Excerpt from WATCHTOWERS: WATER
copyright 2005, Lucynda Storey
available NOW from Triskelion Publishing
Through her lens, she watched the couple anchor the small white yacht in the choppy inlet, lower a dinghy into the water, and begin the arduous process of rowing to the small dock. Keely’s lips turned downward in a frown. What did these people want?
The castle her father built near the shore, several kilometers from Kilkee provided the rural quiet she needed for her research, but was close enough to town to keep her and her family from being isolated. These people were going out of their way to make physical contact with a member of her family.
The man and woman she identified through the lens pulled the craft onto the beach and dragged it out of the tide’s reach. Keely watched them until they disappeared from view, knowing they would reappear after they got through the abutment and up the steep stairs.
If they got that far.
As far as she knew, her family had the only keys to the electronically operated door, just another device her father installed to protect their privacy. The entry had taken some finagaling and a lot of cash crossed hands until he’d agreed to purchase the erosion control material for all the beach the Castle property bordered. It won the family access to via the abutment.
A blessing and a curse. Keely didn’t deny she enjoyed the privilege of researching the dolphins from a deserted beach. It kept her close to home, her ill mother, and the pod of Rossi’s she documented.
The purchase though, gnawed at her conscience. Her family’s money had earned the right to access the pollution free beach. Something only the wealthy of County Clare had the opportunity to do.
She grabbed her yellow slicker, curiosity seizing her. Her breath hitched in anticipation. No one in her memory had ever visited the Castle via the beach.
Keely reached into her drawer and pulled the Sig Immobilizer from the nightstand. She’d been assured it was a good weapon based on the Internet research she did. The virtual salesman in Dublin readily answered all her questions and cut her a deal, too. The light-weight handle was cool in her palm. She flipped the safety off, and set it to a mid-range stun and placed the weapon in her pocket.
The couple headed toward the Castle didn’t look dangerous from this distance, but distance deceived and she couldn’t make out their features, read their body language or determine their intent. Better safe than sorry.
She’d just meet them at the abutment door, get a feel for their motives, and send them back on their way to their small, expensive ship.
With quick steps she strolled out of the house. Once she was certain no one in the Castle could view her, she broke into an all-out run. The soft grass underfoot thinned and Keely crossed the scraggly tendrils to the weather beaten stairs. Her form fitting sand boots were quiet on the steps. At the bottom of the stairway, Keely’s boots helped her find a foothold in the pliable soil.
She raced to the abutment door, made sure the lock was engaged, and waited. The dark haired man radiated physical strength with his bulging arms and broad chest. Strands of the woman’s long black hair whipped around her cheeks in the breeze. Both wore boots made for trekking through sand. Whoever they were, they were serious.
“Stop right there.” Keely’s voice held a ring of challenge to it, the timbre surprising her. She took a deep breath and crossed her arms. “Why are you here?”
The couple stopped their beach progress. The man scowled. The woman turned and whispered something to him. Keely watched his lips tighten into a hard line.
“We’re looking for Keely Shane.”
She squinted through the clear abutment wall. Beyond the couple Keely saw the sea was a bit choppy, typical for the end of summer. The view paled in comparison to the dread churning in her stomach.
“I’m Keely,” she warily responded.
“I’m Jade and this is Raiden. We were sent to look for you from the EPA.”
“The EPA?” The trepidation in her stomach ground to a halt and turned into a heavy wedge of worry. Her family hadn’t done anything worth sending representatives of the Earth Protection Agency to the Castle in such covert ways. “What does the EPA want?”
Jade smiled at Keely. “We just want to talk.”