“I am,” he responded, planting a kiss on the tip of her nose. “Let’s find that camera.”
On the way out the door of the cottage, Rex spotted the little sports camera he’d bought for when he went snorkeling off the beach in front of the cottage. He snagged the little camera and tucked it into the pocket of his swim trunks, thinking it might be a good idea to record their dive this time. If other divers attacked them, recording them might help to identify them.
They stepped out of the cottage into darkness with stars still twinkling overhead and a slight wind stirring among the palms. They had just enough time to reach the Lahaina marina, load the gear and get out on the water by the time the sun rose above the horizon.
Rex handed Kimo up into the passenger seat and slid into the driver’s seat. He texted Devlin they were on their way. When he drove out onto the highway, Devlin’s SUV fell in behind him.
They made the drive in silence. Kimo braided her hair while Rex worked through scenarios in his thoughts, going over and over potential attacks, ways to search for the missing camera and how he would stay near Kimo no matter what.
The woman had started to mean more to him than just a client. It wasn’t about the sex, though that had been beyond anything he could have imagined.
He liked being with her.
Kimo wasn’t a silly woman, worried about makeup and fashion trends. Besides being an expert diver, she was a talented photographer who’d built a business on her own, with no help from family wealth or connections. Plus, she valued family and friendship above all.
His life in the Army had taught Rex the value of friends, and how good friends were family. For the first time in his life, he could imagine having a family of his own. With children. Maybe a little girl with light brown skin and dark eyes, running across the sand, her long, flowing dark hair streaming out behind her.
His breath seized in his lungs. Rex shot a glance toward Kimo, suddenly afraid of the task in front of them. Afraid of the thought of losing her when their relationship had barely gotten started.
She turned and gave him a tight smile. “I don’t think I could do any of this without you. Thanks for being here.”
He took her hand and held onto it. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
Rex parked the truck in the parking lot near the marina and walked with Kimo to the Windsong Tours slip as the gray light of dawn crept over Lahaina.
Devlin followed.
Leilani, Angel and Teller were already aboard the tour boat, arranging tanks and BCDs.
“Run into any trouble last night?” Rex asked as he stepped onto the tour boat.
Teller shook his head. “None. It was a little unsettling.”
Angel looked up from where he was checking the gauge on a regulator after having hooked it to the tank. “I felt the same.”
Rex turned to offer a hand to Kimo as she stepped onto the boat.
“It was a strange night.” Kimo snorted softly. “Like the calm before the storm.” Her lips twisted into a grimace. “Pun intended.”
Leilani shook her head. “Needless to say, none of us got much sleep. I couldn’t stop thinking about Alana.”
“Me either.” Kimo crossed to where Angel was going over the gear and did a second pass.
“If everyone’s ready, let’s go.” Leilani nodded to where Devlin stood on the dock. “Let her loose.”
Devlin removed the line from the cleat, tossed it onto the boat then stepped across.
Once they were all inside, Leilani fired up the engine and drove the boat slowly out of the slip, through the no-wake zone and into the harbor.
Once they left the harbor, they encountered choppy seas. The swells and waves were bigger than the day before. Dark clouds hung over the sky to the west, harbingers of the storm moving ever closer to the islands.
No one on board attempted conversation. Wind and motor noise made it hard enough to communicate. They all seemed to focus on the task ahead as the divers dressed in wetsuits.
Teller and Osgood checked their rifles and handguns.
Rex had his dive knife and managed to hook the underwater sports camera to his BCD vest. He hoped the batteries were charged and ready. As soon as they hit the water, he’d turn it on.
As they neared the shipping container’s coordinates, Leilani slowed the tour boat, bringing it to a halt.
