Heather Graham - Heather Graham Bundle - The Island / Ghost Walk / Killing Kelly / The Vision

“So how did you get my cell phone number?”

“It wasn’t as difficult as you think. You gave it to Laurie Green, the girl you pulled from the plane in the Everglades. I finally thought to call her and ask.”

“I see. So what do you think I can do for you?”

“Find Ted and Molly. Dead or alive. Though I’m very afraid it will be dead.”

A ray suddenly dislodged sand near the base of the coral, drawing Keith’s mind back to the task at hand. The water was murky in the wake of the panicked fish. He nearly kept going.

Then he saw something.

Just the corner of something black that wasn’t coral.

He circled, looked. The sand had resettled. Carefully, with just his fingertips, he explored the area. Dusted carefully, trying not to create such a cloud of sand that his vision would be impaired. Patience was needed for this kind of work, and he had learned to practice that kind of restraint through the years.

His efforts paid off at last. He found the object.

It looked like a crusted, big black button.

But it wasn’t. His heart skipped a beat. He needed to get it back up to the boat, but he was almost certain what he had found.

His hand curled around it. He looked over at Matt, who had realized he was onto something.

For a moment he was tempted to drop the object, to shake his head to show he’d been mistaken and come back later. Mike was so convinced that there was someone on the inside….

And Manny Ortega believed Ted and Molly Monoco were dead. So did Keith, but he didn’t believe they’d been killed for their boat.

He believed they had found something on or near Calliope Key, then died for their discovery.

Too late.

Matt swam over to him. He produced the object. Matt stared at it, nodded silently, then studiously began searching the area further.

Keith placed the object in a pouch and joined Matt in the search.

They were close….

So close.

He had to wonder, though: Had others been this close before them?

But had those others even known just what it was they were really looking for?

IT WAS ON THE DRIVE to the club that Ashley looked at Beth and said, “You really do need to tell your brother what happened.”

“You mean about being attacked?”

“Yes. You’re in terror about filing a report because of Amber. He has a right to know.”

“He’ll tell me that I should file a report. And God knows—he might do something stupid and dangerous.”

“You should file a report.” Ashley lifted a hand in the air to silence the protest she knew was coming. “Make it official. If Sandy and Brad are what I think they are—tough-talking but only preying on the vulnerable—they’re not brave enough to go up against real authority. They were at Nick’s, a piece of real stupidity. The place is known for being a cop hangout. I doubt they really know what you’re doing—it’s unlikely that they have the time to continue to stake you out. They intended to scare you. That’s all. Don’t let them succeed.”

Beth mulled over her friend’s words. Then she asked, “They’ve killed before, so why did they just try to scare me?”

“We don’t know that they killed the Monocos, and the couple in Virginia survived,” Ashley said.

Beth shook her head. “I’m convinced the Monocos are dead.”

“Maybe killing you was a risk they didn’t dare take. I don’t know, Beth. But I still think that you need to file an official report. Scare them in return. Hell, there’s already an APB out on them, which they probably know, so what’s the difference if you file a report, too.”

They arrived at the club and easily found Ben and Amber at a table waiting for them. Amber still seemed anxious when she looked at Beth, who couldn’t help but hug her too tightly. Then she smiled at her niece and tousled her hair, trying to defuse the moment. Ben and Amber both greeted Ashley with pleasure. The Sunday buffet was elaborate, the club filled with members in good spirits, and Beth wished she could go back to a time when all she did there on a Sunday was enjoy herself.

After lunch, Ben went off to work on his boat. Ashley, Beth and Amber went poolside. Beth was glad to see that it was busy, and that she couldn’t for the life of her figure out who Amber’s secret bodyguard was.

“Where’s Kim today?” Beth asked Amber.

“I don’t know. She just said she couldn’t come,” Amber said with a shrug. Then she hesitated. “Aunt Beth, I’m really sorry about the other day.”

“You should be.”

“I just…I want you to be happy.”

“Let me be happy on my own, okay? Now swear you’ll never interfere in my personal life again.”

“I swear,” Amber said.

“And don’t ever try to scare me again,” Beth said.

“I didn’t try to scare you,” Amber replied.

“Oh? I remember what you wrote word for word. First the skull popped up and then, ‘I’ll be seeing you soon. In the dark. All alone.’”

“I never wrote such a thing!” Amber protested.

Beth frowned, feeling a new chill seep into her spine.

“Then Kim must have done it.”

“No,” Amber insisted. “All we did was write back to Keith on e-mail.”

“Beth, it’s time you reported this. Officially,” Ashley said firmly.

“You’re going to call the police about Kim and me?” Amber asked, stunned and horrified.

“No, honey…there’s been more than that,” Beth murmured. She looked around uneasily. There was no one around who might be listening to their conversation, she was certain. There was a group of children playing with a ball nearby, and a few members of the women’s charities committee busily discussing their next fund-raiser.

She was startled to see that Maria Lopez was there again. She was elegant in a one-piece black bathing suit, straw hat and sunglasses, down at the other end of the pool. She couldn’t possibly hear anything they were saying.

She looked down toward the docks, shading her eyes. A number of the boats were out. She saw Ben, assembling his scuba gear—he meant to go down and clean the hull. As he gave his attention to his tank, a woman hopped to the dock from the deck of a boat farther down.

Amanda.

Dammit, didn’t she have any other place to go? From being an occasional visitor to the club, she’d turned into a regular—a very unwelcome one, from Beth’s point of view.

As Beth watched, Amanda approached Ben, lightly touching his shoulder.

Ben looked up and smiled.

Beth looked quickly away, but Amber had seen the direction of her gaze. She groaned. “Can we get her arrested?” she asked Ashley.

“Flirting isn’t illegal,” Ashley told her.

“Simply being that woman should be illegal,” Beth said dryly.

“Beth…” Ashley persisted.

“All right, all right,” Beth said. “But…let’s get through the afternoon. Let Ben clean his boat. And I’m telling you, no one’s going to be able to do anything.”

THAT EVENING ASHLEY BROUGHT Amber to Nick’s with her. Jake, Ben and Beth went to the station, where Beth filled out a formal report. Ben was a nervous wreck—and extremely angry with his sister. Beth continued to remind him that he was among those who had kept telling her that she was paranoid. Luckily, with Jake there, they couldn’t fight too openly. Both he and Lieutenant Gorsky—the lead officer on the pirating case—tried to remain casual and calming as the two argued.

They left in a state of stiff tension. But it was done. Ben’s house would remain under surveillance, and it had been suggested that Beth move in with her brother for the time being.

Great. He was barely speaking to her.

But since their lives might well be at stake, Beth agreed. She knew that the department didn’t have the manpower to protect them all as they tried to get through their daily lives. At least, because of Jake and Ashley, extra protection, in the form of off-duty cops, would be afforded to them.