Saving Cascadia by John J. Nance

Author:John J. Nance
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: 2005-09-24T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

CASCADIA ISLAND HOTEL 6:52 P.M.

The explanation that Mary Willis, one of the last guests to check in, had lost her ID was good enough for the front-desk manager. This was, after all, their opening night, and she had apparently arrived on the last successful ferry run and taken the bus tour before appearing with her invitation packet. And, he thought, he was carefully trained to make judgment calls, even if the Patriot Act did require a photo ID of every hotel guest. Besides, far too much was already going wrong to stress out over something so insignificant, especially where a lovely young woman was concerned.

And she had smiled at all the right moments and did not seem nervous, so she passed.

“We’re delighted to have you with us, Ms. Willis,” he said without missing a beat. He knew better than say anything about their sinking ferry. “We have you in the west wing, and here are your key cards and your information packet, and the opening dinner will be starting just a few minutes from now next door at the Casino Ballroom. We have people posted along the way to guide you over.”

“Thank you.” She started to turn away, then turned back. “One other thing… could you tell me if a Dr. Douglas Lam is in the hotel yet?” It was a long shot, she thought, but worth a try. He’d left his lab in Seattle, and his staff thought he might be headed to the island. The information had changed her plans.

The manager entered a few keystrokes in the computer and nodded. “Dr. Lam checked in just a while ago. If you’d like to pick up one of the house phones, the operator will connect you.”

“Thank you,” she replied, smiling at him.

A voice was calling someone from across the lobby, and with a start she heard her name.

“Diane!” a man bellowed. “How are you?”

She jumped slightly but forced herself not to turn and look, bending instead to pick up her bag as another woman answered the shout from somewhere behind her.

Diane Lacombe suppressed the flutter of fright in her stomach and walked as calmly as she could toward the elevators, reminding herself of her assumed identity. The possibility that someone on the island would recognize her had crossed her mind very briefly, but the urgent pursuit of Douglas Lam had forced all other worries aside—including the possibility that one of Mick Walker’s people—or Mick himself—might spot her.

Or someone less friendly, she thought suddenly, a rush of realization sweeping over her like a dizzy spell.

She rode quietly and stepped from the elevator onto her floor, hearing her heart pound and grateful the corridor was empty.

The door to her plush room was two doors down and she opened it quickly, stepped inside, and shut it behind her, standing still and breathing hard as her thoughts reconnected with a reality she’d shoved aside. She’d dropped out of sight in a panic, leaving a mess behind her with even her family thinking she was dead, all to get away from whoever was searching for what she had.

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