Now, thinking hard and once again frowning and chewing on her lip, she muttered, NonoI cant. I cant leave now-
Well, tough, was her annoyed thought when she saw the captains face freeze up again. Even the doctor looked slightly taken aback. But Ellies mind was starting to function, although still in the crazily spinning, drunken wobble of an out-of-balance top.
You dont understand, she went on. We-my husband and I-had some business here. It was very important. The wobble had sneaked into her voice now, and for once to her advantage. She cast an appealing look from one disapproving face to the other and back again. Thats why he didnt want to believe there was anything seriously wrong. He was convinced it was just an upset stomach. He convinced me She gulped a breath and pushed resolutely to her feet. I know hed want me to stay and try to take care ofour businessfor him. I dont know if I can, by myself, butI have to try. And, she added with a touch of asperity, theres not really anything I can do for him there, is there? In Miami I mean? Except wait?
She looked at Dr. Singh, who was looking slightly dazed. He nodded and murmured, Of course. I understand
The captain cleared his throat and finally growled an ambiguous, Well. He coughed, then continued, As you know, well be staying in port for several days to allow our passengers an opportunity to explore the Mayan ruins, visit the biosphere reserve, or dive the reefs, if thats their preference. You have until day after tomorrow, seventeen hundred hours, to let us know whether or not youll be continuing on with us. He paused with one hand on the door. Or, whether you wish us to make arrangements for you to join your husband. He opened the door and waited for Ellie to precede him. Its up to you.
Thank you. She was looking past the captains out-stretched arm at the doctor. Youll let me knowhow-
Yes, of course, Mrs. Burnside, said Dr. Singh with a slight bow. As soon as I know anything I will contact you immediately.
Ellie nodded and turned to go, then, spotting the steward hovering just outside the door, halted once more to ask whether there had been any messages for her, or rather, for her husband.
While the captain took his leave with poorly concealed impatience, the steward promised to check for messages as soon as hed seen her back to her stateroom.
That turned out not to be necessary. When Ellie unlocked her stateroom door she found an envelope lying on the carpet, where it had apparently been slipped under the door.
Well, there you are, the steward said, showing friendly white teeth. Must have just come in. He hovered while Ellie tore open the envelope and read the brief handwritten message inside. Is that the message you were expecting, Miss, uhmaam?
Mmm she murmured absently. YesI think so. Thank you For a moment longer the steward hovered, then shrugged and went out, closing the door behind him. Belatedly, the word tip flashed into Ellies mind. But only fleetingly; she had more important things on her mind.
Mañana-twelve oclock noon. Take a taxi from the plaza. Give driver this following instruction
Noon. Tomorrow.
Ellies knees suddenly went weak, and she sank onto her smooth undisturbed bed, reaching automatically for the bag of Kisses. A few feet away, tumbled sheets dragged half onto the floor bore mute testimony to the disaster that had befallen her-or more accurately, her partner.
Her partner. Wait a minute. Ken was the one with appendicitis. There was nothing whatsoever wrong with her.
Heart thumping, even chocolate momentarily forgotten, she stared down at the piece of paper in her hands. Tomorrow noon. Okay. This was it. The meeting theyd been working toward, hoping for, for months. Okay, so Ken was out of the picture, but she was still here. There was nothing wrong with her. Why couldnt she still go through with it? Why shouldnt she?
Okay, Ellie, think about this logically.
On the downside, according to Ken these smugglers were a backward lot, with some annoyingly primitive ideas about women. Hed said they probably wouldnt even do business with a woman alone. Probably.
All right, so what? At the worst they wouldnt do business with her-a little humiliating, maybe, but she could handle that. And at least she would have a chance to explain what had happened, perhaps try to postpone the meeting until Ken was back in action.
But what if that wasnt the worst?
Memories of the evenings incident at Josés Cantina crowded fresh and vivid into her mind, complete with the residuals of sour breath and hot, unwashed bodies. Reluctantly, she thought about the number one rule in law enforcement: never go into anything without backup.
Tonight shed had backup-unplanned, but backup nonetheless. She forced herself to consider what would have happened if that artist hadnt arrived when he had. Probably nothing-she really did believe she could have handled those two drunks without any help. But that was just it-the men whod accosted her had been a couple of relatively harmless neighborhood punks, and drunk to boot. The smugglers, she was certain, would be a different breed entirely.
But if she didnt keep the rendezvous, what then? How many months would it take to win back the smugglers trust and set up another meeting? And in the meantime, how many hundreds, even thousands, of rare and beautiful animals would die in horrible, cruel ways? As always, that thought made Ellies stomach clench and her skin go clammy.
She jumped up and began to pace-to the extent such an activity was possible in the cramped stateroom.
I should at least contact General Reyes, she thought, nibbling furiously at her lip. General Cristobal Reyes was the head of the Mexican government agency that had been working in close partnership with the USFWS and the man in charge of the Mexican phase of the operation. Though shed never actually met him, he was, in effect, at this juncture, anyway, her boss. He would have to be told about this latest development. Of course he would.
And the general would call off the operation, or at least postpone it until Ken was back in action. He would tell her in no uncertain terms not to go to this meeting alone. Of course he would.
What shall I do? Think, Ellie, think! Use your wits
It was the word wits that made her stop pacing and begin instead to smile. Keep your wits about you. It had always been one of her mothers favorite sayings, and Ellie could hear Lucys stern and scratchy voice as clearly as if shed been standing there beside her. Keep your wits about you, Rose Ellen Lanagan.
A sweet and childish longing swept over her as she sank onto the bed, popped a Kiss into her mouth and reached for the telephone.
Ordinarily Lucy found Octobers lull a welcome respite after the busy rush of September and its jam-packed schedule of back-to-school, 4-H meetings, fairs and livestock sales. For a little while, between harvest and the hardships of winter, she could spend time with Mike, or simply relax and enjoy the cool, crisp mornings and bright, golden noontimes-as much as Lucy had it in her nature to relax.
Oh, but she did like the lovely sense of satisfaction that came with having once again, against all the odds man and nature could throw at her, successfully brought in a decent harvest. And though she always felt a small twinge of regret at the first soft furring of frost on the corn stubble, she never failed to feel her spirits lift when she heard the distant honking of migrating geese and paused, shading her eyes against the glare, to watch the fluid arrows dipping and floating through a crystal-clear autumn sky.
A sweet and childish longing swept over her as she sank onto the bed, popped a Kiss into her mouth and reached for the telephone.
Ordinarily Lucy found Octobers lull a welcome respite after the busy rush of September and its jam-packed schedule of back-to-school, 4-H meetings, fairs and livestock sales. For a little while, between harvest and the hardships of winter, she could spend time with Mike, or simply relax and enjoy the cool, crisp mornings and bright, golden noontimes-as much as Lucy had it in her nature to relax.
Oh, but she did like the lovely sense of satisfaction that came with having once again, against all the odds man and nature could throw at her, successfully brought in a decent harvest. And though she always felt a small twinge of regret at the first soft furring of frost on the corn stubble, she never failed to feel her spirits lift when she heard the distant honking of migrating geese and paused, shading her eyes against the glare, to watch the fluid arrows dipping and floating through a crystal-clear autumn sky.
Infused with restless energy, she spent those days cleaning the house, raking leaves, or, something shed always enjoyed much more, working in the barn, piling the stalls full of sweet-smelling straw and declaring all-out war on the summers accumulation of spiders.
Her husband Mike, the journalist, attributed all this activity to a primitive, instinctive fear of winter, the same instinct, he said, that prompts squirrels to run about gathering nuts.
Well, of course, Mike was a writer, and Lucy was used to his tendency to over-verbalize-not to mention dramatize. She certainly was not afraid of winter, or anything else, for that matter. Except maybe thunderstorms, which she considered only basic good sense; as far as Lucy was concerned, thunderstorms were violent, dangerous and destructive, and anybody with half a brain ought to be afraid of them. And as far as instinct went, why, it seemed only natural that someone whod spent her whole life on a farm would be more sensitive than some people to the rhythms of naturethe turn of the seasonsthe cycles of life and death.
For everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under Heaven That had been one of Aunt Gwens favorite passages of scripture and shed quoted it often and taken comfort from it. So had Lucy.
But this year, for some reason, she acknowledged a certainsadness at the turning of the seasons. Perhaps it was partly because Gwen was no longer here to share them with her, but this year the autumn evenings seemed longer to her than usual, the big old farmhouse emptier, the silencelonelier.