Veils and Vengeance

by Rachelle J. Christensen

  “Really?” I smoothed out the surprise in my face. “Thanks for the warning. She hasn’t been very pleasant to deal with so far, but I’ve tried my best.”

  Pua blinked rapidly. He was nervous about what he’d just said, but I couldn’t miss this opportunity. “I talked to some police officers too, but I don’t know if they found what they were looking for.”

  “They questioned you, too?” Pua seemed concerned.

  “I had some information about a case they are working on,” I ventured.

  “Hmm, I got the idea that the officers were here today to issue a warning to PFI, but I’ve been wrong before. Kauai has had a lot of troubles with these rallies.” Pua pursed his lips. “I apologize. I probably shouldn’t have told you that. I trust you’ll be discreet.”

  “Of course.” I concentrated on making my face impassive while my head was pinging with the information he’d just unwittingly shared. I decided to change tactics. “Should I be worried if they’ve threatened me concerning the booking conflicts we’ve been having?”

  Pua’s face darkened with anger. “Unfortunately, that seems to come with the PFI territory. I don’t agree with how they’ve been given free rein over the hotel, but I can’t do anything about it. Chelsea is head of the concierge department.”

  I extended my hand again covering my surprise. I had no idea that Chelsea headed the department. “Thank you for your help. I really appreciate it. I’ve never been in a situation like this before.”

  He shook my hand with a solid grip, his large hand engulfing mine. “We’ll see what the next few days bring, but you shouldn’t have any more trouble.”

  The wedding luau was Saturday, almost a week away. That seemed like plenty of time for more trouble to brew. The fact that Chelsea had more control than I first realized gave me an uneasy feeling. I exited the lobby on the far side from Teo. I had no intention of speaking to him, but I did have every intention of calling Detective Ford in Idaho. Tony Ford was my brother Wesley’s best friend and had always been protective of me. Since he lived in the town next to me, it was easy for him to keep an eye on me. Hopefully he could help answer a few questions.

  The maid was just leaving my room when I returned.

  “Mahalo,” I thanked her in a low voice.

  She smiled and bobbed her head as I entered. The room was pristine. It would be nice to have someone to clean my own home every day. The thought made me miss my assistant, Lorea. She was mildly messy and always cursing how much she had to clean. The dress business we had started last summer was doing well and it kept Lorea plenty busy. I needed to give her a call as soon as I sorted through all the information in my brain. Chatting with Pua had turned out much better than I’d expected.

  I booted up my computer and sipped on a coconut water while I jotted down notes. As soon as I connected to the Internet, I Googled PFI in conjunction with Amelia Harper’s name. Searching was difficult when dealing with an acronym, because the search returned several different companies and organizations and none of them linked with Mrs. Harper’s name. After clicking through acronym finders, prison fellowships, and pellet fuel companies, my mouse hovered over something that made sense. I clicked on Pure Foodists International and was brought to a site with bold statements on the purity of food and a movement against GMOs. Bingo.

  A little more research confirmed what I already knew from the Connellys. Kauai was the heartland of several major GMO companies, each with their own test plots securely guarded and posted with no trespassing signs. I’d seen them previously when the Connellys had taken us up to Wailua Falls. Neil had pointed out several test plots. To me it had looked like ordinary farmland, but as I listened to his explanations, I recognized that the plants were in several different stages of growth. There was corn in a seedling stage in one plot and fully developed plants in another area. Neil had explained how each plot was used to test the biotechnology the company was working on.

  I refocused on Pure Foodists International. They claimed that certain companies were overrunning the best farmland by creating their own personal Frankenstein seeds, stripping the soil, destroying the land, and poisoning surrounding properties with their chemical experimentations. PFI claimed that the food sources of the United States were in a downward spiral as a direct consequence of the unethical practices of these GMOs.

  A little hunting had me smiling in pride over my investigative skills. PFI had planned a secret rally to combat the attack on pure food. They planned to descend on the farming areas with banners raised and if necessary, force. Reading between the lines, it was easy to conceive such fevered antagonism turning mere threats into something much worse.

  If a person wanted to take part in this rally, they had to go through several points of contact to join the membership of PFI and be invited. It only took me a few seconds to debate whether I would write such an email requesting more information. I used a different email account that didn’t give away my name and infused as much self-righteous food-protective tone in my note as I could muster.

  After I sent it off, I dialed Lorea’s number.

  “Adri, how are you? Is Hawaii everything you hoped it would be?” Her voice sounded more cheerful than usual.

  “Actually, yes. I still wish you could be here.”

  “I know, but how often does a girl get the chance to make her sister’s wedding gown, right?”

  “How did it turn out? Did Terese love it?”

  Lorea let out a happy sigh. “She loved it. Everything was perfect.”

  “You sound happy. I’m glad. You know, Terese’s wedding’s over. You could still catch a flight here. I have my own room.” Logistically, I knew it couldn’t happen because Lorea was covering for me and the six weddings we had planned in June, but I wanted her to know just how much I missed her company.

  “Tempting, but some wedding planner I know overbooked her summer so she could drown in her work and then took off for Hawaii.”

  The usual snap had returned to Lorea’s voice, and I found myself smiling. “So tell me, who did you end up taking to Terese’s wedding?”

  I heard another dreamy sigh and laughed because it was so atypical of Lorea. Coming to work for me had been a struggle because she was such a cynic about romantic fairy tale weddings and love. She’d been burned at some point and her family and I had tried our best to get her back into the dating game. Terese had finally won out for a single date because she insisted that Lorea couldn’t attend her wedding alone.

  “Lorea? Aren’t you going to tell me?” I asked. “It must have been good, don’t think I missed that sigh.”

  She chuckled. “Just for that, I’m keeping you in suspense.”

  “It was Colton, wasn’t it?” I referred to the cute deliveryman that had been flirting with Lorea over the past several months but never had the nerve to ask her out.

  “Nope, it wasn’t him. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have an appointment with Jessie in a few minutes, and I have to finish pinning this hem.”

  “Okay, but I’m not letting you off the hook,” I warned. “Next time we talk you have to tell me.”

  “I will, maybe,” Lorea hedged.

  “I’ll just call Terese and find out if you don’t tell me.”

  “Adri, that’s not fair,” Lorea whined.

  I laughed. “Have fun with Jessie. She’s such a sweetheart. I think her wedding will be so much fun to plan.” I thought of the delightful young lady who planned to marry her true love in September. A feeling of homesickness nudged me, maybe a side effect of too much worry on the island. “Take care of yourself and thanks for working so hard.”

  “No problem.”

  I ended the call. I had meant to tell Lorea so much more about what was going on in Kauai, but she was delightfully distracted with something that had my curiosity burning. At the same time I was thrilled with the possibility that she might have had a good experience with her wedding date.

  Glancing back at my notes on PFI, Mrs. Harper, the hotel, and Kau
ai’s GMOs, I decided that I would let Lorea live in her little fairy tale and not worry her over the prospect of Pure Foodist rallies, mystery, and murder.

  Chapter 9

  COCONUT SHRIMP

  Fresh, deveined shrimp are best for this recipe.

  2 cups vegetable oil

  1 cup bread crumbs

  1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

  1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

  Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

  1/2 cup all-purpose flour

  2 large eggs, beaten

  Heat vegetable oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium high heat.

  In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs and shredded coconut; set aside.

  Season shrimp with salt and pepper, to taste. Working one at a time, dredge shrimp in the flour, dip into the eggs, then dredge in the coconut mixture, pressing to coat.

  Working in batches, add shrimp to the Dutch oven and fry until evenly golden brown and crispy, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.

  Serve immediately with dipping sauce. For dipping sauce, use orange marmalade, mustard, and horseradish mixed to taste or use a sweet chili sauce.

  Courtesy of www.mashedpotatoesandcrafts.com

  I tried calling Tony next and ended up leaving him a message. In as few words as possible, I told him what happened at Tunnels and asked if he could find anything about the woman’s identity or how I should approach the police in Kauai with the same question. I ended with strict instructions not to tell Wes anything about me finding the woman’s body.

  My phone vibrated with a text message as soon as I ended the call.

  My lips twitched when I saw the name Jon Connelly.

  Jon: Wanna go for a Sunday afternoon drive?

  Me: That sounds nice.

  Jon: Can I pick you up at 2?

  Me: Sounds great.

  My hair was a thick mass of curls that I pinned up to keep my neck cool. I swiped on some peach lip gloss and shimmery bronze eye shadow. I tidied up my clothing and waited for Jon to arrive. He knocked on the door at 2:02, and I scolded myself at how much I had anticipated his arrival. I opened the door and all scolding thoughts fled from my mind.

  “I see you have shoes on today. You must be ready.” Jon’s flirtatious smirk made his eyes crinkle. He wore khaki cargo shorts with a green polo shirt and sandals. He looked like he’d stepped off the pages of a Hawaiian travel brochure, and he was here to see me.

  “I am ready. Thanks for inviting me.”

  “Malia’s family is all over at the house, so I thought I’d escape for a while.” He put his hand on the small of my back as we exited the lobby.

  “I have a little surprise planned for this date.” He opened the door to his convertible and lingered for a moment, smiling down at me.

  “As long as it doesn’t involve bicycles, I think I’m excited.”

  He chuckled but didn’t say more as we pulled north of the parking lot and our attention turned to the island breezing by us. The trees reminded me of Dr. Seuss illustrations in Scrambled Eggs Super!, and I wondered briefly if the author had visited Hawaii. Jon pointed at the landscape. “Those are Norfolk pine trees. I’ve always liked how they look—each limb sort of separate from the other.”

  I nodded, thinking of the characters in the Dr. Seuss book hiking rugged mountains and climbing trees to find special eggs in tall, odd-shaped trees. The Norfolk pine branches were spindly, not full and bushy like the blue spruce pines I was used to seeing in the Sawtooth Mountains in Idaho. The mountains of Kauai rising up around us created a beautiful contrast to the ocean below.

  “How is everything going with the wedding plans?” Jon asked.

  “Pretty good. Most everything was done before we got to the island, but Malia didn’t have her veil picked out yet when we left. I hope she’s found something that will work.”

  “I doubt Kyle will even notice a veil, he’s so whipped.”

  “I don’t always see that in all of my clients,” I said. “The weddings are so much more fun to plan when the couple is smitten with each other.”

  Jon shook his head. “Are you saying I shouldn’t be teasing my brother so much?”

  “Only if he really deserves it.” When we pulled off at the Lihue airport exit, I glanced at Jon, but he just raised his eyebrows with a grin. He turned onto a road with signs marking the Lihue heliport, and I sucked in a breath. “No way. Are you taking me on a helicopter ride?”

  “I should’ve blindfolded you,” he replied.

  I did my best to contain the squeal of excitement bubbling up in my chest. “I can’t believe it. Really?”

  “Yes, it’s the best way to see the island.”

  “This is going to be so amazing. I’ve heard about these rides,” I said. “Thanks.”

  “Kauai is like a whole different island when viewed from the air.”

  He parked the car and hopped out to get my door. After we checked in and received safety instructions and rules, Jon took my hand and we followed the tour manager out to the helipad. The whir of chopper blades from several tours taking off greeted us as we walked closer to the helipad.

  We climbed inside a yellow helicopter with the doors off for better viewing and donned a pair of bulky headsets. The pilot gave a few extra instructions and checked that we were buckled in securely before starting the rotors.

  My stomach rose up with the beating chopper blades, and I took in a deep breath as we leveled out and headed farther inland. Sitting next to the open doorway was unnerving and I found myself clutching the sides of my seat when the helicopter tilted to the right. Jon caught my eye and laughed when he caught me studying the parachute packs.

  “I’ve never had to use one of those,” he said.

  “Let’s keep it that way,” I said. I concentrated on the details the pilot narrated for us, and tried to relax as we flew over the island. The gorgeous scenery helped, and the tension rolled off my body as I experienced my first helicopter ride. “Everything is so green and vibrant.” I pointed to the lush forest sweeping ahead of us.

  “A bit different than Idaho, right?” Jon said.

  His voice came through my headset fairly well but there was a bit of interference so I had to strain to hear. “We’re in the desert, but the farmers definitely help green up the landscape.” The patchwork of farms reminded me of my hometown, except these farming plots weren’t surrounded by desert. The ocean and beaches encroached on their borders, making the crops bold in color from the fertile soil.

  “Look over there.” Jon pointed out of my side of the helicopter. “Our test plots are southeast of us.”

  I leaned forward and turned my head toward the area he was pointing at. Rectangles and squares in multiple hues of brown and green created a geometric portrait.

  “Hey, see that spot over there with all the vehicles?” Jon asked. “I’m pretty sure that’s one of our new test plots.” His voice held a note of concern, and I turned to look at him.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Maybe it’s nothing,” he said. “But there’s quite a bit of activity down there. I thought Kyle had it all blocked off because we have a new test crop of our nutrient seed.” He looked past me, and shook his head. “I’m probably just looking in the wrong spot. It’s hard to tell from this vantage point.”

  I nodded and followed his gaze. “Hopefully it’s a different field. It looks like a patchwork quilt from here. I don’t know how you can tell which one is yours.”

  “You’re right.” Jon smiled. “We have a pretty large parcel of property there. My dad has been pointing out the landmarks to Kyle and I since we were kids.”

  The helicopter turned gradually and headed west. We left behind houses and buildings and flew closer to the mountains. The pilot pointed out a few sights, but he had indicated that he’d give us plenty of time for peaceful viewing as well during the tour.

  “He’s going to fly over Waimea Canyon now. Have you heard
of it?” Jon asked.

  “I saw some pictures of that in my guidebook. It said something about being the Grand Canyon of Hawaii.” I wished I’d snagged my guidebook with its dog-eared pages and highlighted reminders of things I wanted to do. Of course, I didn’t want to take my eyes off the scenery before me to look at a book. I’d remember to check it later.

  Jon didn’t say anything as the helicopter climbed alongside the mountain and then soared over the red gash that was Waimea Canyon. When I caught sight of the canyon, I understood his silence was respectful of the beauty before us. I sat in awe at the incredible depth of colors in the landscape. Hardy trees thrived in the dark red soil variegated with different shades of orange and rust. For a moment, it seemed as if we’d entered a different country because the canyon was so unexpected in contrast to the beaches of Kauai.

  “This is fantastic.” I turned and caught Jon watching me. “It reminds me a little of the Snake River Canyon back home. There’s a pretty great vantage spot in Twin Falls.”

  “Yeah, I was surprised the first time I saw this side of the island. Almost like a desert compared to the rest of Kauai.” He motioned to the scenery before us, vivid with no doors on the helicopter to block the view. “It does remind me of the Grand Canyon.”

  “I’ve never been to the Grand Canyon, but if it’s anything like Waimea, I guess I’d better plan a trip.”

  “You’ve never been?” Jon asked. “But it’s not that far from you, is it?”

  I shrugged. “Far enough that my travels haven’t taken me past it.”

  “You’ll have to remedy that. I think you’d like it.” Jon motioned to the gorgeous panorama in front of us. “Of course, this has its own unique appeal. And there’s more to come. We’ll be flying up to the Wai’ale’ale Crater and then along the Na Pali coastline.” Jon pointed in the direction of the ocean beyond the mountainous terrain. “It’s one of the most beautiful places in the world. We were right next to it at Tunnels Beach the other day.”