Fatal Tide (3 page)

She hesitated.

“What can it hurt?”

“A foot in the door.”

He chuckled. “True. But you knew what you were getting into when you told St. George to go and get me to spring you from the hospital. Play the game.”

“This isn’t a game to me.”

His smile faded. “No, I can see it isn’t. Sorry. You’re an unknown quantity to me. Maybe I’ve mistaken toughness for callousness.” He shrugged. “Come on, I’ll let this trip be a freebie. No obligations, no payoffs.”

She studied him for a moment and then turned and got into the car. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“So will I. This is a surprise to me too.”

They searched the disaster area all afternoon and found only a few scraps of debris. With every passing hour her hope gradually faded.

He wasn’t there. No matter how determined she was, how hard she looked, he would never be there again. The turquoise sea was so serene and beautiful here, it seemed obscene that it could hold such horror, she thought numbly.

But it wasn’t the sea that had killed Phil. It might be his burial place, but it was not his killer.

“Do you want to make another pass?” Kelby asked quietly. “We could widen our perimeter again.”

“No.” She didn’t turn to look at him. “It would be a waste of time. He’s not here. Are you going to say I told you so?”

“No, you had to see for yourself to make it real to you. I can understand that. Are you ready to go back to Athens now?”

She nodded jerkily.

“Do you want anything to eat? I had Billy make some sandwiches. He does a pretty miraculous job. Wilson and your friend Gary are in the main cabin practically inhaling them.”

“Billy?”

“Billy Sanders, the cook. I stole him from a top restaurant in Prague.”

Of course a luxury yacht like the
Trina
would have a cook. She’d read somewhere he’d purchased the yacht from a Saudi oil sheik. It was absolutely huge, and its two state-of-the-art tenders were also very impressive. The
Trina
herself was sleek, modern, with all the latest scientific equipment and bells and whistles. This ship was light-years different from the
Last Home
. Just as Kelby was different from Phil. Yet Phil had thought Kelby had something in common with him.

He’s got the same passion I have and the drive to make it happen
.

Phil had said that about Kelby during the last telephone conversation she’d had with him.

He was right. She could sense both Kelby’s passion and drive as if they were a living force.

“Food?” he prompted.

She shook her head. “I’m not hungry. I think I’ll just sit here for a while.” She sat down on the deck and wrapped her arms tightly around her knees. “It’s not been an easy afternoon for me.”

“Do tell.” His voice was suddenly harsh. “I’ve been expecting you to break down for the last two hours. For God’s sake, no one is going to think less of you if you do.”

“I don’t care what anyone else thinks. And my weeping and wailing wouldn’t do Phil any good. Nothing will help him now.”

He didn’t speak for a moment, and when she glanced at him she found his eyes narrowed on the horizon.

“What is it? Do you see something?”

“No.” His gaze shifted back to her. “What are you going to do now? Do you have any plans?”

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I can’t seem to think clearly right now. First I have to go home. I have responsibilities. Then I’ll decide what comes next.”

“Where’s home?”

“An island in the Lesser Antilles, not far from Tobago. It belonged to Phil, but he deeded it over to me.” Her lips twisted bitterly. “He left me the
Last Home
too. It would only take the next decade or so to retrieve the parts floating out there.”

“He must have cared very much for you.”

“I cared for him too,” she whispered. “I think he knew. I wish I’d told him. Christ, I wish I’d told him.”

“I’m sure he felt richly compensated.”

There was an inflection in his tone. “What do you mean?”

“Nothing.” He looked away from her. “Sometimes words don’t mean much.”

“And sometimes they do. Phil told me he couldn’t get you to return his calls. What did he say to you to get you to come here?”

“He sent me a letter with just one word.” His glance shifted back to her face. “I imagine you know what that word was.”

She didn’t answer.

“Marinth.”

She gazed at him, silent.

“I don’t suppose you’d care to tell me what you know about Marinth?”

“I don’t know anything.” She stared him directly in the eye. “And I don’t want to know anything.”

“I’d be willing to give you a good deal of money for any information you might be willing to share.”

She shook her head.

“If you’re not willing to admit Lontana committed suicide, has it occurred to you there might be another explanation?”

Of course it had occurred to her, but she’d been pushing the thought away all afternoon. She couldn’t cope with analyzing anything right now. And no matter how Phil had died, she wasn’t aligning herself with Kelby.

“I don’t know anything,” she repeated.

He studied her. “I don’t think you’re telling me the truth. I believe you may know a good deal.”

“Believe what you like. I don’t intend to discuss it.”

“Then I’ll leave you alone.” He turned away. “See how sensitive I’m being? If you change your mind about the sandwiches, come to the cabin.”

He was joking, but he had been surprisingly sensitive since they’d boarded the
Trina.
He’d set to the job at hand with brisk efficiency. He’d let her run the show and taken orders without complaint. He’d made this agonizing search bearable.

“Kelby.”

He turned to look at her.

“Thank you. You were kind to me today.”

“Hey, everyone gets ambushed occasionally by an attack of sentimentality. It doesn’t happen often with me. I got off easy.”

“And I’m sorry you came to Athens on a wild-goose chase.”

“I’m not.” He smiled. “Because I have a hunch it wasn’t a wild-goose chase. I want Marinth. I’m going to have it, Melis.”

“Good luck.”

“No, luck’s not enough. I’m going to need help. I was going to get it from Lontana, but now I’m left with you.”

“Then you have nothing.”

“Until you get off the ship. I made you a promise that I’d make no demands today. All bets are off once you step onto dry land.”

She felt a surge of panic as she watched him walk away from her. It was difficult to ignore that absolute confidence in her emotional state.

Difficult, not impossible. All she needed to do was go home and heal her wounds and she’d be as strong as ever. She’d be able to think and make decisions. Once she reached the island she’d be safe from Kelby and everyone else.

“She’s giving up.” Archer’s hands tightened on the rail of the cruiser. “Dammit, they’re going back to Athens.”

“Maybe she’ll come back and search tomorrow,” Pennig said. “It’s getting dark.”

“Kelby has enough strobe lights on that ship to light up the entire coast. No, she’s giving up. She’ll be running back to that damn island. Do you realize how difficult that’s going to make it for us? I was hoping for just one more day here.” Well, he wasn’t going to get it. Nothing was going as it should. The woman should have been vulnerable. It was what he’d planned. But Kelby had stepped into the picture and formed a protective barricade around Melis Nemid by his very presence. “I need to
get
to the bitch.”

“What if she doesn’t go home? Kelby might have paid her enough to have brought her on board with him.”

“Not if Lontana couldn’t get her to go with him. He told me she wouldn’t have anything to do with it. But she knows, dammit. The bitch
knows.
”

“Then Tobago?”

“Tobago’s a small island and she’s a familiar face there. That’s why I wanted to get her here.” He drew a deep breath and consciously smothered the rage surging through him. He’d been hoping to go the simple route and avoid complications. Patience. It would all come out right if he didn’t make any foolish moves. “No, we’ll just have to find a way to make her leave the island and come to us.”

And make sure she broke down and gave him what he wanted before he put an end to her.

Kelby stood at the rail and watched as Gary helped Melis from the tender to the dock. She didn’t look back at either him or the ship as she moved quickly down the dock toward the taxi stand.

She had dismissed him. The realization brought Kelby a mixture of amusement and irritation.

No way, Melis. It’s not going to happen.

“I didn’t think she was going to hold up.” Wilson had joined him at the rail. “Today had to be damn hard for her.”

“Yes.”

“Her friend Gary didn’t have any doubts. He said he’d known her from the time she came to live with Lontana when she was a teenager, and she was always the toughest little scrapper he’d ever run across. You’d never guess it. She looks like she’d melt in the rain.”

“No chance of that.” He watched her get into a taxi. Still no look back. “And that air of fragility can be a powerful weapon for a woman.”

“I don’t think she’d use it. I think she’d hate to admit that she wasn’t strong.” He glanced at Kelby. “Not everyone’s like Trina. So don’t be so damn judgmental, you cynical bastard.”

“I’m not judging. I couldn’t care less. I just have to take stock of any ammunition she might have.”

“You didn’t get what you wanted from her?”

“Not yet.”

“So what do we do?”

“I take the next plane to Tobago. And you find out everything you can about Lontana and Melis Nemid.”

“How far back?”

“All the way, but concentrate on the last year. He only tried to contact me in the last month, and according to what you found out from St. George he wasn’t acting normally for the past six months.”

“If the suicide theory is correct, his mental state may not have been—”

“Discard theories. Get me facts.”

“How quick do you want the report?” Wilson asked.

“Fast. Have the preliminary findings waiting for me when I reach Tobago.”

“Fine. Anything else?”

“Yes, there was a cruiser out there this afternoon while we were searching. I saw it several times. It never got close enough for me to get a number, but I think the first three letters of the name on the hull were
S-I-R
.”

“Great. That’s giving me zilch. And that’s a popular cruise area. Maybe a fisherman? Or someone from the insurance company?”

“Find out if there were any cruiser rentals.”

“Even if it was rented, it could have been leased anywhere along the coast. I suppose you want that by the time you get to Tobago too?”

The taxi was pulling away and Melis was still staring straight ahead.

“Don’t be sarcastic, Wilson.” Kelby turned and headed for his cabin. “You know you enjoy doing the impossible. It’s great for your ego. That’s the reason you’ve stayed with me all these years.”

“Is it?” Wilson was already reaching for his phone. “That’s news to me. And here I thought it was because I wanted to gouge enough loot out of you to retire on the Riviera.”

Chapter Three

As usual, Susie and Pete met Melis at the net.

She had never figured out how the dolphins knew she was coming. Of course their hearing was phenomenal, but they often ignored the arrival of the mail boat or passing fishermen. Yet they were always there when she returned from any trip. She’d even run tests to try to fool them. Once she’d left the boat a mile from the net and swum the rest of the way. But their instinct was unerring. They were always there, waiting, squeaking, clicking, whistling, dipping, swimming joyously in giddy circles.

“Okay, okay, I’ve missed you too.” She floated the motorboat over the net before fastening it again. “Have you been giving Cal a bad time while I’ve been gone?”

Susie gave her high, clicking squeak that was so like laughter.

Dear God, it was good to be home. After the ugliness and horror she’d gone through in Athens, being here with Pete and Susie was like having a loving hand stroking, soothing her.

“I thought so.” She restarted the motor. “Come on, we’ll get some supper and you can tell Cal you’re sorry.”

Again, that joyous laughter as the dolphins raced ahead of her toward the cottage.

Cal met her at the pier, his expression sober. “You okay?”

No, she wasn’t okay. But she was better now that she was home. “Gary called you?”

He nodded as he tied up the boat. “I’m damn sorry, Melis. I’ll miss him. We’ll all miss him.”

“Yes, we will.” She got out of the boat. “Do you mind if we don’t talk about Phil right now? I’ve got to come to terms with it in my own way.”

“Sure.” Cal fell into step with her. “Then can we talk about Kelby?”

She stiffened. “Why?”

“Because Kelby offered Gary a job on the
Trina.
”

She stopped and stared at him. “What?”

“Good wages. Interesting work. It wouldn’t be like crewing on the
Last Home,
but we have to make a living.”

“We?”

“Gary said that there was a job for Terry and me too. He gave me Kelby’s cell-phone number. He said to call him if we wanted the job.” He looked away from her. “And if you didn’t mind.”

She did mind. The thought of losing these men with whom she’d grown up made her feel a little lost. “You think you could be happy working for Kelby?”

“Gary likes him and he’s talked to the crew on the
Trina.
They say Kelby’s fair, and as long as you’re square with him, he’ll be square with you.” He paused. “But we don’t have to take the job. Not if you don’t like the idea. I know you and Phil didn’t agree about Kelby. But his rep is pretty good.”

His reputation was better than good. Kelby was the rising star in the profession Phil had loved so well. He’d already discovered two galleons in the Caribbean. It was one of the reasons she’d harbored resentment. In the relatively short time he’d been in the business, he’d effortlessly overshadowed Phil’s accomplishments.

She was being selfish. She had felt so safe when she’d reached the island that it hurt to realize Kelby was able to reach out even here and take these old friends away. “It doesn’t matter what I think. Do what’s best for you.”

“We’d feel bad if you—”

“Cal, it’s okay. Call Kelby and take the job. It’s not as if you’re going to work for a group of terrorists. I would have had to find all of you new berths anyway. I can’t keep you employed here, so you might as well go where you can get work.” He was still frowning and she forced herself to smile. “Unless you want me to hire you to help take care of Pete and Susie?”

“God, no,” he said, horrified. “Do you know what they did to me? They stole my trunks. I was taking a morning swim and that female came up from below and jerked them off me. I thought I was being attacked. A man’s privates should be respected.”

She smothered a smile. “Only a little prank. They don’t understand clothing. It’s just another toy to them.”

“Yeah? Well, I don’t understand being stripped down to my birthday suit.”

He was so outraged she couldn’t resist. “They must have found you appealing. Dolphins are very highly sexed, you know.”

“Oh, my God.”

She chuckled and shook her head. “They were just playing. Neither of them has reached sexual maturity yet. They’re only about eight years old and it may still be a year or two.”

“Remind me not to be around. And that’s not all they did. I couldn’t get in the boat without them tipping it over.”

“I can see you’ve suffered. I’ll talk to them about it.” She opened the front door. “After supper I promise I’ll have them apologize.”

“I don’t want an apology. They wouldn’t mean it anyway.” He scowled. “Just don’t leave me alone with them again.”

“Not unless I absolutely have to do it.”

His gaze narrowed on her face. “What’s that supposed to mean? You never leave the island these days unless you’re forced.”

“Things happen. I didn’t want to leave here when you brought me those documents from Phil, but I did.” She headed for the kitchen. “Besides, you won’t be here for me to call on if you’re going to take that job with Kelby.”

“I never leave a buddy in the lurch.”

She was touched. “Thanks, Cal. I hope I won’t have to subject you to any more of the dolphins’ tricks.”

“Don’t worry. I can handle them.” He hesitated. “Maybe.”

“They really like you or they wouldn’t play with you. You should be flattered. It’s a wonderful comp—”

“I don’t want to be flattered. I just want to keep my drawers on.” He gave her a nudge toward the lanai. “You look tired. Go out and sit down. I’ll make supper.” He hesitated. “I was wondering . . . Is there anyone we should tell about Phil? He didn’t have any family, did he?”

“No one he’s kept in touch with over the years. You and the other guys were more his family than any relation.” But there was one person she should call. Not for Phil’s sake, but Carolyn would be concerned if she found out later that Melis hadn’t told her. “Maybe I will make a phone call or two.”

“Do you need me?” Carolyn asked quietly. “Say the word and I’ll hire a seaplane here in Nassau and be outside those nets in a heartbeat.”

“I’m okay.” Melis gazed out at the sea where Pete and Susie were playing. “Well, not okay. But I’m pulling myself together.”

“What are you feeling? Anger? Sadness? Guilt?”

“I don’t know yet. I’m still numb. I know I was glad to get home. I feel as if everything is dammed up inside me and can’t get out.”

“I’m on my way.”

“No, I know what your appointment book looks like. You have clients, for God’s sake.”

“And I have a friend who needs me.”

“Look, I’m coping. If you want to come here this weekend, I’ll be glad to have you. You haven’t seen Pete and Susie for a while anyway.”

There was a silence on the other end of the line, and Melis could almost see the thoughtful frown on Carolyn’s café au lait face. “Are you alone?”

“No, Cal is here. And, even if he wasn’t, I’m never alone, Carolyn. I have the dolphins.”

“Yeah, they’re really great to confide in.”

“Actually, they are. They don’t talk back.”

Carolyn chuckled. “Okay, I’ll wait until the weekend. And next week I’ll arrange a few days off and we’ll take my boat over to Paradise Island. We’ll lie on the beach and drink piña coladas and forget about the world.”

“That sounds great.”

“Yes, and totally unrealistic. But that’s okay too.” She paused. “You call me if you need me. This has been coming for a long time, you know. If that dam breaks, I want to be there for you.”

“I’m fine. I’ll expect you Friday afternoon.” She was silent a moment. “Thanks, Carolyn. Have I ever told you how much it means to me to have a good friend like you?”

“In one of your more sentimental moments I’m sure it came up. I’ll see you Friday.” She hung up.

And today was Tuesday. Melis felt a wave of loneliness, and suddenly the weekend seemed a long time away. She had an impulse to call Carolyn back and—

Stop it. What would she do if she did call her back? Whine and tell her she’d changed her mind? She couldn’t lean on anyone, not even Carolyn.

Just keep busy with the dolphins. Let the island soothe and heal her.

If that dam breaks, I want to be there for you.

There wasn’t going to be a dam break. She was in control just as she’d always been.

And Friday wasn’t that far away.

Fifteen minutes after Kelby got off the plane in Tobago, his phone rang.

“Is this soon enough for the first report?” Wilson asked. “I didn’t want to keep you waiting.”

“Did anyone ever tell you that you’re an overachiever?” He paid the porter as he got into the cab. “The docks,” he told the driver as he sat back in the cab. “What have you got for me?”

“Not as much as I’d like. You know about Lontana’s professional background.”

“Not in the last year or so.”

“That’s because he disappeared from sight about two years ago. No one knew where he was or what he was doing.”

“Some sort of exploration?”

“His ship never left Nassau harbor until about a year ago. Then he flew in and sailed out in the
Last Home
in a big hurry. He didn’t tell anyone where he was going or when he’d be back.”

“Interesting.”

“And right after he left, some pretty rough types were searching for him in Nassau, asking questions in a very ugly way.”

“Where was Melis Nemid all this time?”

“On her island taking care of her dolphins.”

“Did she know where he was?”

“If she did, she wasn’t talking.”

“Tell me about Melis Nemid.”

“Some more blanks. She seems to have hooked up with Lontana when she was a kid of sixteen. He was studying oceanic thermal vents off the coast of Santiago, Chile, and she was in the custody of a Luis Delgado. She was going to school and working for his Save the Dolphin foundation. According to Gary St. George, she was a quiet, withdrawn child, and her whole life seems to have been geared toward study and working with the dolphins. She’s evidently one very smart cookie. Most of her education was home schooling on the Internet and on-the-job training. But she was accepted for college courses at sixteen and has earned an advanced degree in marine biology over the years.”

“Very smart.”

“And she seems to like her dolphins better than people. She’s alone on that island most of the time. Of course, she did leave the island about six months ago to go to Florida. But that was to protest the bureaucracy that was interfering with the saving of stranded dolphins.”

“What happened to this Luis Delgado?”

“He moved to San Diego when she was sixteen.”

“And just left her?”

“That’s one of the blanks. I only know that same week she sailed out of Santiago with Lontana and has been with him ever since. She’s been on several of his explorations on the
Last Home,
but they seem to pretty much live their own lives.”

“And what about this island where she lives?”

“Lontana bought it with the money he received from salvaging that Spanish galleon. If you’re thinking about paying her a visit, I wouldn’t do it without an invitation. The only access is an inlet on the south side of the island, and that’s barricaded by an electrified net to protect the dolphins. The vegetation is so lush that you can’t even land a helicopter.”

“I wasn’t going to pay her a visit yet. I’m renting a cruiser and staying here until you give me something to use. I think she needs a little time to come to terms with Lontana’s death.”

“Then why are you there?”

Kelby ignored the question. “What did you find out about that cruiser I saw while we were searching for Lontana?”

“I’m still working on it. There’s a possibility we may track it down soon if it’s a lease. The
Siren
is owned by a British leasing company in Athens. There are lots of other
Sirens
registered, but they all have an adjective preceding the noun. Of course, I may be on the wrong track entirely.” He paused. “You think someone may have followed her?”

“Maybe. Get me names and descriptions as soon as you can.”

“Tomorrow.”

“Today.”

“You’re a hard man, Kelby. Anything else?”

“Yes, try to locate Nicholas Lyons and get him down here.”

“Oh, shit.”

He chuckled. “It’s okay, Wilson. The last I heard from him he was being very circumspect and legal—for him.”

“Which isn’t saying much. I suppose I’m going to have to look forward to bribing you both out of jail again?”

“You only had to do it once. And that jail in Algiers was very secure or we’d have managed to get out ourselves.”

“I think you chose the worst elements possible to befriend while you were in the SEALs.”

“No, I was the worst element possible, Wilson.”

“Well, thank God you decided to grow up and stop playing commando. It would have been just like you to get killed and leave me with all that paperwork to straighten out.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“Yes, you would.” Wilson sighed. “Do you have any idea where Lyons is?”

“St. Petersburg.”

“Can you call him?”

“No, he changes phones frequently.”

“Which all circumspect and legal citizens do.”

“Wilson. Find him. Get him to call me.”

“It’s against my better judgment.” He paused. “I found out one more thing from Gary St. George about Melis Nemid. For the first two years she was with Lontana, she paid regular visits to some shrink in Nassau. Dr. Carolyn Mulan.”

“What?”

“She didn’t make any secret of it. She was very matter-of-fact about the visits to this Dr. Mulan. She even joked about it. He thought she’d been under a psychiatrist’s care in Santiago too.”

“That’s a surprise. I’d judge her to be one of the most well-balanced people I’ve ever run across.”

“Do you want me to try to contact her doctor and try to pump her?”

“There’s such a thing as patient confidentiality.”

“A little well-placed bribery could jump over that barrier.”

Kelby knew that better than Wilson. Money talked; money could turn black into white. He’d lived with that truth since he was a child. Why was he so reluctant to turn Wilson loose on Melis Nemid’s records? It was very nasty. She’d probably bared her soul to that shrink, and it would be like stripping her naked to delve into her secrets.