Silencing Eve

He frowned. “What is all this nonsense? You’re not making sense.”

“I think Bo

“A graveyard of driftwood to keep everyone away from sleeping beauty?”

“He gave Eve something to keep her asleep,” Ben said simply. “Bo

Joe muttered a curse. “Anything else? Did Bo

“You’re scared, aren’t you, Joe? I’m scared, too.”

Joe closed his eyes. God, yes, he was scared. “Yeah, I’m afraid for her. You’ve got to think hard and tell me everything about your dream.”

“It wasn’t very long. Bo

“Anything else?”

He was silent, thinking. “Only that it was Kevin’s castle, I mean cottage, where Eve is now. Is that enough? I repeated everything she told me just like she wanted. Can we find her now?”

Garden of thorns, graveyard of driftwood, a cottage belonging to a man dead for the last five years. Pitifully slim clues given to a special boy from a spirit from beyond. He should be in hopeless despair.

He was not in despair. He would not let that happen. He was desperate, but he was reaching out to grasp this fragile straw that Ben was handing him. “We’ll find her. I just have to think and put all this together. You did good, Ben.”

“Then let me come to help you find her. I won’t get in the way.”

“I’m on my way to Seattle. That’s a long way from you. I can’t wait for you to get here. Bo

Ben’s silence was troubled. “No, you can’t wait. Eve almost died. I’ll find my own way. Maybe Bo

“Ben, stay where you are. I don’t want you to—” It was no use arguing with the boy. He would do what he thought was right. “Take care, Ben. Keep in touch.” He hung up.

His stomach was tied up in knots.

Eve almost died.

Stop thinking about Ben’s words. Move forward.

But one thing to do first.

He dialed Venable. “I assume you bugged Ben’s phone?”

“Would I do that to a fine boy like Ben Hudson?” He paused. “What do you expect. You’ve all shut me out. Even Catherine offers me only crumbs about what she’s up to. I have to take what I can get.” He added dryly, “Though that hogwash Ben was spewing wasn’t worth the planting of a very fine piece of electronic equipment.” His tone roughened. “I won’t have roadblocks put in my way, Qui

“I’ll get your damn bombs. And I’ll throw Doane’s body at your feet as soon as I get my hands on him. But I won’t have you dangling Ben on your string to force me to play the game your way. He’s a good kid, and he’s trying to help.”

“Yeah, dreams and ghosts and all that crap,” Venable said. “I can offer you a hell of a lot more help. I sent a team from Homeland Security into Seattle as soon as Catherine told me she was heading there. I also sent a team to Chicago to back any play there. Just keep me informed, dammit.”

“If I can do it without risking Eve. Otherwise, I’ll handle it myself.” He listened to Venable curse. “And I don’t care if you think Ben’s words were crap or not. Pretend you believe him and see if you can unearth any records about a cottage outside Seattle that Kevin may have purchased five years ago.”

“The information is probably buried, and it could be a waste of my time.” He paused. “We could make a deal.”

“I’ve told you how it’s going to be. You’ll do it because you’re scrambling for any clue to lead you to Doane.” He changed the subject. “Now, Ben is going to try to get up here. That’s okay as long as someone is looking out for him. That means you, Venable. You’ll be heading up here anyway now that you know Catherine and Zander are in this area. You take good care of Ben, or I’ll make you pay, Venable.”

Silence. “Threats? We used to be on the same side.”

“Not if your side considers Eve expendable.” He didn’t wait for an answer. He hung up.

He drew a deep breath. Don’t think, don’t feel, just move forward efficiently and at top speed. He dialed Gallo’s cell.

Gallo answered on the second ring. He said warily, “I take it that Catherine contacted you, too? I assure you that I don’t like the idea of our working together any more than you do.”

“I agree, but I’ll accept it because I may need you.”

“What?”

“It depends if you can swallow what Venable calls Ben’s hogwash,” Joe said curtly. “If you can’t, I don’t want you.”

Gallo was silent as moment. “Ben Hudson? What hogwash?”

“He dreamed of Bo

“Because he dreamed of Bo

“Yes, I didn’t for a long time, years. I had to learn to suspend disbelief.” He cleared his throat. “And Bo

“That’s all?”

“Something about its being Kevin’s place.”

“A cottage and driftwood and a co

“That’s what I thought.” He paused. “But we have to move fast to find it. Doane gave Eve an overdose and almost killed her. That’s why I called you. As Catherine said, two can cover more ground than one. And I’m calling Kendra and telling her to check those letters and the journal for any reference that might lead to answers.”

“Good move. Spread the word. I’ll call Catherine and let her know to call Jane or Margaret. I’m at a Starbucks in Everton, Washington. How close are you?”

“About twenty minutes.”

“I’ll stay here. But be quicker than twenty minutes if you can do it.” He hung up.

Those last sentences had sounded remarkably like orders, Joe thought with a

Screw it.

He’d take any chance he had to take to bring this nightmare to a close as quickly as possible.

Eve almost died.

Keep her alive for me, Bo

And while you’re at it, I’d appreciate it you’d keep a rein on your father. God knows, I don’t need trouble from Gallo.

Seattle, Washington

“EVE’S DEFINITELY HERE IN SEATTLE?” Catherine’s voice was tense. “It sounds like it from that driftwood description. I thought the chances were excellent, but there was always the possibility Doane had laid a false trail, Gallo. It’s good to have confirmation.”

“Venable wasn’t so accepting,” Gallo said dryly. “He thought the source was suspect.” He paused. “Do you?”

Catherine hesitated. “Bo