Where Shadows Linger (Intertwined Souls Series Book 2)

by Mary D. Brooks

  “Which one?” Eva asked with a tiny smile.

  “I vowed to kill anyone who hurt you again,” Zoe replied. “They want you as bait.”

  Eva stood up and gently brushed away the hair from Zoe’s eyes. “I know, love. I want to run far away from here and never look back,” she admitted. Her heart was still beating so hard she was afraid it might jump out of her chest at any moment. The news that Muller was not only alive, but in Australia, left her feeling sick and cold, as though someone had sunk a knife into her gut.

  “My head is telling me to run, but my heart is telling me Harrison is right. We have to help. Henry needs our help to catch this bastard. I don’t trust these clowns, but I trust Henry. “

  “Am I a coward for wanting to keep you safe?”

  Eva smiled, and kissed Zoe tenderly. When they parted, she brushed her fingertips over Zoe’s cheek and looked deep into her eyes. “You don’t know the meaning of that word. I’m scared too.”

  “I’m always here for you, Evy,” Zoe gently reminded her. “Always.”

  “I know, love.” Eva pulled Zoe into a hug. They stayed that way for a few minutes. “Let’s go and tell them.”

  “Evy.” Zoe hesitated.

  “Yes?”

  “Next time you want to feel adventurous outside, remember someone might be looking,” Zoe said. She got a blank look from Eva. “The pictures,” Zoe reminded her.

  “I did like the one of us fishing.”

  “You weren’t paying any attention to the fish.”

  “I was busy.” Eva pulled Zoe in for another hug. “We are going to get him,” she whispered into Zoe’s ear before kissing her.

  They left the bedroom and returned to the lounge, where everyone was waiting for their decision. David and Friedrich stood up. Earl was leaning in the doorway of the kitchen. It was obvious he had put on the kettle while they were inside. Eva caught his attention and mouthed, “Thank you.”

  “Mr. Harrison, we’re in,” Eva announced. The two Immigration agents beamed, but Henry looked extremely angry.

  “Call me David,” David said, taking Eva’s hand. “Thank you, Miss Muller.”

  “Eva.”

  “Thank you, Eva.” They sat down again, Eva and Zoe on the sofa, David and Friedrich in the two chairs they had occupied before. Father Haralambos was sitting in the kitchen chair that Eva had occupied earlier. Earl and Henry remained standing. “Do you know an Erik Rhimes?” David asked after a nod from Friedrich.

  Eva glanced at Zoe. “General Rhimes.”

  “Yes, he is with your fa—” David stopped. “I’m sorry, Eva, I meant your stepfather.”

  “They have been friends since their school days,” Eva said. “I’m not surprised. How are you going to get them to come here?”

  David and Friedrich looked at each other before turning back to Eva. “He knows you are here.”

  Eva forced her panic aside and tried not to let the news that Hans Muller knew exactly where she was living get to her. “He knows I’m here? In this apartment?”

  “Not exactly where you are, but he knows you are alive and in Sydney.”

  “It was just a matter of time, wasn’t it?” Eva sighed. “How did he find out?”

  “We have an informant who leaks information. We don’t know who it is yet but—”

  “I don’t like the sound of this,” Zoe muttered to herself, but loudly enough to be overheard.

  “Yes, but we can control the information,” David said. “We can put it out on the Nazi grapevine that you will testify at Nuremberg against him.”

  “There’s a Nazi grapevine?” Eva asked skeptically.

  “There is,” David replied.

  “Well Eva won’t have to testify. I will. He murdered my mother and I will go to any court and say that…if the bastard lives long enough go to trial,” Zoe responded vehemently.

  “We have enough witnesses in Greece and Germany. We don’t need you or Eva to testify,” Friedrich said. “But Muller doesn’t know that. It will also be leaked that you can testify against Rhimes and others, since you were close to them.”

  “I wasn’t close to them,” Eva responded. “I was a witness to their brutality, but I wasn’t close to them.” She held on to Zoe, who seemed ready to pounce on Friedrich. Eva needed to control Zoe’s anger at Friedrich’s comment, as well as fight back her own fears. She knew she had to do this. Hans Muller could not be allowed to roam free, but the trouble for her and Zoe that she suspected loomed ahead weighed heavily on her heart.

  “Miss Muller, I seem to be putting my foot in my mouth. Please, excuse me for the poor choice of words. I meant you were close in the sense that you were with them...I meant you...knew them.” Friedrich tried to explain himself. “I didn’t mean that you were close to them in the sense that...” he said, struggling to get out of the verbal mess he had made for himself.

  “I understand what you meant,” Eva said, trying to settle her aching back against the sofa cushion. “Now tell me exactly what you want of me.”

  She took a breath and listened to what the two investigators were hoping would happen in their hunt for Muller and Rhimes.

  “The best-laid plans of mice and men,” Father Haralambos muttered while talked. Only Eva heard his comment and was chilled.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Zoe was wide awake as the early morning sounds from outside drifted in through the open windows. Eva’s gentle snore made Zoe turn and face her. It had taken Eva hours to fall asleep after the tumultuous day. The news that her stepfather was still alive when everyone thought he had died, her real father showing up, and then having the War Crimes investigators show up had taken their toll on Eva. Zoe was certain Eva didn’t want to sleep, because if she did, her nightmares would return.

  Zoe leaned over and tenderly kissed Eva on the cheek. She sighed when she saw Eva’s face twitch on the contact even though she was asleep. I’m going to kill that bastard myself when I get a hold of him. She quietly got out of bed and put on her robe and slippers. She stood beside the bed and watched Eva sleep for a moment, and then she opened the door and left the room.

  The living room was in semi-darkness as the lights from the street lamp cast their shadow into the room from the French doors leading to the balcony. Eva’s bedroom door was closed, which meant Father Haralambos was still asleep. Zoe hoped she could get past the living room without waking Henry, but she stopped when she saw he wasn’t on the sofa.

  A light from the kitchen alerted her to Henry’s whereabouts and she quietly made her way there.

  “Hey,” Zoe said as she walked in to find Henry smoking a cigarette and leaning against the kitchen bench.

  Henry opened his arms and engulfed Zoe into a hug. “How are you?”

  “It’s been a rough night.”

  “Eva?”

  “Even rougher night for her,” Zoe replied as she accepted Henry’s cup of coffee and took a sip. “She couldn’t go to sleep, and when she did, Muller was there as well.”

  Henry stared at his coffee for a long moment. “I remember when I first met Eva; it was on her 21st birthday. January 20, 1941. I remember that day very well.”

  “You do? Why is that?”

  Henry brought the cigarette to his lips, took a drag, and exhaled the smoke before he spoke. “I was promoted to Sergeant.”

  “1941? Eva was in Paris then.”

  “Yes. I was Major Muller’s driver and he invited me in to Eva’s birthday party. That’s where I met Eva for the first time. Muller had already dropped a lot of hints when I was driving him that I should meet his daughter.”

  “He wanted you to court her?”

  “Yes.”

  “What was Evy like back then?”

  “She was very quiet, extremely shy. Muller suggested I dance with her. They were trying to cheer her up because she was lonely without Erik.”

  “You danced?”

  “I did, even though I have two left feet.” Henry had a quiet chuckle as he brought the
cigarette to his lips. He took a drag and exhaled. “Evy was very kind and didn’t protest when I stepped on her toes.”

  “Did she say anything to you?”

  “No, not really, but she did say that she knew Muller had asked me to court her.”

  “Evy knew this?”

  “Yes, she did. Muller told her that was what he was going to do.”

  “What? Erik had just died and he was trying to marry her off?”

  “He was a sadistic son-of-a-bitch and he didn’t care if Erik was dead or his daughter was mourning the death of her husband.”

  “He was just interested in having a man in Eva’s life.”

  “Yes. So I became the man.” Henry glanced down at the ashtray before he looked up at Zoe with a brief hint of a smile on his face. “I kissed her.”

  “You what?”

  “I kissed her.”

  “You kissed your commanding officer’s daughter, who also happened to be widowed by that stage? Were you insane?”

  “It wasn’t my idea.” Henry shook his head. “Evy wanted to go outside because she was feeling a little warm.”

  “What did you make of that?”

  “I needed to be on my best behavior with my commanding officer’s daughter. That’s what I made of that, and he wanted me to court her, but I didn’t want to be so callous.”

  “Were you on your best behavior?”

  “Of course. Eva wanted to walk along the river and we went walking. We stopped, and I had my back to the house when she told me to kiss her.”

  “Why?”

  “Muller was coming towards us and Eva just said ‘kiss me.’”

  “So you did.”

  “I did.” Henry nodded. “We were interrupted by Muller, of course, and Eva acted surprised and coy.”

  Zoe smiled. “That was Eva’s plan.”

  “It was.”

  “Argh,” Zoe exclaimed. “Bastard. Poor Erik’s body wasn’t in the grave for long before Muller was prostituting his daughter,” she said bitterly. “Despicable evil worm.”

  “Eva took a chance on me. I wasn’t anyone special, but she took a chance.”

  “You were kissing the most beautiful girl in the world—I think your job wasn’t that hard, Henry.” Zoe chuckled and lightly tapped him on his bald head.

  “No, it wasn’t difficult. Muller was pleased, although he kept an eye on Eva. Several days after the party he called me and told me I was now Eva’s guard.”

  “So not only did he want you to court Eva but also be his spy?”

  “Yes, that’s pretty much it.”

  “Bastard,” Zoe muttered. She plucked the cigarette from Henry’s fingers and took a drag.

  “When did you start smoking?”

  “Blame Evy for that.” Zoe chuckled and gave the cigarette back to him. “So what did you know about Erik?”

  “I heard he was good to Eva, if that’s what you’re asking. I had a friend who knew him, and he said they were quite a couple.”

  Zoe took the whistling kettle off the stove and poured the tea into two cups. She gave one to Henry before returning the kettle to the stove and then sat back down. “So did you..um..”

  Henry looked up at Zoe for a long moment. “Are you asking me if I made love to Evy?”

  “Yes.”

  “No. What we did do is go to her room and close the door, and everyone believed that’s what we were doing. Muller slept in the next room, and Evy thought she would give him an early birthday present.”

  “A what?”

  “We acted out making love,” Henry replied shyly and then chuckled.

  “You didn’t!”

  “We did. It was very noisy, and we found out the bed squeaked so…”

  “Wow. She trusted you.”

  “Yes. I could have easily betrayed her, but she somehow knew she could trust me.”

  “So Muller thought you and Eva were having sex and that made him happy.”

  “It made him very happy, and it made life for Eva a lot easier.”

  “Until the bombing?”

  “Yes, until the bombing.”

  “So you knew Sister Abigail?”

  Henry looked at Zoe with a surprised expression on his face. “You know about Sister Abigail?”

  “Eva told me about her in Larissa. She seems to come up a lot when Eva’s talking in her sleep as well. Sister Abigail was a nun that befriended her in Aiden, and from what I understand, she also came to see her in Paris.”

  “She still does that?”

  Zoe nodded. “Her nightmares have lessened with Hannah helping her, but with Muller doing a Lazarus impersonation...”

  “I’m going to kill the bastard if I get a chance,” Henry muttered. He stubbed out the cigarette and took out another one from the pack. Zoe glanced at the ashtray and noticed quite a few butts that had been deposited there.

  “How long have you been up?”

  “A few hours,” Henry replied and followed Zoe’s gaze to the ashtray. “I couldn’t sleep.”

  “So was this Nurse Abigail a spy for Muller?”

  “She may have been a spy for him, but I don’t know. I met her after the bombing and she was very kind. She was a little odd for a nun, but she loved Eva. Eva also had a very nice nurse—”

  “Not Nurse Gestapo?”

  “Heavens no, that woman was just awful, as you know,” Henry said. He put his arm around Zoe’s shoulder. “There’s one woman that should have been killed a long time before she was.”

  “So who was that nice nurse?”

  “She was General Rhimes’ personal nurse, and I think she was his mistress as well.”

  “Eww,” Zoe exclaimed.

  “I forget her name now, but she was with Evy for a short while in Larissa before she left with Rhimes. Everything changed in Larissa.”

  “I think everything changed for all of us.”

  “Hm, but the best thing to happen to Evy,” Henry tapped Zoe on the cheek and smiled, “was you. Her letters to me have been positive and she loves you so much. Her letters have gotten longer and longer.”

  Zoe’s face creased into a smile. “She’s working so hard to overcome what they did to her, Henry.”

  “It wouldn’t have happened without you being by her side. You have been her saving grace. Amazing what a little rock can do, eh?” Henry said with a chuckle. “Did I ever tell you that I had orders to shoot anyone who even attempted what you did?”

  “Did you?”

  “Muller ordered me. Eva stopped me from carrying out that order.”

  Zoe looked down at the table and smiled to herself. “We really did hate each other.”

  Henry gazed at Zoe for a moment. “She understood what you said when you called her a cripple that first time she ventured out.”

  “I know she did.” Zoe nodded. “I could see that she understood every word. That’s when I knew she could speak Greek.”

  “You kept at it too, not letting up, and the more you sneered at her, the more determined she got to prove you wrong.” Henry shook his head.

  Zoe met Henry’s gaze and grimaced. “I was hoping she would fail, but she was out there every day at the same time.”

  “She knew when you would be watching.”

  “I didn’t know that,” Zoe replied quietly. She glanced at the wall clock and got up from her seat. “I’m going to see if Evy’s awake and make her some breakfast.”

  “I’ll make it.”

  “I didn’t know you could cook.”

  “I taught Eva everything she knows,” Henry quipped, making Zoe laugh as she left the kitchen.

  Zoe entered the bedroom to find Eva wide awake and staring up at the ceiling. Without a word Zoe removed her robe and slipped into bed. She hitched herself up on her elbow to face Eva. The window was open, and a light breeze ruffled the curtains while the sounds of a typical early morning in the city drifted in. The milk truck could be heard as it made its usual stops along the street, soon squeaking to a halt and idling outside
their building. A moment later the tinkling and clanking of glass bottles began when the milkman started his deliveries, moving from apartment to apartment. Very soon, the bakery van would bring its load of fresh breads and pastries, and the early morning rituals would be blended into the new day. The streetlights were still on in the predawn darkness, a flickering dimly glimpsed through the moving curtains.

  “Did yesterday really happen?” Eva asked, her voice roughened by sleep.

  “Yes, it really happened.” Zoe took Eva’s hand and held it against her chest. “Yes, Muller is alive, yes, your real father is still alive and just across from our room, yes, Henry is in the kitchen cooking breakfast, God help us, and yes, we had two keystone cops invade our home.”

  “Oh.”

  “Henry and I were talking in the kitchen. We’ve come a long way since then, Evy.”

  “Have we? My father is still alive.”

  “Yes, he is, and he’s in your bedroom. Muller is not your father—he doesn’t deserve that honor. Henry will catch him with the keystone cops.”

  “You shouldn’t call them keystone cops.”

  “I like it, it’s stuck,” Zoe quipped, making Eva smile. “Do you want to cuddle?”

  She moved closer to Eva and rested her head on her arm, watching her closely. A smile played on Eva’s slightly parted lips, which made Zoe grin. She lightly traced Eva’s high cheekbones and Eva smiled as Zoe tweaked her dimpled chin before leaning over and kissing her softly.

  “Oh, this is nice.”

  “You are going to stay in bed,” Zoe said, hoping Eva was going to do what she was told and not be stubborn.

  “All right,” Eva said, uncharacteristically meek.

  Zoe was taken aback. She had expected Eva to offer at least some resistance. “What have you done with my Evy?” she asked playfully. She rose up on an elbow and brushed a stray sleep-tousled lock of soft dark hair off Eva’s forehead. She sobered. “You need to rest, love. This news has been just horrible and I hate to see you hurt so much.” She caressed Eva’s cheek. “I love you so much.”

  A tear escaped and slowly tracked down Eva’s face. “I love you too.”

  Zoe gently wiped away the wetness. “Hey, I didn’t mean for you to cry. I just want you to sleep without any nightmares. I’ll give you a massage later.”