Captive, p.6
Captive, page 6
“I hear you,” Palik said. “But I’m surprised you’re not going yourself. Is there something I should know?”
“Maybe that I’m Bohdan’s prime target and don’t want to lead any of his goons to Jane if they manage to track me?” Caleb asked caustically.
“I’ve never seen anyone who could track you,” Palik said. “I couldn’t do it, and I’ve known your moves for a long time.”
“There’s always the exception to prove the rule. That exception isn’t going to have ramifications for Jane.”
“I can see where you’re going,” Palik said. “What are you doing in Paris?”
“I won’t stay there. A bull’s-eye needs to keep moving. Bohdan will be on the hunt for me.” He chuckled. “Just as I’ll be hunting for him. I have to take him down before he zeros in on anyone I care about. It’s going to be an interesting game. And I have you to pave the way for me, Palik.”
“I’m actually relieved that you’re leaving part of it to us. I’m always worried when you get restless. You have a tendency toward recklessness. You may be able to get away with that crap, but I’d just as soon take it slow and easy.” He sighed. “And I know damn well that you’re not going to be able to resist checking on any agent I send to MacDuff’s Run. No matter how high a recommendation I give him.”
“Maybe I will. It depends if you’re able to locate Bohdan for me before he gets too close to Jane. I’ve no objection to putting an end to our contract right away. I’d prefer it.”
“So would I,” Palik said. “But it’s rare when I’m able to indulge myself when I’m working for you. I’ll check on that man they pulled out of the Tiber and verify if he’s MI6, and I’ll text you the credentials on my own excellent agent I’ll send to watch your Jane.”
“And locate Bohdan,” Caleb reminded him.
“That goes without saying. Where will you be?”
“Perhaps in Paris. Or move down to Lisbon. Though I might join you in Rome if you can find a clue to lead me to Bohdan.”
“Don’t count on it. You’re right, Bohdan may be coming after you. Did I tell you how chopped up that agent was when they pulled him out of the Tiber? Bohdan might have tortured him for information before he threw him in the river. Even if he didn’t, it might take a while to get an autopsy report. Either way, do me a favor, don’t get too restless.” He ended the call.
Don’t get too restless.
Palik’s words echoed in his mind as Caleb pressed DISCONNECT. Palik knew him too damn well, he thought impatiently. They had been working together for a number of years and he could almost read Caleb’s thoughts. He was restless, and he couldn’t make a move on Bohdan yet. Even if he was able to locate him in Rome, it wouldn’t be the most efficient way to rid the world of the son of a bitch. He had to arrange to have Gamba Mandia, head of the Congo opposition party, alerted to what he was doing so that the country wouldn’t slip into chaos.
Don’t get too restless.
Too late for that, he thought recklessly. Why not rent a helicopter, check out MacDuff’s Run, and make certain that everything was the way he wanted it to be? He could be back by tomorrow and he’d feel better about MacDuff’s preparations. For all he knew, one of Bohdan’s men could already be there on the property. Wasn’t it his duty to be certain that wasn’t true?
Bullshit. He was making excuses.
But he’d be careful and not even go near Jane.
He’d just know she was there, near him, and safe…
That would be enough.
* * *
MacDuff’s Run
3:40 P.M.
Eve was wearing her blue chambray work shirt and her hair was tied back away from her face when she appeared on the Skype screen. “Jane?” She frowned. “Is everything all right?”
“Everything is fine,” Jane said. “I just haven’t talked to you since you arrived back at the lake cottage, and I thought I’d check in. Is Michael back in school?”
“For the time being.” She shook her head. “But he’s going to New Orleans with Cara next week. She has a concert and she’s going to let Michael help backstage. He’s over the moon. So much for giving him a normal American lifestyle after all the time he’s spent in Scotland and London.”
“It won’t hurt him a bit. You know he adores Cara. I was always the practical sister. Cara wasn’t only a star, she had her own magic.” Jane chuckled. “And besides, you look like you’re going to need time to yourself anyway. I recognize that blue work shirt. How far are you behind on the reconstructions?”
“Too far. I should own stock in FedEx. There was a backlog from half the forensic police departments around the country waiting for me when we pulled up to the cottage. Everything that we did when we were overseas had worth and I’d do it again, but these victims need me, too.” She added brusquely, “But I’ll catch up, and I told Michael we’ll take a family vacation to Colorado and go up to the cabin in the mountains we bought before we left. It’s beautiful scenery and Michael loves to look at the stars.” She paused. “Still, there’s no place more beautiful than MacDuff’s Run. Are you enjoying your stay there? How is MacDuff?”
“As usual.”
After a moment: “And Caleb?”
“As usual.”
“Uh-oh. I don’t like that.” Eve dropped down into her office chair. “That’s not good enough. There’s never anything ‘usual’ about Caleb. Joe and I were very grateful when he volunteered to watch over Michael while we were tied up in Azerbaijan. We couldn’t feel any safer than having you and Caleb to protect him.” Her gaze searched Jane’s face. “So what the hell is wrong? Don’t give me that ‘usual’ bull. Everyone knows that MI6 uses Caleb whenever he’ll let them. Joe said that even the intelligence chief is intimidated by him.” She added wryly, “Which is dangerous in itself. You can never tell when they might find him inconvenient to have around. Particularly if they know about that family trait that makes most of them uncomfortable. Do they?”
“Of course, they do,” Jane said impatiently. “It’s not something that he could keep hidden even if he wanted to. Not working with MI6. They accept it. Why shouldn’t they? It’s just a physical skill that has run through Caleb’s family for generations that allows them to be able to control the blood flow of anyone close to them. Hospitals even call on Caleb when they have patients that are having problems.”
“But that’s not why MI6 values him,” Eve said quietly. “It’s because they realize that his blood skill can kill as well as heal. Joe says they call him the Hunter.” She held up her hand. “Don’t say anything. Caleb has helped us too many times for us to condemn anything that he’s done. If he’s a hunter, then we know it’s the bad guys he’s hunting. I just wanted to be sure that he’s not in any trouble.”
“Caleb is never in trouble,” Jane said. “He always comes out on top.”
Eve just looked at her.
“It’s the truth,” Jane said. “But it doesn’t stop me from worrying. It’s one of those times.” Eve was still looking at her. “Svangar. It’s a township near the Congo. I won’t be able to see him for a while and I miss him.” She grinned. “And that’s all I’m going to say. Now you’ve squeezed it all out of me just like you did when I was a teenager. All you had to do was take one look at me.”
“Because I know you.”
“Yes, you do. No one could know me better.” She chuckled. “In fact, I had a discussion with MacDuff about you and Joe and Fiona just today. And I made it clear to him for the zillionth time that I belong with you guys. Maybe I got through to him this time.”
“Or maybe you didn’t,” Eve said. “MacDuff’s family is important to him, too. I’ve told you that I don’t mind sharing.”
“But I do. I’ve always known you were special. Stop trying to get rid of me.”
“Not a chance,” she shot back. “Look, I can’t blame MacDuff for being persistent. You have a history with him from the time you showed up at the castle because you’d been having dreams about Cira, his ancestress, who came from Herculaneum and later established the MacDuff family. I was worried about you, too, since they started when you were only a teenager.”
“I stopped having the dreams. They eventually went away. It was probably something I read or saw on TV.”
“That’s what Joe and I told you, but you seemed driven. We were glad when they went away. But they left that relationship with MacDuff behind. You’ve been friends for a long time.”
“And I’m grateful. I love it here, even when he and Caleb persist in sparring off each other. I just want him to stop trying to adopt me.”
Eve laughed. “I believe you can handle MacDuff. So now tell me what unusual thing Caleb has done that made you run to tell me how usual he’s being.”
“A kind of difficult job with MI6.” Jane shrugged. “I told you, nothing that he’s in the least worried about.”
“Except where it concerns you,” Eve said. “Then he does worry. Like a tiger on the prowl.”
“He’s not prowling now, which must mean I’m safe here at MacDuff’s Run.” She smiled. “I just felt the need to talk to you. Maybe I’ve been bored this week and felt a little lost.”
“Now, that’s really unusual. I’ll have to think about why you’d feel like that. You haven’t been lost since the day I saw you bossing around all the other slum kids on the streets when you were ten,” Eve said. “You’re the one who could always take care of me. Want to come and help me with about fifteen of these reconstructions I have on my list?”
“Are you kidding? You’re the world-famous forensic sculptor. You know you wouldn’t let me touch them. I’ll pass.” She had to stop this right now before Eve actually started to worry about her. “But I would like you to tell me everything Michael is doing and how much you and Joe are enjoying the lake. Then I’ll tell you all about Fiona and what a bastard of a father she had. And you can tell me how lucky I am that you let me come home with you that day. Is it a deal?”
* * *
Jane shook her head and her smile vanished when she pressed the DISCONNECT button on the Skype screen thirty minutes later. She’d definitely messed that up, she thought ruefully. She should have known that Eve would have been able to see right through any attempt Jane could fabricate to hide any disturbance. They’d been too close over the years, and she’d never been able to mask the passion and emotion of her relationship with Caleb from her. It didn’t help that Eve always wanted the very best for her and had a tendency to try to solve all the problems of the universe plaguing her family. Jane would just have to call her back in a day or two and smooth it over.
But talking to Eve had made her feel better as it always did. She’d even discussed Fiona and for once she hadn’t experienced any feeling of antagonism connected to MacDuff’s ancestress. Which had even brought a strange sense of relief.
She picked up one of the Fiona journals she’d thrown down on the nightstand when she’d come into the bedroom. It was the book with the strange characters that MacDuff had not been able to identify. Well, as she’d told Eve, there was no way on earth she could help her with those reconstructions she had to do. Why not see if she could make heads or tails of Fiona’s puzzle? It would be nice if she had something to at least talk about with Eve the next time she called her back. She crossed to the window seat and sat down. It wasn’t foggy today and the courtyard was bright and beautiful. She saw MacDuff talking to a number of men by the fountain. His own employees from the village, or MI6? It had to be one or the other. She supposed it should make her feel safer, but somehow it didn’t. She was only grateful that it might mean no one would be hurt by her being here at the Run. Along with experiencing a deep frustration that she couldn’t do more herself to take charge of her own life.
Her gaze wandered to the large stable on the far side of the courtyard. Pristinely clean, and the storage rooms would probably be equally well kept. She’d known that no horses were kept in that old stable now. Perhaps she should go and take a look at Fiona’s belongings there and see if she had left any secrets…
Forget about it. She had no desire to go down to the courtyard and stumble over any of MacDuff’s sentries and have to be polite. She deliberately turned away from the fountain and opened Fiona’s journal. Start at the beginning and see what occurred to her as she turned the pages. Those dark marks that looked like dashes were odd. Maybe if she started to copy them into her sketchbook, they’d become more her own, and she’d be able to work with them…
She started to work…
* * *
Bell Helicopter
Somewhere North of Calais, France
Palik called Caleb at just before midnight. “Nice night for a jaunt across the channel. Enjoying yourself?”
“Not particularly. But there better be a good reason why you’re inquiring. I don’t recall discussing these plans with you. I can’t say I like the idea of you keeping such a close eye on me, Palik.”
“Just doing my job,” Palik said flippantly. “The autopsy report is in on the guy they fished out of the Tiber River. It was your MI6 friend, Jennings. Extensive torture, as suspected.” He paused. “How much did he know about you?”
“Not enough to make the effort worthwhile for Bohdan. I try not to become too chummy with other agents. It can be dangerous for them.”
“Like Jennings?”
“Exactly. That’s another reason why it’s better if I work alone.”
“Then Bohdan won’t be able to track you.”
“I didn’t say that. There are always ways, if I’m not careful. Agents talk to each other. Or someone at the MI6 home office could have loose lips.”
“You wouldn’t tolerate that and they know it. And I don’t believe any of the agents from MI6 are going to do any talking.”
“Then you’d be wrong. The guy they just fished out of the Tiber River probably told them everything he knew. We just have to hope that wasn’t much. Any word on Bohdan’s location?”
“Nothing definite. He owns several drug houses and meth labs throughout Europe. He might be checking on them. But we think he might be heading for Naples. There are rumors he owns a brothel there that he uses to house and train kids he imports from his contacts in the Congo. We’re checking on it.”
“Makes sense. He was partners with the general in several brothels in Central Africa before I removed his senior partner from the equation. Is that all?”
“One other item. I’ve assigned Sean Rodland to MacDuff’s Run. You remember Rodland. You’re the one who sent him to me.”
“I remember him. He’s probably better than anyone else you have.”
“That crazy Irishman is hell on wheels, and he’s been with me for almost two years now. No one could be more loyal to you. He’ll be arriving there tomorrow morning. You’ll be pleased with him.”
“We’ll see,” Caleb said. “Anything else?”
“Not from me.” He added sourly, “Unless you’d like me to send a man out to the Run tonight to monitor what you’re doing out there.”
“That won’t be necessary. I know MacDuff’s property like the back of my hand. Jane has always liked the Run and it seemed a safe enough place to leave her occasionally.” Caleb added mockingly, “Though I appreciate your interest. But we both know what I’m doing is no one’s business but mine.”
“It’s my business,” Palik said testily. “You pay my salary, and I don’t want to lose a valuable source of income. I’m just telling you that Rodland will take good care of Jane and you don’t have to go trekking across those hills tonight.”
“I’m touched by your concern. But I have to make certain that the entire area is still safe since Bohdan got to Jennings. Back off, Palik.”
Palik muttered a curse. “I’m backing off. Don’t you think it took a lot for me to confront you on this? I just realized you’re being reckless and it wouldn’t hurt to opt out and let one of my people do the job. Which blows my professionalism to hell.”
“Or increases it enormously. It depends on how you look at it. Not everyone would find it annoying.”
“When will you arrive at MacDuff’s Run?”
“Another hour. But it will be at least another two hours after that before I’ll finish going over the property.” He suddenly chuckled. “I have to be careful. I don’t want to have one of MacDuff’s marines shoot a hole in me. I wouldn’t want to seriously damage your source of income.”
“Very funny,” Palik said. “But I’m not in the mood to be amused. I had to go down to the coroner’s office to get that report and I saw what Bohdan did to that agent. I didn’t like it. Because I think Bohdan enjoyed the hell out of it. Not that I give a damn about you. But I like Jane, and it makes me sick to think of Bohdan hurting her like that. So make sure whatever you do tonight doesn’t target her.”
Caleb’s hand tightened on the phone. He couldn’t speak for a moment. “There’s no way on earth I’d let it happen,” he said hoarsely. “Not if I have to bring down all Bohdan’s forces in the Congo. Look, I’m going to do everything right. All I’ll do is check out the property and then get out. I’m not even going to see Jane tonight. Stop worrying about her and get me a line on Bohdan. I can’t tell you how badly I want him.”
“You’ll have him,” Palik said grimly. “But I gave you Rodland, too. I told him that Jane wasn’t to be out of his sight. Make use of him.” He ended the call.
Chapter
5
3:25 A.M.
It was raining…
Jane rolled over in bed as she saw a flash of lightning streak across the night sky outside her window.
Thunder…
And something else…
She could feel it.
She sat up and swung her legs to the floor. Then she was out of bed and crossing the room toward the window.
More lightning…She could see the rain driving across the stones of the courtyard below her.
And shadows…
