The girls stood, Rose picking up her tote bag. “I have to return this to the bar,” she said and raised her half-drunk glass of tea. “I’ll see y’all later.”
If Alexis hadn’t been there, I would’ve grabbed Rose’s hand. I frowned. “Aren’t you coming to lunch?”
She looked at Alexis, not me. “I figured I’d just snack in my room.”
“No way,” Alexis said. “We need you well fed and at the height of your mental powers this afternoon.”
“Alexis,” Rose said.
“Resistance is futile,” my cousin said and took Rose’s elbow.
I forced a laugh. “She’s right, you know.”
Rose smiled but still wouldn’t meet my gaze. I was about ready to jump up and down in front of her like a monkey if she kept ignoring me. Except it was what I wanted, right? Just friends. No big emotional scenes when the cruise ended.
We walked toward the café. People had already filled up the outdoor tables. Alexis stopped near the entrance and released Rose’s arm. “Go ahead and take the glass back if you want. We’ll wait for you here.”
“Okay,” Rose said.
That was weird. Why had Alexis sent Rose away? She could’ve just given the glass to one of the waiters working outside. When she was out of sight, Alexis swung on me. “Out with it. What did you do to Rose last night? Why is she acting like you’re the invisible man?”
I took a step back. “I don’t know.”
“Did you come on too strong? Move too fast?”
“No, just the opposite. And it’s none of your business, Alex.”
She narrowed her eyes. “The opposite, huh. Hmm. Maybe I could—”
“No. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but stay out of it. If you get involved, it’ll only make it worse.”
Alexis’s brown-eyed gaze bored into me like she wanted to dissect my brain. “I thought you liked her,” she whispered.
“I do.” My voice sounded gravelly, so I cleared my throat.
She let out a low chuckle. “Ah, so it’s the noble route.”
“Shut up.”
“Where the guy thinks he’s protecting the girl by not acting on his feelings.”
“I said, shut up.”
A wide grin spread across her face. “Looks like I’m gonna have to help you.”
I should be congratulated. Instead of wrapping my hands around my cousin’s throat, I said, “See you in line,” and walked into the restaurant, the sound of loud conversations drowning out her laughter.
Twenty-Four
Rose
Clio motioned us to one side so we wouldn’t block the stone bridge before the Pile Gate, the entrance to Dubrovnik’s Old Town. Great clumps of tourists were meandering toward the gate, some stopping to take pictures of the fortress walls and the sapphire sea in the distance. When we’d gathered close, she said, “As some of you may know, many sections of Dubrovnik have been used to film scenes from the TV show Game of Thrones.”
“What?” Alexis said, looking around in all directions.
Clio smiled, easing the strain around her eyes. “Yes, it is supposed to be King’s Landing, the capital city of Westeros.”
Alexis’s grin stretched wide. “That’s so stinking cool.”
“You watch that show?” Sam asked me quietly, his head tilting slightly toward mine.
The urge to move closer to him almost overwhelmed me. I’d fought it all the way from the ship, first on the tender, and then as we walked. Sam stuck beside me like he was my bodyguard. Which confused the heck out of me. Remember, hot and cold. It’s just what he does. I swallowed hard. “No. Never seen it.”
“Me neither,” he said. “But it’s one of Alexis’s favorites.”
I couldn’t hold back my smile. Alexis shielded her eyes with her hand, and then strode off to the other side of the bridge. “I noticed,” I said.
Sam chuckled, sending unwanted warmth through me. Stop it, Rose.
Nick pointed and laughed at Alexis. “Look at her. Hey! Excited much?”
Alexis returned, looking like nothing could wipe that smile off her face. “I can die now. All is well with the world.”
Most of the group laughed. Marie, however, frowned and then shrugged. A little spurt of sympathy wiggled its way up to my chest. It must be hard not to understand English well enough to get the nuances.
The afternoon sun burned against my scalp. If only I’d had the guts to wear a big, floppy hat like Sophie’s navy one. I’d settled instead for a messy bun to get the hair off my neck. Little good that did. Sweat was forming everywhere sweat can form, yet Clio showed no signs of moving on.
“The Renaissance arch in the stone gate is from 1537,” Clio said, “and you can see as we get closer that there is a wooden drawbridge that used to be raised every evening. Come.”
Thank goodness. She motioned with one arm, and we fell into step behind her, joining the throng of people crossing the bridge. Alexis’s head was still turning from side to side as though she was terrified of missing anything.
Sam and I brought up the rear of the group. “I hope this doesn’t mean she’s too distracted to help us,” he said.
Yeah, that could be a problem. Alexis had turned into the leader on this investigation, and her help made me feel like I could tour places without constantly looking over my shoulder. And Sam’s help too, of course. But with him it was different. There were just too many unspoken things dangling in the air between us for me to be completely comfortable with him.
We funneled through the arch of the Pile Gate and headed down a broad stairway. Alexis dashed ahead of everyone. “Over here,” she called. A couple of tourists turned to watch her. We caught up, and she pushed her phone into Sam’s hands. “Take a picture of me next to this obelisk thingy.”
“Uh, okay,” he said.
Sam got into position, which was tricky because there were still a lot of people filtering through a tight area. I moved off to the side and stood behind Jacques and Sophie, who was shaking her head at her sister. “Come on, Alex,” she said. “We’re causing a traffic jam.”
Somebody’s purse knocked into my arm, so I edged around Jacques and Sophie. Alexis was hamming it up big time with various dramatic poses. “Just a couple more,” she said through a smile.
“The pictures are gonna be blurry if you don’t stop making me laugh,” Sam said.
What felt like the sharp end of an elbow banged into the middle of my back, sending me staggering forward. I braced myself to hit the stone walkway, but Nick jumped in front of me, and I knocked into him instead. He grabbed my arms and helped me straighten—his grip stronger than he looked. “Hey, be careful,” he said. “Lighten up on the klutz routine.” He grinned, sunlight glinting off his braces.
“Thanks. I think.”
Nick laughed.
“Are you okay?” Sophie asked.
“Yeah,” I said, even though I wasn’t. Whatever had bumped me felt like a deliberate shove. I stared at the backs of the last group of tourists, noting their various ball caps, T-shirts, and camera straps around their necks. No one turned around or made eye contact. They all just continued on their way. Was I being paranoid? No. Not with everything that had been going on this week. It was good to be wary.
With Alexis’s photo session over, we moved out behind Clio again. Sam took up his spot beside me. “You okay? What happened?” he whispered.
“I’ll live, but I’m pretty sure someone shoved me,” I said.
His brows drew together above his sunglasses, and he didn’t speak again until the group got a few steps ahead of us. “Make sure and tell me if you spot the angry cousin, okay?”
The tension between us fizzled away. Sam cared, and that was all that mattered right now. I looked aside at him. “Don’t worry. I will.”
***
After an hour of touring the sights, in which nothing else weird happened, Clio said we had an hour for souvenir shopping since
this was the last stop on the cruise before heading back to Venice. Right. I did actually need to buy presents for my family.
“Could you show us some of the best stores?” Alexis asked Clio.
Oh, good one. That would make it easier to follow her around.
“Absolutely,” Clio said. “Anyone who doesn’t want to go with us, please meet back here at three forty-five. We’ll find something to eat at one of these restaurants.” She pointed toward the numerous sidewalk cafes, most shaded by cream-colored awnings on both sides of the pedestrian-only road. Even with my sunglasses on, I had to narrow my eyes against the glare bouncing off the pale stone street. Please let us go inside a store, any store. Sweat lined the bottom edge of my bra, making me want to yank it off.
Alexis pulled Sam to one side and said something I couldn’t hear. He gave her an irritated look. She spoke again. He jammed his hands into the pockets of his shorts, glanced at me, and then squinted up at the sky. I couldn’t tell if he said anything else, but Alexis sauntered back. “Let’s do some shopping.” She hooked arms with me and headed after Nick and Clio, who waited a few yards ahead.
I put on the brakes and looked over my shoulder. Sam had joined Sophie, Jacques, and Marie. I gave Alexis my best perturbed expression. “Really?” I whispered.
“Somebody has to keep an eye on them,” she said. “They’re still suspects.”
“Not serious ones.”
Up ahead, Clio waved a hand that she kept low against her body. Nick turned away as though annoyed. We needed to be eavesdropping.
“Sam likes you, you know,” Alexis said quietly. “I mean, a lot.”
The warmth that traveled up my neck made it impossible to pretend I didn’t care. But maybe she wouldn’t notice the blush since my face was probably already pink from the hot day. “He says one thing and then does another.”
She briefly squeezed my arm. “He’s a boy. Be patient with him.”
“We don’t have much time.”
She patted my back. “More than you think. Now, come on. We’re on the job.” We strolled up to Clio and Nick.
Clio focused on us. “What kind of souvenirs are you looking for?”
“I want anything that says Dubrovnik,” Alexis said.
Clio laughed. “I think we can find that.” She rested her gaze on me. “And you?”
“I usually buy a mug for my mother from any place I go. Other than that, just the usual stuff—T-shirts, hats.”
Nick had been off to one side, staring down the street, but he swung toward us. “Good. I want a hat too.”
Clio resettled the purse on her shoulder. “All right, everyone. This way.”
She led us through the milling tourists and past the sidewalk cafes to an area of shops. The stone buildings with their clay tile roofs all sported forest green shutters over the windows. Some were propped open at the bottom, looking like drowsy eyelids. They could have no idea we were walking along with a suspected jewel thief.
We finally stepped into a small store, and I smothered what would have been a noisy sigh. Even without air-conditioning, the temperature had to be fifteen degrees cooler inside. I set my sunglasses on top of my head and then almost laughed out loud.
Alexis was already holding up a replica of one of the forts with a round tower. “Look, Rose. It’s perfect.”
I scooted next to her. “You are paying attention to our goal, right?” I whispered.
“Of course,” she whispered back. “Just showing a little souvenir enthusiasm.”
I let out a low laugh. “Okay, just checking.” I moved off toward shelves of T-shirts to find one for my little brother. After a few minutes of rummaging through the piles, I pulled out one with the red-and-white checked emblem of the Croatian national soccer team. Close as I could come to something Josh might actually wear.
The entire time I searched, I tried to keep my attention on Nick and Clio, but more tourists entered the shop, and it was hard to see exactly what they were doing. Nick was on the move, going from one display to the other, while Clio mostly stayed near the cashier’s stand waiting for us. At least I thought so. She could’ve done something suspicious while I wasn’t looking. Alexis better be watching too.
“You ready?” Nick asked, making me jump.
“Gah.” How could such a hyper kid move so silently? “Don’t sneak up on me like that.”
He laughed. “This store doesn’t have any good hats. Let’s go.”
“Hang on.” I took the T-shirt for Josh and went to wait behind Alexis who was buying that little Dubrovnik statue she’d shown me.
Once we were out of the shop, Clio led us down a fully shaded side street that looked more like a skinny alley. But even here there were souvenir stores. We hit most of them, and in half an hour, I’d bought gifts for my whole family. Back out in the alley, Nick now wore a black ball cap with the red-and-white Croatian flag on it and carried a sack with the T-shirt Clio bought for him. I combined all my packages into the largest bag, and we headed after Clio again.
“We can take a short break at Big Onofrio’s Fountain,” she said over her shoulder. “There is an Internet café nearby if anyone needs it.”
I looked sidelong at Alexis, who pursed her lips. Maybe Clio was finally about to do something sketchy. We’d both need to be on our toes.
We turned right on another side street, this one just slightly wider than the alley. A handful of people strode along as though they knew where they were going, aka not tourists. We walked on for a minute, and then the street opened onto the small square that held Big Onofrio’s Fountain, a site we had toured before shopping.
Nick had thought it was hilarious that Onofrio must have been huge for them to name the fountain “big,” but Clio had pointed out there was a smaller fountain, which was why this one was called big. A sixteen-sided stone fountain built in the fifteenth century, it had carvings of faces on all sides with spigots of water coming out of the mouths. People were lined up in front of the working spigots, since not all of them did, to wash their hands or fill water bottles.
“I need to go to the Internet café,” Clio said. “Anyone else?”
Alexis and I exchanged a look. I’d never been in an Internet café and didn’t really want to look like an idiot. But Alexis stepped up to the plate. “Shall we all go in?”
“Rose and I will wait out here,” Nick said. “We can pick the ugliest face carving on the fountain.”
I could think of worse activities. “Sure.”
“Okay,” Alexis said, “I do need to make sure I haven’t gotten one of those e-mails from my school saying I have extra fees to pay or else.” She drifted close to me. “Don’t go anywhere,” she whispered.
“Be careful,” I whispered back.
She walked off beside Clio, and they entered what looked like a convenience store—small posters of Dukat milk and Bobi potato chips in the front window.
“Look at this one, Rose,” Nick called from beside the fountain. I walked over. “This guy looks almost like a lion.”
A man’s carved head emerged from a scalloped edge collar. I cocked my head to the side. “You really think so?”
“I said almost, didn’t I?” I shrugged, and we moved on to the next one. Nick laughed. “Okay, this baby head has to be the ugliest.”
“That doesn’t look like a baby to me. It looks like some old guy got half his face broken off.” And it was true. The lower half of the head, right around the metal spigot, was worn away.
He made a disgusted sound. “You’re no fun. Never mind. I’ll do this on my own.”
Well, okay then. I probably should’ve been nicer to him since he and Clio kept muttering to each other under their breaths. But it was too late now. He circled the fountain, going up and down the three steps that led to it, sometimes having to squeeze past people who were sitting. I almost told him to quit but reined in the impulse. He was only bothering them a little.
I waited in line
to get a sip of water from one of the fountain’s spigots, which ended up being fresh and cool, and then stepped back down. Nick was gone. Or rather, nowhere in sight. My stomach turned a flip. I wound my way through the tourists around the fountain, but he wasn’t there. Unless, of course, he was moving perfectly just ahead of me when I circled, but I doubted it. Not unless he thought it was a game. Which he would.
I let out a low groan. What now? I turned to scan the outer edges of the small square. He’d probably gone inside to see what was taking Clio and Alexis so long. I meandered around, ignoring the fact that my pulse was increasing with each step, and made a wider circuit of the square. And finally there, beside the arched entrance to one of the ancient buildings, Nick paced up and down the few steps. Oh, brother. I’d worried for nothing. I stopped where I was. The kid didn’t need me hovering over his every move.
He’d put his package down at the bottom of the stairs while he messed around. Well, that was an invitation for someone to take it. Stupid kid. I was just about to go tell him so when a man in a tank top and loose-fitting pants walked by and grabbed the bag. But it was what he did next that froze me in place. He dropped an identical red bag where Nick’s had been, and then sauntered away. Nick was examining the arched doorway when all this went down and now turned and sat on one of the steps.
If my pulse had been fast before, now it was hammering through my skull. Did Nick know what had just happened? How could he not? The guy was right there. And if Nick knew, that meant a thirteen-year-old kid was involved in this whole thing. Clio must’ve hidden stolen jewelry in that bag. Heat flashed through my body, and I swung around. Our tour guide was about to get a piece of my mind.
But my breath lodged in my throat, and I started coughing. Because right in front of me stood Clio’s angry cousin. He wrapped a large hand around my upper arm. “Come,” he said, his voice deep and accented. “We should walk.”
My knees felt like jelly. “I—I’m sorry,” I gasped out. “You’ve confused me with someone else.”
Life in the Danger Zone Page 17
