Free Three Weeks Last Spring by Victoria Howard Page A

a call once they've sailed. Will you still be at this number or are you heading back to Friday Harbor ?"
     
    "I'll be here. There are a few things I want to check out. Don't worry; I 'll keep you informed as to my whereabouts ."
     
    "I'll wait for the courier in the morning. Don't burn the midn ight oil too much, ole buddy."
     
    "Yeah, old is right. I'm already losing way too much sleep over this one. Remind me again, why I let you talk me into taking this on? And, Joe, better add this one to my tab, its another favo u r I owe you."
     
    "Hey, if your tab gets any longer buddy, I'll be collecting 'til h ell freezes over, thaws, then freezes over again. Talk to you in the morning."
     
    Walker worked long into the night, correlating lab results, copying the recent newspaper article, the map he had drawn up and pulling all the information he had on PCBs their effects on fish and the food chain. Finally he set about writing his report and recommendations.
     
    Somewhere around four, his eyes burning and no longer able to concentrate, he allowed himself the luxury of a few hours sleep on the office couch. The masculine, rich mahogany colo u red leather couch wasn't built for Walker's tall, powerful frame, but there was no way he was allowi ng the report out of his sight until he placed it in the hands of the courier. He chided himself for being so paranoid. But under the current circumstances, he didn't trust anyone but Joe. He eased his weary body into the most comfortable position possible in the cramped space, and fell into a troubled sleep.
     
    He woke just after seven, and showered and shaved in the executive bathroom, changing into the spare clothes he kept at the office for emergencies. He called the local courier company, and arranged to have his neatly pa ckaged report delivered to Joe.
     
    Three days later a harassed Walker returned to the island. These days, his temper always seemed to be at boiling point and a t wo -hour delay in takeoff due to reduced visibility hadn't helped his demeanor one little bit. Finally receiving clearance, he took off and was now flying relatively low over the straits, on his approach to his landing point at Friday Harbor .
     
    Less than a thousand feet below him, the Coastguard cutter was slowly working lines with the sonar fish. The vessel was moving painstakingly slowly a s t owing a sonar fish smoothly in deep water with strong currents , was not a job for the inexperienced skipper. Annoyingly, it would be another few days before the survey was completed and the results correlated and compared with those of a previous year.
     
    Walker was only too conscious of the fact that his reputation was on the line. He wasn't confident that the survey would turn up anything significant, he could only hope. If it didn't, all his years of hard work establishing his company as a leading authority on environmental issues would be down the pan, and Walker Environmental would lose all credibility. There was no way he was going to give in without a determined fight.
     
    His body ran on a mixture of anger and adrenalin. He was tired beyond belief with the strain, but he knew he couldn't rest until whoever was responsible, was brought to justice. One thought kept turning over in his troubled mind. There was no doubt this was a personal vendetta against him, and he couldn't help feeling there was someone close by watching his every move. They ha d already succeeded in hacking into his computer. What would be next he wondered , a physical attack on his company? A personal assault? And where did his se xy tenant fit into the the scheme of things ?
     
    There was something decidedly odd about Ms Dunbar's timely appearance on the island. It was just too much of a coincidence. Perhaps it was time to storm the castle, or should he say ‘cabin’, and discover just what made the charming Ms Dunbar tick.
     

Chapter Seven
     
     
     
     
     
    Now comfortably settled in the cabin, Skye adopted a peaceful