Mistaken Read online

  Daniel pulled the scrap of paper from his pocket, double-checking the address he’d recorded. Johnny evidently lived on the edge of this morass. With a steady job and a lucrative rumrunning business, he should be able to afford better accommodations.

  The address matched the last house on the street, its front walk littered with cigarette butts. Daniel shoved the paper in his pocket and took a deep breath before knocking.

  Moments later, a short man yanked open the door about six inches and glared from the threshold, eyes red and watery. His sweat-stained shirt hung cockeyed on his thin frame, buttoned off-kilter. “Yeah?”

  Daniel cleared his throat. “I’m looking for Johnny Burke.”

  The door didn’t budge. “What do you want with him?” The rancid smell of his breath floated out onto the doorstep. “Who are you?”

  Daniel took a step back, surveying the small man from the dooryard. Was this one of the rumrunners or just one of the recipients of their bounty? “My name is Shepherd. Johnny and I went to school together. I just thought I’d stop in and see him.”

  The door opened a crack further, the man’s hand clamped along the edge. “He ain’t here. Try the docks.”

  “Thank you.” Daniel tipped his hat, but the small man only grunted in reply, wiping the back of his hand under his bulging nose.

  Daniel hurried away, convinced the defiant stare tracked him down the street. The air felt fresher and lighter by the water, though the smell of the pulp mill reached through every corner of town today—rich or poor. As he approached the boathouse, he noticed a long boat rowing into the bay. Daniel shoved his hands in his pockets and waited as the boat approached the dock, gliding in to a waiting slip.

  Like everything else in this town, Johnny Burke appeared to be stuck in time, his lean, muscled frame changing little since high school, shoulders curved like a dog kicked once too often. As Daniel approached, Johnny tipped his head back, his light blue eyes missing the mischievous glint that had made their female classmates swoon and the teachers hot under the collar. “Help you?”

  “Johnny—it’s Daniel. Daniel Shepherd.”

  His friend cupped a hand over his brow to block the sun’s glare. “Daniel?” It took a moment for a smile to spread across his face—as if the muscles lacked practice.

  Johnny sprang out onto the dock, his long legs unfolding. He tied the boat before grabbing Daniel’s hand and shaking it with vigor. “What are you doing in Port Angeles? You couldn’t wait to shake off the dust of this town.” He shook his head, his brows pulling down. “No one ever comes back.”

  “Yes, well, my granddad is getting older and he needed some help with the store.” Daniel’s throat tickled as he watched the years tumble back down onto his friend’s shoulders.

  “That place has been hopping for months—ever since Mr. Larson added the soda fountain. It sure brought some new life to this little town.” He retrieved his things from the boat and the pair made their way up the dock toward the shore. “My girl likes to spend every minute she can there.”

  Daniel grinned. “I think I met your girl. Amelia White?”

  The corners of Johnny’s lips lifted. “Yep. Don’t go getting any ideas.” He jabbed a finger at Daniel’s chest. “She’s mine.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of it. Besides, you were always the one stealing girls from me back in school.”

  “Yeah, well. I was the big man back then and you were the book worm.” He shrugged. “Now I’m just another mill rat and you’re the druggist with the celluloid collar.”

  Daniel shifted uncomfortably. “She was in the drugstore just the other day, with your sister.”

  Johnny hefted the bag over his arm. “Those two are thick as thieves, always have been.” He smiled again, reaching his hand out for Daniel’s shoulder. “It is good to see you. We should go fishing or something. You can catch me up on all the news of Seattle. I bet the parties are wild down there. You got a girl in the city?”

  Daniel’s chest tightened. He didn’t want to think about Seattle. “No girl,” he said. “But fishing sounds great. I haven’t been since I left town.”

  “We can fix that. I work late tonight, but I’m off tomorrow. Sound good?”

  Daniel ran a hand through his hair. “You’re working a shift at the mill tonight?”

  A shadow crossed his friend’s face. “Not exactly. I’m just helping some friends with a little job they got. You know, making some extra dough on the side.”

  Just as I thought. “Tomorrow would be fine.” He eyed Johnny’s longboat. “I’m not too handy with the oars. How about we take my granddad’s boat?”

  Johnny’s eyes brightened as he glanced down the row to where the larger boats were moored. “He wouldn’t mind?”

  Daniel shook his head. “He told me he rarely takes it out anymore. I can’t wait to hear all the Port Angeles news.”

  Johnny laughed. “Well, that would take all of two minutes. You know nothing ever happens here.”

  Daniel smiled. “Yeah, sure. Nothing.”

  10

  The rising sun capped the foothills, light spilling down over the sleeping town, the dawn air as fresh as a drink from a mountain spring. Thankful for his warm coat, Daniel hunched his shoulders as he walked down to the docks. Spring in the Northwest was always a varied concoction as the winter rains grudgingly gave way to summer sun.

  He and Johnny hadn’t been the best of friends in high school, but their brief encounter yesterday suggested Johnny longed for simpler times. Daniel looked forward to reminiscing, as long as it remained restricted to childhood. And especially if it gave him the opportunity to find out how Johnny and his sister got mixed up in the booze-smuggling business.

  Daniel hurried down the street as the bay came into view. The blue of the water in the early morning light nearly stole the breath from his chest. What was that Laurie had said about the show globe in the store window? Like the straits on a warm summer day.

  Johnny reclined in his own boat, his feet kicked up on one of the bench seats. “You’re early. Missed the fishing that much, did you?”

  Daniel laughed, adjusting his fishing gear on his shoulder. “I didn’t miss fishing, but I missed being out on the water.”

  “I know what you mean.” Johnny picked up a chest of supplies. “It’s the most relaxing thing in the world. Assuming of course, that you’re out there for fun and the weather’s cooperating.”

  As the pair walked to the far edge of the marina, Daniel spotted his grandfather’s boat bobbing in the gentle waves, the peeling paint on its aft wheelhouse crying out for attention. Granddad had bought the aged fishing boat thirty years ago and remodeled the craft inside and out, making it into his refuge from city life. Countless weekend expeditions along the hidden inlets and waterways around the Olympic Peninsula had given Daniel a deep and profound love for the water. Now the old boat sat lonely and forgotten.

  “It’s glorious,” Johnny breathed. “My favorite boat in the harbor.”

  Daniel hopped aboard, glancing around in surprise. “You’re joking. Granddad warned me the engine might not even start.”

  Johnny rubbed his hands together. “I can take care of that. Motors are my specialty. Just wish I had one of my own.”

  Daniel stood on the deck and gazed out at the horizon. The sky was clear enough to see all the way across to Canada. “Weather looks good today.”

  “Yeah, it should hold out for us.” Johnny climbed aboard and stretched, a few audible pops coming from his spine.

  “Sure you’re up for this? You look exhausted. How late did you work?”

  Johnny straightened. “I just got done a couple hours ago.” The circles around his eyes confirmed his words.

  “You haven’t slept yet?” Daniel frowned.

  “No, I’ll catnap this afternoon. I don’t have to be to the mill until tonight. I’m on late shift this week. Besides, I’ve always got energy for fishing.”

  Daniel shook his head. “I don’t know how you do it.
You work a full shift at the mill and work all night . . . ”

  “It’s no big deal. I ain’t got a family to worry about. When I do, I’ll cut back. But for now, I like to keep busy.” Johnny untied the mooring lines.

  Daniel pulled his hat lower over his forehead as the morning breeze tugged at the brim. “What about your sister and your father?”

  “Laurie’s all grown up now, and she takes care of things at home. My father still works at the mill, so I see him there when our shifts overlap.” Johnny curled his lip, running a hand across the stubble on his chin. “He and I don’t see eye-to-eye on most things, so that’s about as much togetherness as we can stand.”

  It only took Johnny a few minutes to get the old motor going. The men fell silent as they motored out around the spit and into the larger waves of the Strait, the wooden wheelhouse protecting them from the rushing wind and spray.

  Looking back toward the city, Daniel’s heart swelled. As much as he hadn’t wanted to return to Port Angeles, he’d never grown tired of this view of it. The industrial town clung to the shoreline, ribbons of smoke driven inland by the onshore breezes. The jagged peaks created a background of staggering beauty, as if God had painted a stunning portrait only to have humans drop an ugly town right smack in the middle.

  Johnny caught his eye and nodded back at the view. “Not as pretty as Seattle, eh?”

  Daniel made a face and shrugged. Mount Rainier dominated Seattle’s skyline, but as Daniel stared out at the scene, he decided that he preferred the rugged Olympic Mountains, after all. “You get out here very often?”

  Johnny licked his lips, staring out at the waves. “Not for fishing, but I get out on the water quite a bit. A buddy of mine has a little delivery business.”

  Daniel gripped the controls. “What type of deliveries?”

  Johnny ignored the question and pointed at a nearby shore. “Freshwater Cove sound like a good spot?”

  Slowing their speed, Daniel guided the boat into the secluded bay. “I hear your sister’s working at the switchboard.” He cut the boat’s engine and let it drift.

  For about a year now, I think. Not much else for girls to do in this town until they’re married.” Johnny readied the fishing gear.

  “She’s a little young to be thinking marriage, isn’t she?”

  His friend snorted. “She’s twenty-one. You’ve been gone a while, Daniel. She’s not the knobby-kneed kid she was when you left.”

  Daniel baited a hook, his insides squirming like the night crawler. “She got her eye on any of the local boys?”

  Johnny raised his eyebrows, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Tell me this isn’t going where it sounds like it’s going.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Johnny bumped his elbow, chuckling. “She ain’t got a fellow. Leastways, not that I know of. But I think she’s a little young for you, old man.”

  Daniel reddened. He tossed his line over the side. “And I’m no older than you and you’re seeing her best friend, right?” Suddenly realizing his oversight, Daniel backpedaled. “Not that I’m looking. I mean . . . I wasn’t saying—”

  Johnny cast his own line. “I don’t know whether to be relieved or insulted. She is my little sister, you know. It’s my duty to watch out for her. But I’d hate to have you thinking she ain’t good enough for you.”

  “That’s not what I meant at all. She’s a beautiful looking young woman—quite stunning, in fact. It’s just that—”

  Johnny’s laugh cut him off mid-sentence. “No wonder you’ve been so fidgety. Well, you watch out, she’s a handful. Got a mind of her own, that girl.”

  Daniel’s pulse quickened. “Will you let me finish a statement? I was just going to say that I’ve seen her around town with that Samuel Brown fellow. I thought maybe they were an item.”

  The color drained from Johnny’s face. “Samuel Brown—the federal agent?” He gazed out at the horizon, his jaw working like he was chewing on his thoughts. “Not possible.”

  Daniel tugged at his line. “He bought her a drink at the soda fountain just yesterday.”

  Johnny set his pole down, his face dark. “If you’re joshing me, I’ll toss you out of this boat right here.”

  Daniel touched a hand to his chest. “It might be perfectly innocent, but . . . ” he leaned closer, determined to deliver the message he’d planned. “I don’t know him very well, but just between us—I don’t trust the man. Something seems off about him.”

  Johnny picked up his pole, his knuckles white. He shook his head. “I haven’t met him.” He yanked his line. “But I don’t like it.”

  Daniel let his line drift, his mind wandering along with it.

  Laurie perched on the bench outside the Clallam County courthouse; her legs crossed and toe bouncing as she kept her gaze locked on the double doors. Samuel’s automobile sat in the parking lot. He must be in there, but she had no way of knowing when he might emerge.

  Her insides twisted into an impossible knot as she glanced up at the giant clock tower. Only a few minutes before it clanged the hour. She’d dawdled for twenty-five minutes already. This is a bad idea. Laurie pushed to her feet and headed down the sidewalk, when the door creaked behind her. She paused, crouching to fiddle with the strap on her shoe.

  “Hello there, Laurie!” Mrs. McAllister’s voice warbled out behind her. “Isn’t it a lovely day today? My lands—what have you done to your hair?” She clucked her tongue. “How is your dear father doing?”

  Laurie cringed. Mrs. McAllister had been a long-time friend of her mother’s and one of Laurie’s Sunday school teachers when she was little. She turned to face the diminutive woman. “Hello, Mrs. McAllister. Father is doing well. And how are you?”

  Laurie’s stomach sank as an eager smile spread over the woman’s wizened face.

  “Laurie, I can’t begin to tell you the difficulties that have plagued me this month.” She gripped a hand onto Laurie’s wrist like an iron shackle, her voice droning like a mosquito on a hot summer evening.

  Laurie tried to focus on Mrs. McAllister’s words, but her gaze wandered back to the doorway, the sidewalks, and out into the parking lot. His car still rested in its spot, the sunshine glinting off of the nickel plating and gleaming ivory paint.

  As Mrs. McAllister’s tirade moved from the county land assessor’s mistakes with her property taxes to her myriad of medical complaints the door swung open a second time. Samuel Brown stepped outside, settling his hat onto his head, his face severe.

  As the clock began to toll, Laurie’s breath caught in her chest, her wrist still locked in the woman’s claw-like grip. She couldn’t let the last thirty minutes be a complete waste.

  Mr. Brown drew closer, his eyes remained fixed on the sidewalk as if he were deep in thought.

  Laurie patted Mrs. McAllister’s hand, hoping she would understand the subtle hint. “Mrs. McAllister, I hate to interrupt you, but I am concerned that you might not have met the newest visitor to our town.”

  Mrs. McAllister paused mid-sentence, her eyes lighting up behind the tiny spectacles. “Oh?”

  As Mr. Brown glanced up, his somber expression vanished, a smile rushing to fill its place. “Miss Burke, what a pleasure to see you again.”

  The dramatic change in his countenance kicked off a flutter in Laurie’s stomach and she took the moment to introduce Mrs. McAllister.

  The tiny woman peered up at the man through her thick glasses. “Brown, is it? Welcome to Port Angeles, Mr. Brown. Are you just visiting with us or are you planning to stay?”

  The agent pushed his hat back on his head and squinted up at the sun. “Well, the weather is surprisingly nice up in this corner of the state and there’s so much natural beauty.” He lifted his hands to gesture at the mountains, but trained his eyes on Laurie. “It certainly makes a man want to stay. But, I’m afraid I’m on temporary assignment.”

  Mrs. McAllister finally released her grip. “Such a shame. We need more young folk around here.
Particularly young men, I believe. Right, Laurie?”

  A flash of heat climbed Laurie’s neck.

  The older woman patted Laurie’s arm, aiming one last disapproving look at her bobbed hair. “Well, it was nice talking with you Laurie. Give your father my best, now, will you?” She turned to Mr. Brown. “And it was nice meeting you, Mr. Brown. I hope Laurie can convince you to stay.” She sauntered away, leaving Laurie grasping for words.

  Samuel came to her rescue. “She seems like a nice woman.”

  Laurie massaged her wrist. “She is nice—a little forward, perhaps, but nice.” She’d been planning this moment all afternoon and now she couldn’t remember what she’d intended to say.

  Samuel gestured back at the courthouse. “Did you have business here today?”

  “Actually, I was just passing by and I stopped to talk with Mrs. McAllister. She’s an old family friend.”

  “Then I’m glad I caught you.” A wrinkle appeared on his brow. “I’m afraid I may have offended you the other day at the soda fountain. I didn’t handle things very well.” He took off his hat and clasped it in his hands, the sunshine catching the golden strands in his hair. “It was wrong to ask you to help with my work.” He glanced down at the ground then lifted his eyes back to hers as if seeking permission to continue.

  Her breath caught in her chest, his boyish look softening her heart.

  He blew out his breath. “I’m getting this all wrong.”

  “You don’t need to apologize, Mr. Brown.” A smile pulled at her lips. Perhaps she’d misjudged him.

  The intensity in his gaze increased. “Please—call me Samuel.”

  “Samuel, then. You don’t need to apologize.”

  “I do. I want to be able to spend time with you and I’m deeply embarrassed if I made it sound like I had other motives behind our meeting.”

  Warmth rushed through Laurie. Her pulse increased. “I—I’d like that. I’m sorry I rushed out so quickly.”