Page 32 of Emi's Hero

Emi sighed. “She can’t let anyone know I’m alive.”

“I’ll make sure she understands,” Kalea said with a reassuring smile and left the room.

George held out a chair. “Have a seat.”

“Please,” Mr. Parkman said. “Ule Kekoa, the ranch chef, is possibly the most important member of our staff and family on Parkman Ranch. He’ll make you whatever your heart desires.”

A short, dark man waved a spatula from his position at the stove. “Mahalo.”

“Don’t worry,” Mr. Parkman said. “You can trust Ule to keep your presence a secret. He’s prior service Navy.”

Emi smiled toward the man as she crossed to where George stood by the table.

“What would the pretty lady like for breakfast?” Ule asked.

Emi blushed. “I’ll eat anything,” she said.

“When was the last time you had blueberry pancakes,” Ule asked.

Emi’s eyes filled with tears.

George’s chest tightened. He lifted a hand to rest against the small of Emi’s back.

She pressed a hand over her mouth and breathed in and out a few times before answering in a choked voice. “The last time I was home, my mother made blueberry pancakes for me. They were my favorite.” She brushed a tear from her cheek. “I’m sorry.”

“Blueberry pancakes coming up,” Ule said from across the room, drawing attention away from Emi long enough for her to pull herself together and take the seat George held out for her.

George sat beside Emi and reached for her hand beneath the table.

She slipped her fingers into his palm and squeezed gently but didn’t withdraw.

“I spoke to my friend with the drones this morning.” Hawk reached for a biscuit from the basket in the middle of the table. “He said he could send a couple of his guys over to Kauai this afternoon. The majority of the island is undeveloped due to the mountainous terrain or because it is protected. They’ll start the search on the ten percent considered developed and run a grid pattern at night in the less populated areas of the more mountainous terrain using their infrared capabilities.”

“Will they pick up a lot of structures that way?” Emi asked.

Hawk nodded. “I told them to look for a concrete structure, half-buried in the hillside with a few guards on its perimeter. Most normal homes on Kauai will be lit up. A concrete bunker won’t have a significant heat signature. A few men standing guard on the middle of a hillside will look a lot different.”

Emi nodded.

“Still seems like looking for a needle in a haystack,” Mr. Parkman said.

“It is, but the drones and satellite images are all we have for now,” Hawk said.

Kalea entered the room and took her seat at the table. “Sachie can be here after noon.

George saw the look of disappointment flash across Emi’s face, quickly disguised by a smile.

“Thank you for setting it up,” Emi said.

Ule chose that moment to place a plate full of fluffy blueberry pancakes in front of Emi, along with a bottle of warm blueberry syrup. “Ho’omau.”

Emi smiled up at the man. “Is that Hawaiian forbon appétit?”

He shook his head. “Ho’omaumeans persevere. Never give up, and you will find your daughter.”

“Thank you, Ule,” Emi said.

“Mahalo,” Ule corrected.

---