Butterfly Cove (17 page)

Olivia watched his long fingers cradle the teacup, listening to the gravity of his voice. “That should help them more than time in a cell.”

Rafe shrugged. “You can only do what you can do. That’s another thing I’ve learned.” He looked up and then he reached through the sunlight, his hands sliding down over hers. “You want to tell me what’s going on? And why your panic attacks are getting worse?”

“Who said they’re getting worse?”

“You did. Not in words. Because you seemed surprised and you look like you’re struggling to keep that surprise out of sight, from yourself as well as from me. That means something’s changed. You want to tell me about that?” he said quietly.

“No. I don’t want to tell you.”

He chuckled slightly and shook his head. “Tough. I’m not going away until I hear the whole story. So I’m staying here, and I’m going to continue to sit here until you talk to me. You know I can be a very patient man, Livie.” He glanced at the clock. “I’m off duty in ten minutes. I’m going to call Tom and have him clock me out early. So don’t think you’re getting rid of me.”

Olivia looked away, squeezing her eyes together tightly. The tea was working, warming her up, and she could feel the steady pressure of Rafe’s hands on hers, strong and warm.

And because he didn’t press her but only sat calmly, one hand on hers while he drank his tea, Olivia took a deep breath and began to talk. The words she had never said before seemed to well up from deep inside her. First she gave him the facts, like the dizziness and the shortness of breath, the nausea and the sweating. She told him what happened next, the way her brain seemed to get stuck, caught in repeating circles until she couldn’t escape from the fear. But she was coming to understand herself and the triggers that started a cascade of anxiety. She told him about that, too, along with the relaxation exercises and the journaling exercises that she was practicing.

Rafe listened to all of it without expression or questions. He simply nodded now and then, as if he understood. Because she felt calm, Olivia told him about the situation with her father—how he had lost his clarity at the end of his life and along with that had managed to lose everything but this house.

Rafe looked stunned. “There’s nothing left? I don’t know much about your father, but he always struck me as being very careful. He didn’t seem like a gambler or a big risk taker where money was concerned. So what happened?”

“Not a clue. His banker and his executor have both been through all the papers. There’s no sign of other bank accounts. But he was losing his faculties at the end of his life. He could have done anything with his accounts...” She frowned down at the tea, growing cold on the table in front of her. “A little while ago I found this up in the attic.”

Olivia pushed the dusty key across the table toward Rafe. “It’s from the bank. But I can’t get into the vault because I was never listed as one of his agents or cosigners. There’s no way to know what’s inside or even if the box was
his.
I could get a court order and have the box opened, couldn’t I?”

“As long as it’s registered in your father’s name, and you’re one of his heirs, it shouldn’t be too hard to arrange.” Rafe picked up the key and studied it. “He never told you about this?”

She shook her head. “He had another box at the bank. When we opened it, all it had was old tax records and a few other documents. But this is a different box. He never mentioned it to anyone that I know of.” Olivia blew out a breath. “And then there’s his boat. I just heard about that from his business manager. Tomorrow I’m going to meet Martin Eaglewood there and check the boat out. You remember him, don’t you?”

Rafe nodded, but his eyes were narrowed. “I’m off tomorrow. Why don’t I tag along?”

She managed a smile. “What do you think I’m going to find, old
Playboy
magazines? Laundered drug money?”

“Knowing your father, I doubt that. But that’s the problem. You don’t know what you’re going to find. That’s why I don’t want you to go there alone.” Rafe refilled the teapot carefully, and Olivia had the sense that he was choosing every word he said. “If you don’t want me along, ask Jilly and Walker to go with you. How well do you know this business adviser of his?”

“Martin? He’s handled my father’s affairs forever. At least thirty years.” Olivia frowned. “If Martin Eaglewood is crooked, then Santa Claus is crooked, too. I simply refuse to believe there’s any problem like that.”

Rafe rubbed his neck. “Probably it’s nothing. You’ll take a look and clean out whatever he left behind. All the same, it wouldn’t hurt to talk to some of the neighbors. Ask a few questions and see if any other people had visited the boat with him.”

Olivia sat up very straight. “What do you mean, other people? You think someone was there with him?”

“I don’t think anything. I’m just saying that it would be a good idea.” Rafe took a sip of tea and looked out over the harbor. “It’s better to be prepared. That’s what I’m saying. I can be here to pick you up whenever you want.”

Olivia didn’t plan to say yes, but the words tumbled out. If Rafe wanted to spend his day on a wild-goose chase with her, who was she to complain? The hard thing was separating her anxiety issues from the general mess of her father’s financial affairs. She told herself it was nothing, and he had simply forgotten to mention the boat to her.

When Olivia looked up, she realized that Rafe was staring at her. “What’s wrong?”

“I just asked you a question. Twice, as a matter of fact. I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast, and I thought you might have dinner with me.”

“Dinner?” Olivia cleared her throat. “Now?”

“That’s right. Two people. One table. A lot of food. It’s a fairly civilized process,” he said dryly.

“I know what dinner means,” she snapped. “It’s just that I...” What excuse could she make that didn’t sound ridiculous? “I was going to call it a night. I’m tired and we’ve been working hard finishing up at the Harbor House.”

Rafe didn’t move.

“I’m not just brushing you off, Rafe. I’d like to have dinner with you. Really.” She looked away, feeling uncomfortable.

“Then do it. Tonight. Right now,” he said flatly. “We’ll just share a little conversation and some good food. What’s there to be afraid of in that?”

“I’m not afraid of having dinner with you,” Olivia shot back.

She was cut off by a loud knocking over her head. She froze as another loud thump echoed from the attic near the side of the house. Her eyes flashed to Rafe’s.

He put a finger over his lips, shaking his head, warning her against making any noise. When he looked around the kitchen, Olivia realized he was trying to remember the layout of the house and the fastest way upstairs.

She crossed the room silently and pointed to the back stairway that led to the attic. Rafe nodded. Olivia noticed that his hand reached behind him. He slid something leather away from his holster that held his service weapon.

Olivia drew in a slow breath, chilled by that single movement. When Rafe reached the bottom step he stopped, listening intently.

Olivia heard a low hum.

And then the lights went out.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

I
N THE SUDDEN
darkness, every sound seemed magnified. The main thing that Olivia noticed was the hammering of her heart. She heard a soft creak.

Rafe’s hands rose, touching her shoulder. “I’m going up.” His voice was low, cold. “Stay here.”

Olivia didn’t even think of arguing. If someone was in the attic, he would be far better equipped to deal with it. But she knew one thing that he would need.

Olivia slid her hand into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. Carefully she triggered the application that changed it into a flashlight. “Take this,” she whispered. “Touch the center button for the light.”

“Thanks,” he said. “My service flashlight is out in the car.” His strong fingers brushed against hers. “Stay here. I don’t want to be wondering where you are in the dark if anything happens.”

“I won’t go up. But if you yell or I hear a gunshot—let me know what happened. I don’t want to sit here worrying about you.”

“Don’t worry about me. Worry for whoever made that sound,” Rafe said grimly.

Olivia heard a faint rustle of clothing in the darkness and then he was gone.

* * *

O
LIVIA STOOD NEAR
the base of the stairs, one hand on the wall as the seconds crept past. She heard no sounds from the attic. The power was still off.

She turned to the big kitchen window and glanced over the hillside toward town. A few lights were on, but all the houses near hers were dark. Maybe there was a problem with the power line that serviced the hillside. That happened occasionally after a storm or mudslide.

She looked out at the houses with power and tried to figure out where they were, but it was hard to know. She was too distracted, worrying about Rafe.

Something hit her shoulders and she swung around, striking blindly with her fists.

“Hey.” Rafe gave a muffled oath. “I’m friendly.” The light came on from her cell phone.

It felt as if he had been gone an hour. “Did you find anything?”

“Nobody up there. I found a few nuts by a window that was open a crack. That might have been the sound we heard, maybe from squirrels. When was the last time you checked the windows up there?”

Olivia paced the kitchen. “Earlier this afternoon. That’s when I found the key I told you about. But I’m almost certain all the windows were closed. No one else was in the house after that.”

“Are you sure all the windows were closed? Did you check them?”

“I didn’t smell outside air. Nothing looked touched. But if you mean did I actually lean down and check each window, the answer is no.”

Rafe didn’t look riled by her answer. He nodded slowly. “One of them might have been opened. A squirrel can squeeze through a pretty small crack.

Olivia’s hands twisted back and forth. She bit back her fear and focused instead on anger at the thought that this might be a prank. “How can I be sure? How am I going to sleep, wondering...what made that noise?”

Rafe glanced down the hill at the line of houses. “I’m going to check in at the station. I want to see if there’s been a power outage reported, and you’re going to come with me while I do that.” He took her hand and turned her around, heading toward the back door. “After we have a sitrep, we’ll decide what to do next.”

Olivia cleared her throat. She felt a little light-headed. “Sitrep?”

“It’s a military term. A field situation report. And don’t bother arguing with me.” His voice hardened. “Because there’s no way in hell that you’re staying here alone tonight, Livie.”

* * *

R
AFE CHECKED IN
at the station. There was a power outage, all right. It covered part of the hillside, but it didn’t cover the street near Olivia’s house.

That meant something else had cut off her power.

Rafe didn’t lie to her. He laid out the possibilities, keeping his voice neutral and calm. He saw her struggle with anxiety. After what she had told him, he realized that this whole situation was harder for her than he had thought.

So he changed clothes, logged off duty and then guided her out to his car. No matter what she said, they were going to have dinner.

Rafe tried not to think about what would happen after that.

* * *

S
ITTING IN THE
old downtown diner was uncomfortable, to say the least. Everyone in town recognized Rafe by now. There was open curiosity when Olivia walked in with him. When they sat down to eat, more than a few disapproving glances were sent their way. People in Summer Island clearly remembered Rafe Russo’s more outrageous antics growing up. A number of people in the room made it obvious they did not care for the idea of Rafe and Olivia being involved.

Even if it was only for a leisurely dinner.

That thought left Olivia furious. Rafe had served his country bravely and now he was serving the community in law enforcement. Nobody in this town had
any
right to look down on him. He had changed and they needed to see that.

In her anger about his treatment, Olivia laughed a little louder and sat a little closer than she might have. If it gave Rafe the wrong impression, Olivia decided she would explain later.

After the smiling waitress took their order, she returned moments later and handed Rafe a huge plate of French fries even though it had not been on the order. “Fries are on the house. I know that you like them because you order them whenever you come in. I figured maybe you forgot, seeing how you might be distracted and all.” The waitress shot a meaningful glance at Olivia.

“Thanks, Sallyann.” Rafe reached for the salt and the ketchup, grinning. “I never could get decent fries when I was away. After another year of eating them every day, I may actually get tired of them.”

The waitress crossed her arms. “You mean while you were over in Afghanistan, I take it. Well, we all thank you for your service there. Just because
some
people in town are all fuss and bother doesn’t mean the rest of us don’t appreciate it. Tom Wilkinson happens to be an old friend of mine. I heard a few stories about the things you did over there,” she said quietly.

Rafe frowned. “All exaggerated, I assure you.” Before she could say anything else, he picked up the menu. “How about adding some root beer to the order? I’m thinking Olivia and I should split a root-beer float.” He glanced at Olivia and raised an eyebrow. “What do you say?”

Olivia nodded, remembering the few times that she had shared a float with him on Saturday afternoons in junior high. They hadn’t done it often.

It had raised too many eyebrows.

As soon as the waitress had gone, she leaned closer. “You want to explain that?”

“Not particularly. I’ve put all that behind me. Let’s just have a nice meal, okay?”

Olivia saw the wife of the mayor glance their way and frown. The daughter of the town librarian was sitting off to their right. She frowned at Rafe, too. Clearly their night out was being noted.

And because there were so many disapproving looks, Olivia took Rafe’s hand between hers. “Thank you for your service in Afghanistan, Rafe. Sallyann was right. We do value it.”