by Reina Torres
Stepping out of her shower she toweled off her body and then scrubbed at her hair.
The wedding was what she had been waiting for, but now there was something else.
Someone else.
For so long she had this kind of tunnel vision. Fix up the hotel, get support for the hotel, recruit a staff for the hotel.
Press. Advertisements. Finding common ground with other local hotels. It was everything she thought about.
And then her childhood friend had called wanting to catch up. It was a welcome break. She was going to bring her fiancé? Awesome!
Then she met Efrain.
She shook her head. He was a distraction. One dance with him and she was ready to dance the night away. Anything to see that smile again.
See those eyes brighten in the darkness.
Feel the warmth of his hands around hers.
Shaking her head, she slid the towel over the bar on the wall. Then she picked up her nightshirt from the hook.
Dressing didn’t take more than a few seconds and a handful of braincells, the rest of them kept drifting back to the man who made her warm in a way she’d never felt before.
How could she have known?
She’d certainly never expected to meet him the way she did.
Or meet him at all?
Picking up her toothbrush from the cup on the counter she almost forgot to put toothpaste on it.
Setting her hands on the bathroom counter she dropped her head down and closed her eyes.
“Focus.”
Tomorrow afternoon, she’ll have crossed over the first big hurdle. Once that was done, she’d give herself a day to relax, but she couldn’t afford to let her guard down. Not when so many hours and so many dreams were riding on this wedding.
She was so close to bringing this grand old lady back to life, she couldn’t let down her guard.
She couldn’t let Efrain distract her more than he already had.
No, more than she’d let him. This wasn’t his fault.
Her heart apparently had a mind of its own.
Someone was cooking something.
In an imu. Maybe hulihuli chicken. Or on the hibachi. Smoke.
Ku‘uipo turned over and covered her eyes with her forearm. The wedding was going to happen soon and the reception-
Wasn’t going to be a lūʻau.
She sat up in a gasp.
Her eyes wide.
Panic making her heart race.
Throwing off her covers, she rolled out of bed and kicked off the cotton sheet that was tangled around her ankle, but she would have pulled all the bedding off her bed if it meant she would get outside faster.
The flames were easy to see. Even across the lawn they were bright enough for her to see without any effort. Smoke billowed up into the sky, swirling columns against the ink-dark sky.
“What’s happening?” She was running before she knew what she was doing, but even if she misjudged the distance and fell into the lagoon circulating the property, that was her problem.
And she could certainly swim well enough to make it across to land.
There were already people near the fire, hoses on full blast. The building she knew well. It was an outbuilding that was scheduled to be the reception site.
Was.
That wasn’t going to happen now.
No, the thick wooden timbers that had just been decorated with palm fronds and ti leaf just a few hours ago were now on the fast track to becoming charcoal.
Very expensive charcoal.
She saw figures highlighted against the flames and called out.
The first person to move toward her was Uluwehi. Still gripping the hose in his hand, he stumbled a little and she saw something fall behind him, likely a slipper.
In the back of her head, she was surprised, but at least he’d thought of it. She could feel the squish of wet grass under her feet.
She’d gone running without shoes. And probably a few braincells too. “What happened?”
Ulu stopped short, twisting his hand on the hose to redirect the stream. “Woke up to the alarm in my room. Smoke under the door!”
“How long? Have you called-”
“911?”
She nodded. “Yeah.”
“As soon as I saw the smoke. They-”
Sirens pierced the night and she let out a huge sigh.
Ulu’s grim face stared back at her. “I got this.” He tilted his head toward the lobby. “Go get ‘em.”
“Okay… okay… stay away from the fire!”
And then she was off and running again. Pushing through the lobby doors and running across the cool tile of the lobby floor.
Lights were approaching on the road and the first vehicle to turn down the drive was a police car. She found some extra speed and pushed through the doors hollering and pointing at the opposite side from the fire lane. “This way!”
The officer looking through the windshield was familiar. All the first responders were familiar. She knew them all. The first truck turned right down the fire lane and the second pulled up in front.
The shotgun in the firetruck hopped out and jogged over. “What do we have?”
“The pavilion is on fire.”
He leaned closer, narrowing his eyes at her. “What?”
“The pavilion!” She screamed over the roar of noise surrounding them. “It’s lost!”
He nodded and ran off to join his company, radioing on the way.
“Oh God.” The air was knocked out of her. She bent over, her hands on her knees, tears collecting on her lashes. They somehow managed to hold until she stood up with a gasp. “It’s gone. It’s all gone!” She wrapped her arms around her chest and hugged tight until she was gasping in pain, it was better than the empty gaping loss aching in her chest.
But she didn’t have time to worry about it. She had people to take care of. They were the most important thing now. Making sure none of her people were hurt.
Gasping in a breath she turned on her heel and felt something scrape the bottoms of her feet. Stepping back, she looked down and realized that she’d run straight into one of the landscaping beds. Gravel.
It was already starting to hurt, but she didn’t have the time to worry. There was the fire to contend with.
Darting out of the plant bed, she headed back through the lobby and across the tiled floor. Before she pushed open the back doors, she swore she could feel the heat from the fire against her cheeks.
Still, it didn’t prepare her for the sight that greeted her.
Firefighters in their bulky gear and oxygen tanks were mixed among her people.
Surging forward across the grass, she began to gather the employees together. Moving them back away from the fire was her first instinct. They’d all come out to help and what they had done had likely kept the fire from leaping to the hotel.
Moving among the milling crowd she urged the team leaders, her supervisors, to pull their people and make sure everyone was accounted for.
A quick headcount proved that there were two missing.
Two!
A great hiss of sound was followed by a crack, turning her head. The roof of the pavilion split and plummeted down and out of her sight.
“Ku‘uipo! Ku‘uipo!”
She tried to turn to look at the voice, but her eyes were fixed on the pavilion, one of the gems of the Kailani Palms. It was little more than a burning pyre.
“Hey!”
Someone shook her shoulder and she snapped her head in that direction. “What!”
She saw the uniform first. The glint of light off the gold badge.
“Sorry, Officer. Sorry.” She mumbled the last word as her body tensed all over. “I’m sorry. What do you need from me?”
“Is everyone accounted for?”
“No.” Her eyes were filling with tears. “NO! We have two missing.”
“Two?”
She saw the alarm in his eyes and knew where his thoughts were. Hers were there as well.
Uluwehi was suddenly beside her. “Miles and one of his guys,” he struggled to think of the name, “Pono, I think.”
Ku‘uipo turned to look at him. “Wasn’t Miles on night watch?”
Nodding, Uluwehi’s expression was dark. “He should be here.”
Panic seized her and she started for the fire.
Someone grabbed at her arm and she shrugged them off, continuing. It wasn’t until someone grabbed her around the waist and almost lifted her off of the ground that she felt her tears start to pour.
“Hey, hey… calm down.”
She shook her head and pointed at the fire. “Let me go! They have to know!”
Uluwehi knelt beside her and touched her face. That got enough of her attention to turn her head. “I’ll tell them, okay. You need to take a breath.”
“Hurry! They could be in there!”
He was already making his way toward the line of firefighters spraying the structure with water.
“Ipo, let me hold you.”
Efrain’s voice cut through her panic and she sagged back against him.
“How did you- Why are you here?”
“In a town as quiet as Lihue, sound carries. As soon as I heard the sirens I was up and running. The others should be here soon, but I don’t know exactly when.”
“You,” she swallowed hard, “you took the car?”
He gathered her close, pressed his cheek against hers as he held her gently in his arms. “I would have run here if I had to. I saw the smoke. Saw the direction it was coming from. I had to come here and know you were okay.”
Something painful stabbed through her chest. Failure. Loss. Worry. All of it acted like poison rushing through her veins. “We’re missing two people. The pavilion is gone. It’s not about me being okay. I just want to know they’re okay. After that, this could all be gone. If I don’t make the timeframe to open…”
“Hey,” he wrapped his arms tighter around her holding her against his chest, “one thing at a time, Ipo. One thing at a time. I’ll be here with you.”
Ipo. It was nice to hear it on his lips. The short version of her name wasn’t one most people used. Mostly her mom and dad had used it, but there was something about the way that Efrain said it.
Something private. Something intimate.
Like a caress.
And she cuddled back against him, needing some kind of reassurance that she wasn’t alone. Just for one moment, she had someone literally at her back. Just for her.
And Efrain didn’t disappoint.
Just as if he’d read her mind, he held her close. Using his hands, he brushed her hair back from her face. He rubbed his cheek against hers.
“They’ll find your people. You know they will. And you’ll find a way to make the wedding work.”
“Ha,” she shook her head and felt another tear slide out along her cheek, “I’m not superwoman.”
She swore she could feel him smile, feel the way his cheek lifted against hers.
“I think you’re pretty damn close.” He hugged her again and some of the tension eased from her shoulders. “But I’d really love to see you in a Wonder Woman costume. I know your legs are amazing.”
“You’re crazy.”
“Hmm,” he bobbed his head, “Crazy Train. The others would love that.”
Sato wasn’t a man who liked interruptions. He rarely allowed someone who violated his sleep to escape unscathed for the insult.
The phone ringing on his nightstand was just such a violation.
And yet, as he lifted it up and moved his finger across the screen to answer the call, he was almost hoping for an opportunity to punish someone. It had been a long week so far and either he was going to be pleased or he was going to take it out on someone.
Sometimes the latter was enough to satisfy him.
“Yes?”
“This is Jenkins.”
He didn’t understand why the man bothered with the niceties of phone conversation, that wasn’t a requirement of his job.
“Why are you calling me before dawn, Jenkins?”
“There’s a fire, sir. At the hotel.”
Turning on the bed, he sat up and glared into the darkness. “What kind of damage was there?”
A moment of silence passed. “I don’t know the specifics, sir. I can see smoke and fire from the lānai of my house.”
“Where did he set the fire, Jenkins?”
“I’m not exactly sure,” he muttered something on the other end of the line. “I haven’t heard back on the specifics, but I see that it was a success. I could hear the sirens from the firetrucks a few minutes ago, but the flames were building for awhile before they arrived, I’m sure there’s ample damage-”
“I never wanted you to burn down the hotel! That was not what I asked for!”
“Sir, please.” He heard Jenkins’ fear through the phone. “I’m sure it wasn’t anything too big. He knows better!”
“Before or after he’s high, Jenkins? I let you use him because you assured me that things would go the way I wanted them to. If the hotel itself was damaged…” Sato held his tongue. Sometimes it paid to be explicit about punishment, but with some men… men like Jenkins… it was almost an entertainment itself to allow him to worry about what he didn’t know. “You won’t like the consequences.”
“Sir, I can assure you that he understood-”
“I don’t care what he understood, Jenkins. I only want to know what he actually did. When you have that information, let me know.”
And the call was over, the phone set aside.
There would be no more sleep. He would wait for news and then decide his next step.
Train couldn’t help but stare in amazement as Ku‘uipo worked her magic.
Before dawn, she’d made a list of contingencies and gotten her crew to work.
The landscaping company that had the contract for the large potted plants in the main areas of the hotel had brought in a crew and a flatbed full of their tallest trees and flowering bushes. They’d created a screen of foliage that looked like it had grown up overnight.
And really, it had… in the space of a couple of hours.
Two of the interns had video taped the whole transformation on their phones for posterity.
His friends had volunteered to help but she’d sent them to another room entirely, under the supervision of Uluwehi. When he’d asked her why she didn’t let him go with them, she’d just smiled and told him he had a special role to play.
Knowing he’d do anything for her, he’d just followed along and watched the rest of her efforts come to fruition.
The hardest part of the morning was her early morning meeting with the bride’s mother.
Mrs. Bismark had been shaken when she heard the news about the pavilion, but thanks to the landscaping crew, she didn’t have to witness the charred remains of the once elegant structure.
Before the sweet lady could even begin to worry about the reception, Ku‘uipo had introduced her to a gentleman who had been patiently waiting nearby.
“The Smith family began their business in Nineteen-forty-six and have helped young married couples begin their lives together with their beautiful rides along the river and the Fern Grotto. Like Kailani Palms, they received their share of damage during Iniki and they just so happen to have the afternoon available. I can load up all of the floral decorations into our trucks to take them to the boat and decorate it for the reception. The caterer is almost more than happy to switch the locations.”
Train watched as Ku‘uipo’s smile almost faltered.
“Also, if you’d rather, the Smith family can host the wedding on board as well.”
Mrs. Bismark grabbed onto Ku‘uipo’s hands and pulled her close, placing a kiss on her cheek. “You can’t get rid of us that easily, dear. My daughter has her heart set on that beautiful little chapel of yours and you helped save James’ life. Having them married here means the world to us.”
“Okay,” her smile b
eamed, “I’m glad. I’m attached to your family too.”
The two shared a tight hug before Mrs. Bismark left, guided by one of the interns toward her car.
Ku‘uipo spent a few moments speaking to Mr. Smith before he headed off toward the front of the hotel. When Ku‘uipo gestured for Train to follow her, he was more than happy to.
He caught up to them at the door and swung one side of it open and Mr. Smith took the other. Ku‘uipo gave them both genuine smiles before turning back to the other man. “Thanks again for coming down here so early and being so willing to help us out.”
“The community here is family, Ku‘uipo. And you’re helping to train the next generation of hospitality workers. What a great way to carry on our traditions.”
Her smile mirrored his. “And a great way to honor our ancestors that helped create that community here on Kaua‘i.”
When they exited the front doors, Train saw what his friends had done. Setting out the buckets of cut flowers and boxes of blossoms, they were already loading it onto the back of a delivery truck.
“Come on, lover boy!” Baron shot Train a look from the bed of the truck. “Get on over here and help.”
Train managed to fight down the urge to flip off his friend and with a nod to Ku‘uipo he jumped up on the truck to help load the flowers.
Ku‘uipo tried to get in on the action, but no one would let her. Ajax was the one who explained it to her. “You’ve been working since before dawn. We’ve got this.”
She thanked them all but wouldn’t leave. “I still have to go with you guys to decorate.”
“What?” Baron set down a heavy bucket in the corner of the flatbed as he bellowed the question. “I have to decorate?”
Train gave her a wink as she laughed at his friend. She might have only met them a few days ago but already knew them. He could only hope that like the Bismark and Kimball families, she might get attached to his as well.
Nine
Efrain drove them back to Kailani Palms after the reception and part of her was looking forward to sitting down on her front porch and having a glass of wine or a hard cider.
And she wanted to ask him to stay, but he’d been with her for hours and hours. He probably needed his space.