“Jumped-up Jehosaphat! I was afraid you’d think I was one of them and drive off without me,” Gramps said, scrambling over the last boulder and all but tripping onto the narrow beach. “Am I glad to see you!”
Ray ran across the bow and jumped down to the beach, running up to meet Gramps, catching him in a big hug when the old man stumbled. Frank was right behind Ray, but Duncan held Willow back from following them.
“You’re not dressed for going ashore, counselor. You can hug him all the way home.”
She was jumping in place, she was so excited, watching as Frank and Ray lifted Gramps up to Luke and Camden. Within seconds, the huge deck of The Corncobb Lady looked like a Grange social, what with Jane and Willow dancing around for their turns to hug him. By the time they were done, Gramps’s dirty old shirt was wet with their tears, and his dirty old face was grinning from ear to ear.
“They said they was taking me with them to Central America,” Gramps finally said, once he was done wiping his own misting eyes. “They sunk my boat. Made me watch while she burned.” He looked over at the still blazing trawler and shook his head. “I still don’t consider us even. That ugly old tub should have been scrapped years ago, while my Pretty Woman was one of a kind.”
“We’ll help you replace her, Gramps,” Willow vowed. “We promise—even if we have to have a fund-raiser.”
He looked over at her in surprise. “I’m old, girl, not foolish. I had her insured for full retail value. She was my retirement fund.”
Willow blushed, only to realize the warmth felt good on her cheeks. “We have to call Mildred,” she rushed to say, urging Gramps toward the radio. “Right now. She thinks you’re dead.”
Jane and Willow started bawling again the moment Mildred’s tear-soaked voice crackled over the radio as she whispered her disbelief. And they smiled through their tears when she shouted in relief and then started scolding her husband of forty-two years for scaring her that way.
Ray gave the wheel of The Corncobb Lady to Frank again, to get them off the gravel beach and back into deep water. Willow and Jane and Duncan and Jason snuggled together in the tiny wheelhouse, covered to their ears with whatever clothing each man could spare, and rode home in tired, contemplative silence.
Willow used the time to formulate her own plan, and decided she was calling it plan LOF.
Chapter Twenty
By the time they pulled into Trunk Harbor, it looked like the entire town and most of Puffin Harbor was standing on the pier and overflowing into the parking lot. There were lights flashing, and Willow realized a fire truck and an ambulance were standing by as well as a sheriff’s car and a state police cruiser. She also would have bet there was a state detective’s car hidden someplace in the crowd.
Willow could almost picture what had happened the moment Mildred Fox had gotten off the radio with her husband. Everyone who’d been sitting at the house with her would have gotten on their cell phones and into their cars and spread the joyous news. Trunk Harbor was welcoming back one of its own they’d prematurely given up for dead. It wasn’t very often the sea gave back a soul, alive and well, that had been missing for three days.
Though obviously not surprised, having witnessed a few homecomings over the years, Gramps was looking a bit overwhelmed by it all. Frank was having to steady the trembling old man as Ray nudged The Corncobb Lady against the pier. Eager hands helped Gramps onto terra firma as the crowd magically parted to reveal Mildred, who was weeping uncontrollably and holding her arms out to Cecil. The crowd closed back in, and Willow lost sight of the couple, though the tears filling her own eyes might have had something to do with it.
“Oh, Willy,” Rachel cried, jumping into the boat and throwing herself at Willow. “I’ve never been so scared. I’ve been sitting by the radio all night.” She shot a glare at her husband, then looked back at Willow. “All Kee would tell me is that you were taken out to sea and that Ray Cobb was helping him go get you guys. Then the call this morning saying he was on his way back with you, all safe and sound.”
Willow hugged her tightly back. “I’m fine, Rae. Not a scratch. We’re all fine, and we even found Gramps.”
“Miss Foster, I’m afraid you’re going to have to come with us,” a man said from the pier.
Willow looked up to see two plainclothes detectives. Or rather she could see them before Duncan stepped in front of her.
“She needs to shower and dress first, and have something to eat,” Duncan said.
Both detectives shook their heads. “Someone can bring her some clothes, but the only way she’s leaving this pier is in our custody.”
Willow grabbed the back of Duncan’s jacket and tugged. “It’s okay,” she told him, stepping around to face him. “I might as well get this over with.” She gave him a brilliant smile. “I know it’s hard to go from being protective to passive, but I need you to trust that I can handle things from here. I’ll speak with John and make sure everyone is rounded up.”
“Ya’ve had a rough night, lass. Let me drive ya in this afternoon. Call your boss and explain things.”
“I can’t, Duncan. I have to go with them now. They’re only doing their jobs, so don’t force them to arrest you.” She leaned up and gave him a kiss on his cheek. “I need you to drive Mabel home for me. You can stay at my apartment and come visit me in jail.” She toyed with the button on his jacket. “Will you post my bail? I promise not to skip town on you.”
He sighed hard enough to move her still damp hair. “Aye,” he said, wrapping his arms around her and kissing the top of her head. “Ya won’t disappear on me.”
“I brought you and Jane some clothes,” Rachel interjected, jumping back onto the pier, stopping only long enough to glare at the two detectives before she ran to her truck.
“Detective Plum, isn’t it?” Willow asked, addressing the detective who had spoken. “I believe you worked on a case for me last year.”
His cheeks tinging a deep red, Plum nodded and shifted his feet. “Look, I’m sorry, Miss Foster. I’m just following orders.”
“I know,” she said, stepping out of Duncan’s arms and reaching out for the clothes Rachel handed her. She looked around at the massive audience, now all focused on the scene taking place aboard The Corncobb Lady. “I—ah—I’m just going to step into the wheelhouse and change,” she told Officer Plum, turning and ducking into the tiny wheelhouse without waiting for his approval.
“Ya need to stop in Ellsworth and let them look at her wrist,” she heard Duncan tell Plum. “She may have injured it again. And get her some breakfast.”
“We can do that,” she heard Plum say as she hooked several pieces of clothes over the windows.
Jane stepped inside with her, also holding clothes that Rachel had brought her. Rachel positioned herself as guard at the door.
“What do you want me to do?” Jane asked as they both started slipping into the warm, dry clothes. “How can I help?”
“Maybe you should continue to stick close to Jason,” Willow suggested. “At least until we know everyone is rounded up. Then I’m going to need you as a witness.”
“They—This isn’t going to go to trial, is it?” Jane asked, sitting down to put on her socks and sneakers. “I mean your case with the overseas account. You can get out of that, can’t you?”
“If Graham left any sort of paper trail to that account, I can. Or if Edward Simmons turns state’s evidence for us, the charges against me, including the drunk-driving charge, will get dropped.”
Willow finished tying her own sneakers, stood up, and faced her sister. “It’s over, Rae,” she told her. “Please try to stop worrying, okay?”
“No. I’m going to worry as long as you live and breathe,” Rachel said with a smile, reaching out and pulling Willow into her arms again. “Even when you’re living in the governor’s mansion, and have tons of body guards.”
“Ah…about that,” Willow said, leaning away and returning her smile. “Just as soon as this is over, you and
I are going to sit down and have a nice little talk. ’Bye, Jane. Try not to kill Jason while I’m gone,” she continued, pulling free of Rachel’s embrace and stepping out of the wheelhouse.
Willow stopped in front of Ray and Frank. “Thank you, guys, for coming to our rescue. A Coast Guard cutter wouldn’t have been any more effective. You’re both heros,” she finished, giving each of them a kiss on their blushing cheeks.
She stopped in front of Kee, Luke, Camden, and Ahab next. “You guys are amazing. Thank you,” she said simply, giving each of them a hug and kiss before turning to Duncan. “I’ll call you at my apartment just as soon as I know what’s happening.” She stretched up while pulling down on his jacket, so she could whisper in his ear. “You’ve got really nice legs, Dunky. If we didn’t have an audience, I’d show you just how much I like them.”
That said, she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and turned and held out her good hand to Detective Plum, so he could help her over the rail and onto the pier. But Duncan simply lifted her by the waist and set her down in front of Plum.
Willow turned back and pointed at Jason, who was also bare-legged. “I am not going on any adventures with you again, Jason. You might carry lots of neat stuff around, but you get a bit overzealous when it comes to foiling the bad guys.”
Jason merely nodded, and threw his arm around Jane when she moved to stand beside him. “Ah, but Einstein here will come with me, won’t ya?” he asked, finishing his declaration with a wet, noisy kiss on her forehead, and then a laugh when she punched him in the ribs.
Willow turned and walked between the two detectives; the crowd of onlookers, most of whom she knew, parting like the Red Sea, forming an aisle all the way into the parking lot. She stopped when she spotted Margaret and Molly standing beside Rachel’s SUV. Molly was holding Nick in her arms, and Margaret had Mikaela by the hand. Mickey was sitting beside them, his tongue hanging out and his tail wagging.
“Can I please say good-bye to my niece and nephew?” she asked Detective Plum. “They’ve been so wπorried. I want them to see that I’m okay.”
Plum nodded, and Willow walked over, kissed Nick on his sticky cheek, then crouched down and hugged Mikaela. “I’ve got to go back to Augusta for a few days. But then I’m coming back and I’m going to be your coach for the Crane Island Kayak Race.”
“It’s only two weeks away,” Mikaela whispered, clinging to her in a tight hug. “And…and you haven’t been kayaking for two years.”
Willow leaned away so that Mikaela could see her smile. “Ah, but I’m going to start again. While waiting for me to get back, you put a couple coats of wax on your kayak and do lots of stretching exercises. Okay?”
Mikaela nodded and then hugged her so tightly again that they both squeaked. Willow finally stood up, nodded to Molly, and then said to Margaret, “Could I speak with you a moment?”
Willow nodded to the side, indicating that she wanted them to speak in private. Molly took hold of Mikaela’s hand, and Margaret stepped to the front of the truck with Willow.
They spoke for quite a long time. Or rather Willow did most of the talking and Margaret mostly listened.
Her posture guarded and her face serious, Margaret finally nodded. “Very well, Miss…Willow. Willy. I will stay until the Fourth of July.”
“Thank you, Maggie,” Willow said, reaching out and giving her a big hug. “Thank you. It means a lot to me.”
And so, with phase one of plan LOF already taken care of, Willow turned, smiled at the detectives, and motioned for them to lead the way to their car.
Chapter Twenty-one
Two weeks can seem like forever if a person is waiting for their exciting and wonderful new life to begin. Then again, two weeks can zip by in a blur when a person is busy upsetting everyone else’s lives in the process. Willow was experiencing both quirks of time as she cleaned up the remnants of her old life and painstakingly created her new one.
And yes, she was definitely upsetting a few people.
She started with Edward Simmons and Brent Graham. As she had suspected, Edward folded like a cheap suit when faced with a list of crimes that stretched from fraud to kidnapping. He quickly turned state’s evidence and was instrumental not only in putting Brent Graham in prison for a very long time, but in clearing up Willow’s little matter of being wrongly accused of accepting a payoff for throwing a case. Willow’s charges were dropped, Edward’s charges were reduced considerably, and Brent Graham would likely be celebrating his seventieth birthday behind bars. Any leftover waste still stashed on remote islands was being cleaned up, the Lobster Institute was monitoring the slowly returning health of the marine life around Thunder Island, and the crew from the fishing trawler were being deported back to whatever country they had snuck in from. Mike and Joe were sitting in jail, awaiting trial for running Willow off the road, sinking Frank Porter’s boat, and putting sugar in Ray Cobb’s gas tank.
Oh, and John Pike was in a rage.
John didn’t care to learn he was losing his best (his word) assistant attorney general. But then Willow only added insult to injury when she told him she was taking her secretary with her to start her own private practice in Puffin Harbor.
Willow managed that feat by offering Karen complete autonomy in running the office, then sweetened the deal by promising a blank check for buying office computers. She also informed Karen that there were plenty of lonely, honorable, manly men down on the coast, and that most of them owned fast boats. She did not, however, mention that those boats usually cost more than their houses.
The only touchy matter to clean up in Augusta was Mabel. But what Willow had thought was going to be a hard sell turned out to be almost too easy. Willow had begun by claiming Mabel was like a mother to her, and that Mikaela and Nick could get used to having a grandmother around. Mabel had waved that away before Willow had even finished her prepared speech, claiming she hadn’t realized the coast of Maine was such an exciting place to live. The octogenarian pointed out that there were plenty of women her age to hang out with, who surely knew a hundred different ways to cook lobster. The FOR SALE sign had gone up in front of Mabel’s house within the first week, and she had already started packing. No, she didn’t want to move in with Willow, though it was kind of her to offer, but preferred to get her own little apartment right in the middle of town—within walking distance of The Rosach Pub.
With all the loose ends in Augusta finally tied up, and a termination date for her job set for August 31, Willow was able to take her first breath of new-life air on July 3. She arrived at her sister’s house with one day to spare before the annual Crane Island Kayak Race and the Fourth of July celebrations.
It wasn’t really a party Rachel was having that Saturday afternoon, but more of a family reunion, what with Matt and Peter showing up unexpectedly late last night. What people didn’t fit into Rachel’s kitchen spilled over onto the porch and down across the lawn.
Willow was surprised to see that Ben Zane was still here. She was even more surprised to see that he didn’t seem too brokenhearted over the fact that Molly Ross and Luke Skywalker appeared to be attached at the hip.
Margaret had stuck around as promised, but Camden had gone back to Scotland a week ago claiming he had a distillery to run. Ray Cobb showed up with Patty on his arm, and Frank and his wife also stopped by. Cecil and Mildred Fox were there, and Gramps announced to everyone that he was going into partnership with Ray Cobb, figuring someone had to show the young pup how to properly haul traps.
Ahab was sitting in the corner of the kitchen eating a bowl half-filled with strawberries. The other half was filled with sugar. Nick was kneeling on a chair beside him, a spoon in his hand and pink sugar plastered all over his face, trying very hard to baby-talk Ahab into sharing. Mickey was sitting with his nose pressed up to the edge of the table, hoping Nick’s penchant for making a mess might send some of the strawberries rolling his way. Willow had never stopped to think that wolves might like fruit.
Mika
ela was running around in her neoprene wet suit and life vest, trying to talk Munky and Punky into taking her kayaking, explaining that she needed to practice for tomorrow’s race and that everyone else was already practiced out.
“We’re all set for tonight,” Rachel whispered to Willow as they stood at the sink washing glasses. “Are you sure this is a good idea? It’s not too late to back out. I can remodel it and we can set it someplace else.”
Glancing at Duncan standing by the island counter, Willow whispered back, “I haven’t changed my mind. You did a beautiful job. Thank you.” She looked at her sister. “How did you manage to work on it without Kee finding out, and without Miss Big Mouth telling everyone?”
“I made it at Duncan’s house. Margaret helped.”
“At Duncan’s?” Willow hissed in a whisper. “Are you crazy?”
Rachel waved that away. “He never goes in his workshop. It was the safest place for me to work without getting caught.”
“Let’s leave at midnight tonight, then,” Willow said, glancing at Duncan again to make sure he was staying put. “You’ll have to tell Kee that Nick is being fussy, and that he’ll have to sleep with him tonight. Otherwise you won’t be able to sneak out. And bring Mickey,” Willow suggested, quickly drying her hand, setting it on Rachel’s shoulder, and squeezing. “It’ll be just like old times, just the two of us for our midnight run. No kids, no men.”
“What’s wrong with men?” Kee asked, stepping up to Rachel and putting his arm around her while he frowned at Willow. “We’re very useful creatures.”
“Aye,” Duncan agreed, suddenly appearing beside Willow and putting his arm around her, also frowning. “We do all the heavy lifting.”
“And you do it very well,” Willow assured him, patting his chest with her once again soapy hand. “Thank you for picking up my new kayak in Ellsworth. I can’t wait to try it tomorrow.”
Duncan gave her a skeptical look. “Entering a race when ya’ve not paddled in two years is not the best idea you’ve had lately.”
The Dangerous Protector Page 26