Bonnie - Iris Johansen [79]
“Yes, Danner abandoned his truck, and he and Eve are on foot. Not surprising since Gallo said Danner was used to living off the land. He taught Gallo everything he knew about that. Since Danner knew that there would be pursuit, he’d feel more comfortable in the woods than on the roads. It took a while, but we found the footprints. He tried to mask them at first but he gave up about a quarter mile into the woods. He was probably losing too much time. Now he’s just trying to move as fast as possible and ignoring pursuit. He’ll probably make a few diversions to throw us off the trail, but I believe they’ll be minor.”
“Which direction is he heading now?”
“Due south.”
“Keep me informed.” He hung up and looked at the priest. “South.”
Father Barnabas nodded. “Give me ten minutes to change clothes and grab an overnight bag. I’ve already spoken to Father Dominic about taking over for me.” He got to his feet and smiled. “Don’t be so troubled. I’m not your responsibility. I either go with you or by myself.”
“You know you’re not giving me any choice.”
“There has to be a balance, Detective. Just as there is in a court of law. I’m for the defense.”
“Maybe. But it’s Eve who needs the defense.”
“She has you and all the people who care about her.” He moved down the path toward the sanctuary. “I won’t be long, Detective.”
“Joe.” It was a surrender. “Evidently we’re going to be on fairly informal terms.”
“Kevin. If it will make you more comfortable to think of me in a more secular way.”
“It won’t. You are what you are. And I’m not sure what that is at the moment. Besides, I thought you were supposed to have abandoned that other life entirely.”
He shook his head. “I just tried to add to it and let it enrich me. In most cases, I succeeded.” He disappeared into the sanctuary.
CHAPTER
12
HOW FAR HAD THEY GONE? Eve wondered wearily. She had lost track after the first seven or eight miles. It had been dark for some hours now, and that distance must have increased accordingly. The paths that Danner was following were only narrow rutted trails, and the overhanging thorny bushes tore at her clothes and face. She’d had to stop innumerable times to disentangle her hair or shirt.
The path they were on now was particularly bad because it was following a shallow creek bed and her feet were wet and the mud was sucking at her shoes.
She muttered a curse as one shoe was pulled off her right foot. She balanced on the other foot as she reached down to retrieve the shoe.
“You should have worn sensible shoes. Why are women so impractical?” Danner had turned and was standing beside her with a scowl on his face.
“They are sensible. They’re just not mountain boots.” She added dryly, “I wasn’t expecting to go hiking.” She was trying to brush the mud from the sole of the shoe. “I’ll be ready to go again in a minute.”
He stood watching her for a few seconds, and then grabbed her wrists by the ropes binding them and pulled her off the path into the shrubbery.
“What are you doing? Dammit, don’t be so impatient. I have to get the mud off so that—”
“You looked like a stork standing there on one foot,” he growled. “Or maybe a scarecrow. But you’re so torn-up that I wouldn’t put you in a field. The crows would laugh at you.” They had reached a small clearing, and he pushed her down on the ground beneath a giant oak tree. “We can afford to take a short rest. It will take time for John to find the trail again after the last two red herrings I threw at him.”
“You think Gallo is after us?”
He nodded as he threw some branches in a pile and lit them. “He’s behind us somewhere. I can feel him.”
“Imagination?”
His lips twisted. “You mean the crazy old fool is having hallucinations?”
She met his gaze. “Maybe.”
He shook his head. “Father Barnabas thinks that I’m crazy. Sometimes I am. But some things I know better than he does. He thinks demons don’t walk the earth.”
“And you do?”
“I know they do. They’re always right behind me.” He took her shoes and put them before the fire to dry. “And I can’t let them