Nightmare in Morocco (10 page)

Inside the dimly lit bar, Noa spotted Marie Landos alone at a table
.
Marie apparently had a fondness for alcohol, although she never indulged when in charge of her schoolgirls
.
The fact struck Noa as a deception, made Marie Landos seem for a moment like a great fake, but as Noa hurried toward her, the impression vanished, and Marie Landos seemed, as she always did, one of the most self controlled and efficient
women
Noa had ever met
.

Marie's cold, knowing eyes anticipated Noa's yet unspoken question
.
"I haven't seen a thing of Cathy," she said,
"Or of that fool bus driver."

Noa sank down across from her.

"I knew we should have been watching him closer," Marie said
.
"In fact, I had a little talk with Johnny concerning one of my own girls."

"Do you know anything about him?"

"I've made a few inquiries
.
I found out he has a wife and two children in Cascais."
She took another long drink
.
"His real name is Juan Ramos, but he thinks the American Johnny makes him more attractive to the ladies."

"I'm not sure what to do about this."

"I'd be right here waiting for them to come back, then," Marie pushed back the glass, "I'd have his job."
Marie rose and spoke to the bartender in French
.
"Cathy and Johnny were in here about an hour ago
.
The bartender got busy and didn't notice what became of them."

Together, Marie and Noa searched the area near the hotel, the shops and restaurants that were still open
.
As they returned, Marie suggested, "You should see if the bus is still here
.
If he took the tour bus, then you'll have him."

"I'll go back to Cathy's room first," Noa said
.

For a long time she sat in the darkness waiting and understanding Mike's frustrated letters about the trials of single parenthood
.
She felt responsible for Cathy; at the same time she was so worried about her that she thought she could easily throttle her.

Noa was just about ready to go down and check on the bus when she heard the doorknob rattle, and Cathy entered the room.

"Wha
…
what are you doing here?"
Cathy's voice was distinctly slurred, her eyes had difficulty focusing upon Noa.

"Waiting for you
.
It's time we had a talk."

"I don't have anything to talk to you about
.
Get out
.
I want to go to bed."

"I won't have you acting like this!
Now, I want to know where you've been for the last four hours
.
Who were you with?
Was it Johnny Ramos?"

The yellowish eyes focused, became defiant
.
"It's none of your business
.
I won't tell you
.
I'll never tell you!"

Before she could stop herself, Noa seized Cathy by the shoulders
.
"Listen, do you think this is fun for me?
Do you think I like having to watch you every minute when I have an entire tour group to look out for?
Why, if I hadn't promised Mike I'd look after you, I wouldn't even
"

At the sound of Mike's name, Cathy seemed to crumple
.
She shook herself free from Noa, then covered her face in her hands
.

Warily, Noa watched her sob as if her heart would break
.
Were the tears real or just another trick
an attempt to gain her sympathy? The daring black dress, the brightly dyed hair, gave Cathy's pale face an aura of fragile vulnerability
.
For an instant she seemed a mere child, so young and lost
.
"Mike's the only person on earth who's ever loved me."
Cathy's voice was flat, hollow, as tragic as the huge, yellow flecked eyes
.
"Now I don't have anyone." Noa felt her heart soften
.
She had thought Cathy hadn't cared about Mike, but she had been mistaken
.
Cathy must have locked her grief deep inside, hidden it even from Noa
.
"You're wrong, Cathy
.
You have me."

Noa reached out to comfort her
.
Surprisingly, Cathy didn't pull away
.
For a moment they shared a rare closeness, a new understanding of each other.

"You'd better get ready for bed," Noa said finally
.
"Wake up call will come very soon."

"Yeah, and I think I'm going to have one heck of a hangover!"

* * *

Just as Noa entered her room, the phone rang
.
"The lost is found," Noa told Marie happily, then confided to Marie Landos about Cathy's change of attitude.

"I wouldn't be too optimistic," Marie's brittle voice advised before hanging up.

Noa took the spare keys to the bus and headed toward the parking lot in back of the hotel
.
The overhead lights cast a dim,
eerie
glow throughout the empty bus
.
She took the log book from beneath the seat and checked the chart against the actual mileage
.
What she found made her heart race with anger
.
Marie's suspicions had been right!
An extra twenty miles had been added since this afternoon!

Noa had started back to her room, when a deep voice
called
, "Noa, what are you doing out here?"

Taber strode from the shadows of nearby trees toward her. The woven, earth toned shirt was rolled at the sleeves and open at the throat
.
The simplicity of its style accentuated his thick, black hair and tanned skin
.
She was distracted by the sight of him, the way his dark hair rustled in the soft ocean breeze
.

"I came out to check the bus."

White teeth flashed as he smiled; all traces of the anger he had displayed at the welcome dinner had vanished
.
"I thought that was Johnny's job."

"Johnny seems to think his job includes entertaining my niece," Noa said
.
She told him about Cathy's disappearance, the
odometer
reading on the bus.

Taber frowned
.
"That doesn't sound like Johnny
.
He can be quite the ladies' man, but I've never known him to be
irresponsible
about his duties
.
Why don't you let me handle this?"

"No, I'll see to it myself."
She studied Taber's handsome face in the darkness
.
"What are you doing up so late?" "I couldn't sleep."
He drew nearer, fingers tightening around hers
.
"Since we're both out here, why don't we take a little walk out to the beach?"

"I'd better not."

"The cafes by the beach are all closed, but there's a vending machine at the edge of the walk
.
I'll buy you a Coke."

"In that case, how can I refuse?"

As they walked, she confided in him her worries about Cathy
.
"Maybe I'm too protective of her," she finished
.
"I just want her to grow up...right."

"I don't think you have much to worry about
.
I believe she's a good kid at heart
.
In fact, I sort of admire the way she has of standing up for herself."
Taber's genuine fondness for Cathy made Noa determined to try t
o be more understanding of her.

Despite the lateness of the hour, the streets around them were well lit; many of the gift shops still open
.
Tangier was restless, never really quite asleep
.
At the railroad station, hooded figures stood in clusters, waiting for the train
.
Taber, lean hand tight around hers, led her across the tracks to the beach just beyond
.

The view from the shore was breathtaking
.
Beneath their feet lay a stretch of golden sand; above them the bleached white walls of the old city sloped down dusk covered hillsides toward the sea
.
They reached the empty seaside cafes with their striped umbrellas and stood for a moment near the white tables looking out at the sea
.
Small boats bobbed in the gentle waves.

Taber tried the machine
.
"Wouldn't you know?
It's jammed"

"That's OK
.
I didn't really want a Coke, anyway."

"Neither did I."
Noa glanced at Taber's profile, so sharp and handsome in the moonlight
.
"It was just an excuse to get you out here
.
This is the Tangier I wanted you to see."
His voice lowered, became soft and husky
.
"In fact, all I've thought about since the day we met is having you here beside me in this place that I love."

Noa thought of the flowers Taber had sent, how she had placed them on her balcony so that she whenever she smelled their fragrance, she would think of him
.
She remembered the nights she wished Taber was there on the balcony with her, witness to the beautiful sunsets, the flowered path that led down to the sea, the little things that made Algeciras so special to her
.
Had he longed for her in that same special way?

Taber's eyes darkened
.
"I was so afraid you'd never return to Morocco
.
This evening when I saw you with Greg, I couldn't bear the thought of losing you to him when my dreams were so close."
Hurt flashed in the dark eyes. "Why didn't you tell me about the attack on Belda this afternoon?
What made you confide in Greg instead of me?"

"Taber, I..."

"It's so important that you trust me."
Noa was mesmerized by his voice, his eyes
.
He reached out to her, drawing her close against him. "Love and trust go together
.
And that's my dream
.
For you to love me!"

As he kissed her, Noa forgot about Greg, her trouble
with Cathy, everything but the electric feel of Taber's lips against hers.

Chapter Five

The relief and joy of seeing Cathy in a new light, the wonder of Taber's kiss, vanished with the six o'clock wake up call
.
Happiness was replaced by dread as Noa thought of Johnny Ramos and the fact that she must fulfill her duty to Carlson Rand Tours and fire him.

Wanting to get it over with, she headed directly to the bus where Marie Landos said he could be found
.
She could see Johnny moving from seat to seat gathering trash into a plastic bag
.
He met her at the door, his eyes, void of their usual blankness, red rimmed and filled with remorse.

Noa took a deep breath, but Johnny spoke before she had any chance, his words hesitant because of his uncertain command of English
.
"Mrs. Landos told me what you think, so I know what it is you're going to say."
 

"How long have you worked for Carlson Rand Tours?"

"Thomas Rand hired me when he joined the company," he replied, as if recalling a memorable moment
.

"You know you can't take the bus without authorization
.
What made you...
?”

"I didn't take the bus
.
I would never do that."

"You're the only one besides Taber and I that have a key." Pain deepened in his eyes
.
"When Cathy and I left the dance, we went to the bar
.
I drank too much and passed out
.
Cathy got in my pocket and took my keys!
I know she did!"

Noa, from her own experience with Cathy, immediately believed him
.
"Regardless, the keys are your
responsibility
."

"I know
.
I take..." he stammered over the word, "responsibility."Noa made a sudden decision, one she doubted even as she spoke, "This time I'm going to authorize the extra miles
.
But if this ever happens again..."