Page 93 of Light of Day
“Yes. My God, Heather. There’s so much, so many stories. Do you have my flash drives?”
“Yup. One’s at home, and I hid the other one somewhere safe.”
Gabby turned to look at her with alarm. “I sure hope it’s safe. Most of the research I did is on there. I hid it in my room so only Safiya would find it.”
“Safiya gave it to me just today. I had it with me in the cave, and that’s where I left it. What’s on it?”
“Actual historical photos of the Sea Smoke islanders from that era. It’s incredible. You can see their houses, their little schoolhouse, their families. How they dressed. Those old pinafores they wore. With Denton’s house burned down, that drive might have the only copies, unless Jimmy saved some.” She put a hand on her chest, as if her heart was about to jump out of it. “Heather, whoever has that drive could write the best exposéTheNew Yorkerhas ever seen. There’s enough visuals that it could be like threeFrontlineepisodes.”
“TheNew Yorker…” Heather thought longingly of her lifelong dream of publishing some kind of groundbreaking story under her byline. All the fantasies she’d had while huddled in that little cove came back to her. “I can see it now. Part confessional, since I’m actually related to one of the bad guys. Part history, part research, plus a few trends that are very relevant to today.”
The boat reached the buoy that marked the reef below the bluff where the inn perched. They turned into the leeward side of the island, the calm side.
“Too bad they’ll have to watch it on the Dirty Rotten Bastards podcast like everyone else,” Heather finished.
Gabby shoved her shoulder against Heather’s. “You almost had me going for a minute.”
“Sorry. Couldn’t resist. No, babe, this is your story. You did the groundwork, you compiled the research. My job now is to help you get the best possible story on the podcast. I’m going to earn my co-credit. By the way, I decided I want to focus on the pod full-force.”
“You sure? Because you’ve been acting like you didn’t want to bother with it.”
“I don’t blame you for the side-eye.” Heather made a face. “I haven’t been holding up my end. I made you come out here on your own and get into all kinds of trouble. Here’s what I’m thinking. I think we should both stay here on the island and work on this incredible story you dug up. I have to stay a while to help my mother, plus there’s this sweet orange cat I plan to adopt, and we can get tons of local color…”
She trailed off. Heather knew that Gabby valued receipts, not words. She’d just have to prove her commitment. And she would, whether or not Gabby stayed.
“I’m in. Let’s do this. Besides…” Gabby glanced toward the cabin, where Luke stood at the controls, legs braced apart. He was steering them toward the dock, which was illuminated only by a single light in the freight shed. That was enough for it to look like home. “I was wrong about that one. He’s a keeper.”
Heather laughed. “You might even say a lightkeeper.”
44
They all spentthe night at the Lightkeeper Inn—except Carson and Fiona, of course, who joined Amy Lou in the lockup. Judy had recovered enough to find spare bedrooms for everyone. Tucked into a corner room on the second floor, Heather curled next to Luke and slept more deeply than she had in years.
And she dreamed. This time, the girl sat on the porch of the house and dangled her bare feet over the edge. She wasn’t afraid because her world was moving. Although she was sad, she was taking it in stride. She would survive.
She turned her head and smiled at Heather, who was holding on to the door frame as the house moved across the gravel. “It’s okay,” she said. “Don’t be sad. It’ll all be better in the light of day.”
Heather came awake with a start and found Luke sitting on the edge of the bed.
“A police boat is on its way. Chen and I are taking a boatload of suspects into town to be booked. Carson, Fiona, Celine, Amy Lou, a couple of workers who were doing Carson’s bidding. Do you want to come with us? You’ve been part of this from the beginning.”
“No, that’s okay. I’ve got too much work to do.” She felt tremendously refreshed and energized, ready to bounce out of bed and race to a computer. Or a kayak—the first thing she had to do was retrieve the flash drive.
Luke smiled at her and cupped her face in his hand. “I get it. But are you sure you don’t want more rest? You went through a real ordeal last night.”
“Yes, but this is today.” She rolled out of bed and flung open the curtains. Sunshine poured in.It’ll all be better in the light of day.
“There are secrets to be revealed, stories to be shared, and I can’t wait. Where’s Gabby?”
“Waiting for you in the conservatory. There’s coffee and a basket of donuts and a laptop and a pile of photos she printed out and?—”
Heather was already pulling on her clothes. “You basically just described heaven to me.” She rose on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around him. “Or is this heaven? I’ll figure it out later. Let’s go!”
They held hands as they left the bedroom.
On the staircase, they saw John Carmichael III being helped down the stairs by Judy Griffin. He looked about ten years older than the last time she’d seen him. The news about his wife and two of his children must have hit him hard.
“Is he on his way to sign the paperwork to sell the inn?” she whispered.
