Free The Rachel Scott Adventures, Volume 1 by Traci Hohenstein

other things going on.” Mike blew into his cup before taking a sip of coffee.
    “Like what?” Drake asked.
    “Shawn said he had information about passenger disappearances. Specifically, Mary Ellen Caughlin.”
    “I remember hearing about that,” Rachel said, her eyes still on Mike. “A newlywed on her honeymoon cruise fell overboard. They found blood on the balcony and her husband passed out in one of the hallways. The cruise line said she was drunk and fell overboard.”
    “Yes, that was on the SeaMist . Also owned by the SeaScape conglomerate. Then another girl in her early twenties was on a family vacation and she was reported missing. Her family claimed she was depressed and possibly committed suicide,” Mike said.
    Drake and Rachel exchanged looks. This was fitting in with what Stacy had told them about suspicious disappearances.
    “Was the cruise line somehow involved in those disappearances?” Drake asked.
    “That’s what Shawn thinks,” Mike said. He drained the last of his coffee and pushed the cup away. “He also said one of the bartenders was dealing drugs to other crew members and passengers. We were supposed to meet up after the ship got back to Miami.”
    “How do you think that fits into Amber’s disappearance? Not to mention what happened to Shawn?” Rachel asked.
    “I wish to hell I knew the answer to that. Shawn must have run into some kind of trouble. He would have found a way to check in with us by now,” Mike replied. “He’s one of our best agents. He wouldn’t have put Amber or any other passenger in harm’s way if he could help it.”
    Drake looked down at his ringing phone. “Excuse me,” he said as he got up from the table, “I need to take this.”
    Rachel pushed her hair back out of her face. “It’s been a long day.”
    “Yes, it has.” Mike turned to look at her. They were sitting so close she could smell the fresh, clean scent of his cologne. She wished she had dressed a little nicer than the faded jeans, flip-flops, and white linen shirt she had on. “I’ve heard a lot about you and the wonderful things you are doing with Florida Omni Search.”
    Rachel laughed nervously. “All good things, I hope.” She hated feeling like she had a schoolgirl crush.
    “Drake speaks very highly of you. He told me last night when we spoke about the work you did on the missing Alabama businessman. And of course I heard all about the Boy Scout you rescued from the Everglades.” Mike smiled at her. “I saw you on The Today Show .”
    “What can I say? I found my passion. After years of selling cars and houses, I was burnt out.”
    Mike nodded his head. “I’m sorry about your daughter. I know that must be hard.”
    Rachel nodded. “After Mallory went missing, I couldn’t work, didn’t want to go out, and didn’t want to live anymore. I spent all my nights cruising the streets, thinking I could find her. Spent my days in bed trying to sleep away the pain. It’s better now, but you never forget. Do you have kids?”
    “Yep. A ten-year-old daughter named Addison. I’d go crazy if I lost her.”
    “That’s why I founded Florida Omni Search. I’d been so miserable. Then one day I was watching the news and saw that another boy in Miami had disappeared. Then a week later, a toddler from Orlando disappears. It was like one after another. All these kids were just disappearing without a trace. No one knowing what happened. Something in me just snapped. Here I was with all this money socked away in the bank and I knew that I had to find some way to help. I reached out to Janine, the missing boy’s mom from Miami, and we joined forces to find these missing kids.”
    “You’re doing a great thing,” Mike said, reaching out and patting her shoulder. When he touched her, it felt like a current of electricity passed through her body.
    Drake walked back into the diner and threw a twenty-dollar bill on the table.
    “We gotta roll. A lifeboat was found in Freeport. The police