Escape (14 page)

She didn’t want to be here anymore. She’d had enough. Her father’s illness surely gave her enough of a reason to leave. Her mother would be worried and whatever she said about not wanting Lucy to cut her trip short, her mother would appreciate the support.

The lie was easier than admitting that, once again, she was running away.

When Rudy arrived back
at
the resort, there was no sign of Lucy. He glanced at his diver
’
s watch: ten past eight. Though running late, he had hoped she would still be here, waiting for him.

Damn it.

Rudy walked behind the reception desk and logged the dive for the day. He didn’t have much time. He scoured the bar, hoping he’d just missed her, but he only s
aw Rachel heading across the floor
.

Obviously in a rush, she must have been given the predication for the storm brewing.

He caught Rachel’s arm as she raced past.

“Hey, Rachel.
Hold up a minute.”

She looked at him as though she hadn’t seen him, and flashed him the fake smile she thought worked so well.

“Oh, Rudy!” she said in surprise.
“Everything al
l
right?”

“Not really. This storm is supposed to get worse before it gets better and both boats are still in dock. I need to get down with the trailer and get them onto dry land. If I don’t, they’re both going to get a hammering.”

She widened her eyes. “Is the storm going to get that bad?”

“According to the forecast.
A severe weather warning was wired in a couple of hours ago. I was out with a dive and couldn’t even dock on this si
de of the island. That’s why I’
m so late.” He scanned the bar and restaurant again. “Have you seen Lucy anywhere? I was supposed to meet her.”

“Lucy?” she said. “You mean the doctor?”

“That’s right.”
             

She thought for a moment. “No. I haven’t seen her at all this evening.”

Rudy frowned. So she hadn’t even turned up at seven?

One of the girls from the dive walked up and offered him a bottle of beer. “It’s a thank you for getting us back to the resort in one piece,” she said, by way of an
explanation. “Danny and I owe you. I don’t think it’s considered good luck to drown on your honeymoon.”

Rudy forced a smile and took the offered beer and tapped the bottle against hers. He took a swig, but he didn’t have time to drink any more. He needed to get going, but he hesitated. Where was Lucy? Why hadn’t she turned up to meet him? He wondered if the kiss on beach had something to do with her no show. Maybe he’d pushed her too far and she decided she didn’t want to take things any further.

He sensed
an awkwardness
about her, as though she hid something behind her eyes. But Rudy didn’t have the right to push her for the truth; after all, he had secrets of his own.

Guilt worried at him because he’d not been open with her about his life. Deep down, he knew the beach should have been the perfect time, but he just couldn’t bring himself to tell her—not after last time. He had been burned befo
re and the thought of opening
up again sent chills of fear down his spine.

His heart told him this girl was different; if only he could convince his head.

Dreams wrestled in her
head
, her two lives converging. Her repetitive nightmare of that final night in the hospital, spliced with her life on the island.

She ran down the beach, but the storm whipped up the sand, lashing the grains painfully against her skin. In the distance, Rudy stood with his back to her. She called out to him to help her, but as soon as he turned, the sand and the beach disappeared and she found herself back in the cold, sterilized surroundings of the hospital. From one of the rooms came the chilling sound of a flat-line and a woman screaming. Filled with panic, Lucy ran from room to room, desperately trying to find the patient in such desperate need of help, but each room was empty.

Finally, she burst into an occupied room. Rudy lay on the
bed, blood covering his torso.
Standing above him, a knife still clutched in her
hand and screaming, was Lucy
.

Lucy bolted up in
bed
, tears streaming down her face.

Just a dream,
she told herself.
Another, god-awful nightmare.

She knew sleep would elude her for the rest of the night. The storm showed no signs of abating and the winds pummeled and battered her small cabin.

Her mind didn’t want to rest, however insistent her body seemed to be. She turned things over and over in her mind, thinking about Rudy, Max, her job, her father, worrying over every little detail, wondering what the hell she planned to do with her life.

Finally, giving up on sleep, she got up to use the bathroom and discovered a fine residue of dust and grit on every surface. She wiped the sink clean,
only to discover, an hour later,
the dirt was back again.

Wind tore around her room, lifting sand and dust from the beach and dry land. The grit seemed to work its way through the walls, like something supernatural.

But the dirt wasn’t the only thing keeping her awake. The wind caught a gap in her window, making an eerie howling sound, like a cross between a train whistle and someone screaming. Lucy kept reminding herself that this was just a bit of bad weather and tried to push away the thoughts that bad weather could also kill. The wooden boards of her room creaked and groaned beneath the force of this unseen foe, vocalizing their protest.

The sound of the storm was both frightening and exhilarating. Some crazy part of her wanted to go out, open her door and see what damage was being created, but the sensible part of her won over. Besides, she thought if she tried to open her door it would probably be torn from her grip and she wouldn’t get it closed again. The idea of sleeping in a door-less room didn’t appeal.

So, with a tormented heart, Lucy waited for morning.

By the following morning
, the worst of the storm had died down.

At first light, Lucy got up and dressed, and packed her clothes and toiletries into her suitcase. Exhaustion weighed down heavily upon her, her bad dreams and broken heart tormenting her. Her eyes randomly filled with tears, as if she’d sprung a leak.

Stepping out of her room and onto her small balcony, she took in her surroundings. Heavy cloud muted the sun and the air pressed thick and muggy, around her.

Part of her hoped she would see Rudy again. She imagined him rushing out to stop her from leaving, telling her he’d made a huge mistake, but of course it didn’t happen.

The resort was deserted and the place had suffered in the storm. A piece of the bamboo roof of the
restaurant flapped in the wind. T
ables had been overturned and chairs lay battered on the beach. The tide was high, almost lapping the restaurant’s walls, and most of the small beach had been washed away.

Lucy guessed people had slept badly and were making the most of not having to get up. No dives would be leaving this morning; after the storm, visibility in the water would be down to zero.

The thought of diving swept her thoughts back to Rudy and her eyes burned with tears. How many times did she have to tell herself she was better off without him before she started to believe it?

One of the Thai boys stood behind reception, his head bent over the desk, reading something. He heard her approaching and looked up.

“I need to get a taxi,” she said. “Could you order one for me?”

He looked at her suitcase in surprise. “You
are
leaving today?”

“Yes, I have to. I have a family emergency back home.” It wasn’t really a lie, but it wasn’t the whole truth.

He pressed his lips together and shook his head. “No one is leaving the island today. The storm is not finished and no ferries will leave. You must stay in your room.”

The wind was still up, though it was nowhere near as bad as before, and the clouds still hung low and heavy over the ocean. But the storm certainly looked as if the worst had passed. She didn’t believe no one would be leaving. What if people had flights to catch? They couldn’t hold people hostage on the island. There must be someone who would take her.

She sighed. “Look, just ge
t me a taxi to the port and I’ll sort the rest
out from there.”

“But I tell you,” he insisted. “No boats leave today. Storm is not finished. You must stay in your room.”

Lucy started to get angry. She had no intention of staying in this resort to be humiliated further, and she wasn’t having some child telling her to go to her room as though she was a naughty toddler. She would walk to the damned port if she had to.

She fished her purse out of her bag and opened it, pulling out a wedge of notes. “I am a paying customer,” she said, her voice hard. “Just get me to the port.”

The boy saw the money and his eyes lit up. “Okay,” he said with a shrug. “I drive you.”

“You’ll want this,” she said, handing him her room key. The boy hung the key on the board at the back of the reception. She had no bills to settle as she had pre-paid her room and paid for all her food and drinks in cash.

Lucy climbed into the back of the SUV and looked out
of the rear
window as they drove away from the resort. A strange sadness and longing filled her and she wished things could have been different.

During the whole drive to the port she watched out for Rudy, hoping to see him on his bike, hoping he would find her gone and come racing after her. She was being ridiculous. He was probably tucked up in bed with the girl from the dive.

The thought stabbed pain through her stomach and she felt herself twist up inside, groaning inwardly.

Part of her wished she had let him take it further with her on the beach. At least then she would have had the memory of how he tasted or how his skin had felt beneath her fingertips. Instead, all she had was the brief kiss he had stolen and the memory of his bare chest pressed up against hers, before she had pushed him away.

He was just a fling, she told herself. He was nothing. Yet she couldn’t push away the sense of loss and even though she was leaving, she desperately wished she could see him again.

The port was as deserted as the resort and the first strands of unease ran through her. What if the Thai boy was right? What if she wasn’t going to be able to get off the island? It didn’t even bear thinking about. She couldn’t go back to Turtle View; she would be mortified to see Rudy again, even though in her heart it was all she wanted.

“This is fine,” she said, handing him the money over the back of his seat.

He raised his eyebrows at her, but Lucy ignored him. She could do this. She had treated multiple stab wounds, removed foreign objects from chests, and even kept someone alive for thirty-five minutes by administering CPR after a man had a heart attack on the tube. She only wanted to catch a damn ferry.

Lucy struggled to get her suitcase out of the boot, scowling at the Thai boy as he sat in the driver’s seat, watching her struggle in the wing mirror.

As soon as she slammed the boot shut, he drove off, leaving her standing on the side of the road.

The wind whipped her hair around her face and she pushed the strands away, holding her hair back, trying to figure out where to go.

Had the wind got worse during the short drive?