Driftwood Point (14 page)

Ruby nodded. “He's a good boy, Alec is. Glad to see you getting along.”

Lis's eyes narrowed. “What's that supposed to mean?”

“Nice to be in touch with old friends again.”

“We were never really friends,” Lis told her.

Ruby looked up. “Whose fault would that be?”

“Mine.”

“Some learn from their mistakes. Some don't make the same one twice.” Ruby went back to her book.

Lis wanted to remind her that she hadn't been allowed to make friends, hadn't been allowed to think beyond the island, but what was the point. She went upstairs and took a shower, the kiss still on her mind. He said he'd been wanting to do that since fifth grade. Should she have told him about all the nights she'd dreamed of him? Of all the times she'd watched him in the hallway, taken the long route to class so she could pass his locker, tried to get a table near his in the cafeteria or the library, just so she could watch him, hear his voice, listen to his laughter?

Probably not, since she'd barely admitted it to herself, then or now.

She'd just finished drying her hair when she heard a car door slam. She looked out the window and saw Alec's Jeep heading toward the bridge. She watched, expecting him to drive over it, but instead, he made a left and headed back onto the island. The dark car disappeared momentarily, then she saw it pull up in front of the old Mullan place and park. Alec got out
and walked through the overgrown lot and around the side of the house.

Odd, she thought. No one's lived there in years.

Moments later, a black pickup drove over the bridge and made its way around the curve and reappeared to park next to the Jeep. She watched as someone got out and presumably joined Alec around the side of the house.

It could well be that the family has decided to sell the property and has asked Alec to give them an estimate to make it presentable.

And that would make sense, but why hadn't Alec mentioned it when they were back at the point? It would have been perfectly natural for him to have said something about renovating other places on the island, but he hadn't.

Her thoughts went back to the man in the white Cadillac.

Something about him didn't feel quite right. She knew it wasn't any of her business, but all the same, she couldn't help wondering who he was and what he was doing on the point.

Diary~

Ruby tells me the visit with her great-granddaughter is going well, which I was sure it would, but then again . . . well, you know how families can be.

Speaking of which, our little family is about to grow again! Our Lucy and Clay have announced that a little one is on the way and will be born just in time for Christmas! Now, I cannot lie and say I did not know, but “knowing” and being told are two different things. When you know before others do, well, you can't share, and where's the fun in that? Okay, so I did tell Ruby, but her lips are always sealed. If you want to share a secret that you know will never be passed on, Ruby Carter is your girl. One hundred percent guaranteed.

And speaking of girls, well, that's what Lucy will be giving birth to, though she doesn't know that yet. I even know the name they'll choose, but I won't even commit that to writing. That would be bad luck.

But back to new babies—Ellie and Cameron O'Connor's baby boy was born a week ago. Cameron Junior, I'm told.
They're a lovely family and I know that somewhere on the other side, Ellie's great-aunt Lilly is rejoicing along with Ellie's mother, Lynley, who left us all too soon.

So that's my news for today—only happy news this time around, I'm so pleased to say. Though Ruby tells me a storm is brewing over her island, a storm guaranteed to cause some waves, if you'll forgive the pun. I'm just hoping—praying—it doesn't spread to St. Dennis. Though I know my nephew Alec is right at the center of it, and that his heart is at risk. Oh, if only I could move that along just a little. I suppose I should just let things play out, but one gets so impatient sometimes. It's so tempting to just give a little bitty push, if you know what I mean . . .

Grace

Chapter Seven

H
is hand still raised in a wave, Alec took a few steps toward the road as he watched Lis drive away. When her car had disappeared, he went back to the cottage and locked up. He was still annoyed that Deiter had popped up unexpectedly the way he had. The last thing he wanted to do was explain to Lis that someone else wanted to buy the point, knock down the cottage she'd just set her heart on, and build a bunch of houses there. The look on her face as they'd walked through together had told him everything he needed to know about the future of Ruby's old home. He'd been hard-pressed not to tell her what he really thought the prospects were for the old place. He'd wait until he could determine how extensive the termite damage was, and whether the support beams had been compromised. He'd really hate to burst that happy bubble of hers, especially if renovating the cottage meant that Lis would be around for more than a week or two. She had stayed tucked away in the back
of his mind like unfinished business; perhaps it was time to explore what might have been.

More than time. He hadn't planned on kissing her today, but he was damned glad he had. He hadn't been kidding when he told her he'd wanted to kiss her since fifth grade. He could have added that he'd wanted to kiss her every year after that as well, but he was pretty sure she got the drift. Kissing Lis had been everything he'd thought it would be, and he knew it wouldn't be long before he kissed her again.

Now was a good time to warn himself that the situation on the island was going to be touchy enough without tossing his own heart into the mix, and that was exactly what he was doing. It had been hard to keep his eyes off her—harder still not to touch her, even if only casually while they walked through the little house. Lis was still the golden girl as far as he was concerned. Over all the years, she'd been the only one who'd gotten into his head and stayed there. The last thing he expected was for her to come back to Cannonball Island and talk about staying. What were the chances that would happen now, of all times, when he was involved in what some might see as the exploitation of the island and its few resources?

From the start he'd tried his best to make the right decisions where the potential development of the island was concerned. He loved the wildness of it, the archaic cabins and the deserted chapels built by dueling ministers, but his fear was that someone who didn't appreciate its idiosyncrasies would ignore the
history and the natural beauty and destroy everything that made Cannonball Island unique.

He'd debated with himself before he turned to the one person whose opinion and instincts he trusted above all others.

Of everyone he knew, Ruby Carter was the wisest, the most grounded in reality. He'd sought her counsel even before he'd accepted the job, and he'd laid out everything he knew about Deiter and his company. The developer had made it very clear at their initial meeting that he wanted to buy up as much property on the island as he could. Since the point was the single largest parcel on the island, Alec knew that it would draw Deiter's attention immediately. Before he had any conversations of any substance with ­Deiter, he wanted first to work through his own doubts about whether this project would be good for the island, and second, to learn whether Ruby had any interest in selling that particular bit of ground. If not, he'd have to find a way to steer Deiter away from it and point him elsewhere.

He'd sat with Ruby on her new back porch on a Sunday night and laid it all out. She'd listened without interruption until he finished.

“You say this man—this Brian Deiter—he be wanting to build new houses here on the island,” she'd said. “How many houses he got in mind?”

“We didn't talk about any specific number, but I made some calls, spoke to some people who have dealt with him in the past. They say he likes big projects that will make him a lot of money, that he'll want to build the maximum he can.” He'd rocked slowly in
one of the two rockers he'd brought outside at Ruby's request. He found the gentle motion calmed him, and he thought Ruby knew what she was doing when she told him they'd sit out here and go over whatever it was that was on his mind. “But they also said he was reasonable if you present a logical case to him.”

“You be a logical boy, Alec.” Ruby rocked even more slowly than Alec. “He been here? On the island?”

“He has. He said he drove around and noticed there was lots of empty space out here.”

“Different reasons for that,” she replied. “Some folks left their places and moved away. Just locked the doors and left. Their reasons be their own. Others got tired of bailing out after the storms. Had some come through here, battered the island something fierce. Some folks had enough of putting their roofs back on and trying to dry out. Others places, don't even know who owns them legal these days; folks died and left no kin.”

“There are a lot of places on the island where you can't build because the area's protected, or it just isn't suitable,” he reminded her. “The wetlands, the salt marsh.”

“Don't seem to me there be too much else to build on.” She rocked for a moment before adding, “'Cept maybe the point.”

“You still own that, Miz Ruby?”

“You know I do. If you're asking me if I'd sell it, I don't know. Never gave it thought.” Her gaze was out over the dune, toward the point, though it was too far away to be seen from the opposite end of the island. “That place been in my family since the big move,
when the folks in St. Dennis drove us out. Never thought about selling it. Thought to keep it in the family. Only ones who ever come back are Owen and Lis, once in a while Chrissie. Owen would do right by it; he's island through and through, though he don't know it yet. Lis, well, I be waiting for that girl's heart to catch up with her head, and enough said about that. Chrissie—no, no. Wouldn't leave it to Chrissie. She'd sell it to the first person who flashed green in front of her face, and that's the God's truth.”

Alec had remained silent. He let Ruby talk out the possibilities.

“What good would come to the island, all these houses be built?” she asked.

“Well, Deiter would have to pay the owners for the land. Then he'd be hiring some local people to work.”

Ruby nodded. She understood the financial benefit.

“The general store would be selling a lot more coffee early in the morning and cold bottled water all day long,” he added.

“I already figured that,” she told him.

Alec smiled. Of course she would have picked up on that immediately. Nothing got past Ruby.

“Tell me what harm you see.”

“If the building isn't done right, if too many homes are built, it could be a disaster. From an ecological standpoint—it could kill the salt marsh and everything living there. As far as the environment is concerned, just the amount of human waste to dispose of would quadruple, at the least. If it wasn't done properly so that it seeped into the bay . . .”

Ruby nodded. She understood completely.

“And if the houses weren't right for the island, if consideration isn't given to the places that are here, how new would fit in with the old, the entire look of this place will change.”

She nodded again. “What's in your head, Alec?”

“My head tells me that sooner or later, there will be development on the island. It's happening all up and down the bay. If Deiter gets his way, it will be sooner.”

“Who'd be in charge of all this building?”

“The developer—Deiter—would be.”

“I been feeling a change coming for some time now. You wondering if you should work with this man?”

“That's what it's coming down to, yes.”

“Someone with no feel for the island could do harm,” Ruby said thoughtfully. “Could be two hundred years of island living be gone.”

“That's what I'm worried about.”

“Seems to me you'd take good care. Respect what's here. What's been. Maybe know best what should come next. Keep the marshes safe. Keep a keen eye on what's going on.” They both rocked in silence for several minutes.

Finally, Ruby said, “What would happen to the old places? The chapels? The first houses?”

“I'll see if I can get them protected. They should be on the National Register of Historic Places, given their history.”

“You would do right by us. Guide this man and his people right, maybe it be for the best.” Ruby
closed her eyes. “Change be coming . . . time to get out of the way. Might as well try to make the best of it, do it right. Once all be gone, there be no bringing it back.”

“That's what I was thinking,” he said.

Without opening her eyes, she replied, “I know.”

Alec had played that conversation over and over in his head, and in the end, he'd decided it would be best all the way around if he was involved with the project. Ruby had promised that if things got to the point where the development was a go, she'd be willing to take Alec's part if anyone on the island had misgivings. If Alec could steer Brian Deiter in the right direction, and if Ruby Carter had his back, the project could be beneficial for everyone involved, especially for the people of Cannonball Island.

It was clear that Ruby hadn't mentioned anything to Lis about the changes that might be coming. It was anyone's guess how she was going to react to the news, especially after telling Alec that she'd fallen in love with the cottage all over again, and how much she loved the unspoiled beauty, how she wished it would never change. If she reacted the way he thought she might, he was going to have to be able to make her understand that in the long run, he was the lesser of all evils when it came to the island's future, that development to some degree was inevitable. Whether she'd see it that way remained to be seen.

Brian showing up at the point had escalated things a bit. He'd told Alec all he could think about was the view from the point: He had to have it. He was going to build his own house there. Alec knew that with
Lis's heart set on renovating the cottage, there was no way Ruby would sell even an acre of the point. He'd need to line up some other properties that he could hope to interest Brian in.

Tommy Mullan had told him just last week that he and his sisters were interested in selling off some ground owned by their parents on the island. Both their father and mother were in a nursing home and could use the money, he had said. As soon as Lis drove off, Alec called Tom and asked if he could meet him at one of their properties. Tom, who was living close by in Ballard, dropped what he was doing and drove over.

“What have you got in mind, Alec?” Tom asked.

“I know of someone who might be looking to buy something on the island,” Alec said cautiously. The last thing he wanted to do was set the gossip machine going before he needed to. “He asked me to look around, see if there was anything suitable to build on that might be for sale.”

Tom pointed to the house, which was boarded up all the way around. “You came to the right place, pardner. What's he paying?”

“I don't know. The conversations haven't gotten that far, but I imagine it would be fair.”

“What do you suppose is fair market for these old places?” Tom rubbed his chin. “You got any idea?”

“There's a lot to take into consideration. These older places, the original homes—they can't be replaced once they're gone. There's a lot of history here.”

“But does history have a price tag? And does
anybody really care if the houses on Cannonball Island are knocked down?”

“I think there are ways to make them care.”

“These old places, they're small and have been beaten down by the weather over the years. Hell, my grandparents' place over near the village is damn near falling down.”

“You selling that, too?”

“If we can.”

“Who owns the lots next door?” Alec asked.

Tom pointed to the right. “My dad's sister owns the one there, and his brother owned the one that runs behind them both. Over to the other side, my grandfather owned that one, too.”

“So you could conceivably sell them all?”

Tom nodded. “I guess the only value—assuming there is some—is in the land. The roof fell in on my aunt's place—I guess you can see that yourself—and she never bothered to fix it. Her husband died about five years ago, and she just packed up and moved on. The house my uncle lived in is still in somewhat decent shape—he lived there up until Christmas, when he fell and broke his hip, went to live with his son in Baltimore. They're all really small, though.”

“I can see that.”

“It was like growing up in a shoe box; this place was too small for the five of us.” Tom was gazing at the house. “You ever been in one of these places?”

“No.”

“Come on in, then, and take a look.”

Alec followed Tom around to the back of the house, past the tiny white markers that seemed to
grow out of the side yard, each marking the final resting place of one of the Mullans who'd come before. Alec wasn't sure what to do about them, but he'd worry about it later. Tom unlocked the door and held it aside for Alec to enter. He found himself in a kitchen smaller than the one in Ruby's cottage. A walk-through confirmed that every room was smaller than he'd expected. The tour lasted less than ten minutes.