Chapter 7
7
Along the dark path, wind buffeted and rain pelted. The sun had already dipped below the horizon, and the heavy clouds ushered darkness in much sooner. Pulling her hood forward, Remi pushed on.
Why had she told Hawk? Said anything at all? She’d wanted to ask him while he was in her office, but Dr. Holcomb had texted and insisted it was vital she meet with Remi as soon as possible.
Maybe she’d been rash, impatient, but she had to know if Hawk was to blame. He’d shown up on the very day she’d not only faced death twice but also received another puzzle piece—hand delivered—along with the warning to remember. Two years ago, she’d woken up in a military hospital, and deep inside, she had the strange feeling that everything was somehow related to the military. Hawk had been Army and she’d been Army, and so following that to a logical conclusion, she’d thought he could have been sent here by someone to pressure her to get her memories back. Like that would work.
But apparently that had been an illogical conclusion, because she believed Hawk when he told her he had no clue what was going on. Then when Hawk had stared at her with an intensity that made her shudder all over—in a weirdly good way—she had to admit that, yes...
I need an ally in this.
And maybe part of her had wanted him to be the person who had sent the pieces, to help her remember, to warn her about the threat. That would mean that he knew what menace she faced. He knew what happened when she did not and could explain everything. But he wasn’t the puzzle piece sender, and now he thought she was crazy. She didn’t need to bring him into this with her. She shouldn’t. Not when she didn’t know the full scale of it.
She forced her mind to shut down the overwhelming thoughts to focus on getting to the lodge. Normally, she could walk this path blindfolded, but the wind and rain and crashing waves disoriented her.
I can do this.
Shining the flashlight along the path, she continued, heading back toward her own cabin where she could sit and wait out the storm and figure out what to do next. A branch blew past and nearly knocked into her, so she picked up the pace. This wasn’t the first time she’d experienced storms here, but it would be the most intense, and yeah, okay, she’d been stupid to come out in it close to dark in the first place. But she’d needed answers and been impulsive. No way would she turn back and wait out the first of the storms with Hawk Beckett.
The sound of water rushing, flooding much too close, sent alarms through her. Cold water surged around her ankles. She wasn’t on the beach, so what was going on? Her heart pounded. This shouldn’t be happening. A practical river had formed, and she felt herself being tugged along. She had to get out of this.
Remi shined the flashlight at her feet at the same moment a hand gripped her arm and whirled her around.
Hawk stood in a soaking wet T-shirt. “You have to come back! It’s too dangerous,” he shouted as he pulled her with him toward his cabin.
Too stunned to argue, she let him lead her through the dark forest. Once inside the cabin, he shut the door and pressed his back against it as if his strong, broad shoulders were needed to hold down the fort.
She gasped, tried to calm her racing heart. In the low lighting, she caught his soaked form again. His chest rising and falling with his quickened breaths. He held her gaze.
“It was just rainwater flooding, rushing to the cliff to meet the ocean. You shouldn’t have brought me back.”
“The water is rushing toward the drop in elevation—I mean, a significant drop. Didn’t you see it? Part of the cliff face eroded, falling right into the ocean.” His voice was shaky.
Strong Hawk Beckett could get scared? Well, if that didn’t shake her to her toes too.
He ran his hands through his wet hair before fisting them at his hips. Concern raked his features. “You almost stepped right off the new cliff.”
“How did you see it?” He’d been watching her? To make sure she was safe?
“I saw the branch fly past and I thought you were hurt.”
This guy never quit being a hero, did he? “Thank you.”
His lips pressed into a thin line, and he pushed from the door. Remi had to absorb this news to understand. She removed her dripping jacket and hung it on a peg near the door, next to Hawk’s jacket.
I don’t understand. She had to get her mind around it, for her sake and for others.
“Scientists, geotechnical engineers, have already assessed the soil composition and stability. Eventually—in decades—even the lodge might become vulnerable.” She paced the room, then moved to the woodstove to get warm. “This cabin would at some point be threatened. But not yet, Hawk.” She looked at him. “I swear, I would never put anyone in danger. The evaluations, the powers that be, wouldn’t allow me to rent the cabin out if it wasn’t safe.”
His mouth hung open before he slowly closed it, then said, “So, wait. You’re saying you think this cabin isn’t safe?”
“Are you seriously asking me that?” she asked. “You said you saw erosion a few yards away. That wasn’t supposed to happen anytime in the near future. So how can we believe this cabin isn’t going to slide right into the ocean tonight if water was flowing off the cliff? That just further destabilizes it. The other cabins, no. They’re too far back. But this one? It’s the closest to the edge. The best view of the beach, frankly, and the storm.” Remi pressed her hands against her eyes.
God, what is happening? Cedar Trails Lodge is in danger on my watch? My life is falling apart all at once?
She dropped her hands. “I need to radio my staff. Let everyone know where I am and what’s going on.”
She fished in her pocket. Then both pockets. Reached into her jeans. Are you kidding me? Now that she thought about it, she’d been so intent on catching Hawk and getting answers, she hadn’t grabbed the radio on her way out. She hadn’t planned to stay long, so the thought hadn’t pressed on her.
Hawk pulled off his wet shirt.
Great. Unfortunately, Remi took in his well-formed chest and ridiculously taut abs before she caught herself and looked away. Work out much? “Aren’t you cold?”
He nodded and disappeared into the bedroom. When he emerged, he was pulling a fleece hoodie over another T-shirt. Then he pulled on his heavy jacket and rain boots.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
He grabbed a flashlight. “I’m going to look around. We need to know what’s happening before we make a decision.”
As if he could look at the ground and predict what would happen next. “I’m coming too,” she said.
Tugging her coat back on, she pulled her own flashlight from her pocket. “Let’s go.”
She followed him out into the stormy night. This close to the cliffside, the roar of the ocean was deafening.
“Stay close!” Hawk shouted.
Like she needed to be told they should stick together. The wind and rain were unforgiving, but reconnaissance had to be done. They each shined their lights around, searching for flooding and erosion in the middle of chaos. This wasn’t how she imagined her day would end, but considering the way it started, maybe she should have expected this. Hawk led her around the back of the cabin and away from the cliff.
“Shouldn’t we be looking closer to the edge?” she shouted against the wind.
“We will.”
“What do you think you’ll see? Are you an expert in coastal erosion?” And if so, he’d left that out of his already slim offerings on his verbal résumé.
“No. But I think it’s worth looking, don’t you?”
Remi and Hawk studied the ground that was visible in the ring of light as they moved around the cabin. Beneath the dense forest canopy, they were sheltered only slightly from the onslaught. Strong gusts blew the rain sideways as trees swayed and clacked around them. To think, this wasn’t yet the true monster, which was predicted to come in last of the sequence of storms that were hitting during the king tides.
Behind the cabin, they stopped ten yards from the cliff’s edge, which Remi figured should be a safe distance, but closer would have allowed them to see more. The light shone out into the cacophonous ocean. She saw nothing but gray and rain.
“Okay. We came. We saw. And we still don’t know if it’s safe. So let’s get your things. I’ll find you a place to stay for tonight.”
“Just for tonight. We can check things out tomorrow in the light of day, but the issues with my cabin are the least of your worries, Remi.” He gave her a look that, in the deep shadows cast by the flashlights, seemed dark and foreboding.
She followed him to the cabin, trying to figure out where she could move him. They were fully booked. She could let him stay in her cabin, and she could sleep on the extra sofa in her office. Or release him from the rental agreement to go home.
Inside the cabin, Hawk entered his room and less than a minute later came out again with his duffel. “I didn’t bring much. Too bad we can’t climb into my Ford and drive to the lodge.” He smirked.
“Yeah, that. Campers and cabin stayers want a natural experience, which doesn’t include cars parked so close. They have to hike in.”
“You don’t have to explain. Anyone who’d choose a place without internet and cell wants to leave civilization behind.”
“Given the erosion and flooding, we’ll have to walk straight east to be safe,” she said. “We’ll pass some of the other cabins. There’s one cabin north of them, then we’ll take the long path around to the lodge. That’ll give us a chance to make sure they’re intact and everything is all right. They have never been in danger of erosion.”
“Only the cabin where I’m staying,” he said. “Just my luck.”
“I’m sorry. Are you good to go with me to check the others?”
“Of course.”
She had to pick up her stride to keep up with Hawk. “I think looking around as we go is good. Thank you, Hawk.”
After making their way around fifteen cabins, they checked on the last one, north of the rest, then went in search of the main trail back to the lodge.
Would she even have known until it was too late—until something more happened—if she hadn’t been grappling with Hawk over those puzzle pieces meant to trigger her memory?
Though that strategy hadn’t worked, Hawk’s outstretched hand reaching for her, pulling her to safety, had done the trick. And maybe sticking with him, keeping him close, if possible, would help her remember more. She could figure out why he was the trigger later. But she didn’t think he was dangerous ... at least not to her.
The gusts died down along with the rain, giving a reprieve for who knew how long. She could actually hear the water dripping through the trees over the crashing waves. This storm would be great to watch in the daytime, nestled in a comfy chair by a fire in a safe cabin, in which there was no chance the cliff would give out beneath them. She’d love to take some photographs, and she could just imagine she might even have the good fortune to capture a face in the waves again.
She would put her photographs out there for the world to see—not just in this lodge—if she wasn’t here to hide. But she hadn’t done a great job, after all, and maybe subconsciously she’d wanted someone to find her.
And they had.
Two someones.
Someone to warn her.
Someone to kill her.
Remi waved the flashlight around, catching a couple of cabins in the distance. “The lights are off. The power must be out.”
Movement in the trees caught her attention.
She gasped and grabbed Hawk’s arm. “Did you see that?”