Divine Evil

crazily and caught the figure-the figure of a woman, Clare realized with sick panic-just before the right fender bumped against flesh.
    “Oh, Jesus. Oh, Jesus.” Clare was out of the car in a flash, her limbs like Jell-O. The stink of rubber stung the air. Slumped beside the car was a woman. Blood stained the legs of her sweatpants, was smeared on her hands. “Oh, please. Please, God.” Murmuring brokenly, Clare crouched down to gently brush back the fall of blond hair with shaking fingers.
    Lisa blinked but could barely focus. Something had scraped her eye badly as she'd stumbled through the woods. “Help me.” Her voice was a raspy whisper, barely audible.
    “I will. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I didn't see you until it was too late.”
    “A car.” Lisa pushed herself up, bracing a palm on the concrete and locking her elbow. Each word burned like acid in her throat, but she had to make herself understood before it was too late. “Thank God. Help me, please. I don't think I can get up alone.”
    “I don't think you should move.” Wasn't there something about neck or spinal injuries? Christ, why hadn't she ever taken a first-aid course?
    “They're coming! Hurry! For God's sake!” Lisa was already pulling herself up by the bumper. “For God's sake
hurry!”
    “All right. All right.” She could hardly leave the woman lying in the middle of the road while she went for help. As gently as possible, Clare maneuvered Lisa into the passenger seat. “Here, let me-”
    “Just drive.” Lisa was terrified she would black out. With a hand clenched on the door handle, she peered out into the woods. Her good eye wheeled with panic. “Drive fast, before they find us.”
    “I'm taking you to a hospital.”
    “Anywhere.” Lisa covered her bloody face with herhand. “Take me anywhere but here.” She slumped in the seat as Clare drove away. Lisa's body began to shake as she swam toward unconsciousness. “His eyes,” she murmured, fretful. “Oh, God, his eyes. Like the devil's.”
    Cam had his mouth full of toothpaste when the phone rang. He spat, swore halfheartedly, and didn't bother to rinse. The phone was on its third ring when he lifted it from the nightstand. “Hello?” “Cam.”
    He needed only that one syllable to tell him something was wrong. “Clare, what is it?” “I'm at the hospital. I-”
    “What happened?” he demanded, grabbing the jeans he'd slung over the chair. “How bad are you hurt?”
    “It's not me. I'm fine.” Her hand trembled so violently the coffee in the Styrofoam cup splashed over the sides. “There was an accident-a woman. She ran out of the woods. I thought she was a deer. I tried to stop. Oh, God, Cam, I don't know how bad I hurt her. They won't tell me. I need-”
    “I'm on my way. Just sit down, Slim, and close your eyes.”
    “Okay.” She pressed a hand to her lips. “Thanks.”
    It seemed like hours. She sat in the Emergency Room, listening to the moans, the slap of feet on tile, the droning television. Leno was doing his monologue, and apparently knocking them dead. Clare kept staring down at the bloodstains on her blouse and jeans-reliving over and over that instant when she'd hit the brakes.
    Had she hesitated? Had she been driving too fast? She'dbeen daydreaming. If she'd been paying closer attention, that woman wouldn't be in surgery.
    God, she thought, I don't even know her name.
    “Clare.”
    Dazed, she looked up just as Cam crouched beside her. “I don't even know her name.”
    “It's okay.” He brought her hands to his lips and held them there, assuring himself she was whole and safe. There was blood on her shirt, but after the first jolt of panic, he knew it wasn't hers. “Can you tell me what happened?”
    “She ran in front of the car. I hit her.”
    He noted that her face was colorless, even her lips. Her pupils were dilated. When he put the back of his hand to her cheek, he found the skin clammy and cold. “Has anyone looked at you?”
    She gave him a blank look. “I want to know what's happening. I have to know. They'll tell you, won't they? Please, Cam, I can't stand it.”
    “All right. Stay right here. I won't be long.”
    She watched him as he walked to a nurse, took out his identification. After a few moments, the nurse led him away down a hall. When he returned, he was carrying a blanket, which he tucked around her before he sat.
    “She's in surgery.” He took her hand, warming it between his. “It may be awhile. Her knee was