Always Ready Page 6

  He clenched his teeth as he smiled. “We’re back early. The Milroy needs repairs.”

  Caddie arched her eyebrows and held the door wider. “What happened? Nothing serious, I hope.”

  “Not really, but it will take a few days to fix.” He stepped inside. “We got a little close to shore, and the propeller hung up on a rock.”

  “That’s too bad.”

  “Yeah. So anyway, Mark called me a few minutes ago and said Jo-Lynn told him you were back. I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Not a bit.”

  Aven took off his hat and looked around. “I’d say, ‘Nice place you’ve got here,’ but it looks just like my place.”

  She laughed. “Thanks. I think the one-bedroom units are all alike.”

  “That’s a nice picture, though.” He stepped closer to the framed photograph she’d hung between the two living room windows when she moved in.

  “Thanks. That’s my brother, Jordan, and his dog. I took it a couple of years ago when I went home on leave. They’re both a lot bigger now.”

  “You took that? It’s great.”

  Caddie looked at it critically. She liked it, too. Jordan at twelve, hugging the half-grown border collie pup. She’d caught both their expressions just right.

  Aven swung around, his dark eyes gleaming. “It’s terrific. Hey, I wondered if you’d like to go get something to eat.”

  Caddie thought fleetingly of the soup she’d started to fix. She couldn’t ask him to share that and a peanut butter sandwich. The flush that zipped into her cheeks told her she wasn’t ready to offer to cook for him in her apartment anyway.

  “Well, sure. But. . .” She hesitated. Aven lived frugally to help his family. “If you’ll let me pay my share.”

  He shuddered, his eyes twinkling. “Let’s not do that I’ll-pay-no-I’ll-pay thing.”

  “Exactly. We’ll both pay.”

  He held out a moment longer, making a comical face.

  “Burgers.” She tried to put enticement into the one word, and he fell for it.

  “Okay, let’s go.”

  She laughed and grabbed her purse and a sweater.

  When they reached the restaurant, the tables were jammed with tourists.

  “We could eat in the truck.” Aven’s plaintive tone caught at her heartstrings.

  “Okay. That way, we’ll be able to hear each other without yelling.”

  His face cleared and he smiled at her as they waited in line to order their food. The buzz of conversation around them made talking pointless, so she waited silently, but standing beside him sheared away the tedium. Ten minutes later they climbed back into his truck. He pulled out a cup holder rack, and Caddie fumbled with her good hand to situate the drinks.

  Aven asked a brief blessing and handed her a wrapped sandwich. “Need help getting that open?”

  “I think I can do it.” Over the past three weeks, she’d developed an amazing one-handed agility, using the cast as a prop. “Do I dare ask how your ship came to grief?”

  He gave a short laugh and shook his head. “It wasn’t my fault, for which I’m extremely thankful.”

  “Oh, yeah. I know the exact feeling.”

  “We got a tip that a boat carrying drugs would be heading into a certain harbor this morning. It was a long shot that we’d find the right boat, since it was a small one, and you know what it’s like looking for a little boat in the Gulf of Alaska, but we found her. Trouble was she was already pretty close to shore when we spotted her and hugging the coast. When we hailed her, she scooted for a channel we couldn’t navigate.”

  “Terrific.”

  “Yeah.” Aven took a bite of his cheeseburger and chewed thoughtfully. A moment later he reached for his cup and looked over at her. “There’s something about that boat that bothers me a lot.”

  “Oh?”

  “We traced the registration number. It belongs to a fellow who lives in Larsen Bay. I was assigned to call the state police when we docked, so they can check it out. And guess what?”

  “No idea.” She waited, knowing he would give her the rest of the story when he was ready.

  Aven shifted in his seat and inhaled deeply. “The guy who owns the boat has the same last name as the fisherman who tried to deck me a month ago on the Molly K.”

  “Same man?”

  “His brother.”

  Caddie gave a soft whistle. “Is the fisherman in jail?”

  “No. He should be. Most of them were fined. The big guy—his name’s Spruce Waller—did ten whole days in the slammer. The guy who roughed up Seaman Kusiak is still in there—he’ll serve 45 days and then a year’s probation. The captain lost his boat and got a stiff fine.”

  “Sounds like he’s suffering more than the rest, and you told me he didn’t take part in the fight.”

  “That’s right. The laws we have do that sometimes. It’s too bad in a way. But this Waller character didn’t have a record—which I find incredible, given his temper—and they let him off easy.”

  Caddie sighed. “And now his brother shows up in your sights.”

  “Right. It’s got me wondering if Spruce, being out of work in the fishing biz, has started something new with his brother. I didn’t see him on the boat we were after, but that doesn’t mean anything. I didn’t know when we were chasing them that his brother owned the boat, so I wasn’t looking for him. He’s a big guy, though. Six-two or so, and he must weigh around two-fifty.”

  “His brother may be hefty, too. Maybe they’d look similar from a distance.”

  “True. And there’s another thing. I was thinking that when I went to his indictment, they said Spruce Waller had a cabin in Larsen Bay. But it turns out his place is in Anton Larsen Bay, which isn’t far from here.”

  “But his brother lives in Larsen Bay, on the other end of the island?”

  “Yeah, pretty much. You can’t drive there from here.”

  “Still, it would be easy to go back and forth in a boat.”

  “No, too difficult. But it makes it less likely that the brothers are working together. Spruce’s main residence is here in Kodiak, and his cabin is fifteen miles away.” Aven popped the last bite of his burger into his mouth and crumpled the wrapper. After swallowing, he said, “That was good. Now how about dessert?”

  Caddie chuckled. “Not for me, but go ahead. I’ll wait here while you get it.”

  Aven left, and she settled back in the seat, looking out at the ocean view. The sun was still high in the sky. Most of the fishing boats were out, but pleasure craft dotted the harbor. A gull landed on the trash bin a few yards away, and once again she wished she’d brought her camera.

  Aven returned a few minutes later, and the bird flew off with a scrap of a bun in its mouth. He held out a steaming cup to her. “Here. I remembered you like hot tea from that time at the restaurant.”

  “Thank you! That’s very thoughtful.”

  He settled in beside her and put his own coffee in the rack while he opened a pastry package. “Sure you don’t want some?”

  “No, but thanks.”

  “You know, this whole thing with the Waller brothers is working on me. I’m trying not to obsess over it.”

  “Taking it personally?”

  “Maybe.” Aven frowned. “I shouldn’t have let things get out of control on the fishing boat. I wasn’t alert enough, and I let him get too close.”

  “It happens.”

  “Yeah. I was trying to radio in, and he took advantage of that second’s distraction. Kusiak got cut up because of that.”

  “Is he okay now?”

  “Yeah. He’ll have an intriguing scar. The rest of us got bruised up a little, but. . .”

  “But you’re still mad about it?”

  “Not mad exactly.” He gazed at her then shrugged in defeat. “I’ve been praying about it. I don’t want to go out there having it in for someone. Anger leads to mistakes. But I admit it bothers me that it happened on my watch.”

  “You could be rig
ht about what Waller’s doing now, though. His brother may have talked him into running drugs with him. Maybe he can’t get another job fishing because of his arrest.”

  “Naw, I doubt that. There are so many fishing outfits around. And we don’t have proof they were carrying drugs. Just an anonymous tip.”

  “That boat ran from you, and it was definitely the brother’s boat, right?” She watched his pensive eyes. He’d already considered that, she could see, and he didn’t like the implications.

  “Yeah, there was something going on that they didn’t want us to know about, that’s for sure. If I have anything to say about it, we’ll catch up with them one of these days.” He looked up and smiled. “Hey, let’s forget about them for now. There’s still hours of daylight left. It’ll hardly even get dark tonight. What do you say we drive over to Fort Abercrombie?”

  “I’d love to! I haven’t seen it yet.”

  “Great. The stuff that’s left from the World War II era is interesting.” He stuffed his trash into the empty bag.

  “I’m game, as long as you don’t want to go kayaking or anything like that.”

  “When does the cast come off?” He glanced at her arm as he reached for the ignition.

  “Maybe Monday. Maybe not. The doctor sounded like it was iffy. Pray for me. I don’t want to be sidelined longer than necessary.”

  “No, but you don’t want to go back to work too soon, either.” As he threw the transmission into gear, his phone rang. He shoved the gearshift back into park and answered it. “Yeah? Okay.” His dark eyes flitted to meet her gaze and he frowned. “Yeah, I’ll be there as quick as I can.” He clicked the phone off.

  “Emergency?” Caddie asked.

  “Afraid so. A charter boat needs help off Raspberry Island. I’m supposed to report to our sister ship, the Shatney. Half her crew’s on leave, so any of the Milroy’s men who can get there fast will go out on the Shatney. I’m sorry.”

  Caddie lifted her right hand and raised her brows. “You can’t help it.”

  “They’ve sent out a smaller boat already, but they may need us. I’ll drop you at your apartment. It’s almost on my way.” Aven’s shoulders drooped as he backed out of the parking space.

  “We can go to the old fort some other day,” she said.

  “I’ll take you up on that. Tomorrow, if we’re back in time.”

  “Sure. Or the next day. Whatever works.”

  “I’ll call you as soon as we’re in, if it’s not too late.”

  When he pulled up before her housing unit, Caddie reached for the door latch. “Don’t get out. I can fend for myself.”

  “You sure? Your arm. . .”

  On impulse, she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m sure. I’ll be praying for you and the people on the charter boat.”

  “Thanks.”

  His reaction was a little slow, but the last thing she saw as she slid down from the truck cab was his smile.

  Six

  Aven arrived back at his apartment early the next morning. Too early to call Caddie, he reflected after consulting his watch. Robyn and Mom were probably up, fixing the dogs’ rations, but he wouldn’t hazard a guess as to whether Caddie would be awake at 0530 when she didn’t have to report for duty. And if she was sleeping, he didn’t want to wake her. She needed rest to help that arm heal.

  After a quick snack, he called his sister instead.

  Robyn answered and assured him that the family was getting along all right. “Grandpa’s losing steam physically, but you knew that.”

  “Is his arthritis worse?”

  “No, about the same as when you were here last. But he isn’t able to do much of anything outside now. Mom’s taken over all the chores he used to do and is taking care of him. I’ve had to pretty much run the business by myself the last few weeks.”

  “I’m sorry.” Aven leaned on the card table he used as a kitchen table. He ought to be home, helping Mom and Robyn.

  “It’s not your fault. And, hey, I hitched my team up in the new harness yesterday. It was the first chance I’d had. I wanted to make sure it fit them right, and we did a ten-mile training run.”

  “Everything go okay?”

  “They did great. I have a super team this year, Ave. I hope I can afford to take them in at least one race this winter.”

  “Too bad you can’t run in ours.”

  “You know I can’t run them in the Fire and Ice. We’re the hosts. Duh! Besides, I’ll be too busy. But I sure would like to do a short race, say in December. Or right after ours.”

  “Maybe you can. Wait and see how things go.”

  “I haven’t given up on it.”

  “Are you and Mom going to be able to handle all the race preparations if Grandpa can’t help you?” he asked. “That’s a big job.”

  “It’ll be tough, but I think it’s worth it. We usually do a little better than break even, and it’s our best advertisement. People come for the race and look over our kennels. I show my team off a little. Word of mouth is crucial in this business.”

  Aven wished he could take Caddie home to meet his family. It would be terrific if they could both get leave the week of the Fire and Ice and spend it in Wasilla, helping set up for the race.

  “Hey, Rob, what would you think of me bringing a girl home sometime?”

  “What?” Her shriek nearly pierced his eardrum. He held the phone away from his ear and cringed. “Did you say girl, as in female, young woman, dare I add love interest?”

  She seemed to have come to a standstill, so he gingerly put the phone back to his ear. “Uh. . .yeah, I guess you could say any one of the above.”

  “Who is she? Is she Coast Guard? Or a townie? Tell me she’s not someone you arrested.”

  Aven chuckled. “No way. She’s a BM3. Stationed here. Serves on another ship.”

  “Oh, wow. That’s perfect. She’s a pay grade behind you. You can socialize, but she doesn’t outrank you. Ave, that’s fantastic. I want to meet her. When can you bring her? Can I tell Mom and Grandpa?”

  “Slow down!” Aven couldn’t stop grinning. “Yeah, I guess you can tell them. Don’t make too big a deal of it yet, though, okay? We’ve only gone out a couple of times. I like her a lot, but things are still in the early stages.”

  “So tell me everything.”

  “Naw, I don’t think so.”

  “Is she pretty?”

  “Yes. And smart.”

  “Ha! I figured that. You wouldn’t like her if she weren’t. Is she a Christian?”

  “Definitely.”

  Robyn sighed. “I’m so happy that you’ve found someone.”

  “Well, like I said, it’s not officially. . .anything. . .yet. I wanted to tell you so you wouldn’t be shocked later on, if it works out. But if it doesn’t. . .”

  “You always amaze me.”

  That didn’t seem to fit the conversation, or at least not the direction he’d been steering it, and Aven scowled. “How do you mean?”

  “You’re so sure of yourself when you’re working. You’re comfortable with yourself physically. Spiritually, too, I think. But when the emotions enter the picture, you hem and haw and won’t commit to a ray of hope, let alone a long-term relationship.”

  “What do you know about it? You’re no closer to finding a husband than I am a wife. Further away by a long shot, I’d say.”

  “And I’m four years younger than you are.” Robyn chuckled. “Besides, I don’t tell you everything.”

  Aven picked up on her teasing tone. “Oh? Something I should know?”

  “Not really, but when there is I’ll tell you.”

  “Okay. And if things progress with Caddie, I’ll keep you posted.”

  “Caddie? Her name is Caddie? Like a golf minion?”

  Aven choked on a laugh. “Her real name is Clarissa, but that’s her nickname, okay? I’ve never seen her carrying a golf bag.”

  “Got it. Sounds to me like you’d better latch on to her fast. Nice girls are
hard to come by in Alaska, you know.”

  “Watch it!”

  “What’s her last name?” Robyn asked with a chuckle.

  “You want a lot, don’t you? It’s Lyle.”

  “Lyle?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Why is that name familiar?”

  “I don’t know.”

  After a couple of seconds’ silence, Robyn said, “Oh, that captain.”

  “Huh?”

  “You know. The man who tried to save Daddy and Jim Haskell.”

  Aven’s stomach dropped.

  “That was the man’s name, remember?” Robyn persisted. “The one who died in Puget Sound when Daddy’s plane crashed.”

  Aven found it hard to breathe past the huge lump in his throat. “You’re right. That was his name.” How could he not have realized? Caddie had told him that her father was stationed in Seattle at the time of his death. He could only conclude that he’d been so distracted by his feelings for her that he’d allowed his brain to take an unscheduled furlough.

  “Aven?”

  “Yeah?”

  “We love you. Come home again soon.”

  “I will if I can.”

  “And bring the Caddie girl.”

  He hung up with a smile, imagining Caddie, in uniform, holding a golf club out to her captain. Nope. He liked the mental image of her in the green dress she’d worn to church last month far better.

  He sobered as he mulled over his conversation with Robyn about Caddie’s father. It had to be the same man. But did that matter? Caddie obviously didn’t know. Would it disturb her if she found out? He tried to imagine how he would feel if their roles were reversed. Not good.

  He checked the time. Still too early to call her. He ought to catch a nap, but he doubted he could sleep now. He still wanted to see Caddie if at all possible. Maybe they could explore Fort Abercrombie together. But should he reopen the subject of her father? His chest ached as he sat staring at the phone.

  This was a matter for serious prayer.

  ❧

  Caddie adjusted the focus on her camera and held her breath. She never would have dared get so close to bears in the wild on her own. But Aven had known where to find them and had driven close enough for her to get some great shots with her telephoto lens.