“So he could be alive.” AJ managed to force out the words.
“Yes. It’s possible.” Priia sniffed. “The atoll is small but very densely wooded. There’s plenty of food there for someone to survive.”
Dread crawled over AJ like a poisonous spider. Could Vanu be hidden somewhere in the forest?
Lani had begun to weep. Probably with joy that her once-dead husband might still be alive. AJ sucked in a ragged breath as a bitter taste filled his mouth. “We need to send out a search party.”
“They’re getting ready to leave. The fire department and the lifeboat service are all involved. And of course the journalists.” She pressed her handkerchief to her face. “It seems too much to hope for, but maybe he’s about to come back to us.”
Lani approached Priia and put her arms around her. AJ’s heart swelled at her generous gesture. Caring and thoughtful as well as lovely, Lani was far too good to be wasted on Vanu. Anger roiled in his chest along with savage jealously. Could Vanu return from the grave and snatch Lani from his arms?
Yes. That was exactly the kind of party trick Vanu would take great pleasure in.
“Didn’t they search Egg Island when he disappeared?” He couldn’t understand how Vanu’s boat could appear like a horrible vision after all this time.
Priia looked up. “It’s a dense forest, with many natural caves. The boat had drifted into a cavern that’s hidden at high tide.” She let out a sob. “It will be hard to find him if he’s still alive, but we must keep positive.”
A knock on the door startled them all. “Come in,” said Priia, shakily.
The head footman entered, head slightly bowed. “The reporters, they’re anxious for a statement.”
“Oh, goodness.” Priia waved her handkerchief. “AJ, could you go tell them something?”
“Like what? We don’t know any more than they do. Less, probably.”
The head footman seemed to shrink a bit, and stared at the floor. “They want to know how this affects the wedding plans.”
Lani let out a little gasp, then hid her face.
The dark reality of the situation settled over AJ like an executioner’s hood. “It’s off. Lani can’t consider remarrying while her husband might be alive.” His words came out cold and hard.
And what about the baby he’d grown to think of as his? Vanu would claim the child as well. It was his, after all, just like Lani.
AJ suppressed a curse. Only a brief while ago he and Lani had lain, wrapped in each other, surrounded by the warm embrace of the jungle, looking forward to a joyous future together with their new family.
Now he saw that future evaporating like a jungle mist.
“Did they find any signs that he survived?” AJ questioned the footman.
“They found footprints leading up out of the cave. So it seems he did walk away from it.”
Lani whimpered and tears rolled down her cheeks. AJ tried to suppress the ugly surge of anger that rose in him at the sight. She was obviously distressed and hopeful that Vanu was still alive.
Yes, it hurt. Especially since he’d felt a deep connection with her during their lovemaking. Of course that was probably his body talking rather than his brain. “I’ll go join the search party. Just stay away from the press until we know more.” He turned and marched from the room, unable to even look at Lani.
AJ cursed himself for being drawn into this nightmare. How had he gone from wanting to leave at the earliest opportunity to hating the fact that he’d have to leave?
He returned late at night, sticky and tired from combing through the jungle. It probably hadn’t done his soul much good that he was hoping against hope that they’d find a body, not a live Vanu with an ugly smirk on his face. As it turned out, they’d found nothing at all and the search was scheduled to resume the following morning.
No one spoke much at dinner, and Priia retired early, begging a headache.
Lani seemed very tense, avoiding his gaze. No doubt she felt guilty that she’d made love to another man while her husband might still be alive.
“It’s not your fault,” he murmured. “You had no idea he might still be out there.”
“I know.” She didn’t meet his gaze. “No one could have known.”
“The fire chief thinks he’s alive.” He studied her face. A muscle spasmed in her cheek. “They found traces of a fire in another natural cave. Looks like someone stayed there.”
“That’s wonderful.” Lani’s voice sounded oddly hollow. “It would be such a miracle for him to survive for so long by himself.”
“He never was the rugged, outdoors type.” AJ frowned. It was hard to imagine Vanu picking a berry to feed himself, let alone lighting a fire. He’d required a large staff just to get dressed in the morning. “But I suppose anything is possible. People can act differently in a life-or-death situation.”