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Chapter 15
Don Flack was upset. He wanted to go over there to Hawaii himself and find out what was going on. He would have to talk to the chief about that, however. He was sure he would say no, but he would try anyway. Don came out of the elevator at the chief's office. He straightened his tie and went over to the secretary. "I need to see the chief right away," Don said.
"I'll let him know you're here, Don," the secretary said and smiled at him.
"Thanks."
Don went over to the waiting area and sat down. He was uneasy around that secretary, Dorothy. She was always flirting with him and he did not have an attraction to her. He had to admit she was pretty but he just did not want to get into anything like that at the moment. He waited impatiently for the chief to get time to see him. "Would you like some coffee?" Dorothy asked.
"No thanks," Don replied. "I'll just wait."
"So, what's going on?"
Don looked at Dorothy who was leaning on her desk as though he had her full attention. "It's between me and the chief," Don said. "It's not office gossip."
Dorothy looked incredulous. "Are you saying that I gossip?"
"Everybody gossips."
Finally, the chief was ready to see Don. Don walked into the office where Chief Sinclair was sitting behind his desk. "Flack, what brings you up here?" he asked.
Don was not sure how to explain his reason for coming up there. "You know that Mac and Jo went on a vacation," he began.
Sinclair nodded. "Yes, they went on a cruise to Hawaii." He looked at Don. "Why?"
"They're missing."
Sinclair sat up from leaning back on his chair. "What do you mean, missing?"
"Nobody knows where they are, Chief. They're not on the ship, but all their things are in the cabin. They're not registered to have left the ship and they did not check into their hotel. They did not inform the hotel that they would not be coming and they did not inform them that they had another hotel."
Sinclair scowled as he thought about that. "So, what do they think happened to them?" he asked.
"They don't know."
Sinclair stared at Don. "And you want to go over there and see if you can find out what's going on," he said.
"Chief, you know that Melinda Holmes is out of prison," Don said.
Sinclair leaned on his desk. "You think she got on that ship and did something to Mac and Jo?" he asked.
Don sighed. "I don't know," he said. "I know it's not like them to be out of touch and I know Jo would call her daughter."
Sinclair knew how close Jo was to her daughter. He had to agree with that. He looked at Don. "You also know that the Pacific Ocean is a very big place."
Don frowned. "Yes I do."
"If they're not on that ship and not at that hotel, there's only one place they could be."
Don swallowed hard. "Chief, I have to try and find out," he said.
Sinclair shook his head. He understood Don's anguish. He hated the thought that Mac and Jo might have been thrown off the ship. "You know that the odds are not favorable that they survived if they were thrown out," he said.
Don almost felt helpless. "If there's any kind of chance, Mac could make it," he said. "He's a strong swimmer."
"But is he that strong?"
"I want to find out if Melinda Holmes was on that ship," Don declared.
"You think she would use her real name?" Sinclair asked.
"I have to go over there, Chief. I can show her picture to the captain and the others and see if they saw her."
Sinclair nodded. He picked up his pen and took out a form. "I'll give you some leave, Don," he said. "But don't go over there and get into trouble." He pointed his finger at Don. "Those ship captains don't like anyone stepping on their territory."
"What about Danny? Can't he go with me?"
Sinclair shook his head. "Someone has to take care of that lab," he said. "You're on your own. I don't want anyone else over there getting into trouble."
"I don't intend to get into trouble." Don got his phone and texted Danny and told him what he was about to do.
Danny could not believe it. He hoped Mac and Jo were not out there in the ocean somewhere. He had to admit that there was not any other explanation. If they had been thrown off the ship, could they survive even the fall? Would the person who threw them out let them be able to survive?
Danny went into the lab where Lindsey was. "They think Mac and Jo might have been thrown off the ship," he said.
Lindsey's mouth dropped open with a gasp. "What?" she asked.
"That's what Don just said. He's about to go over to Hawaii to see what he can find out."
Lindsey was shocked. She looked at Danny. "Do they think it was Melinda Holmes?" she asked.
"That's probably what Don thinks. I wouldn't doubt it."
"Who's going with him?"
"Well, he didn't ask me."
Lindsey looked at Danny. "This is hard to believe," she said.
"You can say that again," Danny replied.
"Do you think they could survive?"
"If anybody could, Mac could."
"You think they're stranded out there on an island somewhere?"
Danny shook his head. "I don't know. If they survived, they must be somewhere like that."
"Danny, do you know how many deserted islands there are out there?"
"No. Do you?"
"Hundreds."
Danny and Lindsey were silent for a moment. They could not imagine Mac and Jo out there anywhere and they certainly could not imagine anyone being able to find them. "Are they going to be lost forever?" Lindsey asked.
"No," Danny said. "They can't."
Don Flack got his leave in place and went to his apartment. He packed his Hawaiian shirts because he wanted to look like a vacationer while he was over there. He had already called and got a flight to Hawaii. Of course, he had to get across this country first. It would take at least until tomorrow to get there. He just hoped Mac and Jo were safe somewhere.
When Don had everything packed, he got a cab to the airport. He was anxious about the whole situation. Would they ever find Mac and Jo? He shook his head with that thought. They had to find them. He could not stand the thought of his friends being lost out there somewhere in the ocean with no hope or on an island somewhere. What if they had been eaten with sharks? Don had even heard of an area in the ocean where there were whirlpools that captured debris and everything and it all stayed right there. What if Mac and Jo got stuck in that?
Don blew out a breath. He was getting carried away. He wanted to figure out where Mac and Jo had been thrown out of that ship and which way they might have been carried by currents or whatever. If he knew Mac at all, he knew he would try to survive and he would do his best to keep Jo alive.
Don arrived at the airport and went through the security. He sighed with relief after he got through that. It was a harrowing experience to say the least. He checked his luggage and went to the right gate. He looked out the window at the plane. He paced back and forth. He did not think he could just sit down and wait. He was too nervous. This was a serious situation. He leaned on the wall and watched the people walking by. His attention suddenly settled on one person in particular that he saw walking by. He walked to the entrance of the gate waiting room and watched as Melinda Holmes and two men were walking toward the exit and they had luggage with them.
Don grabbed his phone and called Danny. "Messer," Danny answered.
"Danny, I just saw Melinda Holmes walk by here on her way out of this airport," Don said.
Danny stood up. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely positive. She and two of her men walking together and they had luggage with them."
Danny's mind was racing now. "Can you find out where she's been?" he asked.
Don looked at his watch. "My flight leaves in fifteen minutes." Just as he said that, he heard the boarding announcement. "I got to get on the plane."
"Lindsey and I will find out," Danny said. "What gate are you at?"
"Thirty-three. She was coming from further up."
"We'll find it," Danny said as he wrote that down.
Don got in line to board the plane. "We have to figure this out," he said. "I know something is wrong."
"We'll figure it out, Don, but I don't know if I'm going to like the outcome."
"Me neither but we have to try."
Don put his phone away. He felt despair now. What could have happened to Mac and Jo? What if they had been killed and thrown off the ship? He thought Melinda was too cautious to have blood on the ship in her wake. He wondered if she had come in with a different name. Even if she did, he was sure that someone would recognize that woman. She walked with a flare and she liked getting attention. She had used Mac just to prove that she could do it. Don wished he could put that woman behind bars and throw away the key. People like that did not deserve to be walking around free and going on vacations. They were the ones who made life hard for people like him and other innocent people who were simply trying to make a life for themselves and their families. If she threw Mac and Jo out of that ship, her days were numbered. They would prove that she did it…he did not care how long it took.