Protector, Lover...Husband?

Jay looked at him. His surprise seemed real. “There was no body there. And corpses don’t get up and walk.”

“They can be moved.”

“I’m not an idiot. I was looking around just like the sheriff. The sheriff. We didn’t just call security and forget it. We called the sheriff. There was no sign of a body ever having been there or being taken away. There were no footprints and no drag marks.”

“What the hell does that mean? Someone strong enough could throw a woman’s body over his shoulder—and there are palms fronds around by the zillions. Footprints on a beach could easily be erased.”

“There couldn’t have been a body,” Jay said.

David watched him for a few minutes. Jay wasn’t meeting his eyes. Instead he seemed intent on wiping the counter where nothing had spilled.

“You look like you’re afraid there might have been. And worse, you look as if you’re afraid you know who it could have been,” David said softly.

Jay stared at him then. “Don’t be insane! I’d never kill anyone.”

“I didn’t say you would. You know, I asked you before about Alicia Farr. You assured me that she hadn’t checked in to the resort.”

“She hasn’t,” Jay protested.

“She was supposed to be here.”

“She called about a possible reservation, but she never actually booked. I didn’t think she would. It’s not her cup of tea. Anyway, that was it. She called once, made sure I had the dates available that she wanted, then said she’d get back to me. She didn’t. That’s the God’s honest truth. She never called back.”

It sounded as if Jay was sincere, but David couldn’t be certain.

Jay gasped suddenly, staring at David. “I know what you’re thinking! Believe me, there couldn’t have been a corpse. And if there was…it couldn’t have been Alicia. I mean, she didn’t check in. She was never on the island.”

“Well, if there wasn’t a corpse, it couldn’t have been anyone, right? But I should tell you, Alicia was in Miami a week ago, where she rented a boat and said she was heading down to one of the small private islands in the Keys.”

“Do you know how many small private islands there are down here? Maybe she intended to come here but changed her mind. She must have arranged to go somewhere else—maybe a place that belongs to a friend or something.” His eyes narrowed. “Were you…with her? In Miami?”

David shook his head.

“How do you know what she was doing, then?”

“She called me. Then when I called back and couldn’t reach her I had a friend do a trace on her.”

“Alicia is independent. She knows her way around.”

“When she called me, she asked me to meet her here, at Moon Bay. The way she talked, she was excited about seeing Moon Bay. She seemed very specific. When she called you, she didn’t say anything about her reason for coming?”

“I swear, she didn’t tell me anything. She was pleasant and asked about available dates, and that was all,” Jay assured him, then frowned. They could both see Hank Adamson’s deck shoes, then his legs, as he descended into the cabin.

“Mind if I take a look around her?” he asked David.

“Hell no. I’m proud of my girl and delighted to give you a tour. Jay, how about relieving John at the helm, so he can get a good look at the Icarus, too?”

“Sure. I already know my way around,” Jay told Adamson. There was a note of pride in his voice. David watched him thoughtfully as he headed topside.

Jay Galway had been sweating when they talked. A little sheen of perspiration had shown on his upper lip.

So…

Either he was afraid, or he was lying.

Or both.

Alex had expected Zach to be a problem.

He wasn’t. The teenager duly handed her his dive card, then sat through her reminders and instructions like an angel. His mom had decided to stay on shore, despite the fact that they were going to make a stop on one of the main islands before returning that night.

Doug Herrera was captaining their dive boat, and Mandy Garcia was Alex’s assistant. They all switched between dive excursions and the dolphins. Gil and Jeb were dealing with the morning’s swim, and Laurie was taking her day off. Actually, Alex had expected to see her friend at the docks anyway—Laurie loved to dive, and she especially loved a day when the boat was scheduled to make a stop on one of the main islands when she wasn’t working. It was a chance to check out the little waterside bar where they had a meal and after-dive drinks, for those who chose, before returning to Moon Bay.

But Laurie had still been at the Tiki Hut when Alex left, so maybe the late night and the excitement of the day had caused her to sleep in. And maybe she had decided not to come because Seth Granger was on the dive, and he always made things miserable.

At Molasses Reef, their first dive, Alex noted that the Icarus, David’s yacht, was already anchored nearby. They never anchored on the reefs themselves. Most divers were aware of the very delicate structure of the reef and that it shouldn’t be touched by human hands, much less bear the weight of an anchor, and wouldn’t have moored there even if there hadn’t been laws against it. David was close though, closer than they went themselves.

“Now that’s a great-looking yacht,” Seth commented, spitting on his mask to prep it.

“Yes,” she agreed. The Icarus was a thirty-two footer, and she looked incredible under full sail. Today, however, David wasn’t sailing her. He’d apparently used the motor. The yacht moved like a dream, either way. Inside, the mahogany paneling and rich appointments made her just as spectacular. The galley had every possible accessory, as did the captain’s desk. She was big enough to offer private sleeping facilities for up to three couples.

“You should have asked for the yacht,” Seth said, eyeing the Icarus.

“I beg your pardon?”

“In your divorce settlement. You should have asked for the yacht. She’s a beauty. But, hey, you’ve got another chance to ask for her now. Heard you’re not really divorced,” Seth said.

“Where did you hear that?”

He laughed again, or rather, bellowed. “People talk, you know. Moon Bay is an island. Small. People talk. About everything.”

He stared at her, which gave her a very uncomfortable feeling. What else was being discussed?

“I don’t want her. She belongs to David. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get in the water. And so do you. The tour group is waiting.”

Her people were buddied up the way she’d arranged them after she’d duly studied their certificates and discussed their capabilities. She’d decided to buddy up with Zach herself.

In the water, leading the way, even though she was checking constantly to assure herself that her group indeed knew what they were doing and how to deal with their equipment, she found a certain peace. The sound of her own air bubbles always seemed lulling and pleasant. As yet, no cell phones rang here.

Zach stuck with her, amazed. A Michigan kid, he’d gotten his certificate in cold waters and was entranced by the reef. It was a joy to see his pleasure in the riot of tropical fish, and in the giant grouper that nosily edged their way.

This was an easy dive; most of it no more than thirty feet. When she counted her charges again, she saw that Seth Granger had wandered off. His “buddy,” the mother of the girls from the day before, was looking lost.

Alex motioned to Zach, then went after Granger. He seemed hostile, but, to her relief, he rejoined the group.

Back on deck, he was annoyed. “I saw David out on the reef. I was just going over for a friendly underwater hello.”

“Mr. Granger—”

“Seth. Come on, honey, we’ve seen enough of each other.”

“Seth, if you’d wanted an unplanned, individual dive, you should have spoken with David earlier—and gone out on the Icarus with him. I’m sure he’d have been happy to have you.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. You know I know what I’m doing in the water.”

“Guess what, Seth? I don’t go diving alone. Too dangerous. Now, I can have the skipper take the boat back in and drop you off at Moon Bay, or you can stay with the group and abide by our rules.”

He pointed a finger at her. “I’ll be talking to your boss tonight.”

“You do that.”

At the next two stops, he still wandered, but not as badly, as the first time pretending he had become fascinated by a school of tangs and followed them too far, and then, on the last go-round, that he had seen a fantastic turtle and been unable to resist.

When the last dive was completed, Alex allowed herself a moment’s pleasure. Zach was in seventh heaven, and her other divers were exuberant over the beauty they had witnessed. They were ready, when they reached the main island and the little thatch-roofed diner, to eat, drink and chat.

“Good job, boss lady!” Jeb commented to her, a sparkle in his eye, as they went ashore themselves. “How about you have a nice dinner, and I’ll keep Seth out of your hair?”

Jeb was great. A college senior, he was only hers for the summer. He was a thin kid, with flyaway dark hair, and a force and energy that defied his bony appearance. He never argued with her, watched her intently all the time, and was one of those people who seemed intent on really learning and absorbing all the information they could. When she wasn’t working with Laurie, she was happiest with Jeb, though all her assistants were handpicked and great.

“You’re on,” she told him gratefully.

Leaving the dive boat to her captain, Alex made certain all her charges were comfortable at the Egret Eatery, as the little restaurant was called.

Zach had already found the video games located at the rear of the place. The adults had settled in at various tables.

She saw Jay, Hank, John and David at a table and felt a moment’s wary unease. The four of them had obviously spent the day out on the reef together. She’d known the Icarus was a stop ahead of her all day. She just hadn’t realized how full the yacht had been.

She was about to venture toward their table, but then she saw Seth Granger moving that way, so she steered clear.

“Hey, guys,” Seth bellowed. “Mind if I join you? Drinks on me. What’ll it be?”

“A pitcher of beer would be appreciated,” Hank told him.

“Coke for me,” David said.

“Come on. You’re not going to crash after one beer, buddy.”

“No, a Coke will do fine for me.” David looked up and caught Alex’s eyes across the room. She felt a chill leap across the open space. For a man so determined to see to her safety, he looked a lot like he wanted to throttle her. Apparently he hadn’t enjoyed his night on the porch.

But he had stayed there. And he believed her, believed that the body she had discovered was Alicia Farr’s, and that she herself might well be in real danger.

But from who?

Since she wasn’t captaining any boat, she turned to the bar and asked Warren, the grizzled old sailor who owned the place, for a beer.

“Sure thing, Alex. How’s it going over there? It’s been a little slow around here.”

“Really? I’m not sure about the hotel, but the dives and swims have been full,” she told him.

Setting her glass down, he pointed at the television. “Storm season.”

“Summer is always slower than winter. Northerners stay home and sweat in their own states during the summer,” she reminded him.

He grinned. “Maybe, but we usually get a bigger Florida crowd around here than we’ve been getting lately.”

She glanced at the TV above the bar. “Is something going on now? I haven’t seen any alerts. The last tropical storm out veered north, right?”

“Yep. Now there’s a new babe on the horizon. She just reached tropical-storm status, and she’s been named Dahlia, but they think she’s heading north, too. They think she might reach hurricane status sometime, but that she’ll be off the Carolinas by then. Still, people don’t seem to be venturing out as much as usual. Thank God you bring your guests over here. Right now, frankly, you’re helping me survive.”

“Don’t worry. I’m sure business will pick up,” she assured him.

“I see your ex is here. It’s always good for business when he shows up here. Word gets out, makes people feel like they’re coming to a real ‘in’ place. Still, it’s kind of a surprise to see him. You all right?”

“Of course. We’re still friends on a professional level,” Alex said.

“You know what I think?” Warren asked her.

“What?”

He leaned low against the bar. “I think he came here for you.”

“Mmm,” she said. Me, and whatever excitement and treasure Alicia had in store, she thought, but she remained silent on the subject.

Then she asked, “Warren, you know who Alicia Farr is, right? Has she been around?”

“Nope, not that I’ve heard about.”

“Well, thanks.”

“Who’s the blond Atlas with your ex?” Warren asked.

“Tourist.”

“Not your typical tourist,” Warren commented, wiping a bar glass dry.

“No, I agree.” She shrugged. “Thanks, Warren,” she told him. The place was thatch-roofed and open, but she suddenly needed more air. She took her beer and headed outside. She walked along the attached dock, where the dive boat had pulled in, came to the end and looked out at the water, studying the Icarus.

She wasn’t docked; David had anchored her and come in by way of the dinghy. A moment’s nostalgia struck her. She had really loved the Icarus, and she did feel a pang that the beautiful sailing vessel wasn’t a part of her existence anymore.

She had fair compensation in her life, she knew. Diving, here off the Florida coast, would always be a joy, no matter who was on the tour. And she had her dolphins. They might actually belong to the corporation that owned Moon Bay, but they were her babies. Shania, especially. Wounded, just treated and beginning to heal when Alex had come on board, the adolescent dolphin was her favorite—though, naturally, she’d never let the other dolphins know. But she felt as if she and Shania had gained trust and strength at the same time. She had noticed that Shania followed her sometimes. One night, sipping a drink at the Tiki Hut, she had looked up to find the dolphin, nose above the surface, watching her from the lagoon.

And she had learned to live alone. By the end of her whirlwind one-year marriage to David, she had been alone most of the time anyway. Her choice, she reminded herself in fairness. But he never wanted to stay in one place, and she had longed to establish a real base, a real home. Too many times, he had been with a woman who shared his need for constant adventure. Like Alicia Farr. And she had let the doubts slip in and take over. When she had filed the papers and he hadn’t said a single word, she had forced herself to accept the truth—she wasn’t what he wanted or needed. He had Alicia, and others like her.

He had been planning on meeting Alicia at Moon Bay. And now he suspected she was dead.

With that thought, she dug into the canvas bag she’d brought ashore, found her cell and called the sheriff’s office. She was certain she was going to have to leave a message, but Nigel Thompson’s assistant put her right through.

“Hey, Alex.”

“Hey, Nigel. I’m sorry to bother you, but…I’m concerned.”

“Of course. But listen, I checked all the ferry records. No one’s missing. Everyone who checked into Moon Bay is alive and well and accounted for. And all the daytrippers and people who checked out of Moon Bay were on the ferries out. Usually there are people in their own boats who come by way of the Moon Bay marina, but not yesterday.”

“Thanks, Nigel,” she murmured.

“Alex?”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t think you’re easily fooled. I sent some men out last evening to walk the grounds. But they didn’t find anything.”

“Thank you, Nigel. I guess…I don’t know. Thank you anyway.”

“Sure thing.”

She snapped the phone closed.

She nearly jumped a mile when a hand fell on her shoulder. She spun around, spilling half her beer.

It was just Jeb.

“Sorry,” he said quickly. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I saw you go out, so I followed. Want to wander into a few shops with me? I need a tie.”

“You need a tie?”

He grimaced. “A friend is getting married up in Palm Beach next week. I’ve got the makings of a suit, but I don’t own a single tie.”

Her own thoughts were driving her crazy, but she couldn’t think of a rational step she could take to solve any of her dilemmas. Might as well go tie shopping.

“So…where’s that new girl of yours, David?” Seth asked.

They hadn’t been there long; but Seth Granger had already consumed five or six drinks—island concoctions made with three shots each.

David had never particularly liked the guy to begin with, and with a few drinks in him, he was pretty much completely obnoxious.

“New girl?” David asked.

“Alicia Farr. Fair Alicia. Since the wife threw you over after all those pictures of the two of you came out, I figured the two of you were an item. She isn’t here with you, huh? I heard tell she had something up her sleeve and was going to be around these parts. Word is she learned something from that old geezer who died a while back. Danny Fuller.”

David wondered if Seth Granger was really drunk or was just pretending to be. He’d spent the day listening, waiting for one of his guests to ask the right question, make the right slip. No go. They might have been any four good old boys out for a day on the water.

But now…

“Sorry, Seth. Alicia and I were never an item. We team up now and then for work. We have a lot of the same interests, that’s all. There’s no reason for her to be at Moon Bay.”

“Actually, there was an article about her in the news a few weeks back. Of course, it was in one those supermarket tabloids, so…Anyway, the headline was something like Dying Mogul Gives Secrets to Beauty Who’s a Beast. The writer seemed to think she’d been hanging on him hoping to get news on any unclaimed treasure he might know about. There was a definite suggestion that she was coming to the Keys.”

Jay Galway thumped his beer stein on the table a little too hard. “So why do you think she was headed for Moon Bay? There are two dozen islands in the Keys.”

“That’s true enough,” David said, eyeing John Seymore. “So you’re up on the movements of Alicia Farr, too, huh?” he inquired, forcing a bit of humor into his voice.

“I’m a wannabe, I admit,” John said ruefully.

“I know what it takes to be a SEAL,” David commented. “I can’t imagine you’re a wannabe anything.”

“Not like me, huh?” Seth Granger demanded, giving David a slap on the back that caught him totally unaware and awakened every fighting reaction inside him.

He checked his temper. “Hell, Granger, with your money? I doubt you’re a wannabe anything, either.”

“The wannabe would be me,” Jay said dryly.

“Jay, you’re running a four-star resort, and your vacations are pure adventure,” David assured him.

“Yeah, but I bust my butt for all of them—and I’m still on the fringes. But you know…I spent a lot of time with Danny Fuller. I’m sure he had a dozen treasure maps stored in his head, things he learned over the years, and Alicia had the looks—and the balls. So…”

“Looks like we’re all here looking for Alicia,” Seth said. “And she’s blown us all off.”

“I don’t actually know her,” John Seymore reminded them.

“That’s right—Seymore’s just here to get warm and cuddly with the sea life,” David said.

“And your ex-wife,” Seth commented.

A tense silence suddenly gripped the table.

Then David’s phone rang, as if on cue. “Excuse me, will you?” he said to the others. “Reception is better outside.”

He rose, flipping open the phone as he walked out, then paused in the alleyway outside the little restaurant, shaded by a huge sea grape tree.

“Can you talk?” his caller asked.

“You bet,” David said. “I’ve been hoping to hear from you.”

“I spent some time at the hospital where Danny Fuller died. Seems Alicia was in on an almost daily basis. One of the nurses heard her swearing to Danny again and again that she wasn’t after money, just discovery. And whatever Danny told her, it had to do with dolphins. Apparently the words dolphin and lagoon came up over and over again. And there was one more thing I think you’ll find of interest.” The man on the other end paused.

“What’s that?” David asked after a long silence. Dane Whitelaw didn’t usually hesitate. An ex–specialforces agent, he had opened his own place in Key Largo, where he combined dive charters with a private investigation firm. Sounded a bit strange, but it seemed to work out well enough. He avoided a lot of the big city slush and came up with some truly interesting work, a lot of it to do with boats lost at sea and people who disappeared after heading out for the Caribbean.

Some of them wanted to disappear.

Some of them were forced to do so.

But if he needed information of any kind, David had never met anyone as capable as Dane of finding it out.

Dane was still silent.

“You still there?” David asked.

“Yeah.”

“Well?”

“Apparently, according to the old guy’s night nurse, your ex-wife’s name kept coming up, as well.”

“What?”

“She said the two kept talking about an Alex McCord.”

David digested the information slowly. Finally it was Dane’s turn to ask, “Hey, David, you still there?”

“Yeah, yeah. I need another favor.”

“What’s that?”

“Look into a guy for me. If he’s telling the truth at all, you should be able to dig up some stuff on him.”

“Sure. Who’s the guy?”

“An ex–navy SEAL. John Seymore.”

Jeb had his tie. Alex wasn’t certain what it was going to look like when combined with a dress shirt and a jacket, but it was certainly a comment about the lifestyle he loved. Light blue dolphins leaping against a cobalt background.

Alex had purchased one of the same ties. Reflex action, she decided. The darker color was just like David’s eyes, and she used to buy all kinds of little things just because they might appeal to him.

“Damn,” she murmured as they walked back to the restaurant.

“What?”

“Oh…nothing. I guess I don’t really want to go back in and see our…group.” Nor did she want to pass the alley. She could see David. He was bare chested, wearing deep green trunks and deck shoes, leaning against the wall. He hadn’t noticed them yet, because he was too deeply engrossed in a telephone conversation.

“Our group? Oh, you mean Seth Granger,” Jeb suggested.

She shrugged. “Right. Seth.” Seth was just a pain in the butt, though. Annoying to deal with, but once she was away from him, she forgot all about him.

She really didn’t want to see David. She was furious with herself for having instinctively bought the tie.

“Just walk on by then, Alex. The boat is at the end of the dock. Wait there. I’ll go in and gather up the forces. Hopefully anyone who wandered off shopping is back. And hopefully those who did more drinking than eating won’t be too inebriated.”

She smiled and thanked him, then started down the dock. The sunset was coming in, and she believed with her whole heart that nothing could compare to sunset in the Florida Keys. The colors were magnificent. If there was rain on the horizon, they were darker. On a bright day like today, the night came with a riot of unparalleled pastels.

It was her favorite time of day. Peaceful. Especially when she had a few moments alone, as she did now. The dock was empty. The other boaters docked nearby were either on shore or in their cabins. The evening was hers.

She strolled the length of rustic wood planks and, at the end, stretched and sat, dangling her feet as she appreciated the sky and tried not to think about the corpse she had seen.

Or the husband she had so suddenly reacquired.

“Who’s missing here?”