The sun had not risen, but the dawn sky was shaded with pink and violet, and streams of golden light were falling on the canyon and the trees below. A silver ribbon that must have been a creek wound around the land at the bottom of the canyon. Beautiful. Lord, it was beautiful. It took her breath away. “I … didn’t expect this.”
“It’s the place, the canyon. I searched for a long time before I found it.” Danner had already turned away from the canyon and was starting to climb again. “It’s the only place I could find where the demons couldn’t come. But I think they’re here now, too. I … have a bad feeling.”
It was happening again. She could see the tension beginning to grip him. She’d been aware that it was growing for the last ten minutes. The violence was beginning to fester within him as it had once before. She had been able to deter that violence, but could she do it now? How much time did she have before that tension broke, and he turned on her? She’d have to fight him, and whether she lived or died, the knowledge of what happened to Bonnie could be lost.
Make him talk now. Make him tell her. Be bold. It seemed to work with him. Don’t let him think of her as a victim. “Stop hiding behind those tall tales, Danner. You’re a coward. You couldn’t even say her name. You made up a fantasy about those so-called demons because you didn’t want to face your own guilt.”
He whirled on her. “It’s not true.” His eyes were blazing in his taut face. “They’re here, they’re everywhere. I had to stop them.”
“Stop them from what? Killing my Bonnie? But you couldn’t do that. No demon murdered her. It was you, Danner.”
His hands reached out and clutched her shoulders. “It was a demon. A demon killed the child.”
“Bonnie. And it was you. No one else.”
His hands slid to her throat. “I wouldn’t have done it. Why would I do it? She belonged to John.”
“She belonged to me. I told you that I didn’t want John to have her. So you were angry and decided to punish me by killing my daughter.”
His hands tightened on her throat. “I didn’t kill her. I wanted to save her.”
His grasp was bruising, cutting off her air.
“You’re hurting me. You didn’t want to do this, remember? You wanted to take me to her first. And we’re so close now.”
“Close enough,” he muttered. His eyes were glittering. “I can take you to her later.”
“But then you’d break your promise to me. John always said you’d never break your word. Is he wrong?”
His grip was loosening but not releasing her. “I never lied to John.”
“Except about your mental illness.”
“That wasn’t really a lie. I wasn’t sick. They wouldn’t believe me. They weren’t there. They didn’t see the demons kill those children in the mountains.”
“No one is seeing the demons but you. Why should I believe you?”
“Because it’s true.”
“I don’t know that. You’re afraid of Bonnie, aren’t you? You’re willing to do anything to make her leave you alone. Why would you be afraid if you didn’t think there was a reason for her to come after you?”
“Because she doesn’t understand. She thinks I did it. She doesn’t know.”
“Neither do I.” She held his gaze. “Tell me.”
His eyes were glittering. “It was the demon.”
“And what was the name of the demon? Does he have a name? Is it Ted Danner?”
“No. It’s Black. Paul Black.”
A ripple of shock surged through her. Black, the assassin that Gallo had killed weeks ago, the man who had been hired by Queen and Jacobs to take the blame for killing Bonnie. But Black had told Eve before his death that he had not done that killing.
And she had believed him.
She still believed him.
“You’re lying, Danner.”
He shook his head. “No, he was a monster. I saw him watching the little girl, and I knew what he was. He was standing outside your house on Morningside Drive, and I could see the shadow he was casting against the flames.”
“Flames?”
“No, that’s not right.” He moistened his lips. “That was the house in the village. That other time. No flames. Just the little girl getting off the bus and running up the street toward home. The sun was shining, and she was laughing.”
How many times had Eve stood on the porch and watched Bonnie run toward her, laughing and telling her something that had happened at school? “You saw Black standing there watching my Bonnie? Why were you there?”
“I had to stop him. I knew that he hated John and wanted to hurt him. John had made him look like a fool in front of Queen and Jacobs. They’d hired him to take John out, and he’d failed.”
“How did you know about Queen and Jacobs and how they’d victimized John?”
“When they told me that John was dead, I had to find out what had happened to him. John was smart. John was good. And those bastards used him and threw him away. I went after them. I searched for years until I found out what they were. I was going to take Queen and Jacobs out, but then I heard that John had escaped from that prison. I went to Jacobs and Queen and told them I was going to tell John everything and that I was going to blow the whistle on their drug dealing.”
“Wait. John was told that you were dead when he was in the hospital in Japan.”
“I might as well have been dead. Everyone thought I was crazy. I was having trouble getting off the medication. I didn’t want John to come back and see me like that.” His lips twisted bitterly. “I made a deal with Queen. He promised me that he and Jacobs would make it up to John. They said they’d make him a rich man. He’d have a good life. All I had to do was keep my mouth shut and disappear.”
“And you agreed?”
“They told me what the Koreans had done to him. I knew what John had gone through. I couldn’t help him. He deserved to have a new start.”
After being tortured and starved and cheated of all hope in that darkness in his cell. “Yes, he did. So you made the deal and disappeared.”
“I made the deal.” His lips tightened. “But I told them I’d be watching them, and if I saw any sign that they were trying to hurt John, I’d come back. And I did watch them. They got him well, then started to send him off on missions. I didn’t like that, but they said that they had to allow some time to pass before they could gather a fund together to give to John.”
“They were playing you.”
“And I would have stepped in, but then Black came back to Atlanta. He was one of Jacobs and Queen’s private hit men.”
“And he was angry because John had humiliated him.” She said slowly, “I suppose it could be true.”
“It’s all true.”
But there was more to the story than he had said.
“What else?”
“He killed the little girl to punish John.” But Danner was looking away from her.
“No. That’s not all.” She took a step back, and he let his hands drop from her shoulders. She braced herself. She didn’t want to hear the answer to this question, but she had to ask it. “How … did he kill her?”
“That’s enough.” He pushed her forward up the hill. “It’s time now.”
She jerked away and whirled to face him. “No, it’s not enough. How do you know he killed her? My daughter was taken at the park. Were you there? Did you see him do it?”
“I saw him.”
“You were there?”
He moistened his lips. “I was there.”
“Then you saw Bonnie?”
“I saw her. It was crowded, but I saw you with her on the swings. Then she ran away across the park toward the ice-cream truck.”
Eve could see Bonnie darting in and out of the crowds as she ran to get her ice cream. “And you saw Black there.”
“I told you I did.”
“Where was he?”
“Close,” he whispered. “So close. I knew it was going to be that day. It was so
crowded. It would be so easy for him. I had to stop him.”
“But you didn’t stop him, did you?”
“I did. I did. I talked to her. I told her she had to go with me. I told her that there was a bad man who might hurt her or her mother. She believed me. She wasn’t afraid. She looked up at me, and she smiled. She said, ‘It’s all right, Ted. Don’t be scared.’”
“She knew your name?”
“I guess so. I don’t know how. Maybe I told her. I whisked her out to my car, which was parked in the street. I saw Black, but I didn’t know if he’d seen her with me. I had to hide her from him. I told her to jump in the trunk, and I’d let her out when it was safe. She didn’t argue. She did what I told her.” He swallowed. “She did what I told her.”
“He followed you?”
“I wasn’t sure, but I had to get her away. What if he’d seen her? I kept driving. I caught sight of a car that might have been Black’s a dozen times. I got caught in a traffic jam, and I was scared that he’d catch up with me. But then I finally broke free and got off the freeway. I drove out of the city until I came to the lake. Then I jumped out of the car and ran around to let her out.” Tears were running down his cheeks. “But he’d killed her. She was curled up as if she were asleep, but Black had killed her. The demon had taken her away.”
Eve stared at him in shock. “Oh, my God,” she whispered. “It was hot that day. She wouldn’t have lasted any time at all in that trunk.”
“No, he killed her. It wasn’t my fault. I’d never have killed John’s little girl. She was a pretty little girl and so brave … I wouldn’t have done that.”
Eve closed her eyes. “Heat. You thought you were saving her from Black but that trunk must have been hot as an oven. The heat killed her.”
“No! Stop saying that. I told you what happened.” His voice was harsh as he pushed her forward up the trail. “I kept my promise. Now it has to be over. She has to leave me alone. I have to give her what she wants.”
Her eyes opened, but she could barely see through the tears. “She’s here?” After all the years, the uncertainty. “You brought her here?”
“Of course I did. She’s John’s little girl. I had to find a special place for her. But she wouldn’t leave me alone. I tried to tell her that Black had killed her, but she wouldn’t believe me. Wherever I turned, she was beside me. Lately, it got worse. I tried to run away, but she was always there.” His hands clenched. “But I didn’t know what she wanted.”
And Danner couldn’t let himself believe that it had been his fault that Bonnie had died. A horrible accident that had become a guilt that had dominated his life and destroyed whatever sanity he still possessed.
“Listen. I can tell you what she wants.”
He shook his head. “I know now. A little girl needs her mother, and I took her away from you.”
And Danner wasn’t going to be dissuaded. She was so shaken that she didn’t even know if she could make the attempt. She would have to go along with it until she could either say something that would strike the right note or make a break.
Or find a way to kill Danner? He had killed her Bonnie. Accident or not, he had taken the daughter who had made her life worth living. Could she forgive him? She wasn’t sure that was possible.
She would think about that later, when she was able to reason and not just feel. At that moment, she couldn’t think of anything but Bonnie. An eagerness was beginning to spark within her.
He was taking her to Bonnie.
* * *
“SHE’S ON THAT CLIFF!” Joe stopped skidding across the sandy ground and shaded his eyes with his hand. “And that’s got to be Danner.”
“Yes, that’s Ted,” Father Barnabas said. “But how do we get to them?”
Good question, Joe thought. The cliff on which Danner and Eve were standing was several hundred feet above the valley floor, and it appeared as if they were going still higher.
Not by standing here wondering, he thought impatiently. “We go south, pick up that trail, and start climbing.”
And hope they were in time.
“There’s another trail that I ran across five minutes ago that would be quicker.”
Joe turned at John Gallo’s voice to see him coming toward them. “How much quicker?”
“Maybe only a few minutes.” Gallo added grimly, “But a few minutes can be enough.” He turned. “I’m heading back and taking the trail up to that cliff. Come if you like.”
Joe hesitated for only an instant. Gallo was an expert woodsman and tracker, and it didn’t matter how Joe felt about him personally. He was right, a few minutes could be enough to make a difference. He strode quickly after him. Ben and Father Barnabas were only steps behind.
Gallo glanced back at them as he moved swiftly through the trees. “This isn’t your job, Father. You shouldn’t be here. And who’s the kid?”
“Ben. He’s a friend of your uncle’s.”
“You’re John Gallo.” Ben was gazing at Gallo. “Ted told me about you.”
Gallo was frowning. “What?”
“Ben came along to protect Danner,” Joe said. “He doesn’t trust me.”
“He shouldn’t trust any of us,” Gallo said, his lips tightening. “And I don’t know if he’s going to get the chance to help him. We have to worry about Eve.” He turned back and increased his pace to a trot.
Joe caught up with him. “Where’s this trail? Time is—”
“There.” Gallo was now on the trail curving toward the cliff and running hard. “And I know all about time. When did you catch sight of my uncle and Eve, Quinn?”
“Just before they started up the hill again.”
“Well, I saw them a moment or so before that,” he said jerkily. “And he had his hands on her throat.”
Shit.
“Get rid of the priest and the kid, Quinn,” Gallo said. “They’re going to get in the way.”
“Maybe not.” His head was lifted, his gaze on the trail on the summit where Eve and Danner had disappeared. God, he prayed not. “I’d think you’d be grateful to have them. They’re both on Danner’s side.”
“It only means I may have to fight my way through them,” Gallo said hoarsely. “I promised myself that Eve has to come first. I’ll keep that promise.”
He meant it, Joe realized. Good. At least, he didn’t have to worry about Gallo’s turning traitor at the last minute. It was one small light in a nightmare scenario.
“At least get rid of the kid,” Gallo said. “He makes me … He shouldn’t be here.”
But he was invited, Joe wanted to tell him. He may belong here more than any of us. But that would require explanations, and he wasn’t about to make them. He increased his speed and passed Gallo as they reached the hill. “It’s too late. Deal with it.”
* * *
I’M COMING, BONNIE. I’LL BE THERE with you soon. Do you feel me? Do you hear me?
But there was no answer. If Danner was truly taking her to Bonnie’s final resting place, wouldn’t Eve have sensed her near? Not necessarily. Bonnie had never been predictable.
The higher they’d climbed, the pine trees had become thinner, sparser, then disappeared entirely. They were replaced by huge boulders and canyon walls that jutted in and out like a giant maze. A dozen cracks seamed the rose red of the stone that led off the trail and disappeared into dark crevices.
“We’re almost at the top of this canyon,” she called to Danner. “And it’s all rock. Where’s Bonnie? Have you been lying to me? Has it all been one of your hallucinations?”
“Be quiet.” His voice was rough. “I don’t lie. You said that before. You said there was no demon. But it was a demon who killed the little girl.”
He was referring to Bonnie as the little girl again. Was it because he could not bear to acknowledge her identity now that they were close to her? Eve was beginning to understand his reluctance to acknowledge that it was Bonnie who had appeared to him. If he rejected the thought that he had been to blam
e for Bonnie’s death, it was natural that he would not want to admit that it was her spirit that was haunting him. The little girl had to be anonymous. He rejected Bonnie’s spirit as he had rejected the thought that he had killed her.
“We’re almost at the top of this canyon, and there’s nothing but rock. I don’t—” She stopped on the trail, her heart leaping to her throat, her gaze on the huge dark crack between two canyons to the left of the trail.
“Bonnie?”
“You’ve found me, Mama. I kept telling you that it didn’t matter, but you wouldn’t believe me.”
“It mattered to me.”
“And I guess that’s why you finally found me.”
“Where are you? I don’t see you.”
“You will. Not right now. He’s suffering so much that I can’t get near you.”
“Damn him.”
“No. Don’t be angry. Can’t you see? I know everything now. The two planes have come together, and I remember what happened. There mustn’t be anger.”
“I don’t see. He took you away from me. I am angry. I won’t let—”
“She’s here, isn’t she?” Danner was staring at Eve, his face pasty white. “But I don’t see her.”
She could no longer sense Bonnie, and the sudden loneliness sparked even more anger. “You’re keeping her away.” She looked at the looming dark crevice. “You bastard. You stuffed her in that black hole? What did you do? Just pile a bunch of rocks on her body?” She was striding into the narrow space between the rock walls. It was dark and so close it was claustrophobic. She could see the shadow of a large boulder blocking the path ahead.
“Get out of my way.” Danner was pushing her aside and going ahead. He rolled aside the boulder and pushed her through the opening out of the darkness. “If she’s here, it must be because she wants you here, too. Can’t you see? I was right. I have to do it.”
After the darkness, the daylight almost blinded Eve.
She stopped, stunned.
* * *
“SHIT, WHERE’S HE TAKING HER?” Joe said between set teeth, as his gaze flew down the path and the dark crevices on either side. “This part of the canyon looks like a rabbit warren. It will be a nightmare trying to follow him into any of those crevices.”