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  “I won’t even address that remark,” she said. “Eve wouldn’t tell me what was happening, but I guarantee I wouldn’t have thought it was ‘fun.’”

  “You just did address it. In the way that was predictably your own.” His smile faded. “And if anything had happened to Eve, I wouldn’t be saying that. I don’t believe I would have had the nerve to send her in to face Natalie Castino and Salazar. I know Quinn didn’t want her to do it. It was her choice. She wanted to be sure that Cara would be protected.”

  “She still wants her to be protected.”

  “We all do.” He lightly tapped his chest. “Even my callous, barbaric self.” He turned away. “And now I’ve got to get back to Quinn and offer my help. I’m actually becoming accustomed to being a team player. No, that’s not true, but it sounds good, and I thought you’d like to hear it.” He met her eyes. “I just wanted to check to see how you were doing. I know it was harder for you to stay out of the action than it was for Colin’s men.”

  “Yes, it was, but it was the right thing to do.”

  “Boring.” He smiled. “I promise I’ll never make you do the right thing, Jane.” Before she could answer, he had turned away. “But I brought Eve down from the hills with me, and she might need someone to talk to about right and wrong. She’s much more on your wavelength than I am.” His voice drifted back to her. “She’s down by the lake…”

  Jane stood watching him for a moment. Why was it always so difficult to look away from Caleb? He seemed to gather all the light and darkness around him until it became a part of him. She forced herself to look away and down at the lake.

  But Eve wasn’t at the lake as Caleb had said. She was standing beside her tent, and she was looking down at Cara’s violin, which she was holding.

  Not good.

  “Eve.” Jane walked quickly toward her. “The air ambulance just took MacDuff and Jock to the hospital. Everything seems to be—”

  “Easy.” Eve looked up and met Jane’s eyes. “I’m not going to fall apart. I’ve just been scared and having trouble remembering that Natalie Castino isn’t infallible. She’s just a smart woman who is evil beyond belief.” She glanced back at the violin. “But Cara is smart, too. Smart and good and gifted. She’s already survived more than anyone would think she could. She can survive this, too.” She bent down and carefully put the violin back in its case. “All she needs is help from the people who love her. She’s going to get that, Jane.” She moved down the slope toward the lake. “And it’s going to be enough to save her.”

  “Yes.” Jane moved down to stand beside Eve on the bank. The fog was gone, but the heavy mist that always wreathed the north bank was still there. So much violence and killing had echoed through these hills in the last days, but that eternal mist was still beckoning, calling, as it had for centuries. “We’ll make it enough.”

  But, Cira, we could use a little help from you if you can see your way clear. This is about a child, too. Your Marcus would have liked her. You would have liked her. Don’t let us lose her as you did Marcus. Please, don’t let Eve lose her.

  Eve was gazing out at the mist, too. “It seems … different today.” She tried to smile. “What do you think? The beginning or the end?”

  Jane moved a step closer and took her hand. “The beginning,” she said. “Definitely, the beginning.”

  ALSO BY IRIS JOHANSEN

  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 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, Quicksand, Killer Dreams, On the Run, Countdown, Firestorm, Fatal Tide, Dead Aim, and more. And with her son Roy Johansen, she has coauthored 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

  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

  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.

  HIDE AWAY. Copyright © 2016 by Johansen Publishing LLLP. 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: man on boat © Russell Kaye/Sandra-Lee Phipps; woman © Don Bayley/Getty Images; Scottish Highlands © CHBaum/Shutterstock; forest © Andipantz/Getty Images; running girl© MJTH/Shutterstock

  The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  ISBN 978-1-250-07582-6 (hardcover)

  ISBN 978-1-4668-8720-6 (e-book)

  e-ISBN 9781466887206

  Our e-books may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at (800) 221-7945, extension 5442, or by e-mail at [email protected].

  First Edition: April 2016

 

 

 
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