Dangerous Depths (3 page)

Two

T
he appearance of the Aloha Dive Shop didn’t live up to its welcoming name. The salt-weathered clapboard structure squatted against the spray of wind and surf at the curl of beach on the south shore of Moloka’i just outside Kaunakakai. Kaunakakai Harbor was the only really safe anchorage on Moloka’i, and nearly all the dive operations were located along the quiet little quay. Hawai’i’s barrier reef made the waters calm most seasons and was the perfect haven for marine vessels. Bane Oana was already smiling in anticipation as he strode toward Tony Romero’s building.

The thought of seeing Tony helped get his mind off Leia’s cool reaction to his appearance. He’d anticipated and dreaded the moment when he’d see her again, and the experience had lived up to all his trepidation. He wanted to be able to greet her as an old friend and not have his heart kick like a whale’s fluke, but he wasn’t that lucky. One look into her blue eyes, and he was even more determined to find out why she’d broken their engagement. He should have come back sooner, but she’d gone to San Francisco and he’d been on assignment and couldn’t get away. This time he wasn’t leaving until he knew what had changed her.

He glanced at Leia out of the corner of his eye. Her tanned legs stretched out of her white shorts and had no trouble matching his long stride as they walked from the parking lot to the building. Nearly six feet tall, she could almost look him in the eye. She walked with her shoulders back and her head high, her gaze straight ahead. She’d always been oblivious of her beauty. A thick brown braid hung over one shoulder, a rope he’d often hefted in his hand and entwined around his arm. He loved the touch of it, the smell of it—a mixture of Hawaiian flowers and herbs. Being around her again made him feel as if he were balancing on the edge of his surfboard with a monster wave at his back. He might surf on to glory or wipe out and have to slink away in humiliation.

Eva clung to his hand, and Bane squeezed her fingers before releasing her in front of the dive shop. He ignored the way the cat kept putting her paw on his arm.

“I’m going to go look for another
honu
,” Eva told him.

He nodded, and she skipped off toward the water. Stepping inside, he glanced around the familiar space. The shelves were crowded with stacks of fins, reef shoes, snorkels, and masks. Racks of postcards and swim goggles crowded the aisles, and displays of T-shirts and bathing suits plastered every available inch of wall space, filling the air with the scent of a mixture of rubber and new clothing. The aroma was as comforting to Bane
as old shoes and brought back the memories of working here. Some of the best years of his life had been spent in this place. He suppressed a smile at the way Leia was sniffing the air. He often joked that she had a nose more sensitive than his dog’s.

He glanced around the small area, packed with tourists talking to dive instructors. He didn’t recognize most of the divemasters. The turnover here tended to be high. Though Moloka’i proclaimed itself to be “the most Hawaiian of the islands,” it was also the most quiet. Many who came here looking for work found it to be too rural for their tastes and moved on to the bright lights of O’ahu or Maui. His gaze stopped at the dark head of hair he was looking for. Antonio Romero—Tony to his friends—bent over the cash register as he rang up rental snorkel gear for a family of four. As the family left the counter, he straightened and saw Bane.

Tony’s lips parted in a smile that flashed unnaturally white teeth. “Bane! When did you blow into town? Is the research ship here too?” He came around the end of the counter and grabbed Bane. The two men did what Bane called “the man hug,” a brief clasp of one hand on a shoulder and one hand in a handshake.

“Just me so far, but the
Pomaik’i
will be here later today. You look healthy and happy. Ready to find that treasure?” Bane nodded toward the doubloon hanging on a gold chain around Tony’s neck.

Tony fingered the coin. His smile held even more confidence than usual. He glanced around and lowered his voice. “I’m glad you’re here, Bane. I need a friend I can trust. This is it, my friend. We’re all going to be rich.”

“I think I’ve heard that one before.”

“I’m serious, Bane.” Tony dropped his voice and leaned in. “I found an old man out at the leper colony who says he knows where the treasure is buried. He says he knows where to find the ship’s remains too.”

Leia leaned in. “Koma?” Her lips held a wry twist. “Last week he told Eva he saw Ku coming out of the fishpond.”

Tony’s bright smile faded. “I believe him,” he said in a sullen voice.

“About Ku or the ship?” Leia smiled as if to take the sting out of her jibe.

“We’ve heard those ship stories for years, Tony,” Bane said. “Two years ago you were sure the ship was sunk off Mokapu Island. That was a bust. What makes you so sure this time?”

“This guy says his ancestor helped bury it. If you’re so skeptical, why did you hire on to help look?”

Bane didn’t answer, not with Leia listening. “If you’re so sure it’s been buried on land, why do you want to search the ocean floor?”

Tony flushed. “Okay, I admit Koma’s story is a little farfetched, but I want to follow every lead. I want that treasure no matter where it is.”

Bane studied his friend’s face. The safest course of action was to change the subject. “We’ve already got problems. I dropped my plane into the drink off Kahi’u Point this morning. Have you mapped that area at all?”

“There’s a wreck I dive out there some when the weather is good. The reef is a decent size in sixty feet of water, then if falls off sharp into blue hole. If it’s in the deep, you’re in trouble.”

“My equipment is down there.” It was probably trashed now. “Hey, where’s that new wife of yours? I’d like to meet her.”

Tony nodded in the direction of the bikini display. “Hawking our wares.”

Bane raised his eyebrows at the sight of the leggy blonde knitting a minuscule bathing suit. She sat on a stool with a bag of yarn beside her. A frown creased her smooth fair skin. Honey-colored hair rippled down her back to her waist. The pictures he’d seen hadn’t done her justice.

“Get your tongue back in your head,” Tony said with a grin. “That’s the reaction of every man who comes in here. She’s good for business.” His voice held more than a trace of smugness. Tony motioned to his wife. “Candace, Bane’s here.”

Candace glanced their way, then put her yarn down and walked over to join them. Her smile was eager, and she held out her hand. Bane shook it. There were no bright lights, no kick of the pulse, and Bane managed to hide his relief that even though she was beautiful up close and personal, he could admire her as he would a painting and feel no real attraction.

He grinned at Tony. “A gorgeous wife who actually knits. Why are you even bothering with a lost treasure that’s probably just a myth?”

“I tell him the same thing,” Candace said. “I’ve heard a lot about you. Tony thinks you’re some kind of superman. How long do you think it will take to find the treasure so he quits being so obsessed and notices he has a wife?”

He jabbed Tony in the ribs. “In the ten years we’ve been buddies, I bet we haven’t had a single conversation where the subject didn’t come up. As far as finding the boat, our chances would have been better if my plane hadn’t taken a nosedive into the Pacific. It’s going to set us back some.”

“How far back?” Tony demanded. “Hurricane season has started. I know the chances of being hit are slim, but that’s what we thought about ‘Iniki. It would be just my luck to have to worry about the site being mucked up.”

“Cool it, Tony. We’ll do the best we can.” Tony’s drive some-times irritated Bane.

Candace reached under the counter and withdrew a handful of pills, which she gave to Tony. “You forgot your vitamins this morning.”

“See how she takes care of me?” Tony grinned. “She and Leia have a lot in common.” Tony downed the pills with a swig from the water bottle she handed him. “Thanks, baby. Let’s get to diving.”

A commotion drew everyone’s attention to the front door. Voices raised, something banged, and a projectile of swim goggles flew past Bane’s head. Tony spewed out a few choice words and stepped past Bane. Bane followed his friend.

A burly man dressed in khaki shorts and a T-shirt that read Hans Dive Shop stood near the front door. His blond crew cut made his face look even more round, and his bulbous nose and heavy arms made Bane think of Popeye. The guy’s eyes were slitted in his red face, and he had his hands fisted on his hips. His eyes squeezed even tighter when he saw Tony. “I’ve had enough of your tactics, Romero. Play fair, and there’s enough to go around. A party of six canceled on me at the last minute, and they just went off with one of your divemasters. I’m sick of it. Back off or you’ll be sorry.”

Tony crossed his arms over his chest. “Then stop putting oil in my air-fill station, Hans.”

The other man sneered. “Having trouble with your air station? How like you to blame someone else, Romero.”

“So you admit you sabotaged them?”

“Stuff it.” Hans unclenched his fists. “You use people for your own gain.” He reached out and yanked on the gold doubloon around Tony’s neck. Tony pulled it out of his fingers. “You flaunt this and con people into thinking they might be the ones to help you find that stupid treasure. I’ve cut my prices to rock bottom, and you still snag all the business.”

Divemaster Dirk Forsythe came out of the back room. Six-four and built like a boxer, his size could be intimidating. His thick blond brows lowered as he appraised the situation, then he moved quickly to Tony’s side. “Trouble, boss?”

“Nothing I can’t handle, Dirk. Hans was just leaving.” Tony opened the door and gave Hans a pointed look.

Hans pressed his lips together then stomped to the door. He turned and shot a glance toward Leia. “The kind of company you keep is witness enough of the kind of man you are, Romero. The daughter of a thief and every lowlife who happens to want a job.”

Bane sprang toward the door at the slur on Leia’s
character, but she grabbed his forearm. “Let it go, Bane,” she whispered. “He’s not worth it.”

Several months ago, Leia’s dad was working a security shift for the museum on O’ahu when some valuable Hawaiian artifacts went missing. He’d been exonerated from the crime, but he’d lost his job, and people believed what they wanted. Bane pressed his lips together and narrowed his gaze on Tony. “What was all that about? What’s his beef with you?”

Tony shrugged. “Hans is no businessman. His dive shop is barely making it. Mine is doing well, and he blames me for his own incompetence. The island can only support one dive shop, and I’m it.”

At least one thing Hans said was true: one glimpse of the gold doubloon around Tony’s burnished neck had tourists eager to find the mysterious Spanish treasure ship lost somewhere in the deep blue recesses of Hawai’i’s waters.

“It’s just business,” Tony said. “Look, you want to meet the divers I’ve been working with? We were about to go out to look for the boat today, but we can look for the plane instead. Come with us.”

“You’re the eternal optimist.” Bane glanced at his watch. Ron wouldn’t be ready to do anything about recovery until later this afternoon, maybe not until tomorrow morning. “I need to call Kaia first. What about Leia and Eva?”

“We’ve got room for everyone.” Tony smiled and motioned to Dirk, who came toward them. “It’s Dirk’s fault our ratio of female to male divers has gone from 30 percent to 60 percent.”

Dirk grinned and shook Bane’s hand. “Don’t listen to anything he says. The ladies eye him more than they do me, but Candace makes sure they know he’s taken. I am too. Did you hear? I got engaged over the summer. Much to Tony’s relief.” He jabbed his boss with his elbow. “Even though I told him Candace and I were just friends, he was afraid I was pining for her since he whisked her away.”

Candace and Dirk once worked together on O’ahu, and Bane had heard the story of how Tony fell for her at a luau Dirk attended. Candace had come as Dirk’s date. “Congratulations,” Bane said. “When’s the big day?”

“I’ll show up whenever Steph tells me to. Wait until you meet her. She’s a keeper. I’d say she was prettier than Candace, but Tony would take me down.” He grinned, then thrust his hands into the pockets of his denim shorts. “Good to see you again, Bane. I wish I was going diving with you today. I’m on shop duty. You ready to go out fishing again one of these days?”

“You name the day. I want to catch that marlin that got away the last time.” Bane had always liked Dirk. In spite of Tony’s jibes about the ladies, most men liked Dirk too. Bane took the cordless phone Tony handed him and dialed Kaia’s number. Kaia answered right away.

“Hey, sis, can you get here any sooner? I dropped my plane into the water. I wouldn’t mind having Nani help me find it.”

The pleasure in Kaia’s voice dimmed until Bane assured her he was uninjured. “I’ve got a project to finish up. I don’t think I can get there in less than three days.”

“Oh well, it was only a thought. I’ll figure out something. I just appreciate you bringing her over to help search for the ship. See you soon.” He hung up then went outside, where he helped pack up the truck with tanks of oxygen, regulators, weights, and other scuba equipment. They found Eva on her stomach on the dock, staring into the water. She squealed when she found out she was going diving.

Leia had wandered off to talk to Candace. Bane handed the phone back to Tony. “So how are your latest divers working out?”

“They’re fine.” Tony looked over his shoulder at his wife, but she was fifteen feet away talking to Leia. “Well, except for one. Did I ever tell you about Shaina Levy?”

“The designer from New York? Yeah. What about her?”

“She’s here. I’ve got a big problem.” He chewed his bottom lip. “She says her kid is mine. I had lunch with her today, and she’s pushing me to get a paternity test.”

Bane raised his brows. “Is it possible?”

Tony shrugged. “Maybe. I’d like to know why she waited this long to tell me though.”

“Did you ask her that?”

“Yeah. She says the kid, Andi, has some health problems, and she needs financial help now. New York hasn’t been good to her lately. I hired her to keep her quiet, but if Candace finds out, there will be fireworks.”