Chuckling, Tupper shook his head. "Nah, though sometimes I swear that man couldn't find his glasses on his own nose. He was lookin' for the key to a buddy's cabin so he could loan it to some frien's"
Despite wanting to punch the air in triumph, Gao remained motionless. "That was very nice of his friend to loan his cabin."
"Yep. Well, of course he's a priest too, so bein' nice is sorta in the job description. From what David says though, this Conor darn near walks on water."
"Conor? I knew a priest named Conor Williams in Edmonton once. I wonder if it's the same man."
"Don' think so. David's friend's name is Conor O'Reilly." Tupper laughed. "Now there's a good Irish name for ya. My mother was a Reilly-right straight from the ol' country, she was."
Faking disappointment, Gao continued to probe. "No, that wouldn't be the gentleman I knew then, though he did have a cabin as I recall. I'm afraid I don't remember what lake it was on though."
"Mighta bin the Shuswaps. That's where David's frien's cabin is, and I know lotsa folks go there for hol'days. David says the cabin is a real beaut too, right down on the waterfront."
Gao could have kissed the garrulous old cowboy. So his prey had fled to a waterfront cabin on the Shuswaps, owned by a priest named Conor O'Reilly...and he hadn't even had to pull the gun that nestled so comfortingly under his light summer jacket. It was time to wrap this up and go.
Glancing up at the sky, still fairly light in the summer evening, Gao murmured, "I'm afraid I must get going. I take it your priest is out tonight?" He didn't really care now that he had the information he needed, but he needed a graceful exit.
"Fraid so. Miz Hancock took poorly s'afternoon, and the family asked David to come sit with 'em. Knowing him, he'll be there 'til the wee hours and then come d'rectly here for services."
"Then perhaps I shall attend services in the morning and speak to him afterwards about joining the church," Gao said, rising to his feet.
"Good idea," Tupper said approvingly. "I thin' ya'll like it here. Great priest...good buncha folks. Make ya feel right at home."
"Thank you for taking the time to talk to me," Gao said courteously, inclining his head in a little bow.
Tupper grinned. "My pleasure, Charlie. Be seein' ya around."
Gao smiled in return, then turned and made his way back to the sidewalk. Glancing over his shoulder as he left, he saw the old cowboy already back at work getting the last of the flowers in place.
He frowned as he approached Perry's car, feeling the vibration of the car's stereo through the pavement under his feet. Oh, that's inconspicuous!
Watching Perry drum wildly on the steering wheel, he briefly considered simply throwing the man out of the car and driving himself to the Shuswaps, but as attractive as the idea was, he knew he needed to rest on the drive there so he'd be in top form when he found the women.
Gao wrenched open the door, startling Perry so badly that the nervous man banged his head on the window jerking away from his ominous passenger. The Asian snapped off the blaring stereo, and ordered, "Drive."
Perry fumbled for the ignition, starting the car before he asked, "Where?"
He flinched as coldly amused black eyes regarded him.
"Shuswap Lakes."
The electronics expert gaped at him. "Shuswap? In B.C.?"
"Yes, now drive."
"But..."
So swiftly that Perry didn't have time to utter another word of protest, Gao had the barrel of his gun pressed tightly to his reluctant chauffeur's temple. He gave the ashen man a moment to absorb the sensation of the cool metal, then calmly asked, "You were saying?"
"Nothing," Perry squeaked. "Didn't say nothing."
"You didn't say anything," Gao corrected with a trace of black humour, but he removed the gun, flipped the safety back on and set it on his lap. "Get moving. I want to drive straight there-no stops."
Sullenly, Perry put the car in drive before muttering, "I gotta get gas and take a leak."
"All right," Gao agreed, his mood markedly improved now that he was en route to his targets. Then he added calmly, "But don't be foolish, Perry. You really don't want to be an added complication."
They stopped at a gas station to fill up the tank and use the facilities. Gao was amused when he stood at a urinal beside Perry, that his companion seemed to have problems coaxing his bladder to relax. Even with the awkwardness of using his left hand, he was finished, washed up and back out to the car long before the electronics expert.
Once the jittery man had returned to the car, Gao took off his jacket and neatly folded it on his lap to cover his hands-one in a cast, and one holding an H&K P7M13 in a casual grasp. When they got out on the highway, the setting sun bothered him, so, content now that his intimidated driver would carry out his instructions precisely, the Asian closed his eyes. Comforting visions of cowering women soon soothed him to sleep as the sky deepened to night and the kilometres slipped by.
* * *
Rhi woke to a tangle of sheets, and long arms and legs wrapped around her. She didn't move, smiling as she let her eyes adjust to the early morning light. With a deep joy she recalled every moment of the previous day...from waking for the first time in Marika's embrace to both of them finally falling asleep exhausted, long after the stars had come out.
Her stomach felt completely hollow-reminding her that they hadn't eaten since the roadside sandwich the previous afternoon-but her body was profoundly satiated, and her heart was overflowing with what she felt for her new lover. Suddenly needing to see Marika, she twisted in her warm cocoon until she'd rolled over.
The lawyer mumbled and instinctively pulled her small partner closer, but Rhi resisted, wanting to watch her sleeping partner's face. Avidly she took in every detail: the way pale lashes fluttered briefly and then subsided, as if the sleeper resisted waking up; the ash blond strands that had drifted over soft cheeks; the tiny blue veins she could see through the thin, delicate skin of Marika's temple.
Rhi's gaze sharpened then, and she frowned at the bandage that Dana had placed over the wound Gao had inflicted. She knew it wasn't serious and would heal quickly, but the thought that someone had dared to hurt her lover still left her livid. For the most part she was content to leave the apprehension of their enemies to the police, but a small part of her dearly wanted a final confrontation with Gao.
Resolutely pushing the residual anger aside, Rhi concentrated instead on studying the woman sleeping beside her. Overwhelmed by the depth of what she was feeling, she gently pushed back the silken hair and traced her finger down Marika's jaw line to her neck, pausing to feel the pulse there before continuing her downward path.
Coming to rest on the side of her lover's breast, she was startled by the sound of an amused, sleep-raspy voice.
"Are you having your way with me, sweetheart?"
Rhi chuckled and looked up to meet loving gray eyes. "Um...yes?"
Marika leaned forward, capturing her lips in a slow, lingering kiss before deliberately taking Rhi's hand and placing it firmly over her breast. Huskily, she murmured her approval. "Good."
Before they could proceed any further, Rhi's stomach rumbled loudly in the quiet room and both women broke out laughing.
Rhi slid her hand over the soft curve and around Marika's back, snuggling in closer. She thrilled, as she had the first time, to the sensation of their bodies melding. Her lover nuzzled her hair and ran a gentle hand down the length of her back.
"I suppose we really should eat first, eh?"
When Rhi giggled, Marika laughed. "Breakfast, my insatiable little darling...breakfast."
Leaning up for another kiss, Rhi agreed. "Mmmm, I guess that would be acceptable." With a wicked twinkle in her eye, she added, "For now."
Marika gave a mock-groan. "Oh for the stamina of youth!"
Laughing, Rhi rolled her older lover over on her back and squirmed on top. She was torn between wanting to demonstrate her stamina, and acceding to the increasingly intrusive demands of her
empty stomach, but another rumble decided the issue for her.
"Ooooh, that tickled." Marika grinned up at the smaller woman, wrapping her arms firmly around the body that had her pinned.
Rhi lowered her head, nibbling a little at an elegant collar bone as her hands traced teasing patterns down the lawyer's sleek sides. "Tickling can be good," she countered, her words somewhat muffled.
"You want tickling do you?" Marika's hands promptly began to fly over Rhi's body, driving her young lover into a paroxysm of laughter, and quickly ending with both of them bouncing out of bed and standing with their arms draped loosely around each other as they surveyed the room.
"Sorta looks like a tornado hit it," Rhi observed wryly.
Marika squeezed her shoulders and chuckled. "I'd like to point out that most of these clothes are yours."
"Uh huh. That's only because yours are still downstairs. And who was it that tossed that pillow all the way over there last night?" Rhi raised one eyebrow as she indicated the square cushion that was balanced haphazardly off the edge of a chair.
"Oh yeah...that would be me."
Rhi looked up to see a delightful pink blush on her lover's fair features. She grinned, remembering the circumstances that had sent the pillow flying through the air. Chuckling she moved to her suitcase to get fresh clothes.
"I think a bath might be in order," Rhi suggested as she dug for what she needed. When the expected concurrence didn't come, she glanced over her shoulder to find Marika watching her intently, a trace of uncertainty on her face. Puzzled, she stood and faced her lover. "Rika? What's wrong?"
"Are you all right...I mean, with all this? I didn't rush you last night or anything?"
Astonished, Rhi blinked at the other woman. "You rush me? Honey, in case you hadn't noticed, there was a whole lot of mutual rushing going on." She watched Marika drop her eyes, and instantly she moved to her lover, taking the long, slender hands that had brought her such pleasure in her own.
"Hey," she coaxed, "what's going on, my love? What are you thinking?"
Marika shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm being an idiot."
"No you're not," Rhi rebuked her gently. "If something's bothering you, tell me what it is."
Drawing a deep breath, Marika voiced her worries. "I'm wondering if everything that's happened has happened too fast-as a result of what you went through last week."
Rhi understood instantly. Softly she clarified. "You're questioning whether I made love with you out of a need to confirm we were alive...a reaction to surviving Gao and Cass."
Unable to meet her eyes, Marika simply nodded. Inwardly, Rhi cursed Cass all over again for making her lover question her own worth. She'd thought their glorious lovemaking would have convinced the insecure woman of her feelings, but obviously the light of day had brought doubts to the fore again.
Firmly she tilted Marika's face up until their eyes met, then putting every ounce of conviction she could into her voice, she declared, "I love you, and I was falling in love with you long before the events of last week. What happened last night was only a beginning. You said yourself that it's up to us what we make of our lives from this point forward. Well, I want to make my life with you...not because of Cass or Gao, or even Lee and Dana. I want to make my life with you because I love you. Do you believe me?"
Saying the words, Rhi felt their unequivocal truth, and as she stood quietly while Marika's eyes searched her face, she knew David had been right. She didn't need her old crutch anymore. She had made her choice-long before they'd first touched each other the previous night.
"Yes."
It was only a single word, but Rhi saw the blaze of joy in Marika's eyes as her lover finally accepted the miracle they'd been given.
"Good." They stared at each other for a long moment, two sets of eyes brimming with emotion. Finally Marika drew Rhi forward into her arms and they relaxed into each other, somewhat exhausted by the emotional overload.
Neither could have said how long they stood in that sunny room, arms locked around each other as Rhi rested her head on her tall lover's shoulder, but finally Marika broke the contented silence.
"So...bath then breakfast?"
"Sounds good," Rhi agreed as she eased out of the embrace and smiled at Marika.
Both women moved to pick out clothes as Marika teased, "I suppose you're going to have that chocolate marshmallow cereal you picked out."
"Of course," Rhi said cheerfully, finding the shorts she wanted at the bottom of the bag.
"You do realize that stuff is pure sugar," Marika chided gently as she led the way out of their room.
"Yup," the younger woman agreed, then added with an evil chuckle, "I figure I'm going to need all the energy I can get."
A melodramatic moan was followed by the sound of the lovers laughing together as they descended the stairs.
* * *
Gao slammed his uninjured hand against the dashboard in frustration, and not even Perry shrinking from him alleviated his foul mood. He'd been so certain the women would be easy to find once they got to the lake, but he'd been unaware that the Shuswaps were really an H-shaped chain of four large lakes, with over a thousand kilometres of shoreline.
They'd arrived just after two AM, with Perry whining that he was exhausted and needed to rest. Reasoning that there was little hope of finding the cabin in the dark, Gao had agreed to obtain a cheap motel room. Once inside, Perry immediately sacked out on one of the beds, while Gao headed straight for the local phonebook.
Opening to the 'R's, he'd scanned the listings and found eight Reilly's. Tearing out the page, he'd studied the addresses and with rising excitement, found two listed on Lakeshore Drive. Leaving Perry snoring noisily, Gao drove to an all-night convenience store and bought a local map. Once back in the room, he'd meticulously charted the location of each address. To his disgust, he'd found that Lakeshore Drive was near a small lake south of the actual Shuswaps, and the rest of the Reilly's were in town.
Irritated, but not discouraged, Gao had decided they would leave at first light and check every cabin on the lake if they had to. Many hours later, they were no further ahead than when they'd started, which was why the dashboard was taking the brunt of his anger.
The problem he'd encountered was that many of the lakeside cottages were nestled in the thick woods that covered the hillsides surrounding the lakes. Gao was able to eliminate a number of them that conveniently had family names posted clearly, but he was concerned that if he kept approaching strangers looking for his prey, he might arouse suspicions and end up being reported to the local RCMP detachment.
It was past noon now, and although Gao didn't feel he was under a deadline since the women couldn't know he was there, he was driven by his own need to find and kill them.
"Uh, could I pick up some lunch?" Perry asked nervously.
"Make it fast." Gao stared out the window as Perry drove, turning over possibilities in his mind. He could-if necessary-continue the cabin-by-cabin search along the vast network of roads around the lakes, but he wanted something faster...more effective.
"The Lakes!"
Perry glanced at Gao. "The Lakes?"
"Exactly! They're in a lakeshore cabin with a private beach. On an afternoon like this," Gao said excitedly, gesturing at the bright sunny day, "they're not going to be inside. They'll probably be lounging on their beach, or swimming or something. All we have to do is rent a speed boat, and we can cover the lake much faster that way."
"Do you know how to drive a boat?" Perry asked skeptically. "'Cause I sure don't."
"How hard can it be?" Gao scoffed. "As soon as we have lunch, we'll find a boat rental outlet. Are your binoculars still in the car?"
"Yeah, I left 'em in the trunk yesterday."
"Excellent. You drive. I'll scan the shoreline."
* * *
Rhi leaned out of the canoe and grabbed the end of the wharf, pulling alongside as Marika propelled them forward with strokes of her paddle.
"Don
't fall out," the lawyer warned laughingly. "I've fished you out once, and that's enough for one day."
"Hey!" Rhi protested good-naturedly. "Can I help it if that fish was too fast?"
"Good thing we were only in three feet of water...and honey, I don't think you're supposed to try and catch them with your hands."
"I almost had him!" Rhi grinned, as she crawled out on the wharf and tied the canoe down.
They'd had a wonderful day. After a bath and breakfast, they'd gone for a walk in the unexplored direction from their beach, then returned for a swim before lunch. They'd planned to take the canoe out after lunch, but had gotten distracted and ended up spending the afternoon making love instead. They'd finally dragged themselves out of their comfortable nest, and after a late lunch-or early dinner-had taken the canoe out for a couple of hours of exploration.
Neither woman had ever canoed before, so there was more hilarity than actual progress for the first half hour, but by the time they'd returned as the early dusk was starting to settle in, they'd gotten quite proficient. Rhi wanted to stay out longer, but Marika was concerned that she'd get chilled in her damp clothes, so insisted that they return, bribing her young lover with the promise of a bonfire.
As Marika stood to climb up on the wharf, the wake of a passing motorboat rocked the canoe, and she almost fell before Rhi grabbed her arm. The younger woman glared after the boat that had picked up speed as it roared away, but the setting sun made it hard to see anything.
Shaking her head, Rhi took off her lifejacket and picked up her paddle. Marika did the same, and they made their way back up the rocky beach to the A-frame, stowing their gear on the porch in readiness for the next day.
Linking hands, the new lovers entered the cabin. They barely made it inside the door before Rhi was in Marika's arms, claiming the kisses willingly offered.
"Mmmm, I've been wanting to do that for hours," the lawyer murmured contentedly when they finally came up for air.
Rhi snuggled into the taller body. "Me too. But I figured the canoe was too tippy for us to fool around out there."
"No kidding. In case you haven't noticed, you're wet, you know." Marika chuckled at the raised eyebrow that got her. "I meant that your clothes are still damp from your fishing expedition. Why don't you go change and I'll start getting things ready for our bonfire."
Broken Faith Page 48