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“Alright, let me grab an ATV and I’ll show you what we thought of days ago.” Robert walked away.
“You already knew? Is there anything you don’t think of?” I laughed. “Can I keep you?”
“That would be up to my girl, Solitaire, but I don’t think she needs me as much as she used to, and I do love it here.” Gunner nodded, then jumped on an ATV as well. “Follow us.”
I followed them on ATV until we got to a thicker brush and had to go the rest on foot. They had clearly thought of this days ago, because there were telltale signs of their handiwork with machetes.
“What’s the plan here?” I followed them through the narrow path. “How far does this go and where does it come out?”
“It’s a short walk, then up ahead you can go on bike for a quarter mile until you either swim or kayak,” Gunner said. “The water is only three feet deep with no access to the open water, so no dangerous sea life.”
“Can we go there now?” I asked.
“We put bikes up ahead and kayaks at the water area just in case you wanted to try it out,” Robert smirked. “I had faith in you wanting to have fun.”
“Here’s the best part. If your guests choose to go this path, they can cut a good amount of time off their mission to the huts.” Gunner motioned for me to follow on foot. “On the map we started planning out, there will be clues. If they can figure out that they can get there quicker, this is the path they’ll find.”
“This is amazing. I’m excited. I can’t wait to see this map and clues.” I felt myself smiling ear to ear. “This is exactly what I wanted before all that fancy walkway started.”
“We had a feeling, but Asher had other ideas, and that back there is what you get when it’s not planned by Marine Special Forces.”
We reached the bikes and a small solar-run station keeping bottles of water cold. I hadn’t even known Gunner had ordered the bikes needed, but they were perfect.
Birds were flying around above us. It felt like a jungle, yet it wasn’t. I could see the area up ahead they were talking about, where the water began. It was daunting when you first approached it. Knowing it was shallow didn’t take away any of the excitement I felt knowing we had to go into it.
“And you’re sure it’s safe to swim across this or walk, if you’re my height, I guess?” I asked. “Oh, very nice, I just saw the kayaks hidden over there behind the trees. Wow, you out-did yourselves. If guests find their way here, they may think they have to swim or go back.”
“You got it. So, if they pay attention, they win. If they don’t, then they lose time.” Robert started into the water. “Come on, let’s go, unless you want to kayak?”
“I think I should try the kayak to see if it would be easier or tougher, although I want to just swim it with you.” I looked to him and back to the kayaks. “What do you think, Gunner?”
“Do both. Kayak over and swim back,” Gunner said, matter-of-fact. “Robert can bring the kayak back. I’ll clock you.”
“Man, I love this.”
Chapter 73
Jade
Icouldn’t get off the plane fast enough. I did the best I could to be polite and smile. When the door opened, I hit the tarmac running. All I could think was that DeLuca somehow got his hands on the property while I was gone.
What are they doing here?
“Hey, you’re back,” Charlie yelled from the furthest dock. “What do ya think?”
What do I think? What do I think?
“Why do you look so confused?” Gunner asked form behind me. “It’s what you wanted, isn’t it?”
“Umm, well yes, I wanted it repaired. But this isn’t repair, it’s completely redone.” I spun around to face Gunner. “How?”
“Mrs. Hawthorne. She said it needed to be done immediately.” Gunner winced. “I assumed you knew about this.”
I looked around at the renovated docks, then out to the water. “We spoke about the docks being repaired, but nothing was finalized. I didn’t have a plan yet.”
“If you told Mrs. Hawthorne that she would be involved in the renovation, then this is what you get.” He gestured around the docks. “The Hawthorne engineer was here yesterday and a few crews came in to complete it.”
“Jade, isn’t it great? Guy’s gonna love it.” Charlie hugged me.
