The Sooner the Better
Page 24

“But, Jack—”
“And while we’re doing that, we’ll clear you of any wrongdoing.”
Twelve
Thomas Dancy was close to panic. He’d been absolutely sure Raine would be safely back in the States by now. He’d learned otherwise that afternoon after receiving a phone call from a man named Gary Franklin, who identified himself as Raine’s fiancé. Something had gone wrong; he was convinced of it. But there was nothing he could do until he heard from Jack. Franklin had been full of questions and was justifiably concerned. The conversation troubled Thomas, but he couldn’t put his finger on exactly what bothered him.
Now, as he walked home after a day of teaching, his steps were slow and heavy. His distress over Raine’s seeming disappearance had sapped any strength he had left. His two oldest sons played outside in the yard, happily racing their toy trucks around hills of dirt. When they saw Thomas, they gave a shout of joy and ran toward him.
He caught Antonio in his arms and lifted him high above his head. The boy squealed with delight. Hector waited impatiently for his turn, but Thomas lacked the energy to lift him, too. Instead, he held his son against him and bent to kiss his brow.
Inside the house Azucena was nursing the baby. Alberto suckled vigorously, his tiny fists clenched tight. Thomas gazed on both of them with love. He kissed first mother, then child.
“What’s the matter?” Azucena asked, studying him.
Thomas lowered himself into the chair beside her and sighed deeply. “A man phoned today looking for Raine. He said he was her fiancé. He’s worried. She’d promised to contact him and hasn’t.”
“She isn’t home yet?” Azucena’s surprise was evident.
“Apparently not.” Depressed and more than a little worried, he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.
“Is there any way you can get in touch with Jack?”
Thomas had already given the matter considerable thought. “No.”
“What about his friends from Deliverance Company? They might know something.”
Thomas mulled that over.
“You did all you could to help her,” she reassured him in that gentle way of hers. “It’s in God’s hands now. Tomorrow I’ll go to church to light a candle and pray for your daughter and Jack.”
Azucena could say her prayers and light her votive candles, but Thomas put no trust in religion. He’d turned his back on God in a Vietnam rice paddy; for him it was too late. All he could do for Jack and Raine was worry.
Later, it seemed to him inevitable that the dream would return that night. Thomas awoke bolt upright in bed, screaming.
“Thomas. Thomas.” Azucena slipped her arms around him. “It’s a dream, my love, only a dream.”
“Not this time.” His voice still shook. “This was so…real.” He clung to her and buried his face in her neck. Eyes closed, he savored her loving hands caressing his back.
“Tell me what it is,” she urged. “Tell me.”
He could barely say the words. “Someone’s about to die. I can feel it. I’ve felt it for a long time. First Ginny. Then Ernesto. Death comes in threes. It happened that way in Vietnam. I remember we lost two men within a day and we were all afraid we’d be next. Instead, it was my friend David….” He paused. “All that time, I was so scared it would be me. I didn’t want to die. All I wanted was to go home to my wife and daughter.”
“The war’s over. You have nothing to fear.”
“It’s Raine,” he whispered. “Something’s going to happen to Raine. I can feel it, Azucena. In here.” He carried her hand to his heart and pressed her palm there. “Dear God in heaven, I may already have lost her and I don’t even know her yet.” He covered his face with his hands and wept helplessly as his wife murmured consolation and whispered prayers.
Jack could hardly stand up without keeling over, but he insisted on starting the engines. No amount of arguing would persuade him otherwise.
As Lorraine had discovered, Jack Keller was by far the most stubborn man she’d ever known.
With the wind beating against her face, she carried a cup of coffee to the flybridge. He sat there, intently studying the charts and comparing them to the readings on the boat’s navigational equipment.
He smiled his appreciation when she gave him the mug. “Best I can figure, we’re two days from land.” He looked back at the chart and made a line with his finger. “See? We’re about here, and we’re heading straight through the Bay of Campeche to Alvarado. Then…” He glanced up. “Hey, what’s that worried look about?”
Lorraine didn’t know. She realized she should be happy, overjoyed. In a few days, three at the most, the artifact would be handed over to the authorities. Once that was done, Jack’s friend in the government would help clear Lorraine’s name. Before she knew it, she’d be back in Louisville with Gary.
“Lorraine?”
“I…I’m not sure.”
He slowed the engines. With the utmost tenderness, Jack touched the side of her face and looked deeply into her eyes. His touch stirred her, as it never failed to do, and she lowered her lashes. Since the night they’d lain together, they’d avoided touching, both afraid it would lead to more. A caress. A kiss. It was as if an invisible line had been drawn, and they’d both agreed never to cross it.
“I won’t let anything happen to you.”
She nodded, trusting him as she’d never trusted anyone.
“No one’s going to arrest you, either.”
Rather than explain the truth, she let him think she was worried about meeting the authorities. But her fears had little to do with that…and everything to do with Jack.
All the promises she’d made to herself—to avoid her mother’s mistakes, to return to her simple well-planned life—didn’t seem to mean much anymore. Gary and her life in Louisville were a world away. And she had to force herself to remember she was engaged to marry him.
She couldn’t leave Jack, she couldn’t. The thought was intolerable. Maybe they could be together. Make it work. They were opposites in every way and their lives were completely different, but maybe… As soon as the idea occurred to her, she knew it wasn’t possible. It hadn’t worked for her parents, and it wouldn’t for her and Jack.
Then another idea sprang, fully formed, into her mind. A plan. She’d return to Louisville and give it a month or two, test her feelings, make sure that being with Jack was the right thing to do. She owed Gary that much—to return home and explain. He loved her and she’d loved him. When she felt certain that being with Jack was what she wanted, she’d go back to Mexico and find Jack. If he felt the same way, they could go on from there. Then and only then would she tell him the truth about Gary. He might be angry with her—she wouldn’t blame him if he was—but he’d get over it soon enough.
“Lorraine?”
She stared at him blankly.
“Lorraine, what is it?”
“Nothing. Don’t worry.”
“You sure?” He tilted her face upward and looked closely into her eyes.
She managed to smile. “Positive.”
“Okay.” But he didn’t seem convinced.
“You want me to steer for a while?” she asked, knowing he’d never admit he was tired, although she could see he looked pale and shaky. She tried to make the offer sound casual.
“All right,” he said, but his reluctance was obvious. He set the course and turned the helm over to her.
She bit her lip to keep from suggesting he lie down and rest, knowing the mere notion might offend his stubborn pride.
But Jack lay down, anyway, which told her how exhausted he must be. He climbed down the ladder leading to the flybridge and nearly fell into his chair on the deck. Two minutes later he was asleep.
With nothing but open sea around her, Lorraine had plenty of opportunity to study Jack. Some color had returned to his face now. She suspected he’d been near collapse.
Jack’s estimate of how long it would take to reach land was accurate. On the evening of the second day, they neared the town of Alvarado. Their supplies of fuel and freshwater were low; they couldn’t have stayed out at sea much longer. Lights sparkled on the harbor waters, and the port had a welcoming festive appearance. Jack eased Scotch on Water into a wide berth, and Lorraine heard him chuckling to himself as he secured the boat to the dock. She could guess all too well why he was laughing—because of what’d happened the last time he’d tied up to a dock. It wasn’t something she planned to mention.
“I’m leaving now,” he announced as he came belowdecks.
Lorraine sat at the table with her arms crossed. She shook her head in disgust. “I can’t believe you’re doing this again.”
“I will admit it’s brave of me considering previous experience.”
Lorraine struggled not to smile. “You shouldn’t be cracking jokes.”
“I’ll be twenty minutes. Half an hour at the most,” he promised.
“That’s what you told me before!”
“Lorraine, all I’m going to do is make a couple of phone calls. I’ll talk to Dr. Efrain and—”
“I swear, Jack, if you’re not back in twenty minutes, I’ll come looking for you!”
His smile faded. “No, you won’t.”
“Be reasonable, Jack.”
“No. It’s too dangerous.” His voice was steely. “And that’s all there is to it.”
“It’s dangerous for you, too,” she said.
“For heaven’s sake…” He raised his eyes to the ceiling. “All right, I guarantee I’ll be back within thirty minutes.”
And he was.
She’d glanced frequently at her watch while she waited. Exactly twenty-eight minutes later he returned to the slip. The boat rocked as he climbed on board. Painful experience had taught her to remain belowdecks until she knew with certainty that it was Jack. Smiling jubilantly, he hurried down the steps to join her.
“Everything’s set,” he told her. “A plane’ll fly us into Mexico City first thing in the morning.”
“We’re leaving here?”
He placed a cloth bundle on the tabletop.
“Catherina is seeing to everything.”
“Dr. Efrain is Catherina?” He’d mentioned his “friend” Dr. Efrain a number of times, but hadn’t said a first name. A coldness seeped into her blood. In the process of cleaning, she’d found envelopes addressed to Jack in a woman’s flowing hand. The return address had read simply Catherina. Some friend!
They’d been lovers. Lorraine knew it as surely as if he’d shouted the words. Anger burned through her. Anger and jealousy. She had no right to feel either of those emotions. None. Still…it hurt. She felt as though he’d cheated on her, been unfaithful. What nonsense, and yet she couldn’t help it. Lorraine turned away, not wanting him to see her reaction.