Perilous Refuge. Kathleen Tailer

Чтение книги онлайн.

       FOUR

      The next morning Chelsea was up early, packing the trunk of the rental car for their planned morning trip to the national park at the top of Haleakala, one of the island’s volcanos. Apparently it was the best place on the island to watch the sunrise and enjoy a picnic breakfast. Chelsea stowed another bag, then closed the trunk. She was anxious to be under way. The sooner they were away from the hotel, the lesser chance she had of running into the man with the baseball cap again. So far, she hadn’t seen him since the pool, but she was keeping a wary eye on her surroundings just in case.

      “Are you ready to go?”

      Chelsea jumped at the sound of Alex’s voice and turned to see him approaching. “Almost. Miss Abigail stopped at the front desk for a moment and asked me to get these bags loaded into the car. She should be here any minute.”

      She picked up her camera bag and took a step back. Why was he staring at her like that? His look was so intense that for a moment she wondered if he had somehow discovered who she really was. The thought made her subconsciously retreat another step, then another.

      She gave herself a mental shake. Alex couldn’t possibly know who she was and she refused to believe anyone who was an old friend of Miss Abigail’s could have any connection to Justin Carver. She still hadn’t figured out why Alex was so intent on digging into her past, but he had been nothing but kind and compassionate with Miss Abigail, and she found herself actually admiring him for that in spite of his gruff demeanor. She remained hopeful that he would be pleasant and congenial during the day’s activities. She realized that the less Alex knew about her the better. But living in such anonymity was a lonely existence and having an adult conversation with someone her own age was rare these days and even tempting.

      Still, the more she thought about it, the more she realized the futility of getting to know him or anyone else any better. With Carver after her, there was no way she could have an honest or lasting friendship with anyone. The thought was a difficult reality to accept.

      She glanced up at Alex’s face and noted that his steel-gray eyes were still studying her. She cringed inwardly. The best course of action was just to avoid him as much as possible, despite the loneliness she was feeling. She moved toward the rear door of the vehicle. Hopefully he would leave in a day or two and forget that she even existed.

      “Any idea how long this jaunt is supposed to take?” Alex asked, breaking her train of thought.

      “It depends upon how much time Miss Abigail wants to spend on top of the mountain.” She paused. “I thought you were too busy to spend time with us today, Mr. Sullivan. Aren’t you leaving soon?”

      Alex narrowed his eyes. “Eager to be rid of me?”

      Chelsea shrugged. “No. I’m just trying to figure out what a busy attorney like you is doing in Maui in the first place. It’s obvious you don’t want to be here. You’ve made that quite clear.”

      “Have I?”

      Chelsea’s hands stilled. “Yes. Why are you here, Mr. Sullivan?”

      Their eyes locked for a moment, neither one willing to give up any information. She looked away first and opened the car door. She didn’t care about winning this battle of wills. All she really had to do was keep Alex Sullivan from discovering her past. Not only would she probably lose her job with Miss Abigail if he found out, but he would also undoubtedly make her go to the police. She wasn’t ready to do that without more proof. Besides, trying to stay away from the man with the cap and worrying about the note were stressful enough. She didn’t need to engage in a verbal sparring event with Alex Sullivan just because he seemed suspicious of her for whatever reason.

      “Alex! I’m so glad you’re joining us!” Miss Abigail gushed as she approached, giving him a big kiss. “Let’s hit the road, folks. I’m not getting any younger and the sun will be up before you know it.”

      Alex raised an eyebrow at Chelsea, then released the door and leaned over to give Miss Abigail a quick kiss on the cheek. “Your wish is my command. Shall we go?”

      Chelsea got in the backseat, the anxiety pulsing through her. Whatever Alex’s reason for coming to Hawaii, it seemed he wasn’t planning on leaving anytime soon. And that meant she’d have to put up with his probing stares and persistent questions for at least a while longer.

      An hour and a half later, Alex, Chelsea and Miss Abigail got out of their car and made their way over to the observation look-out deck. The trip up had been uneventful, with little conversation since neither Chelsea nor Miss Abigail had wanted to distract Alex as he negotiated the narrow roadway on the way up the mountain. Although it was only twenty-two miles from the base of the mountain to the overlook at the top, the trip had taken much longer than they’d expected because of the winding roads and hairpin turns.

      Once at the park, Alex unfolded the portable chairs they had borrowed from the hotel and the three of them sat and faced the east, waiting for the show to begin. By the time they were situated a faint light was already beginning to brighten the sky on the horizon. For the next twenty minutes they sat in awestruck wonder as God painted the heavens with beautiful colors and lit up the valley below with reflections of the morning light. Pale pinks and purples colored the lava beds and mirrored the pastels from the sky. It was truly spectacular.

      Chelsea took several photos with her 35 mm digital camera, then stood and checked on Miss Abigail. So far she hadn’t seen any signs of danger on their trip, but she constantly scanned the other tourists at the park, keeping her eyes open for the man with the Braves cap just in case he’d managed to discover her location. And what if he wasn’t alone? What if the man with the cap was working with others that she couldn’t recognize? Suddenly her apprehension was too much to handle and she knew she had to move around before the stress consumed her.

      “Would you mind if I walked around and took a few more pictures, Miss Abigail?”

      “Not at all, dear,” the older lady said sweetly as she patted Chelsea’s hand. “You take all the time you want. I’m just going to sit here and enjoy this marvelous view.”

      Chelsea smiled, then stood and started walking along the ridge to capture different angles. She was an avid amateur photographer and tried to let herself СКАЧАТЬ