Tide Will Tell (Islands of Intrigue: San Juans) (26 page)

Emotion rendered her frozen, but only for a moment. Then the sheer will to survive kicked her into action. Without thinking, she slid over into the driver’s seat and shifted the car into reverse. Chase looked up, confusion flashing across his face.

Sitting forward so she could reach the pedals, Kate turned her head, backing the car until she reached the narrow road down to the dock.

Scooting forward in the seat that was adjusted for Chase’s longer legs, she gasped for breath. What was she doing?

She couldn’t second guess herself now. Not when this might be her only chance.

Raindrops pinged against the windshield and she fumbled unsuccessfully to find the switch for the wipers. Giving up the search, she aimed blindly down the drive, relieved to make out a row of dim lights that delineated the edge of the dock.

Reaching level ground, she slammed to a halt and removed the keys from the ignition. A vague thought that Chase must have a key to the yacht on this ring made taking it seem like a good idea.

Yellow tape fluttered in the wind like a flag as she dragged herself out onto the dock.

She tried not to look at the area where she knew the body rested, or to think about poor Tad, who was supposed to be there watching over it. She stumbled to the dinghy, praying that the engine would start this time.

She sat down on the cold, wet dock and slid her body carefully into the unsteady craft. She pulled the start cord. Nothing. She did it a second time. To her relief, the engine came to life. Quickly, she pushed in the choke, looking toward the shore. All she saw was Chase’s car, but no sign of him.

It took everything she had to focus on remembering the steps Sam had taught her, but she managed to pull the boat away from the dock and aim it toward the softly lit form of the yacht. A light rain hit her face and danced down her neck and the small boat rolled on the wavy water.

She fought tears along with nausea. How had her life gone so wildly out of control?

A long minute later, she pulled up next to the yacht, then killed the motor and reached for the metal bar at the edge of the swim platform. She tied the rope at the tip of the dingy to it. Soaked and shivering, she fought the movement of both vessels on the undulating water, and pulled herself onto the wet platform.

Depleted of strength and afraid to stand on the slippery, unstable surface, Kate crawled to the closer of the two stairways that led to the hot tub deck. She grasped at the handrail and managed to pull herself to a standing position on the bottom step, then started up, grateful at least that the rain had subsided.

Hearing an odd sound, she glanced down to her left. Something was in the water, scraping against the side of the boat.

A kayak
.

She froze. It hadn’t even occurred to her that Stuart might have come out to the yacht. Her mind raced. Why hadn’t she remembered what Sam had said about him coming out here whenever he needed to talk to her?

Before she could move, a scuffling sound from up on the deck jolted her down to a crouch on the stairs. Expecting to see Stuart, she leaned back and peered through the batwing gate at the top of the stairs.

Her blood ran cold. It wasn’t Stuart.

It was Joe.

Chapter 28

Terror and disbelief engulfed Kate as she bent down and prayed that Joe hadn’t seen her. Her mind whirled. What was he doing on the yacht?

Instinct told her to make a dash for the safety of the dinghy but before she could move, a sound from the deck below caught her attention.

Peering through the space between the stairs and the metal half-wall which concealed her, she saw Stuart stumbling out of the door to the lower bedroom level and onto the swim platform. The boat rolled, and he banged against the wall below the stairway opposite her, dropping something and letting out an expletive.

She looked down as he bent to pick up whatever it was he had dropped. She gasped in recognition.
Her money pouch!

Joe must have heard him too, because in an instant he stood at the deck railing, just a few feet away from Kate’s head. She could barely see him through the space between the half-wall and the railing.

“What are you doing?” He shouted down at Stuart. “I thought you left.”

He thought he had
left?
Did they know each other? Heart pounding, Kate crouched lower, praying that neither of them would see her. The boat rolled on a wave, sending a surge of queasiness through her stomach.

Clutching the pouch to his chest and struggling to maintain his footing, Stuart looked over his shoulder and up at Joe. “I…I had to get something.”

The money.
He’d come back to get the money, and he didn’t want Joe to know.

But how had Stuart found it? Had he come here looking for Sam and decided to go through Kate’s suitcase? The thought amplified her queasiness.

And if Joe had tracked her here, why hadn’t he found the money first? Surely he wouldn’t have wasted any time, but he must have started his search elsewhere.

She cringed. The thought of either of them going through her things made her stomach roil. Holding her breath, she prayed that Joe would go back inside and that Stuart would get into the kayak. Then she could safely bolt for the dinghy.

Joe glowered down at Stuart, his gray eyes flaring, as he apparently assessed the situation. Then, lifting his gaze, he scanned the distant shoreline. Watching for her? That prospect made her shiver.

Suddenly, his face darkened. “Wait a minute.”

She followed his gaze. The dinghy! It was a dead giveaway of her presence.

Her eyes flicked up at Joe, who frowned as if trying to remember if it had been there before.

“What’s that?” Joe pointed with his chin as he started for the other stairway.

Kate exhaled, grateful that he hadn’t chosen the stairs on which she hid. She had to act quickly. At the pace he was moving, he’d be able to see her hiding place in a matter of seconds.

Crouching low, she scampered soundlessly to the top of the stairs, then under the batwing gate to where Joe had been standing just a few seconds before. She peered down from under the railing. He now stood right next to where the dinghy was tied. That had been close, but what was she going to do now?

“This boat wasn’t here before, was it?” Joe’s voice sounded over the noise of the wind and the water. “Isn’t this what Kathy was supposed to use to get out here?”

Kathy.
The sound of him saying her name made her want to retch.

Looking around, she thought fast. If she moved quickly, she could crawl to the other side of the hot tub. That would conceal her while she made a dash for the door to the salon. Once inside, she could lock herself into a bathroom and call for help.

Ignoring the searing pain in her knee, she prepared to make her move. Joe was angry and had caught on that she was on the boat. She had to hurry or she’d be sunk.

Just as she was about to move, the boat pitched and her purse slipped from her shoulder. As she reached to retrieve it, she saw Stuart stumble again, raising both arms to keep his balance and inadvertently revealing the pouch in his hand.

“Hey.” Joe started toward him. “That’s mine!”

Stuart tried to dive for the kayak, but Joe flew at him, grabbing for the money.

“It’s not yours. It’s Kate’s.” Stuart wrapped his arms around the pouch and hunched over as Joe tried to get at it.

Looking furious, Joe reached into his shirt pocket. He fingered something, then raised his arm over his head. “Give it to me or I’ll kill you!”

Recognizing the object in Joe’s hand, Kate went numb. A scalpel.

No
! Stuart might be a creep, but she couldn’t let Joe kill him over something that was her fault. If only her legs would move, she could call for help. But how long would it take them to arrive?

There was no time. She had to do something now.

She grabbed hold of the railing, then pulled herself to her feet. “No!”

Both men turned to stare up at her.

“Just give him the money, Stuart.” She shouted to be heard over the whipping wind. “It’s not worth it.”

Stuart clung to the cash. “But you said you’d help me.”

She frowned. Was that why he had thought she could buy him a house? He knew about the money even then?

“I’m not kidding, Stuart.” She regarded the scalpel, which Joe had lowered but not retracted. There was no time for discussion. “He says he’ll kill you and he means it.” When Stuart still looked unconvinced, she added, “He’s done it before.”

Joe’s face hardened, a fire of realization igniting in his eyes.

The air left her lungs. What had she just done? If he hadn’t realized before that she knew about Karen, clearly he did now.

Taking a step backward, she waved Stuart toward the kayak. “Hurry, Stuart. Forget about the money. Just go.”

In one swift motion, Joe reeled around, grabbed the pouch out of Stuart’s hands and plunged the scalpel into him.

Stuart made a choking sound then fell back in a heap. Joe pulled the scalpel free and started for the stairs.

Kate gasped. She moved as quickly as she could toward the door to the salon, but Joe grabbed her arms and shoved her forward. Her upper body slammed against the covered hot tub, knocking the wind out of her. She pushed herself around to face him.

“You saw, didn’t you?” He stood just inches from her, the money pouch in one hand and the blade in the other.

Fear tightened her throat. “S…saw?”

“You know what I’m talking about, Kathy. You know about that Hingston woman, don’t you?”

“I…I…I don’t…” She wanted to lie, but denial seemed futile.

“You
saw
.” He fingered the scalpel. “How else would you know?” He waved the weapon in her direction. “Who did you tell?”

“Nobody.” She stared at the red smear on the blade and fought lightheadedness. “I mean, I haven’t told anybody.” She cringed. So much for denial.

“Don’t play games with me, Kathy.” He spit out the words.

“I’m not, I swear.”

He regarded her for a long moment, then backed off slightly. “I
had
to kill her, you know.” He tucked the pouch into the front of his shirt. “It was the only way to shut her up.”

She nodded, as if his reasoning made perfect sense. Maybe if she got his mind off Karen, she could make him think they were allies. “I…I took the money by mistake, and I’m sorry. But everything’s fine now. You can go back to running the clinic, just like before.”

He pierced her with a glare. “There
is
no clinic. It’s closed.”

Closed?
She didn’t care about the clinic, but it had been a safe haven for her friends. If the clinic was gone, where was Dakota? “What happened to everyone?”

“How should I know?” His voice rumbled low and menacing. “That Hingston woman was going to turn me in. Send me to jail for scamming her poor sick father.” He clucked a maniacal laugh. “Stupid woman. No one will connect her to me, and even if they do, I’ll be back in Mexico.”

Slowly, Kate nodded. There had to be a way out of this. She’d been through too much to give up now.

His focus on her sharpened. “But I’m not dumb enough to take any chances.” He raised his arm, and the blade glinted against the dark sky.

Kate flailed. Her hand clasped the neck of the champagne bottle on the bar next to her. She raised it high, then swung it at his arm. The scalpel flew from his hand and skipped across the deck.

As Joe let out a roar of pain, Kate attempted to run. At the top of the stairs. he grabbed her from behind, cursing.

She thrashed against him, but she was no match for his strength. He struck her hard across the side of the head, sending her tumbling sideways, her upper body hurtling over the railing at the edge of the deck. Before she could push herself upright, Joe took hold of her legs and heaved her over. She caught a dizzying glimpse of the inky black water as she careened toward it, then felt herself being consumed by its freezing depths.

She thrashed and fought to get back to the surface, but it was no use. Her damaged right leg had been rendered motionless, becoming more anchor than oar.

She was going to die, and there was nothing anybody could do to prevent it.

Depleted, she stopped fighting. As she drifted toward unconsciousness, something Josh had once said pressed to the forefront of her mind.
God always has my back.

He was right. She had been turning to people to keep her safe, and they hadn’t saved her. She should have been turning to God all along. That was what he had been trying to tell her without pushing it on her.

A sensation of sinking into silent darkness seemed strangely comforting. She had fought hard in this life and done the best she could, but she couldn’t fight any more. At any moment, she’d give in and surrender her final breath.

Then something brushed her arm, jerking her back to wakefulness. A hand grabbed her and she started moving upward.

All of a sudden, her head popped through the surface and her lungs filled, not with water as she’d expected, but with life-affirming air.

“Kate!”

Her name sounded both distant and contained in her own head. She gave in to the sensation of being dragged out of the water and onto a solid surface.

“Kate! Kate!”

The voice seemed familiar. She forced her lids to open, blinking past both ocean water and raindrops as she coughed and wheezed. She tried to focus on the face of her rescuer, just inches from hers, framed by the black night sky.

She smiled. “Josh…”

“Thank God.” Josh’s voice seemed to come from a dream.

Sputtering out something that combined a laugh with a cough, she reached up to touch his cheek, assuring herself that he was indeed real.

The rocking motion of the surface on which she lay brought her back to the reality of the situation. She was once again on the yacht. On the swim platform.

“We have to get you out of here.” As Josh sat back, a dark, hazy form appeared behind him. A raised arm. A familiar glint.

She tried to scream as Joe lowered his arm, clearly aiming for her chest.