Deadly Bubbles in the Wine (Aloha Lagoon Mysteries Book 4)

by Mary Jo Burke

"Doctor, in your professional opinion, does Simone look like a murderer?" Ellen asked.

  "I make a policy not to interfere with a police investigation. Ms. Ryan, do you have any questions?" he asked as he peered over his glasses.

  "May I get dressed?" I asked.

  "Yes, and good luck," he said as he left.

  I wiggled out of bed and put my feet on the floor. Freezing cold laminate made me hopscotch my way to the closet to retrieve my clothes. I hustled into the bathroom to change out of the billowing hospital gown. I heard footsteps and voices on the other side of the door. Ellen sounded like she was giving instructions. I eased the door open for a peek and was greeted by the hall guards. Another man decked out in Hawaiian chic—a loud print shirt with khaki shorts and sandals—looked at me. He stopped talking to Ellen and smiled at me.

  "Am I under arrest?" I asked.

  "Did you do anything illegal?" he asked.

  "I flew to Hawaii to forget about the last three months of my life and pretend it wasn't a mistake," I said as I stepped out and pressed myself against the wall.

  "We get a lot of that here. I'm Detective Ray Kahoalani, homicide division, but everyone on the island calls me Detective Ray. And you caught me on my day off."

  "Fancy shirt," I said as I noticed the swaying palm trees against the blue sky motif.

  "I buy them on sale. I have trunks that match because suits have been outlawed on the island," he said as he held out his hand to me. "Simone Ryan, allow me to drive you to the police station to answer some questions regarding the late Elliott Smythe-Wilkes."

  "Okay," I said, taking his offered arm.

  "Raymond, do you believe Elliott followed Simone here to have her kill him? She could have offed him in Washington DC and made it look like an accident or a botched robbery attempt," Ellen said, planting herself in front of the hospital room door.

  Was she a member of my defense or the state's prosecution team?

  "Ellen, are you vouching for her?" Detective Ray asked.

  "I like her. She has balls," Ellen said as she patted my cheek.

  I'd rather be known for class, intelligence, or even beauty.

  "I hate crime shows. Everyone wants the mystery solved in an hour just like television," Detective Ray said as he shrugged.

  One of the officers scooted Ellen out of the way, and the other opened the door. We paraded out into the hall en route to the elevator.

  "Miss Ryan, here are your release instructions," a nurse said as she shoved papers at me.

  "Thank you," I said as I folded them in quarters and shoved them in my sports bra.

  I defined classy.

  We all piled into the elevator.

  "Ellen, do you have a ride home?" Detective Ray asked.

  "No, I took a cab," she said as she squeezed in closer to me.

  "Okay, I'll have someone give you a lift," he said as the doors slid open.

  He looked up past the lobby and shook his head in disgust. He instructed one of the men to clear a path at the hospital's main entrance.

  "We're heading out the back of the hospital because the press is camped in front," Detective Ray said as he frowned at Ellen. "Any idea how they found Simone?"

  "The people in the restaurant, the hotel staff, the ambulance driver, the hospital workers, the police…the list is endless," Ellen said with a bit of a blush.

  "Or one person, you," he said as he pointed at her. "Don't interfere, Ellen, and let me do my job. You don't want anything to reflect badly on the Aloha Lagoon or Miss Ryan."

  "Certainly not. I'll call their mothers if they become too bothersome," she said as she frowned.

  "They're not all local reporters. And back away from my investigation," Detective Ray said.

  "You couldn't possibly suspect Simone. The poor lamb came here wounded and her feelings in disarray. The least you could do is leave her be and let her rest before you dissect her. Every woman falls for the wrong man at least once in her life," she said as she rested her hand on my shoulder.

  "They don't end up washed up on my beach," he said with a bit of a growl.

  "That you know of. The rest were properly weighted down," Ellen said with a huff.

  "Do you have something to confess?" Detective Ray asked as he stopped and stared at her.

  "Not before a stiff drink or three," Ellen said as she waved him off and breezed away.

  I craned around to see the main entrance. There were people with microphones and cameras loitering around as we hurried down the hall.

  My employment history passed before me. Dare I call the office and ask if I still had a job? Deborah hated publicity that didn't reflect a good light on her. Would she come to my aid or let me flap in the wind? Trick question. I wonder how the food was in jail.

  We got to the parking lot and headed for separate cars. Ellen grabbed my arm and hugged me.

  "Courage, dear," she said as she sniffed and joined the other officer.

  "She means well. Just gets a bit excited," Detective Ray said as I followed him to his car.

  "Yeah, I wish I found death entertaining," I said as he opened the car door for me.

  "It's the intrigue she loves. Life's pretty calm for her here," he said.

  He rounded the car, got into the driver's side, and drove out of the parking lot.

  "Is everything I say going to be used against me?" I asked as I watched the beautiful scenery blur past me.

  "Miss Ryan, eventually we'll all stand in judgment for our life's work," he said.

  "Yeah, but I hope I still have a few uneventful years ahead of me."

  "I'm sure you do, Miss Ryan."

  "Please call me Simone. Miss Ryan sounds so formal and makes me think I'm in trouble. I'm not because I didn't kill anybody. Just in case your car is wired for sound and somebody's listening in. Innocent until proven guilty is chiseled in stone," I said, rambling on to calm my nerves.

  "You've seen too many movies about illegal wiretapping," he said as he stopped at a stop sign.

  "No, I read a lot of nonfiction and crime novels."

  "Then you are a hardened cynic and expert on the human condition," he said as he drove through the intersection.

  Starting tomorrow, I'd pick up comic books instead. I needed a good guy and someone to root for hopeless me.

  "My car's not wired because it would be unconstitutional and inadmissible in court. Plus, I like to blare the radio, and some at the police station have no taste in music," he said as he turned on the CD player.

  "What's your music preference?" I asked, pretending I liked opera and other highbrow pursuits.

  "The blues."

  "B. B. King and Stevie Ray Vaughan are my favorites," I said as I cranked up the volume.

  The soulful music usually helped me unwind, but not today. We rode to the station, and my nerves promised to break soon. One last gift, compliments of Elliott.

  Who would kill him? Me. A random act? No. I got the impression his body was moved to the shoreline. Nobody mentioned robbery or another motive. A jealous rage? That was my incriminating scenario. A preplanned, methodical attack? That might be me too, but I'd need help. I hoped Liam's name stayed out of this gathering storm.

  "Was Elliott castrated?" I asked Detective Ray in an attempt to help my cause.

  "Delicate question, but no. To my knowledge, he was intact."

  "Then it wasn't me. That's where I would have started," I said as I folded my arms across my chest.

  Case closed.

  "Good to know we have a place to begin," he said as he parked the car in a reserved spot.

  We strolled into the station by the tourist-gone-wild holding area and into a small conference room.

  "Would you like something to drink?" Detective Ray asked as he motioned me to take a seat.

  "Water, please," I said as he called out to someone in the hall as he left.

  I raised my arms to stretch and yawn and felt something scratch my chest. I slipped my hand into my sports bra and retrieved my medic
al instructions.

  They should say beat your head against the wall if you think flying to Hawaii is a good idea.

  I unfolded them and read the first handwritten page.

  A guy in last night's ER knows about your friend's murder. He has a bite mark on his hand and got a few stitches off the grid at the hospital. This case is bigger than the police know. For your safety, leave the island as soon as you can.

  The rest were blank sheets of paper. I refolded them, and with a shaky hand, I tucked them back over my pounding heart. Ray returned with a cup of coffee for himself, a water bottle for me, and an assortment of vending machine fare. A middle-aged woman walked in with a notepad and recorder and sat across from me.

  "This is Darlene, and your court appointed attorney is on his way," he said as he set down the drinks. "What happened? You're paler than a Midwestern mainlander."

  "Crazy twenty-four hours or fifty. I'm not sure with the time zone change. Plus, sheer exhaustion has settled into my bones," I said as my voice cracked.

  The emotion was real because scaring me worked every time. I was a natural born wimp. I needed to play on Detective Ray's sympathies to get released and find my informer. It could be a lie or a trap, but it was all I had that was not pointing to me as a murderer.

  "Have some sugar and salt to recharge," Ray said as he pushed all the food choices closer to me.

  I would have preferred more of Ellen's fortified tea. Instead, I selected a bag of flavored potato chips and a chocolate candy bar. I ripped into both and alternated bites between them. I chugged the water as my mind raced about what to do with the time bomb resting against my left breast. Someone rapped on the door with a hammer or a lead pipe.

  Detective Ray stood to answer the official sounding summons.

  He opened the door. A tall man with a thin mustache and styled gray hair holding a metal-topped cane entered—excuse me—made an entrance. I expected him to twirl around a magician's cape as he spun and faced us.

  Should we applaud?

  "Simone, not a word to the authorities until we've conferred," he said as he offered me his hand. I tucked mine in his and received a soft peck from his lips. "Officers, I'm Garrett Hunt, Miss Ryan's solicitor. Have charges been filed?"

  "Aren't you the actor at the playhouse on Maui?" Darlene asked with a smile.

  "I've been known to haunt a theater or two in my spare time," he said as he extended a hand to Darlene.

  "I thought I recognized you. My sister and I loved you in Passionate Fuchsia."

  She giggled and got a quick kiss on the knuckles too. Detective Ray cleared his throat, and she shrunk a little in her seat.

  "You went to a play about a color?" Detective Ray asked as he scratched his head.

  "Actually, it was more of an interpretation of man's inner struggles done in pantomime," Garrett said as he mopped his brow with an oversized, white handkerchief.

  "People pay for the darnedest stuff around here," I said as I folded my arms over my chest, shifting the papers higher.

  I pretended to scratch my shoulder and pushed them down again. I plastered either an I'm so innocent or basic resting bitch expression on my face. Detective Ray squinted at me as Garrett and Darlene chatted.

  "So are you an actor or lawyer?" Detective Ray asked Garrett.

  "Ellen Bentley sent me to this young lady's side to aid her in this nefarious business," Garrett said as he presented his card to Detective Ray.

  "It says you're an actor and notary public. Do you have any legal training or certification to add to the mix?" he asked, returning the card to Garrett.

  "I believe education is a bit overrated when dealing with the matters of the heart and the heat of the moment," Garrett said, his hand clutching his lapel.

  Did I mention his white orchid boutonniere?

  "I'm not sure who let you in, but when I find out, they'll be pulling night duty into the next decade," Detective Ray said as he opened the door. "Leave."

  "I've been thrown out of better places than this, my man. Ladies, adieu," Garrett said as he rushed to the exit.

  Detective Ray followed him, and his voice bounced off the walls.

  "He's in a mood today," Darlene said as she picked up a bag of chips.

  "I have to admit that I don't blame him. It is his day off," I said, moving a candy bar closer to me.

  I'd save it for later as a bribe in the slammer.

  A young woman in a pastel suit carrying a briefcase lightly knocked on the door and peered in.

  "Excuse me, but I was told I could find Detective Ray Kahoalani back here," she said.

  "He'll be right back. You're welcome to wait here," Darlene said, pulling out a chair for her.

  "Thank you. Are either one of you Simone Ryan?" she asked as she sat.

  "Me," I said as I raised my hand.

  "I'm Angie Hunt, your attorney. I was hired by Ellen Bentley," she said as she shook my hand.

  Ellen was one busy lady.

  "I think we met your dad a minute ago," I said.

  "I'm sorry. He likes to research his acting roles. He listens to my voicemails when I'm not home. Again, if he offended you, I apologize," she said as a blush spread across her cheeks.

  "I saw him last month in a play and thought he was wonderful," Darlene said with a smile.

  "Thank you," Angie said as Detective Ray trudged back in.

  "And you are?" he asked Angie.

  "I'm Miss Ryan's actual attorney, Angie Hunt. Also, please let me apologize for my father's behavior."

  There was a pain in her voice, and it made me feel a bit protective of my lawyer. Garrett hadn't hurt anybody and had broken the tension. I appreciated his visit to my character assassination.

  "The sergeant at the desk cleared it up as he escorted your father out. We all have embarrassing relatives, Miss Hunt, but most of us keep them hidden. I don't care to run into your father again," Detective Ray said as he took his seat.

  "Yes, sir," Angie said.

  "Let's get started. This is an informational meeting only. Now, Simone, tell me about Elliott Smythe-Wilkes and your activities of the last forty-eight hours," Detective Ray said.

  "I don't think he ever loved me," I said and started to cry.

  Darlene got up and retrieved a box of tissues for me. I thanked her and blew my nose.

  "Detective Kahoalani, Simone has just been released from the hospital after a terrible shock. A few hours rest and food are in order…" Angie said.

  "Miss Hunt, I have a dead body and a Blue Island Motel full of frightened people. I suspect everyone until I find who I'm looking for. Right now, your client is the only one in Hawaii who knew the deceased and had an altercation with him at a bar requiring security guards to break it up. Martha Lawler is still missing too. I've waited long enough for some answers," Detective Ray said as he stared us down.

  To her credit, Angie didn't seem to blink. I was my usual mess and looked down at the table.

  "I'd rather get this over with so that I can go home," I said after clearing my throat four times.

  "You won't be going anywhere other than the Aloha Lagoon Resort until I say so," Detective Ray said, tapping the table with his index finger. "Recap your time with Elliott Smythe-Wilkes for me."

  I started with how I had met Elliott and stopped at the police arriving at my door this morning. A pile of used tissues and empty chip bags grew in front of me. I tended to junk food binge, depending on my moods, which had been a wild ride with Elliott.

  "And that's my story," I said after I wiped the crumbs off my mouth.

  There was a knock on the door, and Darlene answered it. A uniformed officer walked in and bent down to whisper in Detective Ray's ear.

  "Excellent," he said as he stood. "Simone, you're free to return to the resort. This officer will give you a ride."

  Detective Ray hustled out of the room and was followed by Darlene.

  "Did I make myself the ultimate suspect?" I asked Angie.

  "No, you came acr
oss as a jilted bride with no malice toward the deceased and true tears. You gained a bit of sympathy here, so don't squander it. I'm going to retrieve more information about Elliott's whereabouts before he died. I'll be in touch," she said as she touched my arm.

  "Thanks," I said as I joined the policeman in the hall.

  We strolled toward the exit, and I heard a familiar voice coming from an office with the door ajar. I stomped toward the room, the cop on my heels.

  How had Deborah gotten here so fast?

  "Detective Kalucoo, I'd like to thank your staff for finding Martha. I understand my former employee, Simone Ryan, is the main suspect in this heinous crime," Congresswoman Niven said in her deep bass voice.

  There were so many mistakes in that sentence.

  "His name is Kahoalani, and I didn't kill anybody. Your stepdaughter, Martha 'Allie Girl' Lawler, was Elliott's gal pal of choice. And you can't fire me. I quit," I said from the doorway, my fists balled at my sides.

  "Simone, be careful," Detective Ray said as he sat back in his chair across from the congresswoman.

  A filthy Martha cowered in the corner as Darlene took notes.

  Was Martha scared of me or the power-drunk Deborah?

  "This tawdry affair is her fault," Deborah said, pointing at me. "Luring an unsuspecting young lady into a perverted threesome with Elliott is appalling. Then a lovers' quarrel after Simone's rejection, Elliott commits suicide, and Martha is inconsolable."

  Was Deborah getting her information from skanky Martha or the police, or was somebody's alibi lurking in there? The police thought he'd been murdered by me.

  "Congresswoman Niven, what do you know about Elliott Smythe-Wilkes's death?" Detective Ray asked as he stood and walked toward me. "You and your daughter may want to consult with an attorney. You've made a few accusations and false assumptions that need to be investigated. And I need to question Martha without you present."

  "I'll have your badge for this outrage. We're scheduled on the next flight to Washington DC," Deborah said as she stood.

  "Death is never on a timetable. I'm sure the airline will understand your predicament and refund you in full," Detective Ray said to the beet-faced Deborah.

  I folded my arms and smirked at my former boss as she started to object again.