"It’s incredible that Linda found that pottery fragment by the pool," Owen said, smoothly shifting the conversation back onto the safer, more familiar ground of their shared discipline. "The incised notches and the specific composition of the clay grit... it proves everything you theorized in your early papers on the barrier island trade networks."
Anna’s posture changed instantly, the nervous tension evaporating as the familiar spark of academic passion took over.
"It’s exactly what the data demanded, Owen!” Anna’s voice filled with an unmistakable excitement that made her sound thirty years younger. “When I was a young researcher mapping out the seasonal habitation zones along the Calusa ridge lines, I was absolutely convinced that the current site of the hotel was the primary ceremonial anchor for the mid-island lagoon system. The natural elevation, the proximity to the freshwater springs.”Her smile widened. “It was the most ideal spot on the entire coast for a permanent settlement."
She turned in her seat, gesturing with her hands as she spoke.
"I spent two summers plotting out the soil variations across the old town square and down toward the marina, but I could never get the deep core samples I needed from the Heart property. The family was always so fiercely protective of that specific ridge. To think that a simple cracked swimming pool structure has finally laid bare the exact stratigraphy I was looking for..." She trailed off, a rare look of complete satisfaction settling over her features.
Owen listened intently, nodding as he navigated the car past the historic Sanibel Lighthouse.
"We’ve been keeping the stabilization protocol completely secure under your guidelines," Owen explained, matching her professional focus. "Linda and Michael have been handling the logistics on the family side. We’re preparing the initial grid coordinates for a formal shovel test series, but we’re going to need a few more experienced helping hands once the state validation forms are filed. This isn't a standard, state-funded university dig, Anna."
“I realize that,” Anna said softly.
"Money is exceptionally tight for the hotel right now." Owen glanced at Anna. “Although he won’t admit it.”
Owen went quiet for a moment, his fingers tightening slightly on the wheel as his mind drifted back to the reality of the island's current layout.
Anna nodded slowly, her expression turning somber, though she remained entirely unaware of the severe financial crisis or theforeclosure threat the Heart family was quietly fighting behind the scenes.
"George was never a man who cared for wealth, Owen. He cared for the wood, the shoreline, and the legacy. If the hotel is struggling, a massive preservation freeze will give him the time he needs to steady the ship." Anna looked at him. “I do realize that. I’ve done my homework and have secretly been keeping an eye on the place.”
Owen swallowed hard, the memory of his recent encounter at the diner flashing vividly in his mind. The thought of the hotel’s precarious finances brought a cold, persistent question back to the surface. With Anna admitting she’d been keeping an eye on the hotel, the nagging question grew stronger. It had been eating at his instincts ever since he saw Dr. Debbi Wineberg and the man, whom he now knew was from the Wayne Group, Baxter Johnson, at the diner. He took a deep breath, the necessity of the question overriding his usual hesitation.
"Anna," Owen blurted out, his voice cutting through the hum of the engine. "Did you mention Linda’s find to anyone else before you boarded your flight? Anyone at the university, or any independent cultural resource consultants in the Carolinas?"
Anna’s spine stiffened instantly, her head snapping toward him, her brows drawing together in immediate offense.
"Why on earth would you ask me that, Owen? You know the confidentiality protocols regarding unvetted heritage sites as well as I do." She paused, her sharp eyes boring into his profile, her tone dropping into a quiet, wounded weight. "Did what happened to you ten years ago in Charleston really make you this jaded and mistrustful of everyone in your life?"
Owen clamped his jaw shut, his eyes fixed firmly on the road ahead as the old, familiar sting of the past flared in his chest.
"Look, Owen," Anna continued, her voice softening with deep empathy as she reached across the console to rest a hand briefly on his arm. "I understand better than anyone why you see predatory shadows in every corner of the academic world. What happened to your career, what was done to you and Gillian, was an absolute tragedy. But I did not expect you to look at me and see one of those shadows."
Owen let out a slow, controlled breath, forcing the tension out of his shoulders.
"Anna... I apologize. I don't think you're a shadow. It's just that after everything I've survived, I simply do not believe in coincidences anymore." He glanced at her, feeling awful for his accusation and even thinking about what he had.
"Coincidences?" Anna repeated, her brow furrowing in genuine confusion. "What do you mean? What coincidence are you talking about?"
Before Owen could answer, the phone in the center console buzzed sharply, the screen lighting up with Linda Heart’s name. Owen welcomed the interruption. He checked his mirrors, indicating a turn, and pulled the Volvo smoothly onto the wide, sandy shoulder of the coastal road beneath a canopy of whispering Australian pines.
He picked up the phone, sliding his glasses onto his nose as he opened the incoming text message. As his eyes scanned the lines of text describing George's sudden secondary infection, the emergency surgery to drain the abscess, and the extendedhospital stay, Owen's eyes widened, a knot of genuine concern for his old friend hammering through his chest.
"Oh, no," Owen murmured, staring at the screen.
"What is it?" Anna asked, her voice instantly dropping into a tense, breathless note as she watched his expression.
"It seems that you won't have to worry about running into George at the hotel for at least a few days," Owen told her, turning his head to look directly into her eyes. “Maybe even a week or more.”
"Why? Is he out of town?" Anna asked, her hand tightening on her purse strap.
"No," Owen said gently, wanting to soften the blow as he saw the color already beginning to drain from her face. "George had a bad fall a couple of weeks ago and had to undergo an extensive operation on his broken hip. Linda says he was recovering well, but late last night he developed a severe secondary bacterial infection. They had to rush him back into surgery a few hours ago to open the incision and drain an abscess that had formed around the deep tissue."
By the time Owen finished explaining the medical details, Anna’s face had gone a ghostly, terrifying shade of white. Her mouth parted slightly, her usual stoic composure shattering completely as she stared at him in utter shock.
"Take me to the hospital," Anna insisted, her voice dropping into a harsh, commanding hiss that brooked absolutely no argument. "Turn the car around, Owen. Take me there right now."
