Dead On Arrival (A Malia Fern Mystery)

by Kym Roberts

  “No. My husband was supposed to meet with the auditor the day he disappeared. Daven was in Honolulu again, and the auditor called me.”

  “Why would Mr. Raines suggest that Peter may have been using again?” I asked.

  “Daven is bitter. His mother had been in and out of rehab so many times that Daven finally washed his hands of her. He believes that once an addict, always an addict, just waiting for the right trigger to fall off the wagon.”

  “Is there anyone else that may have wanted to hurt your husband?”

  Misty shook her head. It sounded like Mr. Raines had the perfect motive for killing Peter. Money.

  “Did your husband accuse Mr. Raines of stealing from the business?”

  “No. He never believed Daven would go that far. He didn’t trust him, he believed Daven was hiding something. I was the one who pushed him to come here.” Misty’s eyes filled again.

  Not wanting to dwell on her pain, I pushed forward for the information I needed. “What did Mr. Raines tell you?”

  “Daven said Peter admitted his problem hadn’t gone away. He and Daven agreed for Peter to sell our portion of the company. Daven was going to have the papers drawn up, but in the meantime, he had a meeting in Oahu he had to attend.” Misty covered her mouth with the wadded tissue in her hand, the pain of her next words contorting her face. “While Peter’s body floated in the ocean, I believed he had done the unspeakable and not only fallen off the wagon, but cheated on me as well. I would still believe it, if it wasn’t for your brother Kionni.”

  “My brother?” What could he possibly add to this?

  Misty blew her nose. “Daven told me your brother was the one who introduced Peter to a drug supplier on the island. When I couldn’t find Peter, I called Kionni and accused him of the worst things.” Her voice caught with emotion as she tried to continue. “Kionni insisted Daven was lying. He said the only other man he’d ever known to be as honorable as Peter was his dad.

  “Peter was a good man who faced a horrible disease he didn’t choose to start. I’m the one who failed him, not the other way around.” Misty’s shoulders slumped in defeat, and her eyes slipped to the floor.

  Somewhere deep inside me, Peter tried to hide his pain. The sorrow that he wasn’t there to hold her, protect her and tell her everything was going to be okay. He was hurting more than I thought possible after death. His broken heart tore at my chest.

  I reached over and put my hand on Misty’s knee. “I think you did everything you could to find your husband, which needed to include looking at the possibilities no one wants to think about. I don’t think your husband would think badly of you for that.”

  Misty wrapped her arms around her middle, squeezing her body tightly. “Thank you, I hope you’re right.”

  “I know I’m right.” I changed the direction one last time. “How much money was taken from the company?”

  “I don’t know. At this point, I may never know.”

  “Why?”

  “I’ve decided to walk away and let Daven handle everything.”

  “But wasn’t this your dream?”

  “I just don’t think I can do it without Peter,” she sobbed.

  Again I struggled to keep the interview on track and myself from becoming too emotional. “When was the last time you talked to your husband?”

  “Peter called me after meeting with Daven and Mr. Lincoln at the site. He wasn’t happy, but it wasn’t anything he was stressing over. The last thing he said to me was, ‘No worries, honey. I’ve got you and our boy.’” Her voice hitched but she continued, “That’s all that matters. I love you.’” Misty pinched the bridge of her nose. “My husband was a very strong man. He recognized his problem with painkillers and sought help. He didn’t fall off the wagon as Daven suggested to the police. His toxicology report proved that.”

  Will always love you.

  It was the longest thing Peter had ever said to me, and I knew it was important for me to pass it on. I reached for her hands and clasped them tightly in mine, knowing that Peter would somehow be able to touch her heart through my hands.

  “From what my brother told me, your husband was the most honorable man he’d ever met. Peter loved you and your son beyond the barriers of this world or time.” I hoped that did Peter justice, especially since I could feel his tears spilling inside me. All semblance of professionalism lost, I openly cried as I looked into Misty’s grief-filled eyes and something passed between our hands. I’m not sure what it was, but I felt it pass through our finger tips and saw it on her face. The love she felt for him, and he felt for her. It wasn’t like a beam of light from heaven or anything like that. It was more subtle, a glimmer in her eyes, a softening of her expression, she changed somehow and became more peaceful.

  It took all three of us a few moments, and a bunch of tissues for Misty and me, to get back on track. Peter calmed, and the turmoil in my chest eased momentarily.

  But the one thing I couldn’t ignore, was how convenient it would be for Daven if Misty signed away the Johnson’s hopes for tomorrow and their dreams died with Peter.

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Before leaving, Misty and I talked about her son. It was a topic she and Peter needed to be reminded of, one of joy and hope for the future. I actually held the baby in my arms as he slept and let Peter communicate all the love and knowledge every father wants to give his child. I don’t know how it worked, I just know that their son smiled in my arms and Peter smiled in my heart. Their son brought them together with his birth and bound them for eternity.

  After making Misty lock up all of her doors and windows, I left the Johnson’s condo with mixed emotions. Determined to help a widow who desperately needed closure, not certain I could give it to her, and a little creeped out by the feelings of a dead man in my body.

  Peter had talked to me more than ever. I sensed his spirit reaching through my own to touch his wife and son. Even now, he was there, but he was agitated and angry. Which put me more in tune with the night noises beyond the rhythmic hum of the surf breaking on the rocks. Beyond the calls of young Shearwater seabirds crying out to other fledglings on their virginal flights to the ocean. To the tiny sounds that didn’t belong.

  Normally, the environmentally conscious yellow lights illuminating the narrow path to the parking lot would make me feel good. It showed ecological awareness for our native birds on their initial voyage to the sea from their nests. Tonight, I found myself wishing for bright white floodlights to reduce the silent shadows threatening to engulf me in the midst of Ti plants. Muscles tense, I made it to the parking lot where my heart skipped a beat.

  A large, imposing figure leaned against the vehicle parked next to my scooter. My helmet dangled in his hands. Part of me wanted to run. Run back to the Johnson condo. The other part wanted to kick his hulking ass for messing with my property.

  My indecision held me stationary. My intuition reached out to him. Waited. Wondered. Watched. And he looked up. Giving me a glimpse of the smile spreading across his face.

  “I doubt you could kick my ‘hulking ass’ and there’s no reason to run back to Ms. Johnson. She’s been through enough.”

  “Pai!” My heart skipped another beat for a completely different reason. I couldn’t help but run to him. Glad he wasn’t behind bars. Ecstatic he wasn’t wearing a bright orange jumpsuit.

  My arms wrapped around him, and my face smushed against his ample chest. God, he felt good. Smelled good. I held on, my fingers digging into the corded muscles of his back, and relief formed a lump the size of a turtle egg in my throat. There was the slightest change in his posture as he returned my embrace. Then he slowly pushed me away and held me at arm’s length. His smile seemed a bit sad. His eyes questioned me with a veil of secrecy. I wanted to question him, but his look told me he wouldn’t answer. Not yet.

  “I came to help, but I didn’t get here in time to go in with you.”

  “I could have used you. I’m not sure I asked all the right questi
ons.”

  “You did great. The most important thing is that you gave them their good-bye. Without you, it wouldn’t have been possible.”

  I smiled, a little self-confidence returning. “You can’t possibly know that. We should go back in together.”

  “Malia, you did great. She’s given all she can give. Peter has exhausted himself. I didn’t stay because you needed me. I stayed…”

  If Pai continued talking, I didn’t hear his voice. I heard need racing through my mind, sexual attraction kicking into my gut. I shook my head to focus on what Pai was saying.

  “What?”

  “I stayed because I need you.”

  Thoughts of his tongue doing incredibly nasty, yet deliciously yummy things to my body invaded every space of thought I could spare. I rubbed my ear, trying to allow our conversation in.

  “Pai, I told you I would help, and I meant what I said.”

  I couldn’t seem to focus on the here and now. His tongue was replaced by something bigger. Better. I looked away, unable to look at him with the fantasy rushing to be fulfilled.

  God, I’m so hard it hurts.

  “What?” I screeched.

  “Are you okay?” Pai touched my arm, the heat nearly burned my skin.

  I jumped away. “What did you say?”

  “I said I know you’ll keep your word.” Pai looked at me warily.

  “No. No, that’s not what you said.” I knew what I heard. “You…you said, ‘God, I’m so hard—’”

  I blushed. Yeah, it was dark, but there was no way he’d miss the heat infusing my face. I could hide the heat surging through my unsated body, but my face was another story.

  Pai’s expression became masked and stoic — not giving away a sliver of emotion.

  She can’t possibly hear me.

  “Of course, I can hear you, you’re in my head!”

  His nostrils flared. I could see them and feel his shock in the night air. He shook his head slowly. “No, I’m not.”

  “That’s impossible, I hear you,” I insisted.

  “You hear me, Baby Doll, because you’re in my head.”

  And everything you heard is true.

  I looked down, below the waistband of his dress slacks. In the pitch dark, I’d be able to see that. He was — I took a breath and took another step backward. Holy shit.

  “What the hell is happening to me?” I asked.

  “It seems you are growing stronger.”

  I made a noise that wasn’t quite a laugh, but not anywhere near a sob. It was jammed pack with disbelief.

  Pai reached out and pulled me to him. The sexual tension was there, but the need to just be took over. Standing with our bodies touching at every level, he caressed my temple and told me about his day. His desire, however, remained obvious.

  “Thank you for all your phone messages. I didn’t see them until after Makaio arrived, but I appreciate the heads up. I spent most of my day with your brother. He thinks I had something to do with Peter Johnson’s death. Apparently, my irresponsible avoidance played right into the hands of Daven Raines. He told the detective I was the last one to see Mr. Johnson alive, which Raines and I know is a lie. Unfortunately, we seem to be the only ones who know the truth. So…” The sigh that escaped his mouth expressed more weariness than exasperation. “I’m a person of interest to the case.”

  Guilt washed over me. I shouldn’t have lied to John. I should have taken him to see Pai immediately, but I just couldn’t believe my brother would take Windy’s word over mine. Pai was innocent. (Okay, innocent wasn’t quite the right word to describe Pai.)

  His chest rumbled with laughter against my ear.

  “This isn’t your fault, Malia, and you’re right, innocence is a thing of my childhood.”

  His lips pressed against the top of my head. I squeezed him harder.

  “I would have avoided your brother out of my own competitiveness with Makaio. Peter Johnson was my client. I was hired to protect his property, but obviously the property wasn’t the real target. If I’d done my homework I would have known that before Peter got killed.”

  I’d seen Pai angry on a couple occasions. Angry with Makaio. Angry with Mad Dog. This, however, was different. His anger was tearing him up inside. The feeling was so palatable that I felt the need to use mouthwash. So intense, it became my own.

  “I left that night without even realizing Peter was in danger. My blindness cost Peter his life. Somewhere, I missed the signs of danger.”

  My blood heated with his fury. My fists clenched with unused exasperation as I absorbed his irritation.

  His teeth ground together. “I should have known something was wrong.”

  Part of me wanted to yell at him. Pummel him. With fists so tight, I could feel the flesh of my palm give under the bite of my nails, but those weren’t my feelings. I wasn’t angry with Pai and I didn’t want to hurt him. He was being too hard on himself. I knuckled down to express my true feelings and not the ones bombarding my mind.

  “You may have been able to save him that day, but you couldn’t protect him indefinitely without knowing all the facts. We still don’t know exactly how or where Peter was killed.”

  I forced my thoughts away from the anger. Away from the foreign mixture of my feelings (and thoughts) all jumbled with Pai’s, not to mention Peter’s pain thrown into the mix somewhere. I thought of…Mutt. He was the key. He could clear Pai and point John in the direction of the real killer. There was no doubt in my mind Daven Raines belonged behind bars, and Mutt was going to help me put him there.

  “I know the guy who originally saw you with Peter and Daven Raines, but there’s no way he will voluntarily talk to the police. We’re going to have to find him and somehow trick him into meeting John.”

  “And how do you propose we do that?”

  “Your size should help.” My eyes unwittingly traveled the length of his body. My mind took the tour as well.

  “I like the way you think.”

  My gaze went back to his face. His smile didn’t hold sadness. It held heat. Raw. Blistering. Heat. I stumbled backward, falling into my scooter. The sudden change in my body temperature flowed through my body and burned every nerve with overwhelming desire.

  “Malia?” Pai reached for me.

  I backed away.

  “Is it that bad?” Pai looked apprehensive.

  I think I panted. “No. It’s just a little too…” I waved my hands in the air trying to encompass exactly how much raw sexual need coursed through my veins. “It’s too much.”

  “It seems our link has progressed to another level. I’m sorry I subjected you to how a man’s mind works.” The expression on his face didn’t really convince me of his regret.

  I held onto my scooter for strength. Every inch of my being wanted to reach out and rip the business clothes from his body. My hands shook as I grasped the seat behind me, and my knees threatened to buckle. My breathing became labored as if I’d run a couple miles. Or just had sex. Or was in the middle of sex. God, I needed a cold shower. I was so hot I didn’t think I could stand it. The only way to relieve it was to strip off every bit of my clothing and run for the cool ocean water.

  “Are you telling me…?” I couldn’t finish it. Couldn’t fathom being able to read someone’s thoughts so clearly. Couldn’t comprehend my ability to experience his emotions. The axis of the earth seemed tilted. Tilted in a different direction than it had two minutes ago. I struggled for stability on legs that just didn’t want to hold me any longer. My vision hazed at the corners. My body threatened to hyperventilate.

  “It’ll be okay.”

  Pai’s voice continued to soothe. It crooned me toward relaxation. He murmured words I didn’t understand. He reached every one of those burning nerve endings as he spoke. I listened without comprehension. I wondered if he spoke aloud or if I was still reading his thoughts. Another jolt. Flames of heat rocketed back through my body.

  This time, Pai pulled me close, held me tight, despite
the high temperature radiating off his body. He seemed to cool my overheated shell, like the chilly effect of an air conditioner’s breeze blowing over my body. My breathing leveled. My thoughts calmed.

  “Is this the way you feel every time you read my thoughts?”

  I waited for his response, afraid to search for it in my mind.

  “At first, it hits you like a Mack truck filled with Ecstasy. After a while, you learn to tone it down.”

  A Mack truck didn’t plow into me. It bulldozed me into road pizza. Pai had just told me more than he’d meant to. I wasn’t the first person he’d experienced this with. I pulled away with such force, I lurched backward and Pai fell against his Jeep.

  Oh, shit.

  Pai confirmed his guilt. He knew I knew without the explanation ever coming from his lips.

  “Oh shit…oh shit…oh shit!” My feet were doing the tap dance of a firewalker as I turned around and around and around. “Fuck!” I shook my hands out, trying to rid myself of the pulsing blaze going down my arms into my fingertips.

  Fuck is what we need to do.

  I couldn’t help but realize a man’s thoughts really did turn to sex this often. He had to stop. “Stop it! Turn it off right now, Pai! I can’t take it!”

  Pai grabbed me from behind and held me in a bear hug. His arms wrapped around my body while his breath caressed my ear. He whispered more words, words beyond my comprehension that flowed through my body. At first, I thought he was going to follow through with his thoughts — bend me over and fuck me right there in the parking lot. And, well, a part of me welcomed it.

  No, to be brutally honest, I desperately craved it. To the point, I felt like…an addict. I needed it. Every description of the drug Ecstasy I’d ever heard, mentioned the desire to be touched as a need. A prerequisite. A necessity of life. A need you had to control, or become lost to the drug.

  Again, the imaginary air conditioner cooled my body and dampened the fire. But my heart still pounded against his arm, surprising me as I became aware of its matching musical drum beat in Pai’s broad chest blanketing my back.