Pearls (23 page)

“What note?”

Manuel slid a piece of paper from his pocket and offered it to Raúl. “If you need to refresh your memory….”

Raúl’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he stared at the evidence. He snatched it out of Manuel’s hand and made a show of looking it over. “I don’t know where this note came from or what it means.” He wadded it up and tossed it into the fire.

Manuel grabbed a handful of Raúl’s shirt and crumpled it in his fist. “Isabel is in danger. This isn’t the time for deception and games.”

Raúl knocked Manuel’s hand away, looking offended at the insinuation. “It’s clever of you to try to cast blame on me.”

Manuel stepped back, his posture taking on wary lines. “What are you talking about?”

“I looked into your background before I hired you. I should have known better than to do business with you.”

Manuel’s fists bunched and his shoulder muscles knotted. “You had better have some proof if you intend to make accusations like that.”

“You think I don’t?”

“I know you don’t.” Manuel turned to Isabel. “I have no idea what he’s talking about, Isabel. I swear.”

Raúl sneered. “You can only pretend for so long. She’ll find out, you know.”

“Find out what?” Isabel walked to their side, unable to stay out of the conversation.

“Manuel has an interesting history. His last coworker ended up dead.”

Manuel’s eyes narrowed to hard slits. “That was an accident.”

“Like the accident at Isabel’s apartment?”

She turned to Manuel. “Is this true?”

Manuel looked hurt. “He’s lying. I thought you trusted me.”

Raúl grabbed her shoulder. “That’s what he wants, Isabel. You haven’t found the pearls because he doesn’t want you to. He’ll delay the discovery until he’s sure he can control you. If you don’t cooperate, he’ll arrange an accident.”

Manuel looked ready to explode. “I love her. I would never hurt her.”

Isabel’s eyes snapped to Manuel’s face. Did he just say he loved her? Happiness bubbled up inside her like a fountain. She wanted to stop the conversation and linger there in that bit of sweet knowledge, but Raúl’s angry voice cut into the moment, shattering the magic.

“How convenient. A woman is always more pliable after she gives her heart to a man.”

“You would know, Raúl. You’ve been using her all along.”

With her head and heart reeling, Isabel decided she’d heard enough and stepped between them. “Stop it! All this arguing is getting us nowhere.”

Manuel wrapped his fingers around her arm. “You can’t possibly believe him. You know he’s a liar.”

“I have my faults, but I’d do anything to protect Isabel.” Raúl slapped Manuel’s hand away. “Let go of her!”

Manuel shoved Raúl and a scuffle ensued. Isabel tried to pull them apart but was knocked to the ground. Her startled cry as she thudded into the dirt snapped them out of their fits of anger. They stepped away from each other and stared down at her with similar looks of chagrin.

She bristled. “I want both of you to take a long walk.”

Raúl tried to help her up. “Isabel—”

“No, Raúl! Start walking. If you cared so much about my safety, why would you leave me alone with a man you thought to be dangerous?”

Manuel looked pleased, as if exonerated by the question.

His reaction angered her. “And you, Manuel, obviously have some secrets you should have discussed with me.”

“But, Isabel—”

“Just leave, both of you. I need some time to think.” She pushed to her feet and dusted herself off.

They stared at her for a moment then looked at one another. She recognized the territorial looks on their faces. Neither wanted to be the first to leave and give the other a chance to plead their case to her.

She glared at them both, disgusted and fed up. “Fine. I’ll leave and when I come back, you’d both better be gone.”

An hour later the men still hadn’t returned. Isabel finished putting away the mini-stove and dinner utensils. Rather than sit and wait for them, she decided to climb to the terraces and view the sunset from a perch near the heavens. After a twenty-minute climb, she settled on a soft patch of grass and studied the fiery brilliance of the western horizon. Birds chirped from the treetops, and Isabel let their songs sooth her. Slowly, her tension dissipated, and she was able to consider the turmoil in her mind with some semblance of reason.

God, what do I do now? I thought I could trust Manuel, but Raúl’s accusations suggested otherwise. But can I believe anything Raúl says? Both men have feelings for me, so naturally, they’re going to feel like they’re in competition and try to discredit one another. How much of this conflict is about male ego, and how much is based on truth?

She wrapped her arms around her legs and dropped her forehead to her knees.
I have invested so much emotion in each of these men that I don’t know if I can trust my judgment. Manuel said he loves me, and I think I’m falling for him. He’s smart and steady, with that quiet strength that wraps around me and makes me feel secure. He loves You, and I trust his sincerity. But how can I be sure this is right? Abuela would tell me to look with the discerning eyes of the Spirit, but I have so little practice. You’ll guide me through this, won’t you, Lord?

His answer came in the form of peace, drifting through her soul like a gentle spring breeze.
Thank you.

She sat on the hillside, allowing Him to comfort her and fill her weariness with strength until the sun dipped below the horizon, leaving the terrace in shadows. She decided to leave, knowing she should make the climb down while some light remained. Just then, a low percussion sounded across the landscape and built into a dull roar.

The strange rumble made Isabel’s hair stand on end. Her instincts screamed danger.

She jumped to her feet and turned in a circle, her head snapping from side to side, looking for the source of the sound. The rumble grew louder, and the trees on the slope far above her began to snap and crackle. She stared in amazement at the mountainside, which shifted and rearranged itself with alarming speed. A wall of sliding rock swallowed vegetation, stripped the color from the slope, and refaced the green mountain with cold gray stone. Large boulders and small stones hurled toward her in a dizzying blur, kicking up a plume of dust in their wake.

She stared with morbid fascination for precious long moments before she realized the monster streaking down the mountainside intended to devour her. In seconds the rockslide would sweep the entire area clean. Horror shot through her, locking her muscles into useless masses of frozen sinew.

Time slowed to a crawl, transforming each second into an eternity of terror. She looked from left to right, seeing no avenue of escape. No chance to outrun the beast, but maybe—

The fear that had paralyzed her only seconds earlier now jolted her muscles with superhuman energy. Her legs pumped beneath her as she ran toward the sliding wall of rock. If she could just get to the cleft in the retaining wall before the avalanche hit. The ground beneath her feet trembled, as if dreading the imminent assault. Her step faltered, and she flailed to keep her balance as she ran.

Pebbles and dirt hailed down on her, stinging her arms and face, obscuring her flight to safety. Out of time, she dove, spending every ounce of strength she possessed in a last attempt at salvation. She rolled until her body slammed against stone with brutal force.

Then the thunder consumed her.

For terrifying long moments, the ground trembled and deafening noise enveloped Isabel. She pressed herself into a shallow cleft in the retaining wall, and every muscle in her body tensed as rocks and boulders passed a few feet overhead. She squeezed her eyes shut and held her hands over her face to ward off the spray of dust and stones raining down. The larger rocks vaulted off the terrace above her, their momentum carrying them over her hiding spot and launching them further down the mountain.

After an eternity of seconds, the rumbling faded and eerie silence settled over the area. Her heart pounded hard enough to break her ribs. She let out the breath she’d been holding and drew another only to choke on the cloud of dust swirling in the air around her.

 
“It’s over. I’m alive.” Isabel whispered reassuring words to herself and willed her tense muscles to relax and her body to stop trembling. Slowly, the terror of the moment subsided, and her body responded to the relief of safety.

Isabel pushed to a sitting position and leaned against the cleft in the wall that had served as her protector during the onslaught. The small niche was half blocked by debris now, and Isabel wasn’t sure she could climb out of the small opening remaining. She shoved at the nearest rock, but it didn’t budge. From her position, lying down in the small space, she had no leverage. Better to conserve her energy.

Exhausted from the ordeal, Isabel closed her eyes and allowed herself to rest for a moment. A memory from childhood wafted through her mind. Her father had taken her to see a rock quarry to help with her geology project for a science fair. Isabel clearly remembered the sound of the blasting that echoed across the quarry walls. The sound was strangely like the one she had heard moments ago just before the rockslide began.

The skin on the back of her neck prickled with fear. Was this another accident or an intentional attempt on her life? Isabel suspected someone wanted her dead—but who and why? She lay there trapped and scared while night settled over the mountain, wondering if she’d have to spend the night and asking herself if she might be safer here than in the camp.

“Isabel?” Manuel’s frantic call carried across the terraces.

“Here!”

She could hear him scrambling over the rocks and loose scree. She pushed up as close to a sitting position as she could manage and thrust her hand out the opening near the top of the niche. The beam of his flashlight found the hole and directed a shaft of light inside her little cubby.

Manuel appeared in the haze of dust and debris. When he reached her side and knelt in front of the opening, his eyes met hers with relief and fear mingled on his face.

“Isabel! Are you hurt?”

“No. Not really.”

“Just a minute, let me get you out of there.” He lifted stones and shoved boulders out of the way until he’d cleared a pathway out of the cleft. She crawled out and let him help her to her feet.

“You’re bleeding.” His fingers gently probed her arm as he examined the source of her injuries.

“Just a few cuts and scrapes. I inflicted them on myself when I slammed into the wall.”

Manuel’s gaze flicked over the retaining wall and the lack of damage and debris directly beneath it. “You hid here?”

She nodded. “The cleft in the wall was just big enough to shelter me.”

“So you were right in the middle of the landslide?”

She closed her eyes and nodded again.

“Where is Raúl?” he asked.

“I haven’t seen him since I left the two of you at the camp.”

“Me either. As soon as I heard the noise and realized what had happened, I rushed back to the camp. When I couldn’t find you, I got scared. I know how you like to come here at sunset, but I prayed that for once you’d gone somewhere else. I didn’t see how you could survive if you were here.”

A chill skittered down Isabel’s spine. Only Manuel knew her evening routine. Had he devised this incident to eliminate her as Raúl suggested he would? She opened her eyes and fixed him with a direct stare. “Are you disappointed this accident didn’t kill me?”

He looked stricken. “How can you ask that? Don’t tell me you believed anything Raúl said down there. He’s trying to tear us apart.”

She looked deep into his eyes, searching for reassurance of innocence or confirmation of guilt. His dark eyes revealed no hint of deception. “Where were you just before the avalanche?” she asked him suspiciously.

“Sitting on the rock where I have my morning devotions. I left my Bible there if you want proof.”

“I do.”

Disappointment lined his face, but he nodded.

“I’m sorry, Manuel. I want to trust you, but someone is trying to kill me. If I put my trust in the wrong person, I could end up dead.”

He held out a hand. “Fair enough. Come on. I’ll help you down the stairs.”

He directed the flashlight a few feet ahead of them, so they could see to find footing in the rubble. Slowly, they descended the stone staircase and made their way back to camp, stopping to pick up his Bible, which was right where he’d said it would be. Isabel relaxed, certain her instincts were right this time. Abuela was a good judge of character, and she’d assured Isabel she could trust Manuel. He’d been nothing but open and forthright in their dealings thus far, so she had no reason to question his integrity.

Raúl occupied a canvas chair when they approached. He jumped to his feet and rushed to her side when he caught sight of them.

“Isabel, what happened? Are you all right?”

“A little banged up but my injuries aren’t serious.” She studied his face, hating the distrust she felt, but unable to ignore the feeling. He returned the look with openness and concern. Her suspicions eased. Maybe she’d overreacted. Neither man seemed capable of murder. Besides, if they’d brought enough explosives to generate an avalanche, she would have seen them. Obviously, this was an accident—a freak occurrence no one could have predicted.