LITMIR.BIZ

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wouldn’t have affected anyone outside the family, so what else had happened or was happening? What had Bessie said about the new housekeeper? Something about Ian …

      ‘I’ve come to make Keanu a cup of tea,’ she said as Vailea’s eyes continued to study her, a malevolence Caroline couldn’t understand clear within them.

      ‘I’ll take care of him,’ the older woman snapped, and Caroline, only too pleased to escape the extremely uncomfortable atmosphere, left the kitchen.

      ‘Boy, this is going to be fun,’ she muttered to herself as she made her way out of the hospital.

      Keanu could deal with Alkiri on his own—do whatever needed to be done. She was damned if she was going to stay around and be insulted. Once Hettie, the head nurse, returned later today and gave Caroline her roster, she could work out how best to avoid Vailea altogether.

      Vailea and Keanu.

      Although there was something about Vailea’s reaction to her that seemed more personal than a general hatred of all Lockharts …

      Keanu walked up to the house at six. He’d spent two hours talking to the elders on Atangi, making arrangements for Alkiri’s funeral. The elders had agreed he could be buried on Wildfire and they would send over people to help with the practicalities and some cooks to prepare the food.

      ‘Is there somewhere we can all gather?’ the man he’d been speaking to had asked. ‘I think the little church and its hall would be too small.’

      Keanu thought of the big longhouse that had once been the centre of the research station and assured the elder that somewhere could be found. There was always the Lockhart house if nothing else worked out.

      They settled on a service at ten in two days’ time.

      Now, given that they might need the house, he had to make peace with Caro, although he doubted he could ever explain his angry reaction to her arrival—far too complicated and quite unwarranted, really.

      Caroline was sitting on the veranda, watching the sun sink into the sea, dropping below the western cliffs lit up with the brilliant fiery red that gave the island its name.

      He took the steps three at a time in long, deliberate strides, then slumped down on the top one, not looking at her but out at the dying colours of the sunset.

      ‘Why did you come back?’ he asked, almost gently, although being this close to her had started all the physical reactions again, and the confusion of that made him feel …

      Angry?

      Not really, more unsettled …

      ‘Why did you?’ she countered.

      ‘I was asked,’ he said, trying desperately to pretend that this was just a conversation between two old friends. Which, of course, it was—wasn’t it?

      ‘The island was in trouble, the community was in trouble. It’s my home and I love it. Of course, I had to come back.’

      ‘And yet you ask me why I came? To tell you the truth, I didn’t know things were this bad until I got here. I just wanted—needed—to come home.’

      ‘And now you’re here?

      She turned towards him, her eyes alight with determination.

      ‘I have to find out what’s been happening. How everything’s gone so terribly wrong. Do you honestly believe the island means less to me than it does to you? That this isn’t my community as well?’

      Her gaze drifted back to the sunset, so he guessed there was a bit more to the answer than that. But whatever it was it had caused a break in her voice and he wanted more than anything in the world—more even than saving the livelihood and well-being of the islanders—to comfort her, to take her in his arms, hold her close, smell the Caro scent of her, and never let her go.

      Like she’d want that!

      He also wanted to ask her about Christopher. She hadn’t answered earlier. But he knew it was too painful a subject to bring up when they were so estranged, so he stuck to practicalities.

      ‘So, what do you think you can do?’ he asked instead, his voice rougher than it should be as it scraped past the emotion in his throat.

      ‘Find out what’s been going on, for a start,’ she said. ‘All the predictions from the geologists showed the mine had many years to run. I don’t doubt Ian’s been embezzling the money it’s been earning but it can’t just be that.’

      Keanu hid a smile. That sounded so like the young Caroline—his Caro—on the trail of some possible crime—suspected cruelty to some chickens being only one of her campaigns.

      Memories were dangerous things …

      Better to stick with the present and practicalities, discuss what facts he did know, although they were few enough.

      ‘Did you know Ian leased out the research station?’ he asked.

      ‘He’s leased the research station? Why on earth would he do that?’

      ‘Money, why else! It had been run-down for a while. Fewer and fewer people using it. Then he somehow found this wealthy Middle Eastern guy who wants to set up an exclusive resort. The local residents are a bit uneasy about it, but heaven knows we need all the income and employment we can get.’

      ‘Well, it explains the guy with the nail in his foot. Does my dad know?’

      ‘I assumed he did but the negotiations certainly went through Ian, and no one here seems to know anything about it.’

      ‘Dad would never have trusted Ian to negotiate, and he’d never have made a decision without consulting the elders. He sent Ian here mainly to keep him out of trouble. It’s the way Dad feels about family. He thinks even the black sheep deserves a chance to redeem himself, but from all I’m hearing about our particular black sheep, it’s impossible.’

      She sighed then added, ‘The guy with the nail in his foot—he’s working there? Work’s going on now?’

      Keanu nodded. ‘And has been for some time.’

      ‘I want to have a look.’

      ‘You can’t. The whole place is fenced and gated. That patient yesterday wouldn’t even let us drive him back down there. He had his mate come back to the hospital, remember?’

      ‘But this is our home! We can go wherever we like.’

      Keanu hid a smile. This was Caro at her most imperious. And hearing her, hearing the old Caro sent a piercing pain through his chest.

      ‘You want to argue with the guards? They’ll never accept your authority. Besides, legally, I would think now this man has leased it, it’s his land for as long as the lease states.’

      ‘But Dad doesn’t know anything—if he did he’d have told me. Come on, Keanu, you must know something.’

      ‘All I know is that some rich man is turning it into a resort. A chap called Luke Wilson was doing some research here a few years ago and apparently this rich bloke knew Luke from somewhere. That was enough for Ian to make contact with him and that’s what happened.’

      Keanu paused, trying to think—to get it right.

      ‘I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s already achieved his aim for the resort—there’s been a hell of a lot of activity going on around the place. Container loads of stuff taken off huge ships and ferried ashore on barges, imported workers everywhere.’

      ‘But the research station? That was my great-grandfather’s legacy to the whole of M’Langi, designed to provide facilities and housing to anyone who wanted to investigate or study ways to improve the health of the islanders through science. Your father was one of the first to work there. I know my grandfather and Ian resented putting money into it, but I’m sure it was legally tied up so the mine had to keep supporting it.’

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