Dark Moon Walking by R. J. McMillen Page A

to make out the gist of what he was saying.
    Hargreaves still had White Hair at Shoal Bay. The guys could see him clearly. He was standing on the wharf, supervising the retrieval operation. The “loggers” had been sorted into teams: three men in each of the two aluminum dinghies that belonged to the crew boat, and one standing up on the wharf. There was another man there too. A heavy-set, swarthy-looking guy with his hair pulled back into a ponytail. The men in one of the boats had pulled up a black metal canister. It was obviously heavy and they had had trouble getting it into their boat, but they had manhandled it in and were in the process of bringing it back to the wharf. The other boat was still pulling chain. They were taking it slow and being very careful.
    â€œThe dark guy has to be White Hair’s pal,” Dan told Hargreaves. “The description’s right on.” He looked over at Walker and Claire. “We’ll be leaving here in about five minutes. Should be back on board in about an hour. I’ll keep in touch.” He slid the radio into his pocket and started down to the shore. “Okay, guys. Follow me.”
    He was about to step into the Zodiac when he realized that Walker hadn’t moved.

ELEVEN
    â€œYou’ll be a sitting duck out there!” Dan shook his head in frustration as he took in Walker’s imperturbable expression. The man was still perched up on the knoll where he had been when Dan first arrived.
    Walker shrugged. “Who’s going to care about a crippled Indian in a beat-up canoe?”
    A smile masked the cynicism, but Dan heard it. He wasn’t buying.
    â€œOh, bullshit! Don’t give me that crap. These guys are serious. We might not know what they’re up to, but we do know they don’t want any witnesses. If they see you out there, they’re going to try to get rid of you.”
    Another shrug. “I’ll wait till dark. Stay in close.”
    â€œClose to what? There’s a mile of open water out there!” Dan turned to the girl. “Can you talk some sense into him?”
    Claire blinked at him in surprise. “Me?”
    Dan nodded at her, taking in her reaction. Other than a brief acknowledgment when he first saw her, Dan had barely addressed a word to her—the situation they were in didn’t exactly encourage the niceties—so it was hardly fair to expect her to jump in now. But Walker liked her, and he might listen to her reasoning. He watched as she looked back and forth between them, silently urging her to add her encouragements to his. Meanwhile, Walker continued to sit on the rocky outcropping above them, a slight smile playing across his face. He was relaxed, at ease, even comfortable. Dan, on the other hand, was so tense his back felt rigid, his arms and legs frozen, hands clenched at his side.
    â€œNo,” she said. “I don’t think I can.” She met his stare full on. “He knows what he’s doing.”
    Dan snorted. “Yeah, right.” He turned away abruptly and let his gaze wander out over the water, trying to reconcile himself to the inevitable. There had been a time when he could simply impose his will on others, Walker included, but it seemed that time had passed. Now he had no choice but to respect the decision this taciturn, solitary man had made. Walker would stay on the island, at least till nightfall, and then leave in his canoe. Dan was not even sure where he would go when he left. Walker hadn’t said he was going back to his home—wherever that was—but he hadn’t agreed to come to Dreamspeaker either.
    Dan turned back to find both of them watching him and threw his hands up in a gesture of surrender. “Okay. I give up.” He turned and reached down into the Zodiac for the radio he had just taken back.
    â€œHere. You may as well keep this. At least let me know where you are. Call me if you need help.” He scrambled up a