Through The Storm

“I tell you what,” he said, sitting back down next to Tessa. “Why don’t you go inside, chat with the Lagats and check on Nick. You have some explaining to do. At least out here he won’t run away. Maybe after a longer rest, you’ll be ready for the flight.”

She dropped her head into her hands.

“You don’t understand, Mac.”

“I could see if Kesi can brew up one of her concoctions to help with your stomach. She’s very skilled with herbs.”

“I need to get back,” she said, her hands muffling her voice.

Oh man. Was she crying? He hoped not. This was why he lived alone. He silently swore, then rubbed her back. It was instinct. An act of comfort. Brother-in-law to sister-in-law. But she shivered when he made contact and he quickly pulled back.

“That would be the point,” he agreed. “Get back and clear up the Nick situation. Clearly you can see this whole idea spells disaster.” If she wanted to go back, then why was she arguing about it? Why couldn’t women make sense?

“I’m messing up your scheduled flights. I’m so sorry,” she said, raising her head.

“My...oh, yes...my customers. The photographers. Right. Um, no worries. I’ll radio Sue and tell her to take care of things. They won’t mind rescheduling.”

“Mac, can I trust you?”

“I got you here in one piece, didn’t I?”

She turned and, this time, she wrapped one of her hands around his. The sight of her slender fingers braided with his wiped out his train of thought.

“What’s going on here, Tess? This isn’t just about Nick, is it?”

She shook her head and licked her lips. Too close for comfort. Was Tessa Henning coming on to him?

“I may be in trouble. Possibly even in danger. Not one word to anyone, Mac, until I have a chance to figure this out. Promise me.”

He nodded because how could he not. She wasn’t flirting. She was desperate again. It must be some pretty deep trouble for her to have brought Nick here. Tessa looked over her shoulder, then back at him.

“Mac, I think Brice may be involved in an ivory smuggling ring.”

Crap.

Mac pulled his hand out of hers. Ivory smuggling? He got up and she leaped after him.

“Not a word to anyone, Mac. Not yet at least.”

He turned on her, bringing his face within an inch of hers and lowering his voice. He hadn’t noticed any campers, but one never knew and voices carried around here.

“Do you have any idea what you’re saying, Tess? The implication? This better not be about some marital spat or a ploy to justify uprooting Nick.”

“Is that how little you think of me? Why would you assume the worst? I came to you because I want Nick in a safe place if this turns into a legal fiasco and the media comes down on us. Or worse. And because I thought I could trust you with this. Allan used to brag about the work you’ve done with the Kenyan Wildlife Service, helping to catch poachers, and about how you’ve volunteered for animal rescues in the area. I thought maybe you’d know something. Or know who I can trust among the authorities, because don’t believe for a second that Brice can’t pay for silence.”

Mac pulled back a few inches. His pulse pounded in his temples. His brother had bragged about him? They were close, but Allan had always been so much like their father, critical to a fault. He played the role of big brother, but bragging about Mac was pushing it. The fact that he’d told anyone he was proud of Mac was an unexpected punch in the gut.

“You can trust me, Tessa. That’s not the point. You’re talking about murder here. Brutal poaching. Tessa, ivory smuggling is an illegal and deadly trade—and deaths aren’t always limited to elephants. I won’t lie. Brice isn’t my favorite person. He’s just not my type, but he’s a smart businessman. Too smart to get involved in shady dealings.”

Tessa closed her eyes and shook her head.

“I know. It all sounds surreal, and I assure you I didn’t come up with this overnight. I know it’s dangerous. Why do you think I’m here with Nick and not still back at our home?” She pulled her hair back into a ponytail like she meant business. “I stole some drives from his desk before leaving. I have no idea what’s on them, but I couldn’t take a chance. If he’s involved in something like this, I need to know.”

Yep, she meant business.

“You took his files?”

Damn it. Tessa’s suspicions could turn into a full-blown disaster. If she was right.

“He thinks I’m here visiting with Nick.”

“Until he discovers what else you brought with you.”

“He’s out of town for a few days. Which is why I need to find out if there’s anything important on the drives as soon as possible. I can always put them back if they’re clear and he’s not home yet. Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe I misunderstood what I overheard. It’s a lot of maybes, I know. I need to find out the truth. He’s my husband, Mac. I could ruin his life. If I’m wrong, I don’t want him knowing that I doubted him.”

“If you find proof that backs up what you’re saying, then what’ll your next move be? Have you thought that far? What are you planning? To disappear? Turn him in and ask for official protection?”

She didn’t answer.

“Okay, then. We’re staying here tonight,” Mac said.

“What?”

“We’re staying. I need to hear details, whatever you can tell me, and we’re a lot less likely to be overheard by the wrong ears—and I don’t mean Nick—out here than back at my office. I’ll call Sue and tell her we’re...somewhere else...camping out.” He didn’t want Sue blurting anything to the wrong people. She was too trusting.

Mac pinched the bridge of his nose. Come to think of it, if things went south, he couldn’t leave Sue at the mercy of anyone searching for them. She’d be safer visiting Anna and Jack at Busara for a while. Spending time with her grandkids. He was going to need to call Anna and Jack and make arrangements for getting her there, since he was not ready to leave Tessa and Nick alone. Not until he had a better grasp of the situation. Unfortunately, staying here also meant Air Walker Safaris would be losing business. Business he couldn’t afford to lose.

“I’ll ask Mugi and Kesi to keep quiet, too. If you need anything, you can trust them.”

“Mac. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me yet. Just hope Brice doesn’t come home early.”

* * *

TESSA HAD TO admit Mac was right. Lying low at Camp Jamba was a smart idea. Brice knew they were traveling to see Nick’s uncle, but she had told him they were meeting Mac in Nairobi. The rest of the trip to Hodari Lodge she’d paid for in cash. Mac’s office would be the first place he’d come looking for her if there was incriminating information on those drives. Still, it bought her a little time. Camp Jamba was another step removed, which meant even more of a buffer between them and Brice. But she wouldn’t get any closer to confirming her suspicions out here.

Maybe she should have told Mac what was going on last night in his office...where a computer was available. She drank the last sip of her soda. No. Her instincts had kept her from doing so. She needed to trust her gut. He wouldn’t have listened then. She wouldn’t have been able to dish the note-writing excuse to him. Just as he’d pointed out that more modern conveniences would have made running away easier for Nick, the same could have applied to Mac. He could have acted in defense before listening to anything she had to say about Nick or Brice. Maybe she needed to trust her gut more often.

The aroma of spices and the warm char of open-flamed cooking drifted past her, a solid reminder that she’d been too nervous to eat breakfast this morning—a saving grace considering how she reacted to not being on solid ground. She went inside to thank the Lagats for letting them stay, but soon realized she needed more fresh air.

The flaming Serengeti sun burned directly overhead and a chicken, of all things, ran past her, squawking like it was being chased by an invisible predator until it found the safety of its flock under a fig tree. Maybe her mind was also making up things to fear about Brice. Did she subconsciously want out of her marriage? Was she looking for reasons to leave?

There was no point in procrastinating any longer. She couldn’t let Nick hate her. She couldn’t let him think she didn’t want him around or that she had priorities greater than him. True, she had to make a decision to leave him with Mac, but not for the same reasons her parents had left her alone so often. They were so busy with their aquatic research that they couldn’t focus on their children, too. She finally understood how important their work was, but back then she’d been like Nick. Just needing someone to be around...a safety net to catch her as she muddled through her teens...a home and family like all the other kids had. As a child, she’d wanted to feel secure and not have to worry every night—especially during storms—that one or both of her parents might not come home.

She wanted to be that safety net for Nick, but right now, the only way to keep him safe was to pull that net out from under him. And hope Mac was there to catch his fall.

The air vibrated with the trumpeting of elephants in the distance, as if they’d heard her thoughts and were trying to share their wisdom about motherhood and the delicate cycle of life.

If only she spoke elephant.

As a child, she spoke to her adopted cats and sometimes believed they understood her. They’d give her a sign: a lazy blink or a sedating purr that rumbled deep against her chest.

She needed a sign now.

The roar of a lion had her turning quickly toward the path to the cottage. Mac stood on the front porch, leaning against the wooden log that supported the thatched overhang, watching her, the piercing blue of his eyes intense and knowing. Maybe it was the way the Kenyan sun had left its warmth on his skin or how stubble shadowed the hard lines of his jaw, but the way he looked at her sparked a smoldering ache in her chest. She swallowed hard to extinguish it. If only Mac hadn’t wanted to get away from home so badly. Maybe they would have eventually become friends. But he’d wanted to escape and explore and she’d wanted—needed—stability.

And now she didn’t even have that.

Was this her sign? That the one thing—the one person—who would make her and Nick’s life whole and balanced was the one man she’d turned away from years ago? The one man who knew how small, insecure and insignificant she used to be? She stared down at her feet as she walked up the path toward him.

Life could be so cruel.

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