The Survivor (Eve Duncan #30)

Page 31



“There’s no ‘of course’ about it. Double the guards. Nadim knows about Bailey.”

Tashi didn’t speak for a moment. “You’re sure?”

Maya closed her eyes for an instant as she remembered those obscenely dancing letters reflected in the flames. “Absolutely. I’ll join you as soon as I can.”

She ended the call and looked at Riley. “I can go on now.” She got to her feet. “We have to find out who the girl is. She can’t be from this village, or we would have heard about a missing child after we arrived here. We can’t ask Jelsko for help. He’s had enough death to deal with today. We’ll go around the village and talk to the women. The villages talk to each other on the phone, and mothers always talk about their children.” She had to stop for a moment as she remembered her first glimpse of that poor girl. “And she was probably eleven or twelve but that’s close enough in age to be considered a child by family members. Someone had to be worrying about her.”

“Perhaps we should split up and each take a share of the huts near the chief’s house,” Riley said. “If you won’t let me do it by myself. I shouldn’t have any trouble communicating. I remember that most of the villagers on the island speak English as a second language.”

Maya nodded. “That might save time.” She headed for the center of the village. “I want this over as soon as possible for these people so the healing can begin. The people in this village were probably innocent victims of Nadim. They had nothing of value that he would want. The attack came out of nowhere and seemed aimed at killing and sending a message.”

“To you?”

She nodded. “I told you that he hated me.”

“You told Cade you wanted him to show you what was in that tent where they were tending that fire. How did you know?”

“I didn’t. It was guesswork.” She swallowed hard. “I certainly never expected to have Nadim use an innocent child to hurt me. That was the height of depravity. One of the first things Tashi said when she met us at the plane was that those bastards had mentioned me when they attacked during the night. When we got to the village, the chief said the same thing. Why would they be so persistent about taunting me unless they had orders?” Her lips tightened grimly. “And that fire and tent were made a focal point, and there had to be a reason. When I showed myself so they could recognize me, after that one shot, they didn’t attack. Not necessary. They knew that they’d drawn me, and their job was done. Nadim probably didn’t mind that they hadn’t killed me. He’s probably looking forward to doing that himself.”

Riley gave a low whistle. “You’re right, he must hate you.”

“I told you that the night I called you.” She shrugged. “It’s the endgame, Riley. But he’s upped the ante and I’ll have to go after him right away. I can’t risk him getting any closer to Bailey.”

“Bailey,” Riley repeated. “I was surprised when you mentioned her before. When I researched you and the island on the way here, I didn’t see anything about a daughter.”

“No one knew about Bailey if they didn’t have to. There were reasons why it was best no one connect her with me. I had to keep her safe. But that devil evidently managed to track her down.” She changed the subject. “You take these four houses in the row. I’ll take the ones across the street. I’ll meet you back at the first-aid hut when we’ve finished.” She was crossing to the other side of the street as she spoke. “Be careful, Riley. After what we saw in that tent, I wouldn’t put it past Nadim to have left another hideous booby trap to surprise us…”

CHAPTER 6

NADIM’S LAUNCH

AN HOUR AND FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER

Bevan turned and strode down the deck toward Gunter. “I caught sight of the snipers heading for the other launch. Did they report in to Nadim yet?”

“Why don’t you ask me?” Nadim asked sarcastically as he came up from belowdecks. “And the answer is yes. It all went beautifully, just as I planned. I knew it would, once I was able to zero in on Maya’s weaknesses.”

“I don’t mean to correct you,” Bevan said. “But I’m the one who was able to find out about Maya’s daughter and sent that info to you. Don’t you think I deserve credit?”

“No. It would have been worthless if I hadn’t arranged to use the girl I’d been toying with to give Maya a foreshadow of what was to come. My men said Maya was in a panic while she was running around the village. I would have loved to have seen her face when she finally saw what I had waiting for her in the tent.” He added grudgingly, “Though perhaps you do deserve a bonus for getting me the info about where that maid was taking the kid when she left that house in the city.”

“How generous,” Bevan said ironically. “I only hope to continue to please you. But locating that temple may be worth a lot more than a bonus considering what we may find there other than the kid. You’ve heard the rumors about the treasure. I’m your best chance at finding that temple. I’ve spent two years paying off my men whenever they’ve brought me any information about it.”

Nadim reached out and grabbed his arm. “You know where it is?”

“I know where it might be.” He shook off his grip. “It’s evidently difficult to access, and I’ll need a little more time to learn how. But I’ve recently been able to hire one of the pickers in the groves who was formerly with the temple guards.”

“I want his name,” Nadim said harshly. “Are you playing with me, Bevan?”

“I wouldn’t be such a fool,” Bevan said. “But if I gave you his name, you’d no longer need me. Let me do the prep work and then I’ll turn him over to you… for a very moderate fee.” He wasn’t getting through; he’d better sweeten the pot quickly. “I’ll make certain you get Maya and any troublesome friends she may have brought to plague you.”

That did it. Bevan could see Nadim’s tension ease. “You’d better be superior to the sniper who took a shot at her at that village,” Nadim growled. “He was a total asshole.”

“But you wouldn’t have wanted him to kill her,” Bevan said. “My way is going to be much more satisfying for you. The daughter and then Maya. I can hardly wait to see it.” He turned and headed for his speedboat. “I’ll be in touch. You won’t be disappointed in me…”

“Wait just a minute,” Nadim called.

Shit. Bevan turned to face him. “Another problem?”


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