HIGH TIDE (21 page)

Nick’s smirk was harsh. “She must have thought I was dead.”

“Why do you say that?”

“She walked away.”

Briana choked and leaned forward. “She left you to get help?”

“It came almost two days later. I was dehydrated to the point of lifeless.”

Narrative from the newspaper clippings now besieged her.

Geologist, presumed dead, located after two days buried beneath avalanche.

The woman with the glossy dark hair, Meleana Kane, was listed as the sole survivor of the USGS Hazard Team. They had praised Nicolas McCord in the papers, and eulogized him with a notable list of achievements.

My God, even if Meleana thought him dead, it wouldn’t have taken
two days
to get someone there to rescue him.

A dark thought crossed Briana’s mind. Unless Meleana
knew
he was alive—and given the length of time, expected to find him otherwise when she returned. Feeling a sinking sense of nausea at the thought, Briana’s mind went rampant.
The sole survivor—Meleana Kane, the new head of the Survey Team.
Briana shook her head to toss aside the appalling notion, and then her eyes flew to Nick’s.

He must have
read her horror. He managed a slight nod.

Briana’s legs slid out from beneath her as she rose to tread naked to him. Appreciative eyes followed her course, but Nick’s mouth remained in a grim line. When she reached him, his arm snaked around her
waist, hauling her close for the quick descent of his lips. Briana linked her wrists behind his neck and met that tense embrace.

***

Nothing could ever console Nick as did this kiss. For the first time he was able to recall that day without an overwhelming sense of loss, anger, or abandonment. Instead, here he was, embracing Briana, wanting to give her something in return. That foreign tension was eating at him now.

Gradually
he eased up until he managed a final sweep of his lips across her nose. His forehead rested against hers, and he felt her sweet breath mingling with his.

“Promise me
that we don’t have to talk about that again.”

A soft whisper. “I promise.”

“You scare me, Briana.”

She trembled. “There’s nothing to be afraid of. We’ve both survived worse than this.”

His smile brushed into her silken crown. “You think?”

“Mmmm hmmm.
”

“Nick?”
That
oh-so-sweet
touch of her lips brushed his chin.

“Hmmm?”

There was hesitation, and those lips were gone. Curious, he glanced down, and what he saw stole the power from his knees.

“Nick,” she
paused, “I would have never left your side.”

CHAPTER TWELVE
 

For a moment, Briana stood in the doorway studying the two heads bowed together over her desk—Naoki’s familiar black cowlick-ridden crown and Kathy’s flaxen cap.

“No way. I’m telling you, they got her!”

“She was leaving with the Professor. She probably spent the night with him.” Kathy typed some more on the keyboard and then leaned forward to squint through her glasses.

“No way. She didn’t even
like
the guy.” Naoki injected. “There’s no way she spent the night there.”

Briana cleared her throat. “I spent the night there.”

Both heads snapped up and both reached to adjust their glasses. Naoki’s mouth opened and closed, while Kathy beamed with enthusiasm.

“I just knew it,” she gushed. “There was so much heat sparking between you two, I almost grabbed the fire extinguisher.”

“There was?” Naoki looked puzzled.

“Oh
, it was extinguished for a while.” Dropping her purse on one of the visitor chairs, Briana sat down and faced her own desk.

“I’ll be damned, Briana Holt. You were holding out on me.”

“I was pretty much holding out on myself.” She sobered and then kicked off her pumps. “Things took a turn for the worse after you left.”

“What happened?” Naoki half sat on the corner of the desk.

“They came. The crew of the
Merryweather
.”

Echoing gasps prompted Briana to tell her tale, including their escape by water, which drew Naoki erect.

“You did
what
? My God, Bree, how?”

Confused by the question, Kathy looked back and forth between Naoki’s astounded ex
pression and Briana’s resolved one.

“
Nick
.” It was all Briana needed to say.

She cleared her throat. “And now, well, for all we know, the
Merryweather
is halfway to the mainland. But Nick is heading out there today—”

At the notion of Nick being anywhere near that vessel, Briana felt fear clutch her throat. Yes, he was calling the authorities to report where they last s
potted the
Merryweather.
Yes, the authorities would be equipped to handle the situation. But there were explosives on that ship. Explosives that Nick was going to now put himself in close proximity to if the
Merryweather
had not left as he had so casually assured.

“He’s going to call the authorities and meet them where we last saw the boat,” she recited.

Naoki’s eyes narrowed. “You want to go to that pier, don’t you?”

If there was the slightest possib
ility that Nick was in danger—

Briana looked up. “He told me not to. He specifically told me not to. But
—
yes
, Naoki.” She nodded. “Yes, I want to go there.”

***
  

“Lena, we’re heading out to the
Palms
. Kathy’s here to help out. If anyone needs me they can track me down on my cell.”

“Will do, Miss Holt. Oh, somebody dropped this off for you.” Lena rose to hand over a canary envelope, and then tucked her floral muumuu beneath her before she sat back down.

“Thanks.”

Briana assumed they were more blueprints for her to review. She secured the envelope under her arm and took of
f after Naoki. During the ride down on the elevator she had time to contemplate the package.

“What’s that?” Naoki peered over her shoulder.

“I’m not sure.  It’s unmarked.” Impatient with the rigid glue that fastened it, Briana finally ripped the end off. She extracted a thin pile of papers. Their blurred edges revealed hasty scans from an opened book, where the indent of the binder was distorted.

Ignorant of the fact that the elevator doors slid open, and that Naoki was standing impatiently in the parking garage, Briana jolted when he called her.

“Huh, oh, coming.” Rifling through copies of illustrations from a history book, Briana flipped the envelope over again and searched for any source of its origin.

Nothing.

Trapped wind inside the garage threatened to yank the papers from her hand, but Briana held on.

A graphic of Spanish Conquistadors boarding an ornate
galleon intrigued her as she tried to read the microscopic font.
Acapulco
was about the only word she could discern from the Latin text. Inquisitive fingers slipped through more of the same material, all pertaining to Spanish explorers, circa 1600AD.

When she reached the last page, Briana started. The artistic handwriting was not recognizable, but the message was.

I told you the ocean hides many mysteries.

Worriedly, Briana dove into her purse for her cell phone.

“Moku Land Inc. How may I direct your call?”

“Lena, did you see who left this envelope for me?”

“Hold on,” A soothing ukulele took over the line as she was placed on hold. “Sorry about that, it was the Mayor.”

“The
Mayor
left this?”

“Oh, heavens, no
,” Lena chuckled. “The Mayor was just on the phone. He’s going to be at the Open House on Thursday.”

“That’s wonderful,” Briana replied. “The envelope, Lena?”

“Oh yes. It was a woman. Attractive.  Long black hair.  Young. Yeah, definitely young. But, then again aren’t they all these days?”

Joy
.

But why?

“Thanks.” Distracted, Briana tucked the phone away.

Naoki was holding open the car door.

“Whatcha got there?”

“Do you know how to get a hold of Joy?”

Dark brows furrowed in dismay. “No, ah, not exactly. She says she’s staying with friends.”

“Mmmm.”

“Why?”

Briana crammed the material back into the envelope, unsure what point the young woman was trying to convey.
Hesitating before she slipped into Naoki’s passenger seat, she suggested, “Why don’t we take separate cars? You head over to the Palms and I’ll meet you there.”

“
No way
. No you don’t, Bree. If you’re going to that pier, there’s no way in hell you’re going alone. As it is, why do I have this feeling that I’m about to get in big trouble with the Professor?”

Briana frowned. “I’m a grown woman. I can make my own decisions. You should be more afraid of
me
than him.”

Naoki shook his head and ducked into the car. “No way, sister. He’s bigger than you.”

That he was.

A vision of Nick’s tall frame made her tingle in secreted spots, but she cleared her throat and managed a business veneer as she slid the envelope down beside her feet.

“Just drive.”

Naoki’s Corolla pulled out of the garage
and into the hectic traffic on King Street.

Behind it a van weaved
away from the curb and fell in on its tail.

***
  

“We’re taking the
Inquiry
out.”

Keo swallowed down a mouthful of glaze and dough. “We awe?”

“Keo, dammit, look at this mess.”

Nick’s heart wasn’t into yelling about the donut wrappers strewn on the bridge floor.

“Waw awe we gowing?”

“Here, drink this!” Nick thrust the thermos of coffee at the rotund Hawaiian.

The liquid had long since gone cold, so Keo gulped it down. His chins rumbled, and then he burped. He grinned sheepishly as he muttered, “Sorry. So where are we off to, Nikolo?”

“Remember the Hatteras?”

“Yupper.”

“It was loaded with explosives.”

“Explosives? How do you know that?”

“I’ll explain along the way.”

“Explosives,” Keo considered. “Explosives could make big fish wash up on shore. Explosives could cause your waves.”

“Yes.” Nick’s nod was sober. “The authorities are on their way over to where it was last docked.”

“If they’re on the way, then it is handled and you’re telling me that we’re off on regular USGS business,” Keo goaded.

“Well, this is USGS business, more or less. It did affect the shoreline at Manale.”

Keo crossed his arms. “Let me repeat what you said.
The authorities are on their way.
..”

“On land, Keo.
  They’re on their way on land. What if the ship tries to pull out?”

“Oh gee, last I knew the police had these big things that fly
—what do you call them?” He tapped a chin. “Helicopters. Yeah, that’s it. Oh, you know what else they have, Nikolo?”

Nick frowned, not in the mood for his mirth.

“They have phones and radios—and ties to the Coast Guard, who could assist at sea.”

Nick shouldered by him. “That’s great, and I’d be ecstatic if they used all their resources.”

He heard Keo’s heavy tread behind him, so he tossed over his shoulder, “but it would not hurt to have another set of eyes out there, especially a set that can easily identify that ship.”

Nick hefted a rope onto the pier. “Besides, if they are truly responsible for the tidal disturbance, then this is a matter of state environmental security, loosely falling into USGS territory.”

Lips pursed and jowls swollen, the sharp eyes of a big walrus studied him. “Yes, loosely. But I’m in. You don’t have to fight me, boss man.”

Keo shuffled by to the cabin and Nick reached for his fleshy arm.

“Actually, I should do this on my own. What if it turns ugly?”

The Hawaiian snorted. “Then you would need me to pilot this boat because you drive for shit and no one can maneuver the
Inquiry
like I can.”

Nick grabbed the binoculars. “No one is as humble as you, either.”

***