by C. A. Larmer
Perhaps that was why Corrie had strayed, Anders thought, because he, too, had heard the rumours and was pretty convinced she wasn’t a faithful wife. It wasn’t just the way she flirted with him, it was something she’d said to him last night, something that evaded him now. He couldn’t quite remember…
He shook the thought away and focused on the search.
Apart from the tablets he’d prescribed, her bedside table also held an antique slag glass lamp, a small Chinese fan, a bottle of Evian and an empty velvet box. He took a quick look in the small rubbish bin under the mahogany writing desk nearby hoping to find the suspicious note, but all he could see were discarded chocolate wrappers and a half-empty packet of Italian cigarettes.
Strange, he thought. He wasn’t aware that either of the Van Tussis smoked. Frowning, he swept his eyes around the room and across to the en suite bathroom. He marched in and carefully opened the cabinet.
Corrie had a lot of makeup, more than the small unit could hold, and it had spilled onto the counter below where there was also a bottle of Chanel No. 5, some Hard as Nails hair spray and what looked like a tanning kit. There was no medication apart from the contraceptive pill and a packet of aspirin. He studied it for a few minutes then was just turning away when he remembered the bin below the sink.
It was impossible to see inside without pulling it out. Checking that the guard was not watching, Anders carefully did so, his eyebrows nudging upwards. There was no letter inside, unfortunately, but there was an empty condom packet.
Now that was a very strange item for a married couple to have, he thought, especially when one of them was already on contraception.
********
“It’s proof!” squealed Missy. “She was having an affair! Maybe with the sleazy gigolo! She obviously didn’t want to catch something nasty.”
“Shhh!” Anders said, immediately regretting bringing his findings to the book club.
It was extremely unprofessional of him, and not just because they were amateurs. It was one thing to investigate a missing book club member in your own time, it was quite another to do so while under the employ of the ship.
He should be talking to Packer, not this lot.
Yet Alicia had insisted he do so, and sensing their relationship was on tenterhooks, he had foolishly agreed. So it was they were all together back in the restaurant, consuming a buffet lunch while they feasted on Anders’s findings.
“You mustn’t say anything to anyone. It’s scandalous that I’ve even mentioned it.”
“Oh keep your pants on, Doc,” said Perry. “You know you can trust us. Surely you’ve learned that by now.”
He didn’t look convinced, and Alicia gave his hand a squeeze.
“Just remember, Corrie came to us first. Yes? She begged you for our help, so we owe it to her. Besides, anything you tell us won’t go any further than this group, right guys?”
They all nodded, and it seemed to mollify him a little.
Alicia had already filled the others in on Corrie’s conversation with Anders the night before, and despite his reservations, it had only worked to strengthen their resolve. Except, perhaps, Claire.
“Guys, I hate to be the bucket of cold water again, but there is still the possibility that it was all just a dreadful accident. I know what Corrie told you, Anders; I know she screamed as she went over, but maybe, just maybe, she simply stumbled. I mean, it must happen sometimes.”
“Oh, Claire, you’re determined to return with sweet holiday memories aren’t you?” said Lynette, shaking her head. She was rewarded with an icy stare.
“That’s what I thought too,” said Anders, “but I checked the height of the balcony when I was in Corrie’s cabin, and the guardrails are pretty high, almost four feet. They came halfway up my torso. There’s no way you accidentally stumble over them. Unless she pulled herself up and was sitting on the railing, in which case she clearly had a death wish.”
“She was a pretty big woman,” said Claire. “Tall, long legs.”
“Not that long.”
“She could’ve been drunk,” said Perry. “Remember how quickly she wrenched that glass of champagne from her best friend’s hand?”
“So where does this leave us?” asked Lynette.
“Tell them about the cigarettes,” Alicia prompted, and he did.
“Who throws away unsmoked cigarettes?” said Perry. “I think that’s the interesting piece of evidence. And Italian, you say? We should find out who smokes Italian fags.”
“I want to know more about the spat she had with her hubby,” said Lynette, and Anders looked mortified again.
“Who told you about that?”
“Oh everyone’s talking about it. It’s old news.”
“But surely you don’t think the captain had something to do with this?”
“Convince me otherwise,” said Lynette, folding her arms and sitting back.
As a guest at the captain’s table, Anders had witnessed the so-called “spat” and insisted it was more a throwaway line than a quarrel.
“When exactly did they fight?” Alicia asked.
“I think it was during dessert. No, just before it was brought out. That’s right. Corrie said she was skipping it and apologised to us all, said she had to return to her cabin. That’s when the captain said something like, ‘Return then! I’m sure the company there is so much sweeter!’ Something like that.”
“That sounds like an accusation of an affair if ever I heard one,” said Lynette, switching her gaze to Alicia. “Maybe you were right about that Aussie barman all along. Maybe he has something to do with it. Maybe he was in love with her and she threatened to break it off?” Alicia looked doubtful suddenly, so she added, “Or maybe, more likely, the captain caught them at it and he threw his wife over in a fit of jealousy!”
“Wouldn’t the barman say something if that were the case?”
“Exactly! That’s why you should go and have a little chat with him and—”
“No!” Anders growled, his vehemence taking them all by surprise. His patience was clearly wearing thin, and exasperation oozed from the tight lines around his mouth. “Sorry, guys, but I don’t think you should be throwing accusations like that around.” He looked at Alicia. “Please, just leave Jackson alone.”
“Jackson?”
He nodded irritably. “I think that’s the barman’s name. Just leave him be. Look, the fact is we have no real proof Corrie was having an affair with anybody. The more I think about it, the more I think the captain could have been referring to Corrie’s best friend, Anita. They’ve been thick as thieves since she got on in Sydney.”
Lynette looked sceptical. “Huh? The captain was jealous of a best friend who was keeping his wife entertained while he worked around the clock? I can’t see it myself.”
“Was Anita there during dinner when he stormed off?” Alicia asked, and he said yes. “So how did she and Corrie take his outburst?”
“I guess they were all a bit embarrassed but no one more so than the captain. He immediately apologised to us all then excused himself, said he had to be back at the bridge and left.”
“So he didn’t go on to the music bar for a dance like the night before?” asked Alicia. She recalled seeing him on the dance floor briefly that first night.
“I didn’t see him,” said Perry while Anders just shrugged.
“I don’t know. I was caught up with work, and I’m sure the captain was too. I certainly didn’t see him again after dinner. Well, not until he summoned the crew to the bridge around 2:40 this morning to break the dreadful news.”
“And how did he appear then?”
“Worried, anxious, as you would be.”
“But not distraught?”
“Well, of course he was distraught. But he’s a professional—”
“Oh I’m so sick of hearing that!” said Claire. “Sorry, but it’s not actually 1901. We’re allowed to show emotion now, aren’t we? When your wife falls overboard, you would expect
a few tears at the very least.”
“Not if you helped her over you wouldn’t,” said Lynette, and Anders glared hard.
“You cannot seriously suspect the captain did this?”
Missy was nodding her head. “He was obviously jealous, and she did tell you she feared for her life. Maybe he didn’t really mean to kill her? Maybe they had a bit of a scuffle? I mean, whether she was hanging out too much with her bestie or sleeping around on him—and that condom packet’s all the proof I need; what married couple bothers with condoms?—well, the hubby certainly had motive.”
“But did he have opportunity?” asked Alicia pragmatically. She turned to Perry. “You heard Corrie scream at what, about 2:00 a.m.?”
“More like 2:15.”
“Okay, so do we know where Captain Van Tussi was around that time? Did you or one of the sisters find him?”
“He wasn’t at the bridge, I know that. We rushed up there with some of the crew, and then one of them took off to fetch him. Don’t know from where. It was close by.”
“If he wasn’t on duty, he would have been sleeping in the adjoining cabin,” explained Anders. “He told me he often bunks in there so he doesn’t wake his wife at all hours through the night.”
“Can anyone corroborate that?”
He scowled again. He didn’t like this line of inquiry, not one bit. He was in Packer’s corner on this. He liked the captain, felt loyal to him, protective even, and he’d only worked for the guy for just over a week. Yet there was something about Van Tussi that instilled that in you. Anders had watched him in action—on the bridge with the crew, over four courses with his guests. He was firm but fair, strong but gentle, charming without being disingenuous. Captain Van Tussi seemed like a thoroughly decent bloke, and Anders tried to articulate this to them all now, but most of them weren’t buying it.
“Some of the most charming people have turned out to be monsters,” Missy said, adding two chilling words: “Ted Bundy.”
Anders almost laughed. “I can assure you Captain Van Tussi is no serial killer.”
“What about Mrs Jollson?”
“What?” said Anders.
“Who?” added Perry.
“The woman in the red dress, the one who died the night before.”
“What about her, Missy?” Anders said.
“How do we know she really died of a heart attack?”
Alicia nodded. That’s right, earlier that day Anders had implied that there was more to Mrs Jollson’s death than natural causes, and she would have pursued that now if he didn’t look fit to burst.
“Because I said so!” he barked back, causing several nearby diners to turn and stare. He took a few calming breaths and lowered his voice again. “Sorry, but really, I think you’re all overreaching, big time. What are you saying? That Captain Van Tussi killed both Mrs Jollson and his wife? Why? Because he’s a crazed serial killer?” He scoffed. “We won’t really know what happened to Mrs Jollson until we get an autopsy done, but I really don’t think it has anything to do with this. It’s a completely separate matter.”
His increasingly heated tone had them all perplexed but no one more so than Alicia, and she tried to meet his eyes, but he was getting to his feet now. “It’s extremely unprofessional of me to be even discussing this with you guys. I should never have let you talk me into it, Alicia.” Now he met her gaze with an accusatory glare. “Just promise me you’ll ease back a bit and leave the bloody barman alone.”
She didn’t want to, but she nodded reluctantly, and it seemed to calm him down. He glanced around the group again.
“Sorry, I just haven’t got time for this. I really have to go. It’s all hands on deck now while we try to settle the horses and get back to cruising.”
Then he plunged his hands into his pockets and strode off, leaving several of them mirroring his bad mood.
“What’s up his nose?” said Lynette.
“He can’t really expect us to relax and pretend like it never happened,” added Claire.
Alicia just blinked rapidly, feeling her own anger sharpen. She tried very hard to swallow it back down, but it felt as though she were swallowing razor blades. Why had Anders turned so surly so fast? Was he angry about their investigation? Was it something else? They were all staring at her anxiously, so she faked a smile.
“Anders is just trying to protect us all, you know what he’s like. I guess it must be hard being the middleman, straddling the line between ‘Them’ and ‘Us’.”
Perry gave her a look that suggested he did not believe it for one moment but wisely left it at that. Besides, he had just spotted the Solarno sisters who were making their way into the restaurant and began waving them over. It was the first time he had seen them since their morning ordeal, and he wanted to see how they were coping.
The Solarno sisters clearly had similar concerns for him and marched straight across, genuine anxiety etched into their faces. If they had managed some sleep, it did not show in the dark bags below their eyes and their deep frown lines.
“Perry, Perry, Perry,” cried Millie, reaching down to scoop him into an enormous hug.
He melted into her, and they stayed like that for a few seconds, everyone watching, tears welling up in most sets of eyes. Eventually Millie released him and asked, “Are you better now? Do you think you’re going to be okay?”
He nodded. “I think so. How about you ladies? How are you holding up?”
Millie waved a hand in the air as if to dismiss that, but Billie spoke up now.
“There’s still quite a bit of shock at our end, too, but we will all get used to it. Won’t we girls?”
It almost sounded like a command, like she desperately needed her beloved sisters to recover from this life changing event and move on, and it did not surprise Alicia. Just hearing that scream and then that splash, it was sure to reverberate through their thoughts for many months to come.
“So what do you guys think happened?” asked Missy, a little insensitively perhaps because she was rewarded with one of Billie’s trademark death stares.
Millie, however, just sighed. “I don’t think we will ever know, my dear. Maybe we just have to accept that.”
Missy was accepting nothing of the sort. “But what about the rumours? We’d heard Corrie was having an affair. We wonder whether it had something to do with that, maybe?”
Now Alicia was giving her friend death stares, but before she could say anything, Billie had one hand on her hip and the other waving a finger at the younger woman.
“It is very easy for all of us to start throwing gossip around now the woman has gone, but I do not think that is very helpful or kind to the poor captain, is it, girls?” Her sisters nodded sullenly beside her. “Sure, Corrie could be flirty and silly and well, maybe some men got the wrong idea, but the point now is to rally behind our faithful leader and give him our love and strength. Come on, girls, we need to eat.”
She shot Missy another dagger glare then waddled off in the direction of the buffet, her sisters offering apologetic smiles before they followed.
Lynette also stared at Missy. “Insensitive much?”
“What? I was just asking. I’m allowed to ask.”
“Jesus, Missy.” It was Perry now. “We’ve had a pretty horrendous night, and those three women knew Corrie better than any of us. Slandering her is not real bright.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t think…”
Perry sighed. “I’d better go see if Billie’s okay.”
Alicia grabbed his forearm, holding him back. “Before you go can we just agree on this, please? We seem to be all over the shop. I know what Anders thinks, and I know what those ladies have just said, but I’m not prepared to butt out. I really believe there’s more to this than meets the eye. But I won’t interfere if you all agree with Anders and think we’re overstepping.”
“Forget Anders! We absolutely need to investigate,” said Perry, “but can we be a little more sensitive about it? Maybe leave the Solarno
s to me?” He flashed Missy another glance, but it was more conciliatory than the last, and she nodded.
“I’m in, and I’ll tell you why,” said Lynette. “It’s not because I’m some sort of Nosey Parker or haven’t got anything better to do with my time, which is what Anders keeps implying.” She rolled her eyes. “I don’t know if Corrie was unfaithful or if the captain has anything to do with it, but I think somebody needs to ask. And it looks to me like everyone on this ship is in thrall to the guy. No wonder Corrie wanted to hire us. It’s so obvious that we’re the only ones on the entire vessel who aren’t—what was the word she used?—‘compromised’. That’s right. We’re the only ones who seem to be objective.”
“You’re spot on, honeybunch,” said Missy. “Corrie did try to hire us, so we absolutely have a right to ask as many questions as we like. But I promise to be more tactful next time, Perry.”
They all looked across to Claire. She had already voiced her reservations and, like Anders, was one of the more reticent members of the club, but even she had come around. “I’m happy to plough on,” she said, “but only because I’m hoping to discover that it was all just a dreadful accident and that was that.”
“Keep an open mind, Claire,” said Perry.
Alicia smiled. “Good, that settles it. It’s official, whether Anders likes it or not. Now why don’t we do what we did last time and each approach different people? Perry, you’ve clearly bonded with the Solarnos, and like you said, they knew Corrie well. Maybe they have some idea of who might have sent her that threatening letter or can think of some reason why or how it happened. Maybe this kind of thing has happened on this ship before. If it has, those sisters will know, and you will know how to get that information without upsetting them again.”
“I might also have another word to the barmen who worked the Grand Salon last night,” he said. “Maybe they saw something suspicious or heard something.”
Lynette sniggered. “Would this be the cute Indonesian barmen you were doing shots with?”
“No one said we couldn’t have fun while we investigate,” he replied with a smirk. “At least I’m not pining for a married gigolo.”
