The Perfect Witness by Iris Johansen

bedroom. His words were swirling in her head. Graduated. Cutting you loose. Go forth and conquer.
    He meant that he was leaving her.
    Why did that send panic racing through her?
    And that strange, hollow loneliness?
    It was what she wanted. Independence, to be on her own.
    Now that she had a start on blocking and handling the horror of the memories, she surely didn’t need him.
    But she felt like she needed him. She felt like she’d always need him.
    “Hurry,” he said again. He had paused to look over his shoulder.
    “I’m hurrying.” She ran down the hall and threw open her door. Move. Shower. Pack. Get out of here. Worry about her curious reluctance to leave Mandak later.
    Forty-five minutes later, she was walking out of the lodge onto the porch.
    “Excellent.” Mandak took her duffel. “Very quick. But then I knew you’d be eager for a fresh start.”
    “Of course.” She followed him to the car. “That’s the lure you held out to me when you picked me up out of that forest in New Jersey. A new start…” She didn’t look at him as she got into the passenger seat. “But I somehow thought that we’d already started.”
    “Only the preliminaries. I told you that you’d have to begin college soon.” He pressed the accelerator. “But, first, we have to have you tested so that you can be admitted. I don’t anticipate any problems since you have that photographic memory. But besides being very young, you may have to have a little coaching.”
    “Again? What else have we been doing during these weeks?” She snapped her fingers. “Oh that’s right. Karate. Guns. Knives. No college would accept that curriculum.”
    “They should. No subjects would prove more useful.”
    “Not in your world?”
    “Nor in yours, Allie.”
    “New start. Perhaps someday…”
    “Perhaps. In the meantime, I’ll see that you keep on with your lessons in those subjects.”
    “You will?”
    He nodded. “Two or three times a week. I’ll set up sessions with a teacher I trust.”
    “Why not you?”
    “I’ll be busy. So will you.”
    “You said you were cutting me loose.” She looked out the window. “I won’t see you again?”
    “You know better than that. You need reinforcement for the blocking, and I’m the only one who can do that for you. You’ll see me every now and then. And I’ll be there when you have a special need.” He added quietly, “And remember, I have an agenda. That’s never changed. That’s why we came together. That’s why I’ll always be there in the background until you’re ready for me.”
    “I’ll never be ready for you,” she said jerkily. “I’m going to work at making it all about me now, Mandak.”
    “Then enjoy every minute of it.” He smiled. “And the people you’re going to be living with from now on will help you to do that. Lee and Natalie Walberg are great people who know how to live life to the fullest.”
    “I’m going to be living with them? Why?”
    “It’s part of your cover. Dantlow approves wholeheartedly. Check with him. You’re supposed to be their niece, who will be staying with them while you go to the university. Lee and Natalie both taught at the university before they retired. Now they do a little tutoring but principally are involved with their hobbies. Lee collects rare books and Natalie is an artist.”
    “They won’t like me.” She frowned. “I don’t know anything about either one of those things.”
    “They’ll teach you. Their house is just down this block.” He cruised to a stop at the curb. “The red brick with the ivy.”
    The house was a small, elegant Tudor with beautifully crafted paned windows and a rich oak brown door. Allie had never seen a house that spoke more of home. “It’s … lovely.”
    “They like it.” His gaze shifted to her face. “And so do you.”
    “I used to dream of living in a house like that. It’s … welcoming.”
    “Yes, and so are Lee and Natalie. Give them a chance, Allie.” He paused.