Everglades Escape

by Kathleen Tailer

  “Yes. Everyone’s asleep.” He gave her a playful smile. “Why aren’t you?”

  “I guess I keep wondering when the bad guys are going to show up. They’ve got to know we’re somewhere in the park, and if Jose made it back to civilization, I’m sure he’s reported where he left us. Since the storm is winding down, I imagine we’ll have company anytime now.”

  “Are you really sure? I mean, if Jose returned to the drug cartel, wouldn’t they be interrogating Jose about the dead guy in there? For all we know, he got scared and left the cartel for greener pastures without reporting in, and hopefully, the cartel thinks we were killed in the storm.”

  Whitney shrugged. “Either way, we can’t stay here forever, and our kayak is a mess. Have you looked at it?” She’d gone to inspect it on her first trip out of the ranger station, and had been devastated to see the damage the small boat had sustained during the storm. The hull was broken in two places, mutilated by blowing tree branches or other debris.

  “No, but I wondered.”

  “I can’t imagine that it’s fixable,” she told him. “And I don’t know the area well enough to know if we can walk out or not.”

  “I don’t think walking is an option. I think the only way to get to this ranger station is by boat or by helicopter.”

  “Helicopter?” Whitney queried.

  “Yes. I would imagine the rangers will start looking for the Martinezes and any other family that might not have made it out of the park before the storm hit. Hopefully, they’ll fly over and we can get their attention. It might help if we built a fire on the beach so they know we’re here.”

  “Yeah, but then the bad guys will know where we are, too.”

  Theo exhaled roughly. “True, but that’s a chance we have to take.” He took a step forward and Whitney suddenly felt a tingling shoot up her arms. The air between them seemed crisp and electrified. “And yet, I’m not worried.” His voice was soft, almost like a caress.

  “You should be,” she murmured, not sure how to react to his overture. “If you remember, they’re the ones with all the guns. We’re plumb out. Every time I get my hands on one, someone takes it away from me.”

  He took another step forward and Whitney was suddenly unable to think of anything to say. In fact, she felt frozen, unable to move. The flashlight was pointing behind him, giving off just enough light to see the glimmer of interest in his eyes. He reached up and gently trailed a hand down the side of her face in a soft caress. She sucked in a breath, surprised yet captivated by his touch. He leaned closer.

  “Miss Whitney?” The tiny voice interrupted her thoughts and she turned abruptly to see Melissa standing at the door, her thumb wet from sucking. The little girl had obviously just woken up; her brown hair was mussed and her eyes were puffy from sleep.

  Whitney let out a breath, unsure if she was relieved or disappointed at the interruption. She turned to Melissa. “What are you doing up? Aren’t you supposed to be asleep?”

  “I was sleeping, but I had a bad dream.”

  “Oh, I’m so sorry.” Whitney leaned over and picked the girl up and held her close. “At least it’s over now. Are you still scared?”

  “Uh-huh,” Melissa answered. “Mommy is still sleeping. Can you sit with me?”

  “Sure, sweetheart.” She turned to Theo. “Good night. I hope you can sleep a little before dawn breaks. I bet it’s going to be a busy day.”

  “You, too,” he said with a smile.

  He said nothing more as Whitney took Melissa inside. Yet his behavior made Whitney pause. Had Theo really been about to kiss her, or had she imagined it?

  How did she feel about it? A knot twisted in her stomach as she considered it. She liked Theo. She liked him a lot. Yet his isolated, loner lifestyle was one she could never adapt to, and she was convinced she would go crazy if she tried. Still, he was attractive on so many levels, and was a calming influence on her when chaos reigned. The best part about him, though, was that he listened to her and helped her be the best possible version of herself that she could be. He had definitely become a friend—a trusted friend. But could he be more?

  Whitney sat in one of the office chairs, pulled Melissa into her lap and cuddled with the little girl. Once the storm passed and they all went their separate ways, she would miss this child, and the entire family, that had blessed her in so many ways. She had been touched by their selflessness. All three of the children had special needs, with varying degrees of issues. Melissa had Down syndrome, and the other two kids were on the autism spectrum. All three were adopted.

  It was also obvious that the Martinez family was not wealthy, but had taken in these children from the state foster care system out of a sense of love and caring. Adoption was a wonderful thing. But was it for her? Whitney had never really considered it before, but when she saw the love exhibited between the Martinezes, she had started seeing it as a real possibility. She had never known anyone that had adopted before, but during the last two days, David and Geri Martinez had told them all sorts of stories that had encouraged and delighted her.

  She snuggled closer to the little girl whose weight felt heavy and right in her arms. A wave of sadness swept over her as she dwelled on the thought that she would never have a child of her own. A child that she could cuddle with, like she was holding Melissa. But maybe adoption was the solution. Perhaps God was showing her that she didn’t need her own biological child to feel complete.

  Closing her eyes, thoughts of various possibilities began swimming around in her head as she considered what her future might hold. She sighed and hoped she could sleep for an hour or two before the sun rose and their quest for survival began all over again. But she found it hard to focus. She started to pray.

  * * *

  A few hours later Theo stood and stretched, his mind still spinning. The rain had come and gone again, and the air smelled earthy and fresh. Light was starting to spread across the sky, but although the sun had come up, gray clouds still covered the horizon. At least the wind had died down.

  He stepped off the porch and saw a startled snake slither away to hide under the building. The creature made him smile. If Whitney had been out here with him, the reptile would have made her skin crawl.

  Whitney.

  What was he going to do about her? He had been so close to kissing her last night. If that little girl hadn’t woken up and come out on the porch, he would have done so for sure. But was that the right thing to do? He was still struggling with past hurts and wasn’t ready to open himself up to a relationship. And Whitney was dealing with her own baggage. Neither one of them seemed ready to start a new romance. But could he let her go? Should he? She was such a breath of fresh air to his secluded, routine lifestyle. And ever since she had entered his life, he felt alive for the first time in years.

  But deep down he knew he wasn’t being fair to her by leading her on. He needed to let her return to her life and he needed to return to his own without further encumbrances. Because the truth was...his heart had been wounded so badly that he wasn’t sure he could make anybody happy again. Most especially a vibrant, effervescent woman like Whitney. He didn’t have it in him. That’s why he’d buried himself in the Florida Keys where no one would be forced to suffer his company.

  Theo sighed. He needed to talk to her and explain before he ended up hurting them both.

  The sound of helicopter blades slicing through the air broke into his train of thought and he moved farther away from the building and into the open yard area, scanning the vicinity for it. Theo saw it in the east and was pleased to see it was coming in his direction. He considered for a moment then waved his hands in the air, hoping they would see him. It could be the drug dealers, but he had to take a chance. The Martinezes and Whitney all needed a way out of here, and they were out of food and other necessities. He ran his tongue over his teeth. What he wouldn’t give for a toothbrush!


  Whitney suddenly emerged from the front door of the building, her eyes scanning the sky as she looked for the approaching helicopter. Seeing it coming toward them, she turned and said something to the Martinez family, ostensibly telling them to get ready in case the helicopter saw them and was able to land and take them to safety. Melissa came out onto the porch but Whitney shooed her back inside.

  The sight of Whitney and the little girl made Theo’s heart clench. He said a quick prayer, asking God to make the helicopter part of a rescue effort instead of the drug dealers arriving to kill them. If it was the cartel, they had no place to go and they would all be sitting ducks.

  His prayer was answered.

  As the aircraft approached, Theo could see the logo of the Miami-Dade Air Rescue Unit painted on the door and the underbelly. An emergency medical technician wearing a blue uniform, with a large red cross on his hat, was standing at the open doorway. He waved back at Theo, letting him know that they knew he was there.

  Theo ran back up the porch, getting away from the open area so the helicopter could land.

  A few minutes later the aircraft had landed, even though the blades were still turning. The EMT rescuer jumped off the deck and walked toward the building, ducking low to stay out of the way of the rotors.

  He approached Theo and shook his hand. “Mike Kilpatrick, at your service. Did you folks get stranded here? This building is supposed to be empty.” He turned slightly and noticed Whitney, who had just come out onto the porch to join them. He nodded when they made eye contact and shook her hand, as well. “Can we help? We’re out here looking for people that might have gotten trapped in the park due to the storm. It changed directions so quickly that not everybody got the message they needed to get out of the park and take cover before it hit.”

  “We could definitely use a ride to a safe location,” Theo said loudly above the engine noise. “This is Whitney Johnson,” he added, pointing to her. Then he motioned to the area in general. “We sure are glad to see you!”

  Whitney met the rescuer’s eye. “I’m a US Marshal, Mr. Kilpatrick, and we have a situation here. There’s a crime scene in the building that can’t be disturbed. I also need to make a call into the US Marshals’ office in Tallahassee. I can give you more details if you need them, but I’d rather discuss it after the Martinez family is safe and secure on your aircraft. They arrived after the crime was committed, and have nothing to do with it. They also have three young children with special needs that need attention.”

  Kilpatrick raised an eyebrow just as David came outside and introduced himself, as well. “That storm surprised us and our boat sank,” he said. “We were lucky to make it this far.”

  “How many of you are there?” Kilpatrick asked as Geri and the three kids came out onto the porch.

  “There are five of us, and Whitney and Theo, so seven in all,” David answered, gesturing with his hands.

  “Take the Martinez family first,” Whitney stated in a matter-of-fact tone. “We can wait.”

  “Are you sure you don’t need any sort of medical assistance?” Kilpatrick asked.

  Theo shook his head. “We’re doing fine, but the kids need food and shelter.”

  “We do need some sort of local law-enforcement officer to return with you, though,” Whitney added. “Someone official to help us process the crime scene.”

  “Understood,” Kilpatrick stated, his hands on his hips and his voice grave. It was obvious he was curious, but to his credit, he didn’t pursue the matter.

  He nodded and informed the pilot about what he had found, then paused as he listened to the pilot’s response in his earpiece. Once he finished the conversation, he turned back to the group on the porch. “We’ve been out for a while, and will have to refuel at the Opa Locka airport before we can return,” he said, indicating the helicopter. “The problem is, none of the other first responders out searching are anywhere close to our location, so you’ll just have to sit tight until we can return to pick you up.”

  He motioned to David. “Let’s get your family on board and to the nearest hospital, and then we’ll return for the two of you,” he said, making eye contact with Whitney.

  “There’s an FWC officer at the hospital who will wait until we arrive,” he told her. “We’ll pick him up and bring him back with us. Apparently, he is the only one available right now to come investigate your crime scene. We’ve got several agencies out here doing search and rescue, and the storm left a real mess in its wake, so every possible officer in the local area is already pulling double duty helping out. Even the governor is down here. None of us expected the hurricane to hit land, and then it turned at the last minute and slammed us mighty hard.”

  “The inclement weather probably doesn’t help,” Whitney added, her expression grim. She glanced up at the sky where the sun was finally starting to peek out again from behind the clouds. It seemed like days since she’d felt the sun’s heat on her face. Even with the sunburn, she’d missed it during the last few cloudy days. “I’d imagine that a lot of the rescuers can’t even get out this far.”

  “You’re right about that,” Kilpatrick answered. “And we’ve gotten all sorts of reports about stranded tourists, hikers, and the like. We’ll be busy for the foreseeable future.” He motioned toward the helicopter. “For now, let’s get the Martinezes to the hospital to have them checked out.”

  Theo nodded and both he and Whitney helped Kilpatrick lead the family over to the aircraft and get the family on board and buckled into the seat belts. They all said a quick goodbye to each other and Melissa reached out and gave Whitney a big hug once the family was secured. Then the little girl waved at her happily as Whitney and Theo backed away and took refuge on the porch so the helicopter could take off. The aircraft slowly rose into the air, then turned and started back in the same direction it had come, carrying the precious cargo back to civilization.

  At least the Martinez family was safe. Theo looked over at Whitney, who brushed a tear out of her eye. She had changed shirts and was wearing a light blue Everglades Park shirt that they’d found in a box in the storage room. Yet even though it was fresher than her old shirt, it was still smudged with dirt. She had pulled her hair back in a ponytail with a rubber band, yet, as usual, much had escaped and was sticking out in several directions due to the wind caused by the rotor blades. Her cheeks were flushed, which he could tell now because the awful sunburn that she had sported ever since he had known her was finally starting to fade.

  She had never looked lovelier.

  How was he ever going to let her go?

  FIFTEEN

  True to his word, Michael Kilpatrick returned with the helicopter a few hours later, toting a tall, freckle-faced Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officer, as well. The crime scene took forever to process, but Kilpatrick had brought both Whitney and Theo a boxed lunch that some well-meaning group had been handing out to hurricane victims at the hospital. Thankfully, the box had also contained a complementary personal care kit with a toothbrush, toothpaste and sample-size deodorant.

  Whitney wasn’t shy about gobbling down her food, or about putting the toiletries to good use. She scrubbed most of the dirt away, then liberally spread over the worst of her peeling skin some lotion that she had found in the bottom of the box. The comb from the box had also been somewhat useful, but it had taken her quite a long time to tame her hair back into some semblance of normalcy.

  Before even going to work in the building, the FWC officer had interviewed Whitney quite extensively, and he had taken six pages of notes about what had happened to her ever since she’d boarded that tour boat back in the Keys. Upon her insistence, he had called in her report and tried to contact the closest US Marshal unit, but after talking to the secretary, she’d hadn’t been able to speak with anyone of any rank. The storm had really pulled all hands on deck. Every officer in South Florida seemed to be involved in some form o
f disaster relief as the area tried to recuperate from the hurricane. Many regions still had no food, water, or even electricity.

  Theo approached her after the FWC officer had stored his laptop and gone into the building. His face reflected a mixture of relief and exhaustion, but Whitney noticed that he had shaved and combed his hair, as well. His box must have also contained a razor and shaving cream.

  She looked into his eyes, which were creased and heavy. Had he slept at all last night? She was beginning to wonder. He had gone through so much, and all because of her. Whitney looked forward to the day when she could return him to his normal life and they no longer had criminals breathing down their necks. Or did she? The idea of saying goodbye was a dismal one, but yet one she knew was bound to occur. She couldn’t avoid it forever. And she did want him to be happy. That much was true, even though she would miss his quiet strength, his sweet smile and his incredible eyes.

  “Any news?” he asked.

  “No. Unfortunately, not one local was available because everyone’s out working the aftermath of the storm, but I left a message with the secretary. I finally was able to call home, though, and talked to Jake Riley, the leader of my team up in Tallahassee. I told him everything, and reinforcements are on the way, but it’s going to take them several hours to get down here. If we can just avoid the cartel ’til then, we’ll have a chance of surviving this mess.”

  “Our chances went up considerably when this helicopter arrived and there weren’t any drug dealers inside. I’m still wondering what happened with Jose.”

  Whitney shrugged. “We may never know, but we can’t let our guard down. We won’t be completely safe until we figure out who El Jefe is and we arrest the guy. Any guesses?”

  Theo rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. “It could be Captain Baker, but I’m thinking it has to be someone in government, someone higher up than a captain with the Coast Guard.”