By now a couple of people had begun to look a little green and I noticed one of the boat people offering them paper towels and some advice. It was then that I noticed something about myself. The churning water and the rolling boat didn’t seem to bother me at all. I began to make the rounds and check on my people in case their experience was different than mine.
Aileen seemed fine. She was at the front of the boat doing a Titanic move of holding her arms out and letting the wind make crazy salad of her brown hair. Madison had found a seat and wanted to know where the whales were. Iola had staked out a seat at the back of the boat. When I asked how she was she gave me a thumbs-up. Deani had gone inside and was checking out the snack bar.
And then I found PJ. She was slumped on a bench along the side of the cabin. “Are you okay?” I asked. She nodded half-heartedly. “I was going to tape something about being prepared for boat travel for the vlog.” She pulled out a small makeup bag and showed me it was almost empty. “I didn’t expect to have to use all the stuff on myself.” She showed me she was wearing a wrist band that had a pressure point that was supposed to help with seasickness. There were only wrappers left from the ginger candy she’d brought. “Thank heavens I didn’t have to use this,” she said and pulled out the only thing left in the bag. It was a package of damp wipes with the lovely title of Vomit Patrol, which promised to leave the user fresh as a daisy.
“Maybe I should do the vlog entry. The point being that things don’t always work out as you expected and you have to be able to step in and take care of yourself. The fact that it was me who had to do it might make it more compelling.” She patted her hair, which like everyone else’s was blowing across her face. “I’ll just have to do the best I can to look presentable,” she said as she pulled out a scarf and magically tied it perfectly around her head. She straightened her black jacket before she freshened her lipstick and pulled out her phone and used the camera to check her appearance. When she was satisfied, she began to tape.
I’d done my duty and went to find a seat near Iola just as the boat cut the motor and the voice over the loudspeaker announced we were there. Now that we weren’t moving forward anymore, the boat really began to rock and I saw a couple of people head for the edge and hang their heads over. I thought of offering them PJ’s Vomit Patrol wipes, but they weren’t really mine to give.
I glanced at Iola. Not only was she quiet, but she was hopelessly nondescript as well. I was looking right at her and I had trouble noticing what she was wearing other than it seemed to be a beige jacket over slacks and those kinds of sandals that have a rubber layer along the front. They looked as if you could kick things and not hurt your toes. Her hair was literally a color without a name. It was somewhere between a honey blond and chestnut brown. It was cut short and seemed like it could use something to give it some life.
“Still okay?” I said to Iola, expecting a thumbs-up or -down. Instead she spoke.
“Boats don’t bother me,” she said. The sound of her voice startled me and surprised me, too. When she’d spoken before her voice had been so quiet I didn’t hear the timbre. But thanks to the wind she had to speak louder and I heard the quality of her voice. I don’t know what I’d expected she would sound like, but certainly not the husky sultry voice she had. She chuckled after that. “You looked surprised that I said something. I suppose the others told you I never say anything.”
“Well, now that you mention it, somebody did say you were on the quiet side.”
“Ha,” she said in the low sexy voice. “They don’t stop talking long enough for me to get a word in. Somebody has to listen to all their prattle. I think you should know that Madison is really upset with you.”
“Really?” I said, looking in the direction of the woman with the pink hair. “What did I do?”
“She said you put on a workshop for those Reborn people.” I remembered now that Madison had walked in during the workshop.
“I didn’t think it would be a problem since your group wasn’t using the room. I’m sorry,” I added quickly. “We were just in your room for that time. Maybe I should go and tell her,” I said, but Iola put her hand on my wrist.
“It’s not that someone was using the room—it’s who was using the room. She’s not upset with you, it’s them.”
“Does she know them?” I asked, and Iola smiled.
“I guess you missed it when Madison was talking about what she does. She manages a shared work space place and they have an office there.”
I was a little confused by the term shared work space and then I realized it was the new version of what used to be called an executive suite. There were private offices, but reception and a lounge with a kitchen were shared.
“Madison does more than manage the place. She’s the main receptionist who answers the phone and troubleshoots anything that goes wrong. That means those Reborn people go past her counter whenever they come in or go out or need something, which apparently is all the time. She wasn’t thrilled when she saw they were here since she half expected them to dump some problem on her here.” Iola let out a mirthless laugh and rolled her eyes. “But what they did was far worse. She went to greet a couple of them in the Lodge and they absolutely looked right through her. Those arrogant jerks are so into their own importance they obviously never really looked at a person they see every day.”
“Wow, I had no idea. Well, maybe a little. I did get the feeling they think they’re kind of entitled.” I stopped as something occurred to me. “Didn’t Madison say your knitting group meets where she works?”
Iola nodded.
“So then you all know them,” I said.
Iola shrugged. “We have different degrees of familiarity with them, but believe me, they don’t know us. They walked right past Deani without so much as a second look and she delivers their food.”
“Did you know that one of them died?” I asked.
“The one that fell. He was the one who didn’t play follow the leader and wear all black like the rest of them. Yes, Deani told us this morning. That’s why Madison didn’t say anything to you about being upset.”
That made sense, but what didn’t make sense was why Deani hadn’t mentioned the Silicon Valley bunch were her customers when I’d told her Tim had died.
“Humpback on the starboard, a voice called out over the loudspeaker and everyone went to that side of the boat, making it list a little. Just then a large black creature breached the water as its blowhole made a whooshing sound. Its giant mouth was open and water poured in. After a few minutes its tail slapped the water as it dove back down. And then there were more. We were literally surrounded by whales having lunch.
I’d worry about Deani and the Silicon Valley bunch later. For now, I wanted to enjoy the show.
Chapter 15
The magic of the humpback whales was over and I was stuck in the tight seat in the third row of the SUV again, trying to tell myself I didn’t feel cramped in. At least it was a shorter ride since the plan was that we’d stop for lunch at the Blue Door on the way back. I hoped I’d get a chance to talk to Lucinda about the information that Iola had dumped in my lap. It was a lot to process. It had never occurred to me that there was a connection between my retreaters and the Silicon Valley group and now I knew there was not only a connection but bad feeling toward the Reborn people from two of my people. I had to bring her up to speed on my nighttime adventure with Lieutenant Borgnine and how my opinion of what’d happened had changed.
I wasn’t sure if Lieutenant Borgnine was sold on the idea that someone had hit Tim with the rock I’d found with blood residue, but I was. The jagged orb was too random when the whole area was made up of giant smooth slabs. The small rocks were piled in the area near the street where someone could have easily helped themselves.
Just then I remembered that I was going to let the whole Tim thing go. Oh, well, good plan while it lasted.
There was a lot more action on Grand Street than there had been when I’d gone to bake
at the Blue Door the night before. The main drag of Cadbury was busy with tourists and townspeople. All the foot traffic gave the main street a lively air. I was concerned about giving Deani directions since my visual options were pretty limited in that third row, but she drove directly to the Blue Door with no help and parked right in front of the place. It knocked out my thought that she might have taken a sleeping pill the night before. My understanding was that people had no memory of what they’d done or where they’d gone. So I had to wonder all over again why she’d said nothing about her visit or that the Reborn crew were her customers.
The group waited until I squeezed out and then I led the way up onto the porch to the front door. Unlike when I’d arrived the night before, tables were set out on the far end of the porch. Though since it was past lunchtime only one of the outdoor tables in the corner was taken.
I held the door and ushered my group in. Lucinda was waiting by the door and gestured for them to follow her. Dressed in a bright yellow dress, it was as if Lucinda had brought the sun inside. I knew it was designed by some guy with a French-sounding name. All of her clothes were designer and she always looked completely put-together. She was wearing her hair short in what she called a carefree style. It was a warm brown now with golden highlights that seemed to act like a spotlight on her face.
I hung back as they went in. Iola held up the rear and I grabbed her as she was about to go inside.
“You told me about Madison and Deani, but what about you? Do you have any connection with the Reborn people?”
“If you’re concerned that I’m angry you put on a workshop for them—I’m not upset. Madison and Deani are involved with servicing them.” She shook her head. “I’m not.” She looked ahead as her knit-together friends reached the other side of the main dining area. “I see the Reborn people in the hall and lounge. Frankly, I’ve never cared that they didn’t acknowledge my existence here or in the office even though it goes against the ‘friendly atmosphere’ of the work space environment.” She gave me a brief rundown of the business she and her husband had. They sold stuff online and made up little videos. No surprise, she did the voice-over. I bet they did well. With her husky voice I figured she could make straw sound exciting.
I’d held her up long enough and urged her to join the others. I stayed by the front, watching as Lucinda waited while they took their seats at the table on the sunporch and then handed them menus. She hung by the table and reacted with smiles and bows of her head as they read the back of the menu with the fairy-tale story of how Lucinda and Tag had been high school sweethearts and reconnected later in life. I noticed them looking around and I guessed it was for Tag. I couldn’t hear Lucinda’s explanation, but I knew she often shooed him out of the place toward the end of lunch so they could have some time off from each other before it was time to start serving dinner.
She took their orders and dropped them off in the kitchen before coming back to the front where I was. “Aren’t you going to sit with them?” she asked.
“They’re all friends and I’m like an outsider,” I said and she nodded with understanding. She got me a stool and wanted to feed me, but all I would take was an iced tea.
The server took over dealing with my group and Lucinda stayed by the front in case there were any late arrivals for lunch.
“I feel so out of the loop,” Lucinda said, leaning on the counter. “I’m used to being in the middle of things. This is the first retreat you’ve put on that I didn’t attend. But I understand this isn’t like your usual retreats. It’s a private party.”
“Exactly,” I said. “And that’s the same reason I’m not sitting with them.” I leaned closer to my friend and boss. “But do I have some things to tell you.”
“I’m all ears,” she said. It was always hard to know where to start. I decided not to go chronologically and started with my adventure with Lieutenant Borgnine. She was laughing so hard by the end she had tears rolling down her cheeks.
“If only you had taken a video of the whole thing.”
“Dealing with him was pretty funny, but finding the blood on the rock was serious and it explained why Tim had blood all over his face,” I said. She wanted to know how the cop had taken it and all I could do was tell her the truth, that he’d seemed to go along with my assessment that someone had hit Tim with the rock, but that he might have just been humoring me.
“But there’s more,” I said. I told her about Madison being upset that I’d put on the workshop for the other group. “And Kevin St. John’s group asked me to arrange another workshop. I have to do it,” I said. “That group talked so much they barely had time to start their project. If I left things the way they are, I’m sure Elex would complain about it to Kevin St. John, forgetting that they’d come to me to put the workshop together.”
“So, if it wasn’t an accident and somebody killed Tim—do you think it was one of his people?”
“That would seem the most likely scenario, but now that I know some of my group knows some of that group, it adds to the possible suspects.”
Lucinda and I sensed someone coming near and we both looked up as Deani approached. I hoped she hadn’t overheard what we’d been talking about. “Have you seen Aileen?” she said, sounding worried.
It seemed she’d left the table right after the orders were taken and the food had arrived and she wasn’t back. “I thought she’d gone to the restroom, but it’s empty.” She pointed at the open door in the back of the alcove between the dining room and sunporch.
“Didn’t she say something about liking some time alone,” I said, remembering her comments on the drive to Monterey. “Maybe she went out to check out downtown Cadbury.”
The server who’d been waiting on them came by just then. “If you’re looking for your friend, I saw her go out on the porch.”
Lucinda, Deani and I went outside. Aileen was sitting at the far table alone. There was a dish with a crumpled napkin across from her and she was finishing her iced tea.
Aileen offered no explanation as she joined us and followed us inside.
Chapter 16
We walked outside to a blue sky and sunshine. It was so surprising that everyone on the street seemed a little dazed and was staring at the sky. It took awhile to get everyone back in the SUV. I was grateful that it was a short ride as I squeezed into the seat in the third row again. Of course, the rest of them spent the ride staring at their phone screens before they went back to unplugged land.
The blue sky and sun didn’t last and by the time we pulled back onto the Vista Del Mar grounds the weather had changed completely and a thick fog was blowing in. When I finally left the tight seat and got out of the SUV, it seemed like I’d walked into a cloud. There was so much moisture in the air it almost felt like a light drizzle. They all scattered and literally disappeared in the thick whiteness to do whatever during the free time before it was time for the afternoon workshop. I went into the Lodge and right into trouble.
I’d barely opened the door and taken a step inside when Madeleine Delacorte came toward me. Just as she snagged my arm I caught sight of Kevin St. John, Lieutenant Borgnine and a woman I’d never seen before huddled in front of the registration counter. Madeleine pulled me with her as she went outside. She seemed a little surprised at the fog, but it only lasted for a moment.
“Oh, dear,” she said. “More trouble. Cora couldn’t come, so I had to come alone. Kevin said that he’d handle everything, he was just notifying me what was going on.” She shook her head with dismay. I knew she was upset because she didn’t even mention the new jeans she was wearing. Thankfully, she’d gotten past wearing the pairs she’d gotten that came with tears and holes. She’d admitted to me that she kept getting her feet caught in the openings when she was putting them on, so it was really a safety factor that had led her to stop wearing them. Today’s look was a more sedate dark-washed pair so dark they seemed almost black, which she’d paired with a black turtleneck. I wondered how the Silicon Valley group wo
uld view her. Would they think she was stealing their look?
She checked the area to make sure no one was nearby then muttered that with the fog it was hard to be sure. “I’ll just talk softly,” she whispered. “Cora is against it, but personally it might be nice to have some help dealing with Kevin. I’m tired of his condescending manner. Imagine telling me not to worry my pretty little head about whatever the latest problem is. If we had . . .” She looked around again to make sure no one was in earshot and dropped her voice even more. “. . . You-know-who on our side, I bet she’d come up with a sharp retort.”
I brightened, thinking maybe there was hope after all that the Delacorte sisters would accept their newfound family. I really believed they would all benefit, but I’d meddled enough and now just had to let things take their course.
I played stupid and asked what was up. “You saw them, didn’t you?” She pointed toward the door. “I suppose you know about the accident. It was just terrible that the man died. It wasn’t actually on Vista Del Mar property, but he was a guest and I understand he was taking part in an activity that Kevin had arranged. The woman is his wife. I told her how sorry we were.”
“So that’s his wife,” I said, wishing I’d gotten more than a glance. All I’d noticed was a woman with long dark hair wearing a khaki trench coat.
“You’re sure they said it was an accident?” I asked.
“The policeman in that awful-looking jacket said it wasn’t official yet, but unofficially it was an accident.” Madeleine let out a sigh. “She’s going to stay until things get sorted out. I’m not sure what the sorting out is. When they got to that part Kevin dismissed me with that pretty little head comment.” Madeleine’s voice was back to a normal volume and she sounded annoyed. “Kevin doesn’t seem to get that I’ve changed. Now that I’ve started this whole new chapter in my life, I’m ready to be in the middle of everything.” She stopped to take a breath and let it out on a sigh. “I spent too many years being sheltered. I have a lot of catching up to do—even with dealing with events that aren’t happy.” She turned to me. “I hope the accident hasn’t ruined your retreat. Such a fun idea having a yarn-filled birthday celebration.”
Knot on Your Life Page 12
