by Sonia Parin
“You sound like a teenager.”
“And you’re acting like one. Which is great. I’ve never seen your eyes sparkle.”
“I can’t help feeling he’s a fictional character come to life.”
“In other words, a dream come true?”
“Yes.”
Mira’s uncharacteristic dreamy tone caught Eve by surprise. Maybe something wonderful would come out of this cruise after all.
“I’m going to try do get some writing done before lunch. Promise me you won’t antagonize anyone, Eve. Remember, this is a cruise ship. There’s nowhere to run.”
Chapter Six
What? I’m on vacation, Eve silently hollered when she made eye contact with a woman who, going by the curl of her lip, clearly disapproved of her appearance.
What could possibly be wrong with a pair of white shorts and t-shirt? She’d thought it would help her blend in so she wouldn’t look so conspicuous when she set off on her reconnaissance mission.
A passenger came out of his cabin and hung a Do Not Disturb sign on the door.
“Maybe that’s what I should do in our cabin,” Eve murmured. Or she could hang it around her neck. Do Not Disturb or Kill...
Turning a corner, she huffed out a breath. Great. Several Carmen Miranda impersonators were headed her way.
No doubt they’d think she was making a statement and turning her nose up at their multi-colored clothes.
Eve stepped out of the way of one before she plowed her down, the rhythm of her walk suggesting if Eve didn’t take a sideways step, she’d do just that.
Eve played around with the idea of making light of the moment and engaging the woman in conversation but that task had fallen on David. With his charm and good looks he stood a better chance of extricating something worthwhile from them.
When she reached Crystal’s cabin, she slowed down and looked over her shoulder straight at the camera at the end of the corridor.
If David could get his hands on the video footage, this would all be wrapped up in no time.
Seeing a woman trotting toward her from the opposite direction, Eve dug her hands inside her pockets and pretended to search for something. The woman waved at her.
“Running late for my bridge game.”
She wore white Bermuda shorts, a pink and purple blouse and a thick gold necklace that disappeared into her voluptuous cleavage. Eve tried to disregard the fake lashes and tan. She watched her toddle off in her high-heeled sandals and waited for her to disappear before making her move.
Looking around her, she tested the door handle. Locked. As she moved away from Crystal’s cabin, someone came out of the neighboring cabin. A woman wearing an oversized straw hat. Thankfully with no fruit on it. As she turned, she made eye contact with Eve and smiled. Eve wondered if she should ask her if she’d heard anything, but most passengers had been up on deck enjoying their first day out at sea.
“Is your friend all right?” the woman asked.
“Friend?” Eve asked.
“Oh, I thought you just came out of the cabin next door.”
“No, I was passing through. Was there something wrong with the passenger?”
The woman lowered her voice. “I couldn’t help overhearing the arguments.”
Arguments?
The woman put her hand to her chest. “The second one was worse than the first.”
“What were the arguments about?”
“I only picked up a few words. Liar. Cheat. And a few others, which don’t bear repeating. I’ll never understand why people come on vacation and bring their anger with them. No consideration for others.”
“Did you say you heard a couple of arguments?”
The woman nodded and adjusted her hat. “I thought the one with the woman would end badly. They screeched and hissed. It was all dreadfully upsetting. I held my stomach.”
“I would have too,” Eve offered. “What about the other one?” she asked as they strode along the corridor.
“Oh, I could only hear her voice, but I heard the man clear his throat. That’s how I know it was a man. The door slamming was just as bad as the arguing. People coming and going.”
“More than two?”
“I’m not sure. The sleeping tablet I took on the flight over left me feeling fuzzy headed and I was dozing off. I’m from Seattle and my daughter moved to New York last year so I try to visit once a year. This time, she surprised me with a cruise and whizzed me straight from the airport to the cruise terminal, and here I am...”
“That was a lovely gesture.”
The woman smiled. “My daughter is pushing me to get out and about and find someone new but I’ve been a widow for too long. I’m happy with my life. Besides, it’s a bit late for me. By the way, I’m Joanna.”
Eve berated herself for thinking Joanna’s daughter might have simply wanted to get her out of the way. Then she thought of her own mother... Her stomach muscles clenched. She imagined her mother calling to say she planned on visiting. Perhaps next Christmas she could suggest they all go on a cruise together and Eve could bail out at the last minute...
“Lovely to meet you, I’m Eve. And, for what it’s worth, it’s never too late for love or companionship.” The woman looked to be older than Mira, perhaps in her early seventies, but Eve had heard of plenty of people in their golden years finding love again. “So after the argument with the man you didn’t hear anything else?”
“Maybe she had the argument with the man first,” Joanna said as they came up to the elevator.
“Either way, you have extremely good hearing.”
“Oh, I was sitting on the balcony. They must have had their balcony door open. When it got too much, I moved back inside and closed the door.”
Eve’s excitement over finding a possible witness fizzled as the woman clearly couldn’t recall which argument she’d heard last.
When the elevator doors opened, Joanna stepped inside but Eve hesitated.
“Coming?”
“Actually, I think I left something behind. Lovely meeting you and enjoy the rest of your cruise,” Eve said as the elevator doors swished closed. She stood there a moment and wondered how she could find out if anyone else had heard the arguments.
While it would all be resolved when David got his hands on the video footage, it would help to have more solid information to collaborate whatever they found in the video. Thinking that if she’d managed to bump into one of the neighbors, she might encounter another, Eve doubled back.
As she again walked past Crystal’s cabin, she had a brilliant idea and knocked on the cabin next door. A young woman answered. Her long hair hung loosely around her shoulders and Eve could tell she’d been in the process of drying it.
“Oh, I must have the wrong cabin,” Eve said, her tone all innocence and apologetic.
“Who were you after?” she asked, her tone crisp.
“I met this lovely woman who said she’d been having trouble sleeping because of the neighbor and I wanted to know how she was getting on.” Not exactly the truth, but neither was it a lie.
The young woman rolled her eyes and pointed to the cabin next to hers. Crystal’s cabin.
“I know exactly what she was talking about. Yesterday, I tried to get some shuteye... I had a farewell party before boarding and then there were the welcoming drinks. I really needed a few minutes to doze off, but all I could hear was this incessant bickering.”
“Really? How dreadful. Is it a couple?”
“Hard to say. At first I thought it was two women and then I heard a man’s voice. Maybe it was a tryst.” She edged the door to close it.
“Well, sorry to have bothered you. I’ll try the cabin on the other side.”
“Now that I think about it, she had more than one man in there.”
“At the same time?”
“No, at least I don’t think so. Like I said, I was trying to get some shuteye. Anyway, all’s good now. I haven’t heard a peep from her.”
“Good to hear. Again, sorr
y to have bothered you. I’ll try the next cabin.” Eve strode off. Sensing the young woman still watching her, she stopped at Joanna’s door and knocked. After a minute, she looked over her shoulder at the young woman. Shrugging, Eve moved on.
Two men visited Crystal...
They’d been struggling to identify one man. Now they had two to contend with.
Eve crossed her fingers and hoped David came through with the goods. Meanwhile, she decided to resume her mission. Stake out the joint. If she hovered around long enough, she was bound to hear something, and what better place than the restaurants. She’d start at one end of the ship and work her way through.
“On a diet?”
Eve had just hit her tenth buffet thinking that if anyone had heard about Crystal’s death, they might be talking about it and with any luck, she’d overhear the conversation. In order to maintain her cover of innocent bystander, she’d played the role to the hilt by eating as many meals as she could. To a normal... regular person, she knew her modus operandi wouldn’t make sense. But it had been all she could think of doing to make herself look inconspicuous.
She looked down at her helping of Caesar Salad. It would only take one mouthful for her zipper to burst, so she’d have to play around with this one.
“I’m saving my appetite for dinner.” And she’d most likely have to be rolled there.
“The trick is to wear loose pants and to go for a walk between servings.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
The man looked to be in his thirties. Good looking in a boy next door way. Without being too judgmental, Eve thought he’d be better looking if he dropped a few pounds...
“And always leave room for dessert,” he suggested, “But I suppose someone as skinny as you doesn’t have to worry about that.”
“You’d be surprised.” She glanced around for a table and spotting one, made a beeline for it. When she settled down, she looked up.
“Mind if I join you? The place’s filled up quickly.”
In that split second, Eve had to decide if she’d just acquired a stalker. “Sure.”
“I’m Bronson Charles. Yes, like the movie star but in reverse. My dad was a huge fan.” He sat down in front of her and bit into a French fry.
“I’m Eve Lloyd.”
They both sat in silence for a few minutes, each one casting furtive glances around.
Yes, a diamond in the rough, Eve thought. Take away a few pounds and he might not have asked if he could join her because he would’ve been flocked by admiring women.
He looked around him and cringed. “I swear there’s more bling here than in Vegas. An explosion of glitz, color, neon and gaudy art.”
“I thought I was the only one who’d noticed.”
“Have you been to the Star of the Sea lounge?”
Eve was almost afraid to ask. “What am I missing?”
“Fish tanks surround the entire area. Puts you right off ordering fish. I couldn’t shake off the feeling they were eyeballing me.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” She pushed aside the few walnuts she’d encountered on her plate and stabbed a lettuce leaf.
“Traveling alone?”
Her stalker alert beeped again. “No, I’m with a couple of other people.”
His eyes danced around her face. “They ditch you?” he asked around a mouthful of fries.
“We’re giving each other space.” She had to take a bite of something.
He tilted his head. “Lloyd. The name rings a bell. Any relation to the author?”
“Yes. She’s my aunt. How did you know about her?”
“It’s in the program. She’s reading an excerpt from her next novel.”
“Are you a fan?” She expected him to laugh it off. Instead, he surprised her.
“Big fan. You wouldn’t guess it by looking at me.”
After her close calls with several killers on the island, Eve knew better than to judge a book by its cover. He had a handsome face. Bright eyes with a hint of mischief. He could probably stand to lose a few pounds, she insisted, but that was only her preference. Did he look like a man who read romances? No, she’d never have guessed it.
“I’m not judging.”
He chortled. “I’ve been single for a couple of years now and not having much luck so I thought I’d think outside the box and try to figure out what women look for in a man. What better way to find out than to read the type of books that keep them going back for more?”
“Smart thinking. Have you discovered the secret?”
“There are all types of alpha males to choose from. I’m not sure I can pull off the brooding type and I don’t have any hang-ups, so I’m veering toward the one with a twinkle in their eye that screams fun.”
She didn’t want to burst his bubble but even those heroes were usually described as well built with flat stomachs...
“I know what you’re thinking.” Bronson patted his slight pouch. “That’s why I’m on this cruise. I’ve signed up for a full makeover. The personal trainer working with me promised to have me in tiptop shape by the time we sail into port. And yes, I could have joined a gym back home. In fact, I did. But there’s always an excuse or something’s always cropping up.” He looked around. “I’m a captive audience here. If I don’t rock up at the gym, the guy will hunt me down. He’s committed.”
Eve tried to avert her gaze, but it fell on his double-decker burger.
He chuckled. “I actually burn it up quickly. Thing is, I spent a few months in hospital after a car accident and all that lack of mobility piled up on me.”
That made sense. “Here’s a tip, Bronson.”
“I’m all ears.”
“You should walk the walk now. Whoever falls for you as you are, will love you no matter how you look. Imagine how much more they’ll love you after you’ve burned off the excess weight.”
“So I should let my sparkling charisma do all the work for me.”
She nodded. “I have a friend who’d say you should act as if you’re already the perfect weight.”
“Good point. What are you doing for dinner tonight?”
Eve gave him a small smile. “I’m dining with those friends I mentioned. I’d ask you to join us but you might miss out on meeting that special person you’re looking for. And... I have someone back home.” She gave herself a small pat on the back for letting him down easy. She only hoped Bronson got the message.
“Maybe I’ll meet someone at the reading. It’d be good to have something in common.”
What were the chances of meeting two men who enjoyed reading Mira’s books? Was there a new breed of men she didn’t know about? Had Jack read Mira’s books? And if he hadn’t... would he?
Bronson chuckled under his breath. “Now I won’t be able to get that tune out of my head.”
“What tune?”
He nodded toward the stairs. “Chica chica boom boom chic. Every time I see them I think of the song.”
A group of Carmen Miranda impersonators made their way to the buffet, clearly walking to the rhythm of some inner tune.
“I heard one of them jumped overboard.”
Her mouth gaped open. “Where did you hear that?” No one was supposed to know.
“At breakfast. I went in there early and overheard some of the servers talking about it.”
She’d suffered through all those meals and hadn’t heard a single beep. “What else did they say?”
“It’s strange. It actually sounded as if they were interrogating each other. Asking where they’d been at midday. Apparently, the captain put them all under the spotlight.”
Interesting. Had the captain decided to launch his own investigation?
“Is something wrong?” he asked.
“Just thinking.” If the captain had taken steps to question the crew that meant he hadn’t found anything in the video footage. Or... he had found something, but it hadn’t been enough to identify the perpetrator.
“So how are you entertainin
g yourself on the ship?”
“Huh?” she said distractedly.
Bronson laughed.
“Sorry.” She cleared her throat. “Pardon?”
“I liked the huh better. Nothing wrong with huh.” He smiled and shook his head. “Are you here to do nothing and relax or do you have a schedule of activities as some passengers seem to have.”
“I came completely unprepared. Playing it by ear but... I should really knuckle down and do some work.” She tilted her head and thought about her inn. If she couldn’t relax, then she could at least begin working on her menu for the inn.
Eve told Bronson about her new business venture.
“So you don’t have any experience running an inn but you can cook. That’s half the problem solved. You can hire people to do the rest.”
“I guess that’s the general idea.”
“I’m going to have to plan a weekend getaway to the island. Check out your inn. What’s your selling point? You know, what will draw visitors to the island?”
Murder and mayhem?
No. They’d already had enough murder and mayhem on the island. It wouldn’t happen again...
“Peace and quiet. The perfect place to spend a few days enjoying fine cuisine, long walks, horseback riding, the sights... There’s fishing and hiking. And we have our own local celebrity. My aunt. Also, I have a friend who’s interested in running some art classes. It should be fun. A local book club has already staked a claim on the front parlor for their weekly get together sessions and my aunt Mira will do some of her launches at the inn.” Eve nibbled the edge of a lettuce leaf. “Yes, I really should use my time on the cruise to work on a menu.”
“I’ll definitely have to come.” He looked away. “There they go again. Chica chica boom boom chic.”
Don’t look, Eve. Don’t.
Eve couldn’t help herself.
As she slanted her gaze toward the group of impersonators, they all turned toward her.
“Whoa. What did you do to deserve that? I swear they threw daggers at you.”
Did they know something she didn’t...?
Chapter Seven
