Hunting Eve (18 page)

“No.” His gaze was fixed intently on her face. “I don’t think you’d ever believe that, Eve. If I were a more sentimental man, I’d feel a sense of comfort that you hold me free from blame.” He grimaced. “But unfortunately, sentiment seems to have been left out of my makeup. Or perhaps it was scourged out of me at some point.”

“Scourged? I can’t see you being scourged by anyone.”

“Of course not. Just an attempt to win your sympathy.”

“Bullshit.”

“Exactly.”

“I don’t want sentiment or lies. There’s only one thing I want from you.” She held out her wrists to him. “Let me go.”

He didn’t answer for a moment. “It’s possible. But I’d be giving up bait for no reimbursement. After all, as we discussed that was my prime purpose. The idea appalls me.” He paused. “Let me think.”

“Don’t tease me, dammit.” She dropped her hands before her. For an instant she’d had a surge of hope, followed by disappointment and anger. “I won’t beg you, Zander.”

“No, I know you won’t. I suspected that you had a sense of your own worth before I met you, and now I’m sure of it. It’s a quality I respect.”

“Because you definitely have a sense of your own worth.”

He chuckled. “See how well we’re getting to know each other?” He was silent. “You want me to let you go.”

“I won’t ask you again.”

“You didn’t ask me, it was more of a demand.”

“Because you don’t really need me to get what you want. Doane will come when he sees the smoke. Then you’ll have him.”

“That could be one way to handle it,” Zander said. “But there’s the question of reimbursement.”

“You want me to pay you some kind of ransom? How much?”

“You couldn’t afford me, Eve. Of course, I could go to your lover, Quinn. He’s very rich, inherited money from his parents, I understand.”

“Joe is out of this. It’s between you and me, Zander.”

“That’s my take on it, too,” he said softly. “You and me, Eve.”

There was a note in his voice that caused her to stiffen. “And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“Reimbursement. I didn’t realize until I actually arrived in this godforsaken place that I might have another reason than Doane to be on the hunt.”

“You wanted to save me from him?” she asked sarcastically.

“Oh, that would violate my prime directive as they say in the Sci-Fi genre. Yet as I was tracking you through the forest and learning the way you thought and used those valuable instincts, I realized that I had a need to know you.” His brows rose. “It was very sobering. I’ve known you existed for most of your life and been able to ignore you. And for the past five years, I’ve had your dossier in front of me and your photo looking up at me, and I’ve been able to be very cool and calculating about you.”

“So?”

“I didn’t realize that it must have been exerting an insidious effect on me until I came here.”

“But you’re a man of no sentiment.”

“So it must be intense curiosity. Why else?” He looked her in the eye. “Because, whether you believe it or not, I am your father, Eve. Since I appear to have trouble forgetting that at the moment, I need to explore who you are, what you are, so that I can dismiss you from my mind and walk away.”

She could almost believe him. Zander would have no reason to lie to her when he was not trying to get anything from her, and she was clearly on the defensive. “I don’t care whether you’re my father or not. You can walk away right now.”

“And I will.” He smiled. “And so will you. All you have to do is sit there and answer my questions. Satisfy my curiosity. Then I’ll cut those ropes and let you run into the forest while I wait for Doane.”

She gazed at him warily. “What kind of questions?”

“Are you afraid I’ll delve into your sex life with Quinn? Perish the thought. I’ll skate lightly over your love life. It really doesn’t interest me.”

“What does interest you?”

“What you’re doing running free in the forest. How you grew up. How you feel when you’re working on those reconstructions. Jane MacGuire. Bonnie…”

“That’s very personal stuff, Zander.”

“But I don’t believe you’ll be hesitant about talking about it. You don’t have many secrets do you, Eve?”

“No, but I know if I want you to—”

“Reimbursement, Eve. Not such a high price, is it?”

She looked down at her bound wrists. “No.”

He reached in his leather pouch and gave her another strip of jerky. “Don’t throw this one away.” He stretched out on the ground and gazed at her over the flames. “I’ll wait until you finish before I start asking questions.”

“I have a question for you.” She took a bite of jerky. “Why should I trust you to keep your word and let me go?”

“You probably shouldn’t. But I do keep my word. It’s the sign of a true professional.”

“Just look at you.” She slowly chewed the jerky. “You’re all relaxed and stretched out there staring at me as if you were lying on a living-room couch waiting to be entertained by your favorite TV show.”

“It would be a good simile if I watched TV. I fully intend to stare at you while you answer my questions. I’m looking forward to it.”

“Why? You’ve just told me what a mess I am with all these bruises and the dirt.”

“Sometimes both can be badges of courage or interesting contrasts to what lies beneath. After the first glance, I barely noticed them. All I could see was the defiance in your eyes and the tension in your body. You seemed to shine … Everything else went away.” He added, “I want to see your expressions. It will be the best part of the show.”

“And what if I refuse to perform?”

“That’s your choice. But it would be a foolish one. It might be an easy out.”

“This entire business is foolish.”

“But I’m the CEO of the business at the moment. So humor me and get your chance to walk away.”

“Just because you’re curious about me.” She stared at him for a long moment. “You
do
believe you’re my father. It’s not some scam.” She shook her head in wonder. “Crazy. And so wrong.”

“Perhaps. But I’m very seldom wrong. You don’t want to hear why I believe it right now, and I understand. You reject me as a father and the fact that Sandra lied to you. But, since I do believe it, you should take advantage of the situation. Satisfy my curiosity. Then I’ll be able to go my way and forget about you again. And you’ll be free to take off again with the knowledge that I’ll be removing Doane from your path.” He added, “I’ll even tell you where I left the extra phone and weapon I always stash for emergencies. A ticket to freedom, Eve.”

Her eyes widened. “Why would you do that? I could have someone here in a matter of hours if I had a phone.”

“I didn’t plant them that close. I’ll be able to take out Doane and be away before you can make your arrangements.”

She stared thoughtfully at him. “Would you have … difficulties if the authorities knew you were here? Venable evidently was working with you.”

“My arrangement with Venable was unusual. There are a number of agencies and governments who would like to talk to me. Difficulties? You could describe it that way.” He smiled. “So, yes, I’ll not be here when the police or state patrol come roaring to your rescue.”

Her gaze searched his face. “I … think you’re telling me the truth. And that makes you vulnerable.”

“It’s all manipulation. Though you’re denying it, I’m asking you to do something that might make you feel a little vulnerable. You’re more likely to give me what I want if you believe we’re on equal footing.”

“Equal footing?” She glanced down at her tied wrists. “Not at the moment.”

The smile never left his face as he gazed at her across the fire.

He was waiting.

She looked down into the flames.

He was wrong. Talking about her life would not make her vulnerable. She was far beyond anything in the past affecting what she was now. She had accepted the bad and the good and learned to work with them.

And lies or truth, the deal he had offered her was the only game in town. Or the only game in this wilderness, she amended ruefully. Take it and hope for truth. If it proved to be false, then worry about taking another step later.

She lifted her gaze to his face.

“Ask your questions.”

He nodded. “I’ll start off slowly and build. Though I’m tempted to go directly to Bonnie.”

“Why?”

“Because every time you’ve spoken of her, it’s been in the present tense.” His brows rose. “For a man as curious as I am, that was a red flag that was set waving.” He gestured. “But I’ll restrain myself for a while. Let’s talk about where you grew up.”

“Didn’t your dossier on me tell you?”

“Yes, but I want to hear it from you. I want to hear everything from you.”

She shrugged. “I grew up in the slums of Atlanta at Piedmont Housing Development.”

“Tell me about it.”

“It wasn’t any worse or any better than any other slum. Children adjust and try to find comfort and joy wherever they are. Sometimes I could do that. Sometimes I couldn’t.”

“When your mother was on dope?”

She tensed. “She was never abusive. She had a problem. Which meant that both of us had a problem.”

“You loved her?”

“Yes, most of the time.” She paused. “I’m not talking about my mother anymore. Ask another question.”

“Tell me about your apartment. What did it look like? Did you have friends?”

Eve relaxed a little more. She hadn’t been sure he would let her escape talking about her mother. “It was small, on the fourth floor, not terrible, just your usual development flat. When I was older, I tried to keep it clean, and I used a lot of bright linens. I hated drab colors.”

“Friends?”

“Kids in the neighborhood. After I started school, I didn’t have much time for play. Everyone told me that the only way to get out of the slums was to either get very smart in school or peddle dope or sex. I wanted to get out so I chose the only way I could tolerate. I knew about drugs, and they scared me.”

“Tell me about school.”

“Why? It’s just ordinary…” She stopped. Give him what he wanted. School was a subject that was boring, but it didn’t reveal any more of herself or her mother than more intimate subjects. She relaxed a little more. “Every wall in the school was tan, and there was graffiti in all the bathrooms. Most of the teachers were tired and scared and wanted out of the projects. There were a few teachers in the lower grades who still liked being with the kids and tried to make a difference. But once they had to deal with some of the older kids who were already in gangs and on their way to becoming juvenile delinquents, everything changed. The teachers had to fight to survive, and if you wanted to get an education, you had to fight, too. I fought.” She had a sudden memory. “But there was one teacher, Mrs. Garvy, when I was in the seventh grade who wasn’t beaten down. She’d joke and try to make everything fun.” She smiled. “I loved art but I was terrible at math and she’d come in early to sit down and work with me. It was … nice.” She had another memory, they seemed to be tumbling back to her. Strange, she hadn’t thought of the projects for years. But the past was always with you, waiting to be reborn. Now it was with her again, and she was scarcely aware of Zander. “And there was a Halloween party that she let us have that was fun, costumes and everything … Not that we could afford much. But a sheet makes a great ghost outfit…”

CHAPTER

9

Goldfork, Colorado

“WHAT THE HELL?” KENDRA
murmured as she thrust her phone back in her pocket after talking to Jane. She slammed the door of the toolshed behind her and started for Doane’s house. “Well, that was different.”

“What was different?” Margaret said as she fell into step with her. “That was Jane, right? How is she?”

Kendra shook her head. “Damned if I know. I’d say, loopy from medication?”

“What?”

“No, maybe not. She sounded upset, not drugged. She wanted to tell me about a dream she’d had. She thought it might help find Eve. She said she was going to send me photos of a sketch she’d made, and I should be on the lookout for it.” She grimaced. “Dreams. I’d never have thought Jane would be one to go around the bend like that. She must really be desperate.”

“Maybe you should listen to her. Everyone dreams. So do animals. Some people think we’re closer to everything around us when we relax our minds. How do you know that—”

“Margaret, I don’t want to talk about dreams.” She quickened her pace toward Doane’s house. “I’ll look at Jane’s sketches because I respect her, but I—”

“What was the dream about?”

“She didn’t go into it. She was vague. She was probably embarrassed. Jane impressed me as usually being very sensible.”

“Then you should pay attention. It must have been important to her if she risked you thinking she was nuts.”

“If you say so.”

“I do. She should have called me. I’d have been more understanding.” She increased her pace to keep up with Kendra. “Why are we going back to the house? What did you see in the shed that—”

“Margaret, this is no time for explanations. I’m in a hurry.” Her gaze went to the house. “I’ll explain as we go along. Maybe.”

“I’d think you’d want to explain now so that I could be prepared to help,” Margaret said quietly. “There’s no reason to be impatient, Kendra.”

There was every reason, Kendra thought. Between the weird phone call from Jane and now her own guilt feelings about being short with Margaret, she was feeling infinitely frustrated. “Don’t lecture me. I’m trying to cope, but between your conversations with the dog next door and now Jane’s dream, I’m feeling as if I’m in some bizarre nightmare myself. This is not how investigations should be conducted.”

“Yes, Kendra,” Margaret said solemnly.

Kendra shot her a suspicious glance. Dammit, it was clear the girl was trying not to smile. And why not, she thought suddenly. Kendra had sounded like one of the straight-and-narrow FBI agents who had driven her crazy with their insistence on their proper procedures and their blindness to what was so evident to her. She had always been considered different, too.