Free Silencing Eve by Iris Johansen Page B

ink? I doubt if even a madman would be quite that amateurish, Jane.”
    “You know what I mean. Things aren’t always what they seem.”
    “No, they’re not. But we don’t have to rely on the labs at Langley. The labs at Quantico are just as sophisticated, and I have friends at the FBI.”
    “Then let’s get it to them right away.” She moistened her lips. “I feel as if we’re spinning our wheels. We’ve been relying on Venable to keep up the search for Eve. If Venable is crooked, then what—It’s been five days, Joe. Where is she?”
    “I haven’t totally relied on Venable. I’ve made him give me copies of every report from his guys in the field.” Joe put his arm around her shoulders. “Could they be faked? Sure. I don’t think they were. He’s exploring every avenue that I would have ordered explored and done it with much less chance for leaks.” He added, “And Venable’s actions at that ghost town indicated he wanted Doane. Maybe too much for Eve’s safety. But if we find Doane, we find Eve.” He kissed her on the forehead. “After tonight, I’m going to go into seclusion, as would be natural in a grief-stricken man. I’ll be in touch.”
    She had known this was coming. She had just hoped that they would have had something more to go on before the hunt began again. “Where are you going?”
    “Vancouver. Venable is going to give me false papers and have me flown into a small airport north of the city. According to Venable, Zander’s place appears to be deserted, but I’m hoping to contact Howard Stang, his assistant. He disappeared at the same time as Zander, but he may be the weak link.” He shook his head. “Though I’m not sure how weak Stang will prove to be. He’s something of an enigma.”
    “So is Zander,” Jane said. “I can’t forgive him for not saving Eve when he had the chance up in the mountains.”
    “Neither can I. He doesn’t care about our forgiveness.”
    “He’s her father, dammit.”
    “Neither one of them would say that had anything to do with their relationship. He never acknowledged her during her entire life. She doesn’t want or need a father at this stage.”
    “Unless he can do something to save Doane from killing her. She needs him for that.”
    “And she’ll have him as soon as I find the bastard,” he said grimly. “Believe me, I’ll serve Zander up to Doane on a silver platter if it will keep her alive.”
    She did believe him, and she was going to be as worried about Joe as she was about Eve. Zander was one of the most expert assassins on the planet. It wouldn’t be easy even for a man as tough as Joe to overcome that skill. “I’m going to go with you.”
    He shook his head. “Not now. A mass exodus from here would definitely be suspicious. I’ll call you as soon as I find Stang.”
    “You expect me to stay here and wait? It’s not going to happen, Joe. I’m through with waiting.”
    “It would be suspicious,” he repeated. “I’m not going to blow everything we’ve done to keep Doane off guard.”
    His jaw was set, and she knew he wasn’t going to be persuaded. Frustration seared through her. “I won’t blow anything, dammit. Do you think I’d do anything that might hurt Eve? Okay, I’ll give you one day. Then I’m going to come after you. I’ll ask Caleb to file a flight plan to London, and we’ll leave Atlanta for Vancouver tomorrow afternoon instead. It will seem perfectly natural that I go back to London where I came from before this nightmare started.”
    “I’m not going to let Venable give you papers.”
    She smiled recklessly. “Screw Venable. I’m going, Joe. I won’t risk Eve, but I won’t sit here and do nothing. You go after Stang. I won’t get in your way. I’ll find my own way to Zander.”
    Joe muttered a curse.
    “It’s not the way I wanted it.” Jane could feel the tears sting her eyes as she turned and started back toward the cottage. “I’ve put the journal in the last drawer of