Chapter 10

"Some vacation this is turning out to be for you," Janet lamented to Jack, as they strolled through the lush green grounds of Robin Masters' estate.

Janet's bodyguard, a well-built, stocky man with blonde hair and probing green eyes, watched them discreetly from a safe distance while the dogs patrolled the area at Jonathan Higgins' command.

"It hasn't been that bad," Jack answered. "We've attended a luau, Thomas was able to get us an up close and personal tour of Pearl Harbor, and I can say I've been on Waikiki Beach. I'm doing fine. It's you I'm worried about."

"I wish I could be working or at least be more helpful in figuring out what's going on."

"Does Magnum talk about the case with you at all?"

"Not really. He says there's not much to report. According to what Mr. Pineda told him, there's not much action on the Big Island and now that Rafael is in protective custody, they don't know what the gang's next move might be."

Jack stopped walking and looked around at the impressive acreage.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say Robin Masters, the elusive novelist, arranged all this himself. I've leafed through a couple of his books since we've been here. This scenario sounds exactly like something he would write about."

"I wish this were fiction," Janet said and let out a heavy sigh. "Or a dream where I could wake up and know my life was still normal."

"Have you thought about what you are going to do once this nightmare is over?"

Janet shook her head. "I can't think about anything until this nightmare is over, Jack. How do I know how things are going to end? There may be nothing for me to plan for."

Jack placed the palms of his hands on either of Janet's slender shoulders and forced her to look at him.

"Don't ever say that. Don't even think that. Of course, there will be a future for you to plan for once this is over."

"You don't know that, Jack," she said, letting her utmost fear surface in the presence of her trusted friend.

Weary from trying to shrug off the feeling of impending doom and acting as though this was an every day occurrence, Janet let her guard down. She knew she had to release some of her worry before it totally consumed her and left her emotionally and mentally paralyzed.

"If you're really that afraid," Jack said, deciding to take the opportunity he had been given and voice an idea he had been toying with, "then why don't you leave Oahu and return to LA with me?"

"What if they follow us to LA?"

"Would it really be worth it to them? It seems to me they want Magnum and Pineda's son and maybe Pineda himself. If you were to remove yourself from any connection to them, wouldn't they leave you alone?"

Janet shrugged tiredly and Jack saw the effect this whole ordeal was having on her.

"Can we be sure?" was her reply.

No, Jack silently agreed and mentally kicked himself. At this point, none of them could be sure about anything.

Returning from work, Terri entered the main house and when she didn't find Janet or Jack, she headed for the guest house, thinking they might be with Thomas. She knocked on the door; Thomas let her in.

"Hi," she said and smiled as Thomas ushered her into the house.

She made her way down the stairs, mentioning that she hadn't seen Jack and Janet.

"They went for a walk on the grounds," Thomas said.

"I hope they're being guarded."

"They are. The dogs are on patrol, and Frank is watching them from a close distance."

"Good."

"You must have been in a hurry to find them," Thomas observed, noting the fact she was still wearing her nurse's uniform. "You haven't even changed your clothes."

Terri looked down at her crisp white uniform and nodded.

"I guess I'm more nervous about this whole situation than I care to admit. I don't know. The house seemed eerie when I entered it and didn't find Jack or Janet. I know I'm being silly, but..."

"I don't think you're being silly at all," Thomas assured her. "It's obvious how much you care about your friends. Why don't you make yourself comfortable while I get us something to drink?"

"Okay."

Terri sat on the sofa and couldn't help but to observe Thomas as he poured each of them a glass of soda. The shorts he wore revealed his tanned muscular legs. She had seen him running on the beach and swimming in the tidal pool so she knew just how strong those legs were. Not to mention the rest of him. When her thoughts began to go in a direction she knew she couldn't allow them to, she quickly averted her gaze. Looking down, she noticed a photograph on the coffee table of a smiling Thomas holding a young girl in his arms.

After he had made himself comfortable next to her and handed Terri her drink, she decided to ask him about the picture.

"I couldn't help but to notice that photo," she said, pointing to it. "You look very happy there. Is the little girl a friend or relative of yours?"

Thomas picked up the photo which always brought a smile to his lips.

"This is my daughter Lily."

Terri almost spilled her drink. His daughter? But how? When? And where was she?

"Is she here?" Terri finally asked, once she had regained some of her composure.

"No," he answered, his voice suddenly filled with sadness. "They're trying to make me believe she's dead, but I know she's alive. It's just a matter of time before I'm able to put the pieces together and bring her home where she belongs."

"Who's trying to make you believe she's dead?"

Thomas returned the picture to the table and looked at Terri long and hard as if studying her.

"It's way too complicated to talk about," he said.

He saw the way Terri lowered her eyes and realized he had been too abrupt with her. He quickly tried to remedy the situation.

"It's not that I don't want to talk about it," he hastened to add.

Terri rose from the sofa.

"No, it's okay. It's none of my business, actually. I realize we hardly know each other. I shouldn't have expected you to just spill the details of what is obviously a very private and serious subject. I'm sorry."

Thomas placed his glass on the table and rose to stand across from Terri.

"Hey," he said, tipping her chin with his index finger, "please don't apologize. I shouldn't have been so quick to dismiss your concern. It's just that...well, it's not something I talk about much. Other than TC and Rick, no one knows the whole story. Not even Higgins, although he knows some of it."

"I understand. Rick and TC are your best friends. You guys have been through everything together. I shouldn't have pried. It wasn't my place. Forget I said anything. Okay?"

"No," Thomas said, continuing to gaze at Terri's attractive and concerned face. "I won't forget it. I don't want to forget it. I see how you care for your friends, too. In that regard, I think we have a lot in common, and I think we have some of the best friends in the world."

"I know I do," Terri admitted freely.

"I do, too," Thomas said, his voice lower than it had been. "And I know you can't take that for granted. It's true I'm searching for my daughter, but I also have a responsibility to your friends. I want this to be over, so Janet can be safe again."

Terri nodded. "I know you're doing everything you can."

After an awkward few moments had passed, Terri headed for the staircase.

"I should go," she said. "Like you said, I didn't even change out of my work clothes."

With an unreadable expression on his face, Thomas watched Terri ascend the stairs. When she reached the top landing, he looked up and spoke to her.

"When it's not so crazy," he said, thinking she would be someone he could easily confide in, "maybe we can talk. If you still want to, that is."

She nodded and left him with a smile.

Oh, she would want to, she thought, as she headed back to the main house. She would definitely want to.

Jack and Janet sat on a bench near the tidal pool and watched the waves as they crashed against the shore.

"What do you think?" Jack finally asked. "Should we mention my idea to Magnum?"

"I guess we could," Janet said, not sounding very convincing.

"But from the tone of your voice, you don't want to," Jack guessed.

Janet rose from her seat and stared out at the vast blue ocean that looked so serene.

"What will there be for me in LA?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her. "I've started a new life here. Or, at least, I've tried to."

"You would have me," Jack said, throwing out the comment to see what Janet's reaction would be.

She turned and offered her best friend a small smile, which he gladly returned.

"That's so sweet," she said, touched by his words which offered him a glimmer of hope, "but I'd have to make it on my own, Jack. The way I've been trying to do here. There are just some things I know I need to do for myself."

"Of course, you would make it on your own," he agreed. "I know you're an independent, '80's kind of woman. I would never take that away from you."

"I was just starting to feel like that again, and then this happens."

"So, we get through this, and then you can start living the life you want again."

Janet gave him a doubtful look as he made his way to her.

"Only this time," he said, wanting nothing more than to reach out and hold her, "maybe you'll be starting that new life in California."

Janet continued to look at him but didn't answer as the words "with me" were left unspoken, for the moment, by the man who had come to realize just how much he wanted Janet to return with him to Los Angeles.