Neal had booked a suite at the Ocracoke Harbor Inn. It was on the top floor and had glass doors and a private balcony overlooking Silver Lake Harbor. “Come here, Lin called as she went out to enjoy the view, look hard and you might see the pirate Blackbeard’s body swimming around the harbor, in search of its head.” She reminded Neal that the infamous pirate had once hidden away along the North Carolina coast and Ocracoke was supposedly one of his favorite haunts. He met his end there in 1718 at the hands of Robert Maynard who’d been commissioned by the governor of Virginia to get rid of the menacing fellow. His head had been impaled on the bowsprit of Maynard’s vessel and taken to Hampton Roads to prove he was no more. “Been searching for it ever since,” Lin asserted, “at least according to local legend.”
Neal chuckled at the story. “Look it up,” Lin insisted, “the part about swimming around in the harbor may be a ghostly legend, but Maynard did fight him right here and he was beheaded.”
They completed their survey of the beautiful suite, including the luxury Jacuzzi in the bath, and decided to take a walk around the harbor while it was still light.
Silver Lake Harbor was indeed almost a lake, an irregular shape connected to Pamlico Sound by a narrow channel called “The Ditch.” Silver Lake Drive followed the shore past businesses and homes. There was an eclectic fleet of watercraft moored in the harbor—mostly pleasure craft, including some gorgeous yachts, and a few fishing boats. The sun was beginning to set and Lin was glad she’d worn her fleece, as it was growing colder. Almost directly across the harbor from their hotel they found a small, intimate Italian restaurant and decided to go in.
“It’s after five,” Neal smiled, “we can start with drinks and appetizers.” There were only a handful of customers in the place. “Guess this is truly the ‘off season’ here,” Lin said.
“It is in fact; a couple of the inns I contacted were already closed, but the Harbor Inn wasn’t and I really like it. I noticed that some of the businesses we passed walking over had signs saying they were closed for the season also.”
“I like the inn too,” Lin smiled back at him, “I really don’t care if this is the off season. I rather like the absence of crowds here and even back in the other Banks towns.”
Neal returned her smile and reached across the table for her hand. “The only company I need is right here.”
The waiter arrived with a bottle of Malbec, Lin’s favorite red wine, and a platter of succulent shrimp. They ordered their entrees, but told the server they were in no hurry.
“I’ll tell the cook,” the young man said, “Anything else for now?”
“I don’t think so,” Neal looked at Lin.
“This is great,” she said.
They settled back to enjoy the view. It was beginning to grow dark and lights were popping out from various locations around the harbor. Neal spotted the sweep of the beam from Ocracoke Lighthouse. “You didn’t tell me about this one,” He enumerated the other lights she’d mentioned.
“Sorry,” she grinned, “ it’s just a small one, though. We can walk over there tomorrow.”
They sat in relaxed silence, sipping wine and nibbling the succulent shrimp. After several minutes, Neal turned away from the window and looked into her eyes. He reached across the table and squeezed her hand, “Can we talk now?”
Lin tried not to show that she felt a little tense and stressed. Perhaps she was still suffering the effects of being followed earlier. She turned to Neal with a smile, “No time like the present.”
Neal topped off their wine glasses and sat back, still gazing toward the harbor. Finally, he took a deep breath and turned to face her.
“I’ve been thinking long and hard about my own situation,” he began. “I’ve weighed my options—full retirement, taking the temporary position in Chapel Hill, or returning to teach at NAU. Lin, I wanted to ask you what you wanted me to do but I knew what you’d say. You’d tell me it was my decision to make, and you’d be right. I realize that. When I went on administrative leave, I was under something of a cloud, at least in my own mind. I don’t want to end my career with any questions left hanging. I’ve decided that I have to go back. I have to teach, at least for one more term—beyond that I don’t know. I’m going to call Chris on Monday and tell him he can expect me back right after New Years.”
Lin reached for his hand. “You’re doing the right thing, Neal. I would’ve supported you no matter what you decided, I hope you know that, but I agree with your choice fully. You need to go back so that you can retire later feeling good about the state of your career.”
“I’m glad you feel that way,” he gave her hand a squeeze, “I knew you would agree. The thing is I realize now that I can’t feel complete without you. I don’t want to leave you behind. I want you to go with me Lin. I love you and I want you to marry me, will you? “
In spite of the fact that she’d had a feeling this was coming, Lin was surprised; she hadn’t thought about a proposal in connection with Neal’s returning to the university in January. She wasn’t sure how to answer.
Neal sensed her hesitation and started to say something but changed his mind. She reached for his other hand. He looked into her eyes expectantly. Finally, she gathered her courage and spoke.
“ I do love you Neal. I haven’t loved anyone since I lost Ben, but I do love you and I know that I always will,” she hesitated, seeking the right words.
“Here comes the ‘but,’ ” he sighed.
“Not really a ‘but,’ maybe a consideration,” she said. “I love you and I want to marry you, but I’m not ready to go back to Arizona with you right now. It’s too fast for me, I guess. I could make a long list of things I need to consider before such a move; but the bottom line is that, while I want to be in your life and to be your wife, I need to have my own life too.”
Lin tried to explain how she had had so many years of feeling locked in to her responsibilities for family and for her work. “You know, I was a military wife for a lot of years. Ben was a wonderful husband and father, but he was gone a lot. We’d decided early on that we didn’t want the kids moved around so often. We wanted them to have friends and to feel part of their schools. That meant a lot of the time I was on my own, almost a single parent. When Ben was there, we had a wonderful family life and a wonderful marriage, but I always had a lot of responsibility.”
“ When Ben was killed, the kids were grown, but I threw myself into my work. I went back to get a graduate degree, and I became a regular workaholic. You could’ve said I didn’t have much of a life, not a personal life that is. When I decided to retire a couple of years ago, I did so because I wanted to have time to reclaim my life while I was still young enough to be active and do the things I wanted to do. That’s when I bought my condo, when I decided to travel some, to volunteer in parks, have some adventure in my life, meet people,” she smiled at him, “and you’re the best person I’ve met. I love you and I don’t want to lose you but…”
Neal didn’t let her finish. He leaned across the table and placed his finger on her lips, “You don’t need to say anything more. Believe it or not, I do understand what you’re saying. If it were up to me, I’d whisk you away with me tomorrow. We’d have a New Years wedding with all the trimmings but…,” he turned and gazed deeply into her eyes, “I don’t want our marriage, when it happens, to be on my terms alone. That’s not good. I love you because of who you are, and I wouldn’t want to change that. Besides, I’ve waited a long time for the right person to come along, and I expect I can deal with a long engagement, how about you?”
“It won’t be too long, I promise,” she smiled as he reached into his jacket pocket.
“How about an early Christmas present,” he placed a small black velvet box on the table in front of her. “I was going to wait until Christmas Eve, but then I thought, what if she says no and there I’ll be with her whole family looking on.”
Lin opened the box to reveal a beautiful ring. It was the most unusual diamond rin
g she’d ever seen, a wide band of white gold, with yellow gold leaves carved in an open design surrounding a large stone recessed in the band. Lin was speechless, “Where did you…”
“In a gallery in Manteo,” Neal told her, “it’s an estate piece, not an antique but hand made. You won’t find another just like it.”
“It’s beautiful, I’ve never seen anything so lovely.”
Neal took the ring from the box and slipped it onto her finger. It will need to be sized, it’s a little large, but we can take care of that the first of the week. I don’t think you’ll lose it though—it’s not that much too large. I want you to wear it”
Lin fingered the beautiful ring turning it to catch the light from the candle on their table. “It’s absolutely perfect, it won’t fall off, it just slips a little,” she straightened the ring, centering it on her finger.
“I’m afraid you’ll have to wait for your gift,” she grinned. “I didn’t bring it with me.”
“Just my luck,” he winked. “I guess I’m the one who has to wait—for my gift, for our wedding, …”
“Not for everything,” she teased. “Now let’s eat.”
Neal signaled their waiter that they were ready for their entrees. He nodded, “Just a few more minutes. I’ll tell the cook.’’
When he brought their food a short time later it was accompanied by a large bottle of chilled champagne.
“Couldn’t help overhearing some of your conversation,” the young man smiled, “Congratulations.”
Chapter 19
They slept in the next morning, having stayed up late after returning from dinner. They’d sat in the comfort of the easy chairs provided in their suite, watching the moonlight flicker across the waters of Silver Lake Harbor while they sipped their congratulatory champagne and talked about the future. Neal pointed out that he did plan to retire soon, most likely at the end of the spring term. When that happened, he would no longer be tied to Flagstaff, and he could join her in her travels. Lin promised that they could talk about wedding plans, perhaps for the coming summer or early fall. Meanwhile, they’d make sure that they saw each other regularly. Lin agreed that the next visit should be hers. She would try to travel to Arizona for a visit, perhaps during Neal’s Spring break time. They’d topped the evening off with a long soak in the large Jacuzzi before retiring to the comfortable king sized bed. It was well after midnight before either thought about sleep.
By the time they’d awakened and dressed for the day, it was past time for the continental breakfast at the inn, but they were both hungry. They decided to pack, check out, and then look for breakfast elsewhere. The proprietor of the inn recommended a local café nearby that served brunch on Sundays. It was only a short walk. The morning was sunny and warm so they decided to eat on the screened porch that had a nice view of the harbor. The brunch buffet was laden with several nice dishes, and the café also offered eggs cooked to order. It was evident they wouldn’t need any lunch. By the time their plates had been removed and their coffee cups refilled, they felt stuffed.
“I don’t know why I continue to load a plate at buffets knowing I’ll eat too much,” Lin groaned.
“Because everything looks so delicious you can’t pass anything up,” Neal commiserated. “Did you try that breakfast casserole with fresh crabmeat?”
“I’m afraid, I did,” Lin continued, “plus the hash brown casserole with cheese and spring onions. I definitely need to walk some of this breakfast off. Let’s visit the lighthouse after we finish our coffee and let’s not drive.”
Neal agreed that was a good plan. They relaxed for another twenty minutes, enjoying the coffee and the view then headed out to explore the rest of the village. They not only visited the lighthouse, but also the British Cemetery. This small plot of land bordering a local graveyard had been designated a part of the British Isles. Buried there were the only bodies recovered from a British vessel that sank off the island during World War II. The islanders had been unable to return these men to their homeland because of the war, so they buried their remains and dedicated the plot to Great Britain, always flying a British flag over their graves. Lin and Neal were very moved by the story and by the fact that, for all these years, islanders had maintained these graves and honored the memory of these men.
By the time they had walked the length and breadth of Ocracoke village, they were ready to begin their journey back to Kill Devil Hills. They stopped to view the ponies on their way back to the ferry. These descendants of Spanish horses had once roamed wild and free on the island but now occupied a large fenced area on the sound side for their own preservation and protection.
It was early afternoon by the time they arrived at the ferry landing, and they were both ready to head back home. Lin was just a little apprehensive on the trip back, afraid that Mike might be waiting to follow them once the ferry arrived at Hatteras, but there was no sign of him. She relaxed then, ready to enjoy the almost ninety mile trek back to Kate’s home.
They certainly weren’t hungry, and they’d stopped at most of the sights on the way down the previous day; they opted for a leisurely drive back, continuing their conversation about future plans as they drove.
Lin felt a deep sense of happiness, along with relief that Neal hadn’t pressured her about getting married right away. She’d been afraid that might happen; that he might even want to break off their relationship if she didn’t feel ready to tie the knot. Instead he seemed to understand where she was coming from.
“I do want to get married,” Neal insisted, “and I don’t want to wait too long, but when we do decide on a date for our wedding, I want it to feel right for you and not just for me. I’ve already had one marriage that turned out not to be a good one and I want ours to be good—for both of us.”
“Me too,” Lin agreed, “I don’t want to wait forever, but I don’t want to rush into things too quickly. I was only home a few weeks before Kate talked me into this housesitting deal. It’s been great, and I’m especially enjoying having you here to share this time with me; I feel it’s given us a real opportunity to get to know each other. Still, I was only home for a few weeks before I came down here. There’re several things I need and want to do at home, and I think I’d like to do another volunteer stint this spring. In fact, Sue Gray called me right before I left to come down to Kate’s, and we talked about possibly doing something together. She’s looking into some places we might apply. You remember Sue don’t you?”
“I certainly do and I liked Sue,” Neal smiled, “ I enjoyed getting to know her while she was at Walnut Canyon last spring and summer. She was certainly a good friend to you, especially when you were injured.”
“She was,” Lin nodded, “and I hope we can continue our friendship. I’d really enjoy doing a volunteer stint with her if we can work it out.”
“I hope you can,” Neal said, “I might be doing some short term traveling myself,” he added. “When I talked to Chris he mentioned having me join him for a few weeks at the end of the semester at a site he’s going to be working on this coming summer. Who knows, maybe you can join me there for a visit. You might like archeology.”
“I do like it, I know that already,” Lin grinned. “In fact, I think I’d make a great field assistant.”
Neal was thoughtful for a moment, “You know, when I retire from teaching, I might decide to continue to do some field work, on a part time basis. How would that fit into your plans to travel and try new things?”
“Perfectly,” Lin smiled again, “that would be great and I’d love it. Just remember though, I’m going to keep doing things on my own too, even after we’re married. It’s important to me to feel that I can do that.”
“It’s important to me, also,” Neal reached over and squeezed her hand. “I want you to be happy, and I know I wouldn’t be happy either if I didn’t feel free to pursue my own interests.”
It was after three when they arrived back in Kill Devil Hills. As they passed the police station they observed t
hat it was apparently open so Neal pulled into the parking lot.
“I think we should stop and report that this Mike character appeared to be following us yesterday, and you thought he was following you in town. We can give them the license plate number. That should identify him, if that truck is his,” Neal said as he got out of the car.
They went in together and asked if Sgt. Parker was available.
“He’s not working today,” the young officer at the desk reported, “He’ll be in tomorrow, can I help you?”
They left the information with her and promised that they would call back the next day. Lin was disappointed. She’d hoped to be able to talk to Ken, hoping that this development would convince him to keep looking into Dorrie’s death. Lin knew that, somehow, this was related to that event in some fashion. They just needed a few more answers, to fill in the gaps in what they already knew.
“I know what we need to do now,” she said as they turned from the highway toward Kate’s neighborhood, “We need to sit down and make a list.”
“What kind of list?” Neal looked puzzled.
“A list of what we know, what information we have so far. It might help to establish some sort of pattern, to show us where we need to focus to get more information.”
Neal recalled an earlier time when Lin made such a list. A list that eventually led to the arrest of a brutal killer. “I’d almost forgotten what a list maker you are,” he had a slightly amused look on his face.
“Don’t knock it ‘til you try it,” Lin gave his leg a playful slap. “It helps to organize your thoughts, it reveals patterns….”
“OK, I get it,” Neal replied, “but let’s unpack first and unwind from our trip. I for one am a little tired just now.”
They unloaded the car and took their bags up to the bedroom to unpack.
“I have an idea,” Lin said, eyeing the pile of dirty clothes on the floor. “You did all the driving and I’m sure you could use a break. Why don’t I start the laundry and pick up Sparky. You could take a short nap while I take him to walk. When I get back we can fix something to eat and then we can talk about that list.”
Sandrift: A Lin Hanna Mystery Page 21