by Sommer Smith
Using her last bit of strength to yank her form out of the water, she grabbed a towel as quickly as she could manage and clumsily wrapped it around her. She stumbled toward the door and managed to get it open, gulping in a breath of clean air just before everything began to go black.
“Micah!” she called, but she knew it was a weak cry, likely too faint to be heard. She tried to walk out, but her knees refused to keep her upright any longer as her muscles gave way to the effects of the gas. She pitched forward, then crawled a few steps, dragging herself with what little strength she had left in her forearms, all the while struggling to hold on to her towel. In a matter of seconds, the world went completely black.
* * *
Micah’s deep voice was the next thing Keilani remembered. “Keilani, can you hear me?”
He was kneeling beside her, but she wasn’t on the floor outside the exercise pool any longer. She heard beeping and there was a tube running out from under a sheet covering the top of her. An occasional humming from the blood pressure monitor registered in her foggy thoughts and she could smell the vague antiseptic odor of hospital around her. A plaque on the wall bearing a military seal confirmed it was the naval hospital, and waning light from the window meant she had passed much of the afternoon here in this bed.
“I—hear you.” Keilani tried to sit up, but a fierce pain in her head prevented it.
“I was beginning to wonder if you would wake.” Micah leaned over her. “Do you remember what happened?”
“I was in the pool and I just started to feel weak and dizzy. Someone must have been pumping gas into the pool room—someone who knew I was in there.” Keilani spoke slowly, trying not to make it too difficult on her head.
“I thought I heard you call, but by the time I got there, you were out cold. I wasn’t sure why, so the doctors had to determine how to treat you. It’s taken us all afternoon to figure it out.” Micah’s hair was mussed, giving testament to his agitation, and Keilani found it unexpectedly endearing.
“I’m surprised you heard me. I could barely hold my head up at the time.” Keilani pulled her arm from beneath the blanket and studied the IV.
“It’s fortunate I did. The doctors tell me that a few more minutes of exposure to the gas could have killed you. That was smart thinking getting out of there when you did.” Micah ran a vein-studded hand through his hair now. “I can’t even leave you alone for ten minutes.”
“I’m so sorry. I’ve been nothing but trouble since my arrival. I think it’s time we go check out the reef where I saw those men. Maybe it will give us a clue about how to put an end to all this.” Keilani winced, not just because her head throbbed, but also because things weren’t exactly going well at her new job.
“You aren’t taking that chance. You’re already in enough danger. I’ll take a boat out with Xavier and Emmett tonight.” He frowned.
“And leave me alone? I’d rather you didn’t. And how will you know where to look without taking me along?” She watched his face, knowing he couldn’t argue with that logic.
He hesitated for a long time and she could only imagine what thoughts were battling in his head. “Fine. But only if the doctor okays it.”
Keilani nodded. “Good. I have a few ideas about how I might be able to lure the men back to the area so you guys could catch them.”
“What? I don’t think so. We’re just going to look around.” Micah gripped the chair with both hands. “You’ll stay on the boat.”
“We’ll see.” But she had no intention of doing so.
SIX
Though Keilani was declared fit and released, Micah wasn’t about to let her go back to the base. The admiral okayed the remainder of the afternoon off so Keilani could recover and Micah could keep watch for any other problems. He made her promise to rest in preparation to go look for the drop site that evening.
Micah tucked her into some blankets on the sofa before calling to speak to his friend Paul on the investigation team.
“Looks like a botched attempt at cyanide gas. The culprit must not have realized that pool deck isn’t airtight enough to cause asphyxiation with such small amounts of the gas. If the room had been better sealed, she would have died before you found her.” Paul explained that he had reached this conclusion after examining a blood sample from the hospital.
“That’s not too reassuring. How am I going to keep her alive, Paul?” Micah gripped the phone against his ear.
“You have to be very diligent. The guy seems desperate. And this is four attempts in two days.” Paul’s voice rang with concern.
“At this rate there will be at least two more before the night is over.” Micah heard the fatigue in his own voice. “I can’t let her out of my sight until this is over.”
“Definitely not.” Paul paused. “There is one thing I wanted to ask you about.”
Micah waited, saying simply, “What’s that?”
“It seems like Dr. Lucas happening upon the drug operation might have been a trigger. But if she saw it where you are telling me she did, it’s very close to the dolphin enclosures. It might not just be because of what she saw that she is being targeted. Have you considered these smugglers might be using your dolphins?”
Micah drew in a quick breath. “I have reason to believe they might be using dolphins in their smuggling, but not mine—not the navy’s dolphins.”
“And who’s looking after them now?” Paul’s voice held a slight edge.
“That’s a good question. Admiral McLeary said no one was to go near them besides Keilani and me. They are under constant guard. I don’t really know anymore if that means anything, though.”
“Does he suspect the dolphins are at risk?” Paul’s voice rose a little.
Micah felt a little bad about not considering that before. “Maybe so. I guess I should have asked that question myself. At the time, I just assumed it was to keep Keilani safer while we worked.”
“I’d find out what is going on with them in your absence if I were you.” Paul clicked his tongue. “In fact, I think I’ll check into that myself.”
Micah hung up, feeling out of sorts.
He put off telling Keilani the news, mostly because not talking to her much was the closest he could get to avoiding her at the moment. His tumultuous emotions needed a break and his assignment—not to mention her safety—meant he must keep her close. And all that led to more of that protective instinct and more tender feelings, so he just needed to distance himself emotionally.
Keilani didn’t seem to notice. She had a notebook and his laptop on the sofa beside her. Every so often she would stop scrolling and write something down. His curiosity finally got to him and he had to ask.
“What are you working on?”
She jumped, confirming she had completely forgotten he was in the room. “Oh. Uh, there are some vague news reports on dolphins being used to help underwater drug smugglers. Nothing by big news publications, but still worth looking into. I was gathering all the information on it that I could, just in case that’s what we have here.”
He squirmed a little. Why hadn’t he thought of doing that? She had completely blown his focus. “And when were you going to let me in on this?”
She paused to write something else down. “I was going to give you a summary of what I found later. You seemed a little preoccupied just now. Like you didn’t want to talk.”
As Keilani went back to scrolling, Micah studied her. How did she do that so easily? “You don’t think there’s any chance someone is using navy dolphins, I hope.”
She shrugged. “You don’t think someone on the inside could be helping drug smugglers and trying to kill me.”
“I said I wasn’t sure.”
“Neither am I.”
“Is there any other way someone could have taken those photos?” She glanced hopefully at him.
“I can’t thin
k of any.”
Their eyes met. An enemy outside was one thing, but an enemy within was a terrifying thought. And getting more terrifying all the time.
Micah moved to sit beside her on the sofa, but then he instantly regretted it. The heat that passed between them when their arms brushed made him forget about everything but her nearness. He sucked in a long breath and realized she had stopped scrolling and sat perfectly still.
“What are you doing?” Her voice was soft and low.
“I just wanted to see what you’re finding.” He pretended to focus on the screen until her eyes met his own.
“I said I would tell you what I found.” She seemed edgy, nervous.
“I’d just prefer to jump in along the way. Don’t worry, I’ll catch up quickly.” He’d better, or his thoughts were going to take off in directions he didn’t want or need them to.
She handed him her notes, then turned the laptop at an angle to help him see it better. He didn’t move away like she probably hoped he would, although he knew he should have. He wanted to breathe in her sweet scent a little longer. Despite her current danger, she made him feel a sense of peace he hadn’t experienced in longer than he cared to remember.
“Micah—” She started to speak, but then shook her head as if trying to take back the single spoken word.
He didn’t want to respond and discourage her from speaking whatever was on her mind, so he just waited.
She never got a chance to complete the thought, however. Shattering glass alerted them to another attack, and before Keilani could dump the computer onto the sofa beside her, Micah scooped her into his arms and ran. She was obviously confused as to what was happening, but he didn’t take time to explain. She would understand soon enough.
They dove out the back door just as the blast shook the living room. Keilani shrieked and he looked over his shoulder to see the curtains go up in flames.
“What was that?” Keilani was shaking violently now.
“Molotov cocktail. A pretty good one, too. They aren’t messing around. Let’s go.” He set her on her feet but tugged her away from the house.
When the shots began, he gestured toward her. “Stay low. They are going to keep shooting.”
Her brow furrowed. “But they just tried to blow us up.”
“That’s not what a Molotov cocktail is for. It’s mostly just to drive you out so you are an easier target.” He gave her another tug.
“Oh, to shoot at me. Fantastic. ’Cause I haven’t been shot at in a couple of hours.” Keilani shook her head. “I’m sorry I’m so inexperienced at running for my life.”
“Actually, you’re getting way more experience than I’d like you to have.” Micah urged her on. They ducked through the gate and fled across a neighbor’s yard. “Good thing most of my neighbors are navy. They won’t be too surprised that the SEALs are getting shot at again.” He winked at her, trying to lighten the mood.
“I guess it’s just an everyday job hazard for you?” Keilani’s voice was only a little sarcastic.
“Not quite every day. Just with you around.” He grinned at her audaciously before taking her hand and pulling her behind a neighboring house.
A bullet ricocheted off the brick by their heads and he started tugging her along again. “Oops, time to move.”
He was purposely trying to keep things light. He didn’t know how much more she could deal with before melting down, and he needed to keep her functional until they lost their pursuer.
He saw a black SUV round the corner by a house diagonal from them, and a flash of familiar light against the tinted window told him a gun was inside.
“Get down! There’s our shooter.”
Keilani obeyed, looking bewildered as more shots pinged around them sporadically. Their guy had lost sight of them. Now maybe he would give up.
It wasn’t as easy as he’d hoped, however. Knowing they couldn’t have escaped that quickly without being seen, the men in the SUV made a couple more loops around the block, prompting Micah to push Keilani back and forth around corners and behind storage sheds to keep them hidden from view.
The SUV slowed, the Glock glinting in the interior lights. “They see us. Run for it.” Micah gave her a slight push, intending to stay at her back.
Just as they took off across another lawn, however, the sirens became audible in the distance and the squeal of tires accompanied them as the SUV sped away. A few random bullets peppered the air as if the shooter hoped to get in a cheap shot on the way out.
“Keilani.” He tugged her to a stop. “They’re gone.”
She practically fell into his arms in relief. From her expression, he feared she would break into tears at any moment.
“Are you okay? You weren’t hit anywhere, were you?” He ran his hands gently up and down her arms and she shivered in response.
“I’m fine. I’m—I’m not fine. How long? How long will this continue?” She was shaking all over. He had to fight the urge to take her into his arms and comfort her. But he knew holding her close wouldn’t do either of them any favors.
Keilani stumbled forward, though, and left him no choice.
* * *
She knew she shouldn’t let him hold her like this, but right now Keilani needed comfort, no matter how fleeting. She kept telling herself not to get attached to him because he wouldn’t be around for long, but her heart seemed to have its own ideas, and those ideas definitely included softening toward Micah Kent.
If it wasn’t for the dolphins—her first love—she would probably be headed back across the Pacific by now. She missed Grandma Loni and her best friend Jacquie. It probably wouldn’t be hard to get her old job back at the aquatic park where she’d worked as a marine veterinarian before coming to California.
She had received a message that morning from her friend Gretchen with the World Animal Protection Agency and had hoped to find more evidence to prove that any abuse of the local dolphins wasn’t Micah’s fault before reporting back to her. She had simply replied that so far everything seemed to be just fine.
She had been searching out articles that might tell her what to look for, though, and investigating who might be reporting such slander against the navy, when Micah had gotten involved. She had quickly modified her search, but she needed to tell him soon.
She shivered as her mind returned to the recent events. She tried not to dwell on how much she was beginning to rely on Micah, and particularly how much she enjoyed being able to draw comfort from him. She would be better off back on the island. Safer, both physically and emotionally. After her past experiences with men, she didn’t want to risk her heart when she knew how much pain it could cause. The last time she had believed in love, her heart had been completely crushed when she discovered it was entirely one-sided. She had no desire to feel that kind of heartbreak again.
“We’re going to end this.” Micah was trying to reassure her, even as her thoughts were fleeing back to Hawaii. “But first, maybe we need to get your mind off things. How about a swim?”
She pulled away from him for a second. “With the dolphins?”
He nodded. “Just for fun. No training, no pressure.”
“That sounds great.” She relaxed against him, but instantly regretted it. She bolted upright. He was watching her when she turned, but his guarded expression told her little of what he was thinking.
* * *
Keilani breathed in the calm of her favorite environment. The dolphin pools were quiet, and as she slid into the comfort of the crystal-blue waters, Micah pulled a few switches to allow some of the dolphins to swim in. Keilani floated quietly, waiting for the animals to remember her.
The females swam up to her right away, especially Nikita, who seemed to remember her well. Mulan was more interested in asserting her authority, butting Nikita with her nose and angling her flippers just right to splash Keilani. The males
finally swam over, Rambo rubbing against her in search of affection. Stefan hung back, clearly curious.
“Mind if I introduce a couple more of the team members to the mix? Carbon and Mitzie are young, but they like to play. It would do them good to socialize with the more mature crowd.” Micah gestured in the direction of a glassed gate where two smaller dolphins observed them with interest.
“Oh, sure. The more, the merrier.” Keilani laughed and waved to the youngsters, who zipped in as Micah opened the glass gate.
Like puppies, the two young dolphins swam crazily around her in search of attention. She responded by remaining still as they bounced some squeaks of various pitches off her and then began clicking rhythmically as they checked her out. Keilani laughed, causing Carbon, the darkest in color of the half-dozen dolphins, to dart away, sluicing through the water in surprise.
“I’m sorry, little one. You’re just so cute.” Keilani moved softly, encouraging him back to her.
Micah joined them in the water then. “Come on, kids. Let’s show Keilani what you can do.”
At Micah’s command, the veteran dolphins began to put on a show. Not only could they sniff out enemy bombs and identify foreign swimmers, but Micah’s dolphins could rescue the drowning, flip switches, tumble small boats as a team, and put on a regular Sea World show of flips, dives and driving humans through the water using their strong noses. Keilani clapped and laughed, and even the young dolphins wanted in on the performance. Micah showed Keilani how to give the navy commands and she worked with the veterans as well as the babies. Micah commented positively on her aptitude for both learning and teaching. For a little while Keilani almost forgot about being hunted like a wild creature, shot at and threatened. She just enjoyed the freedom and the feel of the water, the joyful squeals and clicks of the dolphins and the playful abandon on Micah’s face.