“Well, we didn’t blow her up if that’s what you mean.” Darcy boosted herself out of the water. “But I wasn’t expecting that big of an explosion.”
“Neither was I.” Cara was looking dazedly up at Jock as she tried to get her breath. “But then I wasn’t expecting any of this.”
“You should have expected it,” he said roughly. “Do you think I’d ever let anyone take you away from me?” He glanced at Darcy. “Make sure she’s really okay. I have to go after Norwalk.”
Darcy went rigid. “I heard a couple shots. I was hoping we weren’t going to have to worry about him any longer.”
“Well, he has no fingers. I wasn’t sure how foolproof that grenade was, so I made certain that he wasn’t able to keep pressing that damn button. And I made sure his phone was out of action so he can’t contact his men. But he rolled into the brush before I could finish him. If he’s not bleeding to death, he’s probably trying to get back to camp.”
“No!” Cara jerked upright. “He can’t go back there. Michael!”
“Joe and Eve are already there,” he said curtly as he turned and started wading back through the high grass. “And I’ll be there after I take care of Norwalk. Watch out for her, Darcy.”
The next instant, he’d disappeared into the trees.
* * *
“Watch out for me?” Cara repeated in disbelief as she gazed after Jock. “I’m fine. It’s Michael who’s in trouble when Norwalk gets word to his men to throw him to those damn alligators.” She began to struggle to sit upright. “I can’t stay here and let you pamper me because Jock made a bad shot. I have to get back to the island.”
“I’m not arguing,” Darcy said as she helped Cara to her feet. “There’s no way I want Michael hurt or that bastard to get away. But we don’t have a boat, so we’d better start moving.” She looked her over appraisingly. “You look like hell, but you’ll make it with a little help from your friends.”
“You’re the only friend I have on hand right now.”
“As usual, I’m more than enough.”
“Yeah.” Cara was frowning. “But you look … funny. Something’s wrong with your hair…”
“Nothing’s wrong. It stayed on, didn’t it? I did a damn good job of being Eve. What do you expect when I ended up in that bayou?”
Cara’s eyes widened with hope. “Eve’s alive?”
“I told you how good I was. Never mind, I’ll explain on the way.” She took Cara’s elbow and nudged her deeper into the swamp. “But you should know that wasn’t a bad shot Jock made. He had to make sure that he took out that detonator, just in case the grenade wasn’t foolproof. We didn’t know what to expect. That was an electromagnetic-pulse grenade that I threw into the boat. It was designed to destroy the electronics used to activate roadside bombs and improvised explosives.”
“What? I’ve never heard of anything like that.”
“Jock says the Pentagon has been trying to design a good EMP grenade for years, but the best one that he knew about was an experimental model created by a lab in Mobile. But the lab couldn’t get the Pentagon to pay their price, and they were considering selling it to the highest bidder.” She paused. “So Jock set Kaskov on persuading the CEO to give him a sample grenade to use. It was amazing how quickly he got him to agree and deliver it. Well, not amazing. I think fear had a lot to do with it. We only had to take an hour’s delay before we got under way.”
“I agree, not so amazing.” And not so amazing that Jock had known where to go for any weapon in the world’s deadliest arsenal. “Well, I’m glad it turned out a success since I was the experiment.”
“It wasn’t an easy decision for any of us,” Darcy said quietly. “Jock didn’t see any other choice. I’ve never seen him scared before, Cara. He was scared when he asked Kaskov to go get that grenade.”
She nodded soberly. “And I’m grateful that he did. I’m grateful that you were all there for me. I thought it was the end, Darcy.”
Darcy shook her head. “No one was willing to give up on you or Michael.” She added grimly as she increased her pace through the swamp, “And Norwalk isn’t going to be allowed to take one more life, Cara.”
* * *
“Cara’s safe!” Joe ran back to where Eve was standing. “But Jock says Norwalk may be on his way back. We have to get Michael out now. You know what to do.”
She nodded, her heart pounding. Her hand tightened on her rifle as she moved forward out of the darkness to stand just to the rear of the cypress tree across the bayou from the dock. “You’re going to take out that other man on the west bank. Then you blow up the shack as a distraction, and I cover that Macvey man Norwalk assigned to watch Michael. If he turns on Michael when the shack blows, I shoot him.”
“Right. Ten minutes.” Joe was gone.
Eve drew a deep breath as she gazed out over the shallow waters of the bayou that separated the island from the swamp where she stood. Michael was sitting on the dock, still in his soccer uniform, which was dirty and torn, his face bruised, his hair tousled. Yet he was calmly sitting there, his arms linked over his knees, as he stared into darkness.
He knew she was there, watching him. She could feel it. But he was not making any sign that would alert Macvey, who was only a few yards from him with his rifle in hand. Not that Macvey appeared to be particularly alert at all, she noticed. No one would consider a six-year-old boy a threat, would they? Fair game to shoot or throw to those alligators, she thought bitterly.
Soon, Michael. You’ll be safe soon.
Warmth. Serenity. Love.
Four minutes.
Six minutes.
Seven.
Everything appeared to be still and perfectly normal on the island. But Joe was very good, and that did not surprise her. He should have taken the sentry out by now. He might have even—
Kaboom!
The shack blew up! Wood speared the sky, flames climbed to catch fire on the branches of the surrounding trees.
Her rifle was trained on Macvey. But he never even looked at Michael as he started running up the incline toward the burning shack.
Yes.
Michael was alone on the dock.
Not for long.
She was wading across the bayou, her rifle held above the chest-high water. She could see Michael jumping to his feet, his eyes widening with excitement as he ran toward her. She glanced up the hill and saw that Macvey had almost reached the burning shack.
And Joe was moving toward him from behind.
Then she was on the dock, kneeling, her arms holding her son.
“Mama.” He buried his face in her neck, and she could feel his warm tears. He whispered, “I’d like to go home now, please.”
“Right away.” She pushed him away from her. “Not quite done. I’m going to carry you across this little bayou to that pretty cypress tree, and then we’ll—”
“Step away from him, Eve.”
She froze. She didn’t have to turn around to know who was behind her. She knew that voice, it had echoed in her mind and every nightmare she’d had since he’d appeared in her life. “I won’t do that, Norwalk. I’m never going to leave my son again while you’re alive.”
“Then I’ll shoot right through you.”
And he would do it.
She looked into Michael’s eyes. “I’m going to stand up, and I want you to get behind me. Don’t be afraid.”
“I’m not afraid. Why should I be?” He smiled at her. “It’s our time to go home.” He paused. “And it’s his time to go away.”
“Get away from him,” Norwalk said. “I have to see your face. But first put down that rifle.”
She gave Michael a kiss on the tip of his nose. “I think it’s time you took a swim to the other bank,” she whispered. “The cypress tree. On Go.” Then she got to her feet, put the rifle down, and turned around. Norwalk was standing on the bank over twenty feet away. He was dirty, his face pale and racked with pain. He was pointing a Magnum revolver at her
with his left hand. His right hand was clumsily wrapped in some kind of cloth and bathed in blood. “Hello, Norwalk. You kept telling me what a mastermind you are, but you don’t seem to be doing so well tonight.”
His eyes were staring dazedly at her face. “I had to see that it was really you. I saw you drown. But you’re really here…”
She had no idea what he was talking about, but she might as well capitalize on this weakness. “Perhaps I’m a ghost. Or it could be that you’re going a little more crazy than you were already.” She took a step closer to him. She had a sudden idea, and her voice lowered to a hiss, “Or did I forget to tell you I’m a twin, too? That should make you feel very close to me.”
“You’re lying.”
“Am I?” She held his eyes as she took another step. “What other explanation is there? Twins rule your world, don’t they? I’m sure your brother, Sean, would say it’s fate. Why wouldn’t I be—Go, Michael!”
As she dove for Norwalk’s Magnum, she heard the sound of Michael’s splash behind her. A bullet whistled past her as Norwalk knocked her aside. But her attack caught him off balance, and he toppled backward into the water. She leapt back on the dock and grabbed the rifle she’d put down.
Another bullet whistled by her ear, and she whirled and shot blindly before he could fire again.
He screamed.
Blood was pouring from a wound in his throat, and he was trying to lift his gun again.
Another shot.
Blood blossomed on Norwalk’s chest.
Joe was walking down the hill, his gun aimed at Norwalk.
He shot him again.
Norwalk collapsed slowly back into the water, his eyes wide with horror as he saw Eve walking toward him.
“Is Sean waiting for you?” she asked him softly. “You’ll have to tell him you failed. But Sylvie didn’t fail, and neither did all those other children you killed. We’re all sending you straight to hell, Norwalk.”
“No!” It was more of a gurgle than a word because of the wound in his throat as he managed to turn in the water and started to frantically swim away toward the metal-wire barrier. For an instant, she was tempted to let him get beyond the fence, where the alligators waited. Death by alligator seemed fitting for a monster like Norwalk.
No, she thought regretfully, as she started to follow him down the bank. Michael was too close, and she wouldn’t want him to either see it or learn that particular lesson.
“Eve.” Joe was coming toward her. “I’ll do it.”
“No.” She didn’t glance away from Norwalk. “Mine.” She raised the rifle. “Norwalk!” she called. “Look at me. I want you to see my face.”
He looked over his shoulder, his eyes wide with panic. “Go away! This isn’t how it should be.”
“You’re wrong, it’s exactly how it should be.” She aimed carefully. “Sylvie!” She fired and took out his right eye. “Gwinnet Square!” She took out the left eye. He was starting to sink below the surface, but she had time to aim one last time at the very center of his forehead. “Michael!”
Norwalk’s skull shattered, and splinters flew as she blew his head off.
* * *
Michael was waiting at the cypress tree when Eve and Joe crossed over the bayou a few minutes later. He ran toward her, and his arms slid around her waist. “I’m still all wet, but I swam good, didn’t I? Why didn’t you come right away?”
“We had something to finish.” She paused. “How much did you see, Michael?”
“Nothing.” He tilted back his head and looked up at her with those wise, clear eyes. “You didn’t want me to see, did you, Mama?”
“No.” She bent down and brushed his forehead with her lips. “Not because I felt it was something to hide, but it’s hard to explain. Perhaps when you’re older.”
He nodded. “Whatever you say.” He looked at Joe. “Did you cause that big fire? It’s still burning. Are we going to have to put it out?”
“Not this time. We’ll get someone else to do it.” He reached for his phone. “Right now, I think I’ll call Jock and give him an update. He’ll be annoyed to know that we didn’t need his help. But I do have to ask him exactly what happened with Cara—”
“You can ask her yourself,” Jock said as he came out of the brush and jerked his head back toward the trees in the swamp behind him. “She’s right behind me. As usual, she didn’t do what I told her to do. And she had Darcy aiding and abetting.” He looked at the blaze. “Norwalk?”
“No.” Joe nodded at the bayou. “There. The explosion was a distraction.”
“And we’re not talking about it at the moment,” Eve said firmly, her hand on Michael’s shoulder. Her gaze was searching the trees behind Jock. “Cara’s okay, Jock?”
“As good as she can be considering what she’s been through.” His lips tightened as his gaze shifted to the blood on the water. “Joe is right. I’m disappointed.”
“So was he,” she said quietly.
Jock’s gaze narrowed on her face. “Really?”
She nodded jerkily. “Why the surprise? He was going to kill my son.” Then her chin lifted as she caught sight of Cara and Darcy coming out of the trees. “Look, Michael, there’s Cara. She looks very tired, doesn’t she? I bet she’d like it if you ran to meet her.”
“And Darcy!” Michael was already running through the brush toward her. “Cara, it’s all right now. We can go home!”
Eve smiled as she saw Cara kneel down as Michael rushed into her arms. “That’s the first thing he asked me,” she said. “It’s very important to Michael.” She looked at Joe. “There’s no way anything is going to be normal for him for a long time to come, maybe never. Once the media gets wind of what happened here, they’re never going to let it go. But we have to go home right away and start to try.”
Joe slipped his arm around her waist. “Then we’ll make it happen.”
“No, I’ll make it happen,” Jock’s lips twisted. “Have you forgotten how efficient I am at cleanup?” He turned to Joe. “The alligators will take care of Norwalk and friends, but the fire’s going to attract attention. And I’ll need information from you about any other aspects of the scene that are also going to arouse curiosity. No way do we want Michael to have the paparazzi asking him questions about what happened to him. He was never here.” He looked from Joe to Eve. “None of you were ever here.”
Joe nodded and turned to Eve. “Go take everyone back to the cove and get ready to go. I’ll be with you as soon as I’m through with Jock.”
She nodded as she turned to go. “Thanks, Jock.”
“No, we all have our parts to play. You just have to take care of her.” Jock’s gaze was on Cara and Michael. “She won’t let me do it. But just look at her, Eve.”
Eve was too busy looking at him at the moment. Cara was not the only one in pain. “I’ll take care of her.” She started toward Cara, Darcy, and Michael. So much pain to be healed. It was difficult to know where to begin.
Love.
Start with love.
She took Cara in her arms. “I’m so proud of you. I love you. We’re all going to get through this.”
“I know.” Cara’s arms tightened around her. “Otherwise, he’d win, wouldn’t he?” She drew a deep breath. “Even though Michael said that Norwalk went away and wouldn’t come back. Is that true?”
“Michael always tells the truth.” She released her and turned to Darcy and gave her a hug. “You look … different.” She took a strand of her hair and looked at it. “Red-brown? And the shape of your eyes…”
“Your eyes. Waterproof makeup.” She made a face. “And I had to practically glue that wig in place so that it wouldn’t come off in the water. But I had help from those old Esther Williams movies.”
“Esther Williams? I’m … confused. Why did you come, Darcy?”
“Why did you come?” Darcy asked. “Norwalk. Cara. Michael. Kaskov was the only one offering me an opportunity. But I had to pretend to be you to take advantage
of it.” She waved her hand dismissively. “I’ll tell you all about it later.” Her gaze went back to the burning island. “It was worth it. I did help with Cara. My only regret is Norwalk. I promised Sylvie I’d make him pay. I didn’t do it.”
“I think perhaps you did,” she said gently. “Or maybe Sylvie helped a little.” She was remembering Norwalk’s wild eyes and confusion as he’d stared at her during those last moments. And what had prompted Eve to bring up that claim that she was also a twin that had so upset him? It had all come out of nowhere. She reached out and touched the sodden, red-brown hair clinging around Darcy’s face. “Joe said we should all head for the boats.” She took Darcy’s arm and nudged her down the path. “Suppose you and I go ahead and lead the way. There’s something I should tell you…”
CHAPTER
19
LAKE COTTAGE
“Dad says he’s going to barbecue tonight,” Michael said. “Sort of a welcome home. Isn’t that a good idea?”
“A very good idea,” Eve said. “Is Cara with him? I haven’t seen her since we got home.” But then they had only arrived a few hours ago. They’d taken a flight out of New Orleans immediately after they’d arrived at Kaskov’s dock. Only Darcy had decided to stay behind to take time to get rid of the remnants of the wig and makeup, and told them she’d join them the next day.
“She was down by the lake.” He went to the railing of the porch. “There she is.” He waved at Cara. “She has her violin.”
And she was starting to play. Mendelssohn.
Eve stood there, listening.
Beauty to sing to the spirit and free the soul.
“She’ll be better now,” Michael said as he went to the porch swing and dropped down on the cushions. “It was bad for her, Mama. She doesn’t understand ugliness. It hurts her. But the music will make her all well again.” He smiled. “It’s doing it now. Can’t you feel it?”
“Maybe not as well as you can.” She sat down beside him and put her arm around him. “But, yes, I feel it.” Jock had asked her to take care of Cara, but she was already taking care of herself. She was reaching out to the one source that she knew could make her whole again. That’s what they were all doing. Joe was going back to the small, wonderful tasks that made them a family. Eve was holding, watching, keeping guard.