Blue Moon

Chapter One ; The norte that met Jeanne and Dr. Remy Primston on their January afternoon arrival in Cancun drove tourists off the beaches and into the restaurants, bars, and enclosed shopping markets. Yet Jeanne refused to let the weather dampen her spirit. Two months from now, her dream would come true . . . provided one Captain Gabriel Avery agreed to sign on with the expedition on her terms. ; ; Three hours, a warm meal, and a dry change of clothes later, she read aloud the sign suspended over a hodgepodge of local shops along the waterfront where Remy parked their rented car. "Marina Garza. This must be it." ; "Garza with a g," Remy muttered, flipping through his Spanish dictionary at warp speed. ; "Garza means gull," she translated for her companion. Her high-school Spanish was coming in handy, even though it needed a thorough dusting off. "It's the address that Pablo Montoya sent us." She double-checked the e-mail that she'd printed off, then tucked it back in her purse. ; Far below the hotel zone on the lagoon side of the resort, the Marina Garza was definitely off the beaten path. Ahead of them, a single weather-warped dock protruded from a cluster of mostly closed shops on the grassy, scrub-dotted waterfront south of Cancun. Somewhere among the weathered and rusty boats tied up there was the one she'd prayed for--the Fallen Angel. Appropriately named, given Blaine's investigation that had revealed its captain as a renegade. ; "This looks promising," her companion drawled distastefully as he grabbed his umbrella from the backseat. "And I don't like the idea of gallivanting around Mexico after dark. You can't trust these people." ; "I just can't wait till tomorrow, Remy. This guy is our last chance," Jeanne told him with a hint of apology. She linked her arm in his. "Remember, Blaine cleared the man." Reluctantly, granted, but Captain Avery was okayed. ; Jeanne realized that it was partly because her former professor and mentor, Dr. Remy Primston, would accompany her. A Boston blue blood, Primston was twenty years Jeanne's senior. Thanks to his support, Jeanne had done the incredible. She'd put together the financial backing for this expedition to search for an eighteenth-century Spanish ship that had sunk off the Yucatan coast with a cargo of gold and silver, according to the letters written by its surviving captain and crew. If--no, when--they found the treasure and artifacts, they would be split between the Mexican government and the investors. ; "Your brother's report makes him sound like a last chance." ; "Just because Avery's made some odd choices in his life doesn't detract from the fact that he's a good captain and familiar with the waters. And his boat passed a recent inspection. That's all we need. Besides, you know we are on a tight budget," Jeanne reminded him. ; "Aren't we always?" Remy complained, digging in his jacket pocket. Withdrawing prescription nasal spray, he took a deep sniff in each nostril. "This weather is murder on my sinuses." ; Remy got out of the car and, stiff as a royal steward, opened it for her, holding his oversized black umbrella overhead to shelter her from what had turned to misting rain. That was Remy, always making her feel like a queen. ; "Senor Montoya said that Captain Avery lives on his boat here at the marina," she said upon getting out. ; "Watch your step, dear." Remy offered her his arm for support. "That dock looks none too safe when it's dry, much less when it's rain soaked." ; With the practical soles of her sandals clicking on the weather-warped planks, Jeanne started down the dock, but halfway downWindsor, Linda is the author of 'Blue Moon ', published 2005 under ISBN 9780785260646 and ISBN 0785260641.