Jillian’s face cleared. “You’re too efficient. Think you can do anything with this computer model?”
“Let me take a look.” Annie sat in the chair Jillian vacated and pulled up the database. She began to go through the lines of data. She was so tired that the numbers began to run together. Her head throbbed, and she pressed her temple as she looked at the screen.
“I don’t see anything,” she said finally.
“Me neither. But it’s not working right.”
Annie glanced at her watch. It was time for her to go. “I’ll look at it in the morning when I’m fresh.”
“I hope to have it figured out by then.” Jillian sighed. “Gosh, can you believe the tension here lately? Monica has been biting everyone’s heads off.”
“She’s mad at me.”
“I know. Watch your back. I think she’s out for your job.”
“I suspected as much. The way I feel today, she could have it.” Annie smiled to show she was joking. She went toward the door. “Good luck with the model. If you don’t have it back up by tomorrow, I’ll look at it again.”
She stopped at Gina’s door. “I’m gone. See you tomorrow.”
Gina looked up and nodded. “Try to get some rest tonight. You look terrible.”
“I’ll try.” Annie stepped into the hall. Her cell phone rang, and she grabbed at it. “Hello.”
“Are you alone?” The whispered voice sounded like Tomi. Her chest tightened, and she caught her breath.
“I’m just heading to the car.” She continued on toward the door.
“I need to see you.”
It had to be Tomi, though he seemed hoarse. Maybe he was just trying to disguise his voice. She clung to her hope. “Tomi?”
“Who else?” He chuckled.
The laugh convinced her, and joy surged through her heart. Her brother was alive. She couldn’t quite take it in. “Where do you want to meet?” She peered at her watch. Mano would be at the house in fifteen minutes.
“How about the Place of Refuge? Seems appropriate somehow.”
“Are you that far away?”
There was a long pause on the other end of the line. “I can’t tell you where I am. But meet me there in three hours. And bring the bankbook.”
“Tomi, let me talk to Leilani,” she ordered. The phone clicked. “Tomi? Tomi?” She shut the phone with a snap. She would see them both soon enough. She raced for her SUV. Mano would be furious if she left without him. Tomi didn’t say to come alone, and he’d been in contact with Mano, so surely it was all right to bring him along. What would she say to her father? It might be best if he didn’t know anything about this until she actually saw Tomi with her own eyes.
She rolled down the window and inhaled the salty air. The sunshine seemed brighter, and the air even more fragrant. Tomi had called her. She had to believe it was really her brother. Surely no one else could sound that much like him. And she was going to see him and Leilani in just a few hours. She wanted to laugh, to sing, maybe jump out of the vehicle and do cartwheels. Her smile broadened. Things were looking up at last.
Mano glanced at his watch. He was going to be late to meet Annie. He’d wandered all over the compound without seeing Noah. The ramshackle house Noah had rented was deserted, so Mano traipsed from the edge of the cliff that looked out over the water to the inner jungle area on the north side of the subdivision. A few people had eyed him strangely, but no one challenged his right to be here.
He turned to walk back to his car and found a figure standing in the path. Evan Chun, dressed in a tropical linen suit, was smiling as he blocked Mano’s way to the road where his vehicle was parked.
“Lieutenant Oana, I didn’t expect to find you here.”
Busted. The smirk on the developer’s face told him Chun was enjoying Mano’s discomfiture. “I was just walking around,” he muttered.
“Looking for real estate? I have a couple of properties for sale.”
Mano decided to play along. “Maybe. I’ve thought of moving to the Big Island. The remoteness of this area is nice, but I’m not sure I could get along with having to catch rainwater.”
Chun blinked as though he hadn’t expected that response. He swept his hand over the area. “I’ll give you a hint, Lieutenant. This is all going to change soon.” He dropped his voice. “There will be every modern convenience and luxury houses that will rival those in Kohala.”
Mano lifted his brows. “You’ve managed to get utilities out here?” Developers had tried for years to take advantage of this area. It held a wild beauty that called to the soul, but the lack of water and electricity put most people off.
“It’s coming, it’s coming.” Chun managed to look modest and triumphant at the same time.
Mano had heard that one before. The Hawaiian Ocean View Estate project, known on the island as HOVE, was supposed to have accomplished something similar. It fell through, and the property values in that area were still in the few-thousand-dollars-an-acre range, though residents didn’t seem to mind.