Page 3 of Carter's Battle

“What about you?” Akela asked. “Any big plans?”

Mia snorted. “I spent last night fixing my shower. Tonight, I have a date with my washing machine, and I will probably spend all day tomorrow catching up on chores. I’m hoping to get over to Ohana’s and hang with the girls at some point, but I’ll have to see how it goes. You should join us.”

Akela gave a small nod. “That sounds like fun. I heard Moana is back in town.”

“Yes,” Mia said in an overly bright voice. “She was singing at Ohana’s last night, but I had to miss it.” She gave a small shrug. “The whole shower thing. Oh, the joys of home ownership, right?” She needed to get out of there before Akela got suspicious. “Anyway, gotta go. You know what Friday night traffic is like. I want to stop and pick up a pizza on the way home. I’ll text you if we get together at Ohana’s. Otherwise, I’ll see you next month.” She offered Akela a smile and brushed past the other woman.

“Yeah, see you.”

“Good luck to your brother this season,” Mia called as she left the office and walked rapidly toward the shop’s front door. Her heartbeat pulsed in her ears, and her palms were slick with sweat. She hit the door and was across the parking lot like a shot. Five minutes later she was steering out of the lot and heading home. Mia decided to order pizza once she got there and have it delivered. She didn’t think her knees would hold her any longer.

Thirty minutes later, she pulled into her driveway, turned off her car, and rested her head on the steering wheel, breathing steadily and trying to control her rapid pulse.

What the hell was she going to do? She didn’t want to cause trouble for Akela, but she wanted no part in whatever mess the other woman was wrapped up in.

She cast about in her mind for solutions but came up with nothing. Emery was working this weekend at Ohana’s. Should she ask her some hypothetical questions? As a cop, Emery would know how much trouble Mia might be in. But on the other hand, if she asked then she would be dragging another friend into this mess, and she didn’t want to do that. Besides, Emery would probably go arrest Akela. She was kind of a stickler as far as rules went, a trait Mia had always admired.

Mia hauled her butt out of the car and made her way inside her little house. She closed the door and leaned her back against it. The house was small and needed tons of repairs, but it always made Mia feel so proud when she walked through the door. This house was hers. Hers. Nothing brought her more joy.

She set her bag on the floor by the side table as she looked around the main living space. She’d decorated in a beachy vibe, so the furniture was white with throw pillows of varying shades of blue. The floor was a light wood and so were the coffee table and matching end tables. The space was a small but comfortable and it smelled like the flowers she’d cut this morning from the tiny back garden.

After changing her dress slacks and brightly colored gauzy blouse that made up her typical work attire for a pair of board shorts and a tank top, she went back out to the kitchen and placed an order for a veggie pizza. She had a craving for a large glass of wine and grabbed the stemless goblet to pour herself a generous serving. Hooking her foot around the leg of a stool, she hauled it away from the island that separated the kitchen from the living room. Letting out a long breath, she dropped onto the cushioned seat and took a sip of crisp cool wine.That was much better.

She tried to relax but her mind kept going back to what was on the thumb drive. How long had all this been going on? Was Akela okay? Why the hell would she get involved in this type of thing? She was a straight shooter, or at least she had been during their surfing days.

“Shit,” Mia mumbled as she went to her bag and retrieved the thumb drive. She unplugged her laptop and picked it up from the coffee table and then set it down again on the island. She resituated herself on the stool and opened the screen. No answers would come until she knew more details. Mia knewit was stupid to keep looking at the information, but she just couldn’t help herself. Curiosity was killing her.

Pulling up the files, Mia took a bracing sip of her wine and then dove in. She went back month by month to see where everything went wrong. Ten months ago. Lono’s Coffee was making money, and then eight months ago, something happened. Her friend had started taking out massive amounts of cash, way more than was coming in. “Why in the hell would you do that, Akela?” Mia murmured.

A knock at the door made her jump. Pizza. “About time.” She was starving. Closing her laptop, she hopped off the stool, went over to the door, and opened it. Akela stood on her front step.

“Oh…I was expecting a pizza delivery. What are you doing here?” Mia tried not to panic.Be calm. This was her friend. She’d known Akela since they were teenagers.No need to worry.

“You saw it didn’t you?” Akela demanded.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play innocent with me. I know you saw it.”

Mia frowned. “Akela, I…” she stopped speaking as the pizza delivery guy pulled into her driveway. “Why don’t you come in? Do you want some pizza?” Not that she wanted Akela to come into her home, her refuge, but what choice did she have?

Akela came in and moved out of the way. Mia dealt with the pizza guy and then went to the kitchen and got down a couple of plates.

“I don’t want pizza. I want the truth,” Akela demanded.

Mia set a slice of warm gooey cheese pizza on one plate. She tried to remain calm, but suddenly, she found herself angry. Exhaustion crept up on her and although she knew she should keep her mouth shut, she just didn’t have the patience any longer to deal with this bullshit, friendship aside.

She met Akela’s gaze. “Yeah, I saw it. You’re cooking your books and using me to make them look good. Thanks for that,” Mia snarled.

Akela pointed at her. “You shouldn’t have been poking around where you don’t belong.”

“Bullshit. You hired me to do your books. That’s what I did. Not my fault you’re crooked. You named the spreadsheet almost the same damn name. How was I supposed to know? You can’t blame any of this shit on me. This is all you, right down to the fake receipts and invoices you provided.”

All the color drained from Akela’s face and she burst into tears.

Mia stared. “Shit.” She plopped her plate on the counter, and then went and hugged her friend. “It’s okay,” she muttered.

This situation was a lot of things but okay wasn’t one of them. She had no idea how to help her friend fix this, but Mia knew it wasn’t going to be easy.

---