Chasing the Night - Iris Johansen [50]
“No, you wouldn’t be able to fathom that kind of thinking,” Joe said. “But evidently Catherine understands, even if she doesn’t condone.” He added, “I’m going to call Jane and tell her what’s happening. The last we heard from her, she was in London. Right?”
“Yes. But warning isn’t enough, Joe.”
“No, I’ll also call on Venable and get him to assign her protection. And, remember, Jane has friends in Scotland who will look out for her if they’re put on the alert.”
Yes, she did, Eve thought. And some of those friends were more lethal than Rakovac could ever hope to be. John MacDuff, Jock Gavin, and Caleb were formidable. “Then by all means give them a call. I want her surrounded.” She paused. “And she’s so damn stubborn.”
“Just like the company she keeps,” he said dryly. “You’re sure that I can’t talk you out of this? If you want the kid out, I’ll go in and get him by myself.”
“And run the risk of getting him killed. Rakovac wants Catherine, and if we can tease him with an occasional glimpse, we might be able to strike a balance that will let us grab Luke without sacrificing Catherine.”
“And is she agreeing to stake herself out?”
“We haven’t discussed it. It’s my take on the best way of handling him. But Catherine wouldn’t blink about doing anything that had a chance of working. She’s desperate. I’m hanging up now. I’ve got to go back in and see what we can do about finding a place for Kelly to go.”
“At least you’re not planning on taking her with you,” Joe said. “That would not be smart.”
“Actually, it might be very smart, but not in the least humane. She’s fourteen. Call me after you’ve talked to Jane.” She hung up.
She felt immensely relieved. Joe would make sure that Jane was safe, and that was the most important thing. He’d be on Venable, probing, demanding and digging until everything was out in the open.
“Eve?”
She turned to see Catherine standing in the doorway. “Joe is taking care of making sure that my adopted daughter, Jane, is safe.”
“Good.” She came out on the porch. “Is he angry?”
“No, he said he knew it was coming.” She shrugged. “Joe knows me very well.”
“That must be nice. Comfortable.”
“And sometimes not so comfortable.” She smiled. “But, yes, I wouldn’t have it any other way. We’ve gone through far too much together to have to do it all again. What a headache that would be.” She changed the subject. “So when do we leave?”
“Tonight. Just after midnight. There’s a private airport outside Gainesville, and we’ll take a private jet to Rome, then change planes and go on to Moscow.”
“Private enough to keep Rakovac from knowing that we’re invading his turf? He seems to keep an eagle eye on you.”
She nodded. “I can do it. I only tried to keep him in the dark when I went in to make an attempt to locate Luke. Otherwise, I let him track me. I figured it made him feel powerful, and it didn’t hurt to feed his ego. My aim was always to keep his volatility in check.”
“And when we reach Russia?”
“I know a man who may hate Rakovac more than I do. Alex Kelsov fought with Rakovac before he went to Moscow and became big in the mafia. Rakovac betrayed Kelsov to the Russian secret police, and he spent three years in a prison in Siberia. He was lucky not to have been executed. But Kelsov was always a major deal maker and slippery as an eel.” She made a face. “He still is. He may want to bring Rakovac down, but it’s still going to cost me.”
“What?”
“It depends on what Kelsov wants at the time. Whatever it is, I’ll give it to him.” She paused before saying soberly, “Rakovac meant what he said, you know. He’ll try to kill you.”
“But not for a while. He impressed me as a man with a plan. This has been going on too long for him to let his revenge just dribble away into nothingness. He wanted to punish you so badly that he was willing to risk his Washington connection.”
“You can’t be sure that he won’t make a move. He’s not predictable.”
Eve shrugged. “Then we’d better move fast.” She started for the door. “I’ll pack a bag for both Joe and myself. What arrangements have you made for Kelly?”
“Nothing yet.