“She’s not a haole, T?t?,” Bane said. “She’s got more Hawaiian in her than the majority of those who call themselves native. Look at her—she looks like a Hawaiian princess.”
Her grandmother snorted. “She’s got blue eyes. No Hawaiian ever had blue eyes.” She patted Bane’s arm. “I want to go inside. Can I lean on your arm? My legs don’t seem to want to work right. I need to find that kapa.”
Leia watched her grandmother walk away still muttering about the cloth. Pete took his box of cloth and beat a hasty retreat. She didn’t blame him. What had she gotten herself into? Her grandmother needed more care than Leia could give her. She sighed and followed them.
Ipo leaned heavily on Bane’s arm. Her hands gripped his fore-arm in a hold that was almost painful, and he wondered where she got the strength. The dog trotted after them. “You hurt Leia’s feelings, T?t?,” he chided.
She paused in the hall and let go of his arm. “I said nothing to the keiki but the truth. She’s too sensitive.”
“She’s your granddaughter who loves you and tries to help you in every way she can. You should be ashamed of yourself.” Bane knew he shouldn’t be talking to an elder so frankly, but seeing the pain in Leia’s eyes compelled him. She’d done nothing to warrant her grandmother’s censure. “It’s not her fault your son married a haole. Leia loves her Hawaiian heritage.”
“Perhaps you’re right.” Ipo looked suddenly tired, though her dark eyes sparkled with more alertness than they’d possessed only a few minutes earlier. “I need to find someone to trust,” she muttered. “Where’s my granddaughter? Where’s Leia?”
Maybe she was less clearheaded than he’d thought. He grabbed a bathrobe hanging on a hook on the wall and helped her slip it on. “You can trust Leia. And me. What do you need?”
“I must get the kapa to a safe place. It’s not safe now.” She plucked at her sleeve in a fretful motion.
“Where is the cloth? I’ll get it for you.” He suspected there was no kapa. Leia joined them, and he saw the doubt on her face at her grandmother’s mention of the cloth.
They moved on into the living room. Bane stopped and stared. The entire house was topsyturvy. He gaped at upended drawers, their brightly colored contents juxtaposed against the dull brown carpet. Cushions had been pulled from the sofa and chairs. The doorway to Ipo’s bedroom stood open, and he could see more devastation in that room. Through the large archway to the kitchen, he saw cabinet doors ajar. Ajax began to growl, and his hackles raised.
“T?t?, did you do this?” Leia asked, her voice quivering.
“Who has been here?” Ipo demanded. “Or was this your handiwork, Leia? Are you trying to find the kapa?”
“I haven’t even been inside, T?t?.” Leia walked down the hall. “Hey, the back door is open. Someone’s been in here.”
Bane situated Ipo in a chair, then went to join Leia. Muddy footprints mixed with bits of crushed grass and debris came from outside and went down the hall, where they disappeared into the master bedroom. “These weren’t made by your grandmother. It looks like they’re about a size 12 man’s shoe.”
Leia rubbed her arms. “It almost looks like the person was searching for something. Someone trashed my house too.”
“Maybe it’s just a series of random break-ins,” Bane said. He and Leia went to her grandmother’s bedroom and began to pick up the clothing dumped on the floor.
The phone rang on Ipo’s bedside table, and Leia answered it. Bane could hear Eva’s excited voice through the receiver. Leia spoke in a soothing voice. “I’m fine, Eva. I know you said not to go to the cottage. You were right about it being messed up, but I’m okay.” She spoke a little longer to her sister, then hung up. “Eva and her dreams. She dreamed something happened to my house. Strange, isn’t it?” She began to put things away.
Bane sorted through the discarded clothing. Did Ipo still wear any of this? The muumuu looked ancient.
“Bane, look at this.” Leia was holding a brooch. “It’s a diamond-and-sapphire brooch. Why didn’t whoever it was take this? My mother told me once that it was worth several thousand dollars.”
“We’d better call the police before we straighten anything else up. This is weird.” He plucked the phone from his pocket and dialed 911 to report the break-in. The dispatcher promised to send out an officer, and Bane hung up.
“There’s more, Bane.” Leia held out a small teak box with the lid open to reveal rumpled hundred-dollar bills. “This was in plain sight with the lid up.”
“It seems our intruder was after something specific. I wish we could count on your grandmother to know what was missing.”
“In her lucid moments, she would know, but I don’t think we can believe anything she says today. We’re going to have to figure this out ourselves.”
“It’s obvious they weren’t after cash.” He closed the lid of the box and set it on the dresser.