Liza dropped a basket of vegetables on the top step then took a seat next to it. “Look what Audrey gave me. Her garden is overflowing.”
“My, what a bounty,” Claire said. “I could make a nice soup with all of that. What’s that on top, a magazine?”
“There’s an article about Charlotte in here. I brought it back to show you. It sounds as if she’s taking a little time off from making movies. She’s gone home to Ohio for a visit with her family.”
Claire peered down through her glasses and read the short article. “I’m glad for her. I think that’s just what she needs.”
Liza agreed. “I’m going to e-mail her and see how she’s doing. She may not answer, but I want her to know that we’re thinking of her.”
“And cheering her on from a distance,” Claire added. She picked up the peas again and finished the last few.
“From a great distance,” Liza said.
She was sure Charlotte had the best intentions, but truly doubted the movie star would ever return. Look at how hard it was for her to visit her own family. It had practically made headlines. But perhaps they would hear from her from time to time. She didn’t think Charlotte would forget this place—or the people she’d met here—that easily.
LABOR Day weekend had come and gone, with a last wave of summer guests passing through. On Thursday afternoon, Liza was upstairs adding hand towels and some of Audrey’s goat’s milk and lavender soaps to each room. She worked unhurriedly. There were no bookings at the inn for this weekend at all, which was fine with Liza.
She heard Claire call from the hallway. “Liza? There’s someone here to see us.”
Liza quickly left her task and ran to the head of the stairs. A certain note in Claire’s voice made her suspect that the unexpected guest was Daniel, and he had come home early to surprise her. But the voice she heard mingled with Claire’s in the foyer was distinctly female and Liza’s heart sank.
She wandered down the steps, not caring much whom she might find. Then she nearly tripped down the last two when she saw who was standing there.
“Charlotte? What are you doing here?”
“I told you I’d come back to visit.” Charlotte smiled warmly at her.
“Yes, but … I didn’t expect you back this soon. It’s so good to see you. You look wonderful,” she said honestly.
Charlotte met Liza’s gaze and leaned over to give her a hug. Liza noticed a calm expression in her brilliant blue eyes.
“I saw your e-mail the other day. I’m sorry I didn’t answer. I was afraid that no matter what I said, I’d give away my surprise.”
“We read that you were in Ohio,” Claire said as she led them all into the front parlor.
“I went there right after the movie wrapped up. I needed to go home and sort out a few things with my family—things that have been on my mind a long time,” she added. “Coming here really affected me. I didn’t even understand how much at the time. But once I left, I felt very different. Changed, deep inside. I knew I had to change on the outside, too.”
Claire nodded and smiled softly, as if she’d been expecting this revelation. “That night when you asked me to tell you Angel Island’s legend, I had a feeling that you were beginning to see things differently.”
“Yes, I was. But it all really started on the first day I came here, when I nearly drowned. And met Colin,” she added.
“Getting to know him and just being in this place helped me face a problem I’ve been avoiding for a very long time. A problem that has really kept me from being truly happy,” Charlotte confessed. She seemed lost in thought for a moment, then suddenly looked up at them. “I want to tell you more. But I really need to talk to Colin first. Have you seen him lately? I hope he comes in early from fishing today.”
“Colin is away, dear,” Claire said gently. “He’s on a long fishing trip, up north. Off the coast of Maine, I think he said.”
Charlotte looked shocked. “He is? When did he leave?”
“Almost three weeks ago. A few days after you did,” Liza said. “I’m not sure when he’s coming back. It sounded like he could be gone a month or more.”
“I had no idea. I just assumed he would be here.” Charlotte looked down and shook her head, clearly thrown by the news. “I guess I can try his cell phone. Or I could drive up to Maine and meet him somewhere … if he’ll see me.”
“Oh, I think he’ll see you,” Liza said. She had a feeling Colin would swim to shore if he knew Charlotte was waiting for him. “But his cell phone might not get coverage that far out on the water. We can try to find someone with a ship-to-shore radio. Let me think—”
“Marion and Walter Doyle, at the General Store,” Claire said. “They have that type of radio. I’m sure they’ll be happy to get in touch with their nephew.”
“That would be wonderful.” Charlotte sounded relieved. “If I just leave a message on his cell, I’ll have no idea of whether or not he ever got it.”
A few minutes later, they were sitting in the convertible Charlotte had rented at the airport and headed for the village center. Charlotte drove a little faster than necessary, sending gravel and dust flying. Liza couldn’t blame her. She had come all this way and was eager to hear Colin’s voice at the very least, even if she couldn’t get to see him.
Marion was behind the counter, reading a magazine. She looked up in surprise as the trio of women marched into the store. Then she did a complete double take when she realized who Liza and Claire’s companion was. “Mother of pearl, are you really Charlotte Miller?” Marion pressed her hand to her chest.
Charlotte smiled and nodded. “Yes, I am.”
“I was just reading about you.” Marion held up the magazine; its cover showed a photo of Charlotte in a red evening gown. “I thought I was hallucinating or something. I thought all of you movie people left here weeks ago.”
“Charlotte came back to visit us—and to visit Colin,” Liza explained. “We know he’s up in Maine somewhere fishing but don’t know how to get in touch. Can you find him with your ship-to-shore radio?”
“We can try.” Marion paused and stared at Charlotte again. “Did you really come all this way to see my nephew? I know he pulled you out of the water and all that. But—” She shook her head and waved her hand. “Never mind. It’s none of my business, I’m sure. Wait till his mother hears about this. She’s a big fan,” Marion said. “Follow me. The radio is back in that little office. It’s so small you can hardly swing a cat. Half a cat, maybe. Walter’s the only one who knows how to use it. I’ll go get him. You just wait.”
The women waited by the doorway to the small office. They heard Marion in another part of the store calling for her husband, “Walter, come on out here. Liza needs you to work the radio, to call Colin’s boat.”
Liza guessed that Walter had been somewhere unpacking goods or straightening out shelves. He came toward them, carrying a can of baby peas in each hand. He blinked and squinted when he saw Charlotte, then put on a pair of glasses that hung around his neck from a string.
Marion was trotting right behind him. “Yes, that’s Charlotte Miller, the movie star. You’re not imagining things.”
Walter glanced back at her. “I know who it is, Marion.”
He coughed into his hand. “Marion said you want me to call Colin on his boat?”
Charlotte nodded. “I’d be very grateful if you could.”
He looked curious but didn’t ask any more questions. “I’ll give it a try,” he said. “But if Colin’s up on deck fishing, he might not hear the radio. No way of knowing.”
The black radio was on a narrow table under a window. The rest of the room was filled by a desk, old metal file cabinets, and a bulletin board covered with invoices, most of them yellow and stained. There was no room for the women in the office along with Walter. Liza and Claire remained in the narrow hall between the office and the store and let Charlotte stand in the doorway.
Walter sat down at the radio, put on a pair of head
phones, and began working the controls. “We have a special number for Colin’s boat now. It’s a new system, almost like a telephone,” he added, tapping numbers on a keyboard.
“Have you heard from him much since he left?” Claire asked.
Walter shrugged. “I had a little chat with him one night, about a week ago. Said the fishing was good, but there were a lot of boats up there now. He was thinking of heading back but was going to take his time. Didn’t say much more though.”
Heading back? That was good news, Liza thought. Maybe he wasn’t that far away.
A harsh static sound came out of the speakers, and Walter spoke into his headset. “Calling Sea Star, 9054781. Hey, Colin, it’s Uncle Walter. Can you read me?” There was no answer and Walter tried again, repeating the same message.
They waited. There was no answer. Just the crackling static sound. Liza had a funny feeling in the pit of her stomach, a worried feeling that she tried to brush aside.
Marion had gone out to the store to help a customer but now returned. “Hear anything yet? Did he answer?”
“Not yet,” Walter said without turning to the women. “He must be fishing. Or working … or sleeping.”
That about covers it, Liza thought. She glanced at Charlotte. She looked eager to hear any sound at all from Colin’s boat, but didn’t say anything.
“Let me try again. Maybe I dialed wrong.” Walter hit the numbers on the keypad again. A sound suddenly came through the receiver. Not Colin’s voice, just a sharp, repetitive signal.
Walter suddenly looked worried and fiddled with the radio dials. “What’s wrong? Is his radio broken?” Charlotte asked.
“I hope so. That’s a Mayday signal. If his radio is working, it means his boat is in trouble.”
Walter quickly turned the receiver to another channel, then spoke over his shoulder. “Ladies, if you could please give me a moment and wait outside. I have to call the Coast Guard and tell them Colin may be in trouble. This may take a little while.”
Liza heard Charlotte gasp as she covered her mouth with her hand. Claire was closer to her and put her arm around her shoulder. “Let’s step outside, Charlotte, and let Walter concentrate.” Charlotte nodded and followed Claire and Liza from the office.
Marion waited near the register. She, too, looked upset. “I was just talking to a fellow out here, another fisherman. I told him we’re trying to call Colin, and he said there’s some heavy weather up in Maine right now. He heard a few boats from Cape Light are caught in a bad storm.”
Liza felt a moment of panic, then took a breath. She couldn’t get too alarmed and upset Charlotte. The poor girl looked worried enough.
“What should we do?” Charlotte looked around at the other women. “Is there someone else we can call? Maybe I could find someone up in Maine who can sail out and look for him—someone with a bigger boat? Or take a helicopter?”
Charlotte could surely afford to pay anybody any sum to look for Colin’s boat. But there was really no way they could arrange that sort of search and rescue operation from Angel Island. It was hard to tell her that, though.
Liza took hold of her hands, which were ice-cold. “The Coast Guard are trained for exactly this type of situation, Charlotte. Colin activated his emergency signal and probably has a GPS on his boat, too. If Walter heard the call over the radio just now, the Coast Guard and other boats in the area have surely heard it.”
“People are already out there, looking for him, dear,” Claire said quietly.
Charlotte nodded, her chin trembling. Then she covered her face with her hands. “I just feel so helpless. I wish there was something I could do—anything. I shouldn’t have waited like this to talk to him. What if something happens? What if—”
“Now, now, dear. Please don’t do this to yourself.” Claire put a comforting arm around Charlotte’s shoulder again. “This is just one of those times in life when there’s nothing to do but sit and wait. And say a prayer or two, and trust in God’s mercy.”
She caught Charlotte’s gaze, her words falling like a soothing balm. Charlotte nodded again and took a deep breath. Then she closed her eyes, and Liza realized she was probably sending up a silent prayer for Colin’s safety.
Walter came out of the office, his expression grim. “I just spoke to the Coast Guard. There are a few boats up there in trouble. A storm hit early this morning, much stronger and wilder than they expected. They’ve picked up two boats so far and are doing their best to get all the men in.”
“At least there’s help in the area,” Liza said. “That’s encouraging.”
“How will we know when they find Colin?” Charlotte asked quickly.
“I gave them the name of the boat. The Guard said they would call me when they found it.”
“Will you call us at the inn when they do? There’s no sense waiting here. It might take a while.” Liza looked at Charlotte. Would she insist on staying? She looked like she was tempted.
Finally, she nodded her head. “Yes, we should wait at the inn. The Doyles still have a store to run.”
Marion followed the women outside the store. “We’ll call you as soon as we hear something, I promise. And Walter needs to get in touch with his brother. I think they’ve gone on vacation someplace,” she added, referring to Colin’s parents. “I bet Colin’s folks don’t even know he went up north.”
That was going to be a hard call to make, Liza thought. She waved good-bye from the car. “Thanks for your help, Marion. We’ll be waiting.”
AS soon as they’d returned to the inn, Charlotte found the weather channel on TV and sat glued in front of it. The channel was giving the storm in Maine lots of coverage.
Liza wasn’t so sure watching the minute-by-minute news reports was a good thing. The weathercasters tended to be dramatic and exaggerate bad weather conditions. This storm needed little exaggeration, however. When they interviewed a fisherman who had been rescued, his wide, fearful stare and thankful expression told the entire story.
“It was bad out there. The weather turned on us, and we were looking at high winds and swells of twenty feet or more. We were lucky the Coast Guard found us and towed us in …”
There was more to the interview, but Liza didn’t hear it. Charlotte turned to her, looking even more worried, if that was possible. She’d had enough of waiting; Liza could see it in her eyes.
“I think we should call Mr. Doyle. Just to see if he’s heard anything. Anything at all,” she added, checking her watch. Not quite an hour had passed but Liza was impatient, too, to hear some word about Colin.
Walter answered on the first ring. “General Store.”
“It’s Liza, Walter. Have you heard anything about Colin? We’ve been watching the weather channel, and the reports have been troubling,” she confided.
Walter didn’t answer right away, though Liza could tell he was still there. His hesitancy made her heartbeat quicken. “I didn’t want to call until I had all the information,” he began. “They found the boat, not far from Portland. But … there was no one onboard.” His voice dipped down on a sad, frightened note. “They’re looking for him out in the water now,” Walter continued. “It hasn’t been that long, and they tell me the weather is letting up. I’m sure he has his life jacket on. He’s a strong boy. Brave, too,” he said, his voice choked with emotion.
Liza felt stunned. This was not the worst possible news … but almost. She turned to see Charlotte staring at her, desperate for information.
“I’ve been talking to a Coast Guard station in Portland,” Walter went on quietly. “That’s where they brought the boat and where they’ll bring him in, too, most likely.”
If they find him, Liza could almost hear him say.
It couldn’t be. Colin had to survive. He had to see Charlotte and see how much she loved him. Liza was sure now that was the reason she had returned. Could Colin possibly save Charlotte from drowning and then lose his own life to the sea?
“I’ll call you with any news,” Walt
er said.
Liza thanked him and said good-bye, then turned to face Charlotte. Liza wasn’t sure how to tell her what had happened.
Charlotte seemed to know. “Something bad has happened. I can see it in your face, Liza.” Charlotte got up from her chair. “Did Colin … Is he …” Her voice trailed off. She couldn’t say the words out loud.
“They found Colin’s boat but it was empty,” Liza spoke as calmly as she could. “They assume he was washed overboard, and they’re searching for him. There’s a good chance they’ll find him, Charlotte. The weather is clearing and there are several boats looking.”
The ocean was vast and a single person, floating alone in the water, most likely without a flare or any means of attracting attention … Oh, the odds were not good. Not good at all, Liza knew. But she had to sound positive for Charlotte. They all had to keep a positive frame of mind.
Charlotte’s expression trembled. She sank down onto the love seat, covered her face with her hands, and began to sob. “I can’t lose him, not now. Not this way … Please don’t let this happen. Please save him,” she cried out loud. Liza realized she was talking to God, begging Him to spare Colin.
Claire sat next to her and held her as she wept. “I know it’s hard and frightening,” she murmured. “But we mustn’t lose faith.”
Charlotte lifted her head and took a steadying breath. “What can I do? Can’t I wait up there to hear what’s happening? Can’t I be closer to him?”
Dead or alive, she meant. Liza felt her own eyes fill with tears.
“We can go to Portland. Walter said that’s where they brought his boat. It’s the Coast Guard station that’s closest to the search area. It’s only about two hours by car. I’ll drive you,” Liza offered.
“I’ll drive,” someone else said.
Liza turned to see Daniel standing in the foyer. She gave a little cry of amazement and ran into his arms. “You’re back,” she said, holding him as if she’d never let him go. “I can’t believe you’re back.”
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