“Your money? It sounds like it belongs to someone else—and they want it back,” Mano put in.
“Not exactly.” Tomi chewed on his lip. “Come on, let’s go.” He reached through the broken window and unlocked the back door. He opened it and got in.
Annie opened the passenger door and started to sweep the glass bits from the seat.
“Don’t do that,” Mano said. “You’ll get cut.” He gently moved her out of the way and grabbed a CD holder from the floor and used it to scrape at the glass. “Why don’t you sit in the back with your brother? I’m sure you want to touch him and make sure he’s real.”
“How did you know?”
“I know sisters. That’s what Kaia would want to do.” He grinned down at her, then opened the back door and let her slip in beside Tomi.
Annie laced her fingers through her brother’s as they drove back toward Pahala. “Some of our mother’s clothes might fit you,” Annie said. “There are some in the garage with that wig.”
“I always knew your practicality would come in handy,” Tomi said, squeezing her hand.
Annie closed her eyes. Bossy, levelheaded, practical. She was learning more and more about herself all the time, and she wasn’t liking what she was discovering. Did everyone see her the same way? No wonder men weren’t interested. Her gaze went to Mano. She’d never attract someone like him.
“You’re quiet,” Tomi said. “Are you mad at me?”
“Just trying to take it all in,” she said. “Why did you let us think you were dead?”
“Ah, Annie, I’m sorry. I was stupid. I’ll explain when we get home.” He sounded unutterably sad and weary.
“And about Leilani? Where is she? Tell me the truth, Tomi,” she said. “Where is our sister? Has something happened to her? Did you get her involved in something?”
“I swear I don’t know. I haven’t seen her since I left here.” He fell silent, then shifted. “You haven’t gotten a call demanding money for her release, right? So it’s not about a ransom.”
“No call. Is that good or bad, Tomi? Does this involve you and the money?”
“I don’t think so. I hope not.” He wasn’t meeting her gaze. “Have you talked to her friends?”
“Not yet. We thought the police could handle it, and then we thought she might be with you. We were going to go see CeCe and then you phoned.”
Mano’s voice spoke out of the darkness. “Annie got a call that said you’d brought this on your family.”
She heard Tomi gasp. He lurched away from her. “Dear God, help us all,” he whispered. “What have I done?”
Annie wanted to huddle in the corner and let someone else take care of this. She wanted her mother to come back and save them all. But she would have to find the strength to protect her family on her own. The force of circumstances had begun to grind away the old shell around her, the mask she’d worn all her life, like lava pounded into sand by the force of the waves. She might never be the same again.
Eleven
Athousand thoughts ran through Mano’s head. Tomi had always been a free spirit, ready for an adventure. That was part of his infectious charm. And Mano was always right there beside him. Until now. Mano’s mistake, which he believed had cost a friend his life, dampened Mano’s adventurous spirit. Finding out that Tomi was alive and well had relieved his guilt but deepened his sense that life wasn’t only about fun and adventure.
He glanced in the rearview mirror to see Annie with her forehead pressed against Tomi’s arm. She was going to think she had to fix this, even if it was more than she was capable of doing. He dragged his attention back to his driving and pulled into the Tagama’s driveway. Light spilled from the garage windows, but the house was dark.
“Good, looks like Pop is hard at work. How’s his research coming?” Tomi sounded distracted.
“Fine. He says it’s ready to publish.” Annie turned in the seat. “What is going on? My head is in a whirl. I want to know what you’ve done, Tomi. I can’t make it right if I don’t know what it is.”
Tomi shifted in the darkness of the backseat. “I don’t think you can fix it anyway, sis.”
Mano didn’t like the sound of that. Tomi had returned for a reason, but he didn’t seem eager to give them any answers. If Mano had to ferret out the truth without Tomi’s help, then that’s what he’d do. He had to know for his own peace of mind. Living with the images of Tomi’s white face in the water had haunted his dreams for months.
He turned off the car and then glanced at the clock on the dash. It was time for him to eat something. He leaned over and extracted a protein bar from the glove box. “Anyone want one?” he asked.
Tomi and Annie shook their heads. “Let me tell Father you’re here,” Annie said. She opened her door.
“Wait, I want to surprise him.” Tomi hopped out with her.