Forbidden. Ellen James
shoulders seemed to raise another fraction or so. He was quiet for so long, Dana thought he might have forgotten she was there. Then finally he looked straight into Dana’s eyes and spoke up. “I never wanted my parents to leave me that damn trust,” he said in a low voice. “Sometimes I just wish they’d thrown the money away. And I wish they’d thrown away all their expectations along with it.”
Tim rose to his feet with surprising agility and went to the forest’s edge. He stood there, staring through the trees as if he longed to lose himself among them. Dana wondered just what expectations his parents had bequeathed to him. They must be heavy, indeed. Even now his shoulders were still hunched, as if he actually carried some invisible burden on them.
But then the vine-laden branches nearby rustled again, and this time it was Jarrett who emerged into the clearing. He looked worried.
“Something’s happened,” he said without preamble. “Something unfortunate. Nick wants to see all of you–right away!”
CHAPTER FIVE
D ANA COULD TELL THAT Nick was very angry. He paced back and forth in front of the huts, his expression grim. The entire crew had trooped back from the new site and now stood clustered before him. Young Daniel had also joined the group, but he stood slightly apart, his expression guarded as he watched Nick.
“Someone has stolen artifacts from the lab,” Nick bit out at last. “The painted water jugs we found last week are missing–as are the two unbroken grindstones and remnants of seeds.”
Dana listened in growing dismay. The larger of the huts served as a field lab, where finds and records were kept in careful order. Even the slightest disturbance could mean a loss of essential information. But actual theft… The ancient grinding stones and water jugs had been some of the most precious discoveries made at the dig–surviving unharmed all these centuries. And recently Nick had unearthed a pit that had contained carbonized seeds and maize cobs surely at least a thousand years old….
“It’s clear someone is trying to send a message,” Nick said harshly. “First the attack on Jarrett, and now this.”
“Are we sure the incidents are related?” Robert asked. “They are disparate in character, after all.” Robert didn’t seem overly disturbed. He showed merely curiosity.
“Malice was involved each time,” Nick said, his voice dangerously quiet now. “I intend to find out exactly why these things are happening. If any of you has something to tell me, you’d better do it now.”
“It could have been done by anyone on the island,” Dana said. “Anyone at all.”
Nick gave her a cutting look. “I’m well aware it could have been anyone,” he said, his voice still quiet. His eyes were an icy blue. But surely he couldn’t suspect her…. She stared back at him, her own resentment beginning to spark.
Apparently Pat had been silent too long, and words began to spill out of her. “Robert doesn’t know what he’s talking about–of course the incidents must be related. They could be an expression of resentment, or–”
“I’m not asking you to speculate. I’m just asking you to tell me what you know.” Now Nick’s repressive gaze centered on Pat. She made as if to say more, but then clamped her mouth shut.
Jarrett spoke in conciliatory fashion. “I’m sure all of you are distressed by what’s happened. But no one is accusing you of anything. We just want to get to the bottom of this in the best way possible–”
“I don’t need an interpreter,” Nick said impatiently. “And they can handle this, Jarrett.”
The flash of hostility across Jarrett’s face was unmistakable. It was also quickly replaced by Jarrett’s usual obliging demeanor.
“Of course,” he said. “Just trying to help, Nick.”
Pat gave Dana a significant nudge. “Look out,” she whispered. “Dissension among the ranks of management.” Maybe Pat was trying to be jocular, but she looked nervous and keyed up. Dana felt keyed up herself, and distressed over what had been lost. In its own way, the theft seemed as vicious as the attack on Jarrett.
Nick paced again. “Since no one is forthcoming, we’ll do this the hard way. I’ll need to know each of your whereabouts since last evening–starting with you, Ms. Morgan.”
Dana stiffened. Nick was going too far now, treating all of them as if they were criminals. It was especially humiliating to have him treat her like that.
But did she really expect special consideration from him? Just because of that day on the temple steps when he had put his arms around her and drawn her close….
“Pat and I ate dinner together at the café in the village,” she said coolly. “Afterward we walked around the plaza, then went back to the hotel for a game of cards with Robert. I went to bed around eleven, got up once to have a drink of water–no witnesses there–and then slept soundly till six. Since then, I’ve spent all morning working with Pat. Is that a sufficient alibi, or would you like me to elaborate?”
“As always, you’re very thorough, Ms. Morgan.” Nick’s tone was dismissive and he moved on to Tim. “What about you, Mr. Reese?”
If possible, Tim paled even further under Nick’s ruthless gaze. “Uh…I went back to the village with the others. I stayed in my room all night.”
Nick continued his interrogation. No one escaped it–not Pat, not Robert, not Jarrett. Then Nick came to young Daniel, and he was just as brusque, just as rigorous in his questions as he’d been with the others. It was one thing to treat the adults so dictatorially–putting a child through the third degree was something else again. Daniel stood unflinching as he gave his answers, but at last Dana could tolerate no more. She stepped close to Nick and spoke to him in a low voice.
“Daniel’s just a boy. Lighten up, will you?”
Nick gazed back at her with his most trenchant look. Daniel didn’t seem to appreciate her intervention, himself. He’d stiffened, and he stared at her with an expression that could only be termed…well, it could only be termed as severe as Nick’s own expression.
Dana’s eyes locked once again with Nick’s. It was the coldness in his gaze she wished to fight, as well as the domination he exerted over her.
“Really–haven’t you asked enough?” she persisted. “Jarrett’s right. We’re all upset about what happened.”
He seemed to consider her words in a disparaging manner. But surely he could see that his confounded inquisition had yielded little result. The day before, Daniel had left the dig by early afternoon. In the evening, Pat, Dana, Robert and Tim had all driven together to the village. Nick and Jarrett had remained behind to camp out at the excavation site. There was nothing unusual about that. At any given time, two or three people slept at the dig while the others went into the village to freshen up at the hotel. Last night had been no different. No matter how Nick had probed, he’d uncovered nothing untoward about anyone’s movements.
Finally Nick gave Dana a curt nod, and then he addressed the entire group. “We’re finished discussing this…for now. But I don’t want anyone going around alone. Keep your eyes open. Always make sure you have at least a few of the others with you–your own safety might depend on it. And let’s get back to work.” With that, he disappeared abruptly into the large hut.
Dana moved over to one of the sifters and tried in vain to involve herself in her customary tasks. She fingered a mound of dirt. The confrontation with Nick had disturbed her. She’d tried to defy his remoteness, but it had done her no good. Why did she want to reach him at all?
She glanced up to see young Daniel approaching her in resolute fashion. This was a first; Daniel had never sought her out before. Usually she was the one trying to strike up a conversation with him. Not that she deluded herself. She didn’t imagine Daniel wished an