Page 63 of Finding Hope

Hope closed her eyes. “Oh my God, those poor women. I’ll see if I can track down the other four guests too. I’ll come back in an hour and swap with you.”

Martine was at the front desk, watching them with wide eyes. Hope turned back to Patti. “Can you fill Martine in? She can be our runner if we need to get communications back and forth from the office.” She started running out of the office before turning back. “Oh, can you call Tommy’s wife? She needs to know ASAP.”

Hope ran to the kitchen and found Gerold. “We have a major emergency on our hands.” She quickly explained the situation. “Can you make something quick and easy for lunch that we can set out buffet-style? Get Clark, Charlotte, and anyone else you need to help.” Hope got his agreement and spun around, heading back to the front desk.

She found out which bungalows the two wives were in. Thanks to the manager’s reception, she knew every guest by name and face, so she’d easily be able to identify them. Hope hurried to the pool first, where the two middle-aged women sat side by side in loungers under a shade umbrella. Daphne was a willowy redhead, and Sue was a heavy-set blonde with a bubbly personality. Don’t think she’s going to be feeling real bubbly in a minute.

Hope’s fingers were ice cold as dread sent tendrils reaching through her abdomen. She took a deep breath as she approached, trying to quell the nausea. “Sue, Daphne, we’ve had some pretty scary news, and I wanted to let you know right away.” Both of them sat up straight, asking what was wrong.

As calmly as possible, Hope explained the situation to them. “The Coast Guard has their position and is en route right now. That’s the best news we could have.” She grasped their hands as both women started crying. “Please come with me to the restaurant. We’re all gathering there.”

As soon as she walked into the restaurant with an arm around each woman, Hope dispatched Clark to the office to see if there was any update. He was back quickly, shaking his head. Hope turned and held each of their hands. “I need to find the other guests. We have a system set up to relay messages. I promise we’ll keep you updated with any news we receive.” She made eye contact with each woman. “It’s going to be all right. Please think positive, ok?”

Hope couldn’t find the other couples, who must be out sightseeing, so she went back to the restaurant. Gerold had set up a small buffet, and both women had plates with a few items, though neither was eating. She checked in with them, then excused herself and went back to the office.

“Nothin’ yet,” Patti said, wringing her hands, her eyes wide with terror. Hope hugged her as both tried not to cry.

“Gerold has a buffet going. Go ahead and get some lunch, Patti.”

Now Hope was alone, which was much worse than the frantic activity of the hour before.

Where are they right now? Please let them all be safe. Alex is with them—he’ll keep them safe.

But who will keep Alex safe?

She tamped down hard on that last thought.

Hope jumped as the phone rang. Heart pounding, she stared at it like it was a poisonous snake that might bite her. Finally, she picked it up.

“Hello, this is John Strickland of the St. Croix Chronicle. We’ve been hearing a lot of chatter on our scanner regarding a missing dive boat, and it seems to be yours. Do you have any comment?”

Hope’s heart dropped into her stomach.

How am I supposed to handle this?

“We don’t have anything to comment on yet. Just that the Coast Guard is on the way to the coordinates given in the Mayday call. That’s all we know.” Strickland tried a few more times to get more information out of her, but Hope told him she needed to keep the line clear and hung up. He doesn’t need to know we have multiple lines.

She paced back and forth in front of the two desks, meeting Alex’s eyes in his picture on the wall each time she paced in that direction.

Patti and Hope continued to trade off. The phone still hadn’t rung, but at least the reporter hadn’t called back. At 3 p.m. Patti came back to the office to relieve Hope, who was still pacing and trying not to grow more frantic with every minute with no word.

“Did you get something to eat, Patti?”

“Yes, child. I had a bite of lunch.” She touched Hope’s shoulder. “But I know you haven’t. Please eat somethin’. You need to stay strong.”

Hope sagged, leaning both hands on the desk, nauseous and dizzy. “I can’t. I’d only throw it back up. I can’t eat with them out there.” She stood and tried to smooth her hair. It didn’t calm her. “Why haven’t we heard anything, Patti? It shouldn’t take this long to find them—they were just offshore. It’s been nearly four hours!”

Patti embraced her. “I don’t know. We have to pray and wait. They have Alex with them. There’s no one better to be in charge. And it’s amazin’ how things like this bring people together. People from all over the island are here givin’ their support. We must have faith. It’s all we have right now.”

Hope left the office and made her way to the ladies’ room. She locked the door and finally gave in, sobbing with her head on the granite vanity. A running film went through her mind of all the times she had yelled at Alex for no reason.

She closed her eyes, remembering how it had felt when he’d held her face in his hands during her accident and how he’d wiped her tears away on the boat afterward. It can’t possibly take this long. Something happened, and they don’t want to call.

What if they’re gone?

Oh God. What if my Alex is gone?

“No!” Opening her eyes, Hope growled the word and stared at her tear-streaked reflection. “He’ll come back to you.”

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