“No, he’s early,” she assured him as they pulled up. “And he’s…” She looked up the hill and sucked in a breath. “Digging for something at the top.”
Luke’s eyes popped at the sight. Someone had planted stakes about halfway up the hill and strung an orange rope, and about seven No Trespassing signs decorated the grass. At the top of the hill, Cutter and two other men, both in matching khaki shirts and pants, were talking. One of the men was leaning on a shovel.
Cutter turned and gave a sharp, quick wave, and even from this distance, Ari could see the face of an unhappy man.
“Looks pissed,” Luke said as he turned off the truck.
“Maybe the news that he’s sitting on millions of dollars will cheer him up.”
“Maybe.” He put his hand on the door and gave her a warning look. “Don’t tell anyone, Arielle. Whoever those guys are, whatever they’re doing, don’t tell them. It’d be asking for a shit ton of trouble.”
She nodded, turning to get out, when her gaze fell on the writing on the side of the truck.
United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Luke saw it, too, but stayed silent as they rounded the other vehicles and headed up the hill together.
“Morning, Cutter,” he called.
“Not a good one,” Cutter said. “These gentlemen seem to be bringing all work to a stop. Not that it was exactly flying forward.”
Ari felt Luke bristle as they reached the others, extending his hand. “Luke McBain.”
“Bill Cullen, with the Corps, and this is Matt Prawl, our bone specialist.” He turned to Ari and smiled. “You must be Arielle Chandler. We can’t thank you enough for filing this report, ma’am.”
Her jaw dropped, the words so unexpected and…wrong. “Pardon me?”
“You are”—he pulled out a paper and tapped the top—“Arielle Chandler? Am I saying that right? Do you go by another Native American name, ma’am?”
“Yes, I’m Arielle Chandler, but…” A slow roll of heat crawled up her chest. “What report are you talking about?”
“This one, filed last Monday. Says this building is likely an infringement of NAGPRA. As you see, it’s not something we take lightly.”
“NAGPRA?” Luke asked, his gaze confused as he turned to her.
“Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,” she said, the words barely coming out as anything but a whisper, she was so stunned.
“Passed in 1990,” the other man said. “It’s something any builder in this country should be quite familiar with.”
The subtext of indictment wasn’t lost on anyone. Defenses rising, Ari took a step closer. “Just to be clear, I didn’t file that report.”
Bill snapped the paper officiously. “Your name’s on it, ma’am. You called the office and gave the details of this property’s location and, according to our notes, said you have reason to believe this mound is a Native American burial site. Are you denying that?”
“No.” Damn it, she had called last Monday. Before everything started. “I left a message and…was just trying to get more information.” Even as she spoke them, the words sounded hollow. And Luke looked like she’d hit him with one of the stakes in the ground.
“Well, thank you for the tip,” Bill said. “We do have reason to believe it’s a native burial site, so we appreciate you filing the report.”
“But I didn’t—”
Cutter held his hand up. “I don’t give a crap who filed the report. Luke, why didn’t you know about this?”
All eyes were on him, but Luke chose to meet Cutter’s. “I knew there was a possibility, and I’ve retained a different geotechnical firm to perform a second core sampling and determine what materials are under this grass. That’ll happen next week, and then I’ll have two analyses that confirm—or not—that this hill is nothing but a shell mound, which is not protected under any act.”
Ari breathed a sigh of relief, so happy he had the right answer.
But he still didn’t look at her, and didn’t appear to be happy at all. Had he believed her when she’d sworn she didn’t file that report? Did he trust her?
Or would she be another woman who took the wrong side against him?
“How long will that take?” Cutter demanded.
“Doesn’t matter,” Bill interjected before Luke could answer. “Once a report’s been filed, we don’t use the core sample analysis. According to the law, we have to investigate ourselves, and that means surface digging and even something more aggressive. Whatever we find has to be analyzed at our labs up in DC, and honestly, that’s going to take a month or two, maybe even more.”
Cutter grunted softly, then slid a dark look to the man with the shovel. “Then get moving.”
The man walked away and stuck a shovel in the ground about ten feet away.
“So he’s arbitrarily digging around?” Luke asked. “With no plan or purpose?”
Bill snorted a laugh. “Welcome to the US government, son.”
They all waited an awkward beat as the shovel thudded into the ground. Ari looked at Luke, hoping to share a secret message—if they found gold, that would shut them all up—but he was watching the engineer, his face the image of unhappiness.
It didn’t matter that she hadn’t officially filed any reports. She’d called to get information and, yes, she’d mentioned the location on the off chance that someone else had already looked into the possibility this was a burial mound. But that long explanation seemed wrong now. She’d tell him later.
But he wouldn’t even look at her.
Biting back the hurt, she followed his gaze and watched the man dig, then closed her eyes as something curled through her. A word she couldn’t quite grab. It wasn’t frustration or sadness or surprise or any of the things she expected to feel at this moment. It was…
Buried.
Something was hidden. She balled her fists at her sides, keeping her eyes closed, concentrating on the word that somehow was being screamed in her head. Something was buried…there.
She turned and looked at the spot, maybe twenty feet away, and recognized it instantly by the foliage around the area. The spot where Luke had knocked her over. She took a few steps toward the place, trying to let her feelings take over any thoughts or memories.
Buried.
She tried to swallow and failed, wondering how she could explain to these men that she felt something was hidden here. Only Luke would understand. She glanced over her shoulder at him, but he still wouldn’t look at her.
She refused to let that distract her, turning back to where her intuition led her. What was buried? Treasure, of course. Gold bricks stamped with the Spanish king’s seal. More pearls. Maybe rubies and diamonds.
The San Pedro had been loaded, Dr. Marksman told her.
And something was right here. Right on this very spot a foot from a scrubby pygmy palm she distinctly remembered when she’d found the pearls.
It was as if the pearls had marked the very spot.
“Right here!” Her voice rang through the open air, making all four men turn to her. “It’s right here.” A zing of certainty snapped her elbow as she pointed furiously to the very spot.
The bone specialist, Matt, was next to her in a flash, shovel extended.
“What’s right there?” Cutter demanded as the man broke ground.
She looked at Luke, and he gave his head an infinitesimal shake. She swallowed hard and managed a shrug. “I’m not sure, but my guess is that it’s”—gold—“valuable.”
“What makes you think something’s there?” Bill asked.
“I…” Feel it. Know it. Believe it. “I found something up here a while ago, and it was right there.”
“What did you find? A bone? A skeleton?” Bill asked.
“Whoa!” They all turned to the man with the shovel, who thankfully saved her from answering.
Matt flipped a load of dirt, then froze, inching backward, then kneeling very slowly to the ground. Inexplicable fear prance
d up Ari’s back. Terror, actually. Horror. Nothing she would expect to feel when they were about to discover The Lost Gold of the Calusa.
“Not a skeleton,” Matt said quietly. “This guy’s only been dead about a week.”
Ari gasped, sucking in air and getting a lungful of wretched stench.
“What?” Cutter practically leaped to the hole in the ground, and Luke came from behind, pulling her away.
“There’s a body?” she managed to whisper. That’s what was buried.
“Yep,” Matt said. “Easy to ID, since he’s got a tattoo.”
Ari leaned over, the foul smell assaulting her as she peered at the body, dark ink visible on his left arm.
Only God can judge me.
“Holy shit.” Cutter peered into the ground, his hand over his mouth and nose for protection. “That’s Jim Purty, the builder I fired.”
Chapter Twenty-six
“Luke wants you to ride back with me.” Gussie put a comforting arm around Ari, whispering the words.
Ari turned to her, not answering right away, digging for the right response. “Okay.” It was the best she could do. She was talked out, anyway, having spent hours and hours with law enforcement, doing interview after interview, telling them everything, starting with the pearl necklace she’d found.
Luke had done the same, separate from her for most of the day, though they’d never left the property. It had all been exhausting and stressful, leaving Ari too wiped to even consider why Luke wouldn’t want her to ride with him after they were finally given permission to leave the crime scene.
She knew why, though. And simply couldn’t think about it right then.
“Where are we going?” Ari asked as she let Gussie lead her to the car.
“Lacey’s house.”
Ari palmed her forehead, squeezing her temples to ward off the throbbing headache that had started sometime after they found the corpse but right before the Collier County Sheriff’s Department arrived in full force. Had there ever been a murder on Mimosa Key before? Ari didn’t know, but they sure sent out every deputy they had, plus forensics specialists, investigators, photographers. Luke had patiently talked to everyone.
But he’d never talked to her. That’s why Ari had called Gussie. She had to have someone to talk to.
“Why are we going to Lacey’s house?” she asked, slipping into the passenger seat of Tom’s SUV, which Gussie had borrowed to come up here.
“Well, we can’t go home, at least not to your apartment, because it’s still a crime scene.”
Of course, they’d made the association between the robbery and this murder. They’d even sent a sheriff’s deputy to the bank to retrieve the necklace from her safe-deposit box. “But why Lacey’s house? Can’t we go to Tom’s? I need to veg and not talk to any people right now.”
“Because when there’s a crisis at Barefoot Bay, that’s where we go.”
“There’s a crisis?”
Gussie shot her a look, a little sympathy in her eyes, but plenty of get real, too. “A dead body is a crisis. My brother’s involvement, and yours, is a crisis.”
“You mean our involvement with each other? That’s over.” Even as she said the words, she knew they were true. It shredded her heart, but couldn’t be denied.
“I meant your involvement with the property and the robbery at your apartment.” She turned the wheel and rolled over the dirt road. “What the hell do you mean it’s over?”
“Gussie, he thinks I called the Army Corps of Engineers and filed a violation of NAGPRA.”
“Well, you told him you didn’t, right?”
“But I did call, but only to leave a message and dig around for information. I didn’t officially report anything. If that’s all it takes for Luke to write me off, then, sorry, we won’t last.”
Gussie waved her hand at the soft break in Ari’s voice. “You’ll tell him, and then he’ll know. That’s a misunderstanding, is all.”
Ari turned to look at the scrub-lined road, gauging the time to be very late afternoon, based on the light.
“He couldn’t talk to you,” Gussie said, her voice rising in defense. “You’re both suspects.”
“That’s ridiculous.” But she knew it was true. She didn’t even own a gun, but Luke did.
And Jim Purty, Luke’s predecessor on the job, had been shot in the chest.
“I know that, you know that, and, hell, I think the sheriff guys knew that, too. But they had to follow protocol and keep you separate.”
“He never even looked at me.” She cleared her throat, because her voice cracked again and she so didn’t want to cry over this. She blinked back a tear, knowing it was too late. “We slept together last night.”
Gussie didn’t say anything, but reached over and put her hand on Ari’s arm. “It’s going to be okay, sweetie. I’d bet on it. I got a Curly Wurly bar I’d wager.”
Ari couldn’t even smile, and the foliage grew blurrier.
“So you actually think my brother would have sex with you and then dump you the next day because he mistakenly believes you called the authorities to stop his work?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Like hell it doesn’t!” Gussie shot back. “You can’t give up that easily, Arielle Chandler. If he’s worth loving, then he’s worth explaining it to.”
“I can explain it, and he might believe me,” she said. “But the damage is done. He assumed the worst. I saw it on his face. He’s not The One.”
“Oh, screw that ‘he’s The One shit.’” Gussie repositioned herself in the driver’s seat as emotion got hold of her. “You either connect with him or you don’t. You had amazing sex or you didn’t. You have a chance at a future or you don’t. Yes or no?”
“I don’t know,” she said glumly. “And I should. Listen, take me back to the villa where we stayed last night. I don’t feel like going to Lacey’s house.”
“Luke will be there. You could talk to him.”
“Please, Gussie. It’s been a helluva day. I want to go take a shower and go to sleep. Luke can stay with you at Tom’s house.” She turned and seared her friend with a look. “Please make him stay with you at Tom’s house. I need to be alone.”
Gussie let out a frustrated breath, quiet until they reached the resort. “Running away from him isn’t going to solve anything,” she finally said. “I know that from experience.”
“Tom came back to find you.”
“Not until he killed his own demons, and let me tell you, those weeks that I waited were sheer hell.” Her touch was gentler now. “Don’t put up a wall, Ari, and get all caught up in whether or not the universe decided he’s the one for you. Go talk to him and decide for yourself.”
Ari didn’t answer, biting her lip. “I’m sorry, Gussie, but if this was real, he wouldn’t doubt me.”
“The guy had your name on a report. He made a fair assumption, but you can set him straight.”
“I shouldn’t have to set him straight. Not if we’re the real thing.”
“You’re being stupid and stubborn,” Gussie said.
“I’m being cautious and self-protective.” She grabbed the door handle and pushed. “I just need to think this through.”
“Okay. You know where I’ll be.”
Ari blew a half-hearted kiss and slipped out of the car, practically running down the shadowy path to Acacia. Thankfully, she and Luke had each taken a key, so she could get into the villa, shower, change, and cry.
As she stood at the door, key poised, she closed her eyes against the tears that had decided they couldn’t wait for a shower. God, how she wanted him to be here, waiting, open arms, open mind, open heart.
She unlocked the door and stepped into the dark villa. Tapping the light switch, she looked around the small living area, which was completely empty. Walking in, she headed into the hall and looked at the bedroom, all evidence of their lovemaking cleaned up by the efficient housekeeping staff. The bathroom was empty, the patio dark, the Jacuzzi quie
t.
She listened for a sound—a message from the universe. But all she could hear were the wise, wise words of her dearest friend.
You’re being stupid and stubborn.
Damn it, Gussie was right. What was she going to do here all alone except feel sorry for herself and miss Luke with every bone in her body? They needed to talk. Even if he didn’t want to, she had to have a chance to tell him she’d never filed a report. How did the Army Corps of Engineers even know what land she’d been talking about, anyway? They needed to talk.
He needed to believe her.
She grabbed the key and her bag and ran back down the path to the employee parking lot to get in her own car, the decision so right she almost laughed out loud.
She stopped at the four-way light, peering into the brightly lit Super Min. She could see Ashley talking to a customer, obviously roped into working again, and missing the gathering at her mother’s house. It certainly wasn’t a party under the circumstances, but Ari still felt she should take something to Lacey’s house. Especially to say thank-you for offering the villa as a safe place to stay.
She made a quick turn into the lot, parked next to the only other car in front, and hopped out to reach the door just as a customer inside came out.
“Oh, excuse…” Ari’s voice faded as she did a double take, recognizing the woman from GeoTech, her name not instantly coming to mind.
The lady had her head down and brushed by, not looking at Ari. As fast as they bumped into each other, the other woman was gone.
“Oh my God, Ari!” Ashley called from behind the counter when Ari walked in. “That’s so weird. That lady was looking for you.”
“What?” She turned to see the woman getting into her car, and now she was staring straight at Ari. “She was looking for me?”
Ashley frowned and leaned all the way over the counter, trying to catch the woman’s attention by waving. “Yeah, she was asking me if I knew you.”
Ari turned again, but the headlights came on, blinding her until the car whipped out of the spot. “Why would she ask you?”
Barefoot in Pearls (Barefoot Bay Brides Book 3) Page 24