Chapter 15 #3
“There was no deal. I offered to check on you for Emma. The rest is because I want to help you. This is the sort of thing I do for a living. You could use my expertise.”
“I was doing fine before you.” She tried arguing though it was a lie. She was making stuff up as she went.
“Uh huh,” he replied in disbelief. “And what would you have done had Miles’s men showed up instead of me? Or the police?”
She would be dead or in a jail, which wouldn’t help the sharks. “Alright, you win.” Mac pointed a finger in his face. “But if I catch him in the act of trying to kill one of my sharks, I will go after him.”
“Fine,” he said in a placating tone. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Trusting me to help you.”
“I didn’t say that.” Mac wasn’t sure if she could trust the man hired by her sister to watch her.
“You’re letting me help you.” She’d see about that. “It’s enough for now.”
“I’ll meet you at your hotel in a little bit. I’ll bring my research, and we can compare notes.”
“Room number four.” Barry hopped onto his boat. As soon as he was clear, she put it in drive and sped through the water. Her mind whirled with reasons why her sister would do this to her as she cursed her own stupidity for falling into bed with him. Mac felt used and betrayed.
Mac didn’t slow until she was almost back to Jacques’ dock. She drifted into her spot and cut off the engine. Mac grabbed her gear and headed down the dock. Jacques was still in the same position she’d left him in, lying in his chair asleep.
“How were the corals?” he asked as she passed him.
Too irritated to play nice, Mac kicked his legs off the bucket they were resting on. He was secure in his seat, all it did was move his legs, but it got his attention. He pushed his hat up on his head so she could see the confused look on his face. “What’s your going rate for betrayal, Jacques?”
Jacques looked ashamed. “Mac, don’t be like that. I was worried about you. You shouldn’t have been diving there alone.”
“And what if he was a stalker or a killer? You told him exactly how to find me.” She wasn’t going to say working for Miles since he didn’t believe Miles was guilty of killing sharks. And even if he was, Jacques didn’t care. He didn’t concern himself with anything but himself.
“If you were concerned about that, why would you send him to me for a boat?” he countered, raising a challenging eyebrow.
Damn, he had her there. “Sending him to you for a boat and telling him where I am are two different things. I see there’s no loyalty on this island.
” She had paid him handsomely to keep silent, and he’d given away her position as if she meant nothing to him.
See if she helped one of his tourists again.
“Mac, don’t be that way.”
But Mac stomped off, not wanting to listen to him. She marched up the hill and down the road to her storage shed with her head held high. The scuba tank was lighter now that it was mostly out of air.
She dropped it off and headed home for a shower and change of clothes. By the time she was done, Mac felt a semblance of calm. She decided to call her sister and get to the bottom of this though.
“Mac,” Emma said, sounding shocked to hear from her. It wasn’t often Mac called. This time of year, she was rather busy on boat trips and gathering intel.
“Emma, why did you send him?” Mac asked without preamble. At least she wasn’t yelling.
“He told you?” Emma questioned instead of trying to deny it. Not that there was any denial. Barry wouldn’t lie to her about Emma sending him. It still hurt. How could her sister do that to her? It was the deepest betrayal.
“I didn’t give him much choice when he kept butting himself into my business then offering to help.”
“I was worried about you.”
There was no remorse in Emma’s tone. “So, you sent someone to spy on me?”
“I wouldn’t say spy.”
“And what would you call it, sending someone to check in on me who was supposed to stay in the shadows.” Right now, Mac wished he had stayed there. Knowing he had gotten close to her because of her sister made her stomach turn. She felt so used and dirty.
“When you say it like that it sounds bad.”
“How else does it sound when you send someone to look after me? I’m an adult, Emma. I am more than capable of taking care of myself.”
“Barry offered to go when I became worried when I hadn’t heard from you after you told me you were looking into that hotel guy.”
So, her sister had jumped to some conclusion she had gotten herself into trouble, and she’d sent someone to check in on her.
“I’ve been busy on the boat. This is an important time of year for us.
” Normally, she didn’t take any time off this time of year, but she’d wanted to do her own research, and time had been of the essence.
“I know, but I still worry. You’re my baby sister.”
“I have been living alone and taking care of myself for years now. Why now?” What had changed. They only spoke on occasion and hardly ever during migration season.
“You can be a bit headstrong, and you have a passion for sharks. I did some research on that Miles guy, and he looked like the type of person one shouldn’t mess with.”
Barry had also mentioned Miles’s personality. Honestly, she didn’t know much about him other than she didn’t trust him and held him responsible for the disappearance of sharks. “What did you think I was going to do? Break into his hotel and demand answers or something?”
“I don’t know, but I was worried.”
Mac knew she couldn’t go after Miles without proof. If she approached him with her suspicions, he would just change tactics. She had only spoken her concerns with some of the locals. “You should have trusted me, Emma.”
“I’m sorry,” Emma replied, sounding contrite. “I was worried, and Barry offered. I accepted his offer without thought. I’m really sorry, Mac. I should have trusted you more.”
Mac knew her sister hadn’t meant any harm in what she had done. She couldn’t hold a grudge. “I accept your apology.”
“Thank you. Are you going to let Barry help you?”
“I honestly don’t know what he can help with.”
“A lot more than you think.”
“That sounds ominous.”
“I can’t tell you more than that. It’s Barry’s story to share, not mine.”
That did even less to ease her apprehension about him. “You’re not helping your cause.”
“Just trust him to help you, Mac,” Emma said softy like she always did. Emma rarely ever raised her voice. It was one of the things that made her a great therapist.
“Is that what you instructed him to do?”
“No, he offered to go down and see that you were okay. Nothing more. If he’s offering to help, maybe he knows something about Miles and wants to protect you.”
So an innocent bystander didn’t get hurt, or because he actually cared about her? “Thanks, Emma, I have to go.”
“Alright, take care of yourself, Mac.”
“Will do.”
Mac hung up and stood in her living room, debating what to do. Everything Barry had said checked out. The question remained though, should she trust him like Emma suggested to help catch Miles, or would she keep doing it alone?