Deception Cove h-10

by Jayne Castle

  McCarson grimaced. “Shit.”

  “We’ve also got an excellent relationship with the local Ghost Hunters Guild. I could call in a favor from the Crystal City boss. Trust me when I tell you that the Whitcombs don’t have any influence over him. The Guilds have always been good at making problems disappear into the tunnels.”

  McCarson exhaled heavily. “I believe you. You’ve made your point. I knew this job sounded a little too good to be true.”

  “Unfortunately, pressing charges against you and making them stick would be more trouble than it’s worth,” Drake said. “I don’t have the time to spare. I think we might be able to resolve this situation to everyone’s satisfaction, however.”

  McCarson eyed him with deep suspicion. “What’s it going to cost me?”

  Drake smiled. “Your specialty: information.”

  McCarson looked even more wary. “Information about who or what?”

  “Your client must have given you a file on Ms. North.”

  “What of it?”

  “I want everything that’s in it.”

  McCarson managed a fairly good imitation of appearing deeply offended. “Haven’t you ever heard of client confidentiality?”

  “Sure, but your little act of breaking and entering tonight indicates to me that your ethics are somewhat flexible.”

  McCarson’s mouth twisted. “Just trying to make a living.” He shot a veiled look at Alice. “Besides, as far as I knew, Ms. North is a blackmailer. That ranks pretty damn low on the ethics scale.”

  “It would if it were true,” Drake said. “But it’s not.”

  “How do you know that?”

  Drake started to respond but there was no need.

  “Get real, McCarson,” Alice snapped. She threw out her arms to indicate the shabby little studio apartment. “Do you think I’d be living in a dump like this if I was making big bucks blackmailing the Whitcombs?”

  McCarson blinked. It was clear he had not considered that angle.

  “Huh,” he said. His brow furrowed. “Well, maybe you haven’t been able to spend the money yet.”

  Alice raised her eyes to the ceiling. “Oh, for pity’s sake. Face the truth, Mr. McCarson. You’re working for a woman who is obsessed with revenge. I get that. But she’s wasting time and money looking in all the wrong places. She should be looking for whoever murdered her son.”

  “That’s enough,” Drake said. He studied McCarson. “I want the file. I assume it’s on your computer.”

  “No, Mrs. Whitcomb’s assistant gave me a hardcopy file when I agreed to take the job,” McCarson said. “For some reason the client doesn’t want a computer file created.”

  “Sure, because it would be evidence that she’s been stalking me,” Alice said.

  McCarson ignored that. “The file that I was given is locked in the trunk of my car. But I’ll tell you right now, there’s not much in it.”

  “Let’s take a look,” Drake said.

  They all trooped down the hall and back downstairs to the lobby. Outside McCarson led them to an inexpensive rental parked at the curb. He opened the trunk, reached into a briefcase, and removed a file folder. He handed it to Drake.

  “Knock yourself out,” McCarson said. “Can I go now?”

  “Sure,” Drake said. “One more thing, though.”

  “Now what?”

  “When you tell Ethel Whitcomb that you’re off the case, you can tell her something else.”

  “What’s that?” McCarson asked.

  Drake looked at him. “Let her know that Ms. North has moved on with her life. Tomorrow she will be entering into a Marriage of Convenience with me.”

  Alice opened her mouth on what he knew was going to be a shocked—make that horrified—protest. He moved his head ever so slightly, willing her to keep silent. Somewhat to his amazement, she closed her mouth again without uttering a word.

  McCarson did not appear to notice the byplay. He just snorted and slammed the trunk of the car.

  “I don’t know why you want to enter an MC with Ms. North, given her track record with husbands, but I assume you have your reasons. Good luck and watch your back is all I can say. Can I go now?”

  “Yes,” Drake said. “But make certain the news of the marriage gets to Ethel Whitcomb.”

  “No problem,” McCarson said.

  He walked around to the driver’s-side door and got behind the wheel.

  Alice stood beside Drake. He could tell she was seething. Together they watched McCarson’s car turn the corner and drive away into the night.

  “What in the world was that all about?” Alice asked.

  “I need you on Rainshadow. I do not need an endless series of investigators following you to the island and getting in my way.”

  “I see.” She gave that a moment’s consideration. “You think that if Ethel believes that I’m in an MC with you she will back off on the stalking?”

  “Ethel Whitcomb might be determined to carry on with her campaign of harassment, but she’s going to have a big problem finding private investigators who will agree to work for her once they find out that you’re married to me.”

  “Oh. Yeah.” Alice blew out a long sigh. “I see where you’re going with this.”

  “I’m fairly certain that common sense and a healthy survival instinct will convince ninety-nine out of a hundred PIs to decline her offer of a job. They’ll know what they’re going up against.”

  “And the one who isn’t convinced?”

  “We’ll know something important about him, whoever he is.”

  “Which is?”

  “That he’s not the sharpest tool in the shed.” Drake hesitated. “But this plan will only work if the marriage is for real.”

  Alice’s brows shot up. “You’re suggesting we actually go through with an MC?”

  “Ethel Whitcomb is bound to check, don’t you think?”

  Alice groaned. “Probably. What happens if I accept your job offer and agree to an MC and we actually find those missing crystals?”

  “After the business on Rainshadow is finished, I’ll take care of Ethel Whitcomb for you.”

  Alice gave him a searching look. “Geez, you’re serious, aren’t you?”

  “Consider it a bonus payment for helping us find the crystals.”

  “Do you really think you can get Ethel out of my life for good?”

  He smiled slowly. “Making problems like Ethel Whitcomb go away is what I do, Alice. You might say I’ve got a talent for it.”

  She watched him with a thoughtful expression. “A paranormal talent?”

  He shrugged.

  “I think I believe you,” she said slowly. “But to be clear, there’s something I would rather you did for me in exchange for my help on Rainshadow.”

  “Find out who really killed Fulton Whitcomb?”

  “Yes.”

  “Deal.”

  She blinked. “You’re that sure you can do it?”

  “Whitcomb’s death is tied to everything else that is happening on Rainshadow,” Drake said. “When we find those two missing crystals, we’ll find the killer.”

  “Suddenly you’ve got my full attention.”

  “You’ll come to Rainshadow with me?”

  “You couldn’t keep me away, not now.”

  “Good,” he said. “That leaves us with just one more issue to settle this evening.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Do I spend the night in my car or on your couch?”

  She thought about that for a moment longer than he would have liked.

  “I’ve accepted your offer of a job and an MC, so the least I can do is let you sleep on the couch,” she said.

  “Thanks.”

  “Don’t thank me yet. The couch came with the apartment. It’s really old and lumpy. The springs are shot. Houdini likes to bounce on it.”

  Chapter 5

  THE LIGHTS IN THE APARTMENT WERE OFF WHEN ALICE emerged from the bathroom. The balcony slider was ope
n. Drake was outside, lounging against the railing. His broad shoulders were silhouetted in the ambient green glow that illuminated the Quarter. Houdini was perched on the railing beside him. Both males appeared to be savoring the energy of the night.

  She was quite certain that Drake had stepped out of the tiny apartment in an act of gentlemanly discretion to give her some privacy while she got ready for bed.

  What had she done by agreeing to go back to Rainshadow? This was not the first time she had made life-changing decisions on the fly. The one thing she had learned early on was how to rez with the currents, as the kids said. She was good at analyzing her options and making decisions quickly. She was nothing if not adaptable. She was also very good at cutting her losses.

  It was not the decision to accept the job offer that she questioned. That was easy to understand. She needed the money and she had been told that she could name her price. Drake Sebastian was a powerful man with resources far beyond anything she could muster. If anyone could find the man who had murdered Fulton, it was Drake.

  It was the second part of the deal—the Marriage of Convenience to a man she had only just met—that had her second-guessing herself. The last time she had been talked into an MC followed by a honeymoon on Rainshadow, things had not gone well.

  She tightened the sash of her robe and crossed the room to the open door. She knew that Drake was aware of her presence, but he did not turn around until she spoke.

  “The bathroom is all yours.” Hesitating, she added, “I lowered all the lights for you.”

  “Thanks. That was very thoughtful of you.”

  He turned toward her then, and she realized that he had removed his mirrored sunglasses. She saw his eyes for the first time. It was impossible to be certain of the color because he was etched in the eerie green chiaroscuro created by the glow of the ruins. But they burned with a silvery paranormal energy that both startled and fascinated her.

  A shiver of excitement kicked up her pulse.

  This is the real reason why the MC is a huge risk, she thought. There is something between us, something hot and potentially dangerous.

  “Your vision is okay in this kind of light?” she ventured.

  “Yes,” he said. “But warn me if you decide to turn on a lamp, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  She could not think of anything else to say, so she started to retreat back into the darkened apartment. She paused when Houdini chortled a cheerful farewell and bounded down to one of the lower balconies. He quickly vanished into the night.

  “Where’s the dust bunny going?” Drake asked.

  “I have no idea,” Alice said. “Maybe down into the rain forest. Dust bunnies are night hunters, I think. Or maybe he just went out to meet a girlfriend. He’ll be back before dawn.”

  “He seems to have bonded with you,” Drake said.

  “We’ve been a team ever since he rescued me on Rainshadow.”

  “That’s how you found your way out of the Preserve?”

  “Yes. I told you, after I ran from Fulton I got lost almost immediately.”

  “Most people do inside the Preserve. Houdini found you?”

  “I was in a panic,” Alice said. “You know how it is inside the fence.”

  “Beautiful but treacherous.”

  “I wandered around for hours. Spent a night in a cave. The next morning I was sitting on a rock near a grotto pool, trying to come up with a strategy for finding my way back to the fence. Houdini showed up. He started dashing back and forth. Eventually I realized he was trying to get me to follow him. He seemed to sense that I was in trouble. I decided I had nothing to lose, so I followed him.”

  “He led you back through the fence?”

  “Yes. And then he seemed inclined to stick around. We became partners. He loves the magic biz.” Once again she started to step back into the shadows. “It’s getting late.”

  “Were you the only suspect in Fulton Whitcomb’s murder?”

  The question jolted her to a stop. “As far as I know. But remember, officially, Fulton’s death was ruled as from natural cause, so I’m not sure how hard the police looked for other suspects.”

  “Do you have any theories?”

  “No. I hired a private investigator of my own, Samson Crisp of Samson Crisp and Associates. Turned out there were no associates, just Samson. He took my money and made a lot of promises but he never came up with any leads. I got regular updates at the beginning. And regular bills.”

  “He assured you that he was making progress,” Drake said. “All he needed was a little more time and a little more money.”

  She winced. “Sounds like you’ve done business with Mr. Crisp.”

  “No, but I had a feeling your business association with him didn’t end well.”

  “You’re right. Eventually he stopped calling. The bills stopped, too. I went to his office a couple of times but he was never there. By then, Ethel was after me in full force and I didn’t have any money left to hire another investigator. I had to disappear.”

  Drake smiled. “Something you happen to be very good at.”

  “Like I said, the talent has its uses. It was how I got away from Fulton that day in the cave. He flew into a rage and came at me with the nearest blunt object, which happened to be one of the crystals. I pulled my vanishing act and ran. It caught him off guard.”

  “He knew you were a light-talent but he didn’t know about the invisibility thing?”

  “No. I never told him or anyone else at the museum, for that matter. For the most part, I’ve kept my ability a secret all of my life. It’s not what you’d call a socially acceptable talent. Tends to make people nervous. Men, in particular, always freak out if they think a woman can actually become invisible.”

  Drake seemed amused. “I can see where it would add an element of unpredictability to a relationship.”

  “That’s one way to describe it.” She thought about the folder on the kitchen table. “Find anything interesting in the file that you took from McCarson?”

  “I haven’t had a chance to study it yet, but it looks like a lot of detailed reports about your previous addresses, phone numbers, that sort of thing.” Drake paused. “Which reminds me, I’ve been meaning to ask, have you kept in contact with anyone?”

  “No. I told my closest friends, the few who believed I didn’t murder Fulton, that I was going to disappear for a while until the scandal died down. They understood. I was afraid that if I stayed in touch with them, Ethel’s thugs would go after them and try to use them to find me.”

  “Cutting yourself off from your friends was good strategy, but it must have made for a lonely life this past year,” Drake said.

  “Luckily I had Houdini. I’m not sure I would have been able to keep going without him.”

  “You would have kept going, with or without Houdini,” Drake said.

  “Think so?”

  “It’s how you’re built.”

  She folded her arms. “You know this . . . how?”

  He shrugged. “I just know it.”

  “An aspect of your talent?”

  “Beats me. I’ve always been fairly good at analyzing a person’s strengths and weaknesses. It’s what makes me good in the business world and is one of the reasons why my family decided to put me in charge of Sebastian, Inc.”

  “You say that like it’s no big deal, that it’s just a gift.”

  His mouth curved in a grim smile. “Doesn’t mean I don’t make mistakes. And when I do, they tend to be memorable.”

  “Is that so? When did you make your last really serious mistake?”

  He was silent for so long she started to think that he was not going to answer.

  “Three years ago,” he said finally.

  She caught her breath. “The lab accident that ruined your day vision?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to go there.”

  “I know. Don’t worry about it. Not like it’s a secret.”
/>   And suddenly she knew.

  “But it is a secret,” she blurted before she could stop herself.

  He stilled. “What?”

  “Never mind.” She realized she was turning warm. “It’s not any of my business.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  She uncrossed her arms and held up both hands, warding him off. “It’s nothing. I just got the impression that there was a lot more to the lab accident than you want outsiders to know. It’s okay. A proprietary business secret, right? Wouldn’t be good if your competition found out about it. I’m okay with that, really.”

  “Are you?”

  He watched her with his molten eyes, and she knew that he was assessing her, probably trying to decide if she was a threat to the family empire.

  “Hey, I’m in the magic business, remember?” she said brightly. “Secrets are my stock in trade. Besides, I don’t even know what your secret is, so there’s no problem here. Well, it’s late. We should both get some sleep.”

  “Yes,” he said. “Long day ahead. We’ll get married first thing in the morning and head for Rainshadow. If the weather in the Amber Sea holds, we’ll be on the island by late afternoon.”

  “Right.”

  She turned away and started toward the small alcove. Not like I’m going to get much sleep tonight, she thought.

  She hauled a spare blanket out of the cupboard and, in a burst of what she considered stunning generosity, gave up one of the two pillows from her bed. When Drake disappeared into the bathroom, she put the blanket and the pillow on the sofa.

  She hurried back into the alcove, pulled the curtain closed around the bed, and crawled under the covers.

  For a time she listened to the muted sounds that Drake made as he moved around in the small space. After a while she heard the ancient springs of the sofa groan under his weight. Then all was silent.

  She was right about one thing: She did not sleep well. She lay very still, intensely aware of the stranger with the silver eyes on the other side of the curtain.

  Sometime before dawn she heard the balcony door open and close. Drake said something in soft, low tones. Houdini chortled a response and fluttered under the curtain. He vaulted up onto the foot of the bed and murmured a greeting.