“It’s reasonable that you’d give me the ledger,” Queen said thoughtfully. “After all, you’ll find a way to get Black, and that’s what you’ve always wanted.”
“Very reasonable. Now get your ass here as soon as possible.” He hung up.
“He’s going to come,” Eve said.
John nodded. “Why not? It’s so ‘reasonable.’” He stood up. “Let’s go for that walk. I need to cool down.”
But he didn’t seem nearly as angry as he had after he’d heard about the attack on Judy Clark and her family. He was tense, not on the edge of explosion.
She fell into step with him as he strode down the lake path. “Will Queen be able to do anything with Black?”
“I doubt it. Black doesn’t pay any attention to anything but what he wants to do. But Queen may be able to run interference or cause a distraction.”
“That’s why you wanted him here?”
“No, I wanted him here because we’re coming to the end of the road, and I wanted him where I could reach out and take him.”
Her gaze flew to his face. “You’re going to kill him?”
“You don’t think he deserves it? Let’s go over the list. He sent me into that prison and let me rot there. Suicide missions. Protecting Black from being caught and tried for dozens of murders. He gave Black the address where he could find Judy Clark and her little girl.”
“I’m not arguing that he may deserve it. He’s committed terrible crimes, and he seems to have no conscience.” She looked out at the lake. “I’d just rather he be used to save Cara Clark if possible.”
“I’ll try to let him have his chance … first.”
But he would not change his mind about Queen’s death, she realized. And she was not sure she wanted him to. Queen was not the same brand of monster as Paul Black, but he was a monster just the same. “So we just wait for a call from Paul Black. I’d have thought he’d have contacted us already.”
“Black is unpredictable. He enjoys dragging out his kills. He’s probably enjoying himself right now.”
“You think he’s killed that little girl already?”
“If he decided it’s worth it to him to get Queen’s ledger, then he’ll keep her alive … until he gets it.”
And after that she was dead and thrown away like his other victims.
Like Bonnie.
“We’ve got to get her away from him.”
“Yes.” He had reached into his pocket to pull out his phone. He looked up a number and dialed.
“Who are you calling?”
“St. Louis County Hospital. I want to check on Judy. It would be nice if we could be sure that little girl will still have a mother if we can save her.”
Eve listened as he talked to the hospital authorities. When he hung up, she asked, “She’s still alive?”
He nodded. “But they wouldn’t give me any details. Hospitals are careful who they give information to these days. If there’s any chance to live, Judy will grab it. She’s always been a fighter.”
“And she’ll want to live for her daughter. She made Catherine promise to save her.”
John nodded. “Completely unfair to your friend, but that’s how the ruthless maternal streak works. You’d understand and empathize.”
“Absolutely.” She glanced at him. “And it is ruthless. I may be able to think rationally about Queen, but Paul Black is a different matter. I have to find Bonnie, and I have to kill her murderer. There’s no question about it.” She looked back at the lake and suddenly shivered. The water looked cold, the entire forest appeared silent and without warmth or life. Was it because she was thinking of death? Or was it some kind of harbinger of things to come?
“Are you cold?”
“A little.” She turned back to the cabin. “The sun is down. It’s time we went back.”
“You go on.” He leaned back against a tall pine. “I’ll stay here for a while. I’ll watch you until you get inside the cabin.”
She didn’t argue. She had an uneasy feeling that … it was almost as if she was being watched. But there could be no one watching in this very private sanctuary.
She glanced back over her shoulder to see John still leaning against the tree beside the lake. His gaze was on her, but there was a remoteness about him that was as chilling as everything surrounding him.
She was glad to get inside the cabin and slam the door. Imagination. They were getting close to Bonnie’s murderer, and Eve’s nerves were raw and on edge. It was no wonder that she wasn’t thinking with any degree of clarity.
The remedy was to get her mind working on a real problem and solution.
Catherine. She still had to call Catherine.
She reached for her phone and quickly dialed.
“I’m in Milwaukee. I just got off the plane from St. Louis,” Catherine said, when she picked up the call. “Where are you? Still at the Marriott?”
“No, we’re at a cabin in the woods about seventy miles from the city.” She paused. “Queen should be on his way to Milwaukee. John told him that he’d give him a ledger he desperately wants if he could get Black to release Cara Clark.”
“Fat chance. I saw what he did to that kid’s mother and grandmother. He likes what he does. I can’t see him giving up another kill because Queen wants him to do it.”
“Neither does John. But he’s hoping for a distraction.”
“And I’m thinking Queen will go for a double cross,” Catherine said. “But we might be able to use that, too.”
“Listen, Catherine, I know you have a stake in finding Black, too. But you can’t kill him until I can talk to him. I have to be certain he killed Bonnie. I have to know what happened and where I can find her.”
“It’s going to be hard to remember that when I think about that kid, Cara, watching what Black did to her mother. But I promise I won’t do anything that will hurt you, Eve. How is Queen arriving? Military or commercial?”
“I don’t know.”
“I’m thinking commercial. He’s crooked, and he tries to keep MI from knowing anything about his less legal moves. I believe I’ll stick around here at the airport and see if I can spot Queen.”
“And then what?”
“I’ll play it by ear.” She paused. “I just called the hospital. Judy Clark is out of ICU. They think she’ll make it.”
“Wonderful. John called and inquired, but they wouldn’t tell him anything.”
“It’s a murder case. They probably weren’t sure that he wasn’t checking to see if he had to go to the hospital and finish the job. It’s a cynical world.”
“And you were just as doubtful about him.”
“Not anymore. Not about this murder. But that doesn’t mean I’m convinced he’s one of the good guys. A good guy doesn’t dope you and lug you to his lair in Utah.” She went on before Eve could answer. “I’ll call you if I find out anything interesting. Have you talked to Joe?”
“No.”
“Neither have I lately. He called once, and I ignored it, so that I wouldn’t have to lie to him. But you will hear from him. Joe isn’t going to let you fall off the face of the earth. Particularly since he knows Black is surfacing.”
“I’m hoping that it will all be over before—”
“Don’t fool yourself.” Catherine hung up.
Eve wasn’t about to deceive herself that she had anything but the smallest chance of keeping Joe away from the danger to come. Yet she had to take that chance. Her world was chaos, and she had to keep Joe away from it.
She went to the window and gazed out. It was nearly dark, and John was a dark shadow against the paler gray shadow of the lake. He was very still. His head lifted, as if he was listening.
What was he hearing?
Sounds of the forest?
Voices?
Did you hear voices, John Gallo?
And she must still doubt his sanity if she thought that there was a possibility that he did.
And what voices?
The voices of men you’ve killed?
Bonnie’s voice?
He was straightening, turning away, coming back to the cabin.
She whirled away from the window, feeling a bolt of panic, as if caught intruding. She went to the stove and put on the coffeepot.