The cavelike structure was nearly fifteen feet high and nearly as wide. It had been formed in the distant past when lava rushed along this way. As the lava cooled from the outside in, it formed the tube. Once the magma chamber was empty of lava, the molten rock slipped out like water from a straw and left the tube behind. Leilani had learned all this from her sister, but knowing about it didn’t make the place less foreboding.
Water dripped from somewhere in the cave. They must have drugged her food. At least they’d taken off her blindfold. Not that it helped, as dark as this place was. She shook her head to clear it, then peered around the dim tube. Tree roots hung down from the ceiling, creating a cobweb effect. She shivered at the thought of the huge cane spiders or the lava spiders that might be lurking around here. A thin blanket under her bottom protected her from the cold stone floor, but she was still freezing. She thought about wrapping up in it.
Her gaze traveled toward the mouth of the tube, and she saw a backpack lying near the entrance. The light coming into the cave looked dim, perhaps twilight. Someone would come soon, but maybe she could get out before that. There might be a key to her shackles in the backpack. If her chain reached that far.
Leilani braced herself against the wall and managed to get to her feet, but dizziness assailed her, and she nearly fell back to the hard floor. She waited until the spots in front of her eyes cleared, then began to hop toward the bag. About six feet away from her goal, she ran out of chain. She tumbled to the ground. The hard surface scraped the skin from her knees and chin. She laid her head on the cold lava and began to cry. She wanted to be home in her own warm bed, to hear Annie call her for breakfast. She wanted a hot shower and a toothbrush. But most of all she wanted to feel safe and to be free from these bonds.
A figure came toward her. It was too dark to make out the man’s features. “I hate you,” she whispered. “Why are you doing this? What do you want from me?”
“You want me to put the gag back in?” The man’s voice was harsh. And familiar.
Do you have any idea where we’re going?” Mano turned the wheel and pulled out onto the highway. He’d gotten a replacement rental car before he came to meet her.
“CeCe’s office.” Annie rubbed the top of Wilson’s head and rattled off directions. The mongoose gave a squeak of contentment and poked his nose under her arm, then settled down.
Mano glanced at Annie. She seemed even more subdued than she had earlier in the morning. “Any calls?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. I’ve been trying to think of where Tomi might be holed up. He and Leilani used to have a clubhouse they loved when we were kids. I want to check there.”
“You didn’t like the clubhouse?”
“I wasn’t invited.” She didn’t look at him.
There was no self-pity in her voice, just a matter-of-fact statement. Mano realized he had been as bad as her siblings, taking advantage of her reliability. Good old Annie, always at their beck and call. If they wanted a fruit smoothie, she hurried to make it. If Tomi or Mano expressed a desire for pizza or anything else, she provided it. She’d been as invisible as the furniture and just as comfortable. But Mano could see her now, and he was discovering depths to her he’d never suspected.
Why had he thought her so colorless and uninteresting? She had such a strong sense of purpose and a heart as big as Kilauea. It shone from her large eyes, supported the curve of her lips. He’d been blind. Her beauty would last long after Leilani’s faded. He was an idiot to have taken her for granted. They all had been.
He cleared his throat. “Where is this clubhouse?”
“Out by Kau. It’s a cave really, not a clubhouse. But that’s what they called it.”
“Want to go there first, or to CeCe’s?”
She hesitated. “To CeCe’s. We’ve been trying to do that for several days. She has a weird shift and goes to work at eleven. The clubhouse can wait.”
“You got it.” He followed her directions and turned toward Puna. He pulled in the parking lot of Kapa Kandies. A stream of men and women dressed in light blue work shirts were filing into the front and side doors of the brown block building while an enticing aroma of chocolate flowed out.
Annie pointed toward a gold 1987 Ford Escort that sported flower decals on the doors. “There’s her car. She’s still in it.”
Mano pulled up behind the Escort, and Annie jumped out and ran to the driver’s door. A young woman got out, and the two embraced. Mano let the car roll forward slowly and stopped it in the parking space beside CeCe’s car. He got out to join the women.
CeCe was not what he had expected. She had pink hair twisted up in a roll on the back of her head secured with a pencil. Her bright blue eyeshadow overpowered the pale blue of her eyes.
“I heard about Leilani.” CeCe said, releasing Annie from the hug. “I meant to call, but I thought maybe you wouldn’t want to talk to me.”
“What do you mean? I always want to talk to you.”
CeCe’s eyes filled. “It was my fault. I shouldn’t have let her go with him.”
“With who?” Annie’s voice filled with fear.
“Tab Watson.”