Maui Magic

by Terry Ambrose

  “I’m growing impatient, Mr. McKenna. We know all about you and Mr. Logan. Perhaps you would prefer I deal with him? Or Ms. Kapono? This is not a time for your usual sarcastic commentary. You will advise Mr. Myers of your selection. He will handle the rest of the transaction.”

  There was a click, and the screen went blank. How much did he know about me?

  “Out,” Myers said.

  I exited the car. It wasn’t like I could do anything to conceal the obvious. My knees shook and the confident smile on Myers’ face conveyed his amusement. They all knew I’d been faking my bravado.

  “Which is it? Money? Or a walk?” Myers pointed at the dusty road stretching into the distance. “And just so you understand, if your friends start asking questions, they’ll be joining you.”

  My throat was as dry as the dirt on the road. I wasn’t saving just my life… “I’ll…cooperate,” I stammered.

  Myers nodded. Someone, probably the driver, clamped my hands behind my back. A ring of fire shot through my wrists, then a black shroud dropped over my face. A moment later, I was lifted from the ground, carried a few feet, and dropped onto a flat surface. My head slammed against something hard, but with the slightest cushion.

  A sudden whoosh and a change in air pressure sent me into a panic.

  Had they locked me in the trunk?

  Blind, my wrists secured, and fearing what they would do to me next, questions raced through my mind. At the top of the list—was I a dead man?

  29

  My heart thudded in my chest with the anticipation of impending death. Would I suffocate before they released me? Would they ever release me? Sudden movement and the sounds of tires on dirt pulled me back to the present. There had been minimal sound inside the limo, but it was much louder here. This had to be the trunk.

  I couldn’t let fear rule my actions—it was time to regroup.

  The crunching sounds stopped; the car reversed direction, then came to a halt. We repeated the stop-go cycle. Were we making a U-turn on a narrow road? The tire noise turned to a steady hum—droning on pavement. Were we headed back to Lāhainā? Or somewhere less hospitable—like another deserted cane haul road?

  The odor of carpet shampoo grew more intense. Assaulted my senses. I could only think of one reason a killer might need to clean his trunk.

  The stench of my own sweat soon overpowered the soap smell and drenched my clothing to the point where it clung to my skin. It was pointless to think about what they might do next. My body shifted forward as the car slowed. Smooth pavement gave way to another dirt road. A jostle here; a bounce there. Then, silence.

  A rush of cooler air washed over me and a sliver of light peeked through the bottom of the hood. Strong hands hoisted me out of the trunk and my knees buckled when I felt solid ground beneath my feet.

  “Time for your final decision, Mr. McKenna. Are you accepting the offer?”

  It was Myers. His voice searing itself into my memory like a cattle brand. I’d despise that sound until my dying day. “Yes, I’ll cooperate.”

  Brilliant daylight blinded me. Fresh air rushed into my lungs. I was to live.

  “Put him in the car.”

  The driver grabbed my arm. I expected him to again handle me like a sack of dog food, but he was more gentle this time. Still firm, but his grip wasn’t as rough as he cut the zip ties. He returned me to my original seat.

  We drove the rest of the way in silence. I massaged the small abrasions on my wrists, which were far more painful than they looked. When we arrived at the Ilikahi, Myers turned his mirrored sunglasses on me.

  “Out. Remember, you can’t hide from me.”

  I reached for the door handle, then stopped. “A million bucks is a lot of money to buy my silence. Why not just bury me out there?”

  “I would have.” He cocked his head at the open door.

  Message received. Cap Myers would have been happy to kill me and my friends, but his boss didn’t want the inconvenience. The black stretch Lincoln left me standing on the roadside watching after it. The rear plate was concealed by a dark, translucent plastic, making it impossible to read the number. Why should I expect anything else?

  Alone in the spot where my day started, I struggled with my choice. How could I live with myself after betraying my ‘ohana? I didn’t want to think of myself as a coward, but when faced with deciding between death or a million-dollar payout, I’d chosen the money. It had taken many years, but I finally understood my station in life—that of traitor.

  The ‘ohana relationship meant a lot here in Hawai‘i. What backlash I might face if word of my betrayal ever leaked out I dared not imagine. Cap Myers and his boss, whoever he was, had nothing to fear from me. Secrecy was my only friend.

  My return trip along the driveway was much more difficult than the one I’d made this morning. Nothing would make me happier than leaving Maui, the Fujitas, Cap Myers—all of it. This island had broken me. No longer would I, could I, consider myself an investigator. I’d tell Chance my sleuthing days were over when we returned to Honolulu.

  Excited voices came from the lānai of Chance’s unit. My three friends were waiting. They must have continued on in my absence. I waited, eavesdropping, with my hand on the gate.

  “I’ve got background on Teddie Lawler. Are you ready for this?” Benni asked.

  “I can top that,” Chance said. “I have a photo of Penny.”

  Lexie laughed. “You guys are like two kids on the playground. But, I’ve got something, too. Penny’s phone was just disconnected. We should check it out in person.”

  They were making progress. And I wanted to pull the plug on it all.

  I rushed off to our unit to take a shower and after nearly scrubbing my skin raw with Benni’s pouf, toweled off. I donned a fresh shirt and stood in the middle of the room staring at the pair of shorts I wore this morning. I’d packed two pairs. Sherri decimated one with her ice tea at the Pony Club. Benni soaked them and they were in with the laundry. If I pulled them out before she did the wash, she’d know something was wrong for sure. I wore the ones from this morning, which was the lesser of the evils and headed to Chance’s condo.

  When Chance saw me, he rushed across the lānai. His eyes narrowed, and he looked me over. “Hey, man, you don’t look so good.”

  Benni came to my side, took my arm, and walked up the stairs with me. “What’s wrong? Where have you been? Your note said you went for a walk. When you didn’t come back, I got worried. I called Auntie Nakamura, but she hadn’t heard from you. What happened?”

  My feet felt like lead. My wrists ached, but I plunked down on the couch, determined to ignore them. “I’m a touch under the weather.”

  Benni sat next to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “You’re not having chest pains, are you?”

  “Do you need a doctor?” Chance asked.

  Benni glanced up at Chance and frowned. “He woke up thrashing around the bed last night.”

  Chance’s gaze narrowed as he scrutinized me. “Sounds familiar.”

  Rats. He knew me too well. Was aware of the dreams. What they led to. I forced a chuckle. “Life should be so simple, Chance. No heart attack—although that would solve all my problems.”

  A round of admonitions warned me against letting a bad night’s sleep turn me into a grump.

  I apologized to appease them, then closed my eyes and breathed in the aroma of bacon cooking. “Someone’s making breakfast. I’m starved.” Not really, but it would put off the pain. “Anyone up for a trip into town? I’m buying.”

  “What’s got into you?” Benni asked. “Do you have something big to celebrate?”

  I smiled. “What, a guy can’t take his ‘ohana out for a little food?”

  She shook her head. Her eyes filled with concern. “No, my guy would want to hear every detail. He might even tell us how to do better.�
��

  “Oh, right. What’d you find out? Maybe that will cheer me up.” Should I tell her she was only making things worse?

  Chance jumped right in. Circular logic, the old “I know that you know” type, led me to believe he suspected I’d had a dream. He might be on the cheer-McKenna-up bandwagon now, but he’d want details at some point.

  “We all got together this morning to do some online snooping,” he said. “Benni took background on Teddie—or, Mandy, as we know her—Lexie has been trying to connect with Penny again. We have more questions for her. And, I tackled Penny’s background.”

  He motioned with his head for me to follow. They placed their laptops on the lānai table, and Chance sat me down by his. He goosed the trackpad, and the screen lit up. It was Penelope Ditting. In the photo, her dirty-blonde hair was pulled back in a severe ponytail.

  I peered at the image. “That’s what she looks like without all the makeup?”

  “That’s plain Penny,” Chance said. “No goth eyeliner, no black lips, no jewelry. None of the stuff we saw the other day.”

  The complexion of the girl in the picture was washed out. With her coloring almost nonexistent and a complete lack of dark lipstick and heavy mascara, she really was Plain Penny. “Nice work. I don’t see what this changes though.”

  Chance gave me a thumbs up. “That’s why we all did different things.” He nodded at Benni. “She’s got something that will blow you away.” He smiled enthusiastically and removed his laptop.

  Benni set her computer in front of me. “Check this out. Teddie Lawler was a small-time thief in LA. She had nine arrests, seven of which were thrown out for lack of evidence. She was convicted twice and sentenced to probation on the first one. For the second, she received the minimum sentence, ninety days in jail—suspended. The girl has to be connected to someone with some juice because one of LA’s top criminal defense firms represented her.”

  “That’s good.” I summoned a smile. Images of the limo, the video call, and the dusty junction on a deserted cane road came rushing back. Yes. Teddie Lawler was “connected.” But, my friends would never understand how much so. I had to get them off the case before they put the pieces together or became victims themselves.

  “McKenna?” Benni sat next to me. She put her hand on mine. “Don’t you get it? We suspected Mandy wasn’t clean. This proves it. She joined that group intending to embezzle money. This should help Hisao.”

  I cleared my throat. “That’s, um, a big assumption. Sure, there are a lot of…uh…coincidences. It’s possible to make the case that Hisao was innocent, but this evidence will never come to light. It won’t fly in a court of law. Besides, this could also prove she double-crossed him. Maybe it was a crime of passion.”

  Chance whimpered. “Oh, man, this only strengthens that case.”

  Benni glared at me. “Don’t do this. Please.”

  “Do what? Be realistic? We might have just proven the case against Hisao. I’m thinking he committed the murder.” I didn’t want to be the one to say it to Mrs. Nakamura, but her grandson had become involved with the true rulers. Those with money and power. Those who destroyed lives.

  I leaned back in my seat and looked into Benni’s eyes. The wedge I was about to drive between us might never heal. But, it had to be done. “We need to tell Mrs. Nakamura about Hisao. He’s a killer.”

  30

  We’d checked out of the Ilikahi and were standing at the front door of the Fujita home. Our collective mood was downright grim, thanks to my dogmatic rant about Hisao’s obvious guilt. The worst part was even I didn’t believe the words that came out of my mouth. Everyone else cooperated for one simple reason—I’d been a jerk.

  The shuffling of house slippers on the tile flooring grew steadily louder until Yoshiko appeared behind the screen. Good grief, she was as big as a house.

  “You are not bringing good news, are you?” Her eyes brimmed with moisture as she unlatched the door and turned away.

  We followed her until she stopped and gestured at the seating area in the living room. “Please, be seated. I will tell my grandmother you are here.” Without another word, she duckwalked out of the room.

  I couldn’t bring myself to look at my friends.

  Benni sat at my side and leaned in close, her voice only a whisper. “McKenna, why are you doing this?”

  My heart ached at the thought of not being able to tell her the truth. The tightness in my throat strained my voice. “Because there’s no other way.”

  She stared at me, her head shaking slowly from side-to-side. Her lips parted, but she didn’t speak. A slow, steady ache simmered inside me. Each time I met her gaze, the simmering intensified, and I looked away. My insides churned with self-loathing, a feeling I feared might never go away. I saw the disappointment in her eyes and it burned my soul.

  Mrs. Nakamura shuffled in followed by Yoshiko. The old woman wore a pink and purple kimono. She’d pinned a white plumeria over her left ear. How many years ago had her husband passed away? Yet, she still remained faithful by wearing the flower and her wedding ring. With my actions today, it was possible…no, probable, the ring I’d packed away in my carryon would remain there—until I returned it.

  The little voice I call Bad McKenna taunted me with a simple refrain. “McKenna is a screw-up. Benni’s gonna hate you.” It played again and again. Conspicuously absent was Bad’s opposite, Good McKenna. Maybe he died from the strain. My jaw tightened over the emotions raging inside me. Hot anger. Cold remorse.

  Chance and I started to rise, but Mrs. Nakamura waved her hand to indicate we should remain seated.

  “My granddaughter has told me you are bearing bad news. Is this true?” She remained stoic, showing neither surprise nor anger.

  No longer considering myself her equal. I envied the woman’s fortitude, certain she would have died bravely at that cane road.

  Yoshiko stood a few feet away, sobbing. Lexie hurried over and guided her to one of the side chairs. I flinched at the idea of what would happen next, then dropped my head and croaked, “I’m sorry.”

  Benni inched away, and I didn’t blame her. I forced myself to face Mrs. Nakamura. My God, the woman had courage.

  Lexie sat with Yoshiko. She pulled her into an embrace and shot an accusatory glance in my direction.

  If only I were as strong as Mrs. Nakamura. “The evidence…does not look good.”

  “I do not believe your evidence.”

  “Hisao confessed the other day. You heard him.”

  “I do not believe his confession, either. I know my grandson. He would not commit this crime.” Mrs. Nakamura crossed her arms over her chest.

  I might as well be talking to a wall. Where was Hisao? Why should he be absent from this disaster?

  “Auntie?” Benni went to the old woman and rested a consoling hand on her shoulder. “Is Hisao at home?”

  “He said he had business to attend to. He left shortly after Mr. McKenna called.”

  Chicken. He didn’t want to face his grandmother any more than I did. No, he wasn’t the chicken. He was the one taking his medicine without complaint. I, however, had been a coward. Never had I claimed to be hero material.

  I sat up straight and did my best to appear strong. “Mrs. Nakamura, if Hisao says he killed Mandy Kenoi and the evidence points to it, he must be guilty.”

  Chance shifted position in his seat. “McKenna, that’s not entirely true. What we found…”

  “What we found,” I snapped, “pointed to a damning relationship between Hisao and Mandy. That’s what it was.”

  The ceiling fans spun in lazy circles. The warm breeze they created should have felt good, but to me, the room was cold and uninviting. A pall of silence hung over the room until Mrs. Nakamura spoke.

  “Mr. McKenna, I will allow you one last opportunity to rectify your error in judgement. You will reconside
r your decision.”

  It took everything I had to look her in the eye. “There’s no getting around the facts.”

  Mrs. Nakamura’s shoulders slumped. Tears brimmed on the rims of her almond eyes. The spiderweb of lines mapping her face deepened. “Please, I beg you.”

  Benni had called the Fujita’s home a house of good fortune, but it was no longer. In fact, this was the beginning of my end. This house, this island, perhaps even Hawai‘i, no longer held a life for me. No, when the news of my betrayal hit the coconut wireless—I would be best off returning to LA. Alone.

  Benni threw her arms around the old woman’s neck and sobbed. “Oh, Auntie, I’m so sorry. I don’t understand why he’s so determined.” She turned to face me. “McKenna, please. Don’t do this. You’ll destroy…everything.”

  Everything. Big word. But, it had a clear meaning. My hand ached with the intensity of the grip I maintained on my shirt. My chin felt brittle enough to shatter. I despised Cap Myers and the man he worked for. Their money was poison. And now, I hated myself for taking it.

  I shook my head. Said not a word. Waited. Then, Mrs. Nakamura’s resolve shattered and a strangled sob erupted from her throat. Yoshiko pushed herself up out of the chair, went to her grandmother, and helped her totter away.

  Bad McKenna’s taunts escalated, and Good finally broke his silence with one word. “Wow.”

  “We should let ourselves out,” I mumbled.

  Benni gaped at me. So many emotions traversed the distance between us. Disappointment. Anger. Disbelief. Chance and Lexie also appeared unable to fathom what…or why…I’d chosen this path. If they only knew.

  “Where the devil is Hisao?” Chance asked.

  It seemed an odd word choice for Chance, but it applied on so many levels. I could feel him…the devil…standing next to me.

  31

  I stared glumly over my shoulder at the front door. Took a couple of steps.