Refuge Cove (New Americana 2)

“But you said you knew Boone in school. Did they ever live in town?”

“I was coming to that. When the children were young, their mother decided to leave Boone and his sister in Ketchikan with their grandmother. They lived with the old woman until they were out of high school. She died soon after they finished.” John took a gulp of his cocoa. It had gone lukewarm and was so sweet toward the bottom that swallowing it was like punishment for the lie of omission he was about to tell. “The girl—Marlena—stayed in town. She’s married now, to a fisherman who has his own boat. She has nothing to do with her mother and brothers. It’s as if she’s pretending she’s from somewhere else. I can’t say I blame her.”

“It sounds like she did all right for herself,” Emma said. “But what about Boone?”

“Boone was always too wild for town life. After high school, he went back to his kinfolk in the bush. I don’t know what prompted him to go wife-hunting. Maybe he was just lonesome. Or maybe the family needed a good woman to carry on the line. Whatever the reason, I’m sorry you had to be the one he found.”

“If not me, it would’ve been some other poor girl.” She gazed into the crackling flames. “I feel so foolish, now that I know. Why wasn’t I smart enough to see through all the sweet talk? Why didn’t I at least do some research and check him out before I threw my life away?”

“Because you wanted to believe it. You wanted the life you thought he was offering you. That’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

“All my friends were married. I went to their weddings. I cuddled their babies. I ached to have what they had.”

“You said you were a teacher.”

“Yes, and I loved my job. I loved those little kids. But they weren’t mine. I wanted a good man to share my life. I wanted my own family. When Boone showed up, I was beyond ready for it to happen.” She shook her head. “It was easy for him to reel me in. So very easy.”

Her brutal honesty shamed him to the bone. He had fed her evasions sprinkled with half truths, hiding the things he didn’t want her to hear. But Emma was as true and real as a flame.

“Let me fly you out of here,” he said. “You can go to the state police in Juneau, tell them your story. There’ll be agencies there that can help you get some ID and find you a way home.”

“Thanks, but I’m not ready to leave,” she said. “I need to get an annulment and see that Boone never hurts another trusting woman. The money I gave him is probably gone for good, but I’d like to try and get at least some of it back. I’ll have better luck with those things if I stay here.”

She was right, John conceded. But staying in Ketchikan would put her in danger. And, whether he liked it or not, he’d become her protector. He couldn’t walk away until he knew she was safe.

“Fine,” he said. “But if you get careless, you could end up in more trouble. So listen to me. Here’s what we’ll do. In the morning I’ll leave you here, drive into town, and buy you some shoes. Then I’ll nose around Boone’s old haunts and find out whether anybody’s seen him. When I get back, we’ll take it from there. All right?”

“Yes,” she said. “But I don’t plan to impose on you any longer than I have to.” Sitting up straight, she twisted off her gold wedding band and thrust it toward him. “Take this. Boone told me it was his mother’s, but for all I know, he could’ve stolen it. See how much a pawnshop will give you for it. With luck it should at least be enough to buy me some cheap sneakers. Whatever it’s worth, I never want to see it again.”

John took the plain band, feeling its weight in his palm. He was no expert, but it had the look and solid feel of gold. He knew a trustworthy pawnbroker in town who’d be able to tell him what it was worth. At least it would give her a little spending money.

“Don’t you have to work tomorrow?” she asked him.

“Not on anybody’s timetable,” he said. “During the cruise ship season, from May to September, I fly six days a week for Taquan Air, taking tourists on sightseeing jaunts, as well as doing the mail run. Now that the season’s over, I’ll just be doing the mail contract. But if we get some time, I’ll take you up. There are some beautiful places I could show you. Maybe we could even look for Boone’s trailer from the air. Then you could tell the police where to find it. What do you think?”

Emma didn’t reply. She was fast asleep, her head drooping to one side like a tired bird’s. Standing, John dropped the ring into his pocket, fetched a pillow from the bedroom, and worked it behind her shoulders to cushion and support her. She snuggled into it with a little sigh.

He gazed down at her, battling a surge of tenderness he had no right to feel. She looked like an innocent child with her eyes closed, her full lips softly parted, and the firelight dancing on her face. He fought the urge to reach down and brush a fingertip along her cheek.

Mouthing a curse, he stepped away from the love seat. There’d be no going down that road. He admired Emma’s honesty and her spunky courage. He even found her attractive. But as far as he was concerned, the woman was nothing but a bundle of trouble. The sooner he got her out of his cabin and out of his life, the better off he’d be.

He took another log from the wood box and laid it on the fire. Then, after turning the reading lamp on low and angling the shade toward him, he sat down on the empty end of the love seat and opened a bo

ok.

* * *

Emma woke with a jerk. In her dream, she’d been running for what seemed like hours, legs pumping, heart pounding, but no matter how hard she ran, it was as if her feet had been nailed to the ground. And the awful, unseen thing behind her was gaining—never quite catching her, but so close that she could hear the rasp of its breath.

As the nightmare dissolved, she opened her eyes. Morning sunlight poured through a high window. From somewhere outside, she could hear a woodpecker drumming. Only after a moment’s panic did she realize that she’d spent the night on a love seat, in the remote cabin of the pilot who’d rescued her.

She could hear him in the kitchen, running water and rattling pans. Her nose caught the aroma of frying bacon. The smell reminded her that she was hungry again. Untangling her legs from the blanket, she managed to stand up.

He glanced around and saw her from the kitchen. His hair, which had been long and loose last night, was neatly braided and bound again. “You were out like a hibernating bear,” he said. “Are you all right?”

Emma cleared her throat. “Fine. Just crazy dreams. I must’ve been exhausted. What time is it?”

“It’s almost eight. I’ve been up for a couple of hours, but I didn’t want to wake you.”