Night Swimming (29 page)

Karen caught on immediately. She, too, leaned closer. “Aw, come on,” she said, warmly cajoling. “I’m sure you’ve noticed him. He’s not as cute as you are, but he thinks he’s a real Romeo. He’s been coming here lots.”

The bartender glanced between them. Lily upped the wattage on her smile. “Yeah, I think I’ve seen this dude around. He’s been hanging with a girl named Trish who’s a regular here.”

Karen traced an idle pattern on the shiny metal surface of the bar, the tip of her finger inches away from the bartender’s arm. “Do you know Trish’s address by any chance?”

“Yeah. It’s at the edge of town. Four seventy-nine Sunset. But I wouldn’t bother going there. Trish usually comes in about now—she likes to keep tabs on the lunch crowd, see whether anyone catches her eye. Stick around, why don’t you? By the way, I get off work at three. . . .”

“That’s good to know,” Lily said. And bit the inside of her cheek.

“We’ll definitely keep that in mind,” Karen agreed solemnly.

Shoving back from the bar, Lily said, “I’ll have a frozen vodka at that table over there.” She looked inquiringly at Karen.

“Make that two.” Karen smiled. “And thanks loads for the help.”

The mirrors in Ferrucci’s restaurant definitely came in handy. Lily didn’t have to turn around when John walked in behind a brunette wearing a miniskirt and a shrink-wrapped tank top. John’s hand was resting on the woman’s rear as he hailed the bartender loudly, then guided—no, herded—the woman to a table. They were just taking their seats when the woman giggled something to John and tripped off in her platform heels toward the back of the restaurant, where the rest rooms were located.

Lily waited until John was seated, fury mounting inside her. With a terse nod to Karen, the two of them rose in unison.

John started as he saw them approach. His face went pale, then all splotchy. “Hey, Lily. I, uh, just got back from Mi—”

Lily kept her temper under tight rein. Nothing would be more satisfying than wringing John’s neck, but right now she wanted answers. “Skip the play-acting, John. We know what you did.”

The flush on John’s face darkened to an unbecoming red. “What are you talking about?” he blustered.

“Oh,
please.
” Karen’s tone was contemptuous.

“We’re talking about the samples. Karen’s film. Why, John? Why’d you do it? Did you really think we wouldn’t figure it out?”

“Like I said before, I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.” His eyes narrowed as he smiled. “But I’m guessing from Masur’s pitiful expression that something must have happened to her film. Did it get lost?” He shook his head. “Ahh, that’s a real shame.”

He wasn’t going to admit a thing, the bastard. Lily leaned forward over the table, her anger an icy blast that had John recoiling instinctively. “You stole Karen’s film and switched the samples.
You saw the hot spot, John.
And still you went and tampered with the samples.”

“Screw you, Banyon,” John snarled. “You can’t prove a damn thing you’re saying, so it looks like it’s your ass on the line. Serves you right, too. You blew this study off, running around with McDermott, visiting your granny, your old high school, like you were some fucking homecoming queen. It’s gonna be funny as hell watching you get covered in shit when it hits the fan. I’ll be laughing my head off.”

Sickened, she stared at him. “You mean you deliberately ruined a research project just to get back at me? Why, John? Because I didn’t like having my ass grabbed by you?” She saw the truth in the petulant look that crossed his face. “Jesus, you really are stupid. But what about Karen? What did she ever do to you, besides try and be your friend?”

“Yeah, you slimy creep. What did you do with my film?”

John looked at Karen and shrugged. “Gosh, I just don’t know how they could have got lost. You could always go out there and reshoot. Oh, but that’s right!” John exclaimed, then sniggered like a delinquent school boy. “Your little tummy gets upset in big, bad waves—” Before he could finish, Karen’s hand whipped out and slapped him across the face.

“You bitch!” Enraged, Granger leaped out of his chair, lunging for her.

“Don’t even think about it,” Lily warned, quickly planting herself in front of Karen. “You try it and I’ll break your arm.”

John froze.

Without taking her eyes off him, Lily said, “Let’s get out of here, Karen. By the way, Granger, you’re out of a job.”

“Oooh, like that’s a big fucking deal. I was going to quit this lousy research position anyway. I’ve already got a better job lined up.”

“Not one in marine biology, you don’t. You think I’m a ball-busting bitch, don’t you?” She smiled. “You ain’t seen nothing yet. You can kiss your Ph.D. good-bye. No university will take you after I spread the word about what you did. I’m going to make it my personal mission to ensure you never work in this field again. By the time I’m finished, John, you’ll be lucky to land a job cleaning out the fish tank in a Chinese restaurant.”

“I wish I’d slapped him harder.” Karen’s voice shook as she dashed away the tears that ran down her cheeks.

Lily shut the apartment door and turned to her. “I know,” she replied tiredly. “I’m as furious as you are, Karen.”

Shrugging off Sean’s raincoat, she went over to the coffee table and picked up the remote control. She turned on the TV and flicked through the stations until she reached the Weather Channel. A map of the East Coast filled the screen. Masses of dark green obscured the southern half of Florida. Just off the coast, there were the ominous, grayish-black swirls of a storm system.

Lily stood, staring grimly at the television, while in her head, John Granger’s damning accusations resounded. His words were like a corrosive acid, all the more destructive because Lily believed them. John had been right when he’d accused her of blowing off the study, of spending more time thinking about Sean and May Ellen than about the reef. If she had been wholly focused on the study, she’d have noticed far sooner that something was amiss.

She had been distracted by the emotional tug-of-war she’d experienced upon returning home, torn by her desire to spend time with her grandmother and her reluctance to reacquaint herself with her hometown.

But of all her conflicting emotions, none were as complex, as overwhelming as her feelings for Sean.

It was as if her heart had been buried under icy layers of distrust and uncertainty. Little by little, as she’d come to understand the man Sean really was, those cold, hard layers had finally melted away and she was able to see what had been in her heart these many years.
Sean.

Nothing came without a price, though. Discovering the truth of her love for Sean had been at the cost of one of the things Lily cared about deeply: preserving the wonders of the sea.

“I still can’t believe John did this to us.” Karen’s voice tore Lily from her black thoughts.

She hit the power button on the remote control and tossed the remote onto the table. “We’re not the only ones who’ve been betrayed,” she said. “What John did affects all of Coral Beach. The people of this town are going to be deciding on some major issues based upon the information in my report.”

“So what are we going to do? Are you going to inform the reef committee about what’s happened?”

Lily shook her head. “No. We don’t have any actual proof against John, and pointing the finger at him isn’t going to change the only thing that really matters—the study’s been compromised. We have to salvage what we can. Or else the entire reef may be jeopardized.”

“But what can we possibly salvage? Everything’s been destroyed or stolen!”

“That’s why I’m going out to the reef,” Lily said, staring out the window at the waves crashing wildly below.

“What?” Karen cried. “Lily, look what it’s like out there!”

“I don’t have a choice, Karen. This isn’t dumb heroics on my part, I assure you. John or whoever put him up to sabotaging our research couldn’t have timed it better.”

“What do you mean, timed it better? Because of the committee meeting this week? Surely you can postpone the meeting and get the samples when this blows over!”

“Oh, I’m counting on being able to postpone the coral reef meeting—I’ll need those extra days for the center to analyze the new samples I collect. But I
have
to get those samples today. You saw the weather forecast just now, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, and the conditions are dangerous—”

“The rain and wind we’re getting now might get a whole lot worse,” she interrupted. “This system could whip itself into a tropical storm, possibly even a hurricane. Now do you understand why I need to go out today?”

Karen’s eyes widened. “My God. You mean if the storm worsens, the waves will start smashing the reef.”

“Exactly. A strong enough storm could destroy a lot of the coral. With the coral destroyed, the evidence that the coral is diseased will be gone, too. But that won’t mean the reef will be rid of whatever agent is attacking the coral. Storms are a natural phenomenon. Given time, reefs can recover from the damage inflicted by them— but not if they’re already weakened by disease. But I need solid proof that there are
other
agents hurting the reef, otherwise no one’s going to believe me.”

“But surely—”

“No.” Lily shook her head grimly. “My word alone won’t be enough to halt the plans to develop the coastal area, because Lesnesky’s study never gave any indication of a problem. And the longer I wait here, the more likely it is that the coral will be smashed to pieces before I get to it.”

Her words spurring her on, Lily dashed across the room. She picked up the phone and dialed rapidly. “Hello, Ms. Roemer? This is Lily Banyon. Could I speak with Sean? He’s in a meeting? Is it possible to interrupt him? Oh, I see. Well, could you give him this message? Tell him he has to postpone the reef meeting and reschedule it for later next week. No, I can’t explain now. No, I don’t know when he’ll be able to reach me. I’m sorry, I’ve got to go.”

Lily hung up the phone, then rushed to retrieve her scuba gear from the bathroom where it was drying. She pulled her wet suit and her buoyancy control vest from the shower rod and shoved them into her bag with the rest of her scuba gear.

When she returned to the living room, Karen was waiting, her rain slicker zipped over her jeans and sweatshirt.

“Can I borrow one of your cameras, Karen?” Lily asked, as she dropped her gear bag on the floor. “The committee members will be much more inclined to believe me if I can show them pictures of diseased specimens.”

“I’ve got my cameras, but I’ll be the one taking the pictures. My bags are already by the door.”

“What! You can’t go out in this. You get seasick in weather only a fraction this bad. It’s too dangerous, anyhow. I’m the head scientist—”

Karen held up her hand, stopping her. “Don’t try and talk me out of this, Lily. I know it’s rough out there, but I’m not going to let you go down and do
my
job for me— not that you could anyway—there’s no way you’d get even one clear, readable image. I know which corals can be photographed most successfully under these conditions. It’ll cut the amount of dive time dramatically—so we can get the heck out of there. Let’s quit arguing and find someone willing to go out in this crap.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

Lily had Karen drop her off at the marina. While Karen was at the dive shop, filling their scuba tanks with air, Lily was going to look for Owen Rafern. She was hoping that in spite of the foul weather, he’d be somewhere around the marina.

She found him drinking a beer at the Rusted Keel. He was sitting at the bar, his baseball cap tilted far back on his head, allowing him an unobstructed view of the TV. The station had been switched from ESPN to the Weather Channel.

“Hell, Charlie,” Lily heard Owen complain to the bartender as she approached, “if this storm hangs around much longer, I’m gonna lose a lot of customers. Who wants to go out in this crap?”

“I do, Owen,” she said.

“Jesus H. Christ!” he exclaimed as he turned his head. The abrupt movement made his cap fall off. He grabbed it, shoved it back on his head, and said, “What are you doing here, Dr. Banyon?”

She sat down on the stool beside him. “Hoping to find you. I need you to take me out to the first reef.”

“You kidding? In this weather? Listen, I was only griping to Charlie here ’cause it bores the hell out of me to sit on my butt all day. You don’t—”

“I need to get out there, Owen,” Lily interrupted. “And I need to do it fast. We need to collect another batch of samples from that dive site we were at the other day.”

“
More
samples? You guys never stop. Granger especially, he went out a couple of extra times, too, complaining that the samples weren’t good enough. . . .”

So that was how John had obtained different samples
without my noticing,
Lily thought, seething with fury.

“Listen, Owen, Karen and I
have
to get out there. It’s vital to the study. Can you take us? I’ll pay you double.”

“Naw, keep your money. You’ll need it if your insurance company ever hears about it,” he said, grinning. “Sure, why not? I’ll take you. I never could resist women with a sense of adventure. Just make sure that little girl Karen has a bucket handy. So long, Charlie, my man. I’m off to battle the elements.”

A severe-storm warning had been announced for the county.

Sean, Dave Cullen, the chief of police, Chip Reynolds, and Tom O’Shea of the Coral Beach Fire Department were gathered around a map of the town, which was tacked to the wall. Sean had called them together for an emergency meeting to ensure they were prepared for any contingency.

“Most likely, this storm will only dump a lot of rain and cause some flooding. But as it’s hurricane season, I want to play it safe,” Sean said. “First of all, let’s close the beaches.” He looked at Dave. “You and your staff ready to post the notices?”

Dave nodded. “We’ll get right on it.”

“Good.” Sean turned his attention to Chip Reynolds. “Chip, tell your men not to hesitate to ticket any fool swimmer or surfer who disregards those signs.”

“What about the marina, Sean?” Dave asked.

“There’s already a small craft advisory,” Sean replied. “But I’d like you to swing by there after you’ve posted the beach closings.”

“Will do.”

“Tom, how’s the flooding so far?”

“The storm drains are holding up and we’ve got men out, keeping them clear. But if the rain intensifies . . .” The fire chief shrugged his shoulders.

“We’ve notified the high school that we may need the gym as an emergency shelter,” Sean said. “But let’s hope this storm dies out before it hits us. Keep your radios open, guys.”

The men filed out of the meeting room, Chief Reynolds and Fire Chief O’Shea heading back to their stations, Sean and Dave walking in the opposite direction, toward their own offices.

Evelyn was just opening the door as Sean and Dave approached. “I was going to pick up some sandwiches for lunch. Do you want something, Dave?”

“No, thanks. I’ve got to round up my staff and post beach closing signs.”

“Sean, you’ve got a bunch of messages on your desk. And Dr. Banyon telephoned.”

“Yeah? She leave a message?” Sean felt a smile spread over his face. Just hearing the words
Dr. Banyon
made him happier.

“Yes.” Evelyn nodded. “She needs you to push back the reef advisory meeting until next week. Said she’ll explain later.”

Sean’s brows drew together. “I’d better call her and find out what’s going on. In the meantime, Evelyn, don’t reschedule anything. I don’t want Ferrucci or anyone else on the committee to suspect that there’s something wrong.”

Dave looked at him in surprise. “Is something wrong?”

“Lily found a hot spot on the southern portion of the shoreward reef. She says a lot of the coral there is diseased.”

“Oh, man.” Dave gave a long, low whistle. “Looks like things are going to turn nasty in this town.”

“No, May Ellen,” Sean said into the phone twenty minutes later. “I don’t know where she is. That’s why I’m calling. Did Kaye speak to her by any chance? No, don’t fret, May. I’ll find her. She and her assistants probably ran an errand somewhere. Yes, I promise I’ll call as soon as I find her. No,” Sean laughed. “No, I don’t think she went for a swim. That’s one thing you needn’t worry about. Besides, we’ve closed the beaches. Talk to you soon, May.”

“Where the hell are you, Lily?” Sean asked aloud as he hung up the phone.

The ride out to zone one of the reef took twice as long this afternoon as it did under normal conditions. Lily and Karen had suited up as soon as they’d climbed aboard the
Tangiers
. Lily wanted to be ready to dive the minute they reached the reef. They stood beside Owen in the shelter of the pilothouse, gripping the railing with both hands for balance.

Lily cast another worried glance at Karen, whose face, usually so animated, was drawn and leached of color. She placed her hand over Karen’s, drawing her attention. “The swell will be rough underwater,” she shouted over the combined roar of the engines and wind. “But it’ll be even worse when we’re at the surface. Remember, stay calm and don’t panic. Keep your regulator in your mouth until the very end, when you reach the ladder.” Her fingers tightened in a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll be with you the entire time.”

Karen nodded, her lips pressed in a straight, hard line. Lily turned to Owen. “Will you be able to drop anchor with the waves this strong?”

“Should be able to,” Owen yelled, nodding vigorously. “But she’ll probably drift. I’m going to position her just southwest of where you’ll be diving. That way, when you surface, you won’t be swimming against the waves to reach the boat.”

“Good. The dive should take twenty minutes—half an hour, tops.”

“You got it, Dr. Banyon.”

If the ride to the reef was choppy, it was nothing compared to the pitch and roll of the
Tangiers
once Owen cut the engines.

Telling Karen to wait in the shelter of the pilothouse, Lily followed Owen out to help with the anchors. Unable to keep her balance on the seesawing deck, Lily stumbled. Once she was jostled so hard, her hip slammed into the side of the pilothouse. She grimaced at the shooting pain.

By the time she made her way back to the pilothouse, her hair was matted to her skull, rivulets of water streaming down her cheeks. Wiping the rain off her face, she stepped inside.

Karen was sitting on the captain’s chair with her camera and light strobe in her lap, doing a final check of the equipment.

“Everything okay?” Unable to resist, she added, “Karen, you really don’t have to do this.”

“Yes, I do,” Karen replied. “I’d never forgive myself otherwise.”

“All right then, let’s do it.”

While Owen secured the ladder, Lily and Karen donned their remaining scuba gear—their buoyancy control devices, weight belts, masks and snorkels. Owen came and helped them both with their scuba tanks. Karen picked up her camera, held it close, and gave Lily a tense nod.

Fins in hand, her mesh bag with her sample case in the other, Lily led the way out.

This is not good,
was Lily’s first thought.
This is scary
as hell,
her second, when she and Karen hit the storm-tossed waters and began bobbing violently in the waves. Lily was an experienced ocean swimmer; she knew how to angle her body so the surf’s impact was lessened. But she could see that Karen was having a hard time. Reaching out, she grabbed Karen’s arm. Together they began their descent.

The segment of the reef where they were diving was in the shallowest water, the depth only twenty to twenty-five feet. As she and Karen descended, the impact of the waves lessened, but only fractionally. The force of the surge was like being rammed by a truck. Lily’s worry escalated. She wasn’t scared for herself, but for Karen. Twenty minutes in conditions such as these would seem like an hour. What would happen if Karen became overwhelmed by fatigue and she panicked?

The reef was transformed by the storm. Where before, all had been serene yet vibrant, now anemone and soft coral waved frantically. Fish darted nervously as if searching in vain for shelter. Constantly rocked by the force of the stormy ocean, Lily and Karen swam awkwardly among them. Lily held her sample case as she swam. Her head swiveled back and forth, trying to spot the locations where she and John had taken core samples previously. Though it was impossible to conduct as careful and systematic a sampling, Lily was going to try her utmost in the short time she’d allowed for the dive.

With every cylinder she dug into the sandy bottom, she cast a quick watchful look at her photographer.

Camera out, Karen was photographing the hard coral—brain coral, star coral, stag coral, and the like. Lily realized she’d chosen to concentrate on this type of species because their brittle structure made them easier to photograph. The soft coral that grew in zone one, the sea fans, lettuce coral, and sea plumes, were out of the question. They were whipping and swaying like saplings in a gale. Not even a gifted photographer like Karen would be able to get a decent shot of them—photographing the hard coral was damned difficult enough.

Lily soon realized Karen had figured out a way to combat the underwater surge while she photographed. Hovering over the coral she was photographing, she would steady her body by folding her arms tight against her ribs, and then depress the camera shutter. While Lily hurriedly filled test tube after test tube, Karen would drop, lie, and shoot. Then, exchanging thumbs-up signals, the two of them would swim over to the next specimen.

As they were diving under extreme conditions, Lily was careful to monitor the air pressure in her tank and was making Karen check hers frequently, too. After Karen had finished photographing an elkhorn coral covered in thick algal growth, Lily motioned to her. Spreading her fingers wide, she gestured emphatically, to signal that they had five minutes left. Karen nodded, signaling,
Okay
back to her.

Lily checked the compass strapped to her wrist. They would need to swim south for a few hundred yards before they began their controlled ascent. She gave a fervent prayer that the
Tangiers
hadn’t drifted too far off.

Inserting her last water sample into the carrying case, she shoved the case into the bottom of her mesh bag, checked that the bag was attached to her buoyancy control vest, and then touched Karen’s arm, pointing in the direction they needed to swim.

Owen had been smart to suggest we swim with the incoming waves,
Lily thought. She could already feel the adrenaline rush leaving her as she kicked. Both her mind and body were suddenly tired, sluggish.

Not much farther now,
she thought, rallying herself. Concerned that Karen might be severely fatigued, she looked over at her photographer and exhaled in relief. Karen seemed to be doing fine.

Lily’s fins kicked steadily over the hard bottom terrain of the reef, then past the reef’s southernmost boundary. She slowed to check her wrist compass once more. There, at that patch of sea grass, that’s where they’d begin their ascent, Lily decided.

As they neared the wispy, tufted grass, something about it caught her attention, teasing her memory. Instinctively, she touched Karen’s arm. Karen’s mask turned toward Lily’s, her eyes wide and questioning behind the tempered glass. Lily gestured to the patch of grass waving in the water. She curled her index finger, imitating someone taking a photograph. Karen immediately unhooked her camera and swam with Lily toward the bed of sea grass.

Lily watched her raise the camera to her mask, keeping her body as still as possible. When Karen moved, Lily knew she must have taken her shot. But instead, Karen looked over her shoulder and shook her head vehemently, obviously dissatisfied about something.

In response, Lily tapped her air gauge and waved to her. Karen held up one finger insistently. One shot.

Okay,
Lily jerked her thumb up, giving Karen the go-ahead. One more shot and they’d begin their ascent, and get the hell out of the water.

Lily’s body drifted with the current as she waited. Karen repositioned herself, sinking down until she floated a couple of feet above the sea grass. Lily saw her press her finger to the shutter, then lower her camera.

Lily started swimming toward her. Simultaneously, Karen lowered her legs so she could push off of the sandy bottom beneath her. Lily saw Karen’s long scuba fins sweep the ocean floor, stirring the sand. All of a sudden a cloud whooshed upward.

A cloud of sand and something else, too—dark gray wings beating in ominous flight.

I have to help Karen,
was her only thought. With one great kick, she propelled herself forward.

And put herself directly in the path of the stingray.

The stingray, with its capelike wings, enveloped her in a terrifying embrace. Panicked, Lily struggled and felt the knife-sharp pain, the white-hot burn as the ray’s spiked, venomous tail whipped her once, twice, and yet again, cutting deep, before she was freed.

Her body jerked, convulsed with pain, and a single name was torn from her throat.

“Sean!”

As the stingray’s poison spread, the pain took over Lily’s body, becoming excruciating. Her breath was coming in harsh, rapid pants.
Too fast!
Her mind screamed futilely. Yet she couldn’t slow down her breathing or her panicked ascent, despite Karen’s attempts to hold her back. Lily could feel her arms about her, clutching her, trying to keep Lily from reaching the surface too quickly.