Page 3 of Storm Surge

When they reached the top of the bluff, Will glanced out at the ocean in the direction Collins had disappeared. The waters of the Pacific churned a restless rhythm. Much like the one drumming in his heart.

???

Are you there?Jamie Collins’s fingers flew across the keyboard of her phone. More than ever she needed his help.

Here. What’s going on there?

She blew out a relieved sigh.I have no idea,she typed. Armed men arrived here at the compound moments earlier. And I think my father killed someone.She couldn’t bring herself to tell Mark everything. The tidal wave of memories the man with her father had unleashed threatened to pull her beneath the surface like a dangerous undertow. He was a nightmare she couldn’t remember, and he charged out of them and grabbed her heart with fear. She knew him. But how was that possible?

Checking now. Hold on.

Mark had been there for her since she’d first discovered his existence, and their connection. After the fog had lifted and her thoughts slowly began to make sense.

She and Mark had connected several years after “the time,” as she referred to the period following what her father and aunt had told her was a car accident that took away her memory. Something about their synchronized story never rang true with what she believed was locked away in her mind.

And then she’d found a kindred spirit in Mark.

They’re looking for your aunt in connection to a man named Martin Collins.

Her aunt? Those words threatened to break her. There must be some mistake. Her father’s name was Alfred. Who was this Martin Collins?Why are they looking for my aunt? She doesn’t know anyone by the name of Martin Collins.

I’m guessing they believe she does.

What should I do?Desperation threatened. The walls were closing in around her. His face kept popping into her head, and the secrets she’d been waiting to uncover hovered just out of reach.

You won’t have a choice—you’ll have to speak with them as will your aunt. When you’re finished,text me. Though I prefer to stay in the shadows for reasons you know, I can come if you need me.

Despite her concerns, Jamie smiled. She would never ask Mark to make that trip. Jamie of all people understood the comfort of isolation.Thank you. I’ll let you know what I find out.

She set the phone down on her desk, the security program she’d been working on a short time earlier all but forgotten. Outside her office window, the people she’d seen chasing her father a short time after he’d thrown the man from the cliff returned. One of them grabbed her attention right away. There was something about him, something familiar.

Her head pounded to the point of nausea. It returned every time her hidden past threatened to break free. She moved to the window once more. Instead of being repulsed by her father’s action, she’d been relieved.

The office door opened. Aunt Betty stepped inside, her eyes filled with alarm. “There are men here. I don’t know what they want. They could be dangerous. You should stay here. I’ll try and get rid of them.”

“They’re here for you,” the words she’d heard from Mark slipped out unintentionally. She kept her attention on her sweet aunt’s face.

Aunt Betty frowned. “Why would they be here for me? I’ve done nothing wrong. I’m sure this is all a mistake.”

“Who was that man with my father?” Jamie stepped closer and pressed when her aunt turned to leave.

Aunt Betty whirled toward her, the expression on her face one of true terror. “Someone very bad.”

Those words confirmed Jamie’s instincts were valid. “You knew him.”

The woman who had been there with her for so many years slowly nodded. “I did, but you don’t need to trouble yourself about him. He won’t be back.”

“Because he’s dead.” For the first time, Jamie realized her aunt kept secrets too.

While Aunt Betty struggled to come up with an answer, voices carried up from the shoreline. Relief replaced the uncertainty on her aunt’s face. “Stay here. I’ll find out what they want.”

Her aunt left the room, but Jamie stood frozen in place for a moment longer.

“Wait,” she said and hurried after her aunt.

Aunt Betty turned with a look of regret on her face. “It will be okay.”

But would it? Dread filled Jamie up. For years, she’d known there were things in her shadowy past that were waiting to jump out. Jamie had feared them because she believed they were bad. Now the lid was opened, if only a crack, but it was enough. There would be no stopping the truth from coming out. No stopping it.

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