Rainbow Fire Page 27

“And you fought for me.”

  He laughed shakily. “How’d I do before you rescued me?”

  “You could use a few pointers.” Then she began to cry.

  Dillon held her until his shirt was soaked. Gary groaned at their feet. “Come on, we’ll go up and lock him in. Even he won’t be able to get out.”

  Kelsey didn’t want to let Dillon go. “He can pick any lock.”

  “Yes, but I’m going to take about twenty feet of ladder with me. He won’t get up the sides with that arm. He can stay here until morning, when Sergeant Newberry can dispose of him.”

  There was a clatter on the ladder behind them, and a male voice. “That won’t be necessary, thanks. I’ll take him now.”

  They turned. The police sergeant made the last rungs in one well-coordinated leap. “I say, Ward,” he said, with a grin, “you beat me to this one.”

  “Barely. What brings you here? Planning to rat some opal?”

  The sergeant flashed a badge and another grin. Dillon squinted to read it; then the two men exchanged knowing looks.

  “Then you’ve been after him all along?” Dillon marveled.

  “All along. The South Australian police took me on temporarily. I had to have a reason to be snooping around town.” The sergeant-who-wasn’t slipped the badge back in his pocket. “So sorry about focusing all the suspicion on you. For a while I really did think you might have been working with our friend here. After that, it was just part of my cover.”

  “You’ve been after Gary all along?” Kelsey didn’t know what to make of their conversation.

  “I was here to investigate two murders. I suspected him almost immediately.” Sergeant Newberry paused. “You do know about those?”

  “He admitted them to me,” Kelsey said.

  The sergeant gave her a triumphant grin, teeth flashing in the candlelight. There was no trace of the slimy witchety grub now. “Good job. We’ll look forward to a statement from you.”

  “And he pushed my father down the shaft.”

  “You can put that in your statement, too.”

  Dillon was still in the dark about Gary’s motivation. “What did he want from Kelsey?”

  “I can answer that.” Kelsey proceeded to tell them about the plesiosaurus, just the way that Gary had told the story to her. “I imagine it’s safely up top somewhere, probably in the trunk of his car.”

  “So Jake tried to cheat me,” Dillon said.

  Kelsey thought of the letters and the picture in the lockbox in Jake’s ute. “He changed his mind, though, and it almost cost him his life. Can you forgive him?”

  “If he ever gives me the chance.”

  “I hope he will. Right now I think he’s probably too ashamed to face me or you.”

  Dillon hugged her harder. “Why did it take you so bloody long to get Gary?” he asked Newberry.

  “It took so bloody long because he’s bloody good at what he does. He’s a real psychopath. No feelings, no trail to follow. We’re lucky we got him at all.”

  Kelsey shuddered, and Dillon held her close. “There’ll be no statements tonight,” he told Newberry. “Kelsey’s right whacked. We’ll be in first thing in the morning.” He tried to move Kelsey toward the ladder.

  She stood, feet firmly rooted. “There’s gelignite in the tunnel. You should put it someplace safe.”

  “It will keep.”

  She shook her head. “There were more tremors. It could cause an explosion and take down the rest of this mine.”

  Dillon knew hysteria when he saw it—in all its forms. Kelsey was exhausted, frayed to the very edges. There was no point in arguing. Without a match to the fuse, the gelignite was relatively harmless. Miners had been known to carry it around Coober Pedy in their pockets, sheepishly disposing of it when they were reminded by a store proprietor. But he wasn’t about to give Kelsey a lecture. He just wanted to get her home. “I’ll be right back,” he told her. He stepped around the sergeant, who was handcuffing Gary’s arms behind him. He was sitting on Gary’s back, whistling as he worked.

  Dillon started into the tunnel. The candlelight barely lit it, and he was just about to give up on the gelignite when red flames leaped from the walls where the last rocks had fallen. He moved to the wall, running his hand over it in wonder. A noise alerted him to Kelsey’s presence. He turned to see her come into the tunnel. “Bring the candle.”

  “You found the gelignite?”

  “Forget the gelly. Bring the candle.”

  She did as she was told. Sergeant Newberry had set up a high-powered flashlight and wouldn’t be left in darkness. He was still whistling.

  She walked into the tunnel, the candle just in front of her. The flame leaped for her, too. She turned, wide-eyed. Dillon was watching.

  “Rainbow fire?” she asked softly.

  He caressed the wall once more, then left it behind as he walked toward her to fold her in his arms. “Rainbow fire,” he acknowledged. “Enough to warm us for the rest of our days.”

  * * *

  HE FINALLY HAD something to offer Kelsey, yet the words wouldn't come. Dillon lay beside her the next morning and watched a frown cross her face as she slept. She had slept restlessly through the night, often reaching to him for the comfort he had willingly given. They hadn't made love. He had known that this time the words had to come first.

  But the words weren't there.

  How did you tell a woman you wanted her forever? Telling her that he loved her had been simple in comparison. His love had been freely given, demanding nothing in return. But if he asked her to stay with him, and she refused.

  Now there was nothing she could blame her refusal on. He could leave Coober Pedy. Once the opal had been taken from the mine, he could leave—at least, he thought he could. He could offer Kelsey more than heat and drought and flies. He could offer her paradise.

  And she could refuse it. She had never told him that she loved him. The closest she had come was to tell him she hoped someday she didn't care so much.

  Lying in bed watching her sleep-soft face, those words didn't seem much to go on. She was a woman any man would die for. She had the courage of ten, courage that had saved her life and his last night, and trapped a murderer. She had beauty, wit, intelligence and, under the pride and the temper, sensitivity. What would she want with him? He had the opal he had sought for so many years, but what was it worth without her?

  Kelsey awoke and knew that something was wrong. She lay quietly, without opening her eyes, and remembered the events of the previous day. Her eyes opened slowly. She was confused about where she was. She remembered falling asleep in the lounge room.

  Wrapped in Dillon's arms.

  She turned her head and found him staring at her. She was obviously in his bed.

  "I fell asleep in the other room."

  "I know you did."

  "You brought me in here."

  He smiled and brushed her cheek with the back of his fingers. "We were talking about rainbow fire. You fell asleep in the middle of your first glass of champagne."

  She remembered now. The plesiosaurus had stood in perfect opalized symmetry on the table at their feet. "You'd had that champagne for years. It was pretty potent."

  "I'd been waiting all those years for yesterday."

  She reached up and touched his face. "Was it worth the wait?"

  He didn't know what to say. He had wanted, dreamed, worked for opal. Now he had it, and he could hardly think of it. There was something he wanted more, and finding it was going to be the hardest thing he had ever done.

  "I'd give it all away if you would stay with me," he said, reaching for her hand. "Not here," he hurried on. "I couldn't ask you to do that. We'll go somewhere else. Wherever you want to go. But I need you, Sunset. I need you in my life. You're the only kind of fire I can't live without."

  She stared at him through sleep-fogged eyes that were rapidly clearing. "You want me?"

  "I do. I have from the beginning. But I couldn't offer you anything.
I had nothing I could give you except hardship. Now I can."

  She narrowed her eyes. "You wanted me, but you weren't going to let me decide if I should stay?"

  He knew he had let himself in for trouble. One dimple dented his cheek. He laced his fingers through hers and held her hand away from him. There was no telling what that hand might do. "I was going to come after you last night anyway and ask, before we found the opal. Pretend we didn't find it. Love me. Marry me. Live with me forever."

  "Here in Coober Pedy?"

  "Bloody hell, Sunset. Do you want to live in Coober Pedy?"

  Her lips were turning up, just like his. She couldn't stop the process. "Bloody hell, I bloody well do, mate. There's no place like it in the world. And where else would I mine for opal? Mining's in me blood."

  Through the put-on accent he could see she was serious. "You would really live here? After everything that's happened?"

  "I love this town, I love the people, but I'd live anywhere with you. I'd go to the ends of the earth."

  "This is the end of the earth."

  She shook her head, and her hair swirled provocatively across the pillow. "Oh no, my love," she said, reaching up to pull him slowly to her. "This is the land of rainbow fire. The land where I'll raise my children. This is the earth's beginning."

  Epilogue

  IF THE WEDDING'S half as nice as the party last night, it will be perfect." Kelsey reached up to straighten Dillon's tie. He had never looked so handsome as he did at that moment, nor as uncomfortable. "We should let you get married in your hard hat," she teased him. "You'd like it better."

  "I should think that would be more fitting for a church that has a winch and a bucket for an altar."

  "More fitting, but more shocking to your American friends." She reached up and kissed his cheek, then leaned against him as his arms came around her. "We're going to be happy."

  Dillon still couldn't believe that Kelsey wanted to share his life. They had spent the last week taking thousands of dollars worth of opal out of the Rainbow Fire. Now it was Kelsey who was planning where they should look for the next big hit. He had come to realize that if he ever wanted to leave Coober Pedy for good, he would have to bind, gag and throw her over his shoulder.

  And that wouldn't be easy.

  "Do your friends approve of me?" she asked, her warm breath tickling his neck.

  "The town's in love with you."

  She knew it was true. She had more friends here than she had believed she would make in a lifetime. Even Melanie had chosen to stay on after Gary's arrest, trying to pull together a life and a spirit that he had almost shattered. She would be at the wedding.

  "I didn't mean the local population. I meant Julianna and Gray. And Paige."

  He laughed. "They more than approve. Paige tells me the two of you are going to start an opal exporting business to New Zealand."

  "She's got the business sense, I've got the opals."

  "They couldn't not love you, Sunset."

  It was important to Kelsey to be loved. She knew it now. And, best of all, she had all the love she could ever hold right here in front of her.

  "I want to be your wife," she said, rubbing her cheek against his shoulder.

  "Then you'd better get dressed."

  "Not with you here. We've got to have a few secrets."

  He kissed her, and the kiss held the promise of the long, pleasure-filled night ahead. "I'll wait on the sun porch with Jumbuck."

  She untangled herself from his arms reluctantly and watched him close the bedroom door behind him. Then, giving herself a mental shake, she went to the closet to begin dressing.

  Her wedding dress was street-length, oyster-colored silk trimmed with elegant Belgian lace. Anna, who was to be her matron of honor, had made it for her after a trip to Adelaide to find the fabric. Anna sewed as well as she cooked, and Kelsey knew she would never look this beautiful again.

  She was almost ready when she heard the doorbell ring. It was either another of the steady stream of well-wishers or one of the local children who came frequently to gaze at the plesiosaurus skeleton. Their rapt expressions were yet another reason Dillon wanted to donate the skeleton to the National History Museum of South Australia. Everyone deserved to see it. In the meantime he kept it under lock and key unless the children were viewing it, waiting to find out if the donation would be legal without Jake's permission.

  Jake himself had never resurfaced.

  There was a knock on the bedroom door. "I'm just about ready," she called.

  "You've got another visitor."

  Kelsey gave her hair one more fluff before she pulled on the circlet of flowers that had been flown in from Adelaide as a present from Julianna and Gray. Gray was going to be Dillon's best man, and a radiantly pregnant Julianna was going to serve at the reception. Kelsey looked forward to knowing them better in the years ahead.

  Kelsey took a deep breath and opened the door, then walked down the hall slowly. At the door of the lounge room she stopped, posing. Dillon turned, blocking her view of their visitor. His expression told her everything about his love for her, and his pride.

  Then he stepped aside to reveal an old man, grizzled beard neatly trimmed and hat twisting in his hands.

  Kelsey swallowed, unable for a moment to move. Then she started across the floor to stop just in front of him.

  His faded brown eyes watered, and he blinked as he examined her from head to toe. Then he awkwardly stuck out his hand. She could see that he was trembling.

  "You look like your mother, girl," he said, swallowing hard.

  Her eyes dropped to the hand that was still extended. Then she took it and clasped it between hers. "Maybe you can tell me about her, Jake," she said softly.

  "There'll be time for talking."

  Kelsey felt Dillon's arm around her shoulder, and she relaxed against his warmth. "I'll look forward to that," she told her father. "More than you know."

  * * *

  THE END

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  Author's Note

  I'm delighted to share the third novel in one of my favorite romance series with you. Rainbow Fire is the third of a four book series that I titled Tales of the Pacific (because James Mitchener beat me to Tales of the South Pacific.) The books were first published in paperback, and are now available as ebooks. The series came to life after I traveled to each of four different "islands" on a family trip down under—with a nice long weekend in Hawaii--just me, my husband and our four children ages four to fourteen for six months. What an extended holiday that was.

  By the time I came home again I was bursting with ideas and research information and ready to do something with both. Somewhere along the way--probably the night I was sleeping in a real opal mine in Coober Pedy, Australia--I decided that an opal looked like rainbow fire. Of course I knew immediately that Rainbow Fire had to be a book title. And here's the result, born in an opal mine and set in an opal mine in one of the most interesting places I've ever visited.

  But if I had fire, didn't I also need embers, smoke and ashes? Of course I did. And as had happened before and since, I created titles before I created stories. Authors are like that.

  From Glowing Embers was the initial book of the series, to be followed by the rest and many others. Eventually as an author I moved from pure romance into women's fiction, which I write today. But how much of a move was it? As you read this novel you'll see the elements I continue to share with my readers. Searching for home and protecting those we love. Forgiveness. Reconcilliation. Falling in love when that's the last thing on our minds.

  Reading back through Rainbow Fire I was immediately involved in the lives of Kelsey Donovan and Dillon Ward, who are thrust together against their will and must learn to trust and help each other to survive. Kelsey is a black belt, and while wimp that I am I never progressed more than a few degrees, I was studying karate
as the book was written. Kelsey's life has been tough and she's trained to feel strong and sure of herself, all qualities she needs in this novel. Dillon, in turn, who wants only adventure, discovers that love might be the biggest adventure of all.

  My own days in Coober Pedy were awe-inspiring. No other place I've been is anything like it with homes dug from the ground to stay cool. Need a shelf? You dig one out of your wall. Need a swim? Who doesn't have a pool under ground? At the time this book was written Coober Pedy was very definitely a man's world with only a few women here and there who were willing to have this experience. From start to finish I loved every moment of my visit, from noodling for opals, sleeping underground and spending a night at the very interesting pub, hub of all social life.

  How could I not set a book there?

  If you've finished this book and the first two, From Glowing Embers and Smoke Screen, you will also have gotten to know wunderkind Jody Whitham and (almost) Jody's mother, Alexis. You may wonder, as I did, what happened to them after the hurricane that changes their lives.

  In the final novel of this series Out of the Ashes you'll get to know Alexis Whitham, Jody's mother, who escapes to Australia only to fall in love with a man with wounds as deep as her own. Along the way you'll catch up with previous characters like Dillon and Kelsey and make sure all is still well. I love it when that happens.

  I almost forgot the best part. All four of these books have been made into movies in Germany, where they've aired in the prime Sunday night slot on ZDF. I was invited to go to New Zealand to watch another of my novels being filmed—and to eke out a day in Rotorua again while I was there. Later I traveled to Germany to help promote the movie based on Rainbow Fire.

  Rainbow Fire was filmed in New Zealand, along with the rest of the series, and as you might guess, there are no opal mines there. So my resourceful producers changed the story and wrote a script about diving for treasure. An opal, of course. Don't you love it? The story itself was still much the same. I met that cast, and loved them all. It was such fun.

  Who knew when Julie Ann and Gray of From Glowing Embers first appeared to me and began to tell their story, that they would live on in film and I would experience so much joy watching it happen?