It's Hotter In Hawaii. HelenKay Dimon
strong points.
Ted smiled. “If it helps, I don’t have anywhere else to be.”
Cal ignored Ted’s amusement and concentrated on telegraphing a silent message to Cassie. “Deputy Greene and I are talking.”
“We’re here for a reason. You guys can bond over football another time.”
“Did someone mention football?” Ted asked in a voice that suggested he was not taking the conversation very seriously.
“Let me cut through all of this.” Cassie exhaled loud enough to wake most of the neighborhood and then pointed at Ted. “He’s the one who decided Dan caused the crash.”
With a scowl plastered on her face, she looked more un-approachable now than when she was holding the gun. Cal knew from the flat line of her lips she wanted to unload on Ted. A whole lot of cursing and shouting was trapped in there.
And that was just about the last thing he wanted to hear at the moment. “Cassie—”
“Actually, Ms. Montgomery, the coroner’s report and the evidence pointed to an accident,” Ted said right over Cal.
“But it was your call.”
“It’s the NTSB’s call. They’ll do the formal crash investigation and let us know.” Ted glanced in Cal’s direction. “Are you here about the accident?”
“It wasn’t an accident,” Cassie mumbled.
Cal talked right over her. “I’m an old friend.”
“You’re not from here.” It was a statement, not a question.
Cal wondered if all of the locals could spot a non-local. Certainly seemed that way. “I came to see Dan and found out about the crash when I got here.”
Sympathy flashed across Ted’s face. “Sorry for your loss.”
“He’s good at saying that,” Cassie said.
“The accident took all of us by surprise.” Ted balanced his hands against the counter. “Despite what Ms. Montgomery thinks, I liked Dan. He was a good man who cared about Kauai and was invested in its future. His death was a tragedy.”
Cal nodded. “Agreed.”
Cassie’s eyes closed for a second, but when they opened again that painful look was gone. “But it wasn’t an accident.”
“Cassie, we’re just here to ask some questions and tell the deputy chief about what just happened.”
“What are you talking about?” Ted asked.
Cassie rolled her eyes. “Here we go.”
“Give the man a second.” Cal clenched his teeth hard enough to make the blood in his temples pound.
“I’m not the enemy, Ms. Montgomery.”
Cassie ignored Ted and spoke only to Cal. “He’s not going to care about this.”
Ted shifted his weight to get into her line of sight. “Why don’t you let me decide that?”
“Someone shot at us in Dan’s house last night,” Cal said, and then waited for a reaction.
“A real gunshot?” Ted asked after an extra second of silence.
Cassie threw her hands up. “Told you. This is where he starts telling you how crazy I am.”
Cal felt his control slipping. Next time, he’d leave her in the car. “Yeah, I wonder why the good officer would jump to that conclusion.”
“He doesn’t care if I get shot at, or stabbed, or anything else so long as I leave him alone.”
Ted rubbed his forehead. “Wait a minute. Someone actually shot at you this time?”
“Someone shot at me last time, too.” Cassie glared at the officer. “It was not a car backfire, or whatever other ridiculous excuse you gave.”
Cal decided it was time to jump in and steer the conversation back on track. “I can’t comment on whatever previous incident you’re talking about, but I’ve been shot at before so I recognized the experience. Someone definitely took a crack at us.”
Ted nodded in Cal’s direction. “You police?”
“Retired Air Force.”
“Figured it was something like that. Retired Navy.”
“For heaven’s sake.” Cassie engaged in her now familiar huffing and puffing. “Do you guys have some kind of secret signal or something? Maybe you’d like me to leave the room while you thump your chests.”
Ted ignored the outburst. “What happened?”
Cal skipped over the more interesting parts like the legal technicality of breaking and entering. Ted already thought Cassie was a bit off balance. One of them had to look stable or they’d never get any help.
“Sounds like a pretty bad evening.”
Cassie jumped at the rumbling sound of a new male voice coming from the office entrance behind them. On instinct, Cal stepped forward, shielding her from potential danger by placing his body in front of hers. She showed her appreciation for his efforts by shoving him in the side.
Ted did not even flinch. “This is Josh Windsor. He’s with the Drug Enforcement Agency.”
Josh lounged in the doorway. Blond-haired, blue-eyed, this guy stood out. And the way his gaze traveled over Cassie, smiling with approval at every inch of his visual journey, spread fire through Cal’s insides.
“Good morning, folks.” Josh flipped a pen between his fingers.
“DEA in Hawaii?” Cal asked.
“We have drugs here.” Josh focused on Cassie. “Ma’am, I’m sorry about your brother.”
“Josh helped out at the initial crash site,” Ted said.
The way Cal figured it, Ted was leaving out the most interesting part of the explanation. “And what does the DEA have to do with a helicopter accident?”
Josh shrugged. “Just happened to be in the area and rushed to the scene.”
“Then maybe you could answer some questions about the crash,” Cal said.
Josh shook his head. “Happy to try, but there’s not much to tell. Looked like Dan lost control in the canyon. His helicopter whacked into the side of the mountain and then dropped like a stone.”
Cassie crossed her arms over her stomach. “Thanks for that image.”
Cal winced at the harsh words but asked the questions he needed answered. “Fuel line, everything else was in working order?”
“Yes,” Ted said. “Tox screen was clean. No health issues. No drugs or alcohol.”
Cassie spun around and stared at the officer. “Of course not. And Dan flew up and down that canyon for years. He was not a novice to be taken in by sudden wind.”
Josh stepped farther into the room and joined Ted behind the counter. “Actually, accidents like this happen more frequently than you know.”
“I live in Hawaii,” Cassie said.
“Then you know that the islands are famous for freak occurrences of this type. We lose several helicopters each year. We tend not to advertise them because it would kill the tourist trade.”
Too little action and far too much talking. Cal had just about had it with the empty words. “Seems to me, unless these tourists who crash into the side of the canyon also get shot at, we have a different situation here.”
Ted and Josh exchanged glances before Ted spoke again. “Any chance you brought an enemy with you on your trip to our fine state?”
Cal