“Not so long,” she said defensively. “I had repairs. It will go faster now.”
“I’m not on the attack,” he said. “I’m just trying to gauge the time frame I have to work with.” He paused. “Novak wants me to go and check out a scientist who might have been capable of doing the DNA substitution. Did you know anything about that?”
“Not about the DNA.” She had to be honest with him. “But I told him I didn’t want you hovering over me while I did the reconstruction. I would have trouble concentrating. Is what he wants you to do something that would be helpful?”
He nodded slowly. “It would have been my first move anyway. I just don’t like leaving you again.” He was still looking down at the skull, thinking. “But Novak seems to have your security well in hand.” His lips twisted. “And your friend, Jill, is apparently ready to stand guard over you. Which is only right considering that she got you into this.”
“I don’t think I could call her a friend, but she will protect me as much as she’s able.” She met his gaze. “I’ll be okay here, Joe. Don’t worry about me.”
“Of course I’ll worry about you,” he said roughly. “You’re barely recovered from being poisoned. You look exhausted and pale, and you’ll drive yourself until you get this finished.” He tapped the skull. “But I can’t help you do it, so I’ll have to go and find another way to reach the same goal. I suppose I’ll head for Cairo.”
“Cairo?” Eve repeated. “Egypt? That’s where you’re going to find this scientist?”
He nodded. “Yusef Dobran. Why the surprise?”
“Not surprise really. But Egypt has been turning up in the conversation ever since I got here. Zahra Kiyani has a passion for it. But it had nothing to do with Cairo.”
“One can never tell where a passion will take you.” He turned away from the reconstruction. “I’ll go tell Novak I’ll head to Cairo to talk to his scientist. I’ll be back before I leave.”
“You’d better. Otherwise, I’ll track you down.”
“Promises. Promises.” He smiled at her over his shoulder. “It’s going to be okay, Eve. And that’s another promise.”
She watched him walk out the door. She wanted to go running after him, to touch him again…Instead, she got to her feet and headed for the bathroom to wash up and change her clothes. They both had their jobs to do, and the sooner they were done, the sooner they could be together.
It was best that Joe was leaving, she told herself. Best that he wasn’t going to stay here in the center of the hurricane, where she had to be with the reconstruction. After all, it was what she had wanted.
But Joe never stayed out of the eye of the hurricane for long. How did she know there wasn’t a worse storm waiting for him in Cairo?
Chapter
10
Joe saw Novak standing by the path the moment he left the museum. “I’m going to Cairo.”
“I thought you might. I’ll call Gideon unless you prefer someone else to accompany you. He’s been involved with investigating Dobran from the beginning. He’s very good, and he has advantages that my other men don’t have.”
“Money and contacts?”
Novak nodded. “Those, too. But I was thinking that he learns from every situation and adapts to find a way to win the next one. Didn’t you find that to be true?”
Joe nodded. “Gideon will do.” He looked him in the eye. “As long as you make it clear that he obeys my orders instead of yours. And as long as I find him valuable. The minute I find he fails me in either category, I’ll send him back to you and work on my own.” He paused. “He wouldn’t tell me anything on the way here. He lies very well, but he’s obviously clever, and I realized he’d know more about you than what he told me.”
“I’m glad you didn’t force the issue with him. I like Gideon, I might have had to address it with you.” He added, “Yes, he knew. As you say, he’s clever, and I needed him. But he’s his own man, and I’ll let him know that he can trust you. You’ll have to forge your own relationship with him.”
Joe nodded. “Whatever. And I’ll need to know everything there is to know about Yusef Dobran and his assistant, Hassan Sebak. Right away.”
“What Gideon doesn’t know, he’ll find out for you. When do you leave?”