Alone at any time, she thought.
She wanted to remain calm and rational; she also wanted to scream and jerk away from him. She tried to remember all the movies she had seen, all the programs she had watched about dealing with dangerous situations. Dont show fear? Or scream like blue blazes, push away with all her strength and run like the wind?
She didnt have to make a decision. She heard the slamming of a car door and a mans voice. Hey, whats going on there?
Lathams hand fell from her shoulder. They both recognized the voice. Latham shook his head with disgust, his eyes moving from the newcomer back to Kelsey once again. There he is, the big military man, ready to knock my lights out, he said. I wasnt about to hurt you, little girl. And you want to know where Sheila is? Ask her good buddy, the half-breed coming up the walk.
Shed known from hearing him, without turning, that Dane Whitelaw had arrived. Shed been relieved.
But Lathams words gave her a chill.
She turned, Lathams words echoing in her mind. You want to know where Sheila is? Ask her good buddy, the half-breed coming up the walk.
Dane was coming up the path. He wasnt looking at Kelsey; he was staring at Latham.
His hair was combed back, freshly washed, a little long at the collar, but off his face now. He was in khakis and a short-sleeved blue tailored shirt. Dane wasnt exactly a half-breed. His grandfather had been a Miccosukee Indian who had married a Swedish tourist. The two had set up shop in the Keys, died together in an automobile accident and left his father with ownership of Hurricane Bay. His dad had made a career out of the military, retired, turned to fishing off his peaceful property for an extra income, and then married Mary Smith, a woman who could claim ancestors all the way back to the Mayflower. Kelsey could just barely remember Danes mother. She had welcomed every kid in the world into their house. She had been quick to laugh, to entertain, to love children. She had wanted twenty, she had told them once. At least a dozen little sisters and brothers for Dane. But both she and Danes father had married late in life, and complications had set in when shed finally gotten pregnant again just before Danes tenth birthday. She had died months before the baby was due. Danes father had never remarried. He had always been a wonderful man when the kids were around, but he had seldom left his own little island, except to sell his catch.
Dane Whitelaw seemed to have inherited the best to be had from his background. He had dark eyes, a chiseled face with slightly broad cheekbones, dark-wheat-colored hair that was always sun-bleached to a lighter shade, and the height and stance of a Viking. She had adored him growing up. Hed been her brothers best friend. But then Joe had been killed, and their little world had changed for everyone.
Dane reached the open doorway, still staring pointedly at Andy Latham. His dark gaze had never wavered once.
What the hell are you doing here, Whitelaw? Latham asked.
I was in the neighborhood, Dane said, an obvious lie. There was nothing in the immediate neighborhood that could have drawn him.
Youre trespassing on my property.
Dont worry. Im getting off it. He stared at Kelsey.
She was tempted to stay just because she didnt want Dane helping her, not when he was top on her list ofwell, not suspects, but highly suspicious people. And not when he had been such an ass that afternoon. Maybe she had approached him badly. But he should have cared. He should at least have frowned with worry and tried to say something good about Sheila.
Then again, maybe she just disliked Dane because of what had happened after Joe had died.
Kelsey, were you staying? Dane asked when she didnt move.
No, I have a dinner engagement, she said.
She turned to walk down the overgrown path, certain this time that creepy things were touching her flesh when the overgrown brush swept over her legs.
She reached her own car. Dane was right behind her, Andy Latham still standing at his door. Dane waited until she had gotten in the drivers seat, closed her door and started the engine.
Then he walked to his own car, a Jeep with oversize tires. Necessary, she knew, for living out on Hurricane Bay. The road to the little island was private, not state or county. Danes grandfather had built it; his father had improved it. Now Dane kept it up. It still wasnt much of a road. During a heavy rain season or after a storm, it was often underwater, sometimes so deep that the only way on or off the island was by boat.
Dane started up his car but didnt start moving until she did. She drove away with Dane just a short distance behind her.
In the rearview mirror, she could see that Latham was still standing in his doorway. Watching.
Andy Latham muttered as he watched the cars go. Then he walked back into his house, cursing his stepdaughter and her friends. In the kitchen, he reached into the refrigerator for another beer. There was a big fat palmetto bug, a winged cockroach, sitting right next to his beer, waving his antennae.
He cursed the cockroach and reached for the can, then splatted it down on the roach before the filthy creature had a chance to move.
He thought about cleaning the carcass out of the refrigerator, but it seemed like too much of a project for the moment. He hadnt really wanted another beer; hed wanted to get going. He liked nightlife. No, he loved nightlife. Nightlife took him away from his hell of an existence and made him feel like a man. Hed been ready to go when Sheilas little buddy had shown up. Kelsey.
Drinking his beer, he decided to make a pit stop. In the mirror over the sink, he surveyed his features. Good. He was still looking pretty good. He really wasnt old at all; those kids just didnt realize it, because he had made the mistake of marrying an older woman.
Well, shed had some money. A virtue. Shed had her faults, as well. A hell of a lot of them. Who would have thought that she considered herself a match for any man?
And worse, who would have thought shed leave the money tied up in a trust that could only be accessed little by little, and then only by him and Sheila at the same time.
He picked up the comb sitting on the sink and ran it through his hair. The face that greeted him in the mirror pleased him. He had good features and fine eyes. His skin was tanned and creased, but women seemed to like the weathered look. He was built just fine. Not muscle-bound, but tight as piano wire. Sleek, hard-toned. He was in good physical shape. The whole package was still just fine.
Funny. Once upon a time hed had a thing for older women.
Now he liked them younger.
Yep, that Kelsey was looking darned good. Too bad hed been saddled with Sheila. The girl had poisoned everyone against him. Hell, if it hadnt been for Sheila, he might not have known Kelsey at all as a kid. Who knows? She might have let him buy her a drink at a bar.
She might have let him do more.
He tensed, remembering the way she had looked around the house. As if he were lower than a pig.
Lower than the cockroach he had crushed in the refrigerator.
He shrugged. Imagine that. The damned thing had been in the refrigerator. Maybe that was why it had been so easy to kill. Maybe it had already been cold, shaking in its little cockroach boots, frozen right to the spot.
He looked around the bathroom.
Hell, maybe he should get a maid.
Hell, maybe he should get a maid.
Of course, it would have to be someone who wasnt afraid of cockroaches.
He exited the bathroom, humming to himself. He started to leave the house, then paused and looked around, damning Sheila once again, thinking of the way Kelsey Cunningham had looked around his house. Fuck them both. Fuck them all. Everyone knew that Sheila took off whenever the hell she felt like it. Everyone but Kelsey, coming back here as if she were something special, raising all kinds of trouble.
Still
He looked around his domain. Strange, once it had been clean. Sheilas mother had been good for something. She had cooked, too.
But he couldnt really remember what the place had looked like back then. There had been food in the refrigerator, and not so many beer cans. The cockroach would have died a lot happier if he had come all those years ago.
Now the place was a dump. Nothing but fast-food wrappers and beer cans. So what if the police came? They would probably leave damn quick.
He left the house, not bothering to lock his door. No one ever came out this road. There were only two other houses, and a bunch of mangrove roots and water. Angus Grier lived in the closest house, and he was ninety if he was a day. And the kids who had rented the other placethey were stoned out of their minds most the time. There wasnt much reason to lock up his place. If a thief came bywell, hell, he was welcome to steal anything in the place.
Because once he drove away from it, Andy Latham knew that he was a different man.
CHAPTER 3
Dane followed Kelsey back to the duplex.
She was probably going to accuse him of stalking her, but he still wanted to see that she got home safely. Besides, he could just knock on Cindys door after he made sure Kelsey had gone on into Sheilas side.
He knew Kelsey was aware that he was following her, but she pretended not to see him as she parked, exited her cranberry Volvo and entered the house. Dane parked the Land Rover and took the steps up to Cindys door. As he tapped on it, Cindy appeared at the door to the other half of the duplex, Sheilas half, now Kelseys.
Dane! Hey, were over here.
Hey, Cindy.
He walked across the tiled concrete front porch and greeted Cindy with a quick peck on the cheek. She never changed. Sweet and smart, Cindy always expected the best from everyone. But then, shed never met with much personal adversity. Both her folks were still living just down the highway. She had two younger sisters and a ten-year-old brother. Her father, a transplanted Yankee, owned one of the largest charter fishing boat companies in the area.
Cindy had called to tell him that Kelsey was on her way out to talk to Andy Latham. Dane hadnt at all liked the idea of her being out there alone. Of course, hed known that Kelsey wouldnt be particularly glad to see him out thereshe would hardly think of him as a knight in shining armorbut hed made tracks to get out there as soon as possible anyway.
Come on in, Cindy said. We were about to have quiche and beer. She wrinkled her nose. Reheated quiche and beer. But its still good. I can cook. Well, kind of, anyway.
Sounds great, Cindy, but I already ate.
Come in for a beer, at least. I mean, youre here, arent you? she demanded, blue eyes wide.
Sure. He needed to talk to Kelsey, and it was damn certain she was never going to invite him in.
He followed Cindy into Sheilas side of the duplex. Kelsey was seated on a bar stool, a plate and a beer in front of her. Her shoes were off, one ankle curled around a leg of the stool. The sunglasses were gone, and he could see her eyes. Blue-green. Like a color that had been plucked right out of a shallow sea on a sunlit day.
He could see that she was surprised and definitely not pleased that Cindy had invited him in.
Look whos here, Cindy said pleasantly.
Surprise, surprise, Kelsey murmured.
Youre sure you dont want some quiche, Dane? Cindy asked.
No, thanks.
Cindy reached into the fridge and produced a bottle of beer. But youll have a beer with us, right?
Sure.
Right. He hasnt had enough to drink today, Kelsey said.
For a moment Cindy looked as if she was going to try to ignore the obvious hostility between them, then she sighed, putting her hands on her hips. Hey, kids, were all grown-ups here.
All right, Kelsey said. Hi, Dane. Have a beer. You are all grown up. If you want to spend your life drinking the days away, I guess thats all right.
He stared at her and took a long swig from the bottle, ready to tell her that she hadnt seen him in years, she had no idea of what he did with his days, and she sure as hell had no right to judge him.
Thats right, Kelsey. If I want to be a drunk, its my prerogative.
Dane isnt a drunk, Kelsey, Cindy said.
Sorry, then, Kelsey said. She made a point of yawning. You know what, guys? I havent had much sleep since I got back. Maybe you want to move your little party over to Cindys half of the place.
Maybe, but not yet, Dane said. He walked to the counter where she was sitting and set his beer bottle down. She tensed, and for a moment he thought she was going to jump up and try to escape.
But that would mean having to touch him because the way he was standing, at her side, hands on the counter, she would have to push past him to get by.
So now you want to talk, she said.
Id have been happy to talk earlierif you hadnt come on as such a bitch, he said.
She blinked, and he could hear her teeth clench. You were drunk, and I was worried. And Nate had just told me that you and Sheila werethat you and Sheila had a big argument the last time hed seen her, and that shed told him afterward she was going out to your place. He said you werent very nice to her.
She wasnt apologizing. She was still accusing him. And she sure as hell wasnt about to thank him for coming around when she might have been in trouble at Lathams. Of course, as far as any of them had ever known, Latham was just like a cockroach. Nasty as all hell, and germ-carrying, certainly, but not physically dangerous.
He inhaled a long breath before replying to Kelsey.
Kelsey, Im glad that your life is going so great that you feel you can judge everyone else. Although Im curious as to how you got to be such a good judge of a mans level of alcohol consumption.
Her eyes narrowed. I know youve been lying as low as pond scum, Dane, because Sheila told me.
She did, did she? Kelsey, you need to listen to me. You havent been around, and you dont know anything about anyone here anymore. What youve got is a bunch of hearsay and assumptions. Maybe you dont like what you think Ive become, and maybe theres even some truth to it. But what youre doing here is dangerous. What do you think you are suddenly? Some kind of a crusader? Leave it alone. Quit running around accusing everyone of doing something to Sheila. Youre going to get yourself into trouble.
Kelsey stared at him, eyes cool and hostile. Dane, you didnt want to talk to me this afternoon, and now youre suddenly here telling me to keep my nose out of things. This is ridiculous. Apparently Im the only one whos really concerned about Sheila. And since I am concerned, my nose is going to be everywhere until I know where she is. And I know you were seeing her.