Obsidian (24 page)

Shelby watched as her uncle loaded the last of the gear onto his boat. He hauled the air tanks aboard one after another and stored them in the blue and white, plastic bait barrels along the stern. The plan was to get her uncle's boat as close to the island as possible without drawing any suspicion. If all went well, they’d look just like any other boat out checking their traps after the storm, and once they had the anchor set they could ditch the boat in favor of the diving gear.

“I figure it’s best if I don’t ask why your uncle has this diving gear stashed here.” Jamie let out a low chuckle.

Shelby turned from the window of the fish house as Jamie was pulling on a wet suit that would protect him from the elements. The dark color of the suit would help to hide him in the early light. Pulling the tab on the zipper, he shrugged his shoulders trying to adjust to the suit, before picking up his gun and placing it into a small, watertight pouch. All that was left was to attach it to the straps and check to make sure it was secure.

“You’re pretty obvious in that outfit. If they’re watching for you they’re bound to notice the suit, won't they?”

Jamie gave her one of his lopsided, slow grins that made her heart beat a little faster. “That’s why I have these great yellow bib overalls to cover them up. Believe me, with these on no one is going to think I’m anything more than another fisherman out there.”

But she would, she realized. She’d have known him anywhere.

Grabbing a sweatshirt from the hook by the wall, Jamie pulled it on over his head. It was large enough to cover the wetsuit and the waterproof bag and still look somewhat normal.

He hoisted the oversized overalls into place and pulled the wide, black straps up over his shoulders. He completed his outfit by pulling on his new rubber boots.

Shelby pulled a baseball cap off the wall and handed it to him. “Here, put this on. It'll help hide your hair and shield your face.”

He got closer to her, as close as he could get without touching her. The gray-blue of his eyes were intense as he stared into hers. His breath was warm against her face and warmth flooded through her. He had that effect on her, the ability to hold her without touching her, to arouse her with a look and make her feel safe
.

“What am I going to do when you're gone?” She said with a laugh, but her attempt at lightening the mood rang a little stale.

“We'll tackle that when this is done.” He chucked his finger under her chin. For right now, she wouldn’t allow herself to think about what would happen when this was over.

Jamie reached out, taking the hat from her. His fingers grazed her shaking hands, sending waves of prickling sensation through her fingertips. He leaned down, brushing his lips against her cheek and trailing downward to her lips, tasting and nipping in a seductive dance before he pulled back. His mouth curved into that languid smile she’d come to cherish as he reached up and stuffed his hair under the old hat.

“Thank you.”

Oh God, she wasn’t going to be able to walk away when she lost him. Not this time. Not this man.

Outside, the low growl of the boat’s engine hummed. It was time. Jamie moved over to the bench and grabbed a pencil and paper. When he was done writing he took her hand and slipped the piece of paper into her palm.

“I want you to wait for one hour after we leave. Unless you hear from me, I want you to call the number on the paper and ask for McAlvey. Tell him I’m heading out to the island and requesting backup. The coordinates are here to give him. If for any reason you are unable to contact McAlvey then get hold of Kearsage at the second number. Tell him that I’m calling in that last favor he owes me. And tell him I need his butt and plenty of backup as soon as he can high-tail it here.”

He gathered her close against him. The restrictions of the layers of his clothes did nothing to hide the heat between them.

This time there was no smile on his lips, only his penetrating gaze staring into her own, looking into her soul. He reached up and brushed a strand of her hair behind her ear as she leaned against him. She couldn’t help herself. As much as she wanted to keep a distance she knew that it was as simple as his smile to turn her heart.

Somewhere along the way her heart had jumped into the fray and it terrified her. She wasn’t sure she was ready to risk her heart again—Deep down, she wasn’t quite sure she hadn’t already given it away.

“I don’t know what is going to happen after this. If my instincts are right, then we may be walking into something pretty deep.”

She rested her head against his chest as his strong arms surrounded her. She could feel the rise and fall of his chest against the palm of her hand. A single tear fell from her cheek, landing on her hand. She wiped it away. The last thing she needed was to let them see her worry. The door opened behind them and she pulled away as her uncle came into the room. She wiped away the wetness on her cheek.

“I’m ready when you are. The boat is loaded and we should be getting out there soon. I noticed Johnson is almost done getting his boat set. We’ll want to get out there with the rest of them.”

“Good,” Jamie said.

Jamie was staring at her, no doubt trying to read her thoughts and trying to communicate without the words the things that neither of them could say.

Her uncle came to stand in front of her. He took her hands within his large grasp and pulled her to him, enveloping her in a hug that surrounded her and comforted her.

“I’ll take care of him.” His words were spoken low, just loud enough for her to hear. Unable to answer, she just nodded.

He pulled back and used his finger to tip her gaze up into his. It hit her hard. She’d been so worried about what was happening with her and Jamie that she hadn’t thought about the possibility of losing her uncle, too. Except for her brother, he was the only family she’d left. Suddenly, she was more alone than she’d ever been in her life.

“Shelby, I know you’re worried, but it'll be fine.” He tried hard to coax a smile from her and she struggled to give him the strength and reassurance.

Her uncle frowned, “When this is over I’m going to have to disappear for a while. I've risked your lives enough being here as long as I have. Once this breaks loose and all of this comes down I can’t be around for the end of it. Jamie understands this.” He looked over at Jamie, who nodded his agreement.

“I’m not sure where I’m going. But I think it’s time I face my own problems and deal with them. When everything is settled I’ll let you know where I am.”

Her uncle leaned down, kissing her cheek and she gave him a quick hug. “Thank you for everything. We couldn’t have made it without you.”

The fierce hulking form of John Case sagged a little for as sadness crossed his face. “Gal, you and Josh are my family. No matter what, I'll make sure your brother gets back here. Just remember that if you ever need me I’ll come. I’m not sure how I’ll know, but I’ll come.”

“I love you.” Tears slid down her cheeks unchecked.

“I love you too, Gal. Don’t forget it.”

He placed a hand upon Jamie’s shoulder. The two men stood shoulder to shoulder and for the first time she was able to see that there were so many similarities between them that it was no wonder she was drawn to Jamie.

“It’s time.” Jamie said as he placed a hand on her cheek before turning and following her uncle out the door. The warmth of his touch lingered on her cheek, as she tasted the salt of her tears upon her lips.

The sky was still a funky gray color with streaking clouds that hovered above the heavy, wet horizon.

Three other boats were heading out of the harbor, checking lines as they went. Case held the wheel tight in hand, fighting to keep the course as they headed out toward the island. The boat pitched and rolled with the rushing waves as water sprayed up over the bow of the boat. Jamie’s stomach lurched as adrenaline rushed through him.

He wasn’t sure what to expect. He never went in without a calculated plan and a backup plan to get himself out if things got tough. Most of the time, he had a team of people to rely on. This time he was going to have to rely on Case to cover his back. Instinct told him to trust the Irishman. That whatever it was in Case's past that had him on the run was something he was going to have to deal with.

He thought of Shelby, stuck behind and unsure of whether they were going to make it back.

The hardest thing he’d had to face in a long time was walking out that door and leaving her standing there. All of his attempts to keep his emotions removed from the case were shattered and this was new territory for him. For the last ten years he’d been a self-confirmed loner who'd spent his life just trying to make sure he didn’t have to rely on someone else.

Recognizing that he wanted more with Shelby was way scarier than walking into a known, dangerous situation. Right now, he only wanted to keep her safe. Even if it meant giving up the fight to find out what had happened to David.

David was gone. If there was such a thing as an afterlife, his friend was sitting on a beach somewhere with a margarita in hand, watching him and having a great laugh over the turmoil he’d created in his life by falling in love with Shelby.

He loved her. It hit him like an explosion with enough force to suck the breath out of him. He couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment. Maybe it had been when he’d been fighting it the most. Whenever it was, the truth filled him with a calmness he couldn’t explain. He’d always thought of love as an all-consuming, a blinding emotion that caused those involved to lose any sense of self. But what he felt now was none of that. Instead, it was an assuring calmness and a bit of peace he hadn’t known for a long, long time.

“We’re almost out to the channel marker buoy off of Spruce Point. I think we ought to at least pull one set of traps so we can look like we’re really out here checking lines.”

Case motioned for Jamie to come up from the stern and reached over the side to hook the buoy, running the line through the hauler and setting the winch in motion to haul the line. As Case checked the traps, Jamie used the binoculars to discreetly survey the activity on the island.

Everything was quiet, except for two men who were loading equipment into the Bayliner he'd seen earlier. It was the same one he'd seen near Marianne’s the night she was killed. The one she’d painted into her portrait. Marianne had pointed a finger to the men who killed her without realizing she was doing it.

Jamie braced his feet as the boat rolled again with the waves. Case was busy pretending to bait the last trap on the line. He’d already thrown the catch overboard so they wouldn’t be kept on the boat when they bailed. It could be a while before someone came back for the boat. Hopefully their little act would look convincing to anyone watching from a distance.

“It looks like they’re planning on leaving.”

Case gave a look through the binoculars. “My guess is that they realize they’ve compromised what they were doing and that we’re onto them. If I were them, I’d be bailing out.”

One of the men started the Bayliner up and pulled away from the shore, heading across to the north side of the harbor and out toward the Point.

“I’m betting that they’ll use the designated spot again to drop their stuff. With very few people out there at this time of year they should be able to get out without any much notice.” Jamie said.

Case slapped him on the back. “It’s show time. Are you ready?”

Jamie had his doubts, but the instincts he’d always relied on were screaming at him now. All of the so-called coincidences that had brought him to Chandler were like neon signs in his mind, and right now all of them had arrows pointing in the opposite direction of where they were headed. He thought of David and what a thrill he’d have gotten out of this case. There was more than David’s death hanging on him going in there. Shelby, Josh and Case relying on him to set things straight, but he still owed it to his old friend to find some answers.

“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.” He took a deep steadying breath. “Let’s go for it.”

Case put a hand to his shoulder. “I want you to promise me that when this is over you’ll take care of her.” When Jamie started to protest, Case held up a hand to stop him.

“Boy, if you don’t know your own feelings by now, then it isn’t my place to tell you. But what I’m asking of you is that you make sure she's going to be okay for me. I can’t be there to do it, so I’m relying on you to see this to an end.”

“Don’t worry about Shelby. I’ll make sure she’s alright.”

Case nodded, showing that he understood. Then he turned to the wheel and started bringing the boat around.

He faced the boat so that the view of the stern was shielded from the island. It was hard to hold the position with the force of the white caps pushing at the boat, but within seconds they had both stripped out of the extra clothing and pulled out the diving gear and tanks.

“We should be able to get ourselves over to the secluded cove toward the back of the island. That’ll bring us in just below the house. If we get split up then we’ll meet up just beyond the group of rocks that head up the trail.”

Jamie nodded in agreement.

Case checked his own gun and slid it into the waterproof pouch before fixing it around his waist.

Jamie slid his feet into the flippers and put on the mask and breathing apparatus. He looked over at Case who had done the same and was giving him a ready signal.