He was right. She had to stay. But, blast it, it was going to kill her to sit there and wait.
Eve’s phone rang forty-five minutes later.
"There’s been a crash," Joe said. "A car went off the road and down into the ravine."
Her hand tightened on the phone. "Is it them?"
"I don’t know." He paused. "The car’s pretty messed up. It was over a hundredfoot drop."
She closed her eyes. "Christ."
"The medics and rescue team are going down to see if anyone survived. It’s not going to be easy. The incline’s very steep."
"How could anyone survive a drop like that?"
"It’s possible. The car hasn’t exploded yet. I have to go now. I’ll call you later. I’m going down with the rescue team."
The car hasn’t exploded yet.
Fear tore through her. "Let them do their job, Joe. Stay out of it."
"I like Charlie Cather, Eve." He hung up.
She liked Charlie too, but the thought of Joe going near that car terrified her. She dialed Joe back.
No answer. He was already on his way down to the car. She headed for the front door.
The flashing red lights of ambulances, fire trucks, and a half dozen police cars dotted the highway. A quartz spotlight was aimed down into the ravine. Yellow tape cordoned off the right The Killing Game – Eve Duncan 02
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lane.
Joe.
She parked on the side of the highway and jumped out of the car. She fought her way through the crowd, but dammit, she couldn’t see anything.
"Eve." Spiro was coming toward her from the edge of the cliff. He nodded to a policeman.
"She’s all right. Let her through."
She ducked under the tape and ran to the edge of the cliff.
Spiro followed her. "You shouldn’t be here, Eve. What are you thinking? This place is crawling with highway patrol and—"
"I don’t care. Where’s the rescue team?"
Spiro pointed at the line of moving lights at the bottom of the ravine. "They’re almost at the car."
What car? It appeared to be only a mass of twisted metal. "Joe’s down there.”
“I know, he called me. But he was already on his way down when I got here.”
“Does anyone know what happened?"
Spiro shook his head. "No witnesses. We don’t know yet if they were driven off the road or there was brake tampering. We’re not even sure if it’s Charlie’s rental car. The rescue team is going to try to radio back the license number."
"But you think it is?"
"Don’t you?"
"Yes." The lights were almost at the car now. "Do they know how long it’s going to take?"
"It depends on what they find down there." He paused. "But I have to warn you. The rescue team is already smelling gasoline. Even worse, gas vapor will be hovering over the vehicle. All it would take is a spark."
She went rigid. "Then tell them to get out of there.”
“They have to try to rescue whoever’s in the car.”
“They don’t have to get blown up. I’ve seen burn victims and—”
“I know," Spiro said quietly. "No one wants that to happen. The squad leader will call off the The Killing Game – Eve Duncan 02
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attempt if it gets too dangerous."
"Joe won’t do that. He won’t take orders from anybody. He’ll do what he has to to get them out of that car." God, she wished she were down there so she could do something.
"Take it easy, Eve. The rescue team isn’t going to make any mistakes that will get anyone hurt.
They’ll disconnect the battery and then steady the vehicle. And they’ll use Hurst tools to force their way into the car to avoid sparks."
The lights were moving, weaving in and around the wreckage. Ten minutes passed.
Fifteen minutes.
"Why aren’t they coming back? Can’t you find out what’s happening?" she asked Spiro.
"I’ll try." Spiro strode over to the command unit and came back a few minutes later. "They’ve got one man out. They weren’t able to make a positive confirmation, but they think the other man is dead. The squad leader’s made the decision to pull his team out."
"Why?"
He hesitated. "The car hood is crushed. They weren’t able to get to the battery to disconnect it.
They managed to turn off the ignition, but anything could blow the car. The catalytic converter, the wiring…"
"And everyone’s coming up?”
“Look for yourself."
The lights below were moving faster, away from the wreckage, back toward the incline.
Please let Joe be one of those men running to safety. Her gaze moved back to the wreckage.
One light still burned in the midst of the twisted tangle of metal. "Joe."
She had known it. Damn him. Damn him. "My God, he’s crazy," Spiro said.
Joe, get out of there. Please. One minute passed. Two minutes. Don’t stay. Don’t stay. Don’t stay. The wreckage exploded into a fireball. She screamed.
Joe.
She ran toward the cliff edge. Spiro caught her.
She struck out at him. "Let me go."
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inside the car when it exploded. "I’m going down there."
"No way." His grasp tightened. "Too many people have been hurt tonight. I’m not going to watch you tumble down that mountain."
She kneed him in the groin and his grasp loosened. She ran, but two highway patrolmen grabbed her and forced her to the ground.
She fought desperately, kicking, frantically striking out.
Joe!
Darkness.
"You son of a bitch. Did you have to hit her?"
"I didn’t hit her," Spiro said. "It was one of Phoenix’s finest. They were trying to keep her from sliding down that mountain and killing herself. She’s not hurt badly. Only stunned."
"You could have stopped them."
Joe. That was Joe’s voice. Her eyes flew open. Joe kneeling beside her. Joe’s face, oil-streaked, a cut on his cheekbone—but he was alive. Oh, God, alive.
"How do you feel?" Joe was frowning. "Did they hurt you?" Alive.
She shook her head.
"You’re lying. Why are you crying if you’re not hurt?"
She hadn’t known she was crying. "I don’t know." She sat up and wiped her cheeks. "I’m okay."
“You’re not okay. Lie back down."
"Shut up, Joe." Her voice was uneven. "I said I was okay. No credit to you. God, you’re stupid. I thought you were dead, you idiot. I saw the light in the car right before it blew up."
"I had to drop the flashlight when I wriggled out of the car." Stop shaking. He was alive. "You shouldn’t have been there.”
“I know," he said wearily. "The squad leader is mad as hell at me, but I had to make sure." He glanced at Spiro. "I’m sorry, it was Charlie in the car. I thought he was dead, but I had to be sure."
"And he was dead?"
Joe nodded.
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Spiro flinched.
"And Billy Sung was alive when we got him out of the car, but he died before we reached the top."
Dead. Both dead. Nice Charlie Cather and Billy Sung, with his plans for taking the world by storm. Joe could have died too. Joe…
"Eve?" Joe was gazing at her in concern.
"I heard you. They’re dead. They’re both dead." She wrapped her arms around her body, but she couldn’t stop the shaking. "I heard you."
"You’re cold." He reached out to her.
"Don’t you touch me. I feel fine." Her voice was rising, and she had to stop to control it. "I wasn’t down there. I didn’t do that stupid—"
"Come on." Joe took her hand to help her to her feet. "I’m taking you home." She jerked away from him and stood on her own.
"Yeah, get her home," Spiro told Joe. "Those officers may be focused on the wreck, but there’s still an APB out on her." He grimaced. "I have to make a telephone call. Jesus, I’m going to hate this."