“You saw, didn’t you?” He stood just inches from her, the money pouch in one hand and the blade in the other.
Fear tightened her throat. “S…saw?”
“You know what I’m talking about, Kathy. You know about that Hingston woman, don’t you?”
“I…I…I don’t…” She wanted to lie, but denial seemed futile.
“You saw.” He fingered the scalpel. “How else would you know?” He waved the weapon in her direction. “Who did you tell?”
“Nobody.” She stared at the red smear on the blade and fought lightheadedness. “I mean, I haven’t told anybody.” She cringed. So much for denial.
“Don’t play games with me, Kathy.” He spit out the words.
“I’m not, I swear.”
He regarded her for a long moment, then backed off slightly. “I had to kill her, you know.” He tucked the pouch into the front of his shirt. “It was the only way to shut her up.”
She nodded, as if his reasoning made perfect sense. Maybe if she got his mind off Karen, she could make him think they were allies. “I…I took the money by mistake, and I’m sorry. But everything’s fine now. You can go back to running the clinic, just like before.”
He pierced her with a glare. “There is no clinic. It’s closed.”
Closed? She didn’t care about the clinic, but it had been a safe haven for her friends. If the clinic was gone, where was Dakota? “What happened to everyone?”
“How should I know?” His voice rumbled low and menacing. “That Hingston woman was going to turn me in. Send me to jail for scamming her poor sick father.” He clucked a maniacal laugh. “Stupid woman. No one will connect her to me, and even if they do, I’ll be back in Mexico.”
Slowly, Kate nodded. There had to be a way out of this. She’d been through too much to give up now.
His focus on her sharpened. “But I’m not dumb enough to take any chances.” He raised his arm, and the blade glinted against the dark sky.
Kate flailed. Her hand clasped the neck of the champagne bottle on the bar next to her. She raised it high, then swung it at his arm. The scalpel flew from his hand and skipped across the deck.
As Joe let out a roar of pain, Kate attempted to run. At the top of the stairs. he grabbed her from behind, cursing.
She thrashed against him, but she was no match for his strength. He struck her hard across the side of the head, sending her tumbling sideways, her upper body hurtling over the railing at the edge of the deck. Before she could push herself upright, Joe took hold of her legs and heaved her over. She caught a dizzying glimpse of the inky black water as she careened toward it, then felt herself being consumed by its freezing depths.
She thrashed and fought to get back to the surface, but it was no use. Her damaged right leg had been rendered motionless, becoming more anchor than oar.
She was going to die, and there was nothing anybody could do to prevent it.
Depleted, she stopped fighting. As she drifted toward unconsciousness, something Josh had once said pressed to the forefront of her mind. God always has my back.
He was right. She had been turning to people to keep her safe, and they hadn’t saved her. She should have been turning to God all along. That was what he had been trying to tell her without pushing it on her.
A sensation of sinking into silent darkness seemed strangely comforting. She had fought hard in this life and done the best she could, but she couldn’t fight any more. At any moment, she’d give in and surrender her final breath.
Then something brushed her arm, jerking her back to wakefulness. A hand grabbed her and she started moving upward.
All of a sudden, her head popped through the surface and her lungs filled, not with water as she’d expected, but with life-affirming air.
“Kate!”
Her name sounded both distant and contained in her own head. She gave in to the sensation of being dragged out of the water and onto a solid surface.
“Kate! Kate!”
The voice seemed familiar. She forced her lids to open, blinking past both ocean water and raindrops as she coughed and wheezed. She tried to focus on the face of her rescuer, just inches from hers, framed by the black night sky.
She smiled. “Josh…”
“Thank God.” Josh’s voice seemed to come from a dream.
Sputtering out something that combined a laugh with a cough, she reached up to touch his cheek, assuring herself that he was indeed real.
The rocking motion of the surface on which she lay brought her back to the reality of the situation. She was once again on the yacht. On the swim platform.
“We have to get you out of here.” As Josh sat back, a dark, hazy form appeared behind him. A raised arm. A familiar glint.
She tried to scream as Joe lowered his arm, clearly aiming for her chest.
“No!” Josh shouted, launching himself at Joe.
Terror swelled through Kate like a wave as both men crashed onto the platform. She struggled to pull herself to a sitting position, and when she looked up again, Joe knelt less than three feet from her. His eyes glowed with heated determination. Slowly, he drew his arm over his head, and Kate put her hands to her face, bracing herself for the impact of the blade.
Suddenly, there was a loud thwump. She looked up to see Joe tumble off the end of the platform. In front of her, Stuart wavered on unsteady legs, wielding an oar in his hands. A gasp of disbelief quivered from Kate’s throat as Stuart collapsed like a marionette to a sitting position.
Relief quickly turned to horror as she registered the motionless shape on the floor next to him.
“Josh!”
Letting out a weak sob, she clambered to him on her hands and knees. He lay on his side with his arms outstretched. The sight terrified her.
As she rolled him onto his back, his hand fell away from his chest. Kate saw that it was covered with something dark that dripped away with the rain.
Blood.
Chapter 29
Tears mixed with the raindrops streaming down Kate’s face as she bent over Josh, relieved to feel his warm breath against her cheek. She looked up as the distant wail of a siren offered a ray of hope.
His eyes fluttered open.
“Hold on, Josh” Her voice came out barely above a whisper. “Help is coming.”
He tried to raise his head. “I’ll…be okay.” His words were thready, and not very convincing.
“Of course you will.” Kate glanced over at Stuart, who was waving an oar to get the attention of the approaching sheriff’s boat, then returned her focus to Josh. “You shouldn’t have come back.”
“I had to.” He flinched, barely managing to meet her gaze. “You needed me.”
Kate swallowed a sob. In spite of everything she’d been telling herself for the past several days, she could no longer deny the obvious. She loved Josh. He was the one for her, not Chase. And now he might die because of her.
She tried to give him a reassuring smile, but a growing circle of blood on his shirt gave little comfort. She had to keep him alert until help arrived. “But…you’re afraid of water. How did you manage to dive in?”
“I…pretended I was the…hero in that movie. You know the one…” His words came out between shallow breaths. “The Ugly Swamp Thing That…Ate the World. I had to rescue you from the…bad guy in a…cheap costume.”
“With a zipper down the back.” Blinking back tears, Kate grabbed his hand. “Did you ever notice that?”
“Yeah…” He smiled. “Sure sign of a…” His grip on her hand tightened. “…low…budget.”
Blue lights flashed across the platform as the sirens ceased. Kate looked up to see the sheriff’s boat pull in next to the yacht along with what looked like an ambulance boat. Stuart dropped the oar and fell back onto the stairway.
In an instant, the buzz of a police radio and a flurry of activity filled the yacht. A female deputy helped Kate to her feet while a couple of medics went to work on Josh. Kate glanced over at Stuart, w
ho was sprawled on the stairs, also being tended to. The thought that either of them might die because of her was more than she could bear.
That thought brought a fresh reminder of the danger they’d faced and the reason for it. She looked out at the water, to the place where Joe had fallen in. “The…the man who did this…. He’s out there.”
“Don’t worry.” The deputy put a calming hand on her shoulder and tipped her head toward the sheriff’s boat, where an officer escorted a handcuffed and soaking wet Joe into the cabin. “One of our deputies apprehended him making a lame attempt to paddle away in a kayak.” She stopped just short of an eye roll. “Landlubber.”
Kate nearly collapsed against the woman’s shoulder. Joe had been arrested. Her nightmare was finally ending.
“Miss Jennings.” The sheriff appeared, looking even more overwrought than he had earlier in the evening. “You’ve had quite a day.”
She gulped, then reeled in her courage. It was time to come clean.
“That man who attacked us…his name is Joe Malone. He’s responsible for a murder in San Diego. And a scam that led to at least one death, probably more.”
The sheriff gaped at her for a moment. “Well now. I think you and I need to have a long talk.”
A wave hit the yacht and everyone took a sidestep to compensate. The movement gave Kate a painful reminder of her injury. She bent slightly, unable to keep herself from wincing.
The sheriff reached out to offer her some support. “Looks like your statement can wait till tomorrow. Right now, we need to get you to the ER along with these boys.”
With an assurance that he would see her at the hospital in Friday Harbor, the sheriff helped her to a seat in the ambulance boat, then left to deal with Joe. Someone wrapped a blanket around her shoulders as she watched Josh being hooked up to an IV.
The boat started moving, but to Kate’s surprise, it headed toward Chase’s dock. All her nerves clenched. Why hadn’t she remembered to tell the sheriff that Chase was on the island?
“Excuse me.” She spoke to a female medic who was preparing to administer a shot to Stuart. “Why are we going back toward Shaw?”
The woman answered without looking up from the syringe she tapped. “We have an officer down.”
Tad. With everything that had happened, Kate had forgotten about him. “He was hit by a car. But how did you know…?”
The medic held up the needle and studied it. “We received a 9-1-1 call from a nun.”
A nun? Had she heard right?
The three male medics flew into action, grabbing a stretcher and a couple of bright red bags. Kate looked at Josh, grateful that the female medic was apparently staying on the boat while the others went to get Tad.
With her nerves on edge, Kate watched the men make their way toward shore, their heavy-duty lights shining through the driving rain. Squinting, she recognized the outline of Chase’s car, and of a second car next to it. She drew in a breath. It was the squad car.
That seemed strange. Had Chase brought Tad down to the dock and called for help? Where did the nun fit in? And more importantly, where was Chase now?
As the men opened the doors of the squad car and dove into rescue mode, Kate scanned the area. There was something behind the trees at the end of the drive. She leaned closer to the window, making out the shape of a third car. Sam’s Volvo!
She pushed to her feet. What if Chase got to Sam?
She had to do something. “Excuse me.” She moved toward the medic, who was busy scribbling on a clipboard. “Could you let the sheriff know that Chase Cole might be on Shaw Island?”
“Chase Cole?” The woman frowned, barely looking up. “Why didn’t you say something sooner?”
Kate sputtered. “Well, I…I…”
“You can tell him yourself at the hospital.” The woman turned away, adjusting something on a machine next to Josh.
Feeling dismissed, Kate stepped back. She couldn’t just stand here doing nothing when Sam might be in danger.
Pulling the blanket over her head to protect herself from the rain, Kate carefully made her way out of the boat and onto the dock. With eyes watering from the by-now familiar pain, she inched toward the parking area, hoping to be able to see if Sam was inside her car.
As she neared the squad car, the sound of the medics shouting out to each other alarmed her. She peered around them, hoping to catch a reassuring glance at Tad. When she couldn’t see him, she hobbled around the front of the car.
Just as she was about to look in through the other open door, a hand grabbed her shoulder. Startled, she whipped around.
“Sam!”
Sam gave her a quick hug, then held her at arm’s length. “You’re soaked. Come get into my car.”
Kate allowed Sam to help her across the small parking area, then through a stand of trees and into the passenger side of her car.
Once inside, Kate let the tears flow. “Oh, Sam. So much happened after you left.”
“I know.” Sam rubbed her arm. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here. I came as soon as I got the call from the sheriff’s office.”
“Joe was on the yacht. He wanted to kill me.” The words tumbled out of her mouth, practically overlapping each other. “He pushed me over the edge, but Josh rescued me.”
Sam’s face creased with concern. “Do you know how Joe found you?”
Kate shook her head. “Not really. And I don’t know how he knew to find me on the yacht.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Sam took both Kate’s hands in hers. “You’re safe now. But we need to get you some dry clothes. We can go to the house and get something of Jessica’s.” Releasing Kate’s hands, she reached for the gearshift.
“No!” Kate practically spit out the word. “We can’t go to the house. Chase might be there.”
“Chase?”
“Yes. He came for me. He tried to get me to go with him, but then he accidentally hit a deputy with his car, and I managed to get away.”
Sam’s eyes widened. “But…why—”
“Chase is guilty, Sam. He killed Trina. Maybe Emily too.”
“What?” All emotion washed from Sam’s face. “How do you know?”
Kate quickly relayed everything that Stuart had told her, and what had happened since. She finished just as the medics carried the stretcher onto the boat. “Oh, we need to go.” She reached for the door handle.
“No. Wait.” Sam started the car. “You’re coming with me.”
Kate frowned. “But, I need to get back on the boat. Josh is—”
“You’re soaked.” She backed the car up enough to allow her to pull it out of the space between the trees. “You need a shower and dry clothes. Then we can go to Friday Harbor together.”
Kate’s heart sank. “But, if we can’t go to the house, where—”
“Just let me figure it out.” Making a U-turn in the parking area, Sam grabbed her phone. She punched in a number, then turned on her headlights and started up the drive, struggling to see past the rain hitting the windshield.
Kate’s thoughts whirred as she twisted around in her seat to see the boat pull away from the dock. It would have made more sense for them to have gotten on it, but it was too late now.
Sam held the phone to her ear and spoke. “Pick up. Pick up.” The words shot out like bullets.
Kate gripped her armrest, anxious for Sam to hang up so she could focus on driving.
“I’m coming over to borrow the boat again.” She continued to speak into the phone as she curved onto the main drive.
Kate tried to relax. At least now they were on level ground, but it was still impossible to see more than a few feet in front of them. She tried to keep the nervousness out of her voice. “So…we’re taking your friend’s boat to Friday Harbor?”
Sam seemed not to hear her question. “I know you’re not supposed to fly in the dark, Dennis, and only a fool would risk it on a night like this.”
Fly? Kate cast her a puzzled glance. What was she talking ab
out?
Sam continued her message. “And I know Chase is there. Don’t tell him I’m coming.”
“Chase?” Kate’s stomach clenched. “You mean your friend with the boat is also Chase’s pilot?”
Wordlessly, Sam clicked off the phone and tossed it into the cup holder in the console.
Kate started to panic. “Sam, if you know where Chase is, shouldn’t we call the sheriff and tell him?”
“Shut up.” Sam focused on the dark road ahead through the rain-pummeled windshield. “You ask too many questions.”
Kate stared. “I don’t…I mean, I didn’t—”
“You ruined everything.” Sam’s voice hardened along with her features.
A fresh surge of adrenaline renewed Kate’s alertness. “What do you mean?”
“You little fool.” Sam shook her head. “I’ve waited for years for Chase to realize I’m the one he belongs with.”
“You…” Kate’s body went numb. “…you’re in love with Chase?”
Sam didn’t have to answer. The melancholy filling her eyes did it for her.
Kate shuddered. Why hadn’t she seen it before?
“You were supposed to leave with Joe.” Sam struck a fist against the steering wheel. “That was our deal.”
Their deal? Kate’s blood flash-froze in her veins. “You were the one who told Joe where to find me? But…how—”
“You left your purse on the floor. I took your phone to check your contacts. Of course, I wanted that detective to come up here and arrest you, but he was really just trying to scare you to get you to help him collect evidence against Joe. So I found Joe’s number instead. He agreed to get you out of my way as long as he got his money.”
Kate’s teeth clattered in fear. “So that was who you had to go meet today? Joe?”
“I had him flown in. Then I took him to the yacht.”
Kate closed her eyes, fighting a wave of nausea as she remembered the small boat that had been near the yacht earlier. “But…if you had told me you loved Chase, I would have understood. We could have worked something out.”
Sam leaned forward, squinting, as the car crept ahead. “That was the mistake I made the other times.”
Tide Will Tell (Islands of Intrigue: San Juans) Page 21
