Tropical Tiger Spy (Shifting Sands Resort 1)

“You'd leave DC to be with me?”

Tony looked martyred. “Yes, I would even live in the Midwest with you.” His voice suggested what a sacrifice he would consider this.

Amber pondered. “I've never been to the East Coast.”

Tony looked hopeful. “Let me show it to you,” he said. “If you hate it, we can live anywhere else.”

“I hear the cherry trees in spring are quite the sight,” Amber said thoughtfully. “And if I could have a garden...”

“I'll buy you a house in Maryland with an acre of land,” Tony promised expansively. “You can grow anything you want.”

“Talk dirty to me,” Amber said, and she leaned over and kissed him, deeply. Like him, she wasn't sure it mattered where they went–as long as they were together.

Chapter Thirty

The laundry room was part of the mechanical room, and Tony found clean bathrobes in a laundry basket for them to put on. It felt distinctly odd to be covered again, after spending so much time nude by necessity.

They came out of the mechanical room to find that the guests were gathered in the bar, quite sure by now that something was up. The new bartender, a tall, muscular blond with a thick Texan accent, had taken charge and was handing out drinks and snacks to the best of his ability, and he had ransacked the kitchen to provide a makeshift meal of grilled meat.

He immediately asked Tony if he knew what was happening.

“I'll... let Scarlet explain when she gets back,” Tony said vaguely, not wanting to try to guess what story the owner was going to have for the events of the day.

The bartender seemed satisfied with the idea that she would be coming back, and went back to expertly flipping burgers and handing them out to the mystified guests.

It was hours before Scarlet did return, driving an overloaded Jeep at the head of a ragtag caravan of vehicles full of people and animals.

Scarlet did her best to give Tony the idea that he had handled everything completely wrong, and sent her people running for bathrobes and food.

“I could have been bartending in Las Vegas,” the Texan muttered, bringing a pile of cold hamburgers from the walk-in fridge that the inhabitants of the zoo fell on as if it was ambrosia. No one offered him answers as to why Scarlet was one of the only ones still wearing clothing, or where the very confused and jumpy collection of odd shifters had come from.

“Thank you for saving the resort,” Scarlet said grudgingly to Tony at last.

Tony had the grace to allow that the resort wouldn't have been at risk if he hadn't been investigating.

Scarlet raised an eyebrow at him but didn't comment further.

“What did you do with Beehag?” Tony asked.

Scarlet's face was inscrutable in the pre-dawn light, but Tony suspected that full daylight wouldn't have revealed much more there. “He didn't make it.”

Amber gasped. “Did you...?”

Scarlet's look was the sort you gave hysterical people and children. “The stimulant Jimmy gave him to counteract the tranquilizers was too much for his system. He never regained consciousness. Chef is a fully licensed doctor in Costa Rica, and we've already called it in to the mainland. I trust you have Jimmy? He'll be answering for that crime, among others.”

Tony confirmed Jimmy's location and state of restraint. “And the guards?” None of them were among the milling refugees.

“The cages will be serving their purpose until the authorities get there.” Amber suspected it was satisfaction she was hearing in Scarlet's voice.

Scarlet turned away to answer a question about housing and was drawn back into the crowd.

“Amber? Scarlet says your name is Amber?”

Amber turned and furrowed her eyebrows at the stranger who hailed her. She was a short woman with straight brown hair that clearly hadn't been cut in years. Her brown eyes were light, almost gold in the poor light of the deck.

Amber sucked in her breath. “Yes, I'm Amber,” she said.

“You're... you're a mountain cat, I saw you. An Andean mountain cat.” Her voice was rusty, as if she hadn't spoken in years, and she winced when she walked closer to Amber, clutching at her side; blood had already stained through the white robe. She completely ignored Tony.