“In encryption?” Grant asked.
Fay shook her head. “Jessica has a stake in one of the biggest extreme sports tourism companies in Queenstown.”
“I’m not much more than an investor, but I come up with some of the ideas for new activities. The best perk is that I get to beta test all of the new experiences. Other than that, I spend most of my time on the slopes or the hiking trails around Queenstown.”
Tyler was surprised by none of this. One of the things that had attracted him to Jess in the first place was her outgoing nature, willing to try anything and everything, convincing him to take risks that he might not have without her. She was an excellent skier, rock climber, and swimmer, and she loved spending time outdoors. Jess had always been more interested in play than work, so it sounded like the new gig was a perfect fit for her.
Jess turned into the drive of a small bungalow with an expansive view of the lake and the Remarkables range behind it.
They got out and Fay took Grant’s arm. “I bet you’re as hungry as I am. Come help me make lunch.”
“Happy to,” Grant said, and they went into the house, leaving Jess and Tyler alone outside.
“Nice place,” Tyler said.
“It does the job. I’m not here much so I don’t need a lot of space.” She turned to him and gave him a serious look. “I was sorry to hear about your wife’s passing.”
Tyler did the head bob he always used to acknowledge that kind of sentiment. He’d gotten accustomed to it over the years, and everyone seemed to understand what the gesture meant.
“And I’m sorry about your parents.” After an awkward silence, he said, “Jess, what’s going on here?”
“With my grandmother?”
He nodded.
“She’s told me her story so many times, I’d come to think of it as a myth. Now I don’t know what to think.”
“What story?”
“She’ll have to tell you. She’s much better at it.”
“I’ll be interested to hear it. Then Grant and I will have to be on our way. Given what happened today, we thought it would be prudent to head back to Seattle tomorrow.”
“That’s why I asked Nana to take Grant inside. I want to hire you.”
Tyler was taken aback. “I wasn’t going to charge Fay for the consult.”
“No, I want to hire you to find out why someone tried to kill her. She’s the only family I have left in the world, and I owe it to her. Especially now that she has nowhere else to go.”
Tyler hesitated, so Jess went on. “If you’re worried about the price, I can afford whatever you charge.”
“It’s not that. It’s just … I mean, Roswell?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but you have to admit there must be something to these artifacts she has if someone wanted them badly enough to chase you down the Shotover River for them.”
Tyler looked out over the water, then back at Jess. “I can’t make any promises. I need to hear what Fay has to say.”
Jess smiled. “Oh, and by the way …” With both hands she pulled Tyler’s head down and planted a kiss on him. For a second he was a college junior again, and his stomach did a flip as he lost himself in the moment.
Jess stepped back and said, “That’s for saving Nana’s life this morning.” She walked into the house, leaving Tyler to wonder what just happened.
EIGHT
Jess was pleased with herself. Not because she had kissed Tyler. Ever since she’d seen him this morning, she’d had the overwhelming urge to do that. What she was proud of was that she had the willpower to go no further.
Tyler had aged well. He used to be as lanky as dried linguini, but obviously he’d filled out during his Army years. Though the sun had weathered him a bit, the lines on his face and long jagged scar on his neck added a rugged dimension to his tousled hair, strong jaw limned with a two-day stubble, and alert blue eyes. Now she recalled why he was the one she’d approached in history class. At first he hadn’t gotten the hint, so she’d maneuvered herself into getting invited to a party he was attending.
She smiled at the memories and opened the front door of her house. Jess turned to Tyler and said, “Well, aren’t you coming?”
Tyler recovered from his flabbergasted reaction and nodded, walking in her direction.
She found Fay and Grant making ham-and-cheese sandwiches in the kitchen.
“I think we all need a drink,” she said, and grabbed four bottles of Newcastle from the fridge. She popped the top on hers and took a long draught.
Tyler came in, spotted the beers, and drained half a bottle without a word.
“We haven’t been properly introduced,” Jess said to Grant. “My name is Jess McBride. Only Nana calls me Jessica.”
“Grant Westfield,” he said, wiping some mustard on a paper towel before shaking her hand.
“You work for Gordian Engineering, too?”
“Electrical engineer. Tyler recruited me into the firm. We did stints together in both Iraq and Afghanistan when I served in his combat engineering company as his first sergeant.”
“Then he abandoned us to join the Rangers,” Tyler said.
“His company?” Jess asked.
“Tyler was captain of the unit. And I didn’t abandon him. He left to start Gordian.”
“Why do you look familiar?” Fay said to Grant.
“You might remember Grant as the guy who gave up his pro wrestling career to join up,” Tyler said.
Jess didn’t follow sports much except during the Olympics. She looked at Fay, who shook her head.
“No, I think it’s because you remind me of that man on the reality show. The handsome bald one. I can’t remember which one now. It’ll come to me. But you do look a little like my husband. He had your type of muscular build.”
Tyler knew Jess’s background, but Grant gave her a new once-over at this tidbit of info.
“My grandfather was full-blooded Maori,” Jess explained. “That’s why you’d think I was Nana’s adopted grandchild.”
“Nonsense,” Fay said. “She looks exactly like her mother, who looked just like me.”
“And it seems like she got her sense of adventure from you,” Tyler said.
“That’s why she’s so good at coming up with the company’s tour packages.”
“Like what?”
Jess ticked them off using her fingers. “We’ve got six bungee-jumping locations, skydiving tours, kayaking trips, heli-skiing, white-water rafting. Just about anything you can name. Except jet boats. And we’re working on that.”
“Sounds like you’ve got a budding empire,” Tyler said.
“It’s in full bloom,” Fay said. “Jess’s company made twenty million dollars last year.”
“Okay, Nana. They don’t need all of the details.”
“I’m just so proud of you, honey.”
“I know.”
Now it was Tyler giving her a new appraisal. “Well, we’ve gone through a lot to get to this point, Fay. What exactly is it that you wanted me to take a look at?”
Fay went to her satchel and removed a hunk of silver metal the size and shape of a Frisbee cut in half. One edge was a smooth curve while the other was jagged, as if it had been hacked apart with a rusty can opener. Jess had seen it a hundred times, but now the attack gave it greater significance.
Fay gave it to Tyler, who held it carefully so that he didn’t cut himself, weighing it with his hands. “Too strong to be aluminum. Feels like a titanium alloy. Or possibly magnesium. I’d have to take it back to a lab to make sure.”
“Can you tell me if it’s from a spaceship?” Fay asked him.
Jess noticed Tyler’s lip curl at the ridiculous question, but he inspected the object carefully before answering. “It definitely looks like it’s been involved in a crash of some kind.” He pointed at the tears in the metal. “You can see evidence of explosive impact here, along with some melting of the material. But this could be from an aircraft. I’ve seen thousands of pieces like it.”