Shadowfires

structure to dramatically extend his life span, he might have
been just foolish enough to experiment on himself with an unproven
process. He would know the terrible risks of tampering with his own
genetic makeup, but compared to his unrelenting dread of death and
the afterlife, those risks might seem minor. And God knows what might
have happened to him if he had used himself as a guinea pig.”
    What would you say if you knew that his body disappeared from the
morgue last night? Julio wondered.

----
25 ALONE
    They did not attempt to put the Xerox of the
Wildcard file in order, but scooped up all the loose papers from the
cabin's living-room floor and dropped them in a plastic Hefty garbage bag that Benny got from a box in one of the kitchen drawers. He twisted the top of the bag and secured it with a plastic-coated wire tie, then placed it on the rear floor of the Mercedes, behind the driver's
seat.
    They drove down the dirt road to the gate, on the other side of
which they had parked the Ford. As they had hoped, on the same ring
with the car keys, they found a key that fit the padlock on the
gate.
    Benny brought the Ford inside, and as he edged past her, Rachael
drove the Mercedes out through the gate and parked just beyond.
    She waited nervously with the 560 SEL, her thirty-two in one hand
and her gaze sweeping the surrounding forest.
    Benny went down the road on foot, out of sight, to the three
vehicles that were parked on the lay-by near one of the driveway
entrances they had passed earlier on their way up the mountainside.
He carried with him the two license plates from the Mercedes-plus a
screwdriver and a pair of pliers. When he returned, he had the plates
from one of the Dodge Chargers, which he attached to the Mercedes.
    He got in the car with her and said, “When you get to Vegas, go to
a public phone, look up the number for a guy named Whitney Gavis.”
    “Who's he?”
    “An old friend. And he works for me.
He's watching over that rundown motel I told you about-the Golden Sand Inn. In fact, he found the property and turned me on to its potential. He's
got keys. He can let you in. Tell him you need to stay in the
manager's suite and that I'll be joining you tonight. Tell him as
much as you want to tell him; he can keep his mouth shut, and if he's going to be dragged into it, he should know how serious this is.”
    “What if he's heard about us on the radio or TV?”
    “Won't matter to Whitney. He won't believe
we're killers or Russian agents. He's got a good head on him, an
excellent bullshit detector, and nobody has a better sense of loyalty
than Whit. You can trust him.”
    “If you say so.”
    “There's a two-car garage behind the motel office. Make sure you put the Mercedes in there, out of sight, soon as you arrive.”
    “I don't like this.”
    “I'm not crazy about it, either,” Benny said. “But it's the right
plan. We've already discussed it.” He leaned over and put one hand against her face, then kissed her.
    The kiss was sweet, and when it ended she said, “As soon as
you've searched the cabin, you'll leave? Whether or not
you've found any clue to where Eric might've gone?”
    “Yes. I want to get out before the feds show up.”
    “And if you find a clue to where he's gone, you won't go after him
alone?”
    “What did I promise you?”
    “I want to hear you say it again.”
    “I'll come for you first,” Benny said. “I won't tackle Eric alone.
We'll handle him together.”
    She looked into his eyes and was not sure if he was telling the
truth or lying. But even if he was lying, she could do nothing about
it because time was running out. They could delay no longer.
    “I love you,” he said.
    “I love you, Benny. And if you get yourself killed, I'm never going to forgive you.”
    He smiled.
“You're some woman, Rachael. You could rouse a heartbeat in a rock, and you're
all the motivation I need to come back alive. Don't you worry about that. Now, lock the doors when I get out-okay?”
    He kissed her again, lightly this time. He got out of the car,
slammed the door, waited until he saw the power-lock buttons sinking
into their mountings, then waved her on.
    She drove down the gravel lane, glancing repeatedly in the
rearview mirror to keep Benny in sight as long as possible, but
eventually the road turned, and he disappeared beyond the trees.
Ben drove the rental Ford up the dirt lane,
parked in front of the cabin. A few big white clouds had appeared in
the sky, and the