Chasing the Night - Iris Johansen [80]
“All this worry about her son may be for nothing,” Natalie said baldly, speaking for the first time. “What if that skull in that case is her Luke?”
Kelsov flinched. “Natalie, no one can say that you mince words.”
“Why should I? It’s what you’re all thinking. You should kill Rakovac. That’s all that’s important.”
“In this case, it’s not all that’s important.” He turned to Catherine. “I apologize. Natalie is single-minded on the subject of Rakovac.”
“Aren’t we all,” Joe said. “Particularly now.” He turned to Eve. “I think we have to know very soon if Luke is going to be factor in this.”
She pushed back her chair. “I’ll start right away.”
“Could we get DNA instead?” Kelly asked.
“Not enough time,” Joe said. “It’s going to have to be up to Eve.” He glanced at Catherine. “If you’ll trust her.”
“Do you mean will I trust her not to put my son’s face on that skull no matter what is there?” Her lips twisted. “Tell me, how do you like the idea of that much responsibility, Eve?”
“I hate it,” Eve said. “But not enough to lie to you. If you think I will, then all of this is for nothing.” She crossed her arms across her chest and stared Catherine in the eye. “Well?”
Catherine hesitated and then slowly nodded. “I trust you. You’ll tell me the truth.” Her jaw squared. “And I’m going to tell all of you the truth. You want to keep all that horror from happening? So do I. But it’s up to you to save the world. I’m going to save my son. You make your choice, I make mine. They may not coincide. So you’d better watch out for me.” She started clearing the table. “Let’s get these dishes out of the way and leave Eve alone to get to work. Your worktable and your tools are over there by the window. Is there anything else I can do for you?”
“Keep everyone out of my space,” Eve said. “And keep me supplied with coffee.”
“And food,” Joe said. “She tends to forget about it.”
“I noticed that.” Catherine carried a stack of dishes to the sink. “When she was doing the age progression. I’ll see that she’s stoked and primed.”
“You make me sound like a machine,” Eve said ruefully.
“You’re no machine. You’re too human,” Catherine said. “Which I imagine is going to make this one of the most difficult jobs you’ve ever done.”
“We’ll get through it.” Eve moved over to the worktable and began to set out her equipment. “Together.”
“How long will it take?”
She shrugged. “At least a day and a half for the initial setup and depth measurements. After that, I never know for certain. The sculpting can go fast or slow. It depends on…” She made a face. “It’s not like the age progressions. That’s much more logical. The sculpting is more creative and tells the tale.” She looked at Catherine. “It’s during that part of the process that I could lie to you if I chose.”
“But you won’t choose,” Catherine said. “And since you’re going to take that long, I believe Kelly will be stuck with my help while she’s working on the Rakovac report.” She stared sternly at Kelly. “And no complaints.”
Kelly smiled. “I’m not complaining.”
“Joe?” Eve’s gaze was narrowed on his face. “I saw your expression when you were talking to Venable. You’re not going to sit around waiting for me to finish.”
He shook his head. “Everything has changed. I can’t let Rakovac cause a disaster of that scope. I’m a cop and it’s my job to protect. You’re safe here with Catherine and Kelsov and don’t need me. I’m calling Venable back to see what I can do about finding Rakovac on my own. I’m going into Moscow to start pushing Venable.” His lips tightened. “Though this time I don’t believe he’s going to take much pushing. He sounded scared shitless.”
“Why should he be different?” Eve said. “Let me know as soon as you find out anything.”
“If,” Joe substituted as he headed for the bedroom. “The word is definitely ‘if.’”
He was right, Catherine thought. She had thought there was uncertainty before, but now the prospects seemed infinitely worse. Darkness was all around them, and nothing was clear.
Except