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“I’m good.”
He slips into the driver’s seat. I settle down in the back and glance outside the window as we take off.
The Belizean terrain is a stark difference from what I’m used to. Beyond the stretches of forests that grow unhindered on the roadside and the strip of the Belize River that flows beside the highway, there’s something in the air.
It’s calming. To the point that I begin to wonder if I’ve stepped into a different universe altogether.
No one seems to be in a hurry. The sun shines brightly on houses and buildings that are painted in every shade available to man. The river glitters beyond the boundaries of a thick, concrete wall. Nature is protecting this country. Or maybe they’re protecting each other.
I almost smile.
Almost.
Then my phone rings and my thoughts crash to a halt. Lydia Stuart. Something tells me not to answer, but I do.
“Hello?”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Duncan,” Lydia says.
I shoot to the edge of my seat. “What happened?”
There’s a long beat of silence.
“Lydia!” My voice is hoarse. Unfamiliar. “Is he…?”
“Your brother just passed away.”
Chapter 2
Ben
The taxi slows in front of a boxy brick building. Apart from the glass double doors sprawled open and the driveway wide enough to let an ambulance through, it doesn’t look like a hospital.
I jump out of the car after paying the driver and take the steps two at a time. The security at the door gives me the side-eye, but I barely notice. Harry is the only thing on my mind.
Lydia Stuart’s words crash through my head like a relentless wave. Your brother passed away.
My sneakers skate against the glossy tiles as I turn the corner and head into the main room. I slam against the counter where a pretty nurse with dark skin and black hair shrinks back. My fingers dig into the rim of the table.
I breathe hard. “My name is Benjamin Duncan. I’m looking for my brother, Harry Duncan.”
“Give me a minute.” She turns to a computer and starts typing.
I use the counter to keep myself upright. My chest heaves. Every breath is a struggle. Harry’s pale blue eyes float through my head. Full of life. Energy. Maturity. Of the two of us, he was the better man.
Your brother passed away.
I refuse to believe that. Harry has to be alive. He promised he’d visit this fall. We were supposed to go skiing. I had plans to set him up with one of my friends. Force him out of his confirmed bachelorhood.
“Mr. Duncan?”
I whirl around. Swallow the lump in my throat. “Yes?”
She gives me directions. I don’t take the time to smile charmingly at her or flirt the way I usually would. Instead, I race down the halls and slip into the correct ward.
It’s ten a.m. Belizean time on a Sunday, so I’m taken aback by how full the waiting room is. Locals fill the chairs. Their faces are crunched with worry. The mood is somber. I fly past them, trying not to mow anyone down in my hurry.
I scramble down the corridor and stop short when I see a little girl bawling her eyes out in the middle of the hallway. She’s tall and lean with tawny skin and long braids down her back. Another woman holds her tight, struggling to calm her.
