Murder on a Cruise Ship

by P. Creeden

  Murder on a Cruise Ship

  A Ridgeway Rescue Mystery

  P. Creeden

  Contents

  Murder on a Cruise Ship

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  About the Author

  Murder on a Cruise Ship © 2019 P. Creeden

  Edited by Marcy Rachel

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

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  Murder on a Cruise Ship

  Ridgeway Rescue Mysteries can be read in 1-2 hours. Perfect for when you’re waiting for an appointment or just want a fast read. Don’t miss out on this quick, clean, cozy mystery that will keep you guessing until the end!

  All hands on deck! It’s a beautiful spring day and 20-year-old Emma Wright is meeting her crush, Colby Davidson, for a two-hour tour specifically for dogs and their owners – The Canine Cruise. She and Molly, the Saint Bernard, are so excited to see both Colby and Gabby, his K9 partner, as the two have been away on training.

  It’s smooth sailing until someone shouts “man overboard!” A news reporter who is covering the day cruise for a local station falls into the fast-flowing Potomac River, and she doesn’t know how to swim. Did the reporter fall overboard in an accident, or was it murder?

  Chapter One

  It was silly for Emma to feel so giddy while driving from Ridgeway to Potomac, Virginia, but she couldn’t help herself. She spied Molly, the Saint Bernard puppy, sitting in the back area of her SUV. The puppy had been a rescue and a foster, and Emma had been training for Molly to become an emotional support dog, which had been going better than most expected from the six-month-old puppy. To train her properly, Emma had been introducing Molly to several different environments. Most businesses would let the service-dog-in-training enter their establishments as long as she wore her red vest, and they’d been going to dog parks and other animal-friendly environments to get the Saint Bernard used to the sights and smells of different animals, and not allow those things to distract her from her job as a therapy dog. And that was what the trip to the nation’s capital was about today.

  So, why did Emma feel so giddy?

  Colby Davidson and Gabby, the German Shepherd, were coming on this foray as well. Emma smiled to herself as she hummed along with the radio. She’d been smitten with the K9 deputy for as long as she could remember. And just as long as she could remember, he’d treated her as a kid sister. With a sigh, she pushed those thoughts out of her head. She was dressed especially cute today for the “Canine Cruise” that they were taking down the Potomac River. She wore a simple sundress with a sweater and tights. The weather had been unseasonably warm in Ridgeway, but she knew Virginia could host three seasons at once across the state on any particular day in April. She hoped she wore enough to stay warm.

  Her father, the sheriff of Ridgeway, had sent Colby up to D.C. for a conference and training camp specifically for K9 cops. His training session was almost over, but he had the weekend to relax and do whatever he pleased. Emma had internet-searched the area thoroughly for an excuse to come visit him and stumbled upon the cruise. The two-hour long “Canine Cruise” was a great opportunity to introduce Molly to a boating environment and allow the puppy to see new sights. And the almost three-hour car ride also introduced Molly to long distance drives. Everything fell into place when Emma had told her dad about the cruise and how she was going to drive up Saturday for the sake of training Molly. Her father suggested that she call Colby, just as she hoped he would.

  She pulled into the parking lot, excited as the gravel popped under her tires. Several cars parked in straight rows, following the painted lines over the rocks. She peered through them, looking for the familiar K9 Police SUV from Ridgeway, wondering if Colby might already be at the docks. Emma let out a slow breath when she didn’t see his vehicle. It was no big deal. She was a little more than fifteen minutes early, excited for the cruise and the prospect of seeing Colby, since he’d been away from Ridgeway for almost two weeks and would be gone from home for one more after their “date” today.

  No, it wasn’t a date to Colby.

  But Emma liked to think of it that way, since they would be spending time together... had made an appointment to spend time together... without her father or any of their friends from Ridgeway present at the event. When she opened her car door, the salty breeze brushed against her cheeks, and made her reach back in the car to grab her jacket off the passenger seat. The balmy April air caused a shiver to run through her body, and goose flesh to rise on her arms. Over toward the docks, a few barks and yips carried on the wind toward her. The sound of the other dogs made Molly stand on her feet in the back of the SUV, her ears perked toward the river.

  “There’s a good girl,” Emma said to Molly as she snapped the leash onto Molly’s harness and then pulled the tailgate down on the back of her SUV. She gave Molly a big scratch behind the ears, but Molly wasn’t interested in affection as much as casting her drooping gaze toward the continued din from the dock area. Molly lifted her nose and sniffed the salty breeze. Nothing in Ridgeway quite smelled of the sea like it did here in Potomac.

  “Can I give you a hand at all?” a deep baritone asked from behind her.

  Emma’s heart leaped a bit in her chest when she thought it might be Colby, but when she turned around, she was face to face with an unfamiliar, blond-haired, blue-eyed man with a crooked smile who was about ten years her senior, and had a Jack Russel Terrier on the end of his leash. She couldn’t help the way her heart sank toward her stomach but tried to school her features so that the disappointment wouldn’t show. She smiled up at him. “Thank you for the offer, but Molly is a good girl, even though she’s already seventy-three pounds. Luckily, I don’t have to pick her up and place her on the ground anymore, or I’d be in trouble.”

  He chuckled at that.

  Then Emma spied the K9 Police car she’d been waiting for as it crunched gravel. Colby sat in the front seat of the car and smiled her way as he pulled in one of the spots near her. She’d purposefully chosen an area of the lot that had empty space all around in the hopes that she’d make it easier for him to find her.

  “I’m Steve Shaw, by the way,” the man in front of her said, offering a hand for her to shake.

  She blinked at him and then realized what he’d said and moved the leash to her left hand so that she could take his hand in a shake. “Emma Wright.”

  At the same moment, Molly realized that there was a new friend low to the ground and hopped down from the SUV to rush over and greet Steve’s Jack Russell
Terrier. Steve laughed. “And this is Roscoe. He loves big dogs, especially the females.”

  This was exactly the kind of situation that Emma was hoping to find herself in, to test Molly the puppy’s ability to overcome stimuli and behave the way she’d been trained for the past month and a half. In a stern voice, Emma said, “Molly, sit.”

  Without a moment to spare, Molly’s haunches came down and she looked up at Emma. Emma couldn’t help but smile at the pup. But the moment of obedience came to a quick end, as Molly’s front end collapsed as well and she was down, low to the ground, playing roughly with her new friend, Roscoe. Emma sighed. It was a lot to ask of such a young puppy to behave perfectly the first time they went on an outing with so many other new dogs present. For now, Emma would have to find herself happy with small victories.

  “Emma!” Colby’s voice called out, and her heart fluttered in her chest.

  She beamed a smile his direction as he stepped over toward her. It wasn’t often that she had the chance to see him in something other than his police uniform, but he stood there in plain blue jeans and a Virginia college sweatshirt. Light brown curls peeked out from under his police ball cap. His green eyes sparkled at her, and then he turned toward Steve Shaw, his brow furrowing slightly.

  Colby stuck out a hand the man’s direction. “Colby Davidson.”

  The man chuckled nervously and put out his hand. “Steve Shaw. A pleasure to meet you, officer.”

  Colby nodded. “Are you here for the Canine Cruise as well?”

  Steve nodded and smiled at Colby, nervously glancing at the hat on Colby’s head. Emma watched the interaction, feeling badly for the man who’d stop to ask her if she’d like help. Like a typical police officer, Colby tended to sound as if he interrogated people rather than just making friendly conversation. After suffering through a few more questions, Mr. Shaw made his escape. “Well, I guess I’ll see y’all aboard the cruise. Pleasure meeting you both.”

  “Thank you,” Emma said and then glanced up at Colby who continued to watch the man leave. Then she looked down at Colby’s side and frowned. “Where’s Gabby?”

  Colby finally pulled his gaze from the man walking away from them and met eyes with her. “She’s in the truck. I was just making sure that guy wasn’t giving you any trouble. You really shouldn’t let yourself be so open with strangers. You never know when someone might be a danger to you. Keep your senses sharp and don’t be so quick to trust everyone who approaches you.”

  He was worried about her? She couldn’t help but smile a bit at the thought. Together they went to the back of his SUV to let Gabby, the German Shepherd, down. The two of them fell into pleasant conversation. Colby told her a bit about how the boot camp was going, and Emma let Colby know how things were going back in Ridgeway without him. Lonely, she wanted to say, but held her tongue on that bit of knowledge. Then the two of them started toward the pier and the cruise ship waiting at the dock. Emma couldn’t help but feel her heart swell that Colby would be all hers for at least the next two hours.

  Chapter Two

  The cruise ship was much bigger than Emma thought it would be for just a two-hour jaunt on the Potomac River. The deck had three floors, the top one open to a dramatic view of the shorelines while the bottom two were mostly indoors with large windows looking out in both directions. The main floor, where they boarded was the second-floor area. On this main deck of the ship, there were several booths where people with dog-friendly services had set up shop. Emma spotted a groomer, a canine manicurist, and even a dog whisperer doing psychic readings. Colby huffed a laugh when he pointed in the direction of the psychic, and how her booth seemed to be the busiest among the other people aboard for the cruise.

  Several people came in pairs, often with one dog between them, but some of them had two dogs, just like she and Colby. A very pretty woman stood in a bright red suit dress with a microphone in her hand, speaking energetically to the man holding a large video camera. “We’re here today for our Monday Pets’ Spotlight, coming to you from Potomac Cruise’s Canine Cruise. On the last weekend of every month, the cruise line allows for dog owners to come aboard with their favorite canine companion. The cruise hosts several different contests, including best picture with the Washington Monument, best behaved, and most friendly. We’ll interview some of the contestants throughout the cruise tour, and bring you interviews with the winners. Stay tuned!”

  “And cut!” a man off to the side of the camera said, as he straightened the lapel of his brown suit jacket, his glasses shining in the sunlight overhead. “That was excellent, Melinda.”

  She smiled, but it looked strained. And the cheerful energy she had a moment before settled into a worried look as the man next to the camera came closer.

  Emma and Colby were passing by them both when the man said in a quiet tone, “I just wanted to give you a warning about what I heard, so you wouldn’t be surprised. It’s a childish prank. Also, I need to talk to you what you did to my younger brother, but right now we have a show to shoot. When this cruise is over, we need to have a conversation.”

  Emma glanced at the woman whose eyes went wide as she backed away from the older, larger man in the brown suit. Even though Emma didn’t know what was going on between the two of them, there was no mistaking the sound of contempt in the man’s voice. She tightened her hold on Molly’s leash and then peered over at Colby, but Colby seemed preoccupied with showing the worker on the cruise our tickets. Emma swallowed down her anxiety for the woman. The man had said that they would talk about it later. He wasn’t in a passionate state, but a rational one. The woman wasn’t likely in danger. Emma just needed to relax about it.

  And it didn’t take long for Emma to get distracted by everything that was happening on the cruise ship. A professional obedience trainer had a small, fenced off section that allowed owners to work on their simple obedience commands. On the lowest deck, they had an area with a short wall surrounding it for owners to allow their dogs to play off-leash. Even Gabby stood with her nose up and wagging her tail, fully acting as though she realized that today was all about play and not about work.

  Emma’s stomach lurched as the ship began to pull away from the port. A cheer went up and the crowd began to clap. The two of them clapped with the crowd. Colby and Emma followed their noses to the gourmet dog treat stand, where the lady gave out free samples of her wares.

  “What a lovely pair of dogs,” the woman said with a wide smile. “You two are lucky to find love with someone who’s also a dog a lover. My husband prefers cats.”

  Heat rushed to Emma’s cheeks, and she shot a glance at Colby. She didn’t mind being mistaken for a couple with her crush, but she’d hate if he felt uncomfortable with the prospect. But Colby didn’t react or correct the woman. He just smiled back and asked, “Are these biscuits made with any egg products?”

  “The peanut butter flavor and the lamb and rice flavor have no egg products. All the biscuits are made with all-natural ingredients, and I tried to make them in a variety of flavors to help accommodate dogs with common allergies. They are also made with top shelf ingredients, so they are safe for human consumption, as well,” she said and took a bite out of the cookie in her hand. Then she laughed. “Although they are a little bland for us, since they are made with very little salt, and no sugar.”

  Relieved after the awkward moment passed, Emma laughed and asked, “We actually live in southwestern Virginia. Does your bakery have an online store?”

  The woman’s eyes sparkled. “Yes. We have a store through our website. The business card attached to each sample treat baggie will give you all the information you need to order more treats if you’d like.”

  Colby took one of the sample baggies and handed it to Emma, and then took a second one for himself. “Peanut butter is Gabby’s usual favorite, so if she’s keen on these, I may come back and buy a bigger bag at the end of the cruise. I just don’t want to carry much for the next two hours.”

  “Actually, if you dec
ide you like the cookies early on, you can avoid the last minute crowd by placing an order with me before we come back to port. I’ll reserve your cookies off to the side,” the woman said with a wink.

  “Thank you.” Colby shortened up Gabby’s leash a bit and guided Emma away from the booths with a hand on the small of her back. Once they were a few feet away from the gourmet treats, he turned to her and asked, “Is there any particular plan you have in mind?”

  She shrugged. Just getting him here was her plan, and his hand momentarily on the small of her back heated her up and sent electricity coursing through her body. That, all by itself, made the whole trip worth it. Finally, she answered, “The trip is about two hours long, so I definitely want to give Molly a bit of puppy time, off-leash in the play area. But right now, let’s go to the upper deck and get some pictures with D.C. in the background. I hear they have several good scenes set up for people, too. Maybe we’ll get something good enough to put in the contest.”

  He laughed. “Even if we don’t it will make a good memory.”

  Her heart fluttered at the thought that Colby might want to keep this day in his memories, too. She swallowed it down, trying not to get too excited or too ahead of herself. He only considered her a friend or little sister. People make good memories with family members and friends just as often as they do their dates. It was nothing to get too excited about. But that didn’t stop her heart from stuttering again when Colby’s hand returned to the small of her back as he guided her toward the stairway to the upper deck.

  The upper deck was everything that she’d hoped it would be. On the left hand, or port side, several people already stood in line to take photos with the different scenes of tinsel and flowers there. Wind blew strongly on the upper deck, and much of Emma’s hair flew into her face. She reached in her bag quickly to find a hair tie and then pulled her hair back in a quick ponytail.