When the Devil Drives

'I found out while you were in America,' he told her. 'It was when Dadfirst started rambling on about the past. He talked about Joanna onenight, going on and on about her. The whole thing was prettydisjointed and incoherent, and at first I thought he meant you. Buteventually I sorted out that he was referring to his mother. I asked afew pointed questions, and finally got the whole story out of him. Hewas only a young kid when she died, and the whole awful businessobviously had one hell of an effect on him. It made me feel sick to mystomach as well.''I can imagine.' Joanna was trembling. 'Why didn't you tell mebefore?''I didn't see any necessity. God, Jo, you hated all the Blackstones evenmore than I did! It never occurred to me that he'd try and get back atus by involving you sexually, let alone that he'd succeed.' He sighed.'Frankly, I thought it was this house he wanted, not you. I totallyunderestimated his will to win—the lengths he was prepared to go to.'She could hear Cal's voice, quiet, gloating, inside her head. 'Thewheel come full circle.'Something within her was dying, strangling in pain and bitter hurt.'I—I can't blame you for that,' she said tightly. 'I— I underestimatedhim too.'On her way back from the churchyard that afternoon, she had vowedshe would make good flower from bad. That somehow she wouldmake Cal love her in return, transmuting the harshness of his desirefor her into tenderness and a caring, abiding passion.Now it seemed that he had never really wanted her at all. It explaineda great deal, of course, beginning with the miniature of hergrandmother in his sitting- room. It was there to remind him of his