Bad Karma Page 5

  He selected a fresh shirt and loped down his stairs, without bothering to button it. He grabbed the roll bar of his Jeep and pulled himself up, settling in the seat before glancing toward the Danforth house. It was locked up tight with all the drapes drawn. He stuck the key in the ignition and wondered anew who the girls were hiding from.

  Maybe they’re in the witness protection program.

  He made a scoffing noise and turned the ignition. If so, they would have some official protectors and wouldn’t be looking over their shoulders all the time.

  He turned the vehicle, the big tires scrunching in the sand, and headed through the strip of businesses, cruising slowly. He made the turn onto the Queen Isabella Causeway, the two-and-a-half mile strip of highway connecting South Padre Island with the mainland.

  The town of Port Isabel was small and quaint, a fishing community with a population evenly divided between the Hispanic and so-called “Anglos”, a broad term for anyone who wasn’t Hispanic, Asian or African-American.

  Zach turned onto a winding street and found his way to a rambling white bungalow with crisp blue shutters and trim. The house faced the street, but the huge yard backed up to the Laguna Madre.

  Whenever he dropped in, he always felt a little clutch at his heart. He pulled into the driveway and entered the house through the back door.

  “Mom! Dad! Where is everybody?” He walked through the house calling out, with no response. The wood floors were shining and lace curtains blew gently in the breeze at the open windows. Something had been recently baked in the oven. A scent of cinnamon and ginger wafted through the dwelling.

  French doors stood open on the side of the house and led out onto a covered deck.

  He stepped onto its wooden surface and was greeted with a volley of throaty barks from a small dog of indistinct origins. He knelt and scruffled behind the floppy ears. “Where are my parents, Darwin?”

  “Look, honey. It’s Zach. We’re back here, son.”

  He spied his mother sitting beneath a shady magnolia tree in one of a pair of wooden Adirondack chairs. She waved and called to him. Her red hair had generous streaks of white woven through, but she was the wellspring from whence all the tribe of red-haired Baileys had sprung.

  Zach strode across the wide lawn to where she was ensconced, with the weekly newspaper spread across her lap and a pitcher of iced tea on a small table separating the two chairs.

  “Hey, Mom.” He dropped a kiss on her forehead. “Where’s Dad?”

  “Right here,” came the muffled reply.

  Zach turned to the neatly manicured vegetable garden and noticed his father on all fours with a ball of twine tucked under his chin. Zack turned back to his mother with a quizzical expression.

  “Daddy is restraining his tomato plants.” She grinned up at him, her freckles giving her the appearance of eternal youth. “I’m here to make sure he doesn’t keel over from his exertions.”

  “I assure you that I’m not in any danger of keeling over, Millie.” Tom Bailey’s voice held an exasperated tone, but the glance he directed toward his wife revealed amusement. "I'm just making sure these little beauties won't become worm feed. See, I made these supports from old wire hangers and I'm tying them up so they won't be training down in the dirt."

  Zach exchanged a look with his mother. "Lookin' good, Dad."

  “Have some iced tea, son.” His mother reached for the pitcher.

  He dropped into the vacant chair and accepted the tall glass. “Thanks, Mom. Dad, I think I met your replacement.”

  Tom raised his head, his warm brown eyes reflecting his interest.

  Zack took a few swallows of tea. “She’s young, brainy and hot.”

  Tom grunted. “They’ll eat her alive.”

  Zach grinned at this gloomy prediction. His father had retired at the conclusion of the recently ended school year, having taught Biology and General Science for the previous thirty years. “I don’t know about that. Half the class will be in love with her and the other half will be jealous.”

  “Sounds like trouble to me.” The elder Bailey male returned to his tomatoes.

  Millie leaned forward in her chair. “A girl? You should bring her over for dinner soon. Is this someone you’re interested in?”

  Zach gave her a wide grin. “She has a sister. A nurse.”

  “How nice. Is this sister hot too?”

  He grunted, rolling his eyes. “Hotter.”

  “Then you should bring them both for dinner.” Millie raised her brows, peering at Zach over the top of her reading glasses. “Oh, are these the girls who moved in next door to you? I’ve already heard all about them from Woodrow and Warren. The consensus is that they’re hot.” Millie threw her head back and laughed.

  “Indeed they are.” He recalled Skyler’s deep blue eyes and the soft, full lips.

  “What brings you out for a visit today, son?”

  “Can’t I just stop by to see you?” He met his mother’s gaze. She looked like an older version of Darla, with her all-knowing X-ray vision. He sighed. “It’s about the older sister. Skyler is her name.”

  His mother folded the paper and set it on the table.

  Zach gazed out over the water lapping at the back of the property. “I really like her.”

  “Great!” she pronounced with finality. “We can use a nurse in the family.”

  Zach shook his head. “Not so fast, Mom. I just met her. There’s something about her...I just don’t know. It’s like the two of them have some big secret. Like they’re hiding out here.”

  Millie quirked a little grin at him. “Maybe they’re bank robbers,” she said in a stage whisper.

  “No, Mom. It’s like they’re afraid of something. I don’t know if I should get involved. I don’t have a very good track record when it comes to relationships.”

  Millie cast him a sideways glance. “You don’t have any track record. You’ve never been involved with someone long enough to develop a relationship. What is it about this girl that has you interested?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t know. She’s gorgeous, but it’s more than that. She stirs something in me; makes me want to protect her and drag her home to the cave.”

  Millie chuckled. “It’s about time. I was beginning to think you were hopeless.”

  “Mom!”

  “I mean, you’ve never been serious about anyone.” She sighed. “I’ll tell you what would be nice. Why don’t you invite both young ladies for dinner after church on Sunday? In fact, you can invite them to go to church.”

  “I can’t do that. I don’t know if they’re Catholic. Do you honestly think it’s a good idea to pick them up by the scruff of their necks and toss them into the Bailey Sunday riot and get-together?”

  Millie pursed her lips. “It’s a good way to test their mettle.

  Zach shrugged. “Yeah, I guess it would be fair warning. Skyler’s recovering from a car wreck so she can’t run away from me very fast.”

  His mother sipped her lemonade, a thoughtful look on her face. “Don’t worry, son. You’ll catch her.”

  ~*~

  Cassidy Danforth tucked the afghan around Skyler.

  Sky looked so peaceful. After breakfast, she’d curled up on the sofa and drifted off.

  This Zach guy makes her feel safe. Cassie wondered if that was a good thing. Someone had targeted her sister. Keeping Sky safe was Cassie’s main concern. She let out the breath she’d been holding. At least she’s sleeping now.

  Cassie walked around the house, testing all the windows and doors, making sure each was locked securely. She’d seen Zach drive off a few hours ago and somehow, knowing that the house next door was unoccupied made her feel uneasy.

  She decided to get started on unpacking the kitchen. Opening a box of glassware, she situated the trash can nearby to toss newspaper as she unwrapped each item and set it on a shelf in the overhead cabinet.

  This simple task gave her a sense of satisfaction. In a short time, she had arranged th
e dishes and pots and pans. The collection was mostly Skyler’s as Cassidy had moved from a furnished apartment she’d shared with two college room-mates. Her contributions had consisted of a small saucepan, a single set of eating utensils, a bowl, plate and glass.

  She glanced at Skyler, still cuddled under the afghan and tiptoed by quietly when she carried the empty boxes to the door. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as she peeked out the drapes. This is ridiculous. Even I’m looking for the boogie man.

  Cassie opened the sliding glass door, drawing it smoothly across its track. The fresh ocean breeze pushed against the thermal drapes inside. She paused, blinking in the bright sunlight and looked out across the water.

  A brilliant blue sky, dotted with high puffs of cumulous clouds merged with the darker blue of the water on the horizon. Shrimp boats chugged back and forth and farther out in the Gulf, a cruise ship was heading south.

  Cassie sat down on the top step, the empty boxes momentarily forgotten. She felt suddenly thwarted.

  This was to have been her big opportunity for independence and then, fate stepped in to provide her with responsibility.

  Cassidy Danforth, young genius, had always had a cluster of people around her, proud parents nourishing her remarkable abilities; teachers and mentors anxious to ensure that she be provided with opportunities to explore her brain power; and her fierce older sister, Skyler, unwilling to allow her to be exploited.

  But Cassidy had sought out this teaching position, far from her family home, to explore the world as an unfettered adult. She was no longer defined as a Danforth daughter, as a graduate student, or as a brilliant scholar. She would enter the local high school in the fall as just another first-year teacher. No one would look at her as an oddity, a freak among geeks.

  Miss Danforth, Biology teacher, would write her name on the board and begin a whole new chapter of her life, as written by her, no one else. The only expectations she would have to live up to would be those of the students, their parents and the local school board. Piece of cake!

  She let out a long sigh. If only Sky and her big mouth didn’t mess things up for her. The first thing she’d said to Zach was how brilliant her younger sister was and she’d bragged about her graduating so young.

  Cassie would be on her own for the first time in her life. She would date men who weren’t intimidated by her superior intelligence; men who would like her for her sparkling wit and charming personality, not because they wanted her to tutor them in physics. They would take her to parties and dancing...Okay, she needed to learn to dance, but it couldn’t be that hard. They would want from her what all young men wanted from young women.

  Sex! She would have sex...lots and lots of uninhibited, wild sex.

  First she would have to find the man who would divest her of her status of terminal virginity. After that she would be like Carrie on Sex and the City, free to partake of whatever handsome and desirable man came her way.

  Cassie sighed again before pulling herself to her feet. Grabbing up the boxes, she loped down the steps. She stashed the boxes under the stairs, unsure of where the trash would be picked up.

  When she turned around, she stopped dead in her tracks. There was a man staring at the house. He hadn’t spotted her under the stairs yet, but he was checking out the place.

  Cassie peered out through the open stairway.

  The man was probably in his fifties, dressed in slacks and a dress shirt, open at the neck. Not the usual garb for a beachcomber. The wind ruffled his thinning hair, but he didn’t seem to notice. His gaze was hidden behind mirrored sunglasses. He raised his arms and...

  Oh, my God! He has binoculars! She drew in a sharp breath. He seemed to be staring at the house.

  An unaccustomed explosion of anger went off inside her. She marched toward the man, taking long strides, until she was within a few feet from him.

  “What do you think you’re doing? I should call the police on you.” She glared at him in her most threatening manner.

  The man dropped his binoculars in the sand. “No, please. It was a Brown Noddy.” He bent to retrieve his binoculars.

  Cassie fisted her hands and assumed a threatening stance. She mentally rehearsed the punches she would deliver if he made a grab for her.

  The man clutched at his chest. “Please, I meant no harm. I spotted a Brown Noddy perched under your eaves and I had to take a closer look.”

  Cassie squinted into the bright sunlight, trying to maintain her fierce expression. “Are you talking about a bird?”

  He nodded eagerly and reached in the pocket of his slacks, producing a small leather bound notebook. “My lifetime bird list. I was just going to make a record of this sighting.” He held the book open for her perusal.

  Cassie growled her disgust and strode back to the house, leaving a bewildered and shaken man in her wake.

  ~*~

  She was gone, all right. Miss Skyler Danforth had flown the coop. She’d escaped right under his nose. Must have moved out in the dead of night when he’d thought she was tucked in for the evening.

  No problem.

  He’d tracked her to Springhill. He could find her again, wherever she had gone. If she thought she could shake him off her trail, she was very much mistaken.

  He could check with the moving companies and rentals for self moves. He was really getting to be quite good at assuming various roles. People seemed to believe he was whatever he said he was. And of course, when a little cash changed hands, some people didn’t care why he wanted the information.

  He already knew everything about Skyler Danforth. He knew her driver’s license number, her social security number and most important of all, he knew the number of her nursing license, registered with the State Nursing Board in Austin. Wherever she went, she’d have to get a job, and sooner or later the license would be checked. Then he’d have her.

  He chuckled.

  It was the dead dog that sent her running. He hadn’t meant to hit it, and he didn’t hate animals, but he was glad he could dish out a little pain to the woman who had caused so much pain to him.

  He shifted gears and drove out of the cheery little subdivision where Skyler Danforth had formerly resided, his brain filled with new ways to terrorize his victim.

  ~*~

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Orientation

  Skyler watched the clerk print her nametag. She was then shown to a room where two people sat waiting at a conference table. Sky took a seat and nodded nervously to the others.

  A man with glasses wearing some sort of coveralls and a bored looking girl who kept texting.

  In a few minutes a heavy-set woman entered and introduced herself. She guided them through filling out a packet of forms and gathered them back up when they were done. She then thrust a tape into the VCR and left them to watch a somewhat dated safety film. Talk about old school.

  The man leaned back in his chair and the girl put her head down on her folded arms.

  Skyler tried to focus on the monotone of the narrator as he guided them through a series of possible disasters, but her eyelids kept fluttering, trying to close.

  When the woman came back, she announced that it was almost lunchtime and showed them where the cafeteria was located.

  Sky selected a small fruit salad with cottage cheese and resolved to bring her lunch. She glanced around and searched for a quiet place to sit, not particularly interested in sharing another table with her fellow orientees.

  “Over here!” Two women and a man sat around a table in the corner and the man was waving to her. “Come join us.”

  Sky managed a smile and approached the group. The man stood and pulled out a chair for her. He was probably in his late thirties and quite good looking. The two women were dressed in scrubs, but the man wore slacks and a dress shirt with his sleeves rolled up and a stethoscope draped around his neck.

  “You’re the new RN, aren’t you? I’m Steve Fisher. I’m the Medical Director of the skilled unit and I have a pra
ctice here in town.” He stood beside her with his hand extended. “My father, George Fisher is the Medical Director of the hospital.

  Sky placed her hand in his. “Skyler Danforth.”

  “I’m Lucy Torres. Where did you come from?” The speaker was around Sky’s age and her nametag listed her title as LVN.

  Sky felt a squeezing sensation in her gut whenever she was questioned about her past. “Austin. I’m from Austin.”