The Vision by Heather Graham
Genevieve nodded. “I don’t know if you remember or not, but I’ve done a lot of reading on the Marie Josephine. Some of the letters and memoirs were written by pirates who sailed with Gasparilla, and they talked about his deep love for Anne. Remember there was the suggestion that Gasparilla hated being scorned, that he might have killed Anne? Well, he didn’t. He tried to save her. There was a mutiny on board the Marie Josephine. Aldo—the supposed great love of Anne’s life—was the one who killed her. Gasparilla was on his way to save her. He’d promised to do his best not to kill the crew and to see that her father was safe. But he was too late. Aldo was the one who couldn’t bear the fact Anne had scorned him. He murdered her. In the same way these women were murdered now. He weighted her down and threw her overboard. Gasparilla was on his way. He attacked the ship, found the crew dead and battled the mutineers. The Marie Josephine was already breaking apart. Cannon fire did her in. Well, I’m speculating on some of this, but I swear I’m right.”
Thor stared at her, frowning. “How do you know all this?”
“It was incredible,” Bethany breathed.
“What was incredible?” Thor asked.
“She went back. She lived it all as Anne,” Bethany said.
Thor felt his temper rising. This was ridiculous, so why did he feel…
Fear?
“What the hell are you talking about?” he demanded. He stared at Genevieve hard, then turned his glare on Adam Harrison.
“Hypnosis,” Adam said evenly.
“What?” Thor exploded.
“Thor, stop it,” Genevieve said. “Please.”
“Hypnotism is a valuable tool,” Nikki said. “People have quit smoking with the help of hypnosis. They’ve lost weight, made other important changes in their lives.”
Thor wasn’t appeased. “Go on.”
“I simply painted a picture of the day,” Adam said. “Then I asked Genevieve questions.”
“You should have heard her. It was like she was living it.” Bethany was so obviously still under the spell of what she’d seen.
Smoke and mirrors. The power of suggestion. Maybe it was all a form of hypnotism.
He folded his arms over his chest. “Great. You think you know what happened on the ship.”
“It makes sense,” Genevieve said. “And,” she pointed out, “it fits in with everything Sheridan was telling you. Just wait,” she said stubbornly. “Wait until he’s read more of the letters. You’ll find out I’m right.”
In this group, he wasn’t going to win so he simply ignored the topic and moved on.
“So Victor has been released. What about Audrey? Any word from the cops on the identity of the corpse? Or from Marshall?”
Genevieve’s face fell. She shook her head. “Jack, Alex, Lizzie and Zach went out right after you left. They were going to see if Audrey was out…if anyone ran into her, if she said anything to anyone…anything at all.”
“You haven’t heard back from them?” Brent asked.
Genevieve shook her head. “But I can just call them.”
“No, they’d have called you if they’d discovered anything. Want to head out with me?” he asked.
She frowned, her eyes indicating that she had company. “Where?”
“Miami,” he said. “We’re going to see if we can’t find out something about Marshall.” She kept staring at him. “We’re not getting anywhere here,” he added quietly.
“Are you going to drive all the way to Miami and back today? It is kind of late. And what about the dive?” Bethany asked.
“Sheridan doesn’t seem concerned about the dead women,” Thor admitted dryly. “But we have to leave the area to the cops for another day. That’s assuming they’ll sanction us going back down on Thursday. We’ll be back by tomorrow night.”
“Hey, Gen. I’m just leaving with these guys,” Bethany called, interrupting them. She smiled assurance to Genevieve. “Don’t worry. I’m sticking to this group like chewed gum on the bottom of a shoe.”
“Keep in touch,” Brent told Thor.
“Actually, we are getting somewhere,” Genevieve said as soon as everyone else was gone. “And I want to get hold of Helen—that reporter who’s Father Bellamy’s main squeeze. I want her to do a story about what happened on the ship.”
“We don’t know anything yet,” Thor reported.
“I’ll have her write it up as my theory,” Genevieve told him.
“You can call her from the car,” Thor said curtly. He was suddenly in a hurry to get out of here.
He needed a little distance from all the insanity.
But could they really get away?
Or would they be followed?
By…? he taunted himself.
Ghosts.
He was back.
Audrey could hear his footsteps overhead.
From the noises, it sounded as if he were getting ready to take the boat out.
Oh, God!
It was time. If they went out to sea…
She could fight. Yes, now that she knew, she could fight.
And never win. Look where she was right now.
So this was it.
Tears sprang into her eyes again.
But then, very distantly, a phone began to ring. His cell.
She couldn’t hear his words, only that he had answered, and his tone was as blithe as if he had a fish in his hold.
Then the noises stopped.
He had left the boat.
A reprieve?
The heat was terrible. She was sure her air was almost gone, although she kept trying to tell herself that oxygen was getting in to her somehow. The boards were wet beneath her. The whole place stank of fish.
She was going to smother or roast before she could drown, she thought.
Then a prayer rushed into her heart. No, no, I didn’t mean it. I will survive. I will. Don’t let him come back…!
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Genevieve asked, settling into the passenger seat of his car. “I mean…should we be gone right now?”
He set his hand on hers where it lay on her lap. “I know you’re worried sick about Audrey, and with all that’s been going on, you have good reason. But everyone is out looking for her. I don’t even begin to know where to start. It makes sense to take a trip to Miami. Marshall wasn’t checked into the hotel his call came from. When I met with him to set up this dive, we met in Coconut Grove. There’s public dockage there. I thought we would do some club-hopping on the beach tonight and rent a boat tomorrow. We can search the yacht clubs, marinas and waterways for his boat.”
She nodded. “That’s very logical. But by now, haven’t the local police notified their associates up there? Aren’t they on the lookout?”
“He’s probably not at a public marina,” Thor acknowledged. “But you can be certain law enforcement in Miami-Dade isn’t seeing this as a serious situation. I’m not saying anything negative about them, but they’ve got their hands full with local crime, and they’re not going to be overly concerned with a grown man who may have disappeared of his own volition.”
“You’re right,” she admitted, then looked at him. “So you have a plan. And here I was thinking you just wanted to get the hell out of Key West,” she teased.
“That, too,” he admitted. “We’ll be gone twenty-four hours. Okay?”
She nodded.
“You feel all right?” he asked.
She laughed out loud. “Do you mean, am I slipping in and out of another lifetime? Do I have a ghost on my lap?”
He grinned at her through the rearview mirror.
He also checked out his back seat.
It seemed they were alone.
He was starving, so they stopped in Plantation Key for dinner, then moved on.
There were no traffic problems on US1 that night, and by the time they reached Miami, it was well past rush hour.
They checked into the Mayfair in Coconut Grove. Thor was in a hurry to go out, but Genevieve insisted that i
Thor wound up joining her in the shower. And then they wound up slick and soapy and together.
Slick, soapy, and flesh to flesh, steam rising all around them. They were alone. In a massive marbled bathroom. With a huge king-size bed just beyond.
The bed wound up damp and just a bit slick, as well. Thor found himself wondering what it was about one particular woman that could make the rest of the world fade away. Sex, yes. The rise of excitement created by something so small as a smile, a touch…
A body, slick and soapy.
And still…
It was her. Everything about her. Her eyes, her smile. The shape of her face. The way her fingers felt against his. Little things he knew she would do. The way the palm of her hand felt against his buttocks, the way her lips felt on his, the way she teased with just the tip of her tongue…
The heat that exuded from her body, the very scent of her so unique…
Later, as he lay looking at the ceiling, he knew he was in love with her. Thor would accept anything in the world if…
But…ghosts?
There seemed to be none around them that night. Her fingers played across his chest for a moment as they lay there, just breathing, hearts slowing. “It’s a good thing that prime time at the clubs is in the middle of the night,” she murmured.
He leapt up. “Shower first—don’t come in,” he warned.
She laughed. But she waited dutifully until he was out. Then she rushed in.
She really had her virtues—beyond beauty, sensuality, diving ability and her smile. She could get ready faster than any woman he had ever met.
“All right, we’re out of here,” he said.
He was amazed to discover he had fun. He was pretty sure, despite the fact that he might have been recognized a time or two, that they were admitted to every club without hesitation—despite occasionally lengthy lines—because of the way Genevieve looked and smiled.
At first, and well past midnight, it seemed they were on nothing more than a club-hopping tour. They danced. They paid exorbitant prices for drinks. He became best friends with lots of cocktail waitresses, while Genevieve flirted with bartenders, describing Marshall and asking if they’d seen him anywhere. Several knew him, but no one had seen him recently.
They found out nothing useful. Thor’s frustration must have shown, because Genevieve slipped her arm around him and said, “Hey, it was a good idea. We did find out most of the bartenders know him, so if he had been there…”
They wandered into a little place on Washington, a piano bar.
It was much quieter than the places they had been. The pianist was good, the audience sedate.
He and Genevieve took seats at a small table toward the back. They ordered coffee, despite the fact that they would be heading back to the hotel soon to sleep. Hell, he needed to stay awake enough to find their way back.
“There has to be an explanation for his disappearance. He’s not a prostitute—hell, he’s not even an attractive woman,” he said, trying to lighten the mood.
“Do you think he really called the police?” Genevieve asked worriedly. “You don’t think that he was…I don’t know, abducted for a different reason, and someone faked the call?”
“I don’t know what to think,” he admitted.
She was folding and unfolding her napkin. “I’m worried about Marshall, but…I’m even more worried about Audrey. She is an attractive young woman.”
She stared straight at him then. “I’m worried, too,” he admitted.
She smiled wanly, placing her hand on his. “Still worried about me?” she asked, and he knew she was referring to her sanity.
He didn’t have a chance to reply. A soft female voice broke in on them.
“Gen? Genevieve Wallace?”
He turned as Genevieve looked up. They had been approached by a couple who had apparently been leaving but stopped at the sight of Genevieve, who frowned, before her face lit up in a smile.
“Kathy!” She grinned at Thor, who rose quickly as Genevieve introduced her friend. “Kathleen O’Malley, Thor Thompson. Thor, Kathy and I went to school together. She’s an escaped Conch. And George.” She rose, too, kissing the man on the cheek. “George Ryder,” she said in a rush, remembering she was doing the introductions. “George also went to school with me.”
Kathy laughed. She was tiny, with blond ringlets. George was taller, and very lean. He shook Thor’s hand. “You’re the diver, right? I’ve seen you in magazines.”
Thor nodded. “Can you stay a minute? I’ll draw up a few chairs.”
“Yes, thanks,” Kathy said. “Oh, we’re both Ryders now. George and I got married four years ago.”
“I had no idea,” Genevieve said warmly, taking her seat again. “Congratulations. Weren’t you voted ‘Couple Most Likely to Stay Together’?”
George arched a brow. “Oh, stop,” Kathy said, laughing. “Gen, you look wonderful. But I thought I read that you were on some dive now? Did you two escape or something? The prostitute murders down there have made the news up here. They just found a second girl, right?”
Genevieve nodded.
“Be careful down there. No wonder you guys wanted to come up here for a break,” Kathy said.
“Hey,” Genevieve said. “You know Marshall—my boss?”
Again, Kathy smiled. She seemed unfailingly cheerful, Thor thought. “Sure. He used to humor us all the time when we were kids. I still love boats and diving because of him. We came up here because George was going to law school at the University of Miami, and then he got a job up here…but I still miss the Keys. Anyway, yes, I remember Marshall.”
“You haven’t run into him anywhere up here recently, have you?” Thor asked.
Kathy shook her head. She was obviously the speaker. George was the quiet one.
“No, no, sorry. He isn’t down there with you? Hard to believe Marshall would play hooky. I remember him telling us he’d have his own company one day, just like the big-time salvage guys. He managed it, too.”
“Yes, he did,” Genevieve murmured.
“Wow, imagine, running into you,” Kathy said. “Of course, the distance isn’t all that great, but I haven’t been all the way down to Key West in years. We escape to Key Largo a lot, but that’s just an hour away. Much easier when you only have a weekend here and there.”
“I know. I almost never get up here,” Genevieve said.
“Actually,” George said, breaking in suddenly, “it’s strange to run into you tonight. I’ve been thinking about you and Bethany and Victor. I thought you might be affected by what was going on.”
“The murders, you mean?” Thor asked, frowning.
“Yes,” George agreed, nodding gravely. “Do you remember back when we were in school? We were seniors, I think, when the paper had a spread on that woman who was on her way to being a supermodel. Remember?”
“Yes, she just up and disappeared,” Genevieve said.
“It’s been bugging me,” George said.
“Wasn’t there something in the paper last year about another woman who disappeared? Did they ever find her?” Kathy asked, wide-eyed.
“Not that I know of,” Genevieve said. “I should ask Jay.”
“Jay,” Kathy said. “Poor guy. He loved his wife so much. Did he ever remarry?”
“He’s not married. If he’s even dating, I don’t know about it.”
“Send him our love, will you?” Kathy asked.
“Of course,” Genevieve said.
Kathy looked at her watch. “Yikes! We’d better get going. George’s cousin is home with the baby. Oh, we have a little boy—George, of course,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“Congratulations again,” Genevieve told her.
“I wish we had seen you earlier. This was wonderful,” Kathy said, rising. George and Thor did the same and Genevieve, too, got to her feet to give Kathy a warm hug.
“Really gre
“And a pleasure to meet you,” Kathy said to Thor. She assessed him, grinning, gave Genevieve a nod of what seemed to be approval.
“Really great,” George said again, pumping Thor’s hand.
“Oh, and listen. Best of luck with the treasure hunt. And remember, Gen, you knew us when.”
Waving, Kathy was led away at last by her husband.
Thor stared at Genevieve, grinning.
“George was the smartest kid in class,” she said, grinning back.
“And Kathy?”
“The most talkative.”
He laughed, then sobered. Something about the conversation had disturbed him. As they paid their bill and left, he kept mulling it over in his mind.
He’d felt suspicious of those close to them before now.
Jay.
Who had lost his wife when she had drowned.
Victor.
Who had been with the prostitute.
As he drove back to their hotel, he knew George and Kathy had pressed something home to him.
It had all happened before.
So who had been around all that time? Strangers, of course. People he had never met. Key West could be a transient place. He was certain a lot of the people living there now had arrived since Genevieve had been in high school.
There was no reason to believe the murderer was close to them.
Except…
Okay, it was a long shot, but what if ghosts did exist? What if Genevieve’s ghost kept appearing not because she wanted help, but because she wanted to give them help?
“Crazy,” he muttered aloud.
Genevieve was half asleep in the passenger seat. She raised her head slightly. “What?”
“Nothing, sorry,” he murmured. How was he supposed to respond? Hey, guess what? I’m seeing a ghost, too. Different ghost, a wise-ass kid, but still…
Gen was so tired he was tempted to pick her up and carry her to their room after they turned the car over to the valet. He refrained, slipping an arm around her instead. She crashed out on the bed, murmuring something about getting up in just a second to change.
She wasn’t getting up again. Not that night, he knew. He managed to slip off her shoes, but he left her sleeping in her lilac halter dress.
Slipping in beside her, he drew her to him.