Silencing Eve Read Free

bet every particle of my experience and judgment that she lived through the explosion at that ghost town in Colorado.”
    “And why should I trust your judgment?”
    “Maybe you shouldn’t.” Kendra tilted her head. “I don’t believe you have much to do with trust.”
    Catherine’s eyes narrowed on her face. “Why? Did Eve or Joe tell you about me?”
    “No. Just an observation. Did Eve mention me?”
    “Yes, Eve told me about you a few months ago. You were born blind, but a surgical procedure gave you your sight just a few years ago, is that right?”
    Kendra nodded.
    “But while you were blind, you developed your other senses to such a degree that you’ve become quite the detective.”
    Kendra shrugged. “Make that a reluctant detective. My profession is music therapy. I’ve helped out on a few cases.”
    “You weren’t reluctant as far as Eve was concerned.”
    “No, we became friends. You help your friends. Then, when I heard she was abducted, I dropped everything and came right down.” Kendra studied her. “Joe said you were close to Eve, but she never mentioned you to me.”
    “Why should she? Our relationship was … confidential.”
    “Confidential? That’s an interesting designation for a close—” Kendra stopped. “Oh, you’re CIA, aren’t you?”
    Catherine’s eyes widened. “Where did that come from?”
    “I don’t expect you to confirm it. I was watching out the window, and I saw you and that CIA guy, Venable, exchange a look when you arrived. He was tense, you were angry. Oh, yes, you know each other. Do you work for him?”
    Catherine looked away.
    “I don’t expect you to answer that either.” She smiled faintly. “Oh, and you quite often wear a shoulder holster under that black jacket, but not today.”
    Catherine nodded. “Out of respect.” She looked under her left arm. “It’s that obvious?”
    “It’s a little baggy there. Nothing anyone would notice.”
    “Except you?”
    “Except me.”
    “Or maybe a North Korean assassin. It might be time to invest in a more discreet shoulder holster.”
    “I’m sure you’re equipped with other weapons.” Kendra tilted her head. “I’m good with dialects, but I’m having a tough time with yours. You’re clipping your consonants and slightly flattening your vowel sounds. Did the linguistic people at Langley teach you to do that?”
    “They may have.”
    “It’s very effective. I have no idea where you’re from.”
    “Good. I’ve made a few enemies over the years, and the last thing I want is for them to be able to find out anything about me.”
    “Then you’ve done a good job.”
    Catherine gave her a cool glance. “You’re doing quite an efficient job yourself. You’re laying out your credentials on display to show me just how good that judgment I challenged is.”
    Kendra smiled. “I thought it would save time in the long run. I don’t need your trust, but I need an open mind.”
    Catherine took a step closer. “So are you going to tell me what happened in Colorado?”
    “How much do you know already?”
    “Just what I read in the newspaper and the CIA records. Plus Joe’s rather cryptic reassurance that Eve is probably still alive, which makes this entire day rather surreal.”
    “That it is.”
    “Then talk to me,” Catherine said fiercely. “I don’t have many friends, and I don’t like the idea of losing one. I don’t like it so much that I’m on the edge of violence. I’ve got to know something.”
    “I’ll tell you everything I know. When the saloon exploded in that ghost town, the infrared scanners showed two people inside.”
    “Those recordings are always very accurate. The explosion was so powerful, it rocked the whole town. There’s no way anyone could have survived that.”
    “They didn’t. And we found the skeletal fragments and burned flesh.”
    “Am I missing something?”
    “Those two people were possibly dead already. But they weren’t Eve and Doane.”
    Catherine