Unforgettable (22 page)

Abbie’s soulful eyes blinked twice, and she made little sucking sounds. Cradling the pup in one arm, Lucky took a bottle of goat’s milk from the refrigerator and put it in the microwave.

“There.” She touched her index finger to Abbie’s jet-black nose. “It’ll just be a few seconds.” Dodger rubbed against her leg, his way of getting her attention. She dropped to her knees, not wanting him to feel left out. “This is Abbie.”

Dodger backed up, held his ground, then slowly approached. He sniffed Abbie, nosing around her tiny head, then swiped her with his big tongue. Abbie leaned into the caress, mewling with contentment. Dodger licked her again, this time moving closer.

“Wark! Wark!” cried Abbie.

“Well, I guess you’ve made a new friend.” Lucky petted Dodger, running her hand over his smooth fur.

She loved animals, trusting them more than she did people. And she identified with these two special animals. She was adept on the computer because there was something in her brain that knew what to do, but she enjoyed working with animals even more. If Greg didn’t need her help in the office, she would spend all day down here.

Dodger at her feet, Lucky was in the rocker, giving Abbie her bottle and crooning a ballad to her. She heard a noise and looked up to see Sarah and Molly.

“Yucky! Yucky!” squealed Molly, reaching out for Lucky.

“Honey, Lucky’s busy. She can’t hold you
and
the baby
seal.”

“Hi, there,” Lucky said. “What brings you here?”

Sarah put Molly down and the child toddled off. “I came by to check out your roots. Hmm. Just as I suspe
cted. Your hair is even darker
than the color we dyed it. It’s the same shade as your eyebrows.”

“Does that mean we’re going to have to dye it again?”

“No. We can leave it for a few weeks. It won’t be noticeable until then.”

“Sweetie,” Sarah said to Molly, who was inspecting the trash can, “look at the seal. Can you say
seal?"

Molly ignored her mother, toddling toward Dodger instead. “Doggie. Doggie.” She smacked him on the snout, giving him a noisy kiss, and began talking gibberish to him.

“Is everything all right?” Sarah asked. “Are you okay?”

“Sure. Things are great.” Lucky wished she could tell Sarah about the strange bugs.

“I keep thinking something’s wrong. Cody isn’t talking about your case at all. He says things are fine, but I’m concerned.”

Lucky was upset, too, Sarah thought as she watched her cuddle the sleeping pup against her breast. “You heard I’m going to be on
Missing!”

“Yes. Someone out there knows who you are,” Sarah said, her hand on Lucky’s shoulder, her eyes filled with kindness. “With any luck, they’ll call in right after the show.”

Lucky wanted to reach for Rudy’s tooth and give it a quick good luck rub, but both her hands were full with Abbie.

T
he Orchid King watched the last of the six-foot-long wooden crates go into the refrigerated air freight container bound for Chicago. His partner had been right: Opening the warehouse in Chinatown had streamlined the business. They no longer had to rely on shipments out of the Orient, where
the Asian
tongs
threatened to horn in on the business he’d built. He’d had his fill of dealing with those ruthless gangs.

His partner came up behind him. “Did you see the latest
Maui Tattler?”

Of course, he’d seen it. He made it a point to read their contact’s daily report each morning before he went jogging. It gave him something to mull over. “What did it say now?”

“Pele’s ghost and her brother, the shark, both love
opaka-
paka.
There’s a whole page devoted to the shark she saved breaking into a fish farm and gorging on
opaka
-
paka.
That same night she goes out with that creep Braxton and has the same fish.”

“You’d think they would have something better to write about. An ear
thquake or a fire or a murder…
something.”

“You’re missing the point.”

The king knew exactly what the point was. He just didn’t want to discuss it. Not only was the woman he loved living with Braxton, but she was going out with him as well. Making a new life for herself.

“In two weeks she’ll be the feature story on
Missing!
Not that it’s any surprise,” his partner said. “I knew they’d do her story.”

“So we wait two weeks and see what the show turns up.” It was a lifetime, but the king didn’t say so. Instead, he plucked the most exquisite orchid he’d ever seen from a newly arrived case. Its serrated petals were a delicate violet color, with a deep throat of a slightly darker hue. “See this?”

His partner looked only mildly interested. He didn’t share the king’s appreciation for orchids. “Yeah.”

“They just arrived from the Amazon. The orchids are on the endangered list.” He couldn’t resist smiling. “Each is worth over a hundred thousand dollars to collectors.”

His partner failed to be impressed. Why should he be? They made more than that before sunup every day. Orchids were just a sideline. A front.

The king reached for the switch and turned off the lights in the warehouse.

“What in hell—”

“Look at the orchids now,” the king said.

The clusters of orchids glowed softly, emitting an eerie light in the dank darkness of the old warehouse. The king flicked the lights back on and the usual fluorescence filled the building.

“Not only do these orchids glow in the dark, but they’re also killers.” He was gratified to see his partner was truly impressed now.

The king reached into the crate, gently moving aside the priceless orchids. He lifted out a huge rat by its tail. His partner backed up, clearly repulsed. But then, he never had the guts to do the dirty work.

To kill when necessary.

“This African rat happened to crawl in with the orchids. What do you think killed him?” He swung the rat back and forth like a pendulum. His partner took another step back. “Fumes from the blossoms. They are the most beautiful flowers on earth. Rare. Priceless. Deadly.”

His partner retreated yet another step.
“
Is it safe to breathe near them?
”

“Sure. The fumes dissipate in this much air.” He slung the rat into a bin of discarded wrappings. “I can hardly
wait
to ice someone again. This is the way to do it. Death by orchid.”

21

“
Y
ou what?” Cody stared at Sarah.

“
I invited Lucky and Greg here for lunch after church on Sunday.”

Cody was amazed. Greg had never been big on church, probably because Aunt Sis had always attended services, insisting they come, too. The old biddy was the hypocrite to end all hypocrites. She’d pray at the top of her lungs, thumping the Bible with a clenched fist, then she’d march them home from church and beat the crap out of them.

“You’re sure Greg said he’d come?”

Sarah smiled, obviously pleased with herself, nodding. Cody tried to hide his excitement by kissing her cheek. He hadn’t been able to discuss what had happened with Greg the day they released the shark because he hadn’t a clue exactly what had happened.

Even now, days later, Cody clung to the memory, reliving the moment, reshaping and redefining it until those four little words were nothing short of a miracle.

I owe you one.

Once they had both used that expression, but they were casual words tossed out easily. Not anymore. Although he couldn’t possibly have explained it, even to Sarah, Cody knew something profound had happened.

Now it was more important than ever to get rid of Lucky. Greg was a proud man—some might say stubborn—but Cody preferred to think of his brother as proud. It would humiliate Greg beyond belief if he found out Lucky was Traylor’s girl. There was no one Greg despised more than Traylor, blaming him for the pollution destroying the offshore reefs. To have Lucky involved with Traylor in a
hui
murder would be the worst.

And she was involved. Absolutely no question about it. The shoe linked her to the murder committed a year earlier.

“Darling,” Sarah said, breaking into his thoughts. She was handing him a bottle of wine to open.

He looked around, noticing for the first time since he’d come home from work that there were candles on the table.
“
Where are the kids?”

“Mom and Pop have Molly. The twins are on a Boy Scout campout at Big Beach, remember? We pick them up first thing in the morning, and then your job is to make certain their room is clean for Sunday when Greg and Lucky visit.”

Cody saluted with the wine bottle. “The house to ourselves—almost heaven.”

Sarah leveled those magnificent brown eyes at him, her swath of dark hair streaming over her shoulder. “Heaven will be Sunday after church when I have the family here together again.”

He had to swallow hard to get rid of the lump in his throat. Honest to God, Sarah understood him and loved him like no one else ever had. He hated himself for what he’d done to her. He put down the bottle and gathered her into his arms. “I can’t tell you how much I love you, Sarah. If there’s ever anything I can do—”

“Cody, please help Lucky.” The touch of Sarah’s hand on
his cheek was almost unbearable in its tenderness. “I know you don’t like her, but try to help her.”

“I’ll do what I can,” he hedged. “So much will depend on what
Missing!
turns up.”

“Maybe she has a husband and children like ours.”

Cody shook his head. “No. If that were true, we’d have a missing persons report on her.”

He left it there. Helmer had forbidden him to discuss the case. Cody had explained to Sarah that the FBI was involved and the code of silence had been invoked. Even if he had been at liberty to discuss the situation, he wouldn’t have had the heart to tell Sarah that he suspected Lucky was Tony Traylor’s girl and that she was up to her cute little ears in a murder.

G
reg walked beside Lucky to the second row pew where Cody was saving them seats. The last time he’d been in this church had been for Jessica’s funeral. Seemed like a lifetime ago. The hurt and anger he’d struggled to control then had vanished. Some people might have thought time eased the pain, but that wasn’t true. Just a few weeks ago he’d been as bitter as he’d been at the funeral.

Lucky had changed everything, he thought, glaring at her. She beamed a smile at him, and he knew that this woman was both a blessing and a curse. She’d brought him back into the land of the living, sure, but she had the potential to hurt him in a way that Jessica never had.

Once he couldn’t wait to get rid of Lucky. Now he dreaded having
Missing!
air. There was always the possibility some wild card would turn up and lay claim to her. The unimaginable would happen. Lucky would be taken away from him.

“Good morning,” Cody said as they slid into the pew beside him.

Sarah had already taken her place with the choir and the children were in Sunday school, so it was just the three of them, with Lucky in the middle. Greg knew damn well Sarah
and Lucky had cooked up this little scheme to get him together with Cody again. He’d only put up a token protest. His experiences with Lucky had shown him how important family was. He missed Sarah and the twins and the baby he’d only recently met. Most of all, he missed his brother.

“The boys have a soccer game this afternoon,” Cody told them. “They’d love to have you see them play.”

Lucky answered for him. “Sounds like fun, doesn’t it, Greg?”

“Sure,” he replied, not meeting his brother’s eyes. There were bound to be awkward moments like this, when he was uncertain how to respond.

Reverend Tadaku began his sermon with a prayer. Greg bent his head, stealing a quick glance at Lucky. She had her head down, too, her eyes closed. She’d developed an inner strength these last few days. He had to admit he was terribly proud of her, not just of her work with the animals, but also of the way she accepted her situation without complaining, trying to relearn things as quickly as possible.

“Sinners
…
sinners, avoid temptation!” Reverend Tadaku’s tremolo shook the dust off the rafters, no doubt awakening the dead in the nearby graveyard. “Repent now
…
or suffer the eternal fires of hell.”

As the reverend lectured them on ways to avoid temptation in a world with a moral compass that had gone haywire, Greg caught Cody looking at him. Greg smiled at his brother, and Cody grinned back. Cody always did have the damnedest smile.

From the choir box to the right of the pulpit, Sarah smiled at Greg. He winked at her, acknowledging that he knew she was behind this. Greg had always liked Sarah, even when she’d been nothing more than a pain in the ass little kid who followed them around like a puppy.

It was a few years before their hormones kicked in and every boy in school noticed Sarah. Of course, she had had eyes only for Cody. With unwavering devotion, she’d loved him since she had been a young girl. And she’d stood by him even when
he’d publicly humiliated her. What more could a man ask of a woman?

The choir stood and the congregation rose along with them to sing “Amazing Grace.” Greg knew better than to do anything more than mouth the words. When he sang in the shower, Dodger would usually hide in the other room.

The organ struck a note that swelled through the small church, and the choir burst into song. Lucky’s voice rang out just as a shaft of radiant sunlight hit their pew. Rainbows of light sparkled from the leaded glass window, splashing them with a palette or color as clear and true as her voice. Along with the finest sopranos in the choir, she sang, her voice rich yet delicate.

“I once was lo-o-o-st
…
” She hit the high note and held it. Perfectly. Lucky angled her body to face him, her eyes meeting his, filled with anguish that her voice didn’t betray. There was a loneliness, too, a raw pain Greg instantly recognized, having felt it so often himself.

Her fingers curled around his and she squeezed slightly, still s
inging. “I once was lo-o-o-st…
but now I’m found.”

His throat tightened and he let his gaze drop to the base of her throat. A strong pulse throbbed, her graceful neck arching as she sang from
the heart. “A-ma-zing Grace…
how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me-e-e.” Lucky smiled again, appealing to his innermost feelings. “I
once was lost but now I’m found…
”

Her lilting voice reached toward the heavens, holding the final note with astonishing ease. Her eyes never left his, and Greg was only dimly aware that she was the only one singing now. It was a highly charged moment, intensified by dozens of people staring at them even though Lucky seemed oblivious to it all.

Found.
The word echoed through his head, even after the sound died away and people began to return their hymnals to the racks. Greg clasped Lucky’s hand, reveling in the shared moment and the sense of intimacy the song had unexpectedly brought.

He understood what she was trying to tell him: The accident had changed her forever, damaging her mind, altering her life. But day by day, one little step at a time, she was finding herself. And she gave him credit for helping her.

The congregation took their seats again. Gazing into Greg’s eyes, seeking his soul, Lucky whispered,
“
Thank you for everything.”

Reverend Tadaku was concluding the ceremony before it dawned
on Greg that Lucky had known “
Amazing Grace
”
by heart. She had to have sung it enough times to record it in her brain. Weird. She knew a religious hymn, yet she’d shown no sign of knowing any of the popular tunes played on the radio.

A gourmet cook who sang like an angel and surfed through cyberspace. Definitely not the profile of a two-bit hooker. There had to be another explanation—and it was probably the key to why she hadn’t been identified. It wasn’t the first time he’d had this thought, but he kept returning to the night he’d found her and thought she was a tramp.

She had looked the part. Acted the part.

Okay, she’d changed. Head trauma often caused personality changes. What had she been like before? Maybe it didn’t matter. If
Missing!
didn’t turn up anything, Lucky would be free to start over and be whoever she wanted to be.

The minute the service was finished, Reverend Tadaku rushed up to them. He hastily shook Greg’s hand, then turned to Lucky. “You belong in our choir. I’ve never heard such a voice.”

“Really?” Lucky was clearly baffled but pleased as well.

“They practice on Wednesday nights,” Cody offered.

“You can drive my car,” Greg said. “I can ride the Harley.”

Lucky shook her head, her soft curls swaying.
“
No. I can’t drive your car.”

“You don’t know how to drive?” the minister asked, just as several other members of the congregation came up to tell Lucky that she had a beautiful voice.

Cody pulled Greg aside. “We’re not picking up any DMV
fingerprints on her. I just received the last of the hand-checks done by the smaller states last night. No matches anywhere. Hand-checks aren’t as accurate as computer scans, so I thought maybe someone missed Lucky’s prints. But there weren’t any prints to miss if she never applied for a driver’s license.”

“True,” Greg agreed, then he told his brother about the computer and Lucky’s ability to cook. “Something’s wrong here. We’re missing a piece of the puzzle.”

Cody didn’t look convinced. “Strange, Lucky claims she can’t drive. Jesus H. Christ, I ask you, how stupid does she think we are? She drove that car off the cliff.”

Greg shrugged, too disturbed to discuss it. He had to ask Lucky.

Greg and Lucky walked out to the car while Cody and Sarah herded their brood into Sarah’s minivan, agreeing to meet at Cody’s house. Dodger was waiting in the shade of the nearby eucalyptus tree. He spotted them and trotted over.

Once they were on the road, Greg continued to ask himself why she’d lied. Cody was right; she had been driving on the night he’d found her. So why pull this? “You never mentioned you couldn’t drive.”

“I can drive,” Lucky assured him. “I just can’t drive this type of car.” She pointed to the gear shift. “I can drive an—”

“Automatic transmission.”

“That’s right. Is it hard to learn to shift?”

“Nah.” He pulled over to the side of the road, relieved to hear her explanation. “Change places with me. I’ll show you how.”

It took at least a dozen tries before Lucky came close to getting the hang of it. By then, Greg was sure the transmission was shot. But he wasn’t one bit angry. How could he be? She tried so damn hard and was so earnest about everything.

Her shifting was still jerky when they pulled into Cody’s drive and saw that the family was already there. Lucky threw
the car into reverse, grinding the gears before she managed to get it into park and turn off the ignition.

“Thanks,” she said, smiling at him. “Now I’ll be able to drive to choir practice.”

Lucky behind the wheel. Now there was a scary thought.

She touched his arm. “I meant what I said back there. I once was lost but now I’m found. I can feel it. I’m found. Everything is going to be all right.”

Found.
A crucial part of himself that he’d never quite known was lost had been found the night he’d discovered Lucky. And Greg knew without a doubt that his life would never be the same.