Murder at Dolphin Bay (Sand and Sea Hawaiian Mystery Book 1) (4 page)

I parked my old Jeep in the drive behind Luke’s new truck. I unbuckled Sandy and we headed up the walk to the front door. I rang the bell and only had to wait a moment for Luke to answer. Standing behind him were two golden retrievers he introduced as Duke and Dallas.

Once we were comfortable the dogs were going to get along, Luke led me to the patio, where he’d set up a table near the pool for our lunch. The pool had a large waterfall spilling into it on one end that reminded me of the natural falls Kekoa and I had hiked to on Kauai the previous summer. I could see Luke had gone to a lot of trouble to incorporate native plants around the pool that really gave you the feeling of being smack dab in the middle of a tropical jungle. The patio itself was made of a dark brown tile that contrasted with the white sand surrounding it in a very aesthetic manner.

Ono sandwiches and a fresh fruit salad that looked as if they’d been prepared in the kitchen of a fine restaurant were waiting on a waterside table. Maybe they had. “This looks delicious,” I said. Luke certainly seemed to be able to afford a personal chef and I’d seen his kitchen when Brody had brought me by; it was magnificent.

I sat down at the table, which had been placed in the shade of a large palm and looked out toward the ocean in the distance. The view wasn’t as awesome as being right on the beach like my condo was, but it was pretty darn nice. When you added in the green from the pastures and the lush foliage it was a beautiful spot to have a meal.

“So how many horses do you have?” I asked after I served myself.

“Twelve. Actually thirteen as of two days ago, when Lucifer was born.”

“Lucifer?”

“The newest addition to my stable. Would you like to meet him after lunch?”

Surprisingly, I realized I would. I really, really hated horses, but how terrifying could a two-day-old foal be?

Luke and I chatted about the remodel he’d been doing to the house, his future plans for his stable, and general conversation about the island and the people we knew while we ate. I found him to be a lot more interesting than I ever imagined he would or could be. I mean, his best friend was Brody, who was a nice guy but a total slacker and a bit of a screwup. I guess I just figured if Luke was as rich as he appeared to be and still wanted to hang out with Brody, he must be nothing more than a spoiled kid who avoided responsibility and lived off his dad’s money. The past twenty-four hours had been a real eye-opener.

“How did you and Brody become friends? On the surface the two of you don’t seem to have much in common.”

“Brody and I met when we collided on a wave.”

I laughed. Brody
was
a wave hog.

“My first instinct was to deck the guy not only for stealing my wave but for almost killing me in the process. But he seemed so genuinely sincere in his apology that I decided to let it go. He invited me for a beer, I accepted, and we got to talking. We had a really good time. I’d just moved to the island and didn’t know anyone, while Brody had grown up here and knew everyone. He offered to introduce me around, and when I found out he was living in his car, I offered to let him stay in my pool house until he got on his feet. That was two years ago.”

“Let me guess: he still lives in the pool house.”

Luke smiled. “Yeah, he does. I know he’s probably taking advantage of our friendship, but he’s a good guy and we have fun together. We each have our own space, yet if I want to share a beer at the end of the day there’s someone to join me. It’s worked out for both of us.”

“You know that unless you kick him out he’s going to live here until they take him away in a body bag?”

“Yeah, I know, but it’s working for now, and if at some point it stops working, I guess I’ll deal with it. How’s the ono.”

“It’s fabulous. Did you grill it yourself?”

“Of course. If there’s one thing a Texan knows how to do it’s grill anything and everything.”

I hated to admit it, but I was having the best time in spite of the horses running freely just across the pasture. Of course I wasn’t here to be pampered, I was here to work. “Were you able to dig up any new information on the project Cole was working on?”

“Actually I was. It turns out the resort project is being proposed by a development firm known as CAD Development.”

“Cad?”

“Cole, Anderson, and Devlin. I looked into the financial position of all three men and it’s obvious they were being backed by investors not listed on the incorporation papers. At this point I have no idea who they might be or what they might have at risk if the development falls through.”

“It might fall through?”

“It just might. CAD Development purchased the land they plan to build the resort on but haven’t yet obtained all the permits they’ll need to continue with the project. Or at least they hadn’t obtained them as of the report I found, which was dated ten days ago. In all fairness, I suppose things could have changed, but I sort of doubt it. The main stumbling block, as far as I can tell, is from groups that have petitioned the court to put a stop to the development based on a number of environmental issues.”

“So, theoretically, Cole and associates could very well have spent the money the investors put up and not be able to follow through with the project.”

“Theoretically.”

“I guess they could sell the land and cut their losses if the construction is blocked.”

“They could,” Luke agreed, “but if the environmental groups are successful in blocking construction the land will be worth a fraction of what CAD paid for it.”

I supposed that made sense. The reason it was such a highly valued piece of land was due to the fact that it would make a killer location for a high-end resort. Once the project was shut down it would be pretty much impossible to remarket the property as land that could be developed for this purpose. “Okay, so who are we suspecting in Cole’s murder? If it was one of the environmentalists who was killed I would suspect Cole, Anderson, Devlin, or one of the investors, but who stands to benefit from Cole’s death?”

“I’m not sure yet. I haven’t had a lot of time to dig around, but it’s a start. How about you? Have you learned anything new?”

I explained that it appeared a toxin found in certain types of sea creatures might be the cause of Cole’s death. I reiterated that it was my opinion that the missing glass had something to do with the murder. The toxin may have been delivered in the drink, but no one could find the glass or the redhead I spoke to, which was odd.

“You said the redhead was at the scene. Where did she come from?”

“I’m not sure. She was just someone in the crowd standing around the body. She said she’d been there most of the day and had seen a woman bring the drink to Cole, but according to Colin, no one remembered seeing her.”

“Colin?”

“One of the HPD on the scene.”

Luke sat back in his chair. I liked the fact that I had his full attention. Having someone’s full attention was a lot rarer than you might think it would be.

“So where did she go after you finished speaking to her?”

I thought about it. I tried to remember whether I’d seen her walk away, but I really wasn’t certain.

“I’m not sure. We were talking when Kekoa ran up. I turned my attention to her, and Jason and his team arrived shortly afterward. I wanted to get a look at Cole’s room before anyone else had the opportunity, so we left. I never did turn back to look for the redhead again. I suppose she was still standing there when I left.”

Luke didn’t even flinch when I mentioned sneaking into Cole’s room. There was no doubt about it; I was beginning to like this guy more and more as I got to know him.

“Do you think she could be the one who took the glass?” Luke asked.

“I don’t know. I suppose anyone who was there could have taken it.”

“You said Jason and his team had just arrived when you left. What would you say the time lapse was between you leaving the vicinity of the body and Jason arriving on the beach?”

“Not long. Maybe a minute at the most.”

“So the glass was on the table one minute and gone the next. The person who took it had to have been right there.”

Suddenly I wanted very much to figure out who the woman with the curly red hair was and how she might or might not have been involved in my mystery.

“There must be someone on the beach who saw the woman. I’m working tomorrow. I’ll be sure Mitch assigns me to tower two again so I can ask around. A lot of the locals who frequent that beach are there almost every day. The woman was actually very striking with all that red hair. Someone must know who she is.”

“I’m sure someone does. Don’t worry; we’ll figure this out.”

I smiled at Luke. He really seemed to be going out of his way to be supportive and helpful. I’m not sure why I’d never noticed how intelligent he was. Probably because I’d made it my mission in life to avoid him.

“Would you like another sandwich?” Luke asked after I’d cleaned my plate.

“No, thank you. I’m stuffed. It was really delicious. Ono is my favorite fish.”

“Mine as well. If you’re finished eating would you like to meet Lucifer?”

“I am. And then maybe you can show me around before we have to head to the Jungle.”

“The jungle?”

“It’s a bar. I’ll explain while we walk.”

Lucifer was absolutely the most adorable baby of any kind I’d ever seen. He was pure black with huge eyes and seemed to like me from the moment we met. I had a feeling a beautiful friendship was in the making, even if he was a horse who would someday grow to an enormous, life-threatening size.

“He’s so cute.” I hung over the railing of the corral, watching Lucifer interact with his mother. “Much too cute to be named Lucifer.”

“He won’t be cute for long. His father is enormous and I’m hoping Lucifer will be as well. As for the name, I had a black stallion named Lucifer when I was a child. He was probably my favorite of all the horses in my life. I guess I have a fondness for the name.”

“It’s so weird to think of you as a kid. Do you have siblings?”

“Two older brothers and two older sisters.”

I smiled as Lucifer began to nurse. “So you’re the baby of the family?”

Luke nodded. “To be honest, it’s a designation I still find myself trying to overcome.”

“I get that. My brothers think it’s their duty to coddle and protect me. It’s like having six overprotective fathers instead of just one. I think the fact that my number still hasn’t come up for the police academy might be directly related to interference from the J team.”

“The J team?”

I explained about the name thing and the tendency of all my brothers to treat me like I was some sort of fragile flower. Although I had no proof, and there were admittedly other factors such as my size and tendency to get into trouble that might also be working against me, I suspected one or more of my brothers has used their influence to ensure that my name remained firmly at the bottom of the list.

“Wow, that’s rough,” Luke sympathized. “I guess I was coddled when I was young, but since I’ve become an adult I feel like I’ve earned the respect of my siblings. At least most of the time. Though none of them understand why I wanted to move to New York and they really didn’t get why I would want to live in Hawaii. There’s even been talk among some family members of an intervention.”

I laughed. “Do they all still live in Texas?”

“Not only do they all still live there, they all live within thirty miles of the ranch where we grew up. My oldest brother plans to take over the family ranch when my dad retires, so he still lives on the property, although he does have his own house.”

“Is he married?”

“Single.”

“And your other brother?”

“My dad helped him buy his own spread just down the road. He’s also single, in case you were wondering.”

“And your sisters?”

“Both married to ranchers they’ve known their whole lives.”

“So you really were the only one to leave the nest and try new things?”

“Pretty much. Like I said, none of them understand my thinking in the least, but because I support myself and don’t depend on financial support from the family, there isn’t much any of them can do about it.”

I stepped down from my elevated position on one of the crossed boards that made up the corral. “I love my family and really can’t imagine not having them in my life, but I do sometimes wonder if they aren’t holding me back. Was it hard to make the break and do your own thing?”

Luke paused. “Not really. I guess I never gave it a lot of thought. I just went off to college as was expected of me, and when I graduated I decided to try something other than ranching. I’m not sure my decision to leave Texas had anything to do with my family. At least not on a conscious level. But now that we’re talking about it, maybe I did want a chance to prove I could make it on my own.”

Suddenly Luke was not only moving from the position of enemy to friend but it seemed as if we might be kindred spirits. This wasn’t good. This wasn’t good at all. The next thing I knew we’d be surfing together, and maybe grabbing a cold one at the end of the day. There was only one place a relationship like that could lead, and there was no way I was ever going to climb onto the back of a four-legged death machine.

“Do all your brothers work for HPD?”

“No. My second oldest brother Jason just recently made detective for HPD, and my fourth brother Justin is a street cop on the force, but John, Jimmy, and Jeff live on and work for the police departments on other islands. John is the oldest, and he intentionally applied for the Maui PD because he didn’t want to work under my dad, who has since retired but was very much active when John was ready to begin his career. I was kind of surprised when Jason stayed on the island because he hasn’t always gotten along with our dad, but he married a local girl who wanted to stay close to her family. My third brother, Jimmy, lives and works on Kauai, and my youngest brother, Jeff, works on the Maui PD with John.” I felt myself blushing. “I really don’t know why I’m telling you all this.”

“Because we’re getting to know each other and I asked?”

“Yeah, I guess. I think you’d like my brothers. They make me nuts at times, but they’re all good guys. They’ll all be at my parents’ house on Sunday. You should stop by.”

Yikes. Did I really just invite Luke to attend a family dinner?

“I’d like that. There’s a buyer for one of my mares coming by in the morning to take a second look at her, but if it works out I’d like to meet your family.”

I shrugged. Best to play it cool. “Yeah. Whatever. I can text you the address. Which mare are you selling?”

“The little blond mustang that was in the pasture when you first entered the drive. The buyer lives on the island and is looking for a gentle mare for his daughter. I think Honey will be perfect.”

“Is that what you’re doing up here? Breeding stock to sell?”

“Not really. At least not at this point. The man who’s interested in Honey is a friend of sorts, and I wanted to help match his daughter with the perfect horse, so I offered to sell Honey to him if the daughter liked her once she met her. When I was looking for someone to breed Halo to—that’s Lucifer’s mother—I realized how challenging it can be to find just the right pairing. If this works out like I hope it will I might try it again, so I suppose there will come a point when I’ll have to sell off some of my stock to make room for others.”

“At least you have a lot of room to work with.”

“I do. Would you like to see the house?”

The house was gorgeous. When you entered there were hallways to both your right and left that led, I assumed, to other wings of the huge home. If you continued straight the space opened up to a great room with a wall of windows looking out over the sea. The great room was a huge area that would accommodate quite a large party. To the left of it was a large kitchen, which I’d seen when I’d been to the house with Brody, and a large dining area.

Each of the hallways seemed to branch into another. I was pretty sure I’d get lost in the maze should I ever have the chance to be in the house alone. When I’d visited it with Brody we’d come in off the patio through the kitchen door. I’d seen the great room from the kitchen but hadn’t had the opportunity to view the rest of the house.

“It’s really an amazing place.”

“Thank you. I’ve put a lot of work into it. It was pretty run-down when I bought it, but I knew finding such a large piece of land wasn’t going to be easy, so I decided to take on the fixer-upper rather than looking for the perfect house.” Luke looked at his watch. “What time was Branson supposed to meet his contact at the bar?”

“Four. I guess we should go. I’m not sure if the person he was set to meet knows he’s dead and therefore won’t show up, or if the news hasn’t carried that far inland yet.”

“How are we going to figure out who he was supposed to meet even if he or she does show up?”

“I have no idea.”

“We’ll take my truck, and then I’ll bring you back here afterward to get your Jeep.”

“What about Sandy?”

“He’ll be fine hanging out here with Duke and Dallas.”

The drive inland was beautiful. Although I’ve lived on this island my entire life, the beauty never ceases to cause me to catch my breath and give thanks for the majesty surrounding me.

The Jungle Bar can only be reached by turning off the highway onto a narrow road that feeds into a dirt drive. The bar is strictly a locals’ establishment where any visitors who might stumble on to the place are quickly made aware they aren’t welcome. The place itself looks like nothing more than a frond-covered hut from the outside, but inside it’s warm and welcoming in a rustic sort of way. Luke and I arrived with fifteen minutes to spare. We ordered drinks and took a seat in the corner, away from the spotlight but in a good position to see everyone who entered or exited the establishment.

Although it was early, there were already quite a few patrons: all men, some shooting the breeze and some shooting pool. There was live music at night, performed by local musicians, and although the place was well off the beaten path it tended to attract a steady clientele. Still, I was surprised to see so many customers so early in the day. I’d dated a guy for a while who loved this place, so although it had been some time since I’d dropped in, I knew the bartender and wasn’t considered to be an outsider. Luke and I spoke quietly so as not to be overheard, but we really didn’t want to attract attention.

“Any idea what we’re looking for?” Luke asked.

“Something that doesn’t fit.”

Given the fact that the Jungle catered to locals and locals only, Luke was one of the few haoles on the premises, yet no one seemed to care that he was there. There were a few transplants who had earned membership rights in the unofficial club, but more often than not they were accompanied by people with Hawaiian blood, like me.

After we’d been at the bar for about fifteen minutes a beautiful woman with dark hair and light skin walked in alone. She headed straight for the bar, where she said something to the bartender that I couldn’t quite make out before making her way to a table at the back of the room. The woman was stunning, and although she looked somewhat out of place, no one paid her any attention, which told me this wasn’t her first visit to the establishment. She sat down across from a man of Japanese descent who had been sitting alone. He looked vaguely familiar, but I couldn’t quite place him. Still, I was certain I’d seen him before.

I watched as the woman said something to him, then took a thumb drive from her cleavage and handed it to him. He inserted the drive into a small handheld device. He paused for several seconds while I assumed he waited to see something specific occur on his screen; then he put the device and thumb drive in his pocket, stood up, and left the bar. The woman waited approximately two minutes before standing up and walking out as well. I used my phone to take a quick photo of her while pretending to check my messages.

“Should we follow her?” Luke asked after the woman walked out the door.

“No. Let’s have another drink.”

“Another drink?”

“The man standing in the corner with a pool stick but not playing pool is watching the other patrons. It’s my guess he’s watching to see if anyone follows either the man or the woman. I don’t come here a lot, but I do come often enough that my presence isn’t suspect, in spite of the fact that I’m from a cop family. But if we get up now we may as well announce our real reason for being here.”

Luke actually looked impressed by my logic. “Another rum?”

“Make it a double,” I answered. “A little karaoke should dispel anyone’s suspicions as to our real reason for being here.”

“You sing karaoke?”

“I’ve been known to after a few shots. I’m actually somewhat famous for it around these parts. Don’t get me wrong: I’m terrible. But an off-key rendition of some currently popular song will dispel any doubts that anyone who was placed here as a lookout may have as to my reason for being here.”

After two more rounds and three really bad songs, Luke and I left and headed back toward his ranch. The fact that I’d stopped singing a good fifteen minutes earlier and Luke was still laughing went a long way toward dispelling the warm and fuzzy feeling I’d found myself beginning to develop toward him.

“It wasn’t that bad,” I defended myself.

“Oh, yeah. It really was. At one point you sounded exactly like a cat on a hot tin roof.”

“Very funny. I wasn’t trying to be good. I wanted everyone to think I was a lot drunker than I was. I have no idea who the woman was, and although the man looked familiar, I couldn’t place him. I have a bad feeling about whatever it was that just went down.”

“Do you think maybe we should fill your brother in on all this?”

“Maybe,” I admitted. “Let’s see if we can figure out the identity of the woman in the bar and then decide for sure.”

“We can Google Branson. Maybe he was seen in public with her at some point and a photo will identify her by name.”

It was a long shot, but at this point it was the only lead we had.

When we returned to the ranch Luke made us salads with fresh greens and ahi tuna. We took our light meal out onto the patio, where he had set up electrical wiring to be used specifically with his computer and other electronic equipment. The patio area had its own source of high-speed Internet, creating an outdoor office of sorts that ran the equipment as efficiently as the office inside his home.