Submerged

Adam’s gut churned. What if? He pressed his hand against the sidearm in his shoulder holster. Approached the door.

“Nate? Adam? You in there? It’s Ray.”

Relief flooded Adam and he opened the door to his stern-faced friend.

“I told you to stay put.”

Adam shrugged and swung the door wider. “Might as well come in.”

Ray stepped inside the cabin followed by another shorter man, about ten years older—probably the friend Ray had mentioned he’d invited to explore the cave. “Ladies, this is Ray Hamburg,” Adam said. “He’s a special agent with the Law Enforcement and Investigation division of the Forest Service.”

Ray didn’t give Adam his usual warm grin; he kept his authoritative expression in place. He’d been a park ranger before moving over to LEI. Maybe he would solve this quickly. “And this is Mel Timbrook. Also LEI. Looks like we have an investigation to get behind us. I headed off the Coast Guard. We’re usually not the first to respond, but I’m already here and this is my region.”

Mel and Ray looked around the room. Then Ray spoke again. “Looks like the cave-mapping expedition has turned into something much different. Someone want to tell me what’s going on?”

Face pale, Cobie stepped forward. “I... Someone tried to kill me.”

Adam didn’t miss Ray’s attention on Cobie’s neck or the anger that he worked to suppress as she told him how a man had tried to strangle her to death. Adam experienced the same rage after the initial shock of pulling Cobie from the water. That someone could do that to anyone. That someone could do that to Cobie MacBride.

Her voice shook as she relayed the facts, and Adam relived every terrifying detail with her. He remembered the moment when he’d seen someone jump from the bluff. The image of her underneath the water before he was able to grab her—her face pale, the terror of certain death in her eyes. And that moment when he realized the jumper was Cobie hit him like a blunt object.

The big adventure he’d planned away from Alaska over the next few months had been an attempt to escape the past he shared with this woman. Instead he was getting sucked right back in. But he had to keep her safe. Find this guy before he succeeded in killing her.

How could he protect Cobie? How could he be part of her life again and get his life back at the same time? Because there was no way he wanted to get wrapped up in her world again. If he had to, in order to protect her, in order to find this guy, then how could he possibly protect his heart?

FOUR (#ulink_002acd49-490b-5e48-9a35-e71a49b479cc)

She thought Ray’s questions would never end.

Cobie leaned against the wall on the far side of the small log cabin as though that would give them privacy. Mel hung back and listened. Outside, the wind gusted, bringing more rain and blowing the wet weather through the island. Though a couple of portable lamps burned in the corners, the cabin grew darker with the storm. Nate started a fire in the fireplace that sent shadows dancing along the walls. She’d taken off her rain gear and, though she was still layered in Adam’s flannel shirt over a T-shirt, she grew chilled, in body and spirit.

To his credit, Ray was attentive and concerned while he took notes, never showing any skepticism, although the story Cobie told sounded implausible, even to her own ears. Still, Adam and his friends had seen her jump. And her neck revealed evidence that someone had assaulted her. Had the villain stood at the top of the bluff and looked down just to make sure she didn’t resurface? She certainly hadn’t looked back to check, and Adam and his friends had been focused on her. Did her would-be killer know she was still alive?

Ray flipped to a new page in his notebook. “Tell me again why you’d come alone?”

She fought the need to roll her eyes. “My friends were on their way. Would have been here within the hour. I didn’t see the harm in going by the cave first to get the lay of the land. It shouldn’t have been dangerous. There’s not supposed to be anyone else on this island.”

“Normally that’s true enough, and I haven’t seen any DTO activity in this area, either.”

“DTO?”

“Drug traffic organization.”

Cobie hugged herself tighter. “Maybe...maybe they’re hiding drugs in the cave and didn’t want anyone to find it? Could be that’s why the man tried to kill me.”

Ray studied her, considering her words. “We’ll find out soon enough.” He reviewed his notes. “You said you knew about the cavers planning to map the cave, and you wanted to go in ahead of them. Why?”

“The truth is I wanted the cave to myself, and my friends wouldn’t distract me as much as another group might. They might prevent us or interfere with our plans.”

Ray’s manner was easygoing and so far he’d kept his face unreadable, but Cobie caught suspicion in the angle of his head. “How so?”

“What does it matter? What does any of this have to do with the man who tried to kill me?” His question made her feel as if she’d been the one to commit a crime, but she didn’t dare say that. That would give him ammunition to ask more questions about why she was getting defensive. Or if she had committed a crime, which she hadn’t.

“Humor me. Maybe it has nothing at all to do with your attacker, but I’m digging, asking questions hoping that I’ll get at why someone tried to kill you today. Okay?” His smile disarmed her.

“Okay.”

The man was good at what he did, no doubt there. “Did anyone else know you were coming here today?” Ray continued.

The back of her throat grew tight. “No, there is no one else. I’m a dentist, and my office staff knew I was heading to an island, but Laura and Jen were the only ones who knew which island.”

“Any particular reason you chose this island and cave?” Ray blinked up at her.

Again, why did her reasons matter? But she wouldn’t antagonize a man trying to help her resolve this. “I... My father wrote about this cave in his journal. It was the last entry—the most recent. I haven’t seen him in years. I thought... I wanted to see something he’d seen. Walk where he’d walked. I know it sounds crazy, but I thought I could get some closure.”

Ray had been writing in his notebook again, but he lifted his gaze and studied Cobie. “Closure?”

“He disappeared six months ago.”

Someone behind her gasped. Adam stepped forward. “Cobie, I’m sorry. I had no idea.”

“It’s... He was absent in my life long before he went missing.” She shrugged, trying for an indifference she didn’t feel. She hadn’t wanted it to mean so much. But she was at this cave for that reason. Her mother had died when she was born, and her father and brother were all she had. Except her father had barely been part of her life or Brad’s life because his occupation required travel. He was even more distant, if possible, after Brad’s death. Then last Christmas, he’d called like always, but this time he’d told her he wanted to make up for lost time. To make up for the past. He just had something to take care of first. And those last words kept Cobie from believing that anything would ever change. There was always something more important than family in her father’s life.

But her indifferent words to Ray had done damage. Something behind his eyes changed. Next to her, Adam shifted on his feet. Cobie fought to keep her composure. She didn’t need complete strangers seeing her pain. Didn’t want Adam to see it, either.

Flipping his notebook closed, Ray gestured behind Cobie. “You and your friends can wait here, or we can escort you to your boat to wait there while we search the island. It might take a while. We’ll look for your attacker, though I doubt he’s still here. We’ll gather evidence if we find any.”

That he hadn’t asked her more questions, especially at the news of her father’s disappearance, surprised her.

“Are you saying we can get into the cave today?” Nate asked.

“I can’t say for sure now, but I’ll know more in a couple of hours. I had planned to explore the cave with you, and we’ll do that together, after we decide it’s safe.”

“You don’t think he could be hiding in the cave?” Laura spoke up.

“That remains to be seen. But if he has any sense, he’s long gone,” Ray said. “What’ll it be? Stay here or go to the boats?”

“We could chow down back on the boat. I’m getting hungry,” Nate said. “Besides, Gary will want to know what’s happening.”

“Okay, that settles it,” Mel said. “Everyone back to the boats. We’ll escort you there.”

“Should we leave our things, then?” Cobie asked.

“I don’t think anyone else is going to bother your stuff. Plus, after we search the island, I might want to look at the damage done here again. Is that okay with you?”

“Sure.”

Adam stepped up to speak to her, misery apparent in his eyes. But Laura and Jen got in his way, intentionally or accidentally blocking him; Cobie wasn’t sure. She snatched up a few of her own clothes from her bag—eager to wear something that fit, eager to be free of Adam’s clothes, though she slipped back into his rain jacket. And then her friends ushered her out like bodyguards. Ray and Mel followed them to the beach.