Deadly Wipeout (Aloha Lagoon Mysteries Book 3)

by Beth Prentice

  Luke came to me and pulled my arms away from my face as a woman in uniform attended to Mum. "It's okay, Sam. She's been shot in the shoulder. She's okay. It was just shock that made her pass out."

  I fell into Luke and watched the room as he held me tight. It appeared that whilst I had been distracted with Mum, the police had moved in, Luke in tow.

  "What happened?" I asked in between sobs.

  "Alani got your message about the kidnapping, so I found Detective Ray. He tracked the GPS on your phone, and we came here. God, we arrived just as we heard the gunshot."

  I felt Luke start to shake. I put my arms around his chest and held on tight. He must have been as scared as I was.

  "I didn't know…" he said. "I didn't know if it was you or Mum."

  His voice broke on the last word. Luke didn't cry often, and I knew that the memory of this moment would stay with me forever.

  * * *

  Organized chaos is the only word that could describe the scene around me. Police cars filled the area around the abandoned house, their lights flashing blue and red, causing the night air to feel eerie and strange shadows to dance in their wake.

  Three ambulances were slowly making their way down the grass road leading to the house. One was for Tony, one was for Patrick, who apparently got shot, and one was for Mum. Luke stayed with her, waiting for it to arrive. I was asked to step outside to talk to Detective Ray, filling him in on what exactly had happened tonight.

  I did my best, but I was tired, emotional, and still hungry. I never did get my leftover pizza from the microwave. Plus, I was cold. The nights in Hawaii might be warm and tropical, but right now, they didn't feel it. Detective Ray barked an order at one of the uniformed officers, and suddenly a blanket appeared and was wrapped around my shoulders.

  "You were foolish tonight, Samantha. You should never have followed the kidnappers. This could have been so much worse," he said to me.

  I felt the lecture coming on. I didn't need it. Yes, I knew it probably wasn't my best decision, but what choice did I have?

  "However," he continued, "I would have done the same thing for my mother."

  I looked up at him, surprised.

  "In any future incidences, wait for the police though please." He smiled and closed his notebook.

  Without a doubt he would have more questions for me, but it seemed tonight, he'd asked enough. I would be eternally grateful.

  "Detective, what happens now?" I asked.

  "Well, Tristan will be charged with extortion and kidnapping. I'll be looking into exactly how much Kylie knew about all of this. Patrick will be taken to the hospital to have Tristan's bullet removed from his leg. He'll be charged with two counts of murder, plus we already have him under investigation for stealing drugs from Aloha Ohana, so once he's finished at the hospital, I have a few more questions for him. And his associates."

  The detective gave me a knowing look. During my recount of tonight's events, I might have mentioned how I thought Mark was involved. Did this mean I was right about him?

  The detective's expression softened. "Any investigation into your mum or Luke will be closed. The cash you handed over tonight will have to go into evidence."

  I shrugged. "Mum and Luke should have the inheritances soon."

  "I'm sorry, Samantha, but I'm sure the money those men left your family in their wills will be tied up in court cases for a long time. I'm not sure if you will ever see any of it."

  It didn't matter. Our financial woes were the least of my worries right now.

  "What happens to Tony?" I felt my breath hitch as I waited for his response. I was really unsure how I felt about Tony, but time would probably settle that.

  "Not much. As far as I can tell, those men changed their wills voluntarily. Tony didn't force them to do anything. He will be questioned in regards to his motives, but at this stage I can't see how he's done anything illegal."

  I smiled and wrapped the blanket tighter around my shoulders.

  "Now if you'll excuse me please," he finished. "I have a job to complete."

  He walked away, leaving me standing alone in the semidarkness. Wow, what a night. Actually, what a few weeks! Yes, I'd only been in Aloha Lagoon for a short while, yet I felt like I'd done more in that time than I had in a lifetime.

  I moved closer to the cellar door, wanting to know what was happening with Mum, when a gurney was pushed past me. Tony was strapped to it, sitting up. He spoke to the paramedics, asking for a minute with me. I didn't know what to say to him. Turned out I didn't need to worry about it.

  "I just wanted to tell you," he said, stopping to take a deep breath. "I wanted to tell you that I'm proud of you. I'm proud of the person you've become. And before you say anything, I know that you've grown into this person in spite of me not being in your life. But please believe me when I say that I left for your benefit. I wasn't ready to be a husband or a father, even though I tried for four years. I saw the impact I was having on Rita, the impact of my behavior. But I couldn't stop. I don't think I wanted to stop. But I regret it, Samantha. I regret every single minute of my life without you all. I tried to put everything right, to help, but all I managed to do was mess everything up even more and put you all in danger." His eyes filled with tears as Luke stepped up behind me. "I'm truly sorry."

  I nodded. I didn't know what to say. Many, many times over the years I'd been growing up, I'd imagined meeting my father again. Never had I imagined it like this.

  Luke put his hand on my shoulder, clearly confused as to why Tony was talking to me like this.

  Boy, was he in for a shock.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  It was nearly six a.m. by the time I got home. Luke and I had spent the last few hours at the hospital waiting for Mum to come out of surgery to have the bullet removed. Thankfully, it all went to plan, and we left Mum sleeping peacefully. A good dose of morphine would do that for you.

  Whilst waiting, I'd brought Luke up to date with everything that had happened, including the part where I'd found out that Tony, aka Brian, was our father. To say Luke was surprised was an understatement. That surprise turned to anger but then dissipated into sadness. Sadness that Tony had never told him. Had never told any of us. I guessed that we had time now, assuming that what Detective Ray told me about Tony having no charges pressed against him were true. Providing I could get past how he had acted in regards to Jeremy Gibson.

  The sun was starting to rise, giving the morning sky an orange glow, as I wrapped myself in a sweater and made my way out to the back deck to watch it.

  Footsteps on the timber kitchen floor alerted me to Luke heading my way. Luke had surprised me last night, the way he'd taken control of the situation. I wasn't sure what would have happened if he hadn't turned up.

  "Hey," I said, smiling at him.

  "Hey."

  "Did you get any sleep?"

  "No. You?" he asked.

  "Same. I kept replaying what happened."

  "Yeah, it could have been so much worse. I thought I'd go back and visit Mum after she's had some sleep and they move her to a ward. I know she wanted to come home as quickly as possible, but I'd like her to stay there for as long as she needs."

  "She was pretty upset to learn about Mark."

  When Mum had been lying on the gurney, waiting to be put into an ambulance, Patrick had spilled the beans about everything, including his involvement with Mark. It turned out he'd been stealing the drugs and Mark had been selling them.

  "Yeah, none of this should have ever happened," said Luke, rubbing his hands over his face. "I should have protected her."

  "Luke, it's not your job to protect us."

  "Yes, it is. Dad told me I had to. He told me it was my job."

  "What are you talking about?"

  "When we were little, and he left us. I remember the night. He came into my room and told me that I was the man of the house now and to take care of you and Mum."

  "Luke, you were four years old. How do you remember
that?"

  "Some things you remember. But the funny part of it is, I remember him telling me—I just don't remember his face."

  We sat in silence for a while. I thought about what he'd just told me and the impact it must have had on him. Luke eventually broke the silence.

  "When Mum left Australia for Hawaii, I didn't know who I was supposed to be with. Should I stay in Oz and look out for you, or should I move to Hawaii and look after Mum? At the time you were in a relationship with Jason, so I thought Mum needed me more. I'm sorry I left you, Sam."

  Luke's words broke my heart. How could he have been carrying such a huge burden for so long without telling me?

  "You have nothing to be sorry for. Mum needed to be here to look after Gran. After Gran passed away, she decided to stay. I needed to be in Australia because that's where my life was. You should have been wherever you wanted to be."

  "I wanted to be in both places."

  His words sat heavily on me. All the times I had thought he was selfish and inconsiderate, he was actually the most caring person I had ever known.

  "Luke, I give you a hard time as a brother, but I love you. You have always taken care of us. You did an amazing job."

  He gave me a tight smile. "Thanks."

  "You know, at some point though, Mum and I need to take care of ourselves?"

  "Yeah, I'm working on that."

  I smiled and allowed the comfortable silence to fill the air between us.

  "I need to tell to you something," said Luke, his voice gravelly with emotion. "It's about Casey."

  My stomach flipped. "What is it?"

  "You know how I told Casey to stay away from you?"

  "Yes," I replied, a knot rapidly forming in my stomach.

  "I also told you he said he was just a friend to you."

  "Uh-uh." My breathing was becoming more rapid.

  "It wasn't true."

  "What?"

  "Well, it's true that he said it. It's just not how he really feels. He confessed to me that he thinks he's falling for you."

  Okay, my stomach did a full-on somersault, the butterfly circus doing the opening scene.

  "Really?" My voice came out on a whisper, all the air vanishing from my lungs.

  "Yeah. Really. I'm sorry. He was going to tell you, but I pulled the best-friend card on him and told him to stay away."

  I wanted to be angry with Luke for interfering, but I now understood why he had. He was trying to protect me. Whatever his reasons though, I needed to find Casey to tell him how I felt.

  "I have to go," I said, standing. "I need to find him."

  Luke nodded, then dug into his pocket and pulled out his car keys. "Take the car. Remember though, we drive on the opposite side of the road here. Don't crash it," he said, throwing the keys to me.

  I smiled as the keys flew through the air. I put out my hand to catch them, this moment with Luke perfect. Only I forgot that I wasn't very coordinated when I was tired. The keys sailed straight past me and landed in amongst Mum's bromeliads. Geez, I hoped that wasn't an omen.

  Other than my short drive the night before, I hadn't driven since I'd arrived here. And being on the opposite side of the car was definitely throwing me. More than once I found myself on the wrong side of the road, the oncoming vehicle blasting me with horns.

  I managed to get to Casey's house without any accidents though. I knew he wouldn't be at the resort yet. It was too early. The sun had broken the horizon, the day well and truly underway. I leaped from the car and ran to the front door. My hand shook as I reached out and rang the bell.

  Waiting for Casey to appear, I took the time to straighten my clothes. I had bothered to quickly get dressed before running off to find him, but only took enough extra time to brush my hair and clean my teeth. Now I wished I'd applied full makeup and found something better to wear than just shorts and a T-shirt.

  My foot tapped impatiently as I looked through his front window, hoping to see him walking toward me. Hmmm, no Casey.

  I stepped back and looked up at the balcony off his bedroom, wondering if he was up there.

  A boy riding a push bike and doing a paper round threw a newspaper across the front lawn, hitting me in the back with it. Ouch!

  I bent to retrieve it, and as I did, the ocean came into my view. It almost beckoned me. I wondered…

  I checked that the kid on the bike wasn't heading back down the street before I crossed the road. Standing on the grass looking down over the water, I took a deep breath, relaxing for the first time in days.

  Taking one quick look back at Casey's house, just in case he had appeared on the doorstep, I moved to the path leading to the beach. I had a hunch where I might find him.

  I ran down the path, almost leaping through the dunes till I got to the water's edge. From there I ran up the beach toward Casey's rock. That was what I'd called it. Sure, I knew that it wasn't the official name, but to me it would always be Casey's rock.

  I was surprised by how fit I had become, running all the way there. Okay, I might have stopped to catch my breath once. But that was all. Just once.

  The rock jutted out into the water, the tide almost all the way out. Sitting on the very end, looking down into the water, was Casey.

  My heart missed a beat as I slowed to a walk.

  He didn't turn and see me, his focus on whatever was in the water. I moved slowly and quietly, climbing the rock easily and moving behind him, the sound of the ocean covering any noise I made.

  I took a moment to enjoy him, sitting with his back to me, the sunrise reflecting on his skin. Wow was the only word I could think of. Casey startled, realizing I was behind him. He turned quickly to look over his shoulder, his thoughts unreadable.

  "Hi," I said, my voice quiet and uncertain. I'd raced here in such a hurry wanting to tell him how I felt, but now that he was sitting in front of me, it all seemed so much harder.

  "Hi," he replied. "What are you doing here?"

  "I came to talk to you. If you don't mind, that is."

  He smiled, and the world slipped on its axis. If this conversation turned out the way I hoped it would, I really needed to get used to his smile.

  "No, of course I don't mind. I was just thinking about you, actually."

  He was? My heart tripped as I attempted to gain some control.

  I moved closer to him and sat on the rock, our shoulders nearly touching. The view was magnificent whichever way I looked, but I took a moment to enjoy the water. It calmed me, and from it I could find the courage I needed.

  "Have you spoken to Luke today?" I asked.

  He shook his head. "Nah, I've had my phone turned off. I don't feel like talking to him just yet though."

  "Oh. We had a bad night," I explained.

  Casey's eyebrows shot up as he looked at me. I brought him up to date with the night's events. By the time I had finished with the part where Tony gave me his speech, Casey's face was torn with emotion.

  "Your mum was shot?" he asked.

  I nodded.

  "But she's okay?"

  I nodded.

  He sat quietly for a moment. "And you were going to ride your bike to find the kidnapper?"

  Yeah, that did sound pretty ludicrous in the light of day. I nodded again.

  Casey swiveled on the rock to face me. His eyes were deep blue, concern dancing in their depths. He opened his mouth to say something and then closed it again. He did this three more times before saying, "So where did you keep the money?"

  I'd told him I'd only been wearing my nightshirt and flip-flops, and that was why my legs had scratches and cuts on them. Heat flooded my face, and I wondered how I didn't pass out.

  "Well, I…it doesn't matter where I kept the bloody money."

  Casey's grin turned to a full-on smile. "Let me guess," he said, teasing me. "You put it in your bra."

  "I wasn't wearing a bra." His eyebrows shot up somewhere around his hairline, a small smile playing on his lips.

  "Underwear?"

/>   "Of course I was wearing underwear. Geez, what kind of girl do you think I am?"

  He let out a bark of laughter, the sound deep and gravelly, which did absolutely nothing to keep my hormones in check.

  "You're one of a kind, Samantha," he said, his smile turning sad.

  Silence filled the air between us.

  "I spoke to Luke this morning," I finally said. "He told me he pulled the best-friend card on you and told you to stay away from me."

  Casey looked out over the horizon, his gaze unwavering.

  "Last night made him reassess his priorities," I continued.

  His gaze whipped to mine, and he looked deep into my eyes.

  "Really?"

  I nodded. "Really."

  Suddenly the air changed and became charged with electricity. All reserves were down, and Casey looked at me like I had never been looked at before. The intensity was beyond anything I had ever felt.

  His hand reached out to me, his fingers gently tracing their way around my jaw, skimming my bottom lip on their path. His eyes looked deep into mine, and I felt my world move. My mind went blank, filled only with Casey.

  People say that stressful situations can cause emotions to be confused. My emotions weren't confused. They knew exactly what they wanted. And that was Casey. Looking at me like this. Forever.

  "Could you see yourself with me, Samantha?" he asked, vulnerability dancing in his eyes as he spoke.

  My breath hitched. "Yes," I replied on a whisper. "To infinity and beyond."

  * * * * *

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