Karen Kirst - Danger In The Deep

“How old were you when you went to live with her?”

His lips thinned. “Ten.”

Olivia could imagine his confusion and disappointment. Then, to have to take on the role of caregiver at such a young age. Her heart hurt for the child he’d been.

Her parents hadn’t had the best of relationships, but her mother had done everything in her power to create a loving, nurturing environment for Olivia and her siblings. She’d never doubted she was loved and wanted.

“You’re doing for these kids what someone should’ve done for you. You’re choosing to care.”

His broad chest rose and hitched. Guzzling the juice, he tossed the empty glass in the recycle bin and pointed to the farthest table. “I’m going to talk to Michael and Cameron.”

In the past, Olivia would’ve viewed his abrupt departure as a rejection. Now she saw his behavior for what it was—an attempt to avoid deep-rooted anguish. Maybe she truly wasn’t his favorite person. Maybe he hadn’t liked her and Derek together. But that wasn’t the whole story. Captain Brady Johnson was a complex, mysterious man whom she would probably never truly know.

But she could pray for him. Why hadn’t she thought to do that before?

I’m sorry, Lord, for fretting over this issue instead of bringing it to You. I don’t know the details of his private pain, but You do. Please help him.

Olivia started gathering the empty pizza boxes and other trash. Maya popped over. “Are you and the hunky captain involved?”

“Brady served with my husband. We’re acquaintances.”

“Would you date him?”

She tied a thick garbage bag with more force than necessary. “No.”

The Marine pilot possessed the aristocratic good looks and bearing of royalty. His flaxen hair, light eyes and fair skin was a memorable combination. He was tall and built of lean, ropy muscle. That didn’t mean she was affected. Because of his connection with Derek, Brady was firmly in the off-limits zone. Besides, she was still in mourning.

“Good.”

“Don’t you have a boyfriend?”

“We’re not serious.”

Olivia clamped her lips together. Thanks to her recent love interest, Maya had started hanging around a rough crowd who skirted the law. She’d tried to warn the younger woman, but Maya hadn’t been receptive. In fact, she’d been hostile. There was no use telling her that Brady rarely dated.

“I’m taking these out to the dumpsters.”

Maya grunted a response. Olivia hauled the cumbersome bags through the employee kitchen and out an exit that emptied into a single, paved lane. The heavy door slammed shut with a bang, and she jerked. The thick hedges opposite twisted together like grotesque hands. She dragged the bags around the corner to the trash receptacles, which were located at the edge of an employee parking lot that linked the River Expedition to the Ocean Adventure building. Before tonight, she wouldn’t have wondered what or who could be hiding in the shrubbery.

She shivered as a brisk wind flattened her pants against her legs and nipped at her hair. Goose bumps marched along her exposed forearms. Her coat would’ve come in handy, but as it was a consistent temperature inside the aquarium, she typically left it in her office during shifts.

Crossing the isolated lot, Olivia felt vulnerable. The handful of lampposts weren’t enough to combat the complete November darkness. The panic she’d experienced in the shark tank threatened to erupt.

Ridiculous. She increased her pace. Brady’s suspicions are just that...groundless suspicions.

At the dumpster, she yanked open the side slot and pushed in the bags. Somewhere in the night, a bottle dropped and rolled across concrete. Olivia yelped and pressed her hand to her thrumming heart.

“This has to stop,” she said aloud, squinting into the shadows.

She would not let her imagination play tricks on her.

A rustling noise behind the dumpster had her backing up. When a calico cat leaped out and greeted her with a plaintive meow, she bent to pet it.

“You frightened me, you know that?” she crooned.

Crouched at its level, she spied an odd-shaped bag propped against the concrete-block barrier. The wind tangled with the top flaps and revealed what appeared to be a scuba cylinder.

Olivia reached out, pulled the plastic lower and tried to make sense of what she was seeing. Two cylinders. One silver regular size and a backup orange pony bottle.

Her cylinders. The jagged, superficial scratch near the bottom of the big one proved it.

Her mind whirled. Why were they out here? James couldn’t have had time to get someone out to service them.

Brady’s allegations threw her reasoning into a tailspin. Could he be right?

Could someone have wanted her to encounter trouble in the shark tank?

“Where did Olivia go?” Brady asked.

Annoyance sparked in Maya’s eyes. “She took out the garbage.” With both hands balanced on the child-size plastic chair in front of her, she leaned close. “Tell me more about flying. You pilot a Huey helicopter?”

“SuperCobra. Twin-engine attack helo.” Brady gestured to the kitchen visible through an open doorway. “Did she use that exit?”

“Olivia’s fine. Tell me more about flying.”

“Maybe later.” He strode past the long lunchroom-style tables.

“Captain, look!” Grinning, Michael lifted a slice of pizza stacked with chocolate chip cookies and took a bite.

He gave him a thumbs-up. “Fix me one of those.”

Beaming, the boy nodded. “Yes, sir!”

In the kitchen, he heard a muffled pounding and hurried to open the door. Olivia stood on the stoop, shivering, deep grooves of worry carved into her brow.

“What’s the matter?”

“Come with me.” She seized his hand. “I need to show you something.”

As she led him into the night, he couldn’t help but notice how their palms fit together...and how cold her skin was. Shrugging out of his jacket, he insisted she put it on.

“Look.” Pulling the lapels together, she directed his attention to a pair of diving cylinders. “These are the ones I use.” She ran her fingertip over a scratch. “I knocked into metal lockers a month or so ago.”

“We need to speak to James and find out why he’d discard them here.”

“He’s already gone for the day.”

“Do you have his cell number?”

She tugged her braid free of the jacket collar. “In my office. I lock my phone in my desk drawer during working hours.”

“I’ll go with you to make the call.”

“The tour—”

“The kids are preoccupied right now. They won’t notice our absence.”

After briefing Norman and the other adults, Olivia led him through the darkened, deserted aquarium. They traversed a maze of high walkways and stairs in a multistory area dominated with large tanks featuring river fish. A shallow pool of water occupied the floor level, and they had to cross on skinny platforms. He understood how she could think it peaceful without the hordes of visitors. Still, there was an almost eerie quality to it.

Voices greeted them as they neared the main entrance. A spindly gentleman in a black uniform mopped the floor as another man spun his car keys on his finger.

“Good evening, Mr. Ludwig.” Olivia greeted the pair. “Roman, I thought you’d gone home already.”

Roman stopped the keys’ motion and, balling them into his palm, sized Brady up from behind rimless glasses. “My car won’t start. I’m waiting on a friend to give me a ride home.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. I hope it’s an inexpensive fix.”