Dead in the Water_A fun and fast-paced private investigator cozy mystery/beach read

by Rose Pressey

  “I’m not playing around anymore. We need to get out of here. It doesn’t matter if you have cameras. I’m going to get rid of you all and then get far away. They’ll never catch me.”

  Maybe she didn’t even care if she was caught. Did she really have plans to get out of Miami? If that was the case I wouldn’t be able to convince her that the police were on her trail. She wouldn’t even care.

  Annie motioned with the gun. “Okay, everybody outside.”

  I was torn on what to do, but it looked as if I didn’t have a choice. Annie would just shoot all of us standing right there. I knew if we left with her it would be all over too. I felt as if I was letting Dorothy and Morty down. I had to do something to help them get them out of here.

  We all stepped outside. Dorothy led the way with Morty behind her. I was at the end of the line. Annie was right behind me. I felt the gun pressed into my back.

  “Remember no funny business,” Annie said.

  She’d been watching too many cheesy movies.

  “Where are you taking us?” I asked.

  “Never mind that. Just do as I tell you. Keep walking down to the dock.”

  Oh, no. Not out on a boat in the ocean. I would definitely freak out. Would anyone see us marching toward the dock in a single-file line? Wouldn’t they think that was odd? I probably could outrun Annie, but I knew Morty wouldn’t be able to run that fast. Dorothy maybe. I swear I didn’t know where she got her energy from. We couldn’t leave Morty behind. I would have to make the walk.

  The black car was in the parking lot. Baxter got out of the car. With a smirk on his face he looked right at me as he walked over.

  “What are you doing here?” Annie snapped.

  “I came to see if you need help,” Baxter said.

  Annie released a heavy sigh. “I told you I have this one under control.”

  A shiver ran down my spine. “You had him help you with the murders? That’s why he was following me.”

  “You just wouldn’t mind your own business, so we were going to have to get rid of you.”

  “She is a bit nosy,” Dorothy said.

  I glared at her.

  “A lot nosy,” Morty added.

  “So what do you want me to do?” Baxter asked.

  “Just leave. I’ll call you when I’m done,” Annie said.

  “You don’t have to do this,” I said.

  Baxter just turned around and walked toward his car.

  “I have your gloves and jacket,” I called out.

  He laughed as he got into his car.

  “Get moving.” Annie motioned toward the sidewalk. She remained behind us as we headed toward the dock. When we finally reached the dock we stopped and looked at Annie.

  “Keep going.” Annie pointed at the dock.

  Boats lined each side of the dock.

  “Were getting on that one.” Annie gestured at the white and blue boat at the end of the dock.

  “Whose boat is this?” I asked.

  “None of your business,” she answered.

  “Did you steal it?” I asked.

  No doubt that was what had happened since she didn’t answer me. Why did it have to be so quiet around here right now? Where were all the people?

  Morty climbed onto the boat that Annie had pointed out. He helped Dorothy and then I climbed on as well. Annie got on last. With her back turned to us, I contemplated clobbering her right then and there. But before I had my chance to seize the opportunity, she turned around. She’d untied the boat’s rope from the cleat and now she was at the front, ready to take off across the water.

  “It looks as if you’re going to be fish food,” Annie said.

  Of course, that comment increased my anxiety. And I knew by the look on Dorothy’s face that she was beginning to panic now. She usually kept her cool. Well, maybe not so much all the time, but she was doing well now, all things considered. Dorothy, Morty, and I had been through quite a bit together, from fighting off alligators to dodging cars.

  Annie took the boat off across the water. The motor hummed a steady rhythm. The water was choppy. Seagulls flew overhead as we sat there staring at each other. I knew we all had the same thing on our minds, wondering how we would get out of this situation.

  I voted for jumping over right now and swimming. But I had failed to ask Morty if he was a good swimmer. We could possibly make it back to shore, but we would have to move now before we got farther and farther from the shore.

  There was no telling how far she would take us out. Far enough that we couldn’t get back. I was sure of that. Okay, so I didn’t have a well-thought-out plan, but I had to do something right now. I motioned for Morty and Dorothy to follow my lead.

  Chapter 29

  Annie’s back was facing us. Now I had to take my chances and go up there and tackle her. I’d probably lose the fight. She was taller and I guessed much stronger than me, but nevertheless, I’d make an attempt. I might be petite, but I packed a powerful punch when faced with a dangerous situation. I’d fight for what I had.

  I motioned for Morty and Dorothy to stay seated. No matter what happened I didn’t want them to be tossed overboard. If anybody was going overboard it would be Annie. Maybe if I got Annie down on the boat’s floor I could use some of that rope to tie her hands together. It would have to do until I could handcuff her. I’d need Jake for that.

  I eased up from my seat, trying to keep my balance as the boat rocked from the choppy waters. Reaching over, I grabbed at some of the rope. I stumbled forward, but somehow managed to remain upright. With the rope in hand I moved forward. This was life or death. My heart thumped wildly.

  Annie had no idea that I was stepping closer and closer to her. It was hard to keep my balance as the boat swayed back and forth. I was shocked that Annie hadn’t even looked back to see what we were doing. For all she knew we could have jumped overboard. This was a flaw in her plan. I was the one who always had flaws, but now she was the one making the mistakes. I just hoped she didn’t notice me right behind her. I was getting awfully close now. The closer I got, the more nervous I grew. This was the most stressful thing I’d done since last night when I’d almost been hit by the car. I ran through different scenarios in my mind, trying to come up with the best option. I would grab her with the rope from behind and pull backwards. I wasn’t sure what would happen to the boat when I did that.

  I was right behind her now. Raising my arms up over my head, I gripped the rope tightly. On the count of three I would toss it over her and pull back. How could this possibly go wrong? Once I had her in the ropes Dorothy and Morty could help me subdue her.

  Unfortunately, I didn’t have a chance to carry out this plot. Annie turned around and realized what I had planned. She immediately lunged at me. We fell to the boat’s floor. I’d wanted her on the floor, but not like this.

  What had she done with the gun? It could be in her back pocket or waistband for all I knew. I hoped Annie didn’t have easy access to it. I tried to get up from underneath her, but she had me pinned. I struggled to breathe.

  I hoped that Morty and Dorothy would stay put, but that wasn’t the case. Morty jumped onto Annie’s back as if leaping onto a pile of just-raked leaves on a sunny fall day. Dorothy was pulling on my arm and trying to free me from underneath Annie.

  “Dorothy, I’m not a stretch toy,” I said breathlessly.

  Morty was a slight man with cataracts and he used a cane most of the time when his arthritis was acting up. I wasn’t so sure that Morty was helping matters. Bless his heart. He was actually pushing Annie down and crushing me even more. With every passing second I felt as if I couldn’t breathe.

  “Morty,” I panted. “You have to stop pushing down on her.”

  Where was Dorothy? Couldn’t she help me get Morty off? There was no way he’d get up from the floor without help. He was stuck on top of us like a water bug on its back. Annie reached back and tried to smack at Morty.

  “That’s enough,” Dorothy yelled.
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br />   When I looked to my left I spotted Dorothy with the gun in her hands. Of course, her hand shook and the gun’s aim was all over the place. Add to that the back-and-forth movement of the boat and I started saying a silent prayer. My life flashed before my eyes. This was a recipe for disaster.

  “I’ll shoot if you don’t get off her right now,” Dorothy said.

  “Dorothy, don’t shoot me,” Morty said.

  Now that the gun was aimed his way Morty managed to roll off Annie. But he certainly wasn’t up from the boat floor. Annie climbed to her feet. And then I followed. I ran over to Morty and helped him get up and over beside Dorothy.

  “Okay, Dorothy, I’m going to get this boat back to shore. Don’t take that gun off her. Don’t take your eyes off her. Don’t let Morty do anything either.”

  This was a lot of orders for her to follow, but it was important that she not let Annie work her way out of this.

  Chapter 30

  It wasn’t the first time that I’d driven a boat, but that didn’t mean that I would be any better at it this time. I tried to steer my way around so that I could get the boat back to shore.

  “I think you’re going the wrong way, Maggie,” Dorothy yelled.

  “I know that, Dorothy,” I yelled back.

  “You’re just going in circles,” she said.

  “I know that, Dorothy.”

  I hoped Dorothy kept Annie from getting loose from the rope.

  “How are you doing over there, Morty?” I called out.

  “Just fine, Maggie, but maybe I should drive the boat.”

  “No way.”

  The last thing I needed was for Morty to take us to the Bermuda Triangle with his cataracts. I released a deep breath when I finally had the boat pointed in the right direction, I just hoped that I didn’t accidentally hit another boat on my way. It would be a tight squeeze at the dock.

  I navigated the boat to the dock and somehow managed to get in between a couple of other ones without scraping the sides or clipping anything.

  “Great job, Maggie,” Dorothy said. “I really had my doubts that you could do this.”

  I smirked. “You should never have doubts about me.”

  “When will I learn?” she asked.

  “How are you hanging in there, Morty?” I asked.

  “Just fine,” he said, giving a thumbs up.

  “What about you, Annie? Are you all right?” I smirked.

  She glared at me. “I’ll get out of here and then I’m going to kill you.”

  “Yeah, right,” I said. “The police will be here soon and then you’re going to jail.”

  I liked taunting her now that I knew she couldn’t get us. Thank goodness we were back at the dock. I was also glad that this was over with. Now maybe I wouldn’t have to look over my shoulder every second.

  The sirens sounded and before I knew it Jake had arrived. He had other officers with him of course. He jumped out of the car and ran down the boat. I was helping Morty off when Jake arrived. Jake helped Morty the rest of the way and then Dorothy. The other officers ran onto the boat.

  “Are you all right, Maggie? I can’t believe this is happening,” Jake said.

  “Well, it was touch and go there for a while, but I managed to overcome Annie and navigate the boat back. Well, I had help from Morty and Dorothy.”

  Jake shook his head. “I don’t think even with all of these officers around that we would’ve been able to do what you all did.”

  “It’s a talent,” I said with a wink. “I’m just glad you’re here to get rid of her. She’s a mean one. Of course, most murderers are, right?”

  Jake shook his head again like he still couldn’t believe what had happened.

  They had Annie in handcuffs now and took her off the boat. She glared at me as she walked by.

  “I’ll get back at you for this,” she said.

  “Fat chance of that,” I said.

  “Maybe you shouldn’t do that,” Jake said.

  “Well, she deserves it,” I said. “It’s good to see her in handcuffs instead of me.”

  I’d never let him live that down. All along the killer was right there next door. Of course, we’d had no way of knowing.

  I was glad that the boat’s owner would get it back unharmed.

  “You’re really good at driving the boat,” Jake said.

  “I’m getting some practice now,” I said. “Nonetheless, it was definitely stressful.”

  “I’m proud of you. Although I wish you wouldn’t get in such dangerous situations,” Jake said.

  “It comes with the job,” I said.

  I watched as they escorted Annie to the police car and put her in the back. She was still watching me, which of course gave me the creeps. Soon enough she would be in jail. She wouldn’t be able to get to me then.

  Jake hugged me again. “So you want to tell me how this all went down?”

  I didn’t even know where to start. I supposed I just had to start at the beginning.

  After giving him the basics of what had happened, I said, “That’s when Morty jumped on Annie. And he was crushing me and then Dorothy somehow got the gun. She was shaking it everywhere.”

  “I was not,” Dorothy said.

  Jake was shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe the whole story. “I guess you would have had to have been there to really appreciate how it all went down,” I said.

  “I guess I would have,” he said.

  “I’m just glad it’s all over now,” I said.

  We moved closer to Morty and Dorothy.

  “Are you guys all right?” I asked.

  “I’m just fine. Never better,” Dorothy said.

  “Well, you all are my heroes,” I said. “What would I do without you?”

  “Probably be in a lot of trouble,” Dorothy said.

  Movement caught my attention and I realized that Abby was walking toward us. She had her eyes focused on me and I assumed she wanted to talk.

  “Good morning, Abby,” I said when she walked up.

  “Maggie,” she greeted me.

  “I just wanted to let you know that I’m sorry if I accused you of breaking into my office.”

  “It’s quite all right,” she said. “It’s understandable. I guess we haven’t gotten along that well. I wasn’t exactly all that nice to you.”

  “Can we start all over?” I asked.

  She smiled. “Yes, that would be good.”

  It was an unusual gesture for her. Nevertheless, I appreciated that she did it. And I really hoped that we could start over. Jake seemed happy about it too. I knew he wanted me to get along with his partner.

  “I’m glad that you two have straightened things out,” he said.

  I wasn’t sure that we were best friends yet, but it was definitely a start.

  “I guess we can get out of here and let the owner of the boat know things are fine,” Jake said.

  “Like there was ever a doubt,” I said.

  When I looked over I spotted the reporter rushing toward the dock.

  “Oh no, she found me again,” I said, ducking behind Jake.

  Jake peered over and noticed Vanessa’s hurried walk. “Don’t worry. I’ll handle this.”

  Thank goodness Jake could talk to her this time. Her stare was fixed on me though and I knew she determined to get to me. Jake headed her way. He motioned toward the cameraman to stop filming. After a few seconds, the cameraman lowered the camera. I could tell he was hesitant, but ultimately, he complied. I guessed he didn’t want to argue with Jake, considering this was a crime scene.

  Vanessa frowned and then spun around and stomped away. It wasn’t totally over though because I saw that she was headed over to the police car to get footage of Annie in the backseat of the car. I passed by Vanessa as I headed for Jake’s car, but she didn’t harass me to answer questions this time. However, she glared at me instead. She’d obviously taken a disliking to me. I supposed that she loathed me because I hadn’t wanted to answer her q
uestions.

  As I walked away I happened to look down. I spotted a phone on the ground near a scrub. Reaching down I picked it up. When the screen lit up I recognized the person in the background photo. It was Vanessa. Was this her phone? I immediately went to the settings and saw her name listed as the owner. She had a selfie as her background? I had a picture of the beach as my background. But whatever. I wasn’t sure how she managed to lose her phone. I figured she was the type of person who had it attached to her twenty-four seven. I wondered what kind of crazy stuff I could find on her phone.

  When I glanced over I saw her still trying to get a shot of Annie in the back of the police car. I touched her phone’s screen and went to the photos. Yes, I was being snoopy. After all that she put me through I figured I could have a little look around and not feel guilty. When I saw the saved videos, I realized right away that they were of me. She had been the one sending the messages with the videos.

  How could she do that? And why? Dorothy was talking to Morty and Jake was talking to one of the police officers. I couldn’t wait to show him what I’d found. Sure I was little embarrassed to admit I had been snooping, but I would have to get over that. This was just too good not to share. Why was she doing this? Was she trying to scare me and if so what was the purpose of that? Just the thought sent a shiver down my spine.

  I scrolled through her contacts and realized she even had my phone number listed. No doubt she’d been the one to call and not say anything.

  When Jake stepped over, I handed him the phone. “Take a look at this. Vanessa Carl’s phone. The videos of me are on there. She was obviously the one who sent them.”

  Jake frowned as he perused the contents of her phone. “Why would she do this?”

  I blew the hair out of my eyes. “I’d like the answer to that.”

  My attention went back to Vanessa. She was still trying to get someone to speak on camera. No one was taking her up on that offer. I hoped that Dorothy didn’t get near Vanessa. Dorothy would probably be persuaded by the lure of the limelight. Suddenly Vanessa lowered her microphone and started searching her pockets. She said something to the cameraman. He shook his head. Next, she surveyed the ground. Now I knew she was frantically searching for her phone.