Page 9 of First Light

She frowned. “What do you mean, ‘what’s in the woods’? Trees. Bears. Too much poison oak. He knew all that stuff. He’d been around long enough.”

“Four months.” He stared at the table. “When he was in Baywood, did anyone come around looking for him? Did he mention anything strange?”

“No. I would have told the police. Search and Rescue went out to Mad Creek looking for him and they looked for like four hours, but by then I’d come back to the house and some of his stuff was gone,so then I checked where his phone was and… poof! Scotland. Which…” Her head was swimming. “How? But there were his boots, so…”

Duncan frowned. “What about his boots?”

How was he so dense? “Someone took some of his clothes and hisboots. Then they left his old muddy ones by my back door. So the police think he took off.”

“But you don’t.”

“Of course I don’t.” She waited for him to say more, but he didn’t. “He left his passport, his stuff. He left his car, Duncan. That is not a normal ‘hey, this isn’t working out.’”

“No,” Duncan muttered. “I can see why you were confused.”

“You’ve talked to him, right? You said you’ve talked to him since he’s been back.”

“Uh…” He frowned. “Not exactly.”

“So how do you know he’s okay?”

“Because I know.” Duncan sighed. “What can I do to convince you to leave this alone and go back to your life?”

“Nothing. The man I love ismissing.” She finished the whiskey Dru had poured for her. “I shouldn’t drink any more, but this is better than any whiskey I’ve ever tasted.”

“Oh, I bet it is.” He snatched the glass from her hand. “Don’t drink that. If you insist on more, wait for the next bottle.”

“Why not?” She tried to grab it, but his hand moved too fast.

His hands were pocked with small scars and burns, callused from work, though his nails were neatly trimmed. While the rest of Duncan looked just like Lachlan, his hands were very different.

Carys blinked at him through bleary eyes. “Maybe I should just go to the police. I can give them all the information I have from the police in Baywood.” Her voice rose a little bit. “I got a copy of the report there. I can give themyourname. Lachlan’s passport. The screenshots of his phone pinging in Edinburgh. All his paperwork and the name of his lawyer in California and?—”

“Stop.” Duncan put his hand over Carys’s and lowered his voice. “Carys Morgan, you need to stop. Leave this be. Leave Lachlan be.”

Don’t follow the rabbit into the woods.

Carys was going to disappoint her mother so much. She probably already had. “I don’t believe you that he’s fine.” She glared at Duncan. “I think someone forced him to come back here, so until you let me see him, I am going to stay here and raise so much noise that nothing about your life is going to be peaceful. Ever again.”

The first hint of panic touched his brilliant green eyes. “Please.”

“I’m persistent and I’m pissed off. At you. At Lachlan. At… the stupid police back home. I’ll call the police here. I’ll call the newspapers. I’ll call?—”

“Okay, stop.” He swallowed. “Carys, stop.”

“Take me to see Lachlan.”

Dru walked over and thunked a bottle of whiskey on the table before he walked away again.

Duncan watched him until he was back behind the bar, then turned to Carys. “You want to see Lachlan?” He cracked the bottle open and poured two fingers of scotch in his glass and then in hers. “Youreallywant me to take you to Lachlan?”

“Yes. I do.” Wait, was he really going to do it?

He downed the whiskey with one gulp. “Fine.”

“Fine? Does fine mean yes?” Was he really going to take her to see Lachlan?

“Yes. I’ll take you. And if anyone complains about it, I’m blaming my fucking brother.”

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