“Only a little.” Cara was smiling. “You forget, Jock is involved now. He and Jock are dancing around like two fencers and testing each other. They’re enjoying it, and it’s rather fun to watch.”
“Not for me. I’m still having to balance being Michael’s mother and keeping an eye on anything else that shows up on the radar.”
“You’re already farther along than you think you are. You’ve got the magic key.”
“And what is that?”
“Love,” Cara said simply.
“You’re probably right.” She tilted her head as she studied Cara. “And you seem to have it, too. You look as if you’re ready to run after Michael to meet Jock.”
“That’s nothing new, is it?” Her smile was luminous. “I’ve been running to meet him since the day I was born. You said it yourself.” She turned and started down the steps. “But I won’t steal Michael’s thunder. I’ll wait for them in the driveway. Though I do have a few things that I need to tell Jock later.”
“Anything that will impress him as much as that sleek monstrosity he’s driving?”
Cara made a face. “No, he’ll probably be relieved. He’s got this guilt thing about my career. He doesn’t realize yet that I can do both. You did.”
Eve asked, puzzled. “What on earth are you talking about?”
“Never mind. On second thought, maybe it’s one of those things that I shouldn’t be talking about to anyone but Jock. I’m just so used to sharing with you.” She ran down the rest of the steps and was waving at Jock and Michael as they came roaring down the road in the silver Ferrari.
“What a beauty,” Joe murmured. He was standing in the doorway, gazing down at Jock now sweeping up the driveway. “An Aston Martin the last visit. Now this Ferrari … I wonder what Jock’s going to come up with next? Maybe a Lamborghini?” His lips were quirking. “If he thinks that’s too mundane, I’m sure that Michael might have a few ideas.”
“You’ve got to admit that Jock’s original. It’s better than sending you a get well card with a bouquet of flowers.” Eve got to her feet and crossed to where he was standing. His color was much better today, and his strength and vitality were growing in leaps and bounds. It was presenting problems, but she thanked God for it. “And I believe this is entirely Jock, and Michael has nothing to do with it.”
Joe lifted a skeptical brow. “Really?”
She grimaced. “Well, I believe that if Michael did have something to do with it, Jock is fully aware of what he’s doing. No more manipulation.”
Joe was silent.
“Truly, Joe.”
He smiled and drew her close. “Sorry. I just remembered how intense he was when he was trying so hard to get you not to overwork. Nothing was too much for him to do. It would be natural for him to follow the same course with me.”
She shook her head. “He’d do something else that wouldn’t break our rules.”
He threw back his head and laughed. “Did you hear what you said? You accept that he’d do anything he has to do when he believes he’s right or if he wants something very badly. But you still think that we have final control?”
“Don’t you?”
His smile faded. “Yes. But I don’t know how long it will last. I think we both knew the potential that was hovering in the background. I just didn’t expect him to take the giant leap he did when he was in those mountains.”
“It was because he was so frightened for you.” She was silent. “And since he’s been home, it’s as if he never went away. He’s acting just the same as he did before. Just a normal kid who’s only worrying about his next soccer game. It’s as if he took a time-out, and now he’s back.” She was thinking about it. “Crazy. But a couple times when I was upset about what he was doing to find you and called him on it, he only said. ‘When we get Dad back.’” She paused. “As if he couldn’t be what I wanted him to be until he’d finished what he had to do.”
“But now he has time to meet all your demands?” Joe asked teasingly. “And we all know how tough you are on him.”
“I just wanted him to have everything a child could want from life.” And Michael had chosen to go his own way to save his father. She still shuddered at the memory of holding him in her arms on the side of that road while he had gone through those painful convulsions. And all to stay with Joe because he might need him. She had not told Joe about that night because it would have hurt him as much as it had her. Perhaps after more time had passed … “I want him to forget about the last weeks.”
“That might be difficult for him to do.”
Her gaze flew to his face. There had been something in his tone … “How much do you remember?”
“Enough. Bits and pieces.” He kissed her cheek. “But what I most remember is that everything was done with love and because of love.”
She nodded. “He does love you so much, Joe. We all do.”
“Of course. That’s only because I’m surrounded by people with excellent taste,” he said lightly. “What’s not to love?”
“Let me think about it.” She could hear the strong beat of his heart beneath her ear. To have him back and this close was everything she needed in this moment. She heard Michael laughing at something Jock had said and saw the sunlight gleaming on Cara’s dark hair as she leaned forward and mockingly stroked the silver hood of the Ferrari as she gazed up at Jock mischievously.
Togetherness, humor, warmth, and family.
But what I most remember is that everything was done with love and because of love.
She smiled as she leaned back contentedly in Joe’s arms. “You’re right, what’s not to love?”
ALSO BY IRIS JOHANSEN
Vendetta
Double Blind (with Roy Johansen)
Shattered Mirror
Mind Game
Look Behind You (with Roy Johansen)
No Easy Target
Night Watch (with Roy Johansen)
Night and Day
Hide Away
Shadow Play
The Naked Eye (with Roy Johansen)
Your Next Breath
Sight Unseen (with Roy Johansen)
Live to See Tomorrow
Silencing Eve
Hunting Eve
Taking Eve
Sleep No More
Close Your Eyes (with Roy Johansen)
What Doesn’t Kill You
Bonnie
Quinn
Eve
Chasing the Night
Shadow Zone (with Roy Johansen)
Eight Days to Live
Deadlock
Dark Summer
Quicksand
Silent Thunder (with Roy Johansen)
Pandora’s Daughter
Stalemate
An Unexpected Song
Killer Dreams
On the Run
Countdown
Blind Alley
Firestorm
Fatal Tide
Dead Aim
No One to Trust
Body of Lies
Final Target
The Search
The Killing Game
The Face of Deception
And Then You Die
Long After Midnight
The Ugly Duckling
Lion’s Bride
Dark Rider
Midnight Warrior
The Beloved Scoundrel
The Magnificent Rogue
The Tiger Prince
Last Bridge Home
The Golden Barbarian
Reap the Wind
Storm Winds
The Wind Dancer
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
IRIS JOHANSEN is the New York Times bestselling author of Vendetta, Shattered Mirror, Mind Game, No Easy Target, Hide Away, Shadow Play, Your Next Breath, The Perfect Witness, Live to See Tomorrow, Silencing Eve, Hunting Eve, Taking Eve, Sleep No More, What Doesn’t Kill You, Bonnie, Quinn, Eve, Chasing the Night, Eight Days to Live, Blood Game, Deadlock, Dark Summer, Pandora’s Daughter, Quicksan
d, Killer Dreams, On the Run, Countdown, Firestorm, Fatal Tide, Dead Aim, and more. And with her son Roy Johansen, she has coauthored Double Blind, Look Behind You, Night Watch, Sight Unseen, Close Your Eyes, Shadow Zone, Storm Cycle, and Silent Thunder. You can sign up for email updates here.
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CONTENTS
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Also by Iris Johansen
About the Author
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
DARK TRIBUTE. Copyright © 2019 by IJ Development, Inc. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
Cover design by Rob Grom
Cover photographs: woman © Ildiko Neer/Arcangel; legs © Stephen Mulcahey/Arcangel; waterfall © Mark Owen/Trevillion Images
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Johansen, Iris, author.
Title: Dark tribute / Iris Johansen.
Description: First Edition. | New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2019.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018045705 | ISBN 9781250075888 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781466887268 (ebook)
Subjects: | GSAFD: Suspense fiction.
Classification: LCC PS3560.O275 D38 2019 | DDC 813/.54—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018045705
eISBN 9781466887268
Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at [email protected].
First Edition: March 2019
The Bullet Page 38