"What would a hiker be doing here?" she asked, her tone wary.
As she spoke, rain sprinkled through the rain forest canopy, and thunder shook the trees. The storm had rolled in.
"Where's the cave?" asked Casey.
"Not far. A couple of minutes and we'll be there."
"Luke, why don't we take the girls there. We can come back once we know they're safe." Casey was full of good ideas.
Luke thought for a moment and then nodded. "Okay."
If Luke was right and that was just a hiker, then the cave would protect us from the storm. If not, the cave gave us cover. Alani once again led the way. I was sure we were being followed, but every time I looked over my shoulder, I saw nothing. But the noises were there. The snapping of branches, the rustling of trees. Casey did say it could be the wind. It had picked up, causing the leaves from the overhead trees to fall like snow. It felt odd. An eerie feeling had descended, and I wished the cave to be closer than it was.
I cursed as a broken branch scraped my leg, and I tripped on a tree root, falling into Casey and nearly taking him down. I grabbed at the back of his shirt, feeling the fabric rip before I heard it. Ooops.
His hand reached out and stopped me before I hit the ground. I held it tight, for a moment longer than necessary, craving the feeling of him.
Helping me to stand, he then let go, and I felt lonely once again. That's silly. I can't be alone surrounded by my friends. But I felt alone.
As we reached the cave Alani had told us about, we single file made our way inside. It wasn't overly large, but it was dark and damp, and the smell of moss filled my senses.
She moved farther in, and I shivered against the coolness. The roof of the cave sat just above Casey's head. He didn't need to duck, but he couldn't afford for it to get any lower.
"How far does it go back?" I asked, my voice slightly shaky. The only light came from the entrance, and that was dimmed because of the storm clouds and the thick canopy of trees.
"This is it," she replied, stopping about thirty feet in. "It'll give us cover and some time to work out what we should do next."
I found a rock and sat down.
"We need to go back and see what we can find," said Luke.
I criticized him a lot, but he was always the big brother, worrying about everyone. He and Alani were a good team.
Thunder shook the ground, and the rain started to pour.
"Give it a little while, and it'll pass," said Alani. "You can go then."
"Sssh…" said Casey, his arm touching mine for a split second. "Someone's out there."
My heart rate spiked.
As he spoke, the squeals of three women broke the air as they fell into the entrance to the cave. They were all wet, they were all wearing red socks, and Lori was the leader.
Jenny stumbled in after Lori. She was limping and being half carried by another Scarlet Sock named Therese.
"What happened to you?" asked Alani, standing and moving towards Jenny.
"I fell. I think I've broken it," she said, tears mixing with the rain on her cheeks.
I guessed we'd found who had made the scream, then. And she was nowhere near as scary as what I had imagined.
"Oh, Casey!" said Lori. "Thank goodness I found you. I've been so scared." She ran over the uneven ground to him and fell into his arms as the tears started. "We all have," she sobbed.
In the dim lighting of the cave, I could see his shock.
"What are you doing out here?" he asked, placing his hand on her shoulder and shifting uncomfortably.
"We were trying to help. Lori overheard you in The Lava Pot talking about how you were coming out here to find the clues to solve the murder," explained Therese, leaving Alani to tend to Jenny. "She said you were looking for a phone, and we needed to find it first."
"How did you find us?" Alani asked. "Not many people know their way around here."
"We followed you," said Jenny, wincing as Alani helped her to sit.
"But someone else is out there. They're after us," said Lori, her voice full of drama. "We're in danger. We all are."
I scoffed. I'd thought something similar, and look what that dragged in.
"I'm not making it up," she continued, her voice trembling. "When we started out today, there were six of us."
Okay, now she had our attention.
Lori snuggled into Casey's chest, and the crying turned up a notch.
"Cassandra ducked into the bush to tinkle," Therese explained, "and we heard her scream. By the time we got to her, she'd been hit."
"Where is she now?" asked Luke, standing to check the entrance to the cave.
"She was breathing and unconscious, but she was alive. We couldn't carry her, so Lori convinced Sonya to go for help and Sissy to stay with her."
"Why didn't you all go?" Casey asked incredulously.
"Because I needed to warn you," said Lori. "To let you know someone is out here, and they're hunting you."
Hunting us?
"What makes you think they are hunting us?" asked Luke.
"Oh…well…I just assumed…" She trailed off, sobbing harder and putting her head onto Casey's shoulder and her arms around his neck. He looked like a deer caught in headlights. Unsure which way to turn. If the news she had just given us hadn't been so serious, I would have laughed at the situation.
Instead, palpitations started, and I neared a panic attack.
"What do we do?" I asked, hysteria bubbling.
"We don't do anything," said Luke. "We stay here until the storm passes, and then we're forgetting this stupid plan and heading home, being very careful as we do so."
We sat silently. I personally felt like we were sitting ducks, just waiting for the hunter to pop by. Even though the hunter hit Cassandra, he didn't shoot her, so that was a good sign, right? Maybe we stood a chance. But why was he after us? What were we doing that he needed to stop?
Looking for the phone popped into my mind. If Lori had overheard us, maybe someone else had also.
Waiting to leave was torture. Every sound made me jump; every movement made me want to scream. Why did I have this idea to come here today? Why? Why didn't I do what I'd been warned to do and keep my nose out of this?
Luke and Casey rummaged around the cave, looking for anything we could use to defend ourselves. Once the rain had slowed to a fine mist and we were all armed with rocks and branches, we ventured out of the cave. Alani and I carried Jenny, and Lori and Therese were our guards. Luke led the way, and Casey kept us safe from the rear.
Ten minutes into our walk, Luke stopped abruptly, indicating we should do the same. I was grateful for the break. Jenny was heavy, and walking over rocks and uneven ground was hard enough aside from carrying her. With her, it was almost impossible.
"What is it?" I asked, putting Jenny down to balance on her good foot. I rolled my shoulders and cracked my back.
"There's something over there," Luke whispered.
"I saw it too," said Alani.
"What do we do?"
Casey moved up to where Luke was standing. They mumbled to each other, making a plan.
"Okay, you girls need to hide," said Luke. "Casey and I are going to go around and see if we can corner him."
That didn't sound like a very good plan to me.
"And how are you going to do that?"
"Casey will come in from this side, and I'm going to circle back and come at them from the other side."
"I get that bit, but what are you going to do once you've cornered him?"
"I know some karate," he replied.
I nearly laughed.
"Luke, if that is a person over there hunting us, then that person is more than likely the murderer. How are your high school karate lessons going to help?" I snapped.
"Do you have a better plan?"
"Keep your voices down!" chastised Casey, his voice in a loud whisper. "Look, we have a large branch. So long as one of us can distract him, the other one can hit him. It's the best we'v
e got."
I had hoped to get to the car park and call the police before this.
"Come on," said Alani. "Let's get Jenny somewhere safe."
"What about me?" asked Lori.
"You're capable of keeping yourself safe," I said.
Luke and Casey made sure we were all hidden in amongst a group of large rocks, before splitting up and disappearing into the foliage.
The hunter becomes the hunted.
It was harrowing sitting with my back to a rock, waiting. Waiting for any sounds that would indicate what was happening. Waiting for the men I loved to come back safe. My weapon of choice was a branch, and my white-knuckled grip on it increased as my hand cramped. My knees shook, and my breath was coming in short, sharp spurts.
I looked to Lori. She had her arms wrapped around her legs, chewing her nails, hysteria in her eyes. Seconds later she jumped up and ran after the men. I tried to stop her by grabbing her arm. She was muttering about how she should stop him. She needed to keep Casey safe.
"Lori! Stop it!" I snarled. "You're going to get us all killed!"
Her response was to slap me hard across the face. My cheek stung as I lost my grip, and she ran into the forest, chasing Casey.
"Oh my gosh," said Alani, stunned. "Are you okay?"
"Lori's losing the plot," said Therese, her eyes huge. "She's been acting weird all day."
"In what way?" I asked, holding my cheek, tears stinging.
"She's obsessed with Casey. She has been for a while. She's the reason we came here today. To help him."
"Martin's just about had enough of her," said Jenny. "If you ask me, she's going to be needing a divorce lawyer soon."
"But she can't be serious, can she?" I asked, knowing Casey would never be interested in Lori. Veronica maybe, but not Lori.
"Oh she's serious alright."
I knew she fancied Casey, but I didn't realize she was that obsessed.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Lori was going to wreck Luke and Casey's plan. I had to stop her. I had to.
"I'm going after her," I said. I wasn't really the heroic type, but what choice did I have?
"Sam, you can't," said Alani. Fear caused her voice to tremble.
"I have to. She'll either get herself killed, or Luke and Casey. I don't really care that much about Lori, but I do care about them." I swung the heavy branch around in my hand and went to make my way after Lori.
"Sam!" called Alani. "Let me go. I know my way around here. You don't. You could get lost."
Damn it. She had a point.
I didn't want to, but I agreed. The last thing I needed was for Casey and Luke to get back and then have to come looking for me.
I sat bravely with Jenny and Therese, jumping at every sound. Okay, maybe I wasn't that brave. I held my branch tightly. So tightly my fingers were going numb. But I didn't care. I wasn't letting it go.
The minutes ticked by, feeling like hours, my ears straining for information that would tell me what was happening.
A blood-curdling scream filled the afternoon air and caused my heart to skip a beat. Was that Alani? Was it Lori? Oh please, God, let them be okay. Please.
My lips trembled as movement came closer. I held my branch, ready to strike if necessary. I crouched, blinded by fear, the branch over my shoulder like a baseball bat. On instinct I swung as a shadow fell across my path.
Luke screamed as the branch connected with his stomach. He doubled over and hit the ground. Bugger! I'd hit the wrong person.
"Sam," yelled Casey. "Stop. It's us!"
I dropped the branch and stood looking down at Luke, my entire body shaking. "Well…you could have called out to me or something!"
Alani ran to Luke as he groaned, swearing at me under his breath. Actually it wasn't under his breath at all. We all heard exactly what he called me.
I turned to Casey as he pushed John, aka Travis, in front of him, Veronica bringing up the rear. I rubbed my eyes with my fists, hoping to make sense of what I was looking at.
Lori walked behind Casey, holding his arm and looking at him like he was a hero. Which maybe he was. I didn't know—I hadn't been there to see what had happened.
"Veronica? Travis?" I asked, completely confused as to what was happening.
"Yep," said Casey, extricating himself from Lori's grip.
Veronica stared at her as if she was an annoyance.
I stared at Veronica. Her long golden locks were dripping and tangled. Her designer dress was torn and dirty, and her three-inch Jimmy Choos were ruined.
"Who comes to the rain forest dressed like that?" I asked.
"Exactly what I asked," said Lori.
It was the first thing we had ever agreed on.
"Don't start," snapped Veronica. "It's all your fault. I didn't even have time to change my shoes! Now look at them," she complained, looking sadly at her feet. "They're destroyed."
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
Veronica gave a pained sigh and pushed her wet hair out of her face.
"We're following Casey."
"Why?"
"Because he's the only chance we have of finding out what Ryan knew."
"Just like I thought—they think Ryan told me where the treasure is buried," he explained. "I've told them—he didn't. He didn't tell anyone, so none of us have any idea where it is!" He was yelling by now.
I thought he'd come to the end of his patience.
"But he left you something," spat Travis.
I wondered if Travis knew anything about the file Ryan had slipped Casey.
"That treasure belongs to us as much as it did to Ryan. He was just trying to take it all for himself. He thought he could come to Hawaii without us and claim it as his own."
"Why did you hit Cassandra?" asked Jenny, now in tears.
"Who?" asked Veronica.
"Cassandra. She wasn't trying to hurt you or take anything from you. She just wanted to have some excitement in her life. Now she's hurt and possibly dead."
I tightened my grip on the branch. Just in case either of them tried anything with us. But I figured they knew they were outnumbered.
"We didn't hit anyone. We've simply been trying to find our way through this damned forest."
"I thought you were following us?" I asked suspiciously.
"We were," said Veronica with a huff. "But halfway in we lost you."
"Yeah, next time don't wear high heels for a bloody hike," snapped Travis, glaring at her.
"Shut up, Travis!"
"So you two are here together?" Casey asked Veronica. "Even though you told me you didn't know Travis was here."
"I didn't come to Hawaii with him. I came here looking for him." She gave an exasperated sigh. "He thought he could double-cross me. That he could come here after Ryan and find the treasure."
"For the thousandth time, I wasn't cutting you out!" yelled Travis. "I was doing this for us!"
"Hang on a second," I said, confused. "What did you want from me?" I asked.
"Information. Casey's a pillow-talker. Veronica knows firsthand the things he says after a roll in the sack. I wondered if he told you what Ryan had told him."
"Ryan didn't tell me anything!"
Casey was an unusual shade of red. I figured his blood pressure was pretty high.
"So who hit Cassandra?" asked Therese, who up until this point had kept very quiet. So quiet I'd almost forgotten she was there.
We all looked to Veronica and Travis, waiting for an explanation. They just looked at each other blankly.
"We have no idea who the hell Cassandra is. Why do you keep asking about her?"
"Because someone hit her, and I want to know who," yelled Therese. Maybe she had reached her saturation point also.
"That would have been me," said a voice from behind me.
I let out a small squeal, spun on my toes, and came face to gun with Bicep Man.
We'd been so engrossed in Veronica and Travis that none of us had been paying attention to what was h
appening around us. In my defense, I had thought all the strange things that had been happening today had all been because of them, so I'd had no reason to be worried about anything else.
Travis groaned. "Not you again," he said.
"W-w-what's going on?" I asked, almost hyperventilating. I'd had a gun pointed at me once before, but never this close. From this distance I could see the little black hole the bullet would come through, I could see the little screw things that held it all together, and I could see his finger fidget around the trigger.
"Shut up," he snapped at me.
"Who are you, and what do you want?" Luke asked calmly.
I knew Luke, and I knew that the calm was fake. I heard the tiny little tremor in his voice as he spoke.
"I want what I came to get, but as Ryan's dead, I can't get it from him. But I know he left it somewhere."
The man's voice was deep and menacing. His eyes were black as coal, and he looked like he hadn't slept in days. Not a good combination when you were standing on the wrong side of his gun.
Stillness surrounded us. The birds had hidden from the storm, and the rain had stopped. All of the noises found inside a rain forest had ceased, and the world had shrunk to this spot.
"Tell me what you want, and I'll get it for you," said Casey. "Just put the gun away and talk to us."
As a bartender he'd been trained in dealing with difficult patrons looking for a fight. He knew how to diffuse a situation. I just didn't think it extended to men with guns.
"He's not going to shoot her," said Veronica impatiently. "He would have done it by now if he was going to."
"Let's not test that theory, hey," I said, my knees starting to knock together.
"She's right," said Travis. "You have what he needs. He's not shooting anyone. Are you, Damon?"
Travis knew this guy?
Damon dropped the gun away from me, but he didn't put it away. "Look, can we please just make this easy? I'm tired, and I'm too old for this shit."
"Tell us what you want," said Luke.
"I want the journal Ryan stole from my boss, okay, mate?"
Veronica laughed. "Ryan stole the journal from Stephen?"
She knew who Stephen was.
"Who exactly is Stephen?" I asked.
"He's Damon's boss. And let's just say you won't find his business listed in the yellow pages," explained Travis.
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