Always - Iris Johansen [31]
It was what would happen when he did catch Martin that was turning her panic to terror. There had been so much ugliness, so much menace in Martin in those last minutes. How could he have said that about Tommy? She could feel the sheer horror of it turn her cold and sick. She’d been so sure that guilt and desperation had caused Martin’s obsessive behavior toward her. Could she have been that mistaken?
“You’re shaking.” Galbraith frowned in concern. “Are you okay? Clancy will have my severed head in one of these baskets if he comes back and finds you sick.”
“I’m all right.” She wasn’t all right. She could feel the dark, tattered edge of that familiar depression closing in on her, and her footsteps quickened as if to run away from it. But she knew it was useless. She hadn’t been able to escape from it for the last three years. How could she expect to do so now? “Let’s just get back to the villa.”
It was almost dusk when Clancy returned to the villa, but Galbraith had not bothered to turn on the lights. He was lounging in one of the big easy chairs in the living room, his leg swinging lazily over the wide arm.
Clancy flipped on the ceiling light as he strode into the room, and Galbraith straightened up. “Did you get him?”
Clancy shook his head. “Hendricks lost him in the alleyway.” He rubbed the back of his neck wearily. “We spent the entire afternoon searching the whole damn island for any sign of him. We finally tracked down a lead to the Coast Guard office. A man of Baldwin’s general description sailed a launch into the harbor three days ago and has been berthed at the dock ever since.”
Galbraith gave a low whistle. “He’s been living on the boat, then. No wonder we didn’t get a tip-off from one of the hotels on the island.”
“Well, the launch is no longer in its berth, so it’s safe to assume Baldwin’s gotten away clean as a whistle. It doesn’t matter. I’ll still get him.” He shifted his gaze to the door of the master bedroom. “How is she?”
“Not good,” Galbraith said with a frown. “What the hell did the bastard say to her? She seemed to be in a state of shock. Did he threaten her?”
Clancy’s lips tightened. “Yes, but I don’t think that’s what’s causing the upset. Did she eat dinner?”
“I ordered something sent over from the dining room of the hotel, but she didn’t touch it.” Galbraith flexed his shoulders and sighed. “I don’t like it, Clancy. She’s too damn quiet. I used to see guys in Nam like that.” He smiled crookedly. “Those were the ones who usually ended up wandering off into the jungle or developed a liking for Russian roulette.”
Clancy felt a chill touch his spine. He, too, had seen men who had repressed pain and horror until it had become a land mine inside them. “I’ll try to get her to eat later. I won’t need you for the rest of the evening, John. You can tell the other guards they needn’t come back tomorrow.”
Galbraith’s brows rose in surprise. “The surveillance is officially over? I thought you’d continue it for a few days in case Baldwin decided to come back.”
“I don’t doubt that he’ll be back, but he’s not stupid enough to make it anytime soon. He knows we’re waiting for him. My guess is that he’ll wait and try to catch us by surprise.”
Galbraith nodded in agreement. “You think he’ll still try to make trouble for Miss Landon?”
“I don’t think there’s any question about it,” Clancy said bitterly. “Thanks to the little scenario I set up, he’s not only an annoyance but an actual threat to her now. He thinks she’s betrayed him, and there’s no telling what a psycho like that will do to get revenge.”
“Then she’ll remain under Sedikhan protection indefinitely.” It was a statement, not a question. Galbraith got to his feet. “Do I put her on a flight to New York tomorrow and arrange for an operative to cover her there?”
“No, I don’t think so. I’d have to put a battalion around her to keep her safe in a heavily populated area like New York.” Clancy frowned. “I may have to take her to Sedikhan.”
“The lady may decide she’s tired of being pushed