The Greatest of These by Greg Wendleton (have you read this book .txt) 📗

of the parking lot and the short distance to the Hana Highway. I took a right and soon I pulled into the parking lot of a small grocery store just off the highway. Inside the store I purchased a large bottle of Fiji water and something called a Bento Box. It had rice, beans and Spam packed inside of it. Carbs and protein to fuel my body. I sat in the SUV and consumed the contents very quickly. I then pulled out my phone and looked for the directions to the Kula Fire Station #13. I was pointed in the right direction. Highway 36 to Highway 37. I should be there in thirty minutes.

As I drove, I thought of what I was going to say to the firefighters. Hi, I’m a jerk and I put my dear friends in danger. Have you seen them and can you help me? That would probably go over like a fart in church and be as effective as a knife in a gun fight. I better come up with something a little less direct and more compelling.

I arrived at the fire station at 8:30 on Wednesday morning. It was February 24th and it might have been forty-eight hours since Chad and Jamie had been taken. I took a deep breath and exited my vehicle. I walked down the short sidewalk and entered the station house via a side door.

“Hey look, two haoles in one week! What’s up bro?”

“What? Two what in one week” I asked.

“Two haoles. Mainlanders. First Chad and his beautiful wife and now you.”

“Chad and Jamie were here? When was it?” I blurted.

“Hang on bro. Who are you?” asked the uniformed man.

“I’m sorry. Of course.” I extended my right hand and pulled the mask over my nose and mouth with my left hand. “My name is Garret Cooper. I’m Chad and Jamie Wilhite’s neighbor from San Antonio. My wife and I are dog-sitting for them and we haven’t been able to reach them since Saturday. We got worried and I flew in late yesterday and I’m following up on places they said they were going to visit.”

Finally taking my extended hand, he said, “Okay bro. I’m Tommy Pang, the Captain at this firehouse. Let me think…they were here Sunday. I had just come on duty and they walked in, just like you.”

“Well, that’s good news. Did they say anything about other plans they had?”

“No. They had been to the Ocean’s Distillery and were headed back to The Inn, I think. Oh wait, they said something about looking at vacation houses on Monday. Yeah, yeah, in Lahaina.”

“Okay. That jives with what they told my wife and I. Anything else you can think of?”

“Nothing else, bro. Do you think they are in danger?”

“I don’t know. It’s possible.”

“Let me know if you need our help. We have a helicopter we use for search and rescue. We can spool it up and be in the air in just a few minutes.” Reaching into his shirt pocket he pulled out a card. “Here, take this. Call that number and ask for Captain Pang if you need help.”

“Thank you, Captain, you’re a God-send. I hope I don’t have to call you, but I won’t hesitate if I need your assistance.”

I quick-walked out of the station house and back to my Terrain. I searched for Paradise Realty, in Lahaina, in Google Maps. It was going to take nearly an hour as I needed to backtrack almost all the way to Kahului, before heading west. With any luck, I’d be there by ten.

I did get lucky and pulled into the parking lot of the real estate office at 9:56am. Was God smiling down on me today? I jumped out of the SUV almost as I was still putting the gearshift into park, and ran up to the front door. I gained some composure by taking a deep breath and then opened the glass door. The office was empty, except for the most beautiful Polynesian woman I had ever seen who was walking out of a small office.

“Aloha, how can I help you?”

“Aloha, I’m looking for Scott…, um, I can’t remember his last name.”

She smiled and gently said, “That would be my husband, Scott Crowley. My name is Leilani.”

We both put our face masks on before taking the few steps to shake hands. “My name is Garret Cooper. Is Scott here?”

Leilani looked closely at me and said, “Do you have an appointment with Scott this morning?”

“Um, no. I don’t, but it is really important that I speak to him as soon as possible.”

“May I ask what about?”

“My friends, Chad and Jamie Wilhite.”

A look of recognition flickered in her eyes. “Oh yes, Scott spoke about their day together on Monday.”

“So, they were here?”

“They were and they were supposed to come back yesterday, but they didn’t call or come back.”

“I think they are in trouble. That’s why I really need to speak with your husband.”

“He is with a mortgage banker down the street. Let me call him and see how quickly he can return.”

Leilani turned away from me and walked back into her office picking up her phone as soon as she sat at her desk. A few minutes passed, as I stood alone in the main reception area. After she hung up, she returned and said, “Scott will be back in less than ten minutes and said to please make yourself comfortable. Can I get you something? Scott keeps a supply of Coke and Diet Coke as well as water in the fridge.”

“You know what, a Coke sounds great. Thank you.”

Leilani returned a minute later carrying two cans. One Coke and one Diet Coke. She handed me the Coke and we both sat down in the arm chairs located in the small reception area.

“When did you arrive on Maui?”, she asked.

“Just yesterday. It was about six in the evening when we landed. Have you lived on Maui your whole life?”

“No, I was born on Oahu. I met Scott when he was an