Gone Tropical (29 page)

Firth was backing out of the kitchen doorway and he had a rifle raised. “I said, stay the fuck where you are, or I’ll blow your heads off.”

“Stuart, don’t do it,” Meg said. “You’re not a violent man. The authorities will track you down. You’re a con man, not a killer.”

Amy heard the calm in Meg’s voice. She wondered if the older Thompsons were still alive. Anger welled up in her. She rushed forward and swung the bottle with all of her might connecting with the back of Firth’s head. She heard the crack of the bottle as it connected with his skull and felt sick to her stomach. Firth went down on the floor, and everything started swirling in front of her eyes. She felt herself slipping into darkness.

A woman screamed. Then above the noise and the wind and the rain and the screaming, there was the sound of helicopters and she saw the opening scenes of
M*A*S*H
and recognized the music. Hawkeye was running toward her with the whole team
.
She’d always liked watching
M*A*S*H
with Daddy. For some reason she felt incredibly happy, then blackness engulfed her, and this time she didn’t even fight.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Jake dropped the chopper down onto the helipad at the back of the Cairns Police Station.

“Hang in there, buddy,” he yelled. “We’ve got help on the way.”

He heard Sarge’s muffled response and saw Sarge’s pal, the AFP officer, running toward them in the dark and the rain and the wind. He slid the cargo door open and jumped in, closing the door behind him. The officer lifted Sarge’s head up and cradled it. “Ambulances are at a premium, disasters everywhere, but one is on the way.”

Sarge nodded.

“Tell me everything, as quickly as you can,” the officer said to Jake.

Jake relayed the high points of their trip. “I’ve notified Helen; she and Kirstie will meet us at the hospital,” the officer told Sarge.

Jake nodded. “What about Braxton?”

“I think the cyclone will take care of him. It’s going to hit dead center on Braxton and the other small islands in the vicinity, probably be another stage two by the time it hits the mainland. It’s already losing strength. We’ll have someone check out Braxton Island within the next two hours. Too dangerous to fly at the moment.”

Jake nodded.
Tell me about it.
“Good,” he said. “Hope the whole island is flattened. What about Hadi? Did he spill his guts?”

“Yeah, we got enough to put these guys away for life. You were right, huge drug trafficking ring. ASIO is on it.”

“Smuggled out in coconuts, right?”

“Shit, how did you know?”

“Sarge and I figured it out when we were on Braxton Island. What about Amy? Is she with Helen at the center?”

The officer shoved at his wet hair. “Well, there’s a problem.”

Jake’s stomach turned to ice. He still hadn’t gotten out of the pilot’s seat and his eyes swept the instrument panel, checking the fuel gauge. “What kind of problem?”

“Nobody can find her.”

“Brian. Did you call him? Did you call Bungumby?”

The officer grimaced and nodded.

“Okay,” Jake said and swallowed hard. “Tell me everything you know.”

The officer turned Sarge onto his side, patted his shoulder, then he moved around to the co-pilot seat. “We evacuated Bungumby hours ago, but Amy was missing. She’d taken the jeep to go to Cairns. She never made it. Her friend is with Brian down at the school, along with Helen and Kirstie, and the other evacuees from Bungumby. They’re all at the center, safe and sound and are helping out and—”

“You put out an APB?”

The officer nodded. “Jeep hasn’t been sighted anywhere in Northern Queensland.”

An ambulance siren sounded and flashing lights announced the approach as it turned off the highway. Jake stiffened. He yelled back to Sarge. “I’m taking the chopper. I’m going to Bungumby.”

The officer stared at him for a moment. “I don’t think you can do that, it’s not safe, doubt you’ll get clearance and—”

“Amy’s out there. So is the Thompson family. So is Firth.”

The door to the chopper slid open, and two paramedics with a stretcher instructed the officer to help them with Sarge, who still lay shivering on his side on the floor of the cabin.

“Go gebbe ’er,” Sarge said, his voice cracking, his words garbled as the ambulance driver and his attendant covered him with blankets.

“I intend to, Sarge. You get better, and I’ll check in as soon as I can.”

The guys got ready to run through the rain to the waiting ambulance. The AFP officer crouched in the doorway of the chopper and leaned out, grabbed the attendant’s arm and said something to Sarge. Then he turned back to Jake.

“Wait,” he said. “I’m calling for backup, and I’m coming with you.”

****

Jake saw a light on in the lodge and ran toward the verandah. He raised a finger to his lips, stepped over the windowsill, and the officer followed. There was shattered glass everywhere and he could hear women talking in the area of the kitchen. He eased along the wall and his heart almost stopped.

Amy lay on the floor on top of a gray-haired man he was almost certain had to be Firth. Meg stood above them pointing a rifle at the bodies and Mrs. Thompson was trying to move Amy’s body. Mr. Thompson lay on the floor on the other side of the room near the other door.

Jake inched closer. Amy’s head was covered in blood and it trickled down the side of her pale face. He couldn’t tell if she was breathing. Had Meg shot them both, Firth and Amy? He pulled the Glock from its holster, and aimed it at Meg.

“Drop the rifle,” he said, his heart hammering so hard in his chest he could hardly hear himself speak.

“Oh, Jake.” Meg dropped the rifle and crumpled to the floor beside Amy. Her mother burst into tears. “I think they’re both still alive,” Meg said between sobs. “It was horrible…he came in here and he—”

The officer stepped forward and produced his badge. He made the women sit at the table and he read them their rights and proceeded to ask questions. Jake immediately knelt to tend to Amy. She had a blunt instrument wound to her temple but, other than that, no visible injuries. What worried him most was her unconscious state. Her skin was pale and deathly cold, and her clothing was saturated and her pulse was weak.

“I’ll radio ahead to Cairns,” he said to the officer. “Amy needs to be hospitalized.”

“I knew we’d need backup. That sounds like another copter,” the officer said and tilted his head.

Jake nodded. “I think you’re right. Great.” He quickly assessed Firth. He was out cold as well, but seemed in less distress. From what he’d overheard, Amy had saved the day. But where had she been and how had she gotten this injury? “I’m heading out with Amy, there’s an oxygen cylinder on the chopper and she needs it. They got a helipad at the Cairns hospital?”

“Yep. Radio ahead to alert them. Tell them we’re bringing in Firth and Mr. Thompson as well. The second copter can hold everyone. You go ahead.”

“I’ll go with Jake,” Meg said. “I can watch over Amy, keep her airway open, that sort of thing. I have my CPR certificate.”

Jake made eye contact with the officer. It was his call. The Thompsons would need to be questioned. Meg especially, but he sure could use her help. It might mean life for Amy.

The officer nodded.

“I’ll get some blankets,” Meg said. “We can make a hammock, cover her and then both of us lift. It’s the best we can do.”

Jake felt his heart cramp. He lifted Amy’s almost lifeless hand and felt for the pulse; it wasn’t getting any stronger. He bent and kissed her forehead, a tear sliding down his cheek and landing on hers. He brushed it away and rested on his haunches, closing his eyes tight.

Meg reappeared with the blankets and stood for a moment, one hand firmly on his shoulder. “Are you ready?” she asked softly.

He nodded, wiped his eyes with his fingers, and took a blanket, folding it in half. Then he and Meg gently rolled Amy onto it and gripped the corners.

“On the count of three,” he said, and kissed Amy’s cold forehead again. “I love you, kiddo. You’re gonna be fine, just fine.”

****

Amy woke up in a strange, silent, white room. Her right eye was still shut tight. She reached up with a shaking hand and felt some kind of pad taped over it. Iron bars surrounded her and she thought prison, and went back to sleep. Good, they’d finally put her away. She deserved it, and she’d take her punishment.

Sometime later she woke again and realized it wasn’t a prison but a hospital bed. She wondered what the prison sentence was for stupidity, or if she could plead temporary insanity, maybe permanent insanity?

She took in her surroundings. A small window showed it was daytime and the sun was shining. But what day was it? At least there were no machines attached to her, so she’d survived major surgery, or a massive head injury, although a full lobotomy was probably what she needed. She shook off her negativity. She’d come a long way, changed a lot, and if she gained anything from this experience it would be she would never be that determined and controlling ever again.

The door opened and Amy opened her one good eye.

“Well, hello stranger,” Diana said with a huge grin. “Good to see you’re awake.”

“Hi Di,” Amy said, surprised to hear her voice sounded normal. “Can I have a drink?”

“Champagne or water?”

“Funny…water,” Amy said. “I’m allowed to drink, aren’t I? I don’t know what my injuries are.”

Diana propped her up and Amy drank through a straw.

“You’re fine,” Diana said softly. “You had a concussion and went into shock after you attacked Firth, but you’re fine now. The doctor said once you woke up, it would be just a matter of a few days before you could be discharged.”

Amy nodded. She had an intravenous in her arm, and it was attached to a machine to regulate the drops. There were nasal prongs in her nose delivering oxygen and a cord ran from little sticky pads on her chest to a monitor recording her heartbeat, but other than that she was fine. Except for the catheter in her bladder. That was coming out ASAP. “Can you tell me what happened? The last thing I remember is hitting Firth on the head with a bottle of champagne.”

Her cheeks flamed at Di’s story. “Jake flew the chopper out to save me?”

Di nodded.

“Geez, a man of many talents. Who’d have figured he was a pilot?” She tried to laugh, to make light of the situation but her voice cracked. “He must have been really angry when he learned I hadn’t evacuated.”

“I think he was more scared than angry.”

Amy pressed her lips together. “You sure he didn’t just come to get Firth?”

“Amy!” Di said. “Will you trust, for crying out loud?”

If he cared so much why wasn’t he here? Why wasn’t he holding her hand, instead of Diana? “So, they got Firth?” Amy asked. “And he was still alive, but what about Col Braxton?”

“The island was leveled. They said it looked like a giant lawn mower had swept over it and given every tree a haircut. Most of the buildings collapsed. They found him, and the pilot, both dead,” Di said.

“Really?”

“Yeah, Coast Watch caught up with the yacht. Those guys, and Hadi Salim, are in custody. Sarge is a hero. This was the biggest drug bust in Australia’s history. Sarge knew there was a cartel up these ways somewhere. He’d been trying to bust it for years. This was his swan song. Ya’ know he’s retiring?”

Amy nodded and closed her eyes. Okay, so she had to ask and steeled herself for the blow. “Jake? What happened to him?”

“He had to go to Canberra,” Diana said.

“Oh.”

“Had to report to AFP and meet up with Mick Dawson, the U.S. FBI agent. Of course there were a lot of questions. He’d stolen a helicopter. He’d messed with the law even though he’d been working alongside Sarge. He isn’t an Aussie citizen, so you know, red tape and stuff. Mick was sent over from the States to extradite Firth.”

Amy kept her eyes closed. “And Jake went back, too?”

“Yeah, he had to.”

“Sarge?” Amy asked.

“One floor down. He’s getting better, nose was broken, lost a few teeth, and the welts on his back got infected, but he’s healing. He should go home mid-week. He’s no spring chicken; it took him a bit longer to heal than they’d expected.”

“Kirstie?”

“She has bonded with her grandmother and is helping Helen in every way she can. The kid is doing just great.”

“What day is it?”

“Monday.”

Amy smiled sadly. “I was supposed to have a celebration on Saturday.” She made a little face. “Guess the wedding’s off huh? Does Daddy know about everything?”

“Yeah, Jake gave him a full report.”

Amy nodded.
Typical.

“Your father wanted me to tell you he loves you. He’s called me five times already. He said he’s proud of you, and that you’re a fighter, just like him. But he also said you need to live the life you want, and whatever you do is fine with him.”

Amy nodded again.

“He wants you to call as soon as you feel up to it.”

She recognized the shift in her father’s thinking. She had his love and his respect. They had a long journey to go in developing a real relationship, but it was a start. She was happy he was willing to try. She’d gained her independence from him, but at what price? She’d lost Jake.

“About Jake,” Di said.

Amy waved the words away. It hurt her to even think about Jake, but hearing his name was like a knife being plunged into her heart. “So, what now…for me?”

“What do you mean?” Di asked and moved closer.

“Did I break any laws, or do I have to stay in the country for any court cases?”

“No. You’re free to go, whenever you want.”

“I think I’ll stay.”

“Jake said you’d say that. You’re welcome to stay with me until you feel better.”

Amy shook her head.

“Why not?”

“No, you go on home to Sydney. Your return ticket is for tomorrow. I’ve got some healing to do, mentally and physically.”

“Will you stay up here?”

“I’m not sure. Maybe I’ll come to Sydney in a week or two.”

“Don’t you want to read Jake’s message? I brought my laptop over.”

Amy opened her good eye. “He left a message?”