“And you were going to send me off to bed so that I wouldn’t have to gnaw my nails waiting to hear.” She smiled without mirth. “You’re trying to protect me again. Don’t do it. The only one you should worry about is Eve.”
“No, I should protect you, too. I promised Eve when she called.” He reached out and squeezed her shoulder. “Not that I wouldn’t anyway. But it would help if I had a little help when I’m not around. Where the hell is Caleb? Why didn’t he come back to the cottage with you?”
She shrugged. “How do I know? We’re not joined at the hip. I told you that I dropped him off at the airport on my way here.” She gazed at him curiously. “And why do you care? He’s definitely not your favorite person.”
“No, he’s not. But I’ve never met a more lethal individual. He’s self-serving and damn volatile, but he comes in handy at times.” He met her eyes. “And he has a reason to keep you alive.”
“I have a reason to keep myself alive. I have to get Eve away from Doane. And I don’t need Caleb or anyone else standing guard over me when they could be concentrating on doing that, too.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. “And that goes for you, Joe. Now, I’m going inside to make us a cup of coffee while you focus on Venable. It’s driving me crazy just sitting here and—” She stiffened. “Headlights.” Her gaze was fastened on the car coming down the lake road. “Venable?”
“Maybe.”
But as the car drew up before the cottage, the porch lights fell on the windshield, and she recognized the driver. “Not Venable. It’s Caleb.” She started down the steps. “Speak of the devil.”
“That’s too close a comparison,” Joe said dryly. “But for once I’m glad to see him. That may not happen again.”
“Then be polite to him. We owe him. I’ve been using him as a pilot since London. He didn’t have to—” She stopped on the bottom step, her eyes widening as she saw who was in the passenger seat next to Caleb. “What the hell? Margaret?”
“None other,” Caleb said as he got out of the driver’s seat. “If I can wake her up. She’s been sleeping since she got into the car at the airport. She curled up like a kitten, and it was lights out.” He shook his head. “Very rude, Margaret.”
“I was tired.” Margaret’s hand covered a yawn. “I had to work really hard to find a safe way to get here. If you’d let me come with you, it would have been much better, Caleb.”
“I promised Jane that I wouldn’t encourage you. Isn’t that right, Jane?”
“It doesn’t look to me as if you kept that promise,” Jane said grimly as she watched Margaret get out of the car. The girl’s hair was tousled and her shirt and jeans rumpled, but as she came awake, her smile was just as sunny as Jane remembered. “Is that why you had me drop you off at the airport, Caleb?”
Caleb nodded. “Margaret called me from San Juan and told me she thought she had a lift to get her here and asked me to pick her up.” He shrugged. “What could I do? I couldn’t let her wander around a strange city alone.”
“Evidently, she manages to wander around the world by herself just fine,” she said. “Look how she got to Summer Island.”
“That’s different. You wouldn’t have wanted to accept the responsibility.”
He was right. The reason she had insisted he not take Margaret was so that Margaret wouldn’t become involved. Now that the girl had overridden all the obstacles Jane had tried to put in her path, she couldn’t just toss her out. But it didn’t make Jane any less exasperated with her. “Why, Margaret? I told you that I didn’t need you.”
“But you don’t know that.” Margaret reached in the backseat and brought out her duffel. “I can be very useful. By the way, I called Devon from the airport after I landed, and she said Toby was on his feet and very spry.”
“I know. I called her a few hours ago. Stop changing the subject.”
“I was just reminding you that I’m a proven commodity in the useful department. I thought it couldn’t hurt.” Margaret smiled back over her shoulder. “And Caleb tried to do what you wanted. Don’t be angry with him.”
“Are you trying to protect him? Don’t waste the effort. He doesn’t need it.”
“Sure he does. We all need a little help now and then.” She made a face at Caleb. “But I could have used a little more to get me out of San Juan. If Mark Trevor hadn’t put me in touch with Gadsden Canine Rescue, it would have taken me a lot longer to get here.”
Jane stiffened. “Trevor. You know Mark Trevor?”
“Well, not really know him,” Margaret said. “I met him in the waiting room at the hospital. He was very curious about me when I told him I was there to visit you. He already knew a lot about what had happened on the island. He said he knew quite a few people around the Caribbean, and if I needed help, to give him a call.” She beamed at them. “So I did.”
“You didn’t tell me that Trevor was involved in getting you out of San Juan,” Caleb said softly. “Why not?”
“You didn’t ask me. No, that’s not quite true. Trevor said that it would be better if I didn’t mention him to you. He didn’t care about Jane’s knowing, but he said you were a bit touchy where he’s concerned. Are you?”
“You could say that.” He glanced at Jane. “It didn’t matter to him that you didn’t want her here. He wanted to remind you that he was still in your life.”
Margaret nodded. “I thought that might be it.” She looked beyond Jane to Joe, who was still standing on the top step. “Hi, Detective Quinn. I didn’t mean to ignore you, but it’s a little tense. I really think I can help find Eve Duncan. Is it all right if I stay a little while and find out what’s happening? I won’t get in the way.”
Joe gazed at her a moment, and said, “Why not? You’re here, and there’s not much we can do unless we turn you over to be deported.” He shook his head. “I don’t want to do that. You helped save Jane’s dog, and Eve and I love Toby. We can work out the legalities later.”
Her smile widened to brilliance. “Thank you. I’ll see that you don’t get in trouble because of me.” She turned to Jane. “See, everything is going to work out. Detective Quinn knows that my being here is a good thing.”
“I didn’t say that,” Joe said dryly.
“But you’re very smart, and you sense things. Of course you realize that I’ll be able to help.” She started up the steps. “Would you mind if I took a shower and washed the dog smell off? I don’t mind it, but you all might. I was with six rescue dogs on that flight to Atlanta, and I had to be practically on top of Bruno, a German shepherd, who has nerve problems. That’s why the rescue group let me come along with them. Bruno was terrified of flying and they usually had to dope him. But he’d grown almost immune over the last couple years of use. I promised that I’d keep him calm and happy.” She added, “And that I’d work with him when I was finished here and make sure that he’d be okay with flying without meds.”
“You can do that?” Joe’s eyes were narrowed. “Jane told me some fairly amazing things about you. I found it … interesting.”
“I can do it.” She met his gaze. “And Jane doesn’t really know anything about me. What she does know, she’s not sure she believes. I knew I was going to have a tough time convincing her to let me do payback.” She tilted her head, gazing at him. “But you’re thinking that I might be useful to you. I think you’ve already decided on a way.”
“Possibly.”
“Joe,” Jane said. “She’s not much more than a kid.”
“Let me think about it.” Joe turned away. “Why don’t you make that coffee while I decide whether I’m going to take her up on her offer.”
“You do have something in mind,” Jane said. “What?”
But Joe had already gone into the house.
“Am I invited for coffee?” Caleb asked. “Or am I to be punished for dumping Margaret on your doorstep?”
“You’re invited.” Jane grimaced. “She would have found some way to get out here from the airport even if she had to hitchhike.”
“You’re right,” Margaret said. “But hitchhiking can be dangerous. I preferred to tap Caleb.” She chuckled. “Though he can be sort of risky, too. But not to me.”