Oke straightened. “Until then, I choose to believe in my grandson.”
Jesse tried not to look at the way love and fear vied for control of Oke’s face. He hoped the old man wouldn’t be too crushed when the truth came out.
Jesse glanced at his watch. Two o’clock. They had several hours before they needed to be back at the boat. He waved to Kaia, and she spoke to Heidi and they both came in on the next wave.
“Let’s go get some lunch,” he told her.
“I’ll change. What about Heidi?”
Jesse hesitated. He didn’t dare leave his niece. “We’ll take her with us.”
She took Heidi’s hand, and they went to the house to change. Jesse stood outside and watched Bane digging the pit for Friday night’s lu’au. He saw a glint from the basalt rock cliff behind Kaia’s brother. Squinting, Jesse tried to make out what it was but couldn’t. He had some binoculars in the Jeep. He rummaged in the glove box and found them. The hillside leaped into focus as he brought them to his eyes, and he saw a man with a rifle. The gun was pointed toward Bane as the man sighted down the scope.
“Get down!” Jesse dropped the binoculars and tackled Bane. A bullet plowed in the sand. It would have struck Bane if not for Jesse’s quick actions. Another bullet struck the piece of driftwood to Jesse’s left. Crouching to make themselves as small a target as possible, Jesse and Bane ran for the Jeep and knelt behind it.
Jesse flung open the car door and reached under the seat for his gun. Bane grabbed up the binoculars lying on the ground. He squinted as he stared through them. Jesse waited to see where the shots were coming from.
“He’s leaving,” Bane said. “In a blue car. I can’t tell what kind from here.”
“Let me see.” Jesse took the binoculars, but the car was kicking up too much dust to make out a license number.
He put down the binoculars and looked at Bane. “I’m not sure it’s safe for you to go to the meeting after all.”
Bane shrugged. “I’m not afraid.”
“I’ll go.” Kaia stood on the porch. Dressed in white shorts and a red top, she looked too fragile to take on a sniper, but her dark eyes were cool and determined as she stared at Jesse. “I heard the shots. I’ve been to one meeting already. A woman can blend in better anyway. There are more women there than you might imagine.”
“Not someone who looks like you,” Jesse said. “You’d stand out in any crowd. I’ll go.”
“Oh sure. A haole like you will blend right in,” she scoffed.
She didn’t say the word haole like a slur, so Jesse knew she meant only that he was fair skinned and blond. “And a woman will blend? Not likely.”
“There were other women there. No one will notice me,” she insisted.
“Nahele will recognize you.”
“I’ll stay to the back of the crowd. There are lots of shadows in the mill.”
Jesse didn’t see how that was possible, but he could tell by the look on her face that she wasn’t going to listen to reason. “I want you to be wired if you go,” he said. “I’ll get the equipment from Steve.”
“I’m not wearing a wire. Where would I hide it?” She shook her head. “I won’t stay long. If I’m not back to the boat by eight, you can come looking for me.”
“I don’t like it,” Jesse said.
“Me neither.” Bane scowled and shook his head.
“Neither of you will change my mind. Nahele won’t see me.”
“What if Mano sees you?”
“Mano would die before he let anyone harm me.”
Jesse could only hope and pray she was right.
Twenty-three
Kaia pleated her mu′umu′u with nervous fingers. The soft flowers had seemed a good choice when she first put it on, as everyone else would likely be dressed in alohawear as well, but driving toward the meeting place, she wished she’d chosen something black. The dress seemed to scream, “Look at me,” and she didn’t want to call attention to herself.
The old rice mill parking lot was packed with cars. That was a good sign. The crowd should be large enough to hide in. She parked beside her brother’s truck. If she had to run from someone, she wanted him close enough to help her. In spite of all they suspected, she knew Mano would never let someone harm her.
She fell into step behind a group of five people heading to the mill. The two women in the group had clothing similar to Kaia’s, so she hoped to blend in and be thought to be part of them.
“They’re predicting a storm tonight,” a man in the group said.
“All I’d heard was the usual passing windward and mauka showers,” one of the women said.