Sweet Fortune

by Jayne Ann Krentz

  “No,” David finally said, offering no further explanation.

  “Dammit, where's Hatchard?” Bright yelled. “I know he's the one behind all this, the one who screwed this thing up. Where the hell is he?”

  “Dead,” David said, improvising with laudable speed. “Landis got him. Didn't you hear the gunshot?”

  “Dead?” Jessie's shriek pierced the air. “No, he can't be dead. I'd know if he were dead.” She jerked backward and forward in a frantic, violent motion that, added to the swaying action of the boat, was more than enough to take both her and Bright off-balance.

  “Watch it, you bitch, we're going over,” Bright shouted, scrambling to retain his balance. It was too late. He released Jessie in an effort to save himself from toppling over the edge of the bobbing boat.

  But Jessie's momentum was too strong. She lost her footing and fell backward, flailing wildly. Bright tried to dodge her arm and could not. It caught him across the throat and she carried him with her as she went into the water.

  Jessie screamed again just as she hit the cold water. Bright plunged in beside her, swearing furiously.

  Hatch raced out of the trees and ran past the others, who were staring at the scene in stunned amazement. He dashed along the rocky jetty, leapt into the boat, and peered over the side.

  “Jessie.”

  Jessie was bobbing in the water, her dark hair plastered to her scalp. She pushed wet tendrils out of her eyes and looked up at him with a glowing smile. “I knew you were alive.”

  Hatch ignored Bright, who was sputtering and gasping next to her. He leaned down, caught Jessie's raised hands, and hauled her straight up out of the black water and into the boat.

  “That water's damn cold,” Alex said as he stepped into the boat. “It'll kill a person in less than thirty minutes. Better get her into one of the blankets.”

  “He's right.” David jumped into the boat and opened a locker. He dragged out a blanket. “Jessie, get your clothes off and get into this. You'll be okay. You were in the water only a couple of minutes.”

  Jessie nodded, already beginning to shiver violently. “My God, I'm cold.” She grabbed the blanket, pulled it around her, and started to strip off her jeans underneath it.

  “Hey, goddammit, help me,” Bright shouted from the water. When no one responded, he struck out for shore.

  The splashing caught Hatch's attention. “David, untie the boat. Keep it between Bright and the shore. I want to talk to him.”

  David's brows rose but he said nothing. He and Alex quickly untied the boat and let it drift gently between Bright and the shoreline, blocking escape from the bone-chilling water.

  “Goddammit, you can't do this,” Bright yelled, floundering desperately. “Get me out of here. I'll freeze.”

  Hatch planted both hands on the hull and looked down at Bright. “Actually, that's not a bad idea.”

  “Are you crazy? You'll be killing me. People die of hypothermia out here all the time,” Bright screamed.

  “He's right,” Jessie observed. “It's amazing how fast hypothermia sets in. A few minutes in this water followed by a few minutes standing around in the cold air and it's all over. He's been in that water several minutes already.”

  Hatch glanced at Alex. “Think he could make it safely back to the house on his own?”

  Alex frowned consideringly. “Doubt it. Ambient temperature is in the forties now, and it's a good twenty-, twentyfive-minute hike. He's been in that water long enough to start the hypothermic process. Yeah, I'd say getting back to the house on his own is starting to look real iffy.”

  “You can't do this,” Bright wailed in panic and despair.

  “Swim to shore,” Hatch told Bright. “I'll meet you there with a blanket. You tell me a few things I want to know and I'll let you have the blanket. Refuse to talk and I'll take my blanket and go home.”

  The threat was a virtual death sentence and everyone knew it, including Bright. He struck out for shore.

  Hatch took one of the blankets and vaulted out of the boat onto the rocks. “Wait here,” he said to the others.

  He did not hurry to the rescue. When he reached the shoreline, Bright was already out of the water, hugging himself as shudder after shudder went through him. He had lost his glasses in the fall overboard and he peered at Hatch with slitted eyes.

  “Give me that blanket,” Bright hissed.

  Hatch stopped a few feet away. “First you tell me a little bit about the operation.”

  Bright's eyes widened slightly. “What are you, some kind of pro? What happened to Hoffman and Landis, anyway?”

  “They're both out of the picture. Talk, Bright. You'll never make it back to the mansion alive without this blanket.”

  “Fuck off.”

  “Suit yourself.” Hatch turned and started back toward the boat.

  “Wait, you bastard,” Bright said through chattering teeth. “You can't leave me like this.”

  Hatch glanced back over his shoulder. “I don't see why not.”

  “Shit. I could die out here.”

  “That's not my problem, is it?”

  Bright stared at him. “Dammit, what's going on? I know you're a pro. You must be. The girl's mother hire you?”

  “I'm just a businessman, Bright.”

  “Businessman, hell. Who are you, goddammit? Who hired you?”

  “You know that woman you were holding the gun on a few minutes ago?”

  “What about her?” Bright snarled.

  “You might say I did it for her. She's the lady I'm going to marry.”

  “Shit.”

  “Now you probably have a clearer understanding of why I don't have any real ethical problem with the idea of you freezing to death out here.” Hatch turned and started once more toward the boat.

  “Stop, goddammit, I'm coming with you.” Bright staggered forward. “You've got to take me with you. I don't think I can make it back to the house. I'm freezing.”

  Hatch paused, thoughtful. Then he shook his head. “No, I don't think it's worth taking you with us. If I thought you might talk to the authorities, I'd say yes, but something tells me you won't say a word.”

  “I said wait, you bastard. I'll talk.” Bright was clearly desperate now.

  Hatch dangled the blanket in front of him. “Prove it. Tell me something real interesting.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like which offshore bank you're using. Tell me where the money goes. Explain how you divert it. Little things like that. Convince me. And then show me something that looks like proof.”

  Edwin Bright glowered sullenly at him in the moonlight. And then another racking shudder went through him. Without a word he reached into his pocket and pulled out a dripping wallet. He held it out to Hatch.

  “There's a list of accounts in there,” Bright muttered through chattering lips. “And a key to a safe at the mansion.”

  “That sounds promising.” Hatch handed over the blanket while he started going through Edwin Bright's wallet.

  Bright clutched at the blanket and started to strip off his clothes. “I was right, wasn't I? You are a pro. Government or private?”

  “Private. Very private.” Hatch found several interesting items in Edwin Bright's wallet, including the list and the key. “Tell me something else now. Was that one of your people who broke into Valentine Consultations?”

  Bright stepped out of his pants. “Yeah. We knew Attwood's mother had just hired that damned fortune-teller to find her daughter. We needed to know how much Valentine knew.”

  “How about after we took our scenic tour of the facilities? Was that one of your people who tried to break into my car?”

  “We couldn't figure out how you were involved. We were trying to get a fix on you. The idea was to search the car. Look, this was just a good scam. Nobody was supposed to get hurt.”

  “Is that right?”

  “Hell, yes. I didn't want trouble. But I've got a major investment in this operation. I've run it tw
ice already back East and made a fortune. The idea is to get in and get out. Find a place to set up shop, recruit a few kids from the local college campus to man the phones and computers and put on the show. Then we make the pitch and wait for the money to roll in. I don't hang around. Two or three months is plenty of time to get set up and rake the cream off the top.”

  “Why try it here?”

  “Hell, everybody knows the Northwest is hot for the environment. Everyone around here wants to save it. Besides, an old lady back East who had already forked over a hundred grand died and left the foundation this island. It was too good an opportunity to pass up. But I figured to sell the place in a few weeks, dump the kids, and head for the next location.”

  Hatch nodded. “Well, I think that about does it. Thanks for wrapping up a few of the loose ends for me.” He started toward the boat again.

  “Wait, goddammit. You've got to take me with you. I won't make it if I have to walk back to the mansion alone. I'm too damn cold, even with this blanket. I need warm liquids.”

  “All right. If you can make it to the boat, you can come with us. But don't get any bright ideas like trying to intimidate Susan, or I'll throw you overboard. I doubt the fish will even notice one more load of toxic waste in the Sound.”

  “Is that supposed to be funny?” Bright asked through clenched teeth.

  “No. I don't have a sense of humor. Just ask anyone.”

  “Shit. I knew you were a pro.”

  Jessie was euphoric. The adventure had ended on a note of shining success and she could not wait to tell Mrs. Valentine every detail.

  The police had taken statements and dispatched a boat to New Dawn Island to see what was going on there. Bright was in the local hospital under guard. He was being treated for the early stages of hypothermia. He was already demanding a lawyer.

  The computer printout Susan Attwood had brought with her, as well as the list and key from Bright's wallet, was in safekeeping in the hands of the police. Susan had phoned her mother from the police station and Mrs. Attwood had broken down in tears of relief. She had explained that a man who fitted Hoffman's description had told her that her daughter would disappear forever if she did not call off the investigation.

  Jessie was already mentally preparing her report to Mrs. Valentine. She knew her boss was going to be thrilled with the results of the case. Business would be flowing into Valentine Consultations as soon as the story hit the newspapers.

  But now was the time for celebration.

  Jessie sat tailor-fashion in the middle of the bed and gazed happily around at her little group of intrepid adventurers. They were gathered together in a room at the same inn where she and Hatch had stayed on the occasion of their first visit to Edwin Bright's island. Several cans of soda recently purchased from the inn's vending machine had been opened and were bubbling freely. Bags of potato chips were being passed around. It was a festive sight.

  “I want to thank you all for what you did tonight,” Jessie said. “Valentine Consultations is deeply grateful for your assistance on this case.” She raised her glass of cola toward Alex. “First, to Alex, for cracking the computer and making contact with Susan.”

  “To Alex,” David said grandly.

  “To Alex.” Susan Attwood blushed rosily and looked at Alex as if he were the reincarnation of Albert Einstein.

  Hatch, sprawled in the chair near the window, took a swallow of cola and nodded at Alex. “Hell of a job, Robin.”

  “Thanks. It was nothing.” Alex was flushed with pride and embarrassment. His eyes kept straying to Susan's admiring gaze. “Anytime you need help on a case, Jessie, just let me know.”

  “Why, thank you, Alex.” Jessie beamed fondly at him. Then she raised her glass in David's direction. “To David, who has shown he is that rarest of all beings, a philosopher who is also a man of action. A true Renaissance man.”

  “I wouldn't go that far,” David muttered, turning almost as red as Alex. But he was grinning hugely.

  “To David,” Alex intoned. “I owe you one, friend, for what you did to that jerk who was holding a gun on Susan.”

  “Yes,” Susan said shyly. “Thank you, David. You were wonderful. Almost as wonderful as Alex.”

  Hatch took another swallow of cola. “I told you that you didn't need anyone running interference for you, Ringstead. You can do your own dirty work just fine.”

  David met his eyes. “So you did.”

  “To Susan,” Jessie continued, hoisting her glass again. “Who bravely got out of the mansion with the proof of Edwin Bright's fraud.”

  “To Susan.” Alex gazed at her with pride and longing in his eyes.

  “To Susan.” David held up his glass.

  Hatch munched and nodded at Susan. “Bringing that printout showing Bright's financial setup was a stroke of genius, Susan. The authorities are going to have a field day.”

  “It was nothing.” Susan blushed again. “I just wish I hadn't been such a gullible idiot in the first place.”

  Alex touched her hand. “Don't blame yourself, Susan. You had only the best intentions.”

  “The others I worked with there at the mansion were innocent too, for the most part.” Susan glanced anxiously around the room. “The people who manned the telephones, as well as the computer operators and programmers. We all believed in Edwin Bright. We thought he was a true genius who was being deliberately ignored by the establishment because his predictions were so alarming. And you know how the government is about bad news.”

  “Nobody likes to hear talk of disaster,” David agreed. “It's easier to kill the messenger than deal with the real problem.”

  Susan nodded sadly. “Those of us who went to work for Bright thought we were dealing with the real problem. We believed the climate forecasts were accurate and we thought the money was needed desperately for Bright's technology-development plan. I'd started having some doubts, but it wasn't until Alex contacted me and pointed out the anomalies in the forecast data that I really questioned what was going on. Then I stumbled over a record of Bright's scam back East and knew for sure something was wrong.”

  “I wouldn't worry about the others,” Hatch said. “The authorities will probably only go after Bright.”

  “Fortunately, the people who got conned into working for Bright are all basically data-oriented,” Alex said. “Show them where the data are wrong and they'll buy into the truth. They're not the type to follow Bright blindly, as if he were some guru. Not when they've seen the facts.”

  Susan nodded soberly. “I think that's true. Edwin Bright is a charismatic man, but without solid data to back up his claims, no one I know is going to follow him.”

  “Not everyone who worked for Bright got conned,” Hatch said thoughtfully. “A few of them were in it for the money. Landis and Hoffman, for example. Not exactly your average wide-eyed innocents.”

  David gave him a sharp glance. “You think there might be more hired muscle like Landis and Hoffman running around?”

  Hatch shrugged. “How would I know? I'm a businessman, not a detective. But there was a lot of money involved. It just seems remotely possible that if Bright had those two on the payroll, he might have had others.”

  Susan frowned. “If he did, I never saw them on the island.”

  “That's reassuring.” Hatch took another swallow of cola.

  “I'm sure the authorities will pick up everyone involved very quickly,” Jessie declared crisply, although she couldn't meet Hatch's eyes. “Now, then, your attention, please.” She tapped the edge of her glass with her fingernail. “I have one more toast to make before we conclude this celebration. To Hatch. Without whose unflagging zeal and noble leadership this mission would never have been accomplished.”

  A cheer went up around the room.

  “Don't forget to mention my gold card,” Hatch said. “You used it to get the guy down at the marina to rent you a boat in the middle of the night, remember?”

  “To Hatch's gold card,” Jessie repe
ated dutifully. It was a joke. She was sure of it. In fact, she was almost positive. It had to be a joke.

  “To Hatch's gold card.”

  “To Hatch's gold card.”

  Hatch met Jessie's laughing eyes and smiled coolly. “One more toast,” he said softly. “To Jessie. Who is going to marry me. Soon. Aren't you, Jessie?”

  A sudden silence descended on the room. Jessie froze, her glass halfway to her lips. Her gaze collided with Hatch's and she was unable to look away. She loved him. And just look what he had gone through for her sake. Surely no man would go through all that unless he cared at least a little. She took a deep breath.

  “Yes,” Jessie said.

  This time the cheer that went up shook the paintings on the walls and rattled the glassware on the end table. Hatch gazed at Jessie with deep satisfaction as Alex and David whooped in approval.

  “About time,” Hatch said softly.

  A loud pounding began on the other side of the adjoining wall. A man's voice yelled from the next room.

  “For Christ's sake, will you hold it down in there? We're trying to get some sleep.”

  Hatch groaned, shut his eyes, and sank deeper into his chair.

  Jessie grinned. “This makes the second time poor Hatch has nearly been kicked out of here,” she explained to the others. “Guess we better not come here on our honeymoon, huh, Hatch? A little too embarrassing for you.”

  “I never even considered this inn for our honeymoon,” Hatch muttered without opening his eyes. “No telephones in the rooms. That means no business calls, no modem hookup, and no way to run a fax machine. How could I function?”

  Jessie hurled a pillow at him while the others dissolved into laughter.

  A long while later Jessie emerged from the bathroom to find that Hatch was already in bed. He had turned out the light. She could see him waiting for her in the shadows, his broad shoulders dark against the snowy pillows. His eyes glittered with a masculine anticipation that sent a delightful chill down her spine.

  A wave of shyness threatened to overwhelm her as she went slowly toward him. This was the first time she had been truly alone with Hatch since the others had retired to their own rooms a short while ago. It was the first time she had been alone with him since agreeing to marry him.