Illumine Her (16 page)

“What are you doing?” she asked shakily.

“I’m coming with you,” his voice rumbled. “We need to talk.”

Before she could respond with a strongly worded retort, he launched himself smoothly at the back of the truck with little effort and settled himself comfortably against the hatch. She pinched her lips together and glared at him. He glowered back and nodded once as if to finalize his decision. When Alana glanced at who remained left of her family and friends on the front lawn, she saw the raised eyebrows and questioning looks. Manu, on the other hand, scowled at Chase. His fists were balled tightly in preparation for something Alana did not have the state of mind to contemplate.

The old Hilux dipped and creaked from the combined weights of her uncle and aunty as they clambered in. Uncle Solo seated himself beside Alana while Aunty Malae sat behind him in the double cab truck. Alana reversed the vehicle and shot out of the driveway, aiming to hit every pot hole in sight to make the journey a most pleasant one for the straggler at the back. She chanced a glance in the rear view mirror, but it was too dark to make out anything.

“That was a good evening, ay, Alana? I sang well, huh?” her uncle Solo asked.

Her aunt snorted. “Kane is a very nice young man. Malia is a very lucky girl,” she said.

Alana was too distracted to contribute to the conversation that was going on in the car. Her thoughts were too shuffled and wrapped up in the talk Chase was determined to have with her that he had to ruin her plan of escape.

“And what about his friend? He is the one that donated all that money to the hospital,” her uncle declared. “Such a generous man.”

“And a very rich one at that. We must find him a nice Samoan girl while he is here,” Aunt Malae responded.

Uncle Solo grunted in approval. “What about you, Alana?”

That snapped her out of her reverie. “Huh? What?”

“Your aunty is suggesting that you and Kane’s friend will make a good couple.”

Oh no
, Alana thought. It was so typical of her aunt to play matchmaker. Of course it definitely helped matters that
this
particular man was
palagi
and hugely wealthy. Double points for Samoan parents. And double
those
points for the extended family because once you married a Samoan woman, you married her entire family. That meant providing for them financially. For life. But what Alana knew and they didn’t was that Chase was a very complicated man with some serious issues. Issues related to manipulating light and bringing back the dead. She shivered at the memory. Perhaps tonight she would get the answers she so curiously sought after. Her pulse picked up at the prospect.

“Judging by the way he wanted to come with us...” her aunt raised her eyebrows and wiggled them about teasingly. Then her tone changed. “Don’t mess this up, Alana. You’re a big girl now. Finished with university. It’s time to think about the next stage in life. If he wants to talk to you, you talk to him and don’t scare him off,” she admonished.

Alana sighed heavily. He was more likely to scare her. She was grateful to finally reach their home before the conversation carried further in that direction. The last thing she wanted was for her aunt and uncle to meddle in her affairs where Chase was involved. She had enough scrambled thoughts to decode that she could do without the interference.

Aunt Malae hopped out and shrilled a little too cheerily, “Oh, Chase? Come sit in the front with Alana, dear.”

Alana rolled her eyes. Could her aunt be any more transparent? The woman had no shame. The truck bounced when he jumped off the back, the impact slamming Alana’s heart to her chest. She braced the steering wheel and refused to look at the farewell he was giving her aunt and uncle.

“It was a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Gasolo, Mrs. Gasolo,” his voice resonated before he got into the front passenger seat and shut the door.

“You kids drive home safe now, okay?” her aunt said, smiling before pursing her lips and narrowing her eyes in warning towards Alana.

The look told her not to mess up any possible relationship with the man seated next to her. And then if that wasn’t warning enough she switched to Samoan.

“Watch this boy, Alana. Don’t let him slip through your fingertips. He’s a fine catch and good for this family. If it wasn’t too late we could have arranged a double wedding.”

Oh God
.

She didn’t have to wait long for what happened next.

Chase cleared his throat and responded politely back in perfect Samoan. “My dear Aunty, I fear you’ve jumped the gun and might have scared away your niece. You see, I haven’t had the chance to propose to her yet.” And all the while his eyes were lowered out of respect, as was customary when talking to elders.

Aunty Malae’s own grew round and almost popped out of their sockets. Uncle Solo chuckled beside her, and then he tapped the hood of the car. “I like you, Mr. Chase. Drive home safe now, Lana. We’ll see you tomorrow.”

Without glancing at either of them, Alana shifted gears and pealed out of the driveway. The headlights illuminated the hedges growing haphazardly on one side of the road while a deep ditch traveled horizontally along the other. Her palms were slippery on the steering wheel, and she concentrated hard not to plummet into that ditch since she was driving a right-hand drive on the left side of the road. She wasn’t around long enough when the government switched the side of the road cars drove on—from right to left—and she was still trying to get used to it. Through the corner of her eye, she examined the way Chase sat with his legs braced far apart, arms resting on his thighs. Even in the dark she noticed his masculine profile and the way his hair blew in the breeze from the open window. They drove in silence for what seemed like an eternity.

She didn’t realize she held her breath until he spoke. “I’m not ready for you to go home yet. Is there somewhere private we can go and talk?”

Her heart thudded while her mind boggled at his forwardness. She used anger to cover up her nervousness.

“You are really something, Chase. If I remember correctly, you shot out of this island faster than a centipede without giving me the time of day, and now that you’re back, you’ve been nothing but rude to me while polite to everyone else. I’m not going anywhere with you until you tell me what this is all about,” she huffed. “Besides, my family’s going to wonder where I am. They’ll get worried if I’m home later than usual.”

Chase furrowed his brows and responded gruffly. “Of course.” With that two-worded statement, he whipped a cell phone from his back pocket and dialed a number.

Of course?
She imitated mentally.

Speaking into his phone, his tone was strong and unyielding. “Kane, Alana and I are going for a little drive. Can you inform her family that I will get her home safely soon? Yep... You go ahead. I’ll find my way.” He hung up and braced one arm languidly over the back of her seat, shifting slightly so she was in perfect view.

Alana squirmed self-consciously. She was annoyed and confused and a little unnerved, and did he really have to turn and face her? She took stock of her appearance: a white shirt with a curry stain on the hem, a blue printed
lavalava
, subtle make up, and her hair in a ponytail. She probably smelled of sweat and greasy food. Nervously, she tucked a lose strand behind her ear and cleared her throat. She was irritated that he was affecting her in this way, but her curiosity had piqued.

“So, how do you know Kane?” she asked.

“He and I are old friends,” he responded flatly. “His family and I, we go way back. I guess you could say we grew up together.” His voice was distant as if he was distracted by something else.

“Unbelievable,” she muttered under her breath.

“What is?”

“Well, that of all the people in the world, Kane just happens to marry my sister, and you’re his oldest friend. And now you’re here. Back in Samoa. The coincidence is uncanny.”

“I’ll admit that I was surprised to see you.”

Alana scoffed inwardly. More like annoyed and majorly pissed off. Could he have made it any more apparent with his evil eye reaction?

She entered her village and drove towards a lookout that was concealed from the main road by wild vegetation. She often jogged to this spot in the mornings and took great pleasure in its peace and quiet. The trees hung heavily and provided a shady oasis in the daytime while at night the same canopy cast shrouded cloaks of darkness. In the daytime, the view was of a valley in every shade of green that dipped low and stretched for miles until it met the Pacific Ocean. Now the moon was the tiniest slit of a crescent in the black sky and didn’t cast sufficient light around them.

Alana parked the truck on the side of the road but let the engine run idly. Even in rest, the diesel engine was loud enough that she had to speak loudly.

“Okay, you have ten minutes. My house is a mile away, and I need to go home and clean up. I’m tired and want to sleep as soon as possible.” Alana stared straight ahead, her hands gripping the steering wheel.

Chase leaned over and turned the key in the ignition, shutting off the car with a stuttering, choking sound. The headlights went out, cutting off their only source of light. Darkness swallowed them, and Alana was forced to blink to adjust her sight. Great. Now the mosquitoes were going to have a feast.

“Alana, look at me,” Chase rumbled quietly beside her.

She reluctantly shifted to see his dark outline.

“What happened to you?” His voice was laced with concern, but she didn’t miss the edge of anger there.

Her brows drew together in confusion, and she asked with annoyance, “What? What do you mean?”

“Something happened to you since I last saw you. Something dark. It’s changed you...” he trailed off as she gaped at him.

How could he possibly know what happened to her? Did someone in her family tell him? Did she give off some kind of
pity me
vibe? He must have noticed the dark circles around her eyes and the weight loss. Now she was really angry.

“Who told you?” she asked bitterly.

The last thing she wanted was his pity, for him to be sorry for her and for her to come across as some helpless victim. God, she would die if he thought she was weak. Why did it matter what he thought of her? Why was she worried about how he perceived her?

“Something happened and you’ve just confirmed it. Tell me. Who was it?” he pressed.

Alana fisted her hands in her lap. There was no way she was going to tell him what that creep did to her at the party. How he touched a part of her no one had ever come close to before. How ashamed she was that it had happened. How they ended up at the police station and she was forced to withdraw the assault charge. How the gossip taunted and tore her up inside. She had failed, and it hurt so badly for her to admit it. Failed herself. Failed her father. The pain infiltrated every cell of her body, leaving her strung up and vulnerable for the world to see. For weeks, she buried it deep, carefully built a steel barrier tomb over it so no one could penetrate it.
Here lies Alana, the failure. Alana, the weak
, the engraving would say.

She mourned for her father.
Oh God, her father
. She inhaled sharply and allowed the pain to take over her like a hundred jagged knives piercing her skin. Her heart broke a thousand times because she had failed him, failed to avenge his death. If she couldn’t do that for him, then she resigned to take the pain in any form it came.

She drew a hand up to her mouth and stifled a sob, quickly tamping down her emotions. There was no way she was going to allow her barrier to come crashing down in front of Chase. She would be mortified if he saw exactly what she was hiding. Alana evened out her breathing and silently thanked the heavens that it was pitch black and he couldn’t see the heavy emotions across her face.

But she was wrong.

“Alana,” he spoke softly, “I can see every line of pain that has crossed your face in the last five minutes. I can see the sorrow in your eyes and the way you’re trying so hard to hide it from me. I can see that a part of your spirit has been broken.”