Bound by Danger (33 page)
Authors: Terry Spear
“But the one who died in the apparent suicide attempt?”
“Somebody else Ramsdodt didn’t like. He figured this one would throw us off completely. And it worked, temporarily. The manuscript sent to the news media was a phony. When we began to investigate the details, none of the information could be verified. We assumed then, the real manuscript still hadn’t been found.
“As to Red, Ramsdodt had hired him earlier when he was assigned to one of the countries where there’d been a lot of strife. Ramstodt’s boss learned the lieutenant colonel was black marketing arms and LTC Ramstodt had Red silence his boss. That’s how it all began.
“Apparently the lieutenant had overheard the conversation between LTC Ramstodt and his own boss. The lieutenant kept quiet until after he had written the book.”
Deidre took a deep breath. “So many lives. And to think he did it just for money.”
“Yeah. Did you ever get a load of his wife? She’s twenty years younger than him. A Norwegian bombshell.”
“Maybe he should have had an older wife.”
“He had one of those, too. Upon further investigation, she slipped off a cruise ship, mysteriously. Everyone said it was suicide.”
Deidre shook her head. “Sure, he only had to give her a little push to help her with her suicide attempt.”
“That’s why he was never charged with anything. He didn’t go with her. She was with a younger man. A redhead…awfully similar description to Red. We think now he somehow got his wife hooked up with Red and that was the last anyone ever saw of her.”
“Did you ever learn about the coffee at the hospital you said you thought had been tampered with?”
“Yeah. It had been. Since the colonel was your boss, he was updated as to where you were. But that night, I’m certain the man he sent would have tried to get to you in your hospital room, but you slipped out before he’d realized it. He must have followed me back to your apartment. Once we were on the road headed for the hospital, he tried to take us out then.”
She shook her head.
Dave leaned his head against Deidre’s. “Enough talk of this. We need to get some sleep because when we get to Hawaii, we’re not going to be getting any.”
“Promises, promises.” And she knew he had every intention of keeping them…or she would.
***
Later that evening the ipu heke gourd drum, ipu hokiokio gourd nose flute and uliuli rattle provided a rhythmic beat and resonant pounding while hula dancers whipped their grass skirts back and forth at the luau. One of the young Hawaiian dancers urged Dave from his seat and in floral shirt and orchid lei, he grinned all the way to the stage.
Deidre snapped photos of him, but a male dancer quickly escorted her along with several other guests to the stage. With a few lessons in hip and hand movements, the whole group danced the hula to laughter, music and clapping.
Deidre had never had so much fun though she never imagined anyone could have convinced her to go on stage. Dave slipped his arm through hers as they finished their dance and returned to the table. She ran her hand over her long dress and the orchids imprinted along one side.
He leaned over and kissed her naked neck above her floral lei. “You sure are sexy in that dress.”
Her hand slipped to his lightly hair-covered thigh just below his denim shorts. “I like this Hawaiian look of yours, cowboy.”
Wrapping his arm around her waist, he grinned. “Just think what I’d look like without it.”
“I’ve been thinking of that, if you must know.” She sipped her Blue Hawaiian, the coconut flavor swimming in rum.
He chuckled.
She laughed. The warm breeze drifted off the waters while torches cast romantic shadows over the luau. The aroma of roasting pork tantalized their sense of smell. “You know, I wouldn’t have wanted to have shared this special time with anyone but you.”
“That’s good to hear. I wouldn’t have allowed it anyway.”
***
The next morning, Dave pulled Deidre close in the rolling aqua waves and kissed her salty cheeks as their toes stood in the sugar white sand. “You sure are beautiful.”
“You sure are handsome.”
They had been up most of the night and after a little swim, they were going back up to the room for a nap. Though if they were ever going to get any sleep, one of them needed to stay on the couch. Neither was budging from the bed though.
“Do you want to get out and have a bottled water?” Dave asked.
“Certainly.” Deidre smiled as he studied her wet bathing suit.
“I sure like that bathing suit of yours.”
“I noticed.”
“Now that we’re married, you need to model a string bikini for me.”
“What if you don’t like what you see?”
“We’ll get a refund.”
She laughed and shook her head. “I love you.”
“The feeling’s mutual.” He kissed her mouth, their tongues touched briefly, then he grinned. “Being with you in water sure drives me crazy.” With a ragged breath, he walked her to the chaise lounges and when she stretched out, he headed for the drink stand.
At once, the tightening in her forehead began. She sat and stared at the blue waters. A boy cried out in her vision, his body burning in pain.
She bolted from the chair and ran across the sand. A young man holding a body board while he talked to a bikini-clad girl, caught Deidre’s eye. She grabbed his board and he shouted, “Hey!” as she rushed into the water with it.
“Return it in a minute!” she hollered back.
Scooting across the rolling waves, she headed for an outcropping of coral and spied the boy. His face scrunched up in pain as tears rolled down his cheeks. The red marks from his swim mask still imprinted his small face, but his mask was missing.
She reached for his arm. “Here, honey, grab hold.” As soon as he grabbed the board, she swam over to the coral and reached down to get his mask. With the strap secured to her wrist, she swam back to the board. “Where are your parents?”
“My older sister is snorkeling over there.” He waved at the coral. “Dad ran into the hotel to use the bathroom. Mom’s taking a nap.”
Deidre spied the girl whose face was submerged in the water. “Her name?”
“It really burns.”
“You’ve been cut on the coral. But we need to let your sister knowing I’m taking you in.”
“Her name’s Jane.”
“Jane!”
With her head submerged, the girl couldn’t hear Deidre’s shouts. “Will you be all right for a moment? I need to get your sister’s attention.”
“I want to go in.”
“All right. I’m going to swim with you. Just keep hollering your sister’s name while I swim to her.”
The boy yelled his sister’s name repeatedly as Deidre joined the girl and touched her arm. She lifted her head with a jerk.
“Your brother’s been hurt on the coral. I’m taking him to the shore. Maybe you ought to come in with him, too.”
She nodded.
Deidre and the girl swam back to the boy and floated him into the beach.
“Dad!” the boy yelled when they touched the sandy bottom.
“Your son was cut on the coral, sir,” Deidre said to the boy’s father as she handed the boy’s mask to his sister. She took a deep breath, trying to settle her worry. “You might want to get it looked at as they can get infected from the bacteria in the coral.”
“Thank you, miss.”
Deidre handed the board back to the owner. “Sorry,” she said.
“No problem, I guess.”
He turned and walked away. Dave watched her from twenty yards away with a bottled water in each hand, a brow quirked in question.
She crossed the sand to join him.
Tilting his head down slightly he said, “I thought you were a runaway bride.”
She smiled as she took her bottle of water and kissed his cheek. “Not me.”
He shook his head. “You were supposed to leave the next rescue to me.”
“Next one.” Not if it was in one of her visions. She wrapped her arm around his waist as he slipped his over her shoulder. Yeah, life just couldn’t get any better than this. She squeezed him tight, and he changed course toward the hotel.
When she looked up at him inquisitively, he grinned back at her.
“I thought we’d ensure the vision you had last night would really come to pass,” Dave said.
Dave was sure cute. Of course the twins would arrive just as she foretold, right on time.
###
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
USA Today
Bestselling and award-winning author of urban fantasy and medieval historical romantic suspense, Terry Spear also writes true stories for adult and young adult audiences.
Heart of the Wolf
was named in Publishers Weekly's BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR and was NOR Reader Choice for BEST PARANORMAL ROMANCE.
She’s a retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves and has an MBA from Monmouth University and a Bachelors in Business and Distinguished Military Graduate of West Texas A & M. She also creates award-winning teddy bears, Wilde & Woolly Bears, that have found homes all over the world. When she’s not writing or making bears, she’s teaching online writing courses in the Heart of Texas.
Website: www.terryspear.com
New Book Releases Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/u63qP
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