No options remained except one—throwing herself on Samuel’s mercy.
Which means throwing myself at his feet.
She counted the steps to the front door. A strange calm descended on her as she lifted her hand to knock on the black-painted door. For a long moment, nothing happened. Her breathing quickened. Do I want him to answer or not?
Pushing down her fear, she rapped a second time. Footfalls inside made her heart race. She ran a hand across her skirt, tugging it down to cover her knees. Then she jerked it back again.
Samuel opened the door, surprise lighting his features. “Laurie, what are you doing here? I was just getting ready to leave.”
She moistened her lips. “I need to speak with you.”
He stepped back and gestured for her to enter. “Don’t bother telling me you made another mistake. I’ve already got police and Coast Guard on the way.” Samuel led the way to two cushioned chairs in the parlor and waited for her to sit.
Laurie pulled off her hat and rested it on her lap, leaving her coat in place.
“Can I take that for you?”
She shook her head, squeezing the brim between her fingers. “This won’t take long, I hope.” She glanced around the luxurious room, not wanting to meet his eyes. Odd that a single man, working a government job, should have such nice belongings. “Samuel, you don’t have all the facts. I’ve been keeping some information to myself.”
He dropped into the seat across from her and settled his hands on his lap. “I’m listening.”
Words scrambled through her mind, but they were so mixed with emotions that none of them made it to her mouth. She licked her lips and opened her mouth to speak, but her tongue grew thick and wouldn’t cooperate.
Samuel scooted forward and reached for her hands. His touch sent a wave of panic shooting up her arms. She tried to pull away, but he captured her wrists and held her in place. Her breath caught in her chest. I can’t.
The words refused to come, but a knot grew in her stomach. “I . . . I . . . ”
He squeezed her hands. “Just say it.”
She shook her head, dizziness clouding her senses. Her skin grew clammy in his grip. She twisted her hands free and stood, pacing across the room to the window. The night had grown dark.
Laurie squeezed her eyes shut, picturing Johnny wrenching the oars through the stormy waves on the Straits. I must do this for him.
She exhaled, all her choices vanishing into the night. “My brother is one of the rumrunners.”
Samuel sat back and the corners of his lips rose into a smile. “I knew that long before I met you.”
Laurie’s hands went cold. She backed up against the windowsill, tucking her fingers under her arms. “So, why did you need me?”
He shrugged, rising from his seat. Walking to her side, he reached for her coat. “I think it’s plenty warm in here.”
She forced herself to stand still as he unfastened the knot on her belt and let it fall open. He stepped closer and slid his hands under her coat, around her waist.
Her heart pounded. “Samuel. Please. My father is in the hospital. My brother can’t go to jail. It’ll ruin us.”
“I know that, too.”
She lifted her face to meet his callous gaze. “What don’t you know?”
“I don’t know why you’re telling me this right now.” His cheek twitched as he smiled. “But I like it. Keep going.”
She tried to take a step back, but his hands locked behind the small of her back. She gripped his arms. “Johnny wasn’t supposed to be on the run tonight. I thought you would just catch the others.”
He smirked. “Even better.”
“You could let him escape.”
“Maybe. What’s in it for me?”
Her stomach tightened. “What do you want?”
“You know the answer to that.” He gripped her waist, his face lowering until she could feel his breath ruffling her hair. His lips brushed against her ear and her neck.
Laurie closed her eyes, holding her breath as he pushed the coat off her shoulders, his hand traveling up her back.
Daniel glared out the dark window of his apartment. Rather than seeing the dark sky or the lights of the city, he saw the hurt swimming in Laurie’s eyes. I put it there.
The storeroom key clung to his sweaty palm. How simple it would be to sneak downstairs, pocket one of the bottles, and drown the murkiness that surrounded his soul. Altering the records would be a simple matter.
He pressed his forehead against the dark window, the cold glass a shock to his damp skin. Beyond the buildings, the glow from the Ediz Hook light blasted out across the dark water.
Hadn’t the minister at the hospital warned him about these black thoughts—these lies? Daniel set the key on the windowsill and reached for his Bible, sitting open on the table. He flipped to the Psalms, fingering through the pages until he reached the 139th chapter. He had memorized the words during his hospital stay, but right now he needed to fix his eyes on the words.
Whither shall I go from thy spirit? Or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
Daniel took a deep breath, pulling the words into his soul like oxygen to his lungs. He understood what it meant to make his bed in hell. His heart hammered in his chest. He could lie to his grandfather, to Laurie, to anyone—but there were no secrets with God.
He pressed his face into his hands. “God, I can’t do this without you. You know the longings of my heart—my fears, my desires. Show me how to make this right.”
Pounding on the door startled him out of his chair, the Bible falling to the floor. He took two steps and paused. “Who is it?”
The pounding came a second time, followed by a muffled sob. He crossed the floor in a heartbeat and wrenched the door open.
Amelia stood in the dark stairwell, tears staining her face. “Daniel, help . . . Laurie’s gone to Samuel.”
Laurie twisted in Samuel’s grip. Her plans to seek mercy for her brother at any cost crumbled to dust. I can’t do it.
With an amused grunt, Samuel twined his fingers through her hair, smashing her lips against his.
Bile burned in her throat. Stifling a cry, she shoved her hands against his chest, jerking her face away. “Stop.”
He chuckled, breath hot against her ear. “Why did you come here, Laurie?” His words curled around her soul. “No money, no connections. You’ve got nothing to offer me.” His arm, as hard as an iron rod, crushed against the small of her back. “You want my help? Give me something I can use. We’ll see—if you’re good enough maybe we can do something about your brother.” He tugged at her skirt.
Laurie dug her fingers into his arm. “Let me go.”
“It’s your last chance. Do you want me to stay here with you, or you want me to go bust up some rumrunners?”
Laurie jabbed her fingers into the flesh under his ribs. Samuel released his grip enough for Laurie to wrench free. She stepped back, breathless.
Samuel crossed his arms over his chest, the corner of his mouth tipping up. “Made your choice?”
She smoothed her dress and retrieved her coat from the floor. “I deserve better.” She turned toward the door.
“Walk out and you’ll see your brother rot in prison. That is” —his voice lowered—“if he makes it there.” Samuel stood with legs spread, a sneer on his lips.
If she gave herself to this man, it wouldn’t change a thing—except her. “You have nothing to offer me, Samuel. Nothing.”
48
Daniel jammed on the brakes as he spotted Laurie climbing into her father’s automobile.
He leaped from his car and splashed through the puddles until he reached her window. “Please, tell me you’re all right.”
She drew a ragged breath. “Get in, will you? You’re getting soaked.”
He rounded the car and clambered into the passenger seat, slamming the door behind him.
Laurie jammed the car into gear and steered out onto the road without even checking for traffic. “Can you come back for your car later?”
Daniel twisted in his seat to face her. “Forget the car. What’s happening?”
“Let’s just say, I don’t want Samuel’s kind of help.”
Daniel sagged against the seat back, heart returning to an almost normal rhythm.
He glanced out the windscreen as they bumped down the road. “Where are we going?”
Laurie pressed one wrist against her mouth, but it didn’t stifle the hiccupping sob. “I don’t know. I just needed to get away from that house.” The Ford rattled down the road, lurching side to side over the ruts in the road.
He reached over and grabbed her wrist. “Pull over.”
She yanked the wheel to the side and let the wheels roll to a stop, covering her face with her fingers.
Daniel heaved a sigh as the motion ceased. He pushed open the door and stood, letting the rain wash over him. He walked around the car and opened her door.
Laurie hunched over the wheel, her face in her hands.
“Slide over.”
She shifted, giving him room to slide in before falling against his shoulder. “I’ve made such a mess. I don’t know what to do anymore.”
He shifted, turning so he could wrap his arms around her. “What’s the worst that could happen? Rumrunning convictions are mild. He shouldn’t see much time for that.”
She lifted her tear-stained face. “Samuel said he might not make it to jail.”
Daniel’s chest tightened. “What?” He reached for the ignition. “We’ll go back. Let’s hear him say that to me.”
Laurie grabbed his sleeve. “No. He’s already got other agents and police gathering out at Freshwater Cove. It won’t fix anything.”
The coldness of her fingers soaked through his sleeve. Reaching over, he covered his hand with hers. They sat in silence as the rain pattered down on the canvas top.
The seed of an idea coiled in the corner of his mind. Laurie had closed her eyes, resting her head against his shoulder. He gazed down at her face, feeling her warmth pressed against his side. What if?
He reached for the throttle.
She lifted her head. “Where are we going?”
Daniel glanced over his shoulder and guided the Model T out onto the dark road. “I was just thinking . . . ” He lifted his right arm away from her shoulder to settle both hands on the steering wheel. “I think it’s a nice night to do some fishing.”
49
Clutching at the hood of the oilskin slicker with her frozen fingers, Laurie used her other hand to grip the boat’s railing. Spray blew into her face, stinging her cheeks. She pulled the hood over her hair but immediately shoved it off, scanning the inky blackness. She hurried back into the boat’s wheelhouse.
“It’s going to be pretty tough.” Daniel lifted his voice against the sound of the wind. “I’m not certain we can find them in the dark.”
As he steered the boat into another swell, Laurie’s stomach rolled. The wave lifted them and sent them sliding down the opposite side. She swallowed hard, pushing down the nausea. “They’re out here, somewhere.”
She stared out into the night but saw only the foam on the whitecaps.
Daniel’s brow creased. “Do you swim?”
“Of course. Don’t you?”
“Not well. Granddad’s got a life ring strapped on the back, just in case.”
She wrapped her fingers around his arm. “No one could swim long in these conditions, anyway. Let’s focus on staying out of the water.”
Daniel nodded and faced the front, the strength of his jaw even more pronounced in the shadows. “Sounds good to me.”
Laurie stepped closer and weaved her arm around his waist as he gripped the controls. She struggled to connect the man standing next to her with the drunken college student from his past.
“There’s the Race Rocks light.” Daniel pointed into the distance.
She leaned forward as if the signal had a magnetic pull. “We’re near Victoria. Shouldn’t they be on the return journey by now? Did we miss them?”
“They’re like a needle in a haystack.” He yanked on the wheel, bringing them about while keeping a good angle on the swells. “I’ll take us a bit further west on the return. Maybe with the tidal currents, they’ve been pushed off course.”
“Johnny says if you don’t time the currents just right, you could end up rowing twice as far to get the same distance.” Laurie leaned down and plucked at her wet stockings. They clung to her skin, doing little to protect her knees from the icy chill.
“It’s a moonless night, too. They could be anywhere.”
God, please. Laurie paced to the back of the boat. Out in the spray, she lifted her arm over her head, pushing her hair from her eyes. Her brother was out there in the darkness—heading into a disaster of her making.
A swell lifted them, nearly jostling Laurie off her feet.
You can calm the storm, God. You find lost lambs and bring them home. Johnny was no lamb, but he did need divine intervention.
A flicker of light—like a candle in the darkness—caught her eye for a second before vanishing in the gloom. She clutched the side of the boat, willing the light to reappear. Would Johnny’s boat even have a light?
“Daniel!” The wind sucked the sound away. She slid across the deck, surging into the wheelhouse with the wind. “I saw something.”
“Point.”
She raised a hand and gestured in the direction of the phantom light.
He spun the wheel, the waves buffeting them as the boat bounced like a cork bobber on a fishing line.
She kept drawing quick breaths as the wind snatched the air from her lungs. “It was a light.”
He leaned against the wheel, trying to keep them facing the direction Laurie had indicated. “I sure hope it’s not the Coast Guard.”
She tucked her fingers under her arms, but little warmth remained.
“How far away?” Daniel lifted his voice over the storm.
“I couldn’t tell. It was just a flicker and then it vanished.” Laurie chewed on her lip, scanning the darkness. The wind even seemed to hold its breath, the air growing calmer as they bobbed along with the surges.
The flash blinked again, like a firefly in the night air. “There!” She grabbed Daniel’s shoulder.
“I see it, hold on.”
He gunned the motor for a few seconds, sending them surging toward the faint speck as it rose and fell in the darkness.
Laurie grabbed the flashlight and aimed it out across the water, illuminating the rain-pocked waves. She swung it from side to side, willing the longboats to appear from the darkness.
The beam lit up a craft struggling in the waves. Six men huddled in the boat, arms spread across the oars, faces twisted against the glare.
“There!” She fought to keep the circle of glow locked on the longboat refusing to let it disappear back into the storm.
Daniel guided them alongside. The men ceased straining against the oars, apparently resigned to not outrunning the more powerful vessel.
“Johnny!” Laurie threw back her hood and leaned over the side.
Johnny stared up at the larger vessel, his mouth a circle of slack-jawed surprise. “What—what do you think you’re doing?”
Daniel threw him a rope and pulled the boat in close. Johnny clambered aboard, followed by Big Jerry. The other men stayed huddled in the long boat, their collars turned up against the weather.
Jerry’s eyes bulged, his face mottled red and white. “What’s going on, Johnny?”
Laurie grabbed her brother’s arm and pulled him into th
e wheelhouse. “Samuel knows about the shipment. He’s waiting for you at Freshwater Bay.”
Johnny pushed back his hood. “What? How do you know that?”
Daniel spoke up. “That doesn’t matter right now. What matters is that you and your men don’t sail right into his clutches.”
Big Jerry snorted. “What are we supposed to do? Row back to Canada?”
Johnny wiped the sea spray from his face. “We could land at Crescent Beach, but we got no vehicles there.”
“She don’t know nothing. We ain’t changing plans now.” Jerry pulled his hood low over his head, his eyes shadowed.
A red-hot flare shot through Laurie. “Do you think I came out here for pleasure? Samuel Brown told me himself.”
Daniel gripped the rail as the boat rocked over a large swell. “Johnny, just dump the cargo and go in. If you’ve got nothing in your boat, they’ve got nothing to pin on you.”
Big Jerry’s balled his fists. “Do you have a clue how much money you’re talking about pouring down the drain?”
“But if Brown’s just going to take it, anyway . . . ” Johnny rubbed a hand over the stubble on his chin. “I think Daniel’s right. If we got nothing, he can’t book us.”
The icy rain trickled down Laurie’s face. “He could still shoot you, though.”
Big Jerry lifted his arms. “This is insane. I’m the boss and I say we land as normal. That’s why we got a spotter. Lew will signal if G-men are on the beach.”
Johnny shook his head. “We could really dig in with the oars and see how far down the beach we can get by morning. Maybe put in at Port Townsend or LaPush.”
The portly man growled. “I tell you, we ain’t changing nothing.”
Laurie threw back her hood, battling the urge to shove Jerry over the side. “Then give us the whiskey.” The words spilled from her lips.
Daniel’s mouth dropped open.
Laurie’s stomach tensed. If Daniel objected to whiskey on his grandfather’s boat, her plan wouldn’t hold water.
Mistaken Page 26