“Thank you.”
His smile was sweet. “You’re welcome. Do you want to freshen up? Now that I’ve refilled the water, we have enough for a quick shower. It won’t be hot, but you’ll be able to wash the dust off.”
It sounded like bliss and she wasn’t stubborn enough to say no. “Yes, please.”
He erected the simple shower set up, which included a modesty screen and a hand-held shower head, while Nhiari tried to concentrate on the notes in front of her.
He was doing an excellent job trying to get her to relax her guard. But he was also well-trained.
“It’s ready when you are.”
Nhiari took the new clothes with her and had a quick, cold, but refreshing wash. By the time she had dressed, Lee had made them both another coffee and was sitting at the table, going through Dot’s notes.
Suspicion hit her. Had he wanted her out of the way so he could go through Dot’s notes by himself and hide anything relevant?
She should have considered that.
As she sipped the coffee, she surreptitiously went through the notes to see if there was anything missing.
“I haven’t removed anything,” Lee said.
So much for being subtle.
She ignored his comment and got to work.
Night was falling by the time Nhiari was satisfied she’d collated all the information and had a decent timeline. Dot had sent her a couple of text messages during the day; one to tell her she’d found a hideout on one of the islands, and the other to say she’d arrested Colin for drug-smuggling. The police would have possession of all the drugs by now, which was one less thing to worry about.
Dot was also gathering evidence on Kristy and Steven Hamilton, and would soon have enough to arrest them as well.
Nhiari stood and stretched, groaning as the kinks in her muscles made themselves known. “Are we missing anything?”
“Just Martin,” Lee answered. “He’s the last of Stonefish’s influence in Retribution Bay.”
“Can I tell Dot about him?”
“I want to find out when Lucas is coming to town first. I don’t want him to think it’s too risky to come.”
She wished she wasn’t supposed to be missing. Normally she’d ring all the accommodation in town and ask if he’d checked in, but she couldn’t do that without gossip spreading. “Would he stay with the Hamiltons?”
“No. He doesn’t like to get too close to those who are working for him. They don’t know who he is.”
“So what do we do?”
“I’ll call Andrew and see what he knows.”
“They’re staying out on the boat. He might not have reception.”
“He’s got a satellite phone.” Lee retrieved his phone and made the call, again putting it on speaker.
Lee had done that with Lucas as well.
“How much longer do I have to be on this stupid boat?” The whine was unmistakably petulant.
Lee rolled his eyes. “Not too much longer. We almost have what we need. Has there been any further mention of treasure?”
“No. Oliver and that cop are stuck on the boat until the tide rises. They were fetching the drug barrels but have been trapped by a coral atoll because of the low tide.”
Nhiari winced. Dot wouldn’t like being stuck alone with Oliver.
