Forbidden. Ellen James

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ well as a soda, then turned back toward Jarrett.

      His eyes were wide open and he was staring right at her. Dana started a little.

      “How are you feeling?” she asked.

      “Not too bad. It’s just a bump on the head.”

      “I’d say it’s a bit more than that. Here, I want you to drink this.” Moving over, she held the jug of water to his mouth and he managed to take a few sips. She remembered the way Nick had held a canteen to her own lips earlier this morning, and realized that she far preferred to be the one giving help than receiving it.

      “You should try to get some rest,” she told Jarrett.

      “I feel pretty damn stupid. I didn’t see who attacked me. I was engrossed in my work–didn’t even hear anything.”

      Dana settled onto a camp stool beside Jarrett. “Maybe it would be a good idea if you told me what you do remember.”

      He reached up a hand to his head and gingerly felt the bandage there. “Not much to tell, I’m afraid. I was alone here, but that’s nothing unusual. I was kneeling down with my trowel, digging…. Next thing I knew…” Jarrett’s voice trailed off and he seemed to drift into sleep again. Dana watched him, making sure that he was breathing steadily. Then she relaxed enough to drink some lukewarm orange soda. It tasted too sweet, but at least it soothed her throat. She thought about Dr. Petrie and the young boy Daniel, off in search of Jarrett’s attacker. She doubted seriously that anyone could take Nick Petrie by surprise…but she felt worried, nonetheless. She supposed anyone could be lurking out there in the jungle.

      Jarrett slept on, leaving Dana to her own musings. So far today, nothing had been as she’d expected it to be: the humiliating drive from the docks, the attack on Jarrett, the hot, humid discomfort of the island–the discomfort from Nick Petrie. That unwelcome attraction to Dr. Petrie, that was the worst of it. From the moment she’d met him, some essential buffer had seemed lacking between them. Her reactions to him were too immediate, too close to the surface. He both irritated and intrigued her….

      In a short while, Dana heard a murmur of voices outside the hut. She hurried to the doorway and saw Nick immersed in discussion with two of the native islanders–a man and a woman. The woman’s black hair was plaited into a thick braid and she wore a beautifully embroidered blouse over her gathered skirt. The man seemed protective of the woman, standing close beside her. He spoke in Spanish to Nick, gesturing occasionally to make his point. Dana had begun studying Spanish, but she wondered if it was doing her any good. She couldn’t understand a word the man was saying. Often the woman broke in to add something, and Dana couldn’t understand a word she said, either. It was possible to guess, however, that the man and woman were married, or at least had been together for some time. The woman seemed to keep finishing the man’s sentences for him.

      Nick was talking now. Unfortunately, Dana couldn’t understand a word he said, either. He spoke Spanish easily, fluently, the language surprisingly melodious in his deep voice. He didn’t seem aware of Dana’s presence, and neither did the other two. She was reluctant to interrupt, not wanting to distract them in case they were solving the mystery of Jarrett’s attacker. But it made her feel like an outsider, standing here in the shadows of the hut, listening to words she couldn’t comprehend. An unfamiliar loneliness seeped through her.

      The conversation went on another moment or two, and then the man and woman hurried away, disappearing among the dense foliage. Dana stepped from the hut.

      “Were you able to learn anything?” she asked. “I’d like to say I caught all that, but I didn’t.”

      Nick rubbed the back of his neck, frowning at Dana as if he’d forgotten about her and didn’t like being reminded of her existence.

      “That was Anton and Elena Montano. They live nearby and they both work for me from time to time, but they were away from the site all morning. They didn’t see anything unusual.”

      The conversation had gone on for quite a while, and Dana suspected it had been more informative than Nick allowed.

      “You don’t suppose one of them–Anton or Elena–could have sneaked up and conked Jarrett on the head?”

      “Hell, I could have sneaked up and attacked him myself, then still made it in time to meet your boat. But why would I want to do that? Don’t try to play detective, Ms. Morgan.”

      She stared at him in exasperation. “We have to find out who did it before it happens again. We have to conduct an investigation, contact the police–”

      “I’ll handle it, Ms. Morgan. It’s not your concern.”

      “Right. Someone is running around, walloping people with rocks, and I’m supposed to forget about it?”

      He stared back at her, as if to quell her with one of his silences. Dana refused to be quelled. She confronted Nick Petrie’s ice blue gaze–and experienced once again that bewildering and completely unwelcome sense of connection to him. He wasn’t touching her at all, yet she felt the beat of her pulse in an elemental rhythm that suddenly seemed unfamiliar to her. Too much had seemed unfamiliar today….

      “I’m surprised Daniel didn’t return with you,” Dana said quickly. “He seems to like being around you.”

      A wry look crossed Nick’s face. “Daniel is very much his own person. He comes and goes as he pleases.”

      Then the sound of voices interrupted Nick, and a moment later a man and a woman came striding out of the forest into the clearing. They appeared to be in the midst of some disagreement.

      “You didn’t listen to a thing I–”

      “On the contrary. I have been the soul of attentiveness.”

      “Like hell–” The woman stopped herself in mid-curse as she saw Nick and Dana. “Oh. Well…Daniel told us what happened,” she said in a brisk tone. “How’s Jarrett?”

      “He’ll live,” Nick answered tersely.

      The woman now concentrated on Dana, her glance assessing. “I’m Pat.” She said her name as if she expected Dana to know all about her. She was tall and athletic in build, sandy hair curling haphazardly at her shoulders. Her grip was firm as she shook hands with Dana.

      Now the man stepped forward. He was distinguished looking, with a reddish beard cropped close to his resolute chin. In spite of the heat, his khaki shirt looked fresh and crisp. Dana wondered how he managed that. He, too, shook hands with her and introduced himself.

      “Robert Lambert, Ms. Morgan. It’s too bad you’re joining us under such disturbing circumstances.” He didn’t sound disturbed–merely perfunctory. Dana thought she could identify his accent as French, but she wasn’t entirely sure.

      Nick, however, left no time for speculation. “I’m taking Jarrett into the village. Robert, Pat, have a look around–but stay together!” He glanced at Dana. “Ms. Morgan, I suppose you’d better come with me.”

      Dana disliked being treated like unwanted baggage. She thought she’d detected a slight resentment flicker across Robert’s and Pat’s faces, too–perhaps they weren’t particularly pleased about following orders, either. But clearly Nick was the one in command.

      “We’ll СКАЧАТЬ