Page 86 of Sunset Cove
Chapter Thirty
The ride back to Anacortes was a breeze. Margie was still at the wheel, chatting away, but now she had Lucy to contend with, too.
“The guard said that I was the most annoying prisoner he had all week,” Lucy said. “But he also said I was the funniest prisoner he’d had all week, so I’ll take that as a win.”
Margie nodded. “Always take the compliment.”
Lucy leaned forward, perching her head between them from the backseat. “The funniest thing was when Agent McCoy tried to play bad cop with me.”
“Oh yes,” Claire said. “He was always bad cop to me, too.”
“He never listened to a word I said,” complained Lucy, “so I started telling him that he had beautiful eyes.”
That made Claire laugh. “Lucy!”
“What?” She put her hands up. “It’s true! There wasn’t anything else true that I could tell him.”
“Did you know that he apologized to me?” Claire asked, turning around to look at her. “Right before we picked you up.”
Lucy sat back, her mouth open and arms crossed. “What about me? I’m the one he arrested!”
Claire laughed. “Maybe he meant to get to you next.”
“Or maybe he was afraid his apology would be taken as an invitation to hit on him more,” Margie said with a giggle.
Lucy shook her head. “Unbelievable. I wasn’t hitting on him. He was way too old for me, and he always had coffee breath.”
Claire laughed. “I’m just thankful you’re out of there, and that you’re okay.”
“I wasn’t really that worried,” said Lucy. “Like Melanie said, their evidence was all circumstantial. They hoped I would be scared enough to talk about Marty.”
“You still haven’t heard from him?” asked Margie.
Claire shook her head, instinctively checking her phone. “Unfortunately, no. I don’t know where he is or how to contact him. He’s probably still on the run, poor soul.”
“I checked the FBI’s Most Wanted List,” said Lucy. “He’s not on there anymore.”
“Hopefully he’s still on the island,” Claire said. “I’m excited to tell him the good news.”
“After you find him, will you be returning to the hotel?” asked Margie.
Claire bit her lip. “I’ve made a decision about the hotel.”
“Oh?” Lucy leaned forward again.
Claire cleared her throat. “I’m not looking for any advice. I am just letting you both know that I will be stepping away from the hotel and selling it. That’s final.”
Margie shot her a worried look. “Isn’t that a bit rash?”
“Everything recently has been rash,” replied Claire. “But not this. Buying the hotel was a mistake. I’m just going to undo it.”
She then insisted on changing the topic to Lucy’s job hunt, only to find out that Lucy had lied about the interview in Seattle. This occupied their conversation for the rest of the drive.
When they got to Anacortes, they returned the rental car and Hank picked them up in his boat. He dropped Lucy and Claire off on the west side of the island, and they took a taxi back to the cabin.
Claire was hoping that she’d walk through the doors and find Marty hiding inside, but she had no such luck.
Instead, it took him nearly fifteen minutes, watching from the trees in the distance, before he made himself known. He appeared in the doorway, smiling brightly.
