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all, I know you lost your little girl, Bonnie, when she was seven to a serial killer, and it’s given you a passion and dedication that none of those tech guys will ever have. I need that passion. I have to have that dedication.”
    “Then you’ll have to do without. I have another job I have to do.”
    “Put it off.”
    “No, that little girl’s parents have waited too long already. And why should I? To find out how age has changed some low-life criminal on whom you have some kind of twisted vendetta?”
    “No.” She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a photo carefully protected in clear plastic. “So I can find him. ” Her hand was trembling as she held out the photo to Eve. “Help me. I’ll give you anything, do anything for you. I have to find him.”
    Eve slowly took the photo.
    It was a picture of a little boy of not more than two years of age wearing a red sweater. Dark hair, enormous dark eyes that were alight with joy and mischief. He was smiling, and Eve had never seen a sweeter expression. It was a smile to melt the heart. “Who is he?”
    “Luke. My son.”

Chapter
3
    Eve’s gaze flew back to Catherine’s face. “What?”
    “Luke. That picture was taken on his second birthday. He was taken from me a week later.”
    “Taken? By whom?”
    “Sergei Rakovac. Major criminal who was involved with the Russian mafia and manipulating various politicians in Moscow. My husband, Terry, and I were sent in to break up his organization. He was interfering with the current American administration’s attempt at peacekeeping over the Republic of Georgia’s conflict with Russia.”
    “What conflict? If there was a conflict, it sure didn’t get much press.”
    “Enough. There was a particularly nasty conflict in 2008 between the Republic of Georgia and Russia that killed over a thousand people, but the ethnic infighting has been going on for decades. It involved South Ossetia, a territory belonging to the Republic of Georgia. South Ossetia declared its independence from Georgia, and Russia supported them.” She made a face. “While trying to gently pull them under Russian domination. It would probably have been the first move toward annexing Georgia itself. At any rate, the tempers have been flaring on both sides ever since, and it’s still a hot spot. When Russia weighed in on the side of the Ossetians and sent in a ‘peacekeeping’ force is when it became a bloodbath. Guerilla fighting, massacres. Even after the supposed truce, there was spotty guerilla warfare on both sides. The attacks are still going on today. The hatred never stops.”
    “And Rakovac was involved?”
    “Very much involved. But his involvement started much earlier than the outbursts that occurred later with Russia. As I said, there was hatred and fighting for decades. Rakovac actually was born in the Republic of Georgia and fought with them as a teenager in a guerilla group against the Ossetians. But after he went to Moscow he was supplying arms to both sides and when Russia joined in the conflict he was causing the situation to escalate even more. Our orders were to take him down.” Her lips tightened. “We did it. It took over a year of bribery and undermining of his contacts, but Rakovac was on his way out. He was furious. He dug and dug until he found out who had been behind all his problems. He got our names and he wanted revenge.”
    Eve felt sick as she looked down at the photograph of the child. So beautiful. So innocent. “Your Luke?”
    “I found out I was pregnant just before we left Russia. I left the Company and settled in Boston. Terry still worked for the CIA, but I thought I could have a normal life. But Rakovac was just biding his time. He worked and schemed and gained back all the power we’d taken from him. Then he was ready to go after us.” She moistened her lips. “One night, I put Luke to bed and went to my room. I received a call in the middle of the night. Rakovac. He had Terry. He shot