* * *
Silver mornings … Eve put her cup down on the railing and sat down on the step beside Jane. “A relationship that changed the way you see everything?” She put her arm around Jane. “Fresh and clean and bright in a dark world. May you find that someday, Jane.”
“I already have them.” She smiled at Eve. “You give one to me every day. When I’m down, you bring me up. When I’m confused, you make everything clear. When I think there’s no love in the world, I remember the years you gave me.” She leaned her head contentedly back on Eve’s shoulder. “Silver mornings aren’t restricted to lovers. They can come from mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers, good friends … They can all change how you see your world, too.”
“Yes, they can.”
They sat in silence for a long time, gazing out at the lake in contentment. Finally, Eve sighed. “I suppose we should go in.”
Jane smiled. “Hell, let’s not go to bed. Let’s wait for the dawn and see if it comes up silver.”
* * *
“I’ll always remember your smile that night,” Eve said unsteadily. “It lit up your face, and it lit up my life. Because I knew that no matter what happened between you and Trevor, the love between us was going to go on. And when later you realized that Trevor was the silver morning that you wanted to fill your life, I rejoiced. When he was killed, I mourned.”
“But I think you forgot that there are other silver mornings, and now you have to remember that night on the porch. Let me help you remember. Open your eyes. Come back to me.”
Jane didn’t move.
She repeated unsteadily, “Dammit, you come back to me.”
* * *
Hold on, Eve. She’s so close to you. She’s almost there.
Caleb’s gaze was zeroed in on Jane’s face from where he stood outside the ICU.
He could feel the emotion Jane was experiencing. He’d been right to send Eve to do what he could not do. God, he’d wanted to be able to bring her back on his own.
But Jane was slipping back again.
“No!”
There was something in the background.
No, someone in the background.
Trevor, get the hell away from her. Let me take her. You’re the only one holding her back. I know you don’t want her to stay with you now. But you’re having trouble leaving her. Let her see you turn your back and walk away.
Struggle. Pain. Resignation.
Gone.
Caleb’s relief was mixed with a strange sadness.
I don’t think I could have done it, Trevor. You always were the white knight.
* * *
“Okay, Jane,” Eve moistened her lips. “That was only the first foray. Let’s try again. I’m not going to give up. I was just hurting and got a little frustrated when I couldn’t—”
“Shh,” Caleb was standing beside her. “You’ve won the battle. She’s with you. She’s just saying good-bye to him. She knows it’s final now.”
“She’s with me?” Eve’s gaze flew to meet his eyes. “Does that mean that—”
“It means I have a chance to make sure that Basle does his job. You can let go of her hand now. I’ll take over.”
“No…”
Both of their eyes flew to Jane’s face at the mere wisp of sound. Her eyes were open, and she was looking at Eve.
“Oh, my God,” Eve whispered. “You’re awake, baby.”
“You wouldn’t … let … me go. Right … But hurts. Sorry.” Her hand tightened on Eve’s. “Stay.”
“Of course, I’ll stay. But Caleb needs to—”
“No.”
“Yes,” Caleb said. “But I’ll draw up a chair to the other side of the bed. You can stay with her, Eve. But don’t let her talk any more.” He turned to leave. “I’ll go tell the head nurse that she’s no longer comatose, then go find Joe and give him the good news. Then I’ll be back.” He looked at Jane. “I’ll always be back. I know that you’re resenting me. I expected it.” His lips twisted. “I’ve always been the black knight, never the white knight like Trevor. But I’m the one who will keep you surviving in this wicked old world.”
“No … I’ll … do … that.” Her lids were closing again. “Can’t let— You’re all … fire and darkness … no silver … mornings.”
“No?” He headed for the door. “Do you know I actually felt a twinge when you said that? I’ll have to think about it and decide if I need to work on changing your mind. Take care of her, Eve. The minute the word gets around that she’s out of her coma, it raises the possibility that Santos could move against her.”
* * *
“We’re on our way back, Hu Chang,” Catherine said as soon as he picked up. “We spent the last seven hours dodging Dorgal and some of his goons in the rain forest near San Esposito. Our jet just took off from the airport. Is everything okay there at home?”
“Catherine, you texted me three times since you left here asking me that question. Why would it not be, with me in charge?” Hu Chang said. “And why would I not have sent you word if there were a problem?”
“Because you’d try to take care of it yourself. No sign of Santos’s people?”
“No. But if they gave out signals, there would be nothing to worry about.” He changed the subject. “You found Montez?”
“Yes, but he wouldn’t talk, and we had to leave him down there temporarily.”
“It isn’t like you to accept a defeat. Most uncharacteristic.”
“That’s what Cameron said. He didn’t approve.” She added wearily, “But I believed Montez when he said that he didn’t know where Santos is. In his own way, I think he’s been struggling against him. And I didn’t want to be the one to make him suffer any more than he has already.” She paused. “How is Luke?”
“Upset that you didn’t say good-bye to him.”
“He would have wanted to go with me. That wasn’t an option.”
“I explained that to him and turned him over to Kelly. I was going to bring Erin in, but Kelly offers him challenges, and that’s what he needs.”
“If he doesn’t persuade her to go after Santos with him,” she said dryly. “It’s definitely a possibility. He knows that Kelly helped to find him when he was being held by Rakovac. You know how brilliant she is at seeing patterns and connections when no one else can do it. It’s almost an Einstein mentality. That’s what she does at that think tank at college. Even Venable was considering trying to use her for some of his other cases.”