“I guess I’d better give you some background.”
Mano wished he would get to the point. “Okay.”
“You ever play craps, Mano?”
Mano blinked. Where was Noah going with this? “Not really. I put a quarter in a one-armed bandit once.”
“Good for you. Don’t ever get started.” He lifted his head and stared at Mano. “We’re a lot alike, I think. You live for the thrill of a new adventure. I can see it in your eyes. So did I once. I gambled and lost my family, my reputation, my career. Take a tip from me and learn to temper that adventurous spirit. The thrill of the chase doesn’t last. An empty house is pretty lonely.”
Mano moved restlessly. Noah’s observations hit a little too close to the mark. “You’d better get on with what you have to say.”
“Our type is always in a hurry.” Noah stared into space. “Sometimes all we’re left with is time.” He blinked, and his eyes came back into focus. “Are you aware there’s going to be a casino on the island? And more than just a casino. A bunch of hotels and homes.”
Mano frowned. “No, but I guess it shouldn’t surprise me. Casinos are a blight everywhere else.”
“They promised me a great job if I could make sure Jillian’s research wasn’t published. So I changed it, made it suit their purposes. I thought I could make her understand. But I don’t even have the words to try to explain it to her.”
Noah’s babbles made no sense to Mano. “Why are you telling me this? What’s this have to do with me being in the navy?”
“I want my family back, and the only way for that to happen is for me to tell the truth. But that might get me killed. If you poke around on your own and uncover the story, I’ll be free to tell what I know.”
“Seems a convoluted way to go about it. Just tell the truth and ask for police protection. Talk to a reporter for added protection.”
“I don’t have any proof. It would be just my word against theirs. If you find out what’s going on, there would be something to go on.”
“You’re not making any sense. How could having a casino on the island lead you to steal your wife’s research?”
Noah hesitated. “Jillian’s research—the research that didn’t get published—concluded that a new magma chamber was growing under the area they want to develop.”
“Weren’t they concerned all their money would be thrown away if an eruption occurred?”
“At this stage, they’d lose more if word got out. They’re neck-deep in contracts. Besides, I told them what they wanted to hear— that it was likely flawed data.”
“Is it?”
Noah shrugged. “Maybe. It’s hard to say. Jillian is a good vol-canologist, but even if she’s right, it wouldn’t happen for years.”
“I didn’t think these things could be predicted so easily.”
“They can’t. I doubted that anything would happen in the next twenty years. They’d rake in millions before it happened—if it ever did. And money was tight. My company was downsizing; my job was on the chopping block. I had to do something. So I took their money and published the research as my own. I hadn’t counted on Jillian throwing such a tantrum.”
“You’re an idiot,” Mano said. “You trashed Jillian’s professional reputation, then expected her to forget it?”
“I miscalculated.” A muscle in Noah’s jaw flexed.
“What about publishing a retraction? That should be simple enough. You don’t need me for that.”
Noah shook his head. “They’d make sure I never got it to print.”
Mano blinked slowly as he thought. “What’s the area in question?”
“They’re buying up Aloha Shores and several private tracts. The Tagama’s land and the mountain just behind it.”
Mano hadn’t heard of any offers to buy the Tagama land. Then he thought of the money in Tomi’s bankbook. Had he secretly sold the family’s land to the casino? Alarm should be setting his nerves on edge, but a strange lethargy played havoc with his
Mano wished he would get to the point. “Okay.”
“You ever play craps, Mano?”
Mano blinked. Where was Noah going with this? “Not really. I put a quarter in a one-armed bandit once.”
“Good for you. Don’t ever get started.” He lifted his head and stared at Mano. “We’re a lot alike, I think. You live for the thrill of a new adventure. I can see it in your eyes. So did I once. I gambled and lost my family, my reputation, my career. Take a tip from me and learn to temper that adventurous spirit. The thrill of the chase doesn’t last. An empty house is pretty lonely.”
Mano moved restlessly. Noah’s observations hit a little too close to the mark. “You’d better get on with what you have to say.”
“Our type is always in a hurry.” Noah stared into space. “Sometimes all we’re left with is time.” He blinked, and his eyes came back into focus. “Are you aware there’s going to be a casino on the island? And more than just a casino. A bunch of hotels and homes.”
Mano frowned. “No, but I guess it shouldn’t surprise me. Casinos are a blight everywhere else.”
“They promised me a great job if I could make sure Jillian’s research wasn’t published. So I changed it, made it suit their purposes. I thought I could make her understand. But I don’t even have the words to try to explain it to her.”
Noah’s babbles made no sense to Mano. “Why are you telling me this? What’s this have to do with me being in the navy?”
“I want my family back, and the only way for that to happen is for me to tell the truth. But that might get me killed. If you poke around on your own and uncover the story, I’ll be free to tell what I know.”
“Seems a convoluted way to go about it. Just tell the truth and ask for police protection. Talk to a reporter for added protection.”
“I don’t have any proof. It would be just my word against theirs. If you find out what’s going on, there would be something to go on.”
“You’re not making any sense. How could having a casino on the island lead you to steal your wife’s research?”
Noah hesitated. “Jillian’s research—the research that didn’t get published—concluded that a new magma chamber was growing under the area they want to develop.”
“Weren’t they concerned all their money would be thrown away if an eruption occurred?”
“At this stage, they’d lose more if word got out. They’re neck-deep in contracts. Besides, I told them what they wanted to hear— that it was likely flawed data.”
“Is it?”
Noah shrugged. “Maybe. It’s hard to say. Jillian is a good vol-canologist, but even if she’s right, it wouldn’t happen for years.”
“I didn’t think these things could be predicted so easily.”
“They can’t. I doubted that anything would happen in the next twenty years. They’d rake in millions before it happened—if it ever did. And money was tight. My company was downsizing; my job was on the chopping block. I had to do something. So I took their money and published the research as my own. I hadn’t counted on Jillian throwing such a tantrum.”
“You’re an idiot,” Mano said. “You trashed Jillian’s professional reputation, then expected her to forget it?”
“I miscalculated.” A muscle in Noah’s jaw flexed.
“What about publishing a retraction? That should be simple enough. You don’t need me for that.”
Noah shook his head. “They’d make sure I never got it to print.”
Mano blinked slowly as he thought. “What’s the area in question?”
“They’re buying up Aloha Shores and several private tracts. The Tagama’s land and the mountain just behind it.”
Mano hadn’t heard of any offers to buy the Tagama land. Then he thought of the money in Tomi’s bankbook. Had he secretly sold the family’s land to the casino? Alarm should be setting his nerves on edge, but a strange lethargy played havoc with his
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