August Unknown (25 page)

He read the report in silence. By the time he finished, his blood
roared in his ears.

“We shouldn’t treat this as a surprise.” Mike cleared his
throat. “We knew there was someone, somewhere, missing her.”

Geoffrey nodded. It would have been stupid to assume
otherwise. It had been stupid to
hope
otherwise.

“She’s engaged,” Mike said.

He swallowed. There was no response to that.

“When I conducted my first search, this missing person’s file
had been closed. She’d been listed as deceased, her drowning ruled an
accident.”

Geoffrey’s stomach flip-flopped.

“After she found this, Wendy did an inquiry with the sheriff’s
office up there. Without revealing anything, of course.”

He nodded. “Thank you.”

“Everyone still believes she’s dead. The fiancé is the only
one who wouldn’t let it drop. He’s been searching high and low.”

Of course he was. It was no less than Geoffrey would do, if
the situation were reversed.

“They had a funeral.”

He leaned his elbow on the armrest and pressed his fingertips
to his forehead.
Good God
.

“Our hunch she was on a boat that night is correct. From what Wendy
could find, her family used to own the fishing and charter fleet her fiancé’s
family bought out when her old man retired after a back injury. The two of
them—Emily and her fiancé—work with his father.”

Geoffrey grappled for something to say, anything, other than
sitting there like a fool.

“She holds a captain’s rating.”

August was engaged. His August.
Emily Atkinson
.

“She didn’t recognize anything on
Penny Lane
.” Nothing
except the table. The same kind of table most RVs and campers had.

“Whatever happened that night, it was enough to completely
wipe her memory of sailing,” Mike surmised.

“Jesus.” Geoffrey’s mind whirled with a million thoughts, but
none of them solid, each one more confusing than the last.

“It’s not so bad. She’s engaged, not married.”

He lifted his gaze to meet his brother-in-law’s. He almost
felt guilty. He would be sick if the situation were reversed, if someone else
had found August—
Emily
—when she was engaged to him.

“Last night, I gave her a ring.”

Mike rocked his wooden drafter’s chair backward with a loud
creak from the spring. “Then the lady has a choice to make.”

Geoffrey’s head ached. He took a deep breath and straightened
his shoulders. Now was not the time to worry about that. “Do we know anything
about her family, her circle of friends? This guy she’s supposed to marry—”

“Colin Ridgley.” Mike shook his head. “You’re asking if any of
her friends have red hair.”

Geoffrey nodded. He was about to lose his last remaining
sliver of composure.

“The Coast Guard and the local PD conducted a full
investigation. Foul play was ruled out.”

“That doesn’t mean squat to me. If that were true, then why is
someone trying to kill her?”

“You don’t even know for sure someone was in the house that
day. And she might have misunderstood what she saw in the alley. When a person
has the heebie-geebies already, the mind can play tricks. And we both know
she’s suffered a pretty severe head injury.”

“You think she’s schizo because she took a knock to the head?”
Geoffrey shot back. “She’s lost her memory so what else is going wrong in her
mind?”

Mike shook his head and leaned forward to place his elbows on
his desk. “No, not at all. I just think she’s sensitive to things. She’s
frightened, alone. And even though she has you, she’s alone because she’s lost
her entire life.”

“So she’s conjuring a stalker?”

Mike shrugged. “She may have seen Stinky Stan. You know he
sleeps in the alleys around the Mirthful Mermaid because your grandmother feeds
him. Maybe he thought August—er, Emily—was Millie.”

“No,” Geoffrey said, shaking his head. “I believe her.”

Mike sighed. A long minute ticked by. “I have a friend in the
Coast Guard stationed up in Seattle. I could call him, if you want. Get him to
do some checking under the guise of a continued investigation. He owes me a
favor.”

“You did some work for him?” Geoffrey’s voice shook with the
thundering of his heart. This was the worst he could have imagined, second only
to her being married.

“I covered for him with his wife while we were in Vegas.” Mike
grinned. “So it’s a
big
favor.”

Geoffrey couldn’t be convinced to laugh with his
brother-in-law.

“I don’t see how that will help. The woman with red hair is
here.”

“Well, you never know what might turn up. I’ll give him a
call.”

He looked down at the paper in his hand. August’s—no,
Emily
’s—beautiful
portrait stared back. There was a light in her eyes that revealed the deeper
beauty and happiness she possessed before this tragedy hit. When she remembered
everything, would that light return?

And the biggest question of all—would she stay?

* * *

Colin intended to check the hospital in Agate and the two
others in nearby Newport right away, but the first thing he wanted was to see
the jetty where Emily’s lifejacket had been found.

When he’d stopped for gas, the station attendant had known the
Mirthful Mermaid right away. “Down yonder at the edge of town. Try some of Millie’s
clam chowder; it’s the best you’ll find this side of Boston.”

He found the place easily enough. The two-story building
gleamed like polished lead in the afternoon sun, its wood bleached over the
years without so much as an attempt at painting. The only color was a giant blue-green
emblem of a mermaid sitting on a sea rock inside a circle, imprinted on the
front of the building as though stamped there with an old-fashioned branding
iron. A similar carved wooden sign hung over the door.

Had he not been so anxious, he would have appreciated the
place a lot more. Its resistance to modern strip-mall urbanization impressed
him. Next to the restaurant was a hardware store literally named
Mom &
Pop’s
. On the other side, a small real estate agent’s office
and
next to that,
Ocean Outfitter,
a boating supplies place.

He parked the Jeep at the far end of the shared lot and
flipped open his cell phone. A quick call to his dad to let him know he’d
arrived safely would put the old man at ease.

He’d been too harsh on his father before he left. He knew
Graham only had his best interests at heart, but it bothered Colin that he was
so eager to give up on Emily.

He punched the number and brought the phone to his ear as he
glanced out the window at the marina on the far side of the narrow two-lane
road leading out of town. The only thing to keep him from thinking he was
looking at a scenic postcard photo was the gentle movement of masts swaying to
and fro in front of Yaquina Bay Bridge, and swirling sea birds caught on a
thermal.

“Hello, Colin?” His father had answered from the kitchen where
the phone displayed his caller ID.

“Hey, Dad. I’m in Newport.”

Up the road a bit at the far end of the parking lot, a man and
woman paused while a car drove by, and then stepped into the crosswalk leading
to the marina.

Colin’s entire world stopped turning. He couldn’t draw a
breath. Graham said something, but Colin didn’t hear him.

He would recognize that flowing, platinum blond hair anywhere,
the way natural waves rippled in its lengths, the curl that formed around her
shoulders. Her slight build, the cute bounce to her walk.

“Colin, are you there?”

“I’ll call you back.”

He snapped the phone shut and jumped out of the Jeep. He ran
to the crosswalk and dodged in front of a car. The driver blared the horn and
swerved around him. Colin scooted out of the way and held up his hands.
“Sorry!”

When he looked back, Emily was gone.

* * *

Geoffrey had been strangely quiet when he returned for her
break at three. “How about that walk you promised earlier?” was all he said
before taking her by the hand and leading her to the jogging path that wound
around the marina and up to the vista point.

The lunch shift had been another busy one and her feet were
aching, but she loved the fresh air.

“It’s going to be a pretty sunset tonight,” she said as they
walked toward the low-hanging sun. Fluffy clouds at the edge of the horizon
would glow with rapidly changing colors when the sun passed behind them.
Hopefully, she could get a short break to enjoy it.

Had she always lived in a coastal town where such beauty was a
regular occurrence? She must have, because she looked forward to it with a
thrill of eagerness she couldn’t explain.

Geoffrey didn’t comment. “Are you staying at the house again
tonight?” he asked, bringing up her mysterious stalker instead.

Should she, now that he’d proposed? She wondered where they
would live if they did get married. The idea of leaving Newport for Portland
where he worked saddened her.

“I suppose I should, if Eunice is still going to be there. I
wouldn’t want you footing her kibble bill if she’s not going to make herself
useful.”

Geoffrey didn’t chuckle at the joke, and his mood remained
oddly stiff. It wasn’t so much the way he spoke or his choice of words, but
August could feel something different in him.

“Is everything all right?” She reached across with her right
hand, and then turned in front of him to walk on his left side so she could
hold his hand.

“Fine,” he answered simply, but there was still a strain in
his voice.

They walked down the path that wound around the marina’s
parking lot and headed toward the gates to the piers.

“Let’s go to
Penny Lane’s
slip,” he said.

In the distance, she heard a man shouting. The voice sounded
strangely familiar. August stopped.

“Emily?”

She looked up at Geoffrey. His eyes were soft, almost sad.

“Emily!”

He glanced over his shoulder, and she followed his gaze.

A young man wearing a linen coat and blue jeans ran toward
them. Flashes of familiarity raced through her. His curly golden hair in the
sun. The smattering of freckles across his nose. His stocky build, the length
of his gait as he moved with intent.

He slowed, almost came to a stop. His eyes held a mixture of
awe and disbelief. “Emily,” he repeated again, this time in little more than a
whisper.

Geoffrey pulled his hand free of hers.

“My God!” The young man ran the last few steps and threw his
arms around her. He lifted her off her feet and spun her around. “I knew it. I
knew you were alive!”

All at once his touch, his scent, and his voice were clear, as
if she’d never forgotten.

He set her back on her feet and circled her tighter, sobbing
into her hair. She slipped her good arm around his back.

“God, I knew it. I never gave up hope.” He held her tenderly,
gripping a handful of her hair, trailing a rainfall of kisses across her cheek
to her lips. She kissed him back knowingly, remembering this touch before she
could even recall his name.

When she drew back, his eyes were glossy with tears.

“Where have you been?”

She could only stare back as a flurry of memories whipped
through her mind.

“Emily, don’t you know me?”

She drew in a sharp breath. “Colin.”

Chapter Twenty

“August, you know this man?” she heard Geoffrey ask.

“Her name is Emily, and who the hell are you?”

“Colin,” Emily stammered. “This is Geoffrey Barthlow. He’s
been...helping me.”

“Why haven’t you called? Jesus, Emily, everyone thought you
were dead.”

She still couldn’t sort out her thoughts. She recognized him,
but didn’t yet remember him. No, she did remember him, just not as completely
as she knew she should.

“I...” She placed her hand to her forehead as her gaze slipped
to the ground.

“She didn’t remember. She was hit on the head.”

Colin glanced fleetingly at Geoffrey. He gently smoothed back
her bangs to reveal the angry pink scar that remained near her hairline. His
expression shattered at the sight of it. “Oh fuck. Are you all right?”

“It looks worse than it is,” she said vaguely.

When Dr. Carlson removed the stitches, it had looked downright
monstrous, but he’d assured her the scar, and the tiny pink dots where the
stitches had pierced her skin, would go away soon. She’d been putting vitamin E
on it so it would fade.

“What happened to your arm?” He stood back and gazed at her as
though horrified by what he found.

“I fell.” She could sense Colin’s distrust of Geoffrey, and
remembered his jealous streak well enough. There was no use making him angry with
Geoffrey for something that hadn’t been his fault.

“My God, I can hardly believe it. I’ve been looking everywhere
for you.”

“I’m sorry,” was all she could think to say.

He gripped her by the shoulders, clearly growing frantic.
“What does he mean you don’t remember? Don’t you know me?”

Geoffrey stepped forward and placed a hand on his arm. “Don’t
push her. She’s not ready to remember.”

“Back off.” Colin jerked away. “She’s my fiancée.”

Both men looked to her hand.

“What the hell is this?” He grabbed the finger with Geoffrey’s
ring. She bit back a gasp as a sharp bolt zinged her elbow.

“If you’re engaged, where’s her ring?” Geoffrey asked.

Colin shot him with a glare. “Look, can you give us a minute?”

“I don’t know you.” Geoffrey remained rooted. “But I know she
almost died, on
your
boat.”

“She went overboard in a storm. It was an accident.”

“Just because foul play was ruled out doesn’t mean someone
didn’t push her,” Geoffrey argued.