Summer Rain (Lightning Strikes Book 3) (2 page)

"I'm not worried."

"Good, because Mom made a snotty comment about how I always find a way to do business even during important family events."

"It's fine, Dani. I think it's wonderful that you're passionate about your job. I've always admired your ambition. I certainly don't have the same drive as you do. You're going to change the world—I know it," she added with a smile.

"I'm not sure about the whole world, but I'd like to make some small changes somewhere. Anyway, that's a conversation for another day. I have something else I want to discuss with you." She pulled a dark-purple velvet pouch out of her handbag and took out a gold band. "The wedding ring that our great-grandmother gave me—I think you should have it. You should wear it today. It will bring you luck."

Alicia immediately put up her hand in protest. "No way. Mamich gave that to you. It's your luck, not mine."

"You know I don't believe in Mayan magic. But you do, so the ring means more to you." What she didn't tell Alicia was that the ring had been weighing on her mind ever since Jake had brought it back from Mexico and given it to her. She didn't know why, but having it made her feel strange—it connected her to something she didn't understand and didn't want to learn more about.

"I'm sorry, Dani, but I can't take it," Alicia said with a definitive shake of her head. "That's the wedding ring our great-grandfather put on our great-grandmother's hand. It was her wish for you to have it. She said it would give you strength. That you would need it."

"It's not magic, Alicia."

Alicia's steady gaze met hers. "Why does it bother you to have it, Dani?"

"It's not very attractive."

"That's not the reason," Alicia said with a dismissive wave of her hand.

"I wasn't close to Mamich or that side of the family. I don't believe in lightning gods and other worlds and all that stuff. I just don't. I have too much of Mom in me, I guess. I'm realistic and pragmatic and I believe in what I can see, what's real."

"None of that matters, Dani. Mamich wanted you to have the ring. So, it’s yours."

She sighed. "Fine, but it would have been a nice
something old
to wear today."

"Mom already gave me the necklace she got from her mother for my
something old
, so I'm covered. Why don't you put the ring on, Dani? I'd love for you to wear it during the ceremony. It would make it feel like Mamich was here with us."

Alicia's pleading gaze made it impossible to say no. And she was just being silly. She could wear the ring. It didn't have actual magic powers. She slipped it on the third finger of her right hand and then immediately wanted to take it off, but she resisted. If she really believed the ring had no power, then it shouldn't bother her to wear it.

Needing a distraction, she said, "Shall we get you into your dress?"

Before Alicia could reply, the door opened, and Katherine Barrett walked in.

Wearing the same bridesmaid's dress that Dani had on, Katherine's golden-blonde hair was pulled back in a French braid, and her blue eyes were sparkling with happiness.

"How's the bride?" she asked, giving Alicia a hug.

"I'm great, and you look so pretty," Alicia replied. "The color of the dress brings out your eyes."

"Thanks. Any nerves?"

"Not about marrying Michael. About this whole wedding hoopla—a few. I really wanted a simple ceremony and a small gathering, but somehow Mom invited half the neighborhood, and all of Michael's relatives from Miami made the trip, even though we're going to have a dinner there in a few weeks to celebrate. I just wasn't expecting this to turn into such a huge affair."

"You need to breathe," Dani said with a laugh as Alicia ran out of breath. "It's all going to be good. Mom will make sure of that."

"She's also the reason I'm nervous. If I mess up her perfect wedding—"

"You won't. You couldn't." She walked over to the gown hanging in front of the closet. "You need to get in your dress now. It's almost time."

With Katherine's help, she got Alicia into a stunning off-the-shoulder, white lace gown.

"Gorgeous," she murmured, truly impressed by the vision that was her tomboy sister. "You clean up nicer than I imagined."

Alicia laughed. "It took a village to get me to this point." She paused. "But seriously…I want to thank both of you for being here, for standing by me. Over the past few months, we've come so close to losing each other that I want you to know how grateful and blessed I am that we're all together."

"We are lucky," Katherine agreed. "There were a few moments in Mexico when I wasn't sure Jake and I would make it back to Texas."

"And a few moments for me and Michael in Miami that made me realize how tenuous a hold we all have on life," Alicia said. "I just wish…"

"That Dad was here," Dani finished.

Alicia's troubled gaze met hers. "That, too, of course. I'm going to miss him walking me down the aisle. But I was going to say that I wish we had all the answers and that I could feel like the danger was over, but I don't."

"Alicia, stop," she said. "Not today. You shouldn't be thinking about anything besides marrying Michael."

"I know, but I can't help myself. Dad has been on my mind a lot the last year, and even more because he isn't here today, and he should be. There are still so many unanswered questions about his death, Dani."

"You're not going to answer those questions today—maybe you never will. Sometimes you have to let go and just accept reality."

"I can't do that," Alicia said, shaking her head. "Dad's death ties into what's been happening at MDT, the leak of classified data, the stolen weapons—it's all linked together in some way. And Mamich told Jake that you're going to find the last piece of the puzzle, that you'll be the one to find the truth, Dani."

A shiver ran down her spine at her sister's words. "Mamich always spoke like she was delivering the last line in a tragic play. She was living in a tiny village in Mexico at the time of her death. How could she possibly know anything?" As she finished speaking, thunder rumbled through the air, sending another shiver down her spine.

"I feel like you just woke someone up," Katherine murmured, an uneasy gleam in her blue eyes.

She frowned at her soon-to-be sister-in-law. Katherine was a doctor, a woman of science. "Woke up who?"

"I don't know—angry lightning spirits?"

"Come on, Katherine. I know you don't believe in any of this."

"I didn't believe before I went to Mexico with Jake, but that trip and meeting your great-grandmother changed my perspective. Things happened there that I can't explain, and they all seem to be tied to lightning."

"Okay, enough," she said firmly. "We are not going to talk about all that now. Today is for you and Michael, Alicia. It's to celebrate your love and your promise to stay together for the rest of your lives. Let's concentrate on that. The unanswered questions have to wait. I want you to have a happy day."

"Fine," Alicia said. "I will shut up for now. But when I get back from my honeymoon, and I'm finally done with all this wedding mania, we are going to talk again."

"Deal."

"It's time," her mother announced from the doorway, interrupting their conversation. "Is everyone ready?" As Joanna Monroe walked into the room, her gaze fell on her youngest daughter and her eyes grew teary. "Oh, Alicia, you look so pretty."

"Don't cry, Mom," Alicia said warningly. "Or I'm going to start."

"Me, too," Dani said with a little sniff. She wasn't usually sentimental, but today she felt overwhelmed with emotion.

"I'll try not to cry, but I make no promises," her mother said, dabbing at her eyes. "The limo is downstairs. It's time to go."

* * *

An hour later, Dani watched Alicia and Michael exchange their vows. The look of love on both of their faces was so powerful and intense that Dani felt a huge tug on her heart. She also saw Jake and Katherine exchanging the same kind of adoring looks from across the aisle. Her siblings were on their way to forming their own families.

She was happy for them, but she felt a little alone, a little wistful. Which was silly, because she had a great life. She just needed to get through the reception, and tomorrow's ribbon-cutting, and then she could be on her way back to her life in DC.

After the ceremony, as Michael and Alicia paused for photos on the steps of the church, Jake caught up with her in between pictures of the entire bridal party.

"How are you, Dani?" he asked. "I haven't had a chance to talk to you since you got here."

"It's been a whirlwind," she replied. "It looks like you and Katherine are doing well."

He grinned. "Better than well. She's the love of my life."

"I think I always knew that. Even in high school, you two had a special kind of something. I'm glad you found your way back to each other."

"With a little help from some lightning," he said dryly.

She sighed. "You're not going to start in on me, too, are you? It wasn't so long ago that you were on my side, and we both thought Alicia was crazy."

"Good point. Now I'm as crazy as she is." He paused, his humor dimming. "I just want you to be careful, Dani. I don't think this is over. And I feel like you're going to be the one to finish it. That makes me worry."

Nervous goose bumps ran down her bare arms. "I don't know what
it
is."

"Neither do I. So watch your back."

"Dani, Jake," Alicia called, waving them over. "We want one more family shot."

"Coming," she said, following her brother up the steps.

As they posed together, she was once again very aware of her father's absence.

In the distance, she could hear the buzzing of a small airplane, another reminder of Wyatt Monroe, the man who had spent so much of his life up in the sky.

The clouds parted for just a moment, a sliver of blue shining through. She hoped that was a good sign. But as quickly as it had come, it disappeared.

Maybe Jake was right. Maybe the storm wasn't over yet.

Two

"It looks good. They'll never forget her now," Patrick Kane told his father, Harris Kane, as they surveyed the newly-landscaped children's playground and park.

The placard at the entrance of the park commemorated his mother, Jackie Kane. His mom had been a congresswoman and a tireless advocate for the poor in her years as a public servant. It had been her dream to turn what had once been a drug and violence-riddled park into a place where children could play safely, where mothers could watch their kids without being afraid of who was watching them. That dream was coming true today, and he couldn't quite believe it. Ever since his mother's death eight years ago, his father had worked on the idea of creating something lasting in her honor, and today it was done.

As he glanced at his father, he saw the stress in his dad's blue eyes. Since becoming a widow, his father's hair had gone from salt-and-pepper to gray and finally to white as he passed his sixty-sixth year. Building this playground and park had kept his dad going through the grief and anger, giving him something positive to think about in the wake of the tragic accident that had taken Jackie's life along with four others. Patrick just hoped that the culmination of his father's vision to honor his mother would be fulfilling for him, and that he wouldn't suffer a huge let-down when it was over.

"I hope the rain holds off," Harris continued, looking up at the sky. "I thought the storm would pass last night, but there is thunder and lightning in tonight's forecast, too. If we have to cancel this—"

"We won't. The rain isn't expected for another hour or two. And you know it won't last long. It's summer in Texas. It will shower, and then it will be done."

"I hope you're right. I want this to be perfect."

He hoped he was right, too, but while it was a little before four in the afternoon, it was dark as night, huge black storm clouds blocking out the sun. It wasn't cold, though. The temperature was in the low eighties, and he was sweating through the dress shirt and tie he'd put on for the occasion.

His father's gaze turned back to him. "I want to thank you, Patrick. This project has taken up a lot of my time over the years, and perhaps there were occasions when I didn't give you as much attention as I should have."

"Not at all, Dad. I wanted this as much as you did. It was Mom's dream, and you made it happen." He'd been twenty-two years old when his mom had died. Sometimes it felt like a lifetime ago, and sometimes it felt like yesterday. "I just wish she could have done it herself."

"We all do, son," Harris said with a heavy sigh. "But it was God's will."

"Was it?" The question came out before he could stop it, and he mentally kicked himself as he saw the change come over his father's expression.

"Patrick, we've talked about this—"

"And I'm sorry I brought it up today," he said, quickly backpedaling. "But the more research I do on the events of that day, the more I wonder if we really know the truth about the plane crash."

"It was an accident, Patrick. Do you really think law enforcement didn't do everything they could to find out what was behind the crash that took the lives of a US congresswoman, a US senator, two staffers and a pilot? You just have to accept that some tragedies are unexplainable accidents. I know it's difficult. I've gone over the same kinds of questions in my head. And I've wasted a lot of time doing that. I don't want to see you make the same mistake, and frankly, I don't understand why you're suddenly so interested. It's been eight years. What's changed?"

He couldn't tell his father what had triggered his renewed interest in the crash, not unless he knew it was true, because the last thing he wanted to do was paint his mother as someone other than the saint everyone believed she'd been, including himself. But since he'd reached out to some of the family members of the people killed in the crash to invite them to the ceremony, he'd heard some comments that made him uneasy. He'd always followed his instincts, especially when it came to mysteries. It was what made him a good investigative journalist.