Chapter1 (6 page)
Authors: Ribbon of Rain
“Why?”
She shook her head, her hands resting on her hips.
“Callahan, are you really an FBI agent?”
He bristled.
“I’m trained for urban operations.”
He heard his defensive tone, which irritated him even more.
“Where’s your common sense?
You come to the wilderness not knowing how to canoe.
You leave your weapon in your duffle bag.
You don’t even bring a life preserver.”
She jabbed her finger at him.
“Which by the way is a law in this state.
I told you what happened to me yesterday, and now you ask me why we should make sure no one’s lurking in any of these buildings?
I’m beginning to think you’re as useless as tits on a bull.”
Tits on a bull?
Jude’s sense of humor battled his ego and won.
He threw back his head and laughed.
He’d known this woman for only a few hours, and he couldn’t remember ever enjoying anyone’s company as much.
“I’m glad you find it funny, but after that incident yesterday morning, I think a quick search of the premises is important.”
“Jesus.
I’m sorry,” he said trying to control his laughter.
“You’re right.
Someone tried to kill you.”
“If they wanted to kill me, I’d be dead.
Their purpose was to scare me.”
She wrapped one of the rat-tails around her finger.
“I think they, whoever they are, want the lodge empty.”
She shivered and leaned back in her chair.
“If your story is fact, and Willie Card is the one behind it, he needs access to the lodge to search for the gems.”
“That’s possible.”
Right now he wanted to get into dry clothes.
They were both drenched to the skin.
“Aren’t the cabins locked?”
“Nothing’s locked here.
I checked the generator house.
There are five cabins down that way,” she gestured to the far side of the porch.
““I’ll check those.
You take the two cabins right next to us.
We’ll check the lodge together.”
“No,” Jude disagreed.
“We stay together.”
He braced himself for an argument, but she smiled sweetly.
“It’d be faster to split up, but who am I to argue with the FBI?”
Their search turned up nothing suspicious.
Now Kat stood at the window in the dining area of the lodge watching the wind squalls that continued to tear across the water.
“Take a shower, Kat.
You’re shivering”
“You’re right.”
She quickly ran upstairs.
Jude walked around the main room of the lodge, impressed by what he saw.
The hand-made pine dining table could seat about twenty-five people.
The furniture was all handmade, giving the place a rustic, homey look.
He wondered if Kat’s father made all the furniture.
The entire place was neat and clean.
The spectacular view of the lake from the window belonged on a calendar.
He wasn’t too crazy about the dead animals hanging on the walls.
But he conceded it was the right décor for a wilderness lodge.
He moved to a window and gazed at the lake.
The sky only drizzled now, and patches of blue began to peek through the clouds.
Checking the time, he was surprised to see that it was only three o’clock.
His body argued it was
.
He grabbed a banana from the bowl of fruit on the table, peeled it and took a bite, savoring the rich flavor.
Twenty minutes passed and Kat hadn’t returned.
Starting to shiver himself, Jude went up the stairs, anxious for a hot shower.
As he entered the loft bedroom, he stopped short.
Kat was bent over, looking through her backpack on the floor.
His eyes feasted on her heart-shaped bottom outlined in snug jeans, then moved up to her tiny waist.
His body shuddered, and it had nothing to do with being wet and cold.
As if sensing his presence, Kat whirled around.
“Oh.”
She rubbed her hands on her jeans drawing his eyes to her thighs.
“Sorry I took so long.”
Jude forced himself to look at her face and received yet another surprise.
The rat-tails were gone.
Silky ebony hair fell just below her shoulders.
Lifting her arms, Kat pulled her hair into a ponytail and slipped on a rubber band, the movement bringing his eyes to her breasts.
They were perfect.
The whole package was perfect.
So perfect that it didn’t need any ribbons or other accessories to make it complete.
“Aren’t you going to take a shower?”
Kat’s question startled him out of his trance.
“The water’s hot.”
The water wasn’t the only thing hot around here.
“Yeah.”
Jude escaped to the bathroom, thinking he’d better make it a cold one.
*****
Kat stood at the window thinking about everything Jude Callahan had told her.
Should she trust him?
His credentials appeared authentic.
He probably knew more than he’d admitted, but her instincts told her he wasn’t one of the bad guys.
After her shower, she’d put on a pair of old jeans and a T-shirt sporting the slogan ‘Go Army.’
Four years in the military had packed a lot of muscle onto her body, so it had been a struggle pulling on the jeans.
For the first time in her life she wished she had something feminine to wear.
Snap out of it
.
Jude Callahan wasn’t interested in her as a woman.
She looked at herself in the mirror and had second thoughts about the outfit.
The jeans hugged her legs and butt like a glove.
Forgetting her outfit, she moved back to the window and continued to mull over what Jude had told her this morning.
Could her father have been involved in a jewel theft?
According to her mother, he’d returned from
Willie Card being a suspect didn’t surprise her.
She hated the man.
Before he went to prison, he’d come visit her father once or twice a year.
Just the memories of his visits gave her the creeps.
Still, Kat couldn’t grasp the concept of her father stealing and smuggling gems out of
If it were true, why had the family constantly struggled with finances?
If not for the Army’s ROTC scholarship, Kat wouldn’t have been able to attend college.
The entire scenario didn’t add up.
The storm had ended, leaving a beautiful double rainbow in the sky.
The bathroom door opened, and she turned to see Jude walk into the room.
She beckoned him.
“Come see the double ribbon of rain.”
He walked over and stood close behind her.
She basked in the heat radiating from his body.
She breathed deeply, inhaling his clean soapy smell.
Her toes tingled.
The dull ache between her legs returned.
“Aren’t they beautiful?”
Her voice was husky.
“Ribbon of rain?
Is that what you call a rainbow?”
“The Penobscot word for rainbow is Marunga, which translates to ribbon of rain.
My grandmother called me her little Marunga because she said I brightened her day.”
“You loved your grandmother.”
It wasn’t a question.
Kat nodded her head.
“We had a special bond.
One that can’t be broken.
Even with death,” she added, thinking about her grandmother’s message yesterday.
She turned and her head bumped into Jude’s chest.
“Oh, I’m sor—” she began to apologize, but stopped when she looked up and saw the hungry look in his eyes.
Neither spoke.
He reached out, and trailed his fingers down her cheek.
Kat’s mouth went dry and moisture pooled between her legs.
Christ.
Marunga.
Pay attention.
Evil is close
.
At the sound of her grandmother’s voice, Kat jerked away from Jude.
She tensed waiting to see if he’d heard the voice.
“Kat, I—”
“I’ve got to go downstairs.”
She cut him off and headed toward the staircase, calling over her shoulder.
“Come down when you’re ready.”
Her grandmother was warning her, but about what?
A strong sense of foreboding trickled through her.
Jude followed on Kat’s heels as she rushed down the stairs.
She moved off the last step and stopped.
Jude plowed into her and reached out to grab her shoulders to prevent her fall.
An unkempt man with beady eyes sat in a chair with his feet resting on the table, picking his yellowed teeth with a jackknife.
Two rifles lay on the table within his reach, one of which was Kat’s.
“Well, well,” he drawled, “The wild Kat emerges from her lair, with a mate in tow no less.”
Chapter 3
Anger burned inside Kat at the sight of Willie Card lounging in her home as if it were his own.
Years of loathing this man surfaced like a boil ready to burst.
She shuddered, remembering his visits to the lodge when she was a child.
Remembering the smell of whisky that always permeated his clothes.
She’d never let him breathe on her.
Her sister enjoyed Willie’s visits and the gifts he brought, but Kat had always detested the man.
The familiar scene played in her head.
The feel of Jude’s heart beating against her provided comfort, and she leaned back seeking his warmth.
Why hadn’t Red barked when Willie arrived?
Trepidation swept over her, along with a wave of nausea.
Jude whispered against her neck, “Keep your cool, Kat.”
Willie ended the silence.
“What’s this?”
He grinned, reminding Kat of a decomposed corpse.
“No welcome for your long lost Uncle Willie?”
The twitch in his right cheek caught her attention.
In the past that twitch had been her cue to make herself scarce.
“You’re not my uncle.
Where’s my dog?”
She couldn’t control the slight tremor in her voice.
She deplored weakness in herself, but the thought of Willie hurting Red was too much to bear.
“Outside.
See for yourself.”
Willie gestured toward the window with his jackknife.
Kat forced herself to turn to look through the window.
Not even the comforting warmth of Jude’s hands on her shoulders stopped the jolt of pain that shot through her.
Red lay as still as death on the green grass.
She shut her eyes and squeezed back the tears, determined to make Willie Card pay for killing her dog.
Inhaling deeply, she opened her eyes just as Willie slipped his jackknife into his pocket.
She lunged toward Red’s killer.
“You goddamn bastard.
You’re dead.”
She wanted her hands around his skinny neck.
Jude’s arms caught her around the waist.
She twisted, turned and thrashed, but couldn’t break free without hurting him.
For reasons she didn’t have time to analyze, she was reluctant to harm him.
“Calm down, brat.”
Willie got out of the chair and scurried further down the table, his facial twitch becoming more pronounced.
He took both rifles with him.
“I didn’t kill your damn dog.
He’s sleeping.
I tranquilized him.”
His fingers caressed the gun he’d brought with him. “The mutt will be good as new in a couple of hours.
Jesus, Kat.
I thought maybe you’d calmed down by now, but you’re wild as ever.”
