“You’re just some guy who lives on an island, huh? I think there’s a little more to you than that.” Adele spotted a large boat wake coming toward them. She looked behind her at Fin. “Hold on back there.”
The Chris Craft hit the wake without slowing. The bow lifted and then dove down as salt spray covered the windshield. Seeing Fin still grinning with his eyes closed and his arms spread out across the bench seat made Adele laugh.
Roland was staring at her again. “You know,” Adele said, “there’s a fine line between charming and creepy. You keep looking at me like that and I’ll have to put you in the creepy category.”
A pair of chattering bald eagles flew over the boat, diving and swirling around each other. It was a high-flying courtship dance that took place at the beginning of every spring throughout the islands that attracted bird lovers from all over the world. Sometimes the eagles would lock talons and then drop from the sky before letting go just seconds away from mutual oblivion, something ornithologists believed to be a pre-mating test the birds instinctively used to better determine the health and flying abilities of their potential partner.
Adele craned her head to watch the eagles as the Chris Craft passed underneath them. She detected movement, looked to the side, and found Roland leaning over her. “What are you—” Before she could finish Roland’s mouth was on hers. When she started to pull away, his lips followed, and the kiss continued. It was more playful than aggressive, a light touch, a flick of tongue, a touch of noses, and then a slow retreat.
“That had to be done,” Roland said. “I had no choice. You just look so good I couldn’t hold out any longer.”
Adele licked her lips, savoring the lingering remnants of the kiss. Then she remembered Fin was sitting right behind them. She turned her head and found his eyes were still closed but his grin had turned into a wide smile. One eye opened and then winked before closing again.
Something hard struck the boat. Adele’s head snapped back as she tried to determine what it was. She pulled back on the throttle, leaned over the side, and looked down. “See anything?” she said to the others.
Fin pointed to a log floating some twenty feet directly behind them. “I’m pretty sure that was it. Any damage to the hull?”
Adele listened for the sound of the automatic bilge pumps turning on which would signal they were taking on water. “Not sure,” she answered as she took the boat into and out of gear several times. The transmission still shifted smoothly. She put it into gear again and accelerated slightly while trying to sense any abnormal sounds or vibrations. Everything felt fine.
“One hell of a boat,” Roland said. “That was a good-sized floater we hit.”
“She’s built right,” Adele replied. “Probably scuffed the gelcoat up, but this is some seriously heavy fiberglass we’re floating on. I bet we did more damage to the log than it did to the boat. It’s your fault by the way.”
Fin laughed as he pointed at Roland. “She’s right about that. You distracted the captain you charming rich bastard. We could have gone the way of the Titanic.”
Adele hammered down on the throttle and smiled as both Roland and Fin were thrown back in their seats. She wanted to be safely tied up at Roche before the afternoon winds picked up. With the hint of warmer weather came increased boat traffic. They passed several sailboats on the way into the harbor before slowing down once they were inside the no wake zone. Adele had just turned the corner to head toward her slip when she saw Lucas standing at the end of the dock with his arms crossed staring at them as they approached. A raven perched on the top of a piling directly behind him cried out and then took off toward Orcas.
“Is it just me,” Roland said, “or does the good sheriff look all kinds of upset?”
Lucas’s face was grim. He locked eyes with Adele, nodded once, and then turned to meet them at the slip. Adele’s mind raced with possibilities about what the problem might be. When she pulled into the slip, Lucas was there waiting for them.
“What’s going on?” Adele said as she stepped onto the dock after the boat was tied up.
“What isn’t going on is more like it,” Lucas answered.
Roland and Fin stood behind Adele. She looked at Lucas and shrugged. “Well?”
Lucas turned around and then turned back. “I don’t want to talk here. We should go somewhere private.”
“How about my yacht?” Roland offered.
Lucas nodded. “Yeah, that’ll work. Both of these things involve you.”
Roland frowned. “Me? What did I do this time?”
“C’mon,” Lucas said as he started walking. “I’ll get you up to speed once we’re inside.” He stopped and pointed at Fin. “I’m afraid you’re not a part of this, Mr. Kearns.”
Fin looked at Adele and then at Lucas. “Official police stuff is it, Sheriff?”
“Yeah,” Lucas replied. “Something like that. You’re welcome to wait up at the hotel. We won’t be long.”
Fin tipped his cap. “No worries. I’ll keep Tilda company. You know she’ll be asking me what’s going on though.”
Lucas was on the move again. “Of that I have no doubt.” Adele could feel the tension coming off him in waves. After they reached Roland’s yacht, Lucas stopped and looked up with his hand on his gun. “You have an alarm system?”
“No,” Roland answered. “Not yet. Why?”
Lucas walked up the boarding ramp, went to the side door, and knocked. “Sheriff’s department.”
Adele and Roland both shared a quick “what the hell is going on” look as they watched Lucas draw his weapon before he tried the door.
“It’s locked,” Roland said. “Do you want me to open it for you?”
Lucas stepped to the side. “Yeah, but wait here with Adele while I make sure it’s safe.”
“Who do you think might be in there?” Roland asked as he unlocked the door.
Lucas went inside without answering, leaving Roland and Adele to wonder what was going on. “It’s all clear,” he said a short time later. “Come on in.”
After he sat down Lucas asked for something to drink. Roland returned with a bottle of whiskey and three glasses. He poured Lucas and Adele a double and then did the same for himself before sitting next to Adele.
Lucas stared at the whiskey for a few seconds, took a sip, and then looked up. “I’ll start with the less bad news.” He had another sip before continuing. “Sandra Penny stopped by my office this morning and confessed that she was the one who came to Roche Harbor and frightened Adele with her car. She claims that wasn’t her intent. She just wanted to talk but then panicked and drove away and then panicked again when I showed up at the bank asking her questions about it. Apparently, she was upset about the pending bank sale and was hoping Adele could help to convince Roland not to go through with it. Then she wondered if Adele might actually be the reason for the sale.”
“Why in the world would she think that?” Adele said.
Lucas sighed. “The gist of it was that she believes you’re the only one Roland really listens to so if he had decided to sell the bank it must have been because you told him it was a good idea. Look, I’m not going to go into all the specifics of her confession. The fact is no one was hurt and beyond lying to me that morning at the bank, she did nothing illegal. I do think we need to all have a discussion, though, so that this thing doesn’t fester. Ms. Penny feels terrible for lying but still harbors some serious resentment regarding the bank sale.”
Roland finished his whiskey and set the glass down. “And this is supposed to be the good news?”
“No,” Lucas replied. “I said this was less bad than the other news.”
Adele leaned forward. “You also said both of those things involve Roland. I saw your face when I came into the harbor. Whatever you have left to tell us is a lot worse than the situation with Sandra Penny.”
“Yeah,” Lucas murmured. “It is.” He looked at Roland’s empty glass. “You’re going to want to pour yourself another o
ne.”
Roland’s eyes narrowed. “I’m fine. Tell me what’s going on, Lucas.”
“It’s about Marianne Rocha.”
“Huh,” Roland said. “We were just talking about her on the way back from Orcas. Apparently, she was there recently asking people questions about the bank sale.”
Lucas flinched. “She was here on the islands?”
Roland nodded. “That’s what we were told. Why?”
The space between Lucas and Adele suddenly grew very heavy. She kept quiet and braced for the bad news.
Lucas sighed again. His head was down. “They found her this morning.”
“Who?” Roland asked.
“Seattle PD.”
“I don’t understand. Found her where?”
“In her apartment earlier today.”
There was a pause. Adele heard a soft thump from above and then the familiar croak of a raven. The yacht shifted slightly as small waves smacked against the hull. The afternoon winds had arrived.
Lucas looked up. “Marianne Rocha is dead.”
32.
“I ’m a suspect?” Roland got up and paced the floor. “That’s ridiculous. I would never do something like that, and I haven’t been to Seattle in weeks.”
“You’re actually just a person of interest,” Lucas replied. “Not a suspect.”
“There’s a difference?”
“Yes. A significant one. For now, the death is being ruled an accidental overdose. I spoke for some time with the lead detective on the case. They just had a few questions about your relationship with Ms. Rocha. For now, that’s pretty much it as far as Seattle PD are concerned. But then there’s the matter of Agent Eaton. The fact he reached out to me within an hour of my being notified of Ms. Rocha’s death confirms that you continue to be under surveillance by the FBI. Eaton had more questions about the bank sale. He also came right out and asked me if I thought you were capable of murder. He said she was about to do a report on the sale and your alleged links to organized crime.”
Roland sat back down like his legs had given out, looked up at the ceiling, and let loose an f-bomb under his breath.
Lucas nodded. “Yeah, that’s pretty much how I thought you’d take that particular bit of information.”
“Do I need to make a call to my attorney?”
“That’s up to you, Roland, but at this point there is no criminal investigation. The pills were by her bed and the investigators are now awaiting the autopsy results to confirm the overdose. As you said, you weren’t close to being in Seattle at the time of death and have plenty of witnesses who can corroborate that fact. Eaton’s tone was different though. I don’t believe he has anything as far as evidence but he’s suspicious that Ms. Rocha’s sudden passing and her investigation into your bank sale could be directly or indirectly related. Though he didn’t come right out and say it my sense of the situation is that he’s likely to make a call to federal regulators to try to delay or even kill the sale.”
Roland’s face went pale as he shook his head. “I’ve already spent a small fortune on legal fees navigating the sale to this point. Now that SOB Eaton is going to nuke it with one phone call. The man won’t stop until I’m left with nothing.”
“I told Eaton that I’ve been watching closely for any return of organized crime to the islands and that you have been nothing less than a model citizen around here since the run-in last year with the Vasa family. While I’m one of those who doesn’t want to see us lose control of our local bank, I also won’t help anyone to unfairly slander your name. Nobody deserves that.”
“Thanks for the good word,” Roland said. “I’m not sure it’ll make a difference, but I appreciate the effort.”
Adele put her glass down and waited until Lucas looked at her. “What kind of pills were they?”
“Pain pills,” Lucas replied. “Apparently, she had been complaining to some of her newsroom colleagues about a sore hip.”
Adele recalled the recent fight she had with Marianne Rocha inside Tilda’s hotel and wondered if that had led to Marianne’s need for pain pills.
I did strike her hip with my knee. God, what if I’m the reason she’s dead?
“Adele,” Lucas said, “if you’re thinking that this is somehow in any way your fault please don’t go there. You can’t be responsible for how people choose to medicate. There could have been alcohol involved, depression, who knows? What happened between you and Ms. Rocha in the hotel has nothing to do with her death. You were just defending yourself.”
“That’s right,” Roland added. “She was a troubled woman. Driven, obsessive, manipulative, controlling, you name it; Marianne was fighting some version of all those things and more. The fact she attacked you like she did is clear evidence of that.”
“What about the Russians?” Adele said. “Liya Vasa? Marianne came at the Vasa family pretty hard with her reporting last year. Could this have been payback as well as a message from them that we’re next?”
Lucas nodded. “Both the Seattle authorities and the feds are looking hard at that possibility. There’s no recent confirmation of Liya Vasa’s whereabouts and no red flags regarding her family preparing to make a move against us here.”
“So—” Adele sighed, “—we’re supposed to go on as if everything is normal?”
“No,” Lucas said. “That’s not what I meant. Nothing has changed regarding the high alert status that’s been in play regarding the Russians. I continue to be in regular contact with both U.S. and Canadian law enforcement officials. If Liya Vasa shows up here, we’ll be ready for her. Even if I have to pull the trigger myself.”
Roland rubbed his eyes. “And should I be expecting a visit from Agent Eaton?”
“No. I don’t think so. Not at this point. My sense is Eaton is still in watch-and-wait mode.”
Another possibility suddenly came to Adele. “Or he’s hoping to use us to draw Liya into the open.”
“Like bait?” Roland said.
Adele nodded. “Exactly. And he could be doing that not just by waiting Liya out but also by pushing you into a corner. What if Eaton is using Marianne Rocha’s death to halt your bank sale deal in the hopes of making you desperate enough to reach out to the Russians for help? Then he swoops in and gets the both of you behind bars.”
“I’d be more than a little offended if Eaton actually thinks I would do something that stupid.”
Lucas got up. “He might not hold the same high regard for your intelligence that we do.”
If Lucas had meant the comment as a joke Roland didn’t take it that way. He locked eyes with his old childhood friend and scowled. “Agent Eaton can kiss my ass, Sheriff.”
“I meant no disrespect, Roland. I promise I’ll keep my eyes and ears open for anything coming from the feds or the Seattle PD. Until then it’s likely a good idea to keep your attorneys updated as well—just in case.”
Roland stood and shook Lucas’s hand. “Already on it. Thanks again for putting the good word in. Hopefully none of this mess goes any further.”
“I feel the same,” Lucas replied. He turned toward Adele. “Are you going to see Tilda and Fin at the hotel?”
Adele shook her head. “Not yet.”
Lucas’s eyes darted from Roland to Adele. “Okay. Well, I’ll be going then. I’m finally getting around to organizing my father’s old patient files in the attic at home. Been putting it off for months. You two stay safe.”
***
“I’m so sick of this crap,” Roland said after Lucas was gone. He sat and poured another drink. “Every damn time I try to do something different around here it’s like some unseen force pulls me back to the same old same old.” He looked up at Adele. “Why do you think that is?”
“I wish I knew.”
“Sometimes it just feels like too much. I’m the last of my kind. My parents and grandparents are dead. No siblings. No aunts or uncles. It’s just me and I’m tired, Adele. I mean I’m really tired of this one step forward two steps back ru
t I seem to be trapped in lately.”
Adele thought of Mother Mary Ophelia as she stared at Roland. “You’re not alone. You have friends, a home, people who depend on you. And you have me.”
“Do I?” Roland tilted his head back and closed his eyes. “I’m sorry. You’re right. I have a lot more than most. It’s just that sometimes I would sure like to be able to sit down with my grandfather and get his advice, but that’s never going to happen. Like I said, I’m the last of my kind.” He sat up. “Say, remember when I told you about the trip up the Inside Passage I was planning to take?”
“Sure.”
“Well, I’m still hoping you’ll join me.”
“What if the bank sale situation turns into a dumpster fire because of Agent Eaton’s interference? Won’t you be sticking around to prevent that from happening?”
Roland sipped from his glass. “This yacht is set up for conducting business no matter where in the world it is. You could turn the trip into a story for the paper. You won’t regret it. I promise.”
“I tell you what. Let’s get past these next few days of chaos and then I’ll give you an answer, okay?”
Roland leaned over and kissed Adele’s cheek. “Thank you.”
Adele kissed him back. “You’re welcome.”
“Want to stay the night?”
“No, I should stop in and see Tilda. She’ll want to hear about the Orcas trip.”
“That’s two rain checks you’ll owe me then. One for the Inside Passage trip and one for the sleepover.”
Adele handed her glass to Roland and then stood. “One thing at a time. Let’s see how this other stuff shakes out first.”
“Deal,” Roland said as he got up. “You want me to walk with you to Tilda’s?”
“No, I’m fine. You get some rest. Are you really okay after learning of Marianne’s death?”
Roland pinched his bottom lip with his fingers and shrugged. “As much as I’m uncomfortable saying it, the fact is I’m fine. It’s like I told you already. It was just a few dates and what little I knew of her I didn’t particularly like. I’m sad for her and whatever family she has but beyond that . . . I don’t feel much at all. Does that make me a bad person?”
Roche Harbor Rogue Page 22