the Caribbean without her, but she and Alice were good friends, so when I told her the purpose of the trip she didn't put up as much of a fuss as I had expected. She did make me promise to be very careful, which I fully intended to do anyway after what had happened to Paula in the British Virgin Islands.
Bright and early the next morning I picked up Tehra and we drove to DFW Airport. We met Alice at curbside check-in and went together through security and to the gate. We had over an hour before our flight, so we stopped in at McDonalds and got coffee and some breakfast. While we were eating I asked Alice about Ben.
"He's hanging in there," she said. "I visited him on Sunday. I told him about the trip, so he's hopeful we'll find something."
"How's his health?"
"He's had a couple of episodes and had to take his nitro, but that's not unusual for him."
I shook my head. "I'm so sorry you're having to go through this. Ralph is a real bastard."
"I'm just glad we have you to get us out of this mess," Alice replied, "otherwise, there'd be no hope."
"Well, there's always hope. Sometimes you've just got to trust in God to get you through the day."
"Amen to that."
"Have you ever been to George Town?" Tehra asked.
"Yes, we stopped there on a cruise one time, but I swear I didn't open any bank accounts."
I laughed. "Yeah, I doubt I'd open one up either. I like having my money where I can get my hands on it in a hurry."
"I've never been even been to Miami," Tehra said. "I'm really looking forward to this trip."
“It’s been overrun by the Cubans,” Alice said. “It’s like visiting Havana.”
Tehra laughed. “Really? I can’t wait to see it.”
“One thing for sure, though, the Cubans know how to party. If you like to dance I’ll take you to one of the Cuban clubs in town.”
“That would be wonderful!”
“I doubt we’ll have time for that,” I interjected.
“Well, when we get you to the Grand Caymans, you've can swim with the stingrays. That’s great fun. The water is so clear you can see every fish in the water."
"So I've heard."
"Again, I don't know how much time we'll have for sightseeing. Remember this is a working vacation."
"I insist you show Tehra all the sights of the islands. God only knows when she'll ever get back there again."
I looked into Tehra's eyes and saw a sadness I hadn't seen before. Was she regretting the fact that she'd have to return to Tarizon soon? I certainly didn't want her to go. She looked away.
"Oh, I suspect we'll find time to do a little sightseeing," I said, "and the Sundowner Hotel is right on the Seven Mile Beach. Maybe we can get in a little snorkeling."
When we got to our gate our flight was about ready to board. We sat down to wait and Alice excused herself to go the restroom. It suddenly occurred to me that Tehra had probably never flown in an airplane. Of course, she'd flown in a spaceship, but that was probably very different from a 727.
"So, what's it like to travel in space?" I asked. "Do you travel in seats like we do on an airplane?"
She shook her head. "No, as soon as you get aboard they put you in a transport cylinder, attach a breathing apparatus, monitors, a feeding tube, and then close it up. They immediately sedate you and you sleep for the duration of the trip."
"That sounds pretty boring," I said.
"Not really. It's like going to bed and waking up in the morning. It hardly seems like any time at all."
"How long does a trip to Earth take?"
"Almost a year. It's a long way to Tarizon. Luckily you don't age while you travel."
"Why is that?"
"I don't know exactly. There's a scientific explanation for it, but I wasn't very good in science."
"Me either. I'm not sure how I passed any math classes in college."
Alice made it back just in time to board the plane. The captain advised us the flight to Miami was an hour and forty minutes. That would give me plenty of time to think about our game plan once we made it to George Town. I got out a legal pad and started thinking about possibilities. We'd visit the bank, of course, get copies of everything in the bank's files, but that might not prove anything. We needed witnesses—people who could verify that Ralph Herman or his buddy Eiseman had been in the Cayman Islands. That would go a long way toward meeting our objective.
I'd brought along pictures of Herman and Eiseman to show to bellhops and bartenders in hopes someone might recognize them. It was a longshot but if either had been in town somebody should have seen them. I asked Alice what Ralph would do for fun on the island.
"Scuba diving or deep sea fishing," she replied. "He was always a big sportsman."
"Okay, after we go to the bank tomorrow, we'll hit all the marinas and see if anyone remembers seeing our guys."
"There must be dozens of marinas," Alice remarked.
I nodded. "No doubt, but I don't know how else to do it."
"Why don't we split up so we can cover more territory. I'll hit the hotel bars while you two go to the marinas," Alice suggested.
I shrugged. "That's fine, but are you sure you want to be on your own?"
"Oh, yeah. I'm a big girl. Besides, I'm very comfortable in hotel bars."
I laughed. "Okay, whatever."
"That's a good idea," Tehra said. "We should split up too. I'll go to the scuba and gift shops and you can check out the deep sea fishing boats."
I folded my arms. "Well, I promise I'll take a bath tomorrow."
They laughed. "It's not that," Tehra said. "But Alice is right, we've got a lot of ground to cover. Someone must have seen Ike or Ralph, so we just have to keep looking until we find them."
When we got to Miami we caught a cab to our hotel and then went across the street to a the Lighthouse Restaurant for seafood. We stuffed ourselves and drank too much wine. At eleven we went back to our rooms. I was just climbing into bed when I heard a knock on the door. It had to be Tehra since nobody knew I was in Miami. I opened the door and she rushed past me.
"Why did you waste money on separate rooms. I'm not going to sleep alone when you're just down the hall."
"Yes you are. The last time we slept together I ended up in the hospital."
"I know. But that won't happen this time."
"Rebekah and Alice are friends. If she saw us together—"
Tehra shook her head. "It's so silly how you Earth people worry about who you sleep with."
"Well, that's just the way it is. I'm sorry."
"I'll go back to my room before she wakes up. I'm just so sick of being alone and you're the only person I can be with and not worry about them finding out my secret."
She was right. It had to be hard on her. I sighed and pointed to the empty double bed. "Help yourself." She looked at it, frowned, and then climbed into my bed. I shook my head, turned out the light, and climbed in beside her. I felt her arms encircle me and the warmth of her body as she cuddled up against my back. I didn't dare turn and face her. There was no kissing this girl. It was way too dangerous.
When I awoke the next morning she was gone. I wondered how she'd left without waking me up. I felt a little groggy. Had she had her way with me again? I struggled to remember but there was nothing there except the memory of her cuddling up behind me. The clock radio said it was 7:20 a.m. We had agreed to meet in the hotel café for breakfast at 8 a.m. Then we were going to hop a city tour bus and see the sights. The bus traveled a route all around the city and you could hop on and off at will. It was a good way to check out the sights and not be rushed.
After showering and getting dressed, I made it to the café just five minutes late. The ladies were already there talking excitedly. I slipped into a chair next to Tehra. She smiled when she saw me. A waiter came over and poured me a cup of coffee. It was a buffet so we all got up and filled our plates and then returned to the table.
"So, did you sleep well, Alice?" I asked.
"Yes, li
ke a log. I was so tired last night," Alice replied.
"That lobster was something else, wasn't it?"
"Oh, God yes and the clams were so tender."
"Tehra, I noticed you really liked the sushi," Alice said. "Ben likes it too, but I've never cared for it."
"Cooking the fish takes out all the flavor," Tehra replied. "I've always preferred my fish raw."
"She's part dolphin," I remarked.
Alice laughed. Tehra gave me a look.
"Just kidding! She swims like a dolphin, though. At least that's what she tells me. I haven't actually seen her do it yet."
Tehra gave me another look. "You're in a good mood today," she said wryly.
"Yes," I replied. "I think it was the best night's sleep I've had in months. It's funny how you can just hit the pillow and wake up eight hours later with no memory of all that precious time."
Tehra stifled a smile. Alice said, "Yes, sleep is such a waste of time. Just think how much more we could accomplish if we had an extra eight hours every day."
"Unfortunately, most people would just spend it on the sofa, pigging out and watching bad TV," I noted.
"True," Alice said. "Fortunately, Ben and I never watched that much TV. We've always been in business for ourselves, so there was never time for it."
"Perhaps I'll show you my aquatic skills in the pool tonight, Stan," Tehra said casually.
I looked up. "Really? I can't wait for that."
Alice gave us a disapproving look. She must have taken it for flirting. I'd have to be more careful. I didn't want Alice calling Rebekah warning her about Tehra. That night after our excursion, Tehra asked me if I really wanted to go to the pool and see her swim. I said, absolutely, but later, when nobody was
Act Normal, A Stan Turner Mystery Vol 9 Page 42
