The words “ a crime” seemed to reverberate in her mind. Obviously, he did not want her to say anything to anyone about what she had heard. Mrs. Manoa already knew, so it must be because of Leilani. If her friend thought that someone had set their house on fire in the middle of the night on purpose, it would really freak her out. The very idea sent a shiver up Kristi’s own spine. What a horrible thing to do! Who, on this little bit of paradise, would be evil enough to do such a thing? That thought made her think of Satan in the Garden of Eden. There was a devilish serpent loose here on Paradise Island!
Leilani stirred and lifted her head. “I’ve been meaning to tell you all—” she said, “My grandmother got a phone call this morning while we were painting…” [Kristi held her breath.] “…One of our new neighbors called to tell us about the Annual Palekaiko by Moonlight Festival tomorrow night. It sounds like fun! Grandmother thought you all might like to go.”
Kristi released her breath. Leilani did not know about the other phone call. “Sure—it sounds great! What’s it all about, Leilani?”
“To tell you the truth, I don’t really know. I guess it’s just a local festival—partly for the tourists, I suppose, but maybe even more for the locals. As you’ve already seen, there’s not a whole lot of stuff happening here unless you love surfing, boating, snorkeling and hiking in the rainforest. It’s pretty much all ‘back to nature’ activities, so maybe they just made an annual bit of entertainment for themselves.”
“Well, whatever it is—I’m ready for it!” Robyn declared. “I hope there’s a hula party!”
“Well, I can almost guarantee someone will hula, and in Hawaii everyone is welcome to join right in! It’s the aloha spirit, you know! Hey, let’s all dress up in Hawaiian clothes, okay? I’ve got lots, and I’m sure anything I have will fit any of you.”
“Oooh! Fantastic! Wow! Thanks, Leilani!” the girls exclaimed. Suddenly all traces of sleepiness had disappeared. “Can we try them on, right now?” Robyn asked.
“Sure! Come on!” The girls waved goodbye to the boys and hurried up the steps on the cliff.
Kimo was on the roof of one of the cottages today. He didn’t look up or act like he had even heard them when they called aloha up at him. “Doesn’t he ever talk, Leilani?” Anna asked.
The Hawaiian girl shrugged. “Not much. I think he’s kind of deaf, maybe. He’s pretty old.” They went on to the house.
Steve was on his knees by the front door installing one of the new locks he had bought the day before. “What are you girls up to?” he asked.
“We’re going to try on some Hawaiian clothes, Dad!” Kristi said. “Leilani told us about a festival they’re having here on the island tomorrow night and she offered to lend us some of her clothes if we go. May we go, Daddy? Please?” she asked in her best ‘Daddy’s Little Girl’ voice. She grinned at the other girls and winked.
“Hey! None of that, young lady! I’m on to your tricks!” Steve chuckled. “Besides, Mrs. Manoa already told your mom and me about the festival and we’ve agreed to take you all!”
“Whoo-Hoo! Thanks, Daddy!” Kristi laughed as she threw her arms around her dad and gave him a big hug. She winked again at her friends.
“Who’s that?” Leilani asked suddenly. She frowned, puzzled, as she watched a jeep on the beach below turn into the drive up to Castaway Cove.
Kristi and her father looked at one another. They had the same thought—the sheriff he had called for earlier that morning. Steve looked at Leilani with concern. He really didn’t want her around while he spoke with the sheriff.
Kristi sensed the problem without her father having to say a word. “Come on, Leilani! I can’t wait to see what you have! I hope I can find something that fits! You’re a little thinner than I am!” She pulled her friend by the arm, not giving her a chance to stick around to see who was in the jeep. “Come on, Anna and Robyn! This is going to be fun!”
Rachel and Mrs. Manoa were in the kitchen preparing supper. “Guess what!” Robyn said excitedly. “Leilani is lending us costumes for the festival tomorrow night! We’re going to try some things on now and pick out what we’re going to wear! I’m planning to hula all night long!” she crowed, dancing her little hula.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah! Come on, Robyn! Let’s go!” Kristi said, anxious to get Leilani upstairs before her father and the sheriff came looking for Mrs. Manoa.
“We want to see a fashion show when you’ve made your decisions!” Rachel called after them as they ran up the stairs. Kristi heard footsteps approaching the kitchen, but she just kept pushing her friend up the stairs until, at last, they were safely in Leilani’s room with the door shut. Whew!
“Okay,” Leilani said as she went to her closet, “I’ve got short dresses; long dresses; muumuus; wraparound sarongs; Pa'u hula skirts; raffia, or what you would call ‘grass’ skirts; a hula skirt made of Ti leaves and various tops to go with the skirts. Take your pick!” She was pulling things out of her closet as she spoke and piling them on the bed.
“Wow, Leilani! Why so much? You don’t wear these that often do you?” Kristi asked.
“No, hardly ever, anymore,” Leilani said sadly. “They were my mother’s before she passed away. She worked at the Hawaiian Cultural Center in Oahu and needed all kinds of authentic Hawaiian wear for her job. Now I usually pick out something a couple times a year for special occasions. It really makes me happy that we’re doing this! Seeing you all wear my mom’s costumes will make me feel like I have her back with me, if only for a little time!”
“Aww, Leilani. You’re the one doing us a favor! It will be an honor to wear your mother’s beautiful clothes,” Kristi said, giving her friend a quick hug.
“Is this her picture, Leilani?” Anna picked up a framed photo that sat on the little table next to Leilani’s bed. She nodded.
Robyn and Kristi gathered around so that they could see the picture, too. “She’s beautiful, Leilani! You look just like her!” It was true. The young woman in the photograph was merely a slightly older version of her daughter, with the silky black veil of hair, dark almond-shaped eyes and lovely face.
Leilani smiled and said simply, “Thank you. That is truly a compliment for my mother was a beautiful woman, inside and out! Okay, let’s try on some of these things, shall we?”
“What’s a Pa'u hula skirt, Leilani?” Robyn asked. “I’ve seen the grass skirts and the ones made of Ti leaves, of course, but I’ve never heard of Pa'u hula skirts before.”
Leilani dug through the pile on her bed and pulled out some beautiful, brightly colored material. “This is a Pa'u hula skirt. You see, it is very, very full with almost four yards of fabric. The waist is gathered in this wide band so the wearer looks like she has a tiny waist and wide hips as she dances the hula.” She tossed the skirt back on the pile and said, “I’ve got lots of accessories, too—jewelry, hair ornaments, silk floral pieces and the like. Not so many shoes, but if you wear your own flip-flops you’ll be fine.”
They spent the next half hour trying on the beautiful clothes and posing in front of the mirror on the back of Leilani’s door. They swapped things out and tried the skirts, tops and accessories on in different combinations. At one point Kristi happened to glance out the window and saw her parents and Mrs. Manoa out in the backyard with the sheriff. They were pointing at the house and talking. Kristi casually moved over in front of the window and stood there, blocking the view.
At last the girls were each satisfied with their choices. “Wait a minute!” Kristi said at the last minute. “Maybe I should wear this long dress instead of the shorter one. Oh, I don’t know! I just can’t make up my mind!” She tried to stall a few minutes longer.
Finally, though, she could put the other girls off no longer. “Kristi, you look beautiful! Just wear the long one! It’s totally different, and so exotic!” Robyn said impatiently. “Here—put this flower in your dark hair and you could almost be Leilani’s cousin! You three are lucky! With my blonde hair no one would ever think I wa
s a Hawaiian princess like Leilani!”
“Anna could pass for Hawaiian quicker than I can,” Kristi said. “With her Spanish heritage she has the perfect coloring! But Robyn, don’t try to kid us! Aren’t you the one who’s always trying to tell us that blondes have more fun?”
Robyn just giggled and said, “Come on! Let’s go show your mom and Leilani’s grandma our outfits!” They trooped out of the bedroom and paraded downstairs to show the ladies.
Leilani’s grandmother and Rachel were in the kitchen by themselves. They started laughing and clapping their hands as the girls lined up before them. “Wow!” Rachel kept repeating. “You girls look amazing—and way too grown up! Where is my little one with the pigtails and missing front teeth? You’re all such beautiful young ladies! Your father is going to be stunned, Kristi!”
“He’ll be okay with this outfit, though, won’t he, Mom?” Kristi asked anxiously.
Rachel nodded. “He’ll have the same reaction I did—Where is my little girl?—but you’ve all managed to keep it modest, so he’ll be fine. Good girls! I’m pleased to see that there are no coconut shell bras here!”
“Mom!!!” Kristi gasped in embarrassment.
Mrs. Manoa and Rachel just laughed. “Well, Rachel, dear, let’s go raid my closet and see what we can find for you! I promise—I shall keep my coconut bra to myself!” The two women went up the stairs trailing gales of laughter behind them. The girls just looked at each other and shook their heads.
Kristi got a few moments alone with her dad before supper. “Thanks, Kristi, for helping me out earlier,” he said quietly. “We just don’t want Leilani worrying unnecessarily or being frightened. If the time comes when we think she has to know, we’ll tell her, but for now her grandmother wants us to keep it quiet.”
“I understand, Dad,” Kristi said. “So did the sheriff agree with you?”
“Yes, but he can’t do much to help. They have no manpower here on Palekaiko, so about the most he can do is take a report, and if we have any more problems, come back out here again. We’re pretty much on our own as far as catching this guy.”
“Wow. That’s not good,” Kristi said solemnly.
“Well, I don’t want you worrying about it, Kristi! You just relax and enjoy your time here with your friends. Just keep reminding yourself—God is in control!”
“You’re right, Dad. I’ll do that!”
It was a merry group who gathered around the table that night. All traces of fear and anxiety had gradually disappeared through the day. The last hour or two, as the girls concentrated on fashion and festivals rather than fire and fear, their mood had lightened and now they were eager to face the coming day.
They chattered on about their outfits, describing them in detail to the boys until finally Skeeter could take it no longer. “Yikes! Enough, you guys! You’re driving us crazy!” He clapped his hands over his ears.
“Skeeter! You’re being rude! You may not be interested, but you can still be polite!” his mother scolded.
“Oh, Skeeter! Don’t worry!” his sister said innocently. “We’re not leaving you guys out! We have costumes for you, too, for tomorrow night!”
“What?! No way!” Skeeter exclaimed leaping to his feet. “I am not—I repeat—NOT wearing a hula skirt! And that’s final!”
“Now, Skeeter, would we make you wear a hula skirt?” Robyn giggled. “We’ve got something better!” She waggled her eyebrows at him. He looked suspiciously at her. She turned to Leilani. “Where’s that muumuu you said you had, Leilani?” she asked.
“Muumuu?! Arrrgh!” Skeeter screeched. “Muumuus are for old fat ladies!”
“I beg your pardon, young man?” Mrs. Manoa said with dignity. “I happen to be wearing a muumuu!” She stood, indicating the long, flowing gown she was wearing. She looked beautiful.
“Uh, s-sorry!” Skeeter stammered. “Muumuus are for ladies, anyway! I’m not wearing a muumuu, either!”
“Oh, Skeeter! Who said anything about you wearing a muumuu? Don’t be ridiculous!” Kristi said, trying to keep a straight face.
“Robyn said—”
“Who, me? I didn’t say we wanted you to wear a muumuu, Skeeter!” Robyn denied.
“But—”
“No, no, no! We have these cool Hawaiian shirts for you guys! See?” Kristi turned to Leilani who pulled a handful of shirts out of the bag at her feet.
Skeeter eyed them suspiciously. “Where’d you get them?” he asked.
“They were Great Uncle Paulo’s,” Leilani said.
“Eww, I don’t wannna wear some old, fat, dead guy’s—”
“Skeeter!” his parents exclaimed in horror.
“Sorry! I mean—” He glanced guiltily at Mrs. Manoa and Leilani.
“It’s alright, Skeeter. I was young once, too, you know,” Mrs. Manoa said. “But really, these are perfectly fine shirts. It’s not as if Uncle Paulo was wearing them when he died, you know. He was in a hospital in a hospital gown. I was planning to give them to charity but just hadn’t gotten around to it yet.”
Skeeter looked slightly ashamed of himself. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Manoa. I was just kind of kiddin’ around.”
“I know, Skeeter.”
“Hey!” Pete spoke up. “Those are really cool shirts! Vintage Hawaiian shirts are really popular these days! I know a lot of guys who would love to get their hands on a shirt like these!”
The others looked at Pete in amazement. “Since when do you keep up with the latest fashion crazes, Pete?” Skeeter asked.
Pete shrugged. “I don’t know… I just like to read…”
“Pete’s right!” Dan said. “They’re a little big for us, but we could wear them open with a T-shirt underneath…”
“And now my brother is a fashion expert?!”
“Hey, these shirts are cool!” Pete and Dan said together.
“Well, in that case, I’ll take this one!” Skeeter said snatching one of the shirts out of Leilani’s hands. He put it on and then strutted up and down with his hands on his hips as if he was a model on the catwalk. No one laughed harder than Mrs. Manoa. Skeeter—and his parents—were relieved to see that she had not taken offense at his careless words at all.
“Okay, if you all are done clowning around now, how would you like to have more fireworks and a bonfire out on the beach again tonight?” Steve finally asked. “I’ve a got another carton of fireworks.”
“No!” Leilani said before anyone else could speak up. Her eyes were troubled. “I mean… I was wondering… You don’t suppose a spark from the fireworks last night landed behind our house and then lay there smoldering until the fire broke out, do you? I thought about that this morning and I’ve been wondering about it all day. I mean, how else could it have happened?”
“No, Leilani, I can pretty much guarantee that that is not how it happened,” Steve said gently. “For one thing, we were too far away and below the house down there on the beach for our little fireworks to be able to reach the house. And even if the wind could have blown a spark, it was blowing the wrong way last night, as it is tonight, for that to have happened. You can rest assured about that, Sweetie.” He did not say anything about their true suspicions.
“You can rest easily, period, Leilani. And you, too, Kristi. No staying awake tonight, okay?” Rachel added. “Nothing will happen, I promise. Pete and Dan, and your dad and I are going to take turns keeping an eye on things tonight so everyone else just relax and get a good night’s sleep! But right now, I say—the night is still young! Let’s clear away these things and go down to the beach! If you’re okay with it now, Leilani, I say let’s do the fireworks, and the bonfire, too—after a moonlight swim, of course!”
Leilani smiled and agreed to the plans. It was wonderful to have the support and encouragement of good friends like these! How she wished the Camerons could be around always!
That night, as they ran up and down the beach with their sparklers, and watched the fountains, bottle rockets, Roman candles, pinwheels and spi
nners light up the night sky in their brilliant colors, Leilani felt joy, like the fireworks, bursting from her heart. She would have never believed two years ago, when she had lost her mother, that her life could be this happy again. As she sat near the bonfire, later, and listened to her friends speak of how precious the Lord was to them, she felt a deep peace and comfort in her soul. When her mother had died and she had felt abandoned by even God Himself, Leilani had thought there was no comfort great enough to fill the void left in her heart at her mother’s loss; no peace to ever be found in her life again. And yet now, here she was—joyful again, comforted by her grandmother and these dear friends, and at peace in this beautiful place where the Lord had led them. God is so good she thought, and I am so happy! Thank You, Lord! May I never doubt You again!
___________
CHAPTER SEVEN
___________
Hawaiian Princesses
The night had passed peacefully. No one tried to break in. There was no sign of fire, vandalism or mischief. Dan and Pete stayed up late, taking a walk around the resort every now and then just to check on things. They woke Dan’s folks around two thirty, then, and went to bed as Steve and Rachel took over. Mrs. Manoa had insisted they wake her early so they could go back to bed for a while, and she had kept a wary eye out while she went about preparing for breakfast and the other work of the day.
They were back at work by nine o’clock that morning. The painting was nearly done. The guys were ready to finish the exterior painting. “There’s only the Seashell Shack and the Pineapple Palace left,” Steve pointed out. “Let’s really knock it out, guys and get it done today! What colors are we painting today, Mrs. Manoa?”
Catastrophe at Castaway Cove (Kristi Cameron Book 8) Page 6