It took less than a minute for Mac to hand out flashlights, then she snatched the lighthouse key ring from the nail by the door and they all followed her outside.
They reached the parking lot just as several trucks pulled in and came to a stop. Will Clayton got out of the first one. Sonny Dumas and his sons were right behind him. Will ran around to the passenger side and yanked his son Tommy out of the car just as Nando and Howie roared into the parking lot.
Lillo hurried toward Will. “Do you have Bobby?”
Will shook his head and thrust his son toward the group.
“Tommy here has something he wants to say.”
Tommy didn’t say a thing.
“Tell ’em.” Will shook the boy. “Tell ’em.”
Ian crouched down until his eyes met Tommy’s. “Do you know where Bobby is?”
Tommy nodded spasmodically. “In the lighthouse.”
“How did he get there?”
Tommy shrugged.
His father gave him a shove.
Tommy wrenched away. “He was always pestering us to let him hang out with us, to go in the boat, go to the lighthouse. Like we really wanted him or anything. He’s nothing but a moron.”
Will Clayton cuffed the boy so hard he nearly fell into Ian, who put him back on his feet.
Jess sucked in her breath. Lillo grasped her arm to keep her from interfering.
“And now he’s out there with no way to get back to shore. If he tries he’ll probably be washed out to sea,” Ian said. “And that will be your fault.”
“Whoa,” Diana breathed behind Lillo.
Ian’s voice was so measured, so free of emotion, that shivers ran up Lillo’s back.
He seemed so detached that she was afraid it might be one of those instances of the calm before the storm. She’d seen it in the hospital in the psych ward; hell, she’d seen it in family members just waiting to hear the news of a loved one. Trying to hold it together until they snapped.
“You took him and left him there?”
“He wanted to go. And we thought it would be funny if we left him there. We were going back for him, but the waves got too high. I don’t want him to die.”
“You should have thought about that before you left him.” Ian stood, shoved his flashlight into the waistband of his jeans.
But before he could make a move, Mac barred his way. “What are you doing?”
“What does it look like? I’m going after him.”
“The waves are over the jetty. The wind is too strong. You can’t make it on foot and a boat would crash. You’ll have to wait until lower tide or the weather breaks.”
“It’s dark; he’ll be scared.”
“I know, but you’re the only one he’ll trust, and if you get swept away, he’ll still be stuck there.”
Ian grabbed the keys from her hand. “I can’t leave him.”
Sonny strode after Ian. “If you’re determined, I got a winch on my truck. We can rig up a lifeline. Won’t do much good on the way out, but if you can attach it to the lighthouse somehow, you’ll have something to hold on to on the way back. It’ll take just a couple of minutes.”
“Okay, let’s do it,” Ian said.
It took more than two minutes to get everything ready. Sonny backed his truck up to the jetty, then fitted Ian with a utility belt with a walkie-talkie, a first-aid kit, and a Mylar blanket.
Ian clasped it around his waist.
“I’ll attach the cable to you on your way out, not that it will do much good if you fall and hurt yourself. When you get there, attach the anchor to the lighthouse, oughta be a hook or an eye somewhere outside for the boats.” Sonny attached one end of the cable to the utility belt, added a couple of rolled-up webbing straps and carabiners. “Use these on your way back, I’ll keep the cable taut, but you’re on your own until we can reach you.”
Ian nodded.
“You sure you don’t want me to go instead?”
“Thanks. But I’m the best one to go.”
“Meaning he don’t think his own life’s worth a damn,” Mac said under her breath.
“Well, he’s wrong,” Diana snapped.
“Hell, girl, we all know that. Why don’t you take it on yourself to enlighten the man?”
“Maybe I will.” Diana started to move closer to him, then decided against it.
They were all holding their breath. At least they still had a few hours before dark. Hopefully they wouldn’t need that long.
Ian braced himself and stepped onto the jetty. For a heart-stilling moment, he swayed as a gust of wind nearly wrenched him from his feet.
He was weighted down heavily enough so that if he fell in the water, the undertow would pull him under before any of them could do anything to save him.
Lillo had lived in this fishing village her whole life and she knew steady wind or no wind were the best environments for rescue. But the erratic gusts could sweep a man away without warning.
Diana slipped in beside her. “Is this as dangerous as I think it is?”
“At least that.”
“Why doesn’t he just wait?”
“He’s afraid that Bobby will find a way out and try to make it across the jetty by himself.”
“Damn those kids. I would have gladly wrung their necks yesterday if I’d known what was going to happen today. The little shits.”
“Pretty much.” Lillo glanced over at Tommy, who no longer looked like a bully, but like a terribly frightened little boy. His father didn’t look much better. Under constant stress, trying to make ends meet, raising two boys by himself. Refusing help because it wasn’t macho to take a handout, not for any of the few services available to those in need. And content to blame everyone but himself for not succeeding. One of the ones who had held on to fishing even though the writing had been on the wall for a long time.
Not willing to let go of what he knew, the only thing he knew. Not willing to learn something new. Waiting for the world to go back to what he’d expected it to be. And letting his disappointment poison his own sons’ lives. Maybe this would jolt him into doing something for them.
Everyone drew nearer together, watching Ian moving in slow motion over the rocks. Another car arrived. Lillo was vaguely aware of Lou Trader arriving with Joey and her husband, Flynn, but she couldn’t take her eyes off the figure fighting his way toward the lighthouse tower.
And then the inevitable happened. He slipped, disappeared, and for a horrible second became a part of the landscape. The watchers gasped, leaned in, looking, praying, collectively willing him to get back to his feet.
He did, but by the time he reached the small island that served as the foundation of the lighthouse, Lillo’s lungs hurt from not breathing. She gasped in air. She thought the others did, too.
Ian didn’t go in immediately but searched for an anchor for the haul rope. Finally raised his hand to signal that he’d found one. Attached it, then signaled Sonny to test the connection. Sonny jumped back in the truck, slowly let out the clutch, and rolled forward. The rope snapped in the air, grew taut, then held.
Ian signaled the okay, turned his back on them, and after a few breath-held seconds, they watched him go inside.
The Traders had moved to the front of the crowd and were huddled together. Will Clayton and Tommy stood off from the others. And Lillo hoped for all their sakes that Ian and Bobby made it back and unharmed.
An eon passed with no one talking. Eyes fixed on the seemingly deserted lighthouse. Unexpectedly, a gust of wind would whip through, ruffling them like stalks of grass. At other times, a whisper would rise and die on the wind.
And they waited. Jess, Allie, and Diana had moved toward Lillo as they watched the rescue. Now they moved closer together, focused on the empty lighthouse door.
“What’s happening?” Jess asked. “Can you see him?”
And then there was Ian standing in the door, Bobby in his arms.
Lillo’s breath hitched. They hadn’t considered that Bobby couldn’t make it back across the jetty even with Ian’s help.
“What’s he doing?” Jess asked.
“Trying to connect his carabiner to the cable so they won’t be swept into the water.” He was having a hell of a time. He only had one free hand and the wind kept buffeting him, pushing him in one direction, then another. Put him down, Lillo thought. Just for a second. Put him down or you won’t make it.
“Dammit, man, put him down!” Sonny echoed Lillo’s thoughts out loud.
Sonny and three of the other men moved onto the jetty, blocking Lillo’s view. They spread out along the base of the rocks to help Ian as soon as he got close enough.
Lillo moved over, trying to catch a glimpse of Ian and Bobby, but for what seemed an eternity all she could see were the backs of three waiting men. She saw the men surge forward. Someone cried out. Then they stepped back and Ian emerged between them, carrying Bobby, wrapped in the Mylar and clinging to Ian’s neck.
The Traders surrounded him. Flynn Trader tried to take Bobby, but the boy cried and kicked and clung to Ian.
“Hey, Bobby, you okay?” someone from the crowd yelled.
“Bobby? Bobby?” Lou Trader whimpered; she held out her arms.
Bobby raised his head, looked at the group, then nuzzled into Ian and clung tighter.
“Bobby!” Flynn said, his voice shaking with emotion. “Go to your mama.”
“Just give him a minute,” Ian said. “He’s cold and in shock.” He whispered something to Bobby. Sonny got another blanket out of his truck and threw it over the Mylar one.
The Traders stepped closer to Ian, and for a split second Lillo thought they might fight to take Bobby away from him. Gradually, Ian managed to slip Bobby into Flynn’s arms. The boy fought to get back to Ian, but Ian stepped away, and gradually he calmed and Flynn carried him back to their car.
“Thank you, thank you,” Lou said, and hurried after them.
“Stop by the clinic and have Doc Clancy check him out.”
She nodded distractedly. Ian followed them and stopped Flynn. “Take him to the clinic. It’s important.”
“Okay. I will.” Flynn hesitated, nodded brusquely, and got into the car.
“He sounds pissed at Ian for saving his son,” Diana said.
Mac rolled her eyes. “It’s hard to give up your place as numero uno with your own blood. It took forever to get Flynn to accept the fact that Bobby has special needs. He hates everybody else knowing it. To his eyes it makes him a failure somehow. He knows Ian helps his sons, he just don’t understand what Ian does and he’s scared of him. Fool.”
“Well, I thought he was amazing,” Allie said.
“Amazing,” Diana echoed. She was watching Ian watching the Traders’ car drive away.
“Jeez, that was incredibly risky—they could have been killed,” Jess said. “And an insurance nightmare, not to mention bad for my nerves. So the first thing on my new agenda is to build a handrail out to the lighthouse.”
Mac snorted. “You and whose cool million?”
“It won’t cost a million and it’s my treat.”
They all did a double take at Jess.
“What? Can’t I build a handrail if I want to?”
“Do you have any idea what is involved?” Mac asked. “Drilling through jetty rock. Getting variances. Building to code. It’ll cost a fortune.”
Jess sighed. “In case you haven’t noticed, I have a fortune. Several of them, actually. I think I can afford to build a damn rail. But if it makes you feel any better, we can do a fundraiser. Put up one of those tacky signs with a thermometer filling up with red. I’ve always thought they were so silly looking. I’m changing my mind.”
“Apparently I’m not the only one feeling a little traumatized,” Diana said under her breath. “I think our girl Jess just lost it.”
“Or found it,” said Lillo.
Ian walked slowly back toward Sonny, who went about extracting the utility belts and carabiners.
“Mighty fine work, Ian,” Sonny said. The other men nodded; one clapped Ian on the back.
“Better get into some dry clothes. That water’s pretty damn cold.”
“Got some in the SUV. Thanks for your help. Couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Anytime you want to risk your fool neck, just give me a call first.”
“What?” Diana asked.
“Manspeak for ‘Thank you, you did great,’” Mac said.
“A new one on me,” Diana said.
“’Cause you been hanging around those wussy New York types for too long.”
Diana gave her a look. “Is that old-broad-speak for ‘I’m an idiot’?”
“No, it’s me telling you it’s about time you had a taste of a real man.”
“Yeow,” Allie said.
“Man, I think Diana might be blushing,” Jess whispered.
Mac paid no attention. “Sonny, you fellas want to come in for a beer?”
“Thanks, Mac, but we’re gonna head on down to Mike’s as soon as I get this equipment put away. Worked up an appetite. Ayuh. Have to leave the truck here until low tide so I can get my winch back.”
Mac just waved good-bye. “Ian, you come on in and get a hot shower and change. I got brisket and scalloped potatoes in the oven.”
Ian hesitated, then said thanks, grabbed his clothes, and walked past them. The others started to follow him, all talking at once.
Mac waved them off. “Just leave the man alone until he’s comfortable again.” And she trundled Ian inside.
“Comfortable?” snapped Diana. “He could be dead.”
“Definitely blushing,” Jess said.
“She just wants us to give him some space,” Lillo said, “until he’s cleaned up and relaxed. Let’s go see if Sonny needs some help.” Sonny didn’t need their help, but Lillo didn’t want Diana stumbling on to Ian going into or coming out of the shower. She had no idea what he would be like after the harrowing experience he’d just been through. She just knew he would need time to get back to the rest of them.
Before she even reached Sonny’s truck, a black limo and two SUVs drove into the parking lot and came to a stop behind the other vehicles blocking their way.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” snapped Diana. “Hey, Jess. Daddy’s here.”
Jess, who had been studying the jetty, spun around. And froze. Allie stepped closer to her.
Lillo grabbed Sonny’s arm. “We may still need you,” she said, and nodded toward the cars; the limo driver was opening the back door. George Parker, dressed in his business-as-usual power suit, stepped out while four men, similarly but not as expensively attired, swarmed out of the SUVs.
Lillo stepped away from Sonny’s truck. Sonny joined her and Diana was right behind.
But it was Jess who strode past them and stopped her father in his tracks. “So, what has you hying to the backwoods of Maine this afternoon?”
Lillo blinked. Jess wasn’t waiting to take the offensive. And Lillo sent her every shred of good energy she had left after Ian’s rescue of Bobby Trader.
“I’m your father and I’ve had enough of this juvenile behavior. We’ve been lenient so far, but enough is enough. You’ve cost us a fortune on this wedding. Which we had to cancel.”
Hang tough, Lillo thought. Hang tough.
“Seems like you already tried to get to my money while I was gone. What? Did you plan to make me pay for your mismanagement of my life? Well, too little too late.
“Must have been a surprise when you found yourself locked out of my accounts, and don’t bother trying to hack your way in. I’ll save you the trouble: those accounts are empty. You’ve been stealing from me for I don’t even know how long. Your greed is unsurpassable. Well, you’re not getting my money.”
Jess started to cross her arms, caught herself, and put them down by her sides. From defensive stance to one of strength.
“So tell your goons to get back in their spy cars and leave.”
“You ungrateful bitch.” Parker’s hands were fisting and unfisting.
If he so much as touched Jess, Lillo would go for his throat.
“That would be me, yes.”
“You’d better be careful before you think of crossing me.”
“Why? You’ll destroy me like you do your other enemies? You can try. I wouldn’t expect less.” Jess huffed out a bitter laugh.
Parker took a step toward her. Lillo saw movement by the gift shop, but she was afraid to turn her head to see who it was and risk destroying the delicate balance of Jess’s power. She just prayed that whoever it was, Mac or Ian, they didn’t interrupt. Jess was on a roll. It had been a long time coming.
Parker stepped toward his daughter, thrusting his chest forward in an unconscious display of intimidation.
Jess didn’t flinch. “I’m thirty-two years old, and for most of those years I tried to rationalize what you did, how you treated people, trod on them, cheated them out of their wages and what you owed them. Because you could. You actually prided yourself on your despicable behavior, and I sat by trying to make myself think it wasn’t so bad, because it’s what all businessmen did.
“Well you know what? Not everyone acts so reprehensibly, there are actually honest businessmen, and you can sneer at them all you want, but they do good in this world and you’re just a canker sore.
“You’re my father. I wanted so much to love you, but I detest you, and I will not make excuses for you anymore. So go home, and sit in your big white house on the hill and congratulate yourself on being so fucking fantastic, and try to pretend that people actually respect you and look up to you. The only people who do are the ones you’re stepping on.
“So go back to what you’re doing; there’s no hope for you. But I’m moving on to a better life. Get out of my sight, I never want to see or hear from you again.”
“You better stop and think, girl. If I leave now, I won’t be coming back and don’t think I’ll take you back later.”
“Don’t worry about that. I want nothing from you. You’ve taken everything you possibly could from me. Every shred of my self-esteem and self-worth, and spit on it, trampled it underfoot. I let you do it, I know. It’s my fault, too. I let you demean me until I had nothing, nothing.
“At least I thought I had nothing, but I was wrong there, too. I have three friends who have loved me and cared about me more than you were ever capable of. And I’ve made more friends this week. I found a family here. Not with my parents and siblings but with total strangers. I don’t expect you to understand. I just expect you to leave.”
She turned, in the most determined movement Lillo had ever seen her make. The sun was just beginning to set and Lillo watched as it cloaked Jess in an aura of red.
Next to her, Diana let out a slow breath.
Lillo saw Parker move after Jess. He was going to grab her, and Lillo moved to warn her at the same time Mac stepped away from the house.
She lifted her shotgun; a shot rang out, shattering the air around them. But it wasn’t Mac’s—her gun was never loaded.
Then the world shifted to slow motion. Mac’s arms flew to the side, the shotgun clattered at her feet, and she crumpled to the ground.