Danger in Paradise Read Online Free PDF

if…uh…”
    Realization slammed into him. “Sonja? Is there something you’re not telling me?”
    “Well…I thought maybe she might remind you of someone.”
    “Shit.” He never cursed around Sonja because he knew she despised it.
    “She looks just like Maria, doesn’t she?” Sonja continued, almost breathless.
    She did, but he wasn’t ready to confirm it yet. “Is that why you sent me? You knew about this?” A head’s up would have been nice.
    “I couldn’t come, myself. I was looking for photographers and when I saw her picture on her website I almost had a heart attack. I didn’t trust myself to see her in person. I thought maybe you’d be objective enough—” Her voice broke off into a half-sob and Luke’s heart twisted. “I can’t get my hopes up again after all these years. My heart can’t take it. That’s why I sent you, don’t you understand?” The agony in her voice clawed at his insides.
    He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Unfortunately, I do.”
    A few moments passed, but he figured she needed to compose herself. Eventually she continued. “Does she look like her? Now that you’ve seen her in person?”
    He couldn’t lie to her. Not that it would matter if he did. He’d be bringing Hope to Miami in a week or two, anyway. “There are differences…but yes, she does have some similarities to Maria.” There were a lot more than similarities between the two, but he couldn’t bring himself to voice it aloud just yet. He needed to see Hope next to Maria.
    Sonja expelled a long sigh. He wasn’t sure if it was out of relief or panic. Maybe it was a bit of both. “Do you think it’s…it’s my Anna?”
    “I honestly don’t know.” If he gave her false hope after all these years and he was wrong, he couldn’t live with himself. “Have you told anyone else about her?”
    “No. I didn’t want to upset Jose or Maria if it wasn’t necessary. I don’t think poor Jose’s heart would be able to take it. And Maria has dealt with enough over the years.”
    For a woman who’d lost her daughter, she’d never given up hope that Anna was alive. She’d had a few breakdowns over the years, and at one point Luke had been sure Sonja and Jose would divorce, but she’d tried her best to raise Maria with a sense of normalcy.
    Unlike her, Luke had buried Anna’s ghost a long time ago. Or at least he thought he had until he’d come face to face with Hope. “What are you going to do when I bring her to Miami?”
    “I have no idea.” She sighed, the sound heavy and tired.
    That’s what he was afraid of. “I’m going to see what information I can dig up, but I’ll call you soon.”
    As soon as they disconnected, he dialed another number. He wanted to check in with his FBI contact. Hopefully he’d have news about Hope’s background. His friend, Max Gray, picked up on the third ring. “Gray here.”
    “Hey, Max, I was just calling to check—”
    “Look, I’m swamped right now. I’ll call you back later.”
    Luke paused for a second. He and Max went back about a decade. Before he had a chance to respond, Max hung up.
    What the hell was that? Luke stared at his phone for a second before retreating inside.
    In his room, he changed into jogging clothes. Too many questions raced through his head. Maybe if he worked out he’d be able to work out some of his tension. Though, somehow he doubted it.
    As he left his room, the buzz of his phone stopped him. He didn’t know the number, but recognized the area code. “This is Luke.”
    “It’s Max.” His voice was low, almost a whisper.
    “Man, what the hell is going on?”
    “Listen, I don’t have long, I’m calling from a payphone if you can believe that. Whatever you’ve gotten yourself into, keep me out of it.” A horn blasted in the background.
    “What?”
    “That girl you wanted me to check out, Hope Jennings, well forget about it.” Though Max’s voice was low, Luke didn’t miss the anxiety.
    “Why?”
    “About an