I shook my head. “Just like Sybil and Aaron both being here. I don’t believe any of that for one second.”
“If I had been planning to kill my spouse, I would at least have been nice to them prior, so they wouldn’t suspect,” Deirdre said.
“And not arouse so much suspicion for yourself,” I added.
“Had George not been so nasty in the dining room to Sybil, we probably wouldn’t have paid much attention to them at all.”
Elizabeth nodded. “Exactly, Deirdre.”
In a way, we played into Sybil’s hands, sitting with her at tea, being so sympathetic, then listening to their conversations when she would look at us while dining in the evenings. Still, George was horrible. “Perhaps he couldn’t control his anger because he saw Sybil’s old boyfriend here.” I shook my head again.
“And that might be why he killed her on the ship,” Deirdre said. “He acted out.”
With that conclusion, we decided not to go to the fashion show and stayed instead by the pool relaxing. The sun felt so energizing. I knew when we returned home the next day, we would be lucky if the temperatures would even reach the 50s. I closed my eyes, and took in the sun. I peeked at Elizabeth and Deirdre. They had followed suit. “Isn’t this the life?”
After several minutes we decided we were too hot lying in the sun, and would catch the last afternoon tea. We went back to our rooms to change.
When we entered the dining room at the appointed tea time, we noticed a woman sitting by herself at a large table. She smiled at us. I smiled back.
Elizabeth said, “No, let’s not go there again.”
Deirdre and I both nodded in total agreement. We sat at a smaller table by ourselves next to the window. Later, I noticed three other women joining the lone woman. Good luck, I thought to myself.
* * * *
By the conversations going around the dinner table, you could tell the cruise was coming to an end and things would soon be getting back to normal. Phil and Mike started talking about the upcoming gig and getting together to start rehearsing. Phil then told Mike about his guitar project at luthier school.
Janey, Phil, and Mike had won the final trivia contest. Janey was wearing her prize, a T-shirt that read “I’m A Trivia Whiz” with the ship’s logo on it. “I exchanged email addresses with my new friends from the tween club. We plan on keeping in touch.”
“That’s great, Janey,” I said. “When I was about your age, I had a pen pal from Lyon, France.”
I started thinking about Neelam and Dinesh hoping things were fine with them at home. I hoped they hadn’t experienced any more trouble. And about Andy and Rose’s big surprise for us.
“I wonder how my new hires are handling Planetary Herbals,” Deirdre mentioned.
John, from Security, came over to our table and asked Elizabeth if she wanted to attend some affair that evening for the officers.
“I plan on spending the last evening with my best friends,” Elizabeth replied.
After John left, Elizabeth said, “I wonder how John is doing.” She looked over at Janey. “My John and how his training went.”
Janey smiled at her.
The conversations stalled while we enjoyed our luscious desserts. I overheard the complainer at the next table mentioning something about the Head of Security, who had just come over to our table. My ears perked up. She went on to explain about a woman whose life she had saved the evening before. “I heard someone pounding in the next room and definite screams. I called down to the front desk and complained about the racket in the next stateroom. I insisted that they go and investigate immediately. I didn’t waste money on this trip to be kept awake all night.”
“So what happened?” the tanned woman asked.
“A few minutes later, I heard someone knocking next door. I opened my door a crack and looked out. When the knock wasn’t answered, the person, I imagine from Security, used a card to get into the room. About a minute later he propped open the doorway with a chair and I heard him on the phone calling for help. Within a couple of minutes a number of people came into the room. I heard a weak voice calling out and put on my bathrobe and went to investigate. They were carrying a woman out of the bathroom. Her head was bleeding. I gasped. It was quite the sight. When they saw me, I was told to go back to my room. When I went out in the hall, that man who just came over to their table,” she motioned to us, “almost bumped into me.”
“Did you learn what happened?” the older woman asked.
“This morning I called and spoke with the Chief of Security. He told me I had saved the woman’s life.”
“Excuse me,” I called out to the complainer. “I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. How fortunate that you called about the noise. My name is Kay Driscoll and this is my husband, Phil.” I motioned toward Phil. “We should have introduced ourselves previously.”
The woman beamed proudly. “Nice to meet you. It was a blessing that I called the desk or I can’t imagine what would have become of the woman. My name is Marion and this is my husband, Bob. Our friends here are Gloria and Henry.”
I smiled. “So nice to meet you all. What deck were you on where this all happened?”
“We’re on the Baja deck. The room the poor woman was in was next door to us, Room B418.”
That was the person who was in the bathroom when I was in the room with George and Bella. “Do you know if the woman will be okay?”
“They think she got a concussion when she fell in the shower, but they believe she will be fine.”
So that was the story the ship was giving, she fell while taking a shower. “I’m so happy that she’ll be all right. You should be proud of yourself for saving that woman. I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening.”
* * * *
After Janey left our room to spend the night with Elizabeth, Phil and I ordered a couple of rich desserts and a bottle of choice red wine. We snuggled close together on our balcony listening to the sounds of the waves. We talked and we laughed. And then laughed some more.
“Kay, I love listening to you laugh.”
I smiled and took a sip of my wine looking out at the moonlight on the water and then up at the star filled sky. After a few minutes I said, “Isn’t this romantic?”
I looked over at Phil when he didn’t answer.
“Sorry, Kay. I was just thinking about a new song for the band.”
I pulled away from him.
He immediately flashed a bright smile. “I was just kidding. Do you know your eyes sparkle in the moonlight?”
“That’s more like it.”
He stood, pulled me up, and placed his arms around my back. “Let’s take this party inside.”
“Lead on. I’m right behind you.”
Phil reached for my hand.
Chapter Fourteen
Disembarkation Day
Monday, April 4
JANEY CAME BACK to our room that morning around eight o’clock looking extremely tired. We hustled around getting everything packed into our carry-on luggage. Our large suitcases that would be checked at the airport were picked up by the porters the evening before.
“Come here, Janey, and sit on my carry-on so I can close it.”
Janey sighed as she plopped down on my large carry-on. “I told you that you brought too many shoes along.”
“I wore almost every pair that I packed.”
I still couldn’t get the suitcase closed and was afraid that I’d wreck the zipper. Taking out two pairs of bagged shoes, I put them in Phil’s carry-on.
Janey shook her head, then smiled. “Think of this as a learning experience on how to pack next time.”
My face reddened. “I’ve learned many things on this trip.”
Our disembarking time approached so we went down into a lounge to wait for our time to be called. I visited with Deirdre and Elizabeth after having picked up some coffee at the pastry shop. Phil and Mike were in la-la land at the next table talking about their gig on Friday evening. Jane
y sat with them, her face resting on the palms of her hands, looking down at the floor.
When our designated time arrived, Janey was nowhere to be seen.
“She was just sitting with you and Mike a few minutes ago,” I said to Phil. I bit at my lip, and felt my blood pressure going up.
Deirdre stood up looking around. “You don’t suppose there are additional villains on the ship beside George and Bella, do you?”
Phil laughed and waved his hand in the air. “She’s probably off taking more photos.” He went back to talking to Mike.
I looked at my watch. “I should have taken that camera away from her this morning. She knows what time we’re supposed to be leaving the ship. Phil, you need to go look for her.”
Deirdre spotted her. “Here she comes.”
Janey came strolling nonchalantly over to us.
I could feel my teeth grinding. “Where were you, young lady?”
She crossed her arms. “Oh, back to that again. I wanted to see if the pizza place on the Lido deck was open since the pastry shop was.”
“You should have told us where you were going.”
“Since when have I had to do that?”
I looked up towards the ceiling. A week was too long to be together 24/7. My patience was wearing thin.
“You probably had enough to eat on this cruise to last you another week,” Phil said, putting his arm around her shoulder. “Time to go.”
After claiming our suitcases, we rode the bus to the airport. I could hear Janey chatting away to Elizabeth, who wore glasses this morning instead of her green contacts. She had dark circles under her eyes that even her makeup didn’t cover. Perhaps they had stayed up all night watching movies.
“Elizabeth, you look beat,” Deirdre said.
She cocked her head to the side. “You have no idea.”
I was thankful that Elizabeth took Janey into her stateroom last night. Phil and I had some quality time to ourselves. And it was wonderful. Time well spent considering this was supposed to be our romantic getaway for two, not three.
When I saw Elizabeth’s head nodding on the bus, I decided I would sit with Janey on the plane, even though Janey had asked to sit with Elizabeth. Phil and Mike could talk shop. Elizabeth could nap, and Deirdre could read Astrology Today or whatever the magazine was that I could see peeking out of her bag.
We were dropped off at the airport without any problem. Thankfully our plane was on time. Before boarding, Janey picked up bags of snacks from an airport market.
Once it was announced that we reached cruising altitude, Janey offered me some trail mix. “Kay, this was the best vacation ever.”
Smiling outwardly, I thought about all that had occurred these past ten days. “It certainly was an interesting trip.” I was incredibly glad it had come to a successful end.
“It was the best.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it so much, but you’ve had other great vacations. What about when you visited your mom last summer and took surfing lessons? That must have been exciting.”
Janey opened a bag of cookies. I think she planned on eating all the way home.
“This trip beat that hands down. Can you take me on your next adventure?”
Janey must have seen my worried look. She quickly added, “I mean vacation?”
Oh, my gosh. I looked over at Deirdre who was sitting across the aisle from me smiling. She must have heard our conversation and winked.
“I wonder how Neelam and Dinesh are coping,” Deirdre said, saving me from this conversation with Janey.
Putting my hand close to my side, I gave Deirdre a thumbs up sign. “I meant to call them at the airport, but forgot.”
“I should have mentioned to Neelam about doing a sage cleansing at their shop.”
Elizabeth opened her eyes. “Really, Deirdre.”
Deirdre gave a pained expression. “It works, Elizabeth.”
Elizabeth shifted her body and turned, facing the window.
“Sage cleansing?” I asked.
“It clears away any negativity and helps with positive emotions. I do it to my house a few times a year.”
Janey wrinkled her nose. “I thought I smelled weed once in her house.”
I smiled at Deirdre.
“That was sage, Janey,” Deirdre said. “You should have asked what the smell was.”
“How would you know what weed smells like?” I asked.
Janey gave me a blank look.
Loren needed to pay more attention to his daughter.
Deirdre continued. “Burning sage is like taking an energetic shower. It changes the composition of the air and relieves the stress response.”
“So, Kay, where should we vacation next?” Janey asked.
“I’m not sure where Phil and I will decide to go. Somewhere new. We’ve been talking about Eastern Europe.”
“Eastern Europe sounds cool. I’ve never been out of the United States before this trip.”
“The trip would be just the two of us.”
Janey sighed. “Now we’re going back to our everyday lives. I liked the excitement of the cruise more.”
“Life goes on, Janey,” I said. “It isn’t one big vacation.”
“I wish there was more excitement in Sudbury Falls.”
I looked at Janey. “Be careful what you wish for.”
She took out her drawing pad and pencils from her backpack and started sketching.
I closed my eyes, happy for the silence and thought about the cruise and what my expectations had been...complete relaxation, sumptuous meals from lavish menus, romantic evenings with Phil, walks in the moonlight, listening to fabulous music, dancing, reading a great book from cover to cover. A trip of a lifetime. And then what it had turned out to be...Janey on the ship, Janey in our stateroom, murder and mayhem, an attempt on my life. Get a grip, Kay.
Then suddenly it hit me, remembering what Bella had said in the stateroom. Besides helping to catch Bella, George’s partner in crime, I may have saved a person’s life or at least prevented someone else from being hurt. Bella would have obtained an identification card from another guest to get off the ship this morning. That person could have been anyone with long, brown hair. Wearing sunglasses when leaving, no one would have stopped her on the way out. I smiled, reflecting on this positive thought.
* * * *
That evening, after Janey was delivered safely home to her father who had taken the evening off to be with her, Phil and I sat in the living room relaxing over a glass of red wine. We had ordered in Chinese: General Tso’s chicken, Mongolian beef, and spring rolls. I turned on the fairy lights that outlined our living room windows and those atop our high armoire. Those and the flickering candles on our coffee table were the only lights in the room. All was quiet except for the soft background music.
Leaning back, I took a sip of my wine while watching Phil. “Isn’t this nice? Isn’t it great to be home...and alone? Just the two of us?”
“I definitely agree with you. I’m glad our lives are back to normal.”
I picked up my chopsticks and started in on the Mongolian beef. “I said something similar to Janey on the plane.”
Phil smiled at me. “You were a great sport, by the way, about having Janey with us on the trip.”
Putting my chopsticks down, I said, “What else could I have done? Which reminds me, please promise you won’t surprise me like that again. Don’t just throw something or someone at me. Tell me what you have planned so we can discuss it together, so it won’t be such a shock.”
Phil took a sip of his wine and was quiet for several moments. “This entire past week Mike was talking my ear off about music. Talk about a one track mind.”
I thought about the rich irony of his statement. Phil was so unreal. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. I picked up a piece of broccoli. “It’s easy for someone to get on your nerves after being together for so long.”
“That is true.”
“I thought it was incr
edibly romantic when John flew out of the house as we pulled into their driveway. Then proceeded to lift Elizabeth up when she got out of the car, spinning her around, before planting a major league kiss on her mouth.”
He laughed. “It’s great if you enjoy being dizzy.”
“Oh, Phil.”
“What do you expect? They’re still newlyweds.”
I put my head on Phil’s shoulder. “It was romantic and you know it was.”
“It wouldn’t have been so great had he dropped her.”
I planted a kiss on Phil’s cheek. “You incurable romantic you.”
Phil took on a radiant smile. “Talking about romance, I’ve decided to set up my guitar business at home. I have all of the equipment here.”
I shook my head, having trouble seeing the correlation. “Will you have enough room in the basement for a business?”
“I may need to expand my work space.” Phil finished his wine and poured another glass. He was quiet for a few moments, his lips tightened with concentration. Then he took a sip of wine. “At one time I was thinking of renting shop space, but I had a lot of time to think about this on the cruise. I intend to hand-craft both acoustic and electric guitars and I can do it here. Mike has already placed an order.”
It was great to hear Phil sound so excited and enthusiastic about his new adventure. And it would keep him busy in retirement.
He continued to elaborate on the subject while I ate, telling me of his plans including the various models of guitars he intended to make. When my eyes started to glaze over, I decided to go to bed early to read. Cleaning up could wait for tomorrow. I was afraid he might follow me into the kitchen telling me more about his plans. After about an hour of reading, my eyes started to get heavy and sleep swept over me.
* * * *
Sometime during the night, the sound of sirens woke us up. Lots and lots of sirens. Something big was happening. The sounds were coming from the direction of downtown.
I got out of bed and went over to the window. On the cross street fire engines were going by.
Paradise Can Be Murder Page 15
