Primitive Flame

by Lakes, Lynde

Abruptly, he relaxed his arms and ended the kiss. “Call you tomorrow.” His deep, husky voice wavered.

  She nodded, still breathless. He hadn’t wanted to stop any more than she had, but as usual the site came between them.

  Tingling all over, she slipped into the quiet house and tiptoed across the living room. She switched off the light Grandfather had left on for her. She’d become accustomed to finding her way down the dark hallway.

  When she stepped into the bedroom, the rotten egg smell of sulfur fumes met her. Her neck prickled, and hot air pressed painfully against her skin. Behind her, the door slammed shut. The lock engaged. Her heart began to thud so hard she could scarcely breathe. It had never happened like this before. If she could just get to the light switch…

  The wall in front of her burst into flames. She screamed. Grandfather’s footsteps pounded toward her. He shook the doorknob, then beat on the wood. “Lani, are you all right?”

  Flames roared like a blast furnace, sending the temperature soaring. Sweat broke out on her forehead. Smoke curled into her nostrils, choking her. She tried to let her grandfather in. “The lock’s stuck.”

  “Stand back. I’ll break down the door.”

  “No. Wait. If I can get to the light…” She had to do something quickly or she’d run out of oxygen. Lani slid her hand over the wall until her fingers found the switch. The room flooded with welcome light and the inferno disappeared, leaving an ordinary painted wall in its place.

  She sank against the surface, gulping clear air as the lock disengaged and Grandfather charged into the room, looking surprised that the door had opened on its own.

  “Kupuna kane, I’m sorry I woke you.” She hated the tremor in her voice. “The wall burst into flames.”

  “Oh, Lani, Lani.” Grandfather drew her into his arms and gently patted her back as though she were a toddler awakening from a nightmare. It was worse—she was awake, living this torment second by second.

  He held her away and searched her face. “If I could just see what you’re seeing. Perhaps I could help you fight this.”

  Why did she feel so small, so vulnerable? “I’ll be fine now that the light’s on.” Her uncontrollable shaking betrayed her words.

  “Get ready for bed. I’ll come back and sit with you while you fall asleep.”

  “Really, Kupuna kane, you don’t need to do that. It was just the suddenness that startled me.”

  “I feel so helpless. At least, let’s leave our bedroom doors open.”

  “I would feel better with them open.” She kissed Grandfather’s cheek, grateful not to be alone in the house.

  Her grandfather padded barefoot out of her bedroom. His proud broad shoulders slumped. He looked older, grayer than usual, and defenseless. For both of their sakes, she had to free herself of the nightmares and visions and get their lives back to normal. Would the séance bring her the answers she needed to unravel the mystery?

  Chapter Fourteen

  Cort swung by the construction site. The gate was locked and all looked quiet, so he headed home, driving at a moderate speed through a light drizzle. He seldom questioned his own motives. His actions were generally based on sound logic, but there was no logic involved in seeing Lani. Dating her played with fire, yet he was the firefighter ready to meet the blaze head on, drawn by the flaming heat. When he got scorched, as he knew he would, he’d have no one to blame but himself.

  If only he knew what was going on in that gorgeous head of hers. When he’d picked her up for their date she’d snapped at him like a quarrelsome pup. It didn’t make sense—the previous night they’d parted on what he considered very good terms. Perhaps telling Keo he was taking Lani out to dinner had taken too much for granted. Cort wanted to see her and refused to consider that the feeling might not be mutual.

  She got over her huff quickly enough at the beach. So whatever had bothered her, she managed to resolve it.

  However, at the restaurant her emotions skittered all over the place, from calm and happy to jumpy and scared. Something troubled her big time, yet she was trying hard not to show it. When she blew out the candle on the table, she looked frightened, pale. But not of him. He was sure of that. She wanted to be with him. He’d felt the sexual current sizzling between them.

  He could be reading things that weren’t there into her actions, but he didn’t think so. Whatever was going on with her, he intended to get to the bottom of it. Her question about the spiritualist unnerved him, especially after her earlier claims of seeing things in the ground. He’d thought they’d left that nonsense behind them. He had shrugged off her question, not wanting to look too closely at his own cynical feelings about unworldly things. He hoped that wouldn’t turn out to be a mistake.

  ****

  The morning sound of chattering mynahs woke Lani with a start, her memory of the flaming wall still vivid. She’d actually slept. It was hard to believe her fatigue had been greater than her fear. She glanced at the clock. Time to get moving. It was her job to open the office, and it wouldn’t do to be late. She slipped into her robe and tiptoed quietly toward the bathroom. Grandfather’s bedroom door stood open, and she closed it softly. Guilt rocked her. He was getting haggard sleeping with one ear cocked. Was he wishing she hadn’t come to live with him? She had to make sure he didn’t get hurt by the force tormenting her. As Lani showered and dressed, she wondered what she could do to make things better. It was crazy, having nightmares both asleep and awake. If the bad dreams were devices to get her attention, these panoramic fiery visions had certainly done that. She’d figured out the haunting had something to do with the burial grounds and that she was supposed to stop the construction. Obviously her efforts in that direction weren’t enough. What else was she expected to do?

  She pondered the question as she drove to work without coming any closer to an answer, so when she entered her office she tucked the concern to the back of her mind.

  Lani switched on the lights, started the coffee, and tackled the stack of work piled up on her desk. By nine o’clock Loo Chinn and the rest of the staff had straggled in. The only one who wasn’t there was Julie, but she telephoned and asked Lani to forward her calls to her home.

  Julie was a sunflower, always bright and full of life. In spite of her fling with Cort, Lani liked her. Still, their developing friendship didn’t make her miss Bev any less. During Lani’s break, she made a credit card call to San Diego.

  Bev squealed happily. “Well, it’s about time! I was beginning to think you’d written me off.”

  “That could never happen. How’s the catering business?”

  “Great. David’s boss referred me to all of his friends. I’m even doing a party for David on Saturday night.”

  Lani waited for a pang of jealousy. It didn’t come.

  “Lani?”

  “Good for you.” Lani laughed. “As I recall, David’s parties needed spicing up.”

  “He misses you.” The joy left Bev’s voice. “You’re all he talks about. You really hurt him.”

  “That was the last thing I wanted to do, but we weren’t right for each other. You know that.” The silence on the other end of the line went on too long. “So, you’ve been seeing a lot of David?” Lani asked, needing to fill the void. She waited again for that surge of jealousy. Nothing.

  Bev hesitated. “Well, we’ve been getting together to discuss his shindig.”

  “I think you should see more of him.”

  “What did you say?” Bev’s voice wavered.

  “If you see more of him maybe he’ll wake up and realize you two are perfect for each other.”

  “Lani, I swear, nothing’s been going on between us. Just business. I wouldn’t—”

  “But you should. It’s over between David and me. Over for good, do you understand? Remember, I told you that?”

  “I know but…really? And you wouldn’t care…that is—”

  Lani thought of Cort, of how he made her laugh. “I’d be thrilled for both of you. Honest.”
<
br />   “Well, that’s just wonderful.” Bev’s voice sounded happier than ever before. “How’s it going in Hawai’i?”

  “Great. I needed this time with Grandfather, and I think he needed it too.” She hoped that didn’t change.

  Lani touched her lava stone necklace. The mystery surrounding the gift had bothered her from the beginning. It had been comforting to assume that her grandfather had sent it. Now she knew that wasn’t true. “Look, Bev, I need you to do me a favor.”

  “Anything.”

  “There’s a white shopping bag in the back of my closet. Could you please send it to me?”

  “I’ll ask your mom.”

  “No, don’t!” If her parents knew what was in the bag they would destroy it to protect her. “Go to the closet and get it yourself. Just pretend it’s something I borrowed from you.”

  “Let me get this straight. You’re asking me to lie to your parents?”

  Guilt gripped Lani. “Sorry. It was a bad idea. Forget it.”

  “Hey, hold on.” Bev laughed. “I’ll do it. It’s just that keeping things from your parents is so out of character for you. What’s so important, anyway?”

  “Just some old wrapping paper, odds and ends. But no one must know about this, do you understand?”

  “Perfectamente,” Bev quipped, then her tone turned serious. “You’re sure everything’s all right?”

  “Of course.” Lani wasn’t ready to tell Bev what was going on. If she did, her friend would be on the first plane to Honolulu. Until Lani got to the bottom of her troubles, she didn’t want that.

  Bev let out a big sigh of relief. “I’m glad. I’ve had these nightmares about you. Lots of fire. Skeletons sacrificing you to a fiery pit. It was scary as hell.”

  “You dreamed that?” Lani’s neck muscles tightened. Bev’s dreams were too close to her own. By the time their conversation ended the tension had spread down her spine.

  After several calls from Loo’s clients, Lani had her emotions back under control. It had been comforting to hear Bev’s voice, and she wouldn’t let their similar dreams spoil that warm feeling. Lani smiled thinking how happy Bev sounded when she told her she and David belonged together. They both deserved happiness, and she wanted to be sure Bev knew it was okay to go for it.

  By ten o’clock Lani had waded through half the pile of work and realized she’d easily be caught up by noon. She hummed softly to herself.

  ****

  Damn, it’s sweltering in here. Cort wiped the sweat from his brow with his shirtsleeve. His office, a doublewide wood-frame trailer the size of a house, was usually cool enough, but the air conditioner had quit again. He didn’t have time to repair it. His first priority was getting his final report together for his meeting with Loo Chinn at two o’clock.

  When Tom shouted his name, Cort took two large steps to the door and stuck his head out. Tom hurried from the direction of the road, his face flushed. A tall, heavyset Hawaiian man carrying a clipboard followed on his heels. Cort closed the distance between them. The heat and Cort’s tight schedule for getting the final report completed set his nerves on edge. “What’s the problem, Tom?” he growled.

  “This guy has a court order to halt construction.”

  Cort shielded his eyes from the bright sun and glared at the stranger with the clipboard. “What’s going on? Who are you?”

  The man held out a business card. “Mel Kohea. DLNR, Environmental Impact Section.”

  Cort took the card, then shifted his weight impatiently. “What’s this about a stop order?”

  Tom leaned forward and presented the form. “Mr. Kohea gave me this.”

  Cort scanned the document then slapped it with his knuckles. “What the hell does this legal mumbo jumbo mean?”

  “We have reason to believe this is an ancient Hawaiian burial ground. We have sixty days to prove it.”

  “Impossible.” Cort’s heart thundered. To keep from grabbing the man by his bureaucratic collar, he curled his fingers into fists. “Our environmental impact report was approved. You can’t do this!”

  “No need to shout, Mr. Wayne. It may not take the whole sixty days. I’ll do my best to move things along.”

  “You can’t expect us to sit still while you guys play in the dirt. Someone’s gonna pay for this. I’m calling our attorney.”

  “Do what you have to do, Mr. Wayne. But stop the work now.”

  Cort took a calming breath. As much as he wanted to kick this guy off the site, he knew not to screw around with someone waving a court order. “What makes you think there are ancient relics here? We haven’t uncovered a thing.”

  “We’ve received a tip and have to check it out.”

  His mouth felt dry. “Who gave you the tip?”

  “Her name isn’t pertinent, Mr. Wayne. We have a perfectly legal order.”

  “A woman?” Lani! “Surely you can’t stop a whole project at the whim of that meddling female.”

  “Mr. Wayne, please don’t make me enforce this order. Comply or go to jail.”

  Cort squared his shoulders in a last-ditch show of defiance, but he knew when to back down. “Tom, tell the men to wrap it up for today. Keep the reason quiet until I can meet with the big boys on this.”

  Cort brushed past Kohea and climbed into the company truck. He accelerated off the site, his tires spinning dust into the air.

  ****

  Lani’s boss had returned from lunch and was in the conference room with early arrivals for the big two o’clock meeting. All the sales force worked quietly at their desks, except Julie and Stan. Julie was showing a house, and Stan was opening an escrow. Lani recorded a call for him in the message book. Suddenly, the front door slammed so hard the frame shook.

  She looked up into the flushed face of Cort Wayne. He had all the charm of a bull about to charge. A muscle along his jaw-line twitched. His whitened knuckles stood out on his clenched fists as though he was having trouble stopping himself from smashing them into something.

  His brilliant green eyes flashed dangerously. “You lied to me!”

  Lani felt the blood drain from her face. “What are you talking about?”

  Sparks shot from his pupils. “Do you know what you’ve done with your meddling?”

  A sick feeling washed over her. Unable to speak, she shook her head.

  “I got a court order today,” Cort growled, sounding savage. “Construction’s at a stand still while those bureaucratic idiots look for nonexistent relics! Do you have any idea what that means?”

  Excitement soared through her. “Yes. They’ll find the burial ground.”

  As though he hadn’t heard her, Cort began shouting again. “The company stands to lose a fortune in added interest and other costs. My men are out of work with no pay until this is cleared up. How could you do this and not tell me?”

  Lani’s heart went out to his men and their families, but the desecration of sacred land had to be stopped at all costs. “I told you I intended to stop the construction when we first met,” she said, touching the black lava stone necklace resting only inches from her heart. Although trembling inside, she managed to keep her voice even. “I made my goal quite clear.”

  Cort pounded her desk with his massive fist. Papers scattered, some onto the floor. She shot to her feet. Cort’s size and behavior didn’t scare her, but she was hurt and embarrassed. Salespeople in the office had stopped what they were doing, and she felt their stares.

  “You didn’t correct me when I said you’d joined our side,” he said. “A natural assumption since you took a job with the project broker.”

  She gripped the edge of the desk. Her throat went dry. “Mr. Chinn has an interest in the site?”

  “Don’t play dumb with me.” Cort let out a cynical snort. “You know there are nonexistent bones on a site, but you don’t know you work for the project broker?”

  She winced, but stood her ground. “I didn’t know, as surprising as that may seem.” Being in construction, Cort could’ve been
coming into the office for any number of reasons. “You forget this is only my third day here. No paperwork has crossed my desk about that site. And the sign on the property reads only, Cort Wayne Builders.” She held his gaze. “I’m not psychic, you know.”

  “Then how the hell do you know there’re relics on my site?”

  “Well, maybe I am a little psychic about that.”

  The flush on Cort’s face darkened. He ran his hand through his hair. A few more sun-gilded strands fell onto his forehead. How ruggedly handsome he was, even when upset. However, if looks could kill, she’d be dead.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about my call to Mr. Kohea. I only did what I know in my heart is right. The relics must be protected.” For a moment she thought his expression had softened. Good, he was starting to understand. “Please believe me, I didn’t mean to deceive you.”

  “Well, you did.” The anger in his voice carried a trace of hurt that touched her, until he added, “And it just cost you your job.”

  Fury whipped through Lani. “You’re not my boss.”

  “What do you think Loo’s going to do when I tell him you stopped our project? You just cost him a big piece of change, baby. Might as well clean out your desk.”

  “Listen hothead, you have a right to be upset, but you don’t have a right to tell me what to do. If my boss fires me, so be it. But it’ll be up to him, not you.”

  Lani felt close to tears, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing them. As calmly as possible, she turned her back on him and left him standing at her desk.

  “Wait a minute! I’m not through talking to you!”

  Lani paused, half turning to face him. When she spoke her voice was normal, controlled. “I’m not interested in anything else you have to say.”

  Loo Chinn stuck his head out of the doorway of the conference room. “What the hell is going on out here?” he bellowed.

  “We have big trouble,” Cort said, ushering him back into the meeting room and slamming the door behind them.

  Aware the sales people’s gazes were still on her, Lani ran to the back of the office. She opened one of the file drawers and pretended to look for something. Her trembling hand stopped on a file. It didn’t matter which one. She yanked the folder from the drawer and marched into one of the unoccupied back offices. She wanted to kick the door, but instead eased it closed and sank down on the closest chair and allowed her dammed up tears to flow. She muffled the sounds of her crying with a handful of tissues. “Darn you, Cort. Why did you make me care so much?” Lani asked, into the emptiness of the room. But she knew it was all her own fault. She’d known she was playing with fire.