Tidewater Inn (12 page)

The winds died by early afternoon. Alec stood surveying the storm damage in the heart of Hope Beach. Libby had insisted on coming with him and Zach when the sheriff called about all the damage. Alec thought she was afraid Nicole's body was going to be discovered floating in the debris, but he prayed she wouldn't be assaulted with such a sight.

At the first glimpse of his house, he thought it had been spared. Then he drove closer, and water sloshed to the top of the truck tires. “I'm flooded,” he said, unable to keep the dismay from his voice.

Zach pointed. “Both boats look to be all right though. They're both still attached to their moorings. Listen, can I take out the old boat?”

“The sea is still too rough,” Alec said.

Libby grimaced. “It looks like the entire town is a mess.” She was staring out the window at the still-turbulent water. “There's no sign o-of Nicole, is there?” Her voice quivered.

He reached over and squeezed her hand. “Tom would have told us if there was.” He released her hand and stared at his house. “Guess I'd better see how bad it is inside. You can wait in the truck if you like.”

“I'll come.” She shoved open her door and stepped into the water.

He took her arm when they reached the front of the truck. He waved at some of his Coastie buddies, who were down the street carrying belongings from a house. The water filled his boots, and he shivered as the cold soaked his jeans. The flood covered Libby's flip-flops and reached nearly to her knees. His spirits sank lower as he pushed open the door and saw the flooded living room. “Gonna be a lot of damage,” he said.

“There's plenty of room at the hotel,” she said. “Let's gather some things. I'll help.”

“It won't take long. You can wait here.” Alec went into his bedroom and pulled some jeans and T-shirts off hangers, then scooped up underwear from the bureau. In the bathroom he grabbed toiletries, then met Libby in the hall again. “Let's toss this stuff in the truck and check on the rest of the town.”

She nodded and followed him back outside. People were assessing the damage along Oyster Road. He wondered if she knew which house had been her father's. Taking her arm, he pointed down the street. “Your father lived there.”

She stared at the two-story house and he tried to look at it through her eyes. Ray had always kept it in top repair, but it was in sorry shape now. The storm surge still lapped a foot up the gray clapboard siding. The sea had deposited debris around the porch and the yard swing. The wind had torn some shingles loose, and they flapped in the last of the wind.

“Aunt Pearl said Vanessa was at a friend's, but is that her?” She pointed down the street.

He followed her finger. “Yeah, that's Vanessa. How did you know?”

“She looks a lot like me.”

He glanced at her. Same high cheekbones, same expressive dark eyes. They wore their hair differently, and Vanessa always covered her face with a ton of makeup. Libby was much more natural. “Guess you're right. You want to meet her?”

She shook her head, but about that time Vanessa caught sight of him. “Alec!” She waved to him and sloshed through the water toward them. She was dressed in shorts and a red tank top. The tips of her short hair were purple.

“Sorry,” he said. “Should I introduce you?”

“I—I don't quite know what to say. Give me a minute.” Libby sounded breathless.

Vanessa reached them. “Is Aunt Pearl all right? I heard you rescued her last night.” She gave Libby a curious glance, then her gaze went back to him.

“She's fine. Where did you ride out the blow?”

“At the church. Brent too. He's there now helping clean up. It's a mess.”

“Looks like your house is hit pretty hard too.”

She shrugged. “I figured we'd join Aunt Pearl at the hotel. At least it's still ours until the dragon lady comes to claim it.” She blew her bangs out of her eyes. “I still can't believe Dad would give our property to some daughter who has ignored him all these years. I want to be out of town when she comes. I want nothing to do with her. Ever.”

He tried to interrupt her fierce flow of words, but she barreled over him.

“It's a good thing my
sister
wasn't in residence yesterday, or Aunt Pearl would have been out on the streets.”

He could see Libby take a step back. “Uh, Vanessa, there's something you should know.”

Libby put her hand on his arm and shot him a pleading glance. He closed his mouth.

Vanessa's face took on a rosy hue, and her voice rose with every word. “I can just see her arriving and trying to lord it over us. I'm going to put her in her place the very first thing. She didn't know Daddy.
She
certainly didn't love him, or she would have come to visit. I hope she just sells the place and stays away. No one here wants to meet her.”

“She might not be so bad,” he said.

Vanessa's brows arched. “You think the best of everyone, Alec. I'm sure she's some money-grubbing landlubber who doesn't know the first thing about island living. I hope she realizes that and doesn't bother us any longer than necessary. When we hear she's coming, I think I'll take a vacation.”

Libby's face was getting pinker and pinker. Alec didn't think she'd take much more before she blew.

E
LEVEN

A
s Libby listened to her newfound sister rant, her emotions veered between anger and hurt. Why had she thought her new family would be as happy to meet her as she was to meet them? Her aunt Pearl had been welcoming, but Libby was an outsider in this small community.

Vanessa's diatribe finally ended. She turned her attention from Alec and stared at Libby. “I feel like I should know you. Have we met? I'm Vanessa Mitchell.”

Libby forced a pleasant smile to her face. “I think I seem familiar because we look alike. And we should. I'm your sister, Libby Holladay.”

Vanessa went white. Her mouth opened but only a garbled word came out. Red washed up her face, and she closed her mouth before finally opening it with the strangled statement of “Half sister.” Her mouth looked like she'd just bitten into a bad oyster.

“I don't blame you for being upset,” Libby said. “Please understand though. I had no idea my father was living. My mother told me he died when I was five.”

Vanessa's eyes narrowed, but there was a flicker of uncertainty in them. “I find that difficult to believe.”

“It's true. I . . . I wish I'd known him.” She held her hand toward Vanessa. “You can't imagine how thrilled I was to find out I have a large family. It's something I've always longed for.”

“No cousins or other family?”

Libby shook her head. “My mother never talked much about my father. All she ever said was that he died when I was five, and it was good riddance as far as she was concerned.”

Vanessa glared. “Daddy was a wonderful man!”

“So I've heard since I got here to try to find Nicole.”

“Nicole?” Vanessa glanced toward the water, then back. “The woman who was kidnapped? You know her?”

“Yes. We're in business together.”

Vanessa's glare was still wary. “I met Nicole. I was sorry to hear about what happened to her.”

“She told me about you. I was watching on the beach cam to catch a glimpse of you. I saw her taken.”

“That must have been hard,” Vanessa said, her voice warming for the first time. “I was going to meet her and show her the old lighthouse ruins. I got held up. When I got there, she was gone. I liked her a lot.”

“Please don't talk like she's dead,” Libby said, tears starting to her eyes. “She's not dead. She's
not
!”

Vanessa bit her lip. “I didn't mean to say she was. I hope you find her.”

Alec put his hand on Libby's shoulder. “Don't give up hope,” he said.

“I will
never
give up,” she said. “She's not going to be another woman who disappears without a trace from an island.” The thought of never knowing what had happened to Nicole haunted her.

“Maybe you should contact the media,” Vanessa said. “They can get word out. Someone might have seen something.”

“That's a good idea,” Alec said. “I know a guy who works for the Richmond newspaper. I'm sure I could get him out here.”

Libby recoiled at the thought. “Nicole would hate to be the center of a media circus.” But would she, really? She'd probably revel in the attention.

Alec nodded. “But if the coverage could help find her . . .”

“We're going to find her soon. I know it.” But even as she proclaimed her belief, Libby's pulse skipped. “Maybe you're right,” she said, her shoulders sagging. “Make the call.”

Alec squeezed her shoulder, then dropped his hand back to his side. “Want us to help you gather some things, Vanessa? We're going back to Tidewater in a little while. Let me call my friend first, then we'll help you.”

Libby forced a smile to her face. “I'd like you to come to the inn too. I'm eager to get to know you.”

Vanessa's stormy eyes revealed how torn she was. Libby knew the woman wished she could throw the invitation back, but if she did, she'd have nowhere to stay. Pearl's house was damaged as well. It only made sense to join the rest of her family.

“What about Brent?” Vanessa asked. “Is there room for both of us?”

“Of course,” Libby said.

“We can stop by and introduce him to Libby too,” Alec said. “I need to talk to Zach. I'll be right back.”

Libby's stomach plunged at the thought. Zach had already mentioned how upset Brent was about the news that she had inherited.

Vanessa shot a glance Libby's way. “He's not going to be welcoming, just FYI.”

Libby kept her smile pinned in place. A soft answer turned away wrath. She had to remember that. “I understand you are both dismayed to find out that you have a sister. I'm not going to push you. I hope you find that I'm not such a bad sister to have.”

Vanessa shrugged. “Whatever. Don't say I didn't warn you. He's liable to go off on you. That's all I've heard since Horace gave us the news. Brent had plans for that property.”

“I've heard that too. What kind of plans?” Libby asked.

“What difference does it make now? Unless you plan to split it with us?” Hope tinged her words.

“Horace told me our father left you both plenty of money,” Libby said, refusing to be goaded.

“But the property you have is what Brent needs.” Vanessa turned and squinted. “Here he comes now. He must be done at the church.”

Libby turned to look and saw a young man jogging toward them. He wore denim shorts low and loose around his waist in the style she hated. His blond hair fell across his forehead, and his expression was sulky. She wanted to love this new family, but they were making it difficult.

Nicole's muscles were cramped from the night on the roof. The hurricane had blown itself out hours ago, but she remained atop the roof. The surge had covered the island, and the water was still a couple of feet deep. The shack was off its foundation, and she feared it was going to float off to sea with her on top of it. The table and chair from inside bobbed in the flood below. Her cot with her food and water also floated in the debris under her feet.

Her eyes burned, and she told herself not to cry. Someone would be along. Surely someone would come. That boy knew she was out here. Nicole would give anything to be in her own tiny room, to look out and see the tired houses across the street, to hear the traffic that she hated. She would never complain again if she got the chance to be home.

The sun was getting hot on the back of Nicole's neck, and her thirst was mounting. She was going to have to get down off this building and see if seawater had leaked into her jug. Staring at the brown swirling water, her courage ebbed. Who knew what was below that roiling surface? Poisonous snakes or spiders came to mind. Hugging her knees to her chest, she tried to talk herself down into the water. There were no snakes out here. Nothing that could hurt her. Though logically she knew that, she didn't want to test it. What if the storm had washed all manner of nasty creatures onto the island?