Torch Ginger (24 page)

“Just until the sun goes down,” the Timekeeper said.

“You always indulge them.” His mother’s voice in his ear, a sibilant whisper. He hated that her Voice was loudest, louder than all the spirits of the aina (land) he served. He sat and endured as a different Voice challenged his mother, and they screamed back and forth in his head as he watched the sun drop behind the mountain and touch the dripping hair of the Chosen with a gold almost like kindness.

When the shine was gone from his hair, the Timekeeper led the man back toward the cave and wasn’t surprised when he made a run for it. The collar yanked him back, and a kick to the back of the knee brought him down. But it was the Timekeeper’s fillet knife nicking off the lobe of his ear and pressed against his carotid artery with terrifying, surgical knowledge that compelled the Chosen to walk back into the cave with him, meek and bleeding.

“My name is Jay,” the man whispered in the dark as the Timekeeper put the cable back on.

The Timekeeper didn’t care. The Chosen had a purpose, and his name had nothing to do with it.

Chapter 27

Lei’s phone buzzed as she was turning off the bridge toward the cottage, her headlights slicing through the thick warm night.

“Texeira.”

“Never gets old, hearing you say that.”

“Alika. What’s up?”

“You’re asking me that? What’s up with the bones?”

“Can’t really talk about it.”

She didn’t have to try to make her voice regretful; she felt terrible cutting him out of the loop after all he’d done the night before.

“I can tell this is going to be a tough part of our relationship.”

“So.” She put a smile into her voice. She had to work harder on getting over Stevens, and Alika was the perfect way to do that. “We’re having a relationship, are we?”

“Of a sort. I liked where things were going until you found the finger bone.” He laughed. “You’re never boring, I’ll give you that.”

“You’re not bad yourself. Thanks for all you did yesterday. So helpful. I’m counting the days until they pull me off the case, now that the Feds are involved.”

“Feds?”

“FBI.”

She pulled onto the grass verge at her cottage, parked the truck. Keiki ran back and forth in front of the fence, barking a happy greeting.

“Wow. Serious.”

“More than you know. Listen, let’s get together. Take it to the next level.” It was past time she got over Stevens once and for all. She bit her lip as she walked up onto the porch and fumbled her key into the lock.

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean.” Lei reached down to rub the Rottweiler between the ears.“Continue what we started in the cave.”

A short silence.

“Way to cut to the chase,” Alika said.

“I think of it as decisive.”

“Well, much as some parts of my anatomy want to just drive over and get busy, I seem to remember telling you I was planning something more romantic.”

“Okay, if you must. And apparently you must.” Lei went into the kitchen, turning on lights as she went. “What do you have in mind?”

“Let me surprise you. Just be ready for me to pick you up Saturday morning.”

“I like to drive. I’ll meet you there.”

“You have to trust me. I’ll pick you up at eleven a.m. Wear something nice.”

“Oh God. I’m so not this kind of girl. C’mon. You’ve seen my one dress. Now I’ll have to get another one.”

“I’ll take you however I can get you.”

“I’m in a hippie phase. I’m prone to hemp these days.”

“It’s what’s underneath that counts. I’ll see you Saturday.” He hung up.

Lei folded the phone shut and set it on the counter, gazing out the window thoughtfully. On impulse she turned off the light over the sink, and dark fell over the kitchen. She walked out onto the little porch at the rear of the cottage. Keiki followed and sat beside her, leaning her warm bulk against Lei’s side as she looked at the river.

The moon was up and the water glimmered. A tiny breeze blew across, rippling the long grass in dark silken waves. Lei watched a limb traced in silver light float by. Kaua`i was like the river, calm and beautiful on the surface, but filled with its own power—and sometimes a raging destruction.

The FBI coming in was going to change things dramatically. Their lab resources alone would be invaluable. Still, they would take over the case, leaving little—if any—role for her and the Kaua`i task force. There was no question KPD’s meager resources weren’t up to an investigation of this magnitude and they needed the help, but the contemptuous look in Rogers’s eyes and the suspicious one in Scott’s didn’t bode well for her own role in things.

The phone rang and Lei sighed, saying goodbye to the river as she went in. She brushed through the barred screen door and opened the phone, turning back to close and lock the door when Keiki was back inside.

“Texeira.”

“Sweets, it’s J-Boy. Your task force liaison, for however long it lasts.”

“Yeah, my thoughts exactly. What’s the latest?”

“They’re bringing over more agents. Flying some of their Behavioral Analysis Unit out from Virginia.”

“Oh my God.” Even though she’d been preparing for this, confirmation was a sucker punch. She went to the freezer for the emergency vodka, poured a shot into one of her jelly glasses, and sat down. Keiki put her head on Lei’s thigh, ears swiveling anxiously.

“How long do we have?”

“Another conference early tomorrow and we’ll see. I think a day max.”

Lei threw the vodka back in one burning gulp. It rendered her unable to speak.

“You okay?” Jenkins sounded alarmed. “I should’ve come over to talk to you, but I thought you saw which way the wind was blowing this morning.”

Lei coughed and pounded her chest. The alcohol hit her stomach, a bomb of warmth.

“I’m okay. Emergency shot,” she wheezed. “Okay, yeah, I saw it coming, but that doesn’t make it any easier to take.”

“Yeah, the captain even copped to having some idea that there were more disappearances than there should have been, but that he didn’t quote, ‛have the resources’ unquote, to investigate.”

“I hope that doesn’t bite him on the ass.”

“Me too.” They sat a moment in morose silence. “So, Sweets, how was health food patrol today?”

“Nothing popping. I’m having to work way too damn hard for nothing right now. I’m just waiting for this Saturday’s antics out at the papaya farm.”

“So Haddock’s letting you attend the cult festivities?”

“Yeah. Says I needed this week to establish myself as his ‘protégée’ and now he can bring me out there. I’m counting on you for backup.”

“No way I’d miss it. Well, with the Feds on board at least Becky’s going to get some help with the bones. They’re bringing out a forensic bone specialist with a portable lab. Costs a fortune, but they can even extract DNA from bone and may be able to identify the vics. Agent Scott said they’re going to enter everything into that ViCAP database and see what they can find.”

“I don’t know what the ViCap is.”

“It’s a whole division with different aspects, and one of the main assets is the national database of missing persons and unidentified human remains.”

“Thanks for filling me in on this. The captain did the right thing bringing them on at this stage. I just hope they let us do something. This feels like my case, like it keeps unfolding for me for some reason. I’d like to keep that going.” Lei mixed up Keiki’s dog food as she spoke.

“I know. That ViCAP program is awesome.” Lei hadn’t heard Jenkins sound so enthusiastic in a while. “They’re scanning in photos of the bones, tool marks, the hand you found, and the MO, as far as we know it, and sending it all to the Behavioral Analysis Unit. Like I said, a couple of BAU agents are coming to help Scott and Rogers, and they’ll be looking over everything in Haddock’s binder, everything we’ve gathered.”

“Should be interesting.” Lei took a breath. “Marcella Scott. She seemed like a hardass.”

“In more ways than one.”

“Great, sexism from my partner. How’s Stevens taking it?”

“Like a man.” Jenkins chuckled. “Don’t forget he was the one pushing for us to bring them in earlier. He and Becky are cooperating better than Fury and the rest.”

“He and Becky seem to be getting pretty cozy.” Lei wished she could take the words back the minute they were out of her mouth. She didn’t want to sound like the jealous ex, but there it was. Again.

“Yeah, they seem to be hitting it off. You got a problem with that? Seems like you have some action of your own going.”

“’Course not. Just kinda wish . . . he was still on the Big Island.”

“Don’t blame you. You guys are both moving on, I guess.” He paused, a long beat. “Well, Anu asked me out. We’re going to the movies.”

“Great, J-Boy. You deserve a little fun.” Lei injected enthusiasm she didn’t feel into her voice. “Okay, see you at tomorrow’s briefing.”

Lei turned off the phone. She didn’t have the capacity for any more interaction today. She went to the refrigerator and opened it. She hadn’t been to the store since Monday, and the few veggies left in the drawer were limp. She ended up making an omelet and writing herself a big note: BUY
FOOD.

It was probably going to be hippie food, but she was beginning to be okay with that.

Chapter 28

Friday, October 29

Lei sat at the long conference table in the war room the next morning. A cooling coffee carafe, a stack of Styrofoam cups, and warm malasadas, delicious doughnut rounds drowned in sugar from the Kapa`a Bakery, beckoned from an open pink box. It was a typical debriefing except for the suits ranged around the wall in power positions.

She let her wig stream in a rebellious waterfall down the back of her chair. She’d aired and spot cleaned the hemp dress and was in that again, but there was no help for the peeling tattoos on her wrists. She picked at them as Special Agent in Charge Newsome, newly arrived from Quantico’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, stepped forward to address the group.

“Kaua`i Police Department has done a great job with a huge investigation. But sometimes the best part of being great is knowing when to reach out for help. Captain Fernandez has chosen, wisely, to access the expertise and resources of FBI’s ViCAP program. We’re formally taking over the case. Detective Stevens, thank you.” Newsome stepped forward and shook Stevens’s hand. “Agents Rogers and Scott will liaise with you for the next few days, but we’ll be taking it from here.”

Stevens’s face was stony. He said nothing.

“Detective Texeira.” Agent Scott spoke, and Lei snapped to attention. “You have a unique angle going with the undercover thing. We aren’t convinced the TruthWay cult has anything to do with this killer, but from where you’re positioned you can keep eyes on Jazz Haddock, who’s our best suspect at this point.”

“It’s true that Jazz knows way too much about the missing and didn’t surrender the stones he’d collected. Part of what I’ve been trying to investigate is his role in all this, but it’s been hard to establish.” Lei firmed up her voice and kept her hands in her lap, where she rubbed the black stone, anchoring herself. The FBI wouldn’t intimidate her if she could help it.

“Yes, we agree he’s a viable suspect.” Rogers spoke this time. Along with SAC Newsome, two other new agents sat at the table. No one had introduced them. “We’re digging deep into his records, forensic evidence, everything we can find in that binder. He’s got some connection with this killer, and he trusts you. At least to a degree. We want to keep that going.”

“And just when I’d decided he was exploiting me as a restaurant slave,” Lei said. No one laughed.

“For now we’d like to keep you in place at the Health Guardian and going to the cult celebration this Saturday. Obviously, don’t let Haddock know we’re in the picture,” Scott said.

“Obviously.” Lei inclined her head. “Well, I’ve got a shift to keep. Got anybody who wants to join me in this undercover venture? We can catch up out at the safe house in Kilauea. I’m not sure how much the cult is watching me, and I want to keep trips to the station minimal.”

“I’m coming in with you. We won’t want you to go to the cult alone.” Scott stepped away from the wall as she spoke. “I’m going to become your new best friend, and I want you to introduce me to Haddock.” Her dimpled smile had a lot of teeth. “For today just do your usual; I’ll meet you at the safe house this evening to strategize going undercover with you. We’re also going to be recording you and keeping Haddock under surveillance from now on.” She handed Lei a tiny earpiece and button mike.

“Sounds fun.” Lei gave back some toothiness as she took the equipment. “I can’t wait.”

She stood and walked out, putting some swing in her step. Her mind flashed to the phrase “can be oppositional with authority” that Lieutenant Ohale on the Big Island had written in her last performance appraisal. She needed to get herself in hand, but situations like this just didn’t seem to bring out the best in her.

“You going to be okay with all this?” Stevens had followed her out.

“I should ask you the same thing.” Lei walked on. The double doors whisked open with a pneumatic sigh.

“I’m not thrilled about it—I wanted us to be able to break this case open. But with so many bones and so little resources, it was past time to bring them in.”

“I know.” Lei unlocked her truck. “It’s weird, everything changing so fast, all these new people. At least I get to continue on the case for now.”

“I’m still organizing the cadaver hunt. They’re counting on our manpower; even with five agents here, the canvass of Hanalei Valley is going to take a lot of resources.”

“Okay. Well, going now.” The earlier kiss hung between them, haunting and magnetic. Stevens nodded and walked away.

Lei stood by the chain-link gate of the police safe house in Kilauea. Marcella Scott had called Lei to rendezvous there several hours into her workday. It had been a long morning at the Health Guardian with little to show for it, and now heightened tension thrummed through her.

A battered green Camaro pulled up, and Special Agent Marcella Scott got out of the driver’s side. Sleek brown hair hung in braids with curling ends, and she wore frayed denim shorts, flip flops on her feet, and a tank top emblazoned with Bob Marley over a long-sleeved tee. Lei wouldn’t have recognized her from the buttoned-down woman she’d met at the briefing.