Passion in Paradise by Jerry Cole

Author:Jerry Cole [Cole, Jerry]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-01-16T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

The first two stops took them to the homes of friends—one a paddle board instructor, the other a fellow environmentalist—neither of whom had heard from Becca in well over a week and had nothing new by way of suggestions as to where to find her. Bryan kept his hopes up though. Someone has to know something, he kept telling himself.

When they pulled in at the Waikiki Aquarium, Bryan looked at Koni. “Isn’t this where that marine biologist worked?” he asked.

Koni nodded as he unfastened his seatbelt. “Jonny may be gone, but Becca spent a lot of time here. So there might be some other people who knew her.”

“Good thinking,” Bryan said.

They walked up to the building. Koni opened one of the glass doors for Bryan and motioned him inside. The air conditioning hit Bryan in a refreshing wave as he entered the lobby and looked around. He had been to aquariums before. They all had the same smell to them: a salty clean, but with just the slightest edge of fish. Off to the left stood the obligatory gift shop filled with stuffed animals, educational toys and other souvenirs.

Koni pointed out the sign that led to the exhibit hall. “’Conservation and Research,’” he said, reading the last line. “That’s where Jonny worked.”

They approached the ticket desk. “Hello,” Bryan said to the young man working behind the counter. “I was hoping I could speak to someone in the research department who knew Jonathan Hess.”

The employee, dressed in a red shirt with lines of white flowers down the front, responded with a concerned frown. “Are you with Honolulu Police?” he asked.

“Ah, no,” Bryan said, and Koni gave a silent shake of his head. “My name is Bryan. My sister Becca was a close friend of Dr. Hess.”

“You’re Becca Callahan’s brother?” A beautiful black woman with a very short, close-cut afro emerged from the exhibit hall. She wore a pair of khaki shorts and had a photo ID badge clipped to the hem of her light blue tank top. She stepped forward, offering her right hand and a smile by way of greeting. “Hello, I’m Dr. Emma Walker.”

“Bryan Callahan.” He clasped her palm. “You know Becca?”

“Quite well, actually,” she said, the hint of an exotic accent to her smooth voice. “She accompanied me on a few of my dives to record the deterioration of the coral reefs on the leeward side of the island and to assist in gathering samples for study.”

“When is the last time you saw or spoke to Becca?” Bryan asked.

“A few days ago,” Dr. Walker said. “She had stopped by briefly to talk to Jonathan.” Her smile faded and she looked down. “That was the last day I saw him as well. I knew something had to be wrong when I came into work this morning. The door to his office, which he closed and locked at the end of the day, had been open. The whole room was in disarray as well.”

This made Bryan raise his eyebrows. He glanced at Koni, who looked just as surprised.

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