Bonnie - Iris Johansen [39]
“Not if you said no.”
But she had never said no to him. She had been too dizzy and hot and completely involved with her first sexual experience. And she doubted if Catherine would say no to him either. Not for long. He still possessed the sensual magnetism that had drawn Eve to him, but now it had matured and become even more potent. Eve could see it, feel it, but it didn’t touch her. As he’d said, she had moved on.
But to Catherine, Gallo’s charisma would be fresh and stormy and strike sparks.
“Don’t hurt her, John.”
“You flatter me.” He moved into the lane that led to the Mobile airport. “Catherine is probably tougher than either one of us. She wouldn’t let me hurt her.”
Eve hoped that was true. It was true that there was no one more wary than Catherine. But her friend had never met a man like John Gallo.
He glanced at her when she didn’t speak. “I’m trying to be good, Eve,” he said quietly. “I know I’d be rotten for her. That’s one of the reasons that I took off and put some distance between us. Catherine has the misfortune to believe in me.” His lips twisted. “Even after I came within a heartbeat of letting her be killed.” He shrugged. “So instead, I let you come along for the ride. Here we are together again, Eve.”
“Only until we find Ted Danner. It’s all about—” Her phone rang, and she glanced at the ID. “It’s Catherine.” She pressed the button and turned up the volume. “What’s happening?”
“I could ask the same of you,” Catherine said. “I didn’t like the way you left me, Eve. It wasn’t fair.”
“I know. I didn’t want an argument, and you would have given me one.”
“You’re damn right I would have.” She paused. “Is Gallo listening?”
“Yes.”
“You take care of her, Gallo. If you don’t, I’ll cut your heart out.”
“Always to the point,” Gallo said. “I have no intention of letting anything happen to Eve.”
“Intentions don’t always translate to the final product. Joe wants to talk to you, Eve. But I wanted to make sure you heard about the fingerprint tests that Joe had New Orleans PD run on the prints found in the gift shop at the alligator farm. The results just came in.”
“Danner?”
“Absolutely positive.”
Gallo muttered a curse as his grip tightened on the steering wheel.
“I heard that,” Catherine said. “It’s too bad you don’t like it, Gallo. Face it. He’s a murderer.”
“There could have been reasons.”
“And what reason did he have for tossing that night security guard to the alligators?”
“Self-defense. Quinn said there were signs of a struggle. He could have been surprised and acted instinctively.”
“Maybe. I’m not counting on it. I’m handing the phone to Joe, Eve.”
“Right.” She braced herself. “Where are you, Joe?”
“At the gate in New Orleans waiting for a flight to Atlanta. We’re going to go check out Danner’s records at the Atlanta VA Medical Center.”
“Gallo tried to do that. The administrative office wouldn’t give him any info. I knew you and Catherine would be able to find out about him.” She paused. “Gallo and I are going to San Antonio to check out the doctor who signed the death certificate for Ted Danner. I’ll let you know what we find out.”
There was a silence. “You will?”
“Joe, for Pete’s sake, I told you I wasn’t trying to close you out. It’s just not possible for me to work with you right now.”
“Because of Gallo,” Joe said harshly.
“No, because of Bonnie.” She added quickly, “I’ve got to go, Joe. I’ll call you when I have an update.” She hung up and turned to Gallo. “You heard it. There’s no doubt any longer. It’s Danner.”
“But how?” he asked through set teeth. “Why?”
“That’s what we have to find out.”
“You told Joe we were going to San Antonio,” Gallo said. “How do you know that they won’t be there before us?”
“I don’t. But it wouldn’t be smart of them now that I’ve explained my position. And Joe and Catherine are both very smart. They don’t like it, but they trust me.” She added quietly, “And I won’t violate that trust, John. They’ve gone through hell, and they deserve to see the end of this. You