsh the order to kill you when you were hunting for Cara.”
“But it’s Cara who is the important one.”
“The hell it is.” Joe’s voice was suddenly rough. “You’re the important one.” He was on one elbow looking down at her. “I’ll do my damnedest to save Cara, but you have to live. So stop talking bullshit. I’m barely holding on by a thread right now.”
She could see that as she looked up at him. His jaw was tight, and a muscle was jerking in his cheek. “Okay. I only meant a child is always more vulnerable.”
“Yes.” He reached down and touched her belly. “A child is very vulnerable and you should pay attention to your own words. There’s a dual reason why you should be working hard to take care of yourself.” He rolled away from her and put his arm beneath his head. He added jerkily, “Though we haven’t had a chance to even discuss that minor event, have we?”
“It’s not minor,” Eve said.
“No? It appears to be far down on the agenda.”
“It’s not minor,” she repeated.
“Then what is it?”
“A miracle.”
He was still. Then he rolled over to face her. “Is that your conclusion?”
She nodded. “I don’t know how it happened or why, but it can’t be anything else. I’m confused and scared, but I was lying there in the hospital thinking, and it came to me that you can’t argue or reject a miracle. You just have to accept it.” She said hesitantly, “At least, I do. You have to make your own decision.”
“Oh, do I?” He chuckled, his hand caressing her cheek. “I believe I made my decision the instant I gave you that seed. In case you haven’t noticed, I have a thing about responsibility.”
“It has to be more than that, Joe. When Bonnie was born, I would have given anything to have someone beside me sharing responsibility. But now I can handle it.” Her lips were trembling. “I have to handle it, or I won’t deserve to have this child. But you’ll have to learn to love—you have to feel the miracle—it has to be more.”
“It will be more.” He drew her close and cradled her in the hollow of his shoulder. “Just give me some time. I’m going to have a few problems refocusing some of the emotion I give you somewhere else. Okay?”
“Okay,” she said huskily. She could feel the tears sting as she nestled her cheek against him. He felt warm and strong, and the musk and spice scent of him surrounded her. “I don’t know any woman who would object to a request like that. We’ll make it through this, Joe.”
“I don’t have any doubt. We just have a few obstacles in our path.”
“Like murder and drug dealers and keeping that little girl alive,” she said. “I’ll probably be worried tomorrow but I’m not right now.”
Right now, she was close to Joe, with his love surrounding her, the knowledge of the miracle to come, and the faint sound of the music of Cara’s violin drifting to them.
It was enough. Tomorrow could wait.
* * *
It was after eight when Eve woke.
No Joe.
No sound of the violin.
She jumped up, slipped on her robe and left the bedroom.
“Good morning.” Cara was in the kitchen and looked up as Eve came into the room. “I was just going to call you.” She gestured to the bacon simmering in the pan. “This is about done. How do you like your eggs?”
“Scrambled.” She shook her head. “But you didn’t have to do this. I thought we had a discussion about—”
“We did.” She made a face as she put bread in the toaster. “But maybe I was feeling guilty about playing my violin so late last night. I didn’t even ask permission.” Her brilliant smile lit her face. “Thank you, Eve.”
“Thank Joe. He’s the one who ran out of here to get it for you.”
“I’ve already thanked him. Before he left to check out the woods again.” Her smile faded. “He told me that boy at the hospital was one of Salazar’s men. Ramon Franco. He said he was very bad.” She turned back to beat eggs in a small bowl. “He wanted to make sure I wouldn’t trust him again. But that wouldn’t happen.”
“No, I don’t think it would.” She sat down at the breakfast bar. “But Joe never takes chances.”
She nodded. “I like that. It makes me feel safe about you.”
“About us.”
She smiled as she transferred the eggs to the frying pan. “But he doesn’t really know me. I can tell how he feels about you.”
“Feeling takes time to build.” Joe had said something like that last night. “But you can trust him.”
She nodded. “And he doesn’t mind me playing my violin.”
“Which evidently means more to you than all his protective instincts.”
“Yes. I have to learn to take care of myself now, but if I couldn’t play my violin…”
“I don’t imagine you have any problem with anyone’s objecting to your playing.”
“You’d be surprised. Not everyone likes the violin. Not everyone likes music.”
“Then I pity them.”
“So do I.” She scooped the eggs on a plate and added bacon and toast. “I think they must be empty inside.” She put the plate in front of Eve. “But that’s just me. And I have to be polite if I run across someone like that. Elena said it’s rude to intrude on someone’s space. Do you want some orange juice?”
“I can get—”
“I’m right here.” Cara headed for the refrigerator. “Anything else?”
Eve’s lips turned up at the corners. “No, you’ve met all my desires.”
“I hope so.” That brilliant smile was back. “Because you’ve met mine.” She poured the orange juice. “And I cheated you out of dinner last night after Joe came in with my violin. Joe and I were starved this morning, so we ate before he went out hunting for any bad guys wandering around.”
“I’m a little hungry myself.” She started to eat. “Good heavens, these eggs are delicious. What did you do to them?”
“Mushrooms and a dash of chili powder. And I crumbled up a little bacon, too.”
“They’re absolutely wonderful.” She supposed she should start thinking more about diet. “And healthy, too. Lots of protein. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll just wash up these dishes and…”
“Just toss them in the dishwasher,” Eve said. “But you might go and clean up. When I went back to the bedroom last night, I looked up the nearest church. It’s St. Michael’s, and they have an eleven o’clock Mass. Do you think you can make it?”
“I can make it.” She was putting dishes into the dishwasher with the speed of light. “I have to go take a shower. And I don’t have a dress I can wear. I guess I’ll just have to wear my jeans. Elena always liked me to dress up a little when we went to church. She said that it showed respect to God, and it was a kind of celebration.”
“We’ll go shopping and make sure you have one next time,” Eve said. “And I think both Elena and God will forgive you for a lack of respect this time.”
“I do, too.” Cara was flying down the hall. “I’ll be out in thirty minutes, okay?”
“Very much okay.” She watched the door slam behind Cara.
Slamming doors, excitement, and the wonder of the young. So much better than the intensity, the sadness, the wariness that she had seen in Cara before. A foreshadowing of the Cara who could be. It warmed the heart.
But that sadness was still with Cara, and going to pray for her Elena would help. Thirty minutes, Cara had said, and Eve wasn’t dressed either. She hurriedly finished her breakfast and started back toward her bedroom.
* * *
Joe still wasn’t back when Eve and Cara got into the Toyota forty minutes later. She called him as she was backing out of the driveway. “Everything all right?”
“Yes. Just being thorough. The clock is ticking. They’ve had over a day to start moving. I should be back at the cottage in ten minutes.”
“We’re not there. I just got on the road. I’m taking Cara to St. Michael’s for Mass.”
“St. Michael’s,” he repeated sharply. “I don’t like that.”
“Special request. She wanted to pray for Elena.”
“I still don’t like it. Do you have your gun?”
“In the glove box.” She felt a ripple of shocked distaste at the thought of having to take a gun to church in order to protect a child. “I’ll take it in with me. But I doubt if even Salazar’s pet killer would risk a public attempt in a church. Too many people around.”
“Franco tried to lure Cara into that elevator at the hospital. We don’t know what he’d risk. He’s an unknown quantity.”
Yes, that was true. The entire situation was unknown and fraught with risk. “You think I should turn around and go back?”
Joe was silent. “No sign of any surveillance. It may be safe. The alternative is keeping Cara locked up like a prisoner. Hell, and it may end up that way. But if this means that much to her, we’ll try to give it to her. Go straight to the church. I’ll follow you and wait outside.” He hung up.
“He didn’t like us going?” Cara asked quietly, her gaze fixed on Eve’s face. “Is something wrong?”
“Not as far as we know. Joe is just careful.”
She nodded. “But I don’t want to be a bother to either one of you. If he doesn’t want us to—”
“It’s okay … this time.” She reached out and took Cara’s hand. “It may change.”
“Whatever you say.” Her hand tightened around Eve’s. “I have to keep you safe.”
“Because Jenny said you had to do it? I’m sure that she’d be equally concerned about you, Cara. We’ll just concentrate on keeping each other safe.” She squeezed her hand and released it. “Now stop worrying and just do what you told me you wanted to do. Think about your Elena and pray for her soul. We should be at the church in ten minutes.”