“No. Why should I care? I’ve never met her,” Zander said. “I thought you didn’t want to know about her.”

“You want me to know. And at this point, it doesn’t matter any longer. You’ve pulled me in too deep.”

“You think I want to share?” He shook his head. “You’re crazy, Stang.”

“It was just a thought. So who is Eve Duncan?”

“It’s all there in the dossier.”

“No, who is she to you, Zander?”

Who was Eve Duncan to him? It was a question that he had been asking himself of late. He had tried to dismiss it from his consciousness, but it kept recurring like a persistent nightmare.

“Who is she to me?” Zander smiled faintly. “Why, Stang, I don’t really know. Perhaps my nemesis.”

*   *   *

“DAMMIT, THEY TOLD ME you were awake.”

Jane opened her eyes to see Joe in the chair beside her bed. “Hi, Joe. I am awake. I was just dozing.”

“Good. Then I’m not to blame for waking you. Though I would have done it anyway when I found out that you aren’t on death’s door. I have to know what’s going on.” He reached forward to give her a quick kiss on her forehead. “You scared us, baby. What the hell happened?”

“Didn’t Devon and Margaret tell you?”

“Yes, what they could. Toby and poison and Caleb on the trail…” His lips tightened. “None of it adds up to a reason for shooting you.”

“It’s all we’ve got. Do you think I don’t know it’s crazy? That’s what I told Eve when I talked to her. Okay, from the moment I found out Toby was sick, nothing was reasonable. It just kept rolling downhill, picking up speed like an avalanche.” She shook her head. “And then I didn’t like the way Eve sounded when I was talking to her, and I thought maybe—I don’t know what I thought. Maybe that she was caught in the avalanche, too. That’s why I was getting on that plane to leave the island and go to Eve.” Her hand tightened on Joe’s. “When will she be here?”

He didn’t answer.

Her gaze narrowed on his face. “Joe?”

“I don’t know, dammit. There’s … a problem.”

“With Eve? Don’t tell me that.” She could feel her heart pounding. “What’s wrong? It’s not like you to—”

“Quiet down. There may be nothing wrong. I just can’t get in touch with her. She was supposed to take a flight out of Atlanta.”

Her gaze was frantically raking his expression. “But you think something is wrong. I can see it.” She was struggling to sit up. “So don’t tell me to quiet down. I have to go and—”

“The hell you do.” His hands were on her shoulders, pushing her back down. “You’re wounded, dammit. Eve would kill both of us if I let you out of that bed.” He frowned. “Look at you. You’re pale as that sheet covering you, and we don’t know what kind of internal damage that bullet might have done.”

And she was weak as a kitten, Jane realized with frustration. Her head was swimming after that instant of rebellion.

Clear it. She had no option.

“Tell me about Eve,” she said unsteadily.

“There’s not much to tell. I just had a feeling something was wrong before I left home to go to Miami. Nothing concrete.”

“And Ben had a dream that brought him to Eve. Nothing concrete there either. What else?”

“Venable.” He filled her in on his conversations with Venable. “He wouldn’t admit to knowing anything about any threat to Eve … or you.” His lips twisted. “Nothing substantial for me to grab and hold.”

“Shall I tell you what’s concrete?” Jane said. “Toby’s being poisoned is concrete, my being shot is concrete. So everything that led up to it is concrete, too.” She closed her eyes, and whispered, “And it’s scaring me to death, Joe. What’s happening?”

“I’ll tell you what’s happening. We’re going to get you to that hospital in San Juan and have you examined and start having you treated. Then, if Eve hasn’t shown up, and Venable hasn’t got a clue, I’ll leave you and go find her.”

“Go now.” Her eyes flew open. “I’ll follow you as soon as I can. You know that’s what we both want you to do. She’s the only one who is important.”

“Not quite.” He held up his hand as she opened her lips to protest. “Though I may not show it all the time, you do have some importance to me.”

“I know you love me.” She added simply, “But I’m not Eve. It’s not your fault that you have problems seeing anyone but her in the scheme of things. I feel the same way.” She moistened her lips. “Look, I’ll make a deal with you. I’ll let you drop me off at that hospital in San Juan, but then you leave immediately, the minute they tell you that I’m not going to die or do anything else stupid.”

He smiled faintly. “Dying isn’t usually described as being stupid.”

“I won’t die.” Her hand clenched on the sheet. “But they may not let me out of that hospital as quickly as I’d like. So you’ve got to go on and see what happened to Eve. Tell me you’ll do it.”

He was silent a moment before he shrugged. “You know I‘ll do it. No one can accuse me of not being callous and self-centered.”

“You’re not callous.” She said quietly, “And if being self-centered means you’re focused on Eve, then I wouldn’t have you any other way. Now go away and see if you can find out anything about that air ambulance that’s supposed to take me out of here. I hate lying in this bed.”

“No, you want to jump up and run over all of us to get to Eve.” He bent down and brushed his lips on her forehead. “I’ll get you to San Juan as fast as I can. But I think after I check, I’ll go after Caleb and see if he’s found out anything.”

“I expected that.” She closed her eyes. “So much alike. You’re both warriors…”

“We’re nothing alike,” he said as he headed for the door. “There’s no one on earth like Seth Caleb. He’s a throwback.”

She couldn’t deny that when she had often seen that streak of barbarism in Caleb. “He’s also a hunter, and you wouldn’t be a cop if that weren’t in your makeup. And you’re not that tame yourself, Joe.”

He didn’t answer, and she realized that he had left the room.

Keep calm. Relax. She was so damn weak. Emotional and physical tension would make the healing process slower, and she must get well. She had to get to Eve.

Eve …

*   *   *

DAMMIT, THE BASTARD HAD GOTTEN away.

Caleb felt the anger tear through him as he looked out to sea. It was too late. He probably hadn’t had a chance to get the son of a bitch. He’d made his choice to either go after the shooter or try to save Jane.

There hadn’t really been a choice. He would not give up Jane.

But it didn’t stop the rage. The blood was pounding through his body, and he could feel the throbbing of the vein in his temple.

Not good.

He had to regain control before he saw Jane again. She was wary of the savage thread that was an integral part of his character. Even if that savagery had been instigated by the attack on her.

Caleb lifted his head as he heard the sound of the plane coming in from the south.

The air ambulance, he thought as he whirled away from the small inlet. It was about time. It had been less than forty-five minutes since he’d left Jane, but it had seemed longer.

He started to run toward the airfield. No use going back to the animal hospital. He’d meet them at the airfield. Maybe by that time, he’d be under control.

Run.

Use every muscle, every breath.

Block out the bloodlust …

CHAPTER

6

THE SMALL AIR AMBULANCE WAS taxiing toward the hangar when Caleb came over the hill.

No sign of a vehicle or van yet.

Good.

He was almost calm enough to act civilized. Just a little more time, and he would—

“Where have you been?”

Caleb stopped and slowly turned toward the man who had come out of the rain forest.

Quinn.

He stiffened and felt the familiar wariness sweep through him that any encounter with Joe Quinn ignited. Quinn was always a threat both because of his basic character and his position in Jane’s life. He drew a deep breath. “I’ve been looking for the shooter. What do you think I’ve been doing?”