by Toby Neal
“Such big words!” Sophie batted her eyes. “You astound me, Jake.”
“I may be a Neanderthal, but I did go to college. Majored in political science. I even read several Cliff’s notes of the classics.”
“I like big words, Jake.” Sophie petted his leg a little too close to the groin this time, and he almost swerved off the road.
“Watch those hands or you’ll have to pay the price,” he warned. She laughed, and it was good to see a little color come back into her face.
“I am hungry. Perhaps we could buy one of those nutritionally unsound musubi things on the way to Dr. Wilson’s office,” she murmured. “I do wish we could have a more active role in the investigation. I am annoyed by this private role. But I could not stay in the FBI when they were trying to take ownership of DAVID. And I got frustrated there too, with the kinds of cases I had to keep working.”
“Tell me more about that.” Keep her mind off the bodies, keep her talking. “What’s going on with your patent application?”
“It’s moving ahead. The FBI has relinquished its bid for ownership with the advocacy of my very competent lawyer. But it’s a slow process. And the issues of consent and confidentiality . . . I don’t know if they will ever be resolved.”
Jake patted her leg this time. “I have faith in you, my intellectual logophile.”
Her smile was his reward. He was definitely going to be throwing around more big words.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Sophie was somewhat restored by an energy drink and convenience store musubi by the time Jake dropped her off for her appointment at Dr. Wilson’s office on a side street near Hilo Bay.
Sophie waited in the tiny anteroom with its rattan loveseat, potted fern, and walls painted a soothing blue. She picked up her phone and continued the text Jake had interrupted. She had started to reply to Alika’s inquiry asking how things were going on her hike. “I have not had the restful trip I hoped for when you dropped me off. Jake and I found the body of our client today. Very sad. I dread telling the parents. And there are many missing people here. We might have found another body dump.”
“What the hell?”
“Yes. This island has too many people who have disappeared for it to be a normal pattern. I suspect a serial killer. We have just begun to scratch the surface with finding the body of our client, and some additional bones. Ginger is quite a cadaver dog, it turns out.”
“Do you need help?”
The question mark of Alika’s inquiry pulsed at her. Did she need help?
Yes, and no.
She didn’t know what to do about her personal life, and he would do nothing but confuse her further. She shuddered to think of Alika and Jake in the same room. The lunch her father had hosted on Oahu at the Honua Pub had been barely tolerable; the two seemed to have taken an instant dislike to each other; unusual particularly for Alika, who got along with everyone.
The inner door opened, and Dr. Wilson stuck her head around the corner of the jamb. “Please come in, Sophie.” The psychologist looked tidy and composed, her blonde bob feathering around her face. “How are you today?”
Sophie entered the room. She was still muddy and sweaty from wrestling the bushes near the stream, and her scratches itched. She resisted an urge to rub the sore places. “I have had an eventful day.”
“As if yesterday were not enough.” Dr. Wilson seated herself in the lounger and picked up her clipboard, pen poised. “Have you had a chance to investigate your mother’s secret organization? I was Googling around last night, and there was a rumor of something, some kind of palace guard, that was established to take care of the Thai royal family millennia ago. Maybe this is a modern version of that.”
“I haven’t had a chance to do anything further.” Sophie shook her head, smiling slightly. “After I left your office, I picked up Jake at the police station. We got my rental car, which I haven’t even had a chance to drive, and went to the motel here in Hilo where I’d rented a room. I admit I collapsed. Had a relapse of my depression.”
“Tell me more about that. Since you are a new client, it would help me to know a little bit of your history with the disorder.”
Sophie filled the psychologist in briefly, describing her episodes of depression since she was a teenager, and how it manifested.
“Yesterday evening I went to bed in the motel before it was even dark outside. I was deep in it, not really able to do anything else. Jake left me alone, but in the morning, he . . .” To her embarrassment, Sophie felt her cheeks and neck heat up.
“He did what?”
“Jake got in bed with me. Just held me. We fell asleep, then I woke up, and I felt better. I wanted to . . . be with him. Physically.”
Dr. Wilson definitely had what Sophie had heard called a twinkle in her eye as she leaned forward, smiling. “I take it that some sexual healing took place.”
Sophie rubbed a scratch on the back of one hand. “I’m not familiar with that phrase, but I could imagine it being called that, yes.” She struggled to find words to explain. “It was very good. Very healing as you say. Jake has agreed to my terms that we are merely partners with benefits. We are not a couple. We talked about it this morning.”
“Oh, he’s agreed to that, has he?” Dr. Wilson’s eyebrows had raised high in a skeptical way. “Tell me more about Jake. He seems to be quite a character.”
“Oh, indeed he is. Jake is large.”
Dr. Wilson burst into laughter.
Sophie fanned hot cheeks with a hand, smiling. “I didn’t mean that as an innuendo. But Jake is large physically and he has a commanding personality and presence. He has always irritated me by getting too personal. He is intrusive and bossy, and used to try to control and protect me. He made sexual comments and overtures that I declined. But as time has gone on, I find that I like him more than I ever thought I would. And he has learned that being treated like a sex object is unpleasant. Detective Freitan has been harassing him and he has learned a lesson from it.” Sophie glanced at the clock over the psychologist’s head; they still had plenty of time. “I have always found Jake physically attractive.”
“You’d have to be dead not to find Jake physically attractive,” Dr. Wilson said. “I met him on Oahu when I was doing some consulting for Security Solutions. I may be twice your age, but I’m not dead.”
Sophie nodded. “I believe Jake’s attractiveness is biological in nature. Evolution favors powerful males with survival skills. Women are drawn to those who will be able to sire strong progeny and protect them during vulnerable pregnancy and the extended period of child rearing for humans.” She blew out a breath and sighed. “But Jake is also funny, and generous. He is loyal, and focused when he has a goal. He is a creative problem-solver, much smarter than he at first appears. All of these are attractive traits.”
“You’re talking about him as if he were a research project,” Dr. Wilson said. “As if you need to justify any involvement with him. And if all these things are true, why don’t you want anything more than “partners with benefits?” She made air quotes.
“Because I don’t want to be in a relationship right now!” Sophie burst out. “I don’t trust myself. I make bad decisions about men.”
Dr. Wilson sat back, frowning. “Tell me more about this.”
“First Assan, who I agreed to marry even though I didn’t love him. I was attracted to him, yes. He was older, and sophisticated. He was good to me in the beginning. After Assan and his tortures, I didn’t date anyone at all for five years until I slowly began to have feelings for Alika as I got to know him through coaching me at Fight Club. Then, it seemed like something was happening with us, and Assan destroyed it. Destroyed him. We broke up. And then . . . Connor fascinated me.” Sophie looked up into Dr. Wilson’s bright blue eyes. “You have to keep what I’m going to tell you in the utmost confidence. It’s an open investigation, and I know things that I don’t want to have subpoenaed.”
“You signed the confidentiality paperwork yourself. You are
as protected as I can make this. I won’t take any notes on this topic. In fact, if you would like to see my notes after the session, you are welcome to.”
“I trust you, Dr. Wilson. And that’s what I’m going to tell you: my first lover after Assan was a cyber vigilante mastermind who calls himself the Ghost.”
“That’s quite an opening line, Sophie!” Dr. Wilson smiled. “Where have you been all my life! I should pay you to talk to me, because of how interesting all this is!”
“I’m glad I could provide amusement. I myself have found the situation less entertaining.” Sophie told Dr. Wilson the series of events that had led to her involvement with the Ghost.
“That’s quite a tale, and I can see why it would put a damper on your belief in your own judgment. But on the other hand, Connor seems to have genuine feelings for you. You two were caught in a moral dilemma that separated you. He seems to have been quite a remarkable man, as are Jake and Alika. If anything, your problem is that you have too many great choices.”
“I have to agree. And this is why I don’t want to be in a relationship with anyone right now. I just don’t think I know what or who is good for me in the long run. But in the short term, I like having sex with Jake. It makes me feel better.”
Dr. Wilson muffled a snort of laughter behind her hand. She dabbed her eyes with a tissue and composed herself. “Don’t blame you a bit for that. Good sex is definitely an activity that can help battle depression. I just worry that it will lead to . . . hurt feelings. On either end.”
“Oh, I already know Jake has other women. On our last job he was sleeping with Antigua, the estate manager.” Sophie remembered the breathless feeling she’d had when Antigua told her the two were physically involved. “I didn’t like hearing it, but mostly I think because he didn’t tell me; Antigua did. And I was with Connor then. Now . . . I have to trust that Jake is okay with our arrangement and will not be too possessive. He says it is okay.” She sighed. “And I still have feelings for Alika. He came back into my life on my last job.” She described the series of events on Kaua’i. “We kissed. But never agreed upon anything further. I got the feeling, though, that he still cares for me. Always has, even though we broke up.”
“One of the things you said was that you didn’t think you would have gotten involved with the Ghost if your relationship with Alika had worked out. What if that changed? Why don’t you tell me more about Alika and how he was and is different than Jake?”
“Alika is different because first he was my coach and my friend. I was always attracted to him; anyone would be. He is a beautiful man inside and out. But for the longest time, I didn’t know he thought anything of me beyond friendship and our coaching relationship. Alika is restful. He makes me feel safe. He is sexy and attractive, but in a different way than Jake or Connor. Each man has his own unique presence that seems to bring out something different in me.”
“You seem to think you should decide right away who to be with. Maybe you are still recovering from Assan . . . and are still too damaged by what happened with him to really know.”
“I don’t think so.” The more Sophie thought about it, the more certain she became. “I have been out from under Assan for five years. Yes, he attacked me and the men I was dating, but ultimately, I beat him. This is different. It’s about who I am becoming, and who is right for me, not just now but in the future. Only I have no idea what that future will be, and I’m still trying to discover who I am, away from Assan and his shadow.”
“So trust that the men in your life are big boys. They will choose their own responses to your honesty about what’s going on for you.”
“But it is very stressful not knowing. I don’t want to break anyone’s heart. Mine was broken when Alika was beaten, and again when I thought Connor was dead.” Sophie spat the word out in remembered pain. “Connor let me think he was dead! How could he do that?”
“Why did he do that?”
“He said it was so that we could get a fresh start without each other, since the Ghost’s mission was separating us. He said letting me think he was dead seemed kinder than breaking up because of his ideals. And then he found he missed me too much, and he wanted me to forgive him. I cannot.” Sophie’s lips felt numb as rage at the betrayal coursed through her body. “I will never trust him again. And yet . . . I reached out to him because of this case.”
“Oh really?” Dr. Wilson got up and went to the small fridge in the corner of the room. She removed two water bottles and handed one to Sophie. “Go on.”
Sophie told Dr. Wilson about the discovery of the body dump in Kalapana. “The detectives confirmed that the family I found was in Witness Protection. They were cut out of the case, but there is a leak in that organization that’s leading to the assassination of witnesses. Connor loves that kind of case, and can do more to fix it than anyone else. He just texted me that he was working on it. Wanted me to call him to get information for the detectives.”
“So he is using the situation with you reaching out to him to gain personal contact with you. I want to challenge you that some part of you knew it when you contacted him. Knew that, and wanted that involvement.”
“Perhaps.” Sophie didn’t want to go there. “More occurred today. Ginger found the body of our client.”
“No wonder you haven’t had time to research your mother! Good Lord, woman.” Dr. Wilson took a dramatic swig from her water bottle. “I’m exhausted just hearing all of this. How did that come about?”
Sophie told her. “Ginger found the bones of another victim, too. The investigators are treating the stream as if it might be another dump site.”
Dr. Wilson frowned at the clock. “I’m sorry, Sophie, I could talk with you all day and it wouldn’t be enough—but I have another client coming. Can we meet again tomorrow? I would like to keep our momentum. I’m sure I can bill some of this to Security Solutions as post-trauma counseling, if that’s a concern. I do contract work for them on occasion.”
“That would be fine.” They set a time for the next day.
“I can hardly wait for the next installment of As Sophie’s World Turns. Please, try to find out more about your mother and her organization before our next meeting. Don’t let all of this other stuff distract you, and believe me, it may feel more compelling to you, more immediate. But the situation with your mother really requires some deeper exploration, and I encourage you not to shy away from that. When did she say she needed an answer?”
“She said she would wait to hear from me. She gave me a phone number.” That number seemed to be burned in glowing digits into Sophie’s memory. “You are right. I wish to avoid everything to do with my mother.”
“But I will help you. Together, we can navigate this. And your love life, too.”
Sophie hugged the psychologist spontaneously as they headed for the door. “Thank you. I feel less alone.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
Evening was casting long shadows over the dense jungle area of the crime scene as Jake pulled up in the Jeep. Sophie had told him she would take a rideshare back to the Banyan Tree Motel and pick up her rental to re-join him after her appointment with Dr. Wilson, so he decided to go back out to see if any further discoveries had been made, and just insert himself back into the investigation.
Detective Wong detached himself from a cluster of law enforcement personnel and met Jake near the Jeep. “We found two more bodies. Much more decomposed than your client. The chief has ordered a full survey of the ditch and the surrounding areas to find any further remains.”
“Aw, man. I hope that stream wasn’t feeding into some drinking water reservoir,” Jake said. “But it looks like we might be able to cross a few more names off the missing persons list Sophie has put together.”
“That’s if we can identify them.” Wong gestured toward a large plastic tub. “This one is so far gone it came apart when the ME tried to move it.”
Jake held his breath against the smell as he looked in. Bones gleamed amid a
sludgy mass that seemed to be liquefying before Jake’s eyes. “Nasty. Definitely going to need to use dental records to check who it is.”
“That’s what we’re counting on.”
Freitan strode up. “Well, we seem to have hit a body dump motherlode. We’re going to search until we run out of light, and then pick it up again tomorrow. If you want to come to a team meeting to strategize, we are meeting back at the station in about an hour.”
“I know Sophie will want to be there too. What can I do to help?”
“Put up crime scene tape. We’re cordoning off the entire creek, and that goes on for quite a way along the road.”
Jake didn’t resent the lowly task, but he was glad he had put on his usual worn black ripstop combat pants and waterproof hiking boots as he tromped through the long grass and heavy bushes, unrolling a large spool of tape with another officer.
“I hope someone called the water department,” he remarked to the uniform working with him, a sturdy young man whose nametag read RAMIREZ. “This stream is heavily contaminated.”
“Even the governor of Hawaii has been alerted by our station chief,” Ramirez said. “The situation with missing persons on the Big Island has been declared a state of emergency.”
Interesting that Ramirez was the one to tell him such important news, not the detectives working the case with him. Jake wondered if it was just an oversight, or if Freitan and Wong were intentionally cutting him and Sophie out of the loop. That would be a mistake, with Sophie’s connections to the FBI and her access to the DAVID program’s sophisticated analytical capabilities.
“Has the local news gotten ahold of this yet?” Jake asked.
“Hope not. We don’t need this kind of publicity,” Ramirez said. “Spooks the tourists.”
“Maybe they need to be spooked.” A measure of greater caution might have saved Julie Weathersby’s life. Jake dreaded phoning the parents; but he needed to get it done before the meeting. “Hey, mind carrying on without me? Got an important phone call to make, and I need to get somewhere with a strong signal.”