Silver Linings

been as overwhelming this time as it had been the first time, a year ago. Mattie shivered as she recalled her own uncontrollable response. Last night, when she had awakened to find him looming over her, nothing in the world had mattered except having him become a part of her.
    Fool. Idiot .
    The small town hugging the waterfront of a beautiful natural harbor looked faded and worn. It was obvious no one went out of the way yet to attract the trickle of tourists Hugh claimed were starting to come to St. Gabriel.
    “We're still not used to tourists here yet,” Hugh explained as he parked the Jeep in front of a building that had Abbott Charters painted on the front. “But one of these days St. Gabe is going to start waking up to the fact that we're all going to get rich. When it does you'll see some civic action downtown. Come on, babe, I'll introduce you to a couple of the guys who work for me.”
    Curious in spite of her mixed emotions regarding Hugh, Mattie followed him into the interior of Abbott Charters. It was a warehouse-style building with a small office in one corner. On the walls there were a couple of pinup calendars featuring overly endowed females in clothes that resembled Mattie's red sarong.
    “Mattie, this is Ray and Derek. They fly for me,” Hugh announced as two men, one young, one middle-aged, took their feet down off a desk and stood up.
    Mattie smiled and shook hands. The two men had the look of bush pilots the world over: a sort of easy machismo and an aura of bravura. They gave Mattie the once-over with raffish eyes, but they seemed to acknowledge that Hugh's presence beside her made her private property.
    “You get that government shipment over to St. Julian?” Hugh asked as he stopped beside a battered metal desk and picked up a sheaf of papers.
    “Took it over yesterday, boss,” Ray, the younger of the two pilots, said laconically. “What have you been up to? Heard there was some trouble on Purgatory. Get caught in it?”
    “Mattie did. I found her in time, but Cormier's dead.”
    “Damn. Who got him?”
    “Don't know yet,” Hugh said, tossing aside the papers. “But sooner or later I'll find out.”
    Mattie heard the cold certainty in Hugh's voice, and she turned to glance at him in surprise. She had not realized he intended to try to track down Cormier's killer. “Hugh? What do you mean, you're going to find out? How can you do that?”
    “Never mind, babe.” He smiled at her and turned to the older pilot. “You finish the inspection on that Cessna?”
    “Yeah, boss. No major problems.”
    “Check out that fuel line on the Beech?”
    “It's fixed.”
    “Keep an eye out for corrosion?”
    “Sure, boss. Like always.” Derek winked at Mattie and added conspiratorially, “The man's a damn tyrant when it comes to maintenance.”
    “You want to get caught out over the water with corroded equipment, that's your privilege,” Hugh said. “But do it in someone else's plane. Not one of mine. I can always find more pilots but good, reliable aircraft are hard to come by.”
    Ray grinned widely at Mattie. “Don't worry, his bark is worse than his bite. Most of the time, that is.”
    Mattie smiled back. “I'll keep that in mind.”
    Hugh looked at her. “I'll bet you're ready to do some shopping, aren't you, babe? There's a couple of stores farther down the street. Why don't you go have a look while I finish checking up on things here? I'll be along in a few minutes.”
    “Fine.” Mildly irritated at being sent off as though she were a child who was too young to hear an adult conversation, Mattie turned on her heel and strode toward the door.
    “I think she's mad, boss,” Derek observed.
    “She's been under a lot of stress lately,” Hugh explained.
    Two doors down from Abbott Charters Mattie saw a window display that included jeans and short-sleeved shirts. She went inside and made her selections quickly. There was not much choice.
    When she reemerged a few minutes later she walked across the street to take a closer look at the wide variety of boats bobbing in the harbor. There were several sailboats, a few fishing boats, and one large cruiser that had Abbott Charters printed neatly on the bow. Apparently, Hugh was in the boat as well as air charter business. An astute businessman covering all the bases.
    She strolled along the waterfront for a short distance, taking in the picturesque setting with a weird sense of déjà vu. This would have been her home if she had