Quinn - Iris Johansen [27]
She was silent for a long time, watching the rain hit the windshield. “I’m glad she was found. She was alone so long in that cave. When we find out who she is, she’ll be able to go home to people who love her.”
She was identifying the child with her Bonnie, Joe knew. His heart was aching for her, but there was nothing he could do. “I’m glad she was found, too.”
“I keep thinking that … it might have been Bonnie. I have a chance that she’s still alive. But if he did take her, then I have to find him to be sure either way.”
And she was beginning to accept that her daughter could be dead, a victim of the monster who had killed the little girl in the cave.
He pulled the car to a stop in front of her house. “Come on. Let’s get you inside. You need a hot shower and some rest.”
“Go home, Joe.” She got out of the car. “I wouldn’t put it past you to strip me down and throw me in the shower.”
“It’s an interesting idea.”
“Not really. I’m too skinny for you, remember?” She shook her head. “I have some thinking to do. I don’t want you here.”
He didn’t want her to be alone, dammit. Should he push it?
She started up the steps. “I’ll be fine. Stop worrying. I got along before you dropped into my life.”
“But not as well.”
She turned as she unlocked the door. “No, not as well.” She smiled slightly. “Though I hate to cater to your ego. I’ll see you tomorrow, Joe.”
“I’ll call you first thing in the morning. I want you to tell me that you slept a little.”
“I’ll work on it.”
“But you’re going back to those reports.”
“He’s a monster, Joe,” she said quietly. “He might be my monster. We have to stop him.” She disappeared into the house.
Joe waited until the lights went on inside before he pulled away from the curb. He couldn’t force her to let him help her. He’d already invaded her space and compromised her independence. It was a wonder that she hadn’t rebelled against him before. He’d go back to the precinct and see if any of the forensic reports were completed yet.
Whether the man who killed that little girl in the cave was Eve’s monster or not, he was definitely a monster. Joe could feel the anger tear through him as he remembered the hideously macabre scene in the cave.
Get to work. Show the bastard he wasn’t as invulnerable as he thought he was. Joe felt a familiar exhilaration mix with the rage. The warrior instinct that had been a part of his life for years was starting to simmer.
Yes, he was in the mood for hunting monsters.
CHAPTER
5
JOE THREW A FOLDED NEWSPAPER on the table in front of Eve the next morning. “The media got hold of the story. Interviews with the hunters. Descriptions of what they saw in the cave. Damn them. We hadn’t yet notified the Bristols that it might be their daughter. We were waiting to check with her dentist. The phones have been ringing off the hook from parents of those kidnapped kids, and we can’t even tell them yes or no.”
Eve opened the newspaper and shook her head. “Why didn’t they wait? This is cruel.”
“It’s a scoop. The reporter wanted to get ahead of the competition. The bastard will do anything for a story.”
“Brian McVey,” Eve read the byline. “I hope he’s happy about this ugliness.” She looked up at him. “How long before you get a confirmation on the dental records?”
“This afternoon.” His lips tightened grimly. “And the information will not go to Brian McVey. We’ll leave him so far out in the cold, he’ll freeze to death.” He looked at the files in front of her. “Did you find anything?”
“All the children were in the age brackets from four to eight, all of them were from middle- to high-income families, all of them lived in homes in nice subdivisions.” She looked up. “Except Bonnie. I’m poor as dirt, and this is a rental property. It’s nicer than anywhere I’ve lived before, but it doesn’t compare with one of those houses in Towne Lake or Chestnut Hill subdivisions. I was very happy when I saw that she didn’t make the A-list. That’s two things that are different: three months between the kidnappings, and the kind of place where she lived. It may not seem a lot to you, but