In the distance, she could see Nick a few feet past the railing, on the bench. Bundled in his blue North Face coat, complete with a knit beige scarf, he looked picture perfect. She tightened the belt on her red wool trench coat and let Raven out of the backseat. Raven looked up expectantly, wagging her tail.
“Go on, then.”
Raven bounded into the light dusting of snow toward Nick. The dog was so well trained, Alexis didn’t even need to put a leash on her. Alexis followed her and sat next to Nick. “Hello, Mayor Kendrick.”
“I got some good news that the K9 grant for the town will be approved.” He leaned over and kissed Alexis on the cheek.
Raven released a funny moan like she was annoyed at the display. Nick echoed the noise as if they were having a conversation about it. He handed Alexis a paper cup filled with hot chocolate, topped with whipped cream. “So, how’d Raven do on her first time out?”
After several classes with Raven, Alexis and the dog had been certified as a therapy team. While Alexis waited for the results of her appeal to the Idaho State Bar, she had no reason not to start serving the elderly in town. Today was their first visit at the nursing home. “Are you kidding? Raven was a natural. Everyone loved her.”
“So Raven got plenty of affection. Then maybe she can spare some.”
He leaned over and placed one hand on Alexis’s neck and the other on her jaw. A shiver ran up her spine, and she was pretty sure it wasn’t from the cold.
Raven jumped up on the bench and squeezed her way in between them. Nick sighed. “Raven, I lost something out here.” He pulled out a glove from his pocket. The dog sniffed it heartily. “Go to work!”
Alexis frowned. “I didn’t realize she knew how to go after a scent without being trained for it.” Alexis leaned forward and examined the terrain. They could see the entire valley from this vantage point. “Do you think she’ll be safe?”
“I won’t let her go far. I have a feeling she knows this path well.”
True to his word, Raven stuck her nose into the snow near some sagebrush. She bounded back toward them with a black glove in her mouth.
“How did your glove get clear over there?”
It was almost as if Raven had played this game before with Nick. Before Alexis could ask a follow-up question, Raven dumped the wet glove in her lap. Except it felt too heavy against her leg to be just a glove, and it had an odd shape. Her breath caught. She looked to Nick for some kind of explanation.
He avoided eye contact and pointed at it. “What’d she find?”
Alexis stretched the opening of the glove and pulled out a velvet box. She stared at it instead of opening it. What if she was making an assumption that wouldn’t prove true? Maybe it was just a necklace. “Nick...”
He dropped to a knee and opened the box for her. Inside, the square-cut diamond on the white-gold ring glistened. He reached to hold her hand. “Alexis Thompson, when I ran into you that first day, I knew I’d met my match.”
She enjoyed the double meaning and knew it was true for her, as well. The last months had been filled with evenly matched debates over nonimportant issues. On the things that were really important, they heartily agreed. She equally loved their similarities and differences.
“My life changed forever, for the better,” Nick said. “Will you make me the happiest man in the world and be my wife?”
She wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. “Yes,” she whispered. Her gaze dropped to her hand in his. “I’m pretty sure a contract of this sort is supposed to be sealed with a kiss.”
He stood and pulled her up with him. He gently brushed back her hair with his free hand and pulled her close to him. “I never argue with my lawyer.”
His lips were half an inch away when she pressed her hand into his chest. “I hope that’s not true.”
“I see.” He looked over her head as if searching for something to argue about. “Musicals are just long, drawn-out monologues.”
“We’ll have to go to one together to prove that’s not true,” she retorted.
He raised his eyebrows. “Um...it is never okay to be late.”
Even though she agreed with him, she volleyed back for fun, “Then why is the term fashionably late a thing?”
He smiled and whispered, “White chocolate is better than dark chocolate.”
She gasped and playfully hit his shoulder. “Too far!”
His laugh was delicious as he pulled her closer. “I love you, Alexis. I can’t wait to be your husband.”
She snuggled deeper into his embrace. “I love you, too.”
Raven wormed her way between their legs. Nick groaned as he pulled out a dog treat from his pocket. “I’m ready for you.” Raven took the treat and flopped down happily at their feet.
“Smart man. She deserves a lifetime supply of treats.”
“Is that so?”
“Oh, yes. She not only won over a self-proclaimed dog-hater but also went above and beyond and tracked down the man of my dreams.”
Nick looked into her eyes and beamed.
And finally, his lips touched hers.
* * * * *
If you enjoyed TRACKING SECRETS, look for these other books by Heather Woodhaven:
CALCULATED RISK
SURVIVING THE STORM
CODE OF SILENCE
COUNTDOWN
TEXAS TAKEDOWN
Keep reading for an excerpt from DEEP WATERS by Jessica R. Patch.
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Dear Reader,
Over ten years ago, we moved across the country. Hoping to ease the sorrow of moving, my husband promised our three children that once we got settled we would get a dog. It took much longer than anticipated to find a home that suited our needs. So instead of summer, the children reminded their dad of his promise in January. I didn’t consider myself an animal lover at the time. I mostly feared destroyed furniture and long periods of waiting in the frigid temperatures while housetraining a new dog.
Still, we took a trip to the animal shelter. To my surprise, there were many puppies available in the dead of winter. One by one we took each puppy into the pen. The moment we made it outside, the pups would run free. Until, that is, we escorted the last one outside. The final puppy had no interest in running around the square space. Instead, she nuzzled against each of us. We often tell people that we didn’t choose a dog. She chose us. And she’s been the perfect dog for our family. As you’ve probably figured out, she was the inspiration for Raven. I hope you enjoyed how she helped Nick and Alexis leave the past behind to enjoy a future together.
As always, I love to hear from readers. You can contact me and keep updated on new books through my newsletter at my website, WritingHeather.com.
Blessings,
Heather Woodhaven
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Deep Waters
by Jessica R. Patch
ONE
The full moon’s radiance blanketed the ocean. Tides were high. The generous breeze swirled in from powerful waves, leaving nothing but briny air to fill Caley Flynn’s nostrils as she tiptoed down the boardwalk to her favorite place in the whole world. Her fingers trailed the weathered wood railing as grains of sand collected under her newly manicured nails.
Seven hours from Atlanta, where she’d grown up, she’d made Turtle Bay, Florida, her home right out of vet school. A small and lovely tourist town nestled along the peninsula separating the Gulf of Mexico and Tampa Bay, it was known for an abundance of sea turtles—especially loggerheads that nested on the sandy shores—fine dining and glorious summers.
She slipped out of her hot-pink flip-flops with fading green palm trees and descended the sandy stairs onto the beach. She loved the way the powdery sand coated her feet. As she met the cool water, a sigh escaped her; she even relished the salty film the surf left in its wake. But mostly she loved this season. It was June and sea turtle nesting was in full swing. Through October she had the unique opportunity to study loggerheads, leatherbacks, green turtles and hawksbills as they swam to shore, burrowed a nest in the sand and deposited hundreds of eggs before swimming back into the depths of the sea. In the next couple of months, the hatchlings would make their trek to the water with nothing but the night’s gentle light to guide them.
Caley had been on faculty as the head marine life veterinarian at the Arnold Simms Sea Turtle Rescue, Rehabilitation and Research Center since she’d moved here, thanks to a few strings pulled by her professor and mentor, Leo Fines.
Every day was overloaded, but at night...nights sometimes belonged only to her, and she enjoyed her solitary strolls. She’d had a lot on her mind lately trying to secure a new grant for the nonprofit center. The fund-raising gala was coming up, and she was in charge of making sure everything went off without a hitch. They needed this grant. They needed the donations from investors.
The foamy water teased her bare feet and ankles as wet sand slipped away with the undertow. She gazed up at the moon, gray clouds casting shadows across the dark water.
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
The lull of the ocean reminded her that the world didn’t have to be full of violence. All her life she’d lived with the fear that something bad could happen to her or a member of her family. She hailed from a long line of navy men and women who’d gone on to serve in some branch of law enforcement, purposely putting themselves in danger.
After her sister, Meghan, had died, she simply couldn’t deal with it anymore and she’d journeyed as far away as she could. Away from her family and the danger that surrounded them daily.
Caley enjoyed her work. Enjoyed the people. Rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing sea turtles. Making them healthy. Educating the public. They had more volunteers this year than last. But the grant and donations rarely strayed from her mind.
Moving out into knee-deep water, she walked parallel with the shore. Seaweed, like mermaid’s hair, fanned and raked across the water.
She even loved seaweed.
Wait.
Caley removed her glasses and used her worn-thin gray T-shirt to clear the spots of water, then looked again. Inching closer, her lungs turned to iron.
Dark hair. Not seaweed.
Her stomach convulsed, threatening to bring up her dinner.
Two more feet and the refreshing water chilled her bones, raising gooseflesh on her skin; a strangled scream erupted from her burning throat.
Mary Beth Whaling, a student here in the college intern program, floated listlessly in the tide. Eyes wide open. Skin translucent.
No. No.
She trembled as she checked for a pulse, knowing it would be absent. How did this happen? When did this happen? Why?
Fumbling for her cell phone in her back pocket, Caley glanced up and saw a kayak floating about ten yards out. She dialed 911. She and Mary Beth had just spoken at lunch. She’d mentioned going to bed early tonight and starting a new romance novel. One of the many things they had in common. Of all the female interns—of all twelve interns total—Mary Beth was her favorite. She reminded Caley so much of herself at nineteen. Just seven years ago.
Sirens wailed in the distance as she stayed on the line with dispatch.
The police and ambulance would be here any second.
What was Mary Beth doing out here alone? She never swam without a second person.
Unless she hadn’t been by herself.
But why would someone leave her here without notifying authorities or the center if an accident had taken place?
Was it an accident?
A stream of questions bombarded her mind as she continued to stand by Mary Beth. Caley wouldn’t leave her, wouldn’t let the tide draw her out.
As blue-and-red lights flashed, a couple of faculty members still working at the center made their way to her along with other interns from the dormitory next door. Shock, tears, horror etched their faces, mirroring Caley’s feelings.
Billy Reynolds, the young man Mary Beth had been dating, flew toward her, but the officers held him back.
“Mary Beth!” he hollered, voice cracking. “What happened? Caley, what’s happened?”
Caley’s chest constricted. She had no answers.
A large, bald man—by choice it appeared and not by age—squatted next to Caley. “Come on. Let the first responders do their jobs. I have questions.”
So did Caley. She dropped Mary Beth’s cold hand and let the officer on the scene lead her farther up the beach, away from the onlookers. “I’m Officer Wilborn.”
“Caley Flynn. I work for the Arnold Simms Center. Just down that way.”
He looked toward the center and nodded. “How did you know the girl?”
Caley rubbed her forearms. “She’s part of the intern program. We take twelve each year. From all over the United States. She’s from Oregon.” Her parents needed to know. “I have to call her folks.”
“We’ll get to that. Do you know why she’d be out here this time of night and alone?”
Mary Beth was wearing her racing-back swimsuit. The one she kayaked in. “I can’t believe that she was. Her younger brother died in their pool when no one was home and she promised her parents afterward she’d never go in the water alone.” Why did she change her mind?
Officer Wilborn continued to pepper her with questions she had no answers to, then left her to ask questions among the interns.
Dr. Leonard Fines, her mentor and the director of the center, sidled up next to her, draping his lanky arm around her shoulders. “I overheard some talk. Looks like she drowned. The kayak belongs to the center. They pulled it in five minutes ago.”
Caley leaned into her mentor. “I was responsible for these students. How am I going to face her parents?”
“I can make the call.”
Caley shook her head. “No, I’ll do it. Then I need to go through her things. I don’t want her parents to have that burden, as well.” Watching Mom and Dad go through Meghan’s room had been devastating. “I can’t believe she’d be out here at night on the water.” The unsettling feeling wouldn’t shake.
“Well, she was.” Leo was only a few years older than Caley’s father; of course he was less rigid than Dad. But then Dad had been navy. Her whole family was military and law enforcement.
“You sure you don�
��t want me to call the Whalings?” Dr. Fines asked.
“No,” Caley said, “I knew her best.” Or she thought she did. She trudged up the beach and into her office right outside the research lab. After a prayer for wisdom, she called Mary Beth’s parents. She knew exactly how they’d respond. The same way her parents had when they found out Meghan had died.
After she hung up with the Whalings, she cracked open a can of peach tea and forced some down her dry throat. She had no explanation for why Mary Beth had been out on the water alone. Neither had her parents. No way the medical examiner or law enforcement would give her any information, since she wasn’t on the case or next of kin. But... She grabbed her cell phone and called her big brother.
Wilder answered on the second ring. “Caley? Everything okay? It’s late there.”
“I need a favor.”
Rustling sounded over the line and a muffled thank-you. “Okay. What kind of favor? You sound upset. Are you hurt?”
Heartbroken. She relayed the events that had transpired. “I need someone to help me find out the truth.”
“The truth sounds like she went out alone and a tragic accident occurred, kiddo. Let the police do their job.”
Caley balled her fist. “Wilder, you always talk about your gut instinct and how it’s usually right. Well, my gut says this wasn’t an accident. Something isn’t right. Can you just...just call and talk to someone?” Wilder knew people in law enforcement all over the world. He worked with them often in conjunction with his private security company, Covenant Crisis Management. “Please,” she choked out.
The sound of a deep inhale traveled across the line. “I’m in Dubai. Escorting someone of importance to a conference or I’d come out there myself.”
“I don’t need you to come out. I want you to make a phone call. Get me some information. I’m going crazy.” Caley scooted her peach tea aside, removed her glasses and pinched the bridge of her nose. “How often do I ask you for anything?”
Tracking Secrets Page 18
