Quinn - Iris Johansen [86]
Jane frowned. “But she didn’t tell you that?”
Eve shook her head. “Not exactly.” She was thinking over exactly what Catherine had said. “It was all very vague and ambiguous. I was uneasy from the moment I picked up the call.”
“If she’s found him, why wouldn’t she tell you?”
“How the hell do I know?” She grimaced. “Or maybe I do know. Gallo is … unusual. He managed to convince me that black was white in two separate periods of my life. I warned Catherine that he was capable of dazzling anyone.” She added with frustration, “But she’s tough as nails. I was hoping that she’d be immune to him.”
“Maybe she is,” Jane said. “You’re only guessing, Eve.”
“She was questioning me about— She’s been talking to him, Jane.”
“About what?” Jane asked.
“She asked if I’d—” She moistened her lips. “She said she wondered if I’d thought that Bonnie visited me after her death. In her wildest dreams, she wouldn’t have asked that question if she hadn’t talked to Gallo. Why would she? There’s no more grounded or realistic person on Earth than Catherine.”
“Except me.” Jane made a face. “And I’ve made giant strides in accepting the unacceptable. But, then, I’ve had a long time to come to terms with Bonnie.”
“And you still don’t feel comfortable with the idea,” Eve said. “Well, neither does Catherine. I could tell that she’s upset as hell and trying to fight her way through it. But Gallo has her going around in circles.”
“What has Gallo got to do with her asking about Bonnie?”
Eve was silent and then said finally. “He’s seen Bonnie, too. At least, he told me he had.”
“Oh, shit.” Jane gazed at her in shock. “And you believed him?”
“I believed him,” she said jerkily. “I believed everything he told me. He said she came to him in that cell in Korea when she was still alive. And that she visited him after her death. I fell for everything he told me. That’s why I went with him to hunt down Paul Black when Gallo told me that he’d killed Bonnie.”
“Why? How could you believe him?”
“Because I was a fool. It all had to be lies. Why would Bonnie come to him if he’d been the one who killed her?” She shook her head. “And now he has Catherine believing his lies.” And that put Catherine in greater danger than Eve had dreamed. An enemy within the gates could be deadly. “It has to stop.” She turned toward the elevator. “I can’t let it go on.”
“Where are you going?” Jane hurried to keep up with her. “As if I couldn’t guess. Look, you can’t go after Catherine. You don’t know what kind of situation you’d uncover up there in the woods. Particularly if you think she’s been bamboozled by Gallo.”
“You think Catherine would hurt me?” Eve shook her head. “Don’t be ridiculous. You don’t know her, Jane.”
“No, I don’t. But you said that she wasn’t behaving normally. So how well do you know her, Eve?”
“Very well.” Eve punched the elevator button. “I just have to see her face-to-face so that I can set her straight. I need you to do me a favor. Joe won’t like this when he hears about it. Stall him as long as you can.”
“Stall him? He’ll be out of this hospital and on your trail the minute he hears that you’re not here.”
“He’s already had his night sedative. All you have to worry about is when he wakes tomorrow. Find a way to keep him here. One day, Jane. That should be all I need to find Catherine and talk to her.”
“That sounds simple, but it would be hard as hell. I’d have to lie. I’ve never lied to Joe.” Jane’s lips thinned. “And I won’t let you go up there alone. You may trust Catherine Ling, but I don’t.”
“And leave Joe here in this hospital without either one of us? Joe is the reason you came here, Jane. When you first arrived, you asked me what you could do to help me. Well, now I’m telling you. Dammit, Joe is due to be released in the next couple days, and I was trying to think of a way to delay him going after Gallo. This thing with Catherine is going to blow away any chance of that.”
“You bet it is.”
“Then give me at least a day to get up there and contact Catherine. I’ll try to get her back on track.”
Jane shook her