Undercover Mission

by Sharon Dunn

  As she shared the details of the case, the tension between them seemed to dissolve. He felt more comfortable when they kept their conversation work focused. And he did enjoy helping her as much as he liked it when she and Sarge assisted him.

  However, as they made their way through the corridors and up to the next deck, he realized that her expressing her feelings in the text and the awareness that the same feelings were growing in him made him very uneasy.

  TEN

  Maya sat in the security office looking at all the employee records as well as copies of their IDs in the computer database. There was no way she would have the time to isolate the green-eyed crew members without sorting software. They had to find a way to narrow down the suspects even more. The attacks and the murder had taken place in different parts of the ship. Which meant they were dealing with someone who not only knew the layout of the ship but also could pinpoint the most isolated areas to find a woman alone, and at what time.

  The question that rose to the surface for her was that if they were looking at someone who had been with the cruise line long term, there must be an inciting incident that triggered him to start trying to kill women and to have succeeded once.

  Sarge relaxed at her feet while David sat in the chair next to her looking on a separate screen at surveillance videos from the store that was experiencing employee theft. The handsome security chief looked bored to death as he rested his chin in his palm and watched the screen. She noticed a little scar by his eyebrow and wondered what the story was behind it. A childhood accident or was it from the injury that had stolen his army career from him?

  Though they seemed to stumble from one awkward moment to the next, she still found herself wanting to know more about him. Sharing with him about the wedding party investigation had eased the angst she felt at not being on land working the case with the rest of the K-9 team. She scooted her chair and leaned sideways so she had a view of David’s screen. Not much happening; a customer moved around the store and the clerk remained behind the counter. “Like watching paint dry, huh?”

  He clicked the pause button. “Not quite as exciting. How about you?”

  “I’m wondering if you can pull up the crime reports from shortly before the murder took place. That would have been right before the cruise left Seattle or maybe a few days before. I don’t know where the file is, and I assume it’s password protected.”

  David pointed at her computer. “I can pull it up for you.”

  She scooted over to give him access to her computer. His fingers clicked on the keyboard. “Here, this is three days prior to the murder.”

  They both leaned forward to see the screen better, their heads nearly touching. He scrolled through the number of reported incidents, which averaged only about five per day. Mostly petty theft, minor injury and public intoxication, nothing overly violent. No report of a fight between a man and woman or between two men brawling over a woman, which was what she would be looking for. A man who had just been dumped or betrayed might seek revenge on another women if he was psychologically unbalanced. Some of the things the attacker had said to her made her believe that was true.

  She shook her head. “No red flags there.” She and David were huddled so close together that when she turned her head toward him, she could smell the soapy cleanness of his skin. The proximity caused heart flutters for her.

  “I hate to say it. But I think we are going down a rabbit trail that won’t open up any leads for us.” David scooted away a few inches and turned his attention back to the screen where he had paused the surveillance footage of the store.

  He was right. Her jaw clenched in frustration.

  “I’ve had to look at surveillance footage for my job too. Maybe I could help you,” she offered.

  “Sure, a second set of eyes might help. We think the thefts are occurring during store hours, not when the store is closed. A quick skim through of the after-hours surveillance didn’t show any movement.”

  He restarted the footage he’d been viewing and then reached over and handed her a disk. “This is for a different day. You can watch it on your computer.”

  After a few hours of watching footage that revealed nothing, Maya thought she might fall asleep. “Why don’t we take Sarge to do his business and grab a coffee or I’m going to need a nap.”

  David chuckled. “Ah, the glamorous world of on-board security.”

  “I get it. Not all police work is exciting.” She found herself enjoying his company even when they were doing the most tedious thing in the world.

  David locked up the security office and they headed out to the play area for Sarge after getting coffee. They sipped their coffee and watched Sarge and one other dog play. The ship was alive and bustling with midday activity. Passengers heading toward recreational areas of the ship, or eating or shopping or visiting in the botanical gardens.

  She smiled as a group of giggling preteen girls ran by. “It’s like a little floating city.”

  “You could say that.” He took a sip of his coffee. “Why don’t we head back to the internet café so you can make that call. Looks like work is going to be quiet for now anyway.”

  David mentioning the call she wanted to make to Eli reminded her that sooner or later, she was going to have to check in with Lorenza and let her know what progress they had made in the shipboard case.

  She took a sip of her coffee. “Might as well. You can listen in on the call since you have a gist of the investigation.”

  “I’d like that, Maya.”

  The way he said her name warmed her to the bone. Mentally, she kicked herself. Though she could not control her involuntary responses to having him close, she knew she had to let go of the idea that there could be anything between them.

  “I know your job makes it hard to have a relationship, but you could date someone else who worked on the ship.” She had to know why he was so opposed to anything romantic before she gave up completely on him.

  “It’s just that. I have a rotten track record with women. I do all right until things get serious.” He sighed. “Sometimes you can’t escape the things you learned from childhood even if God is a part of your life. My father was not a good guy. I’m afraid I might end up being just like him. I haven’t treated women the way he treated my mom, but like I said, I always back out when it gets serious because of that fear.” David’s voice was raw with emotion.

  She wasn’t sure what to say.

  He broke the silence. “Let’s go make that call.” He’d purged his voice of all the intensity from the moment before speaking in a monotone.

  Whatever vulnerability he’d shown was gone, and he didn’t seem to understand how his coldness affected her.

  Maya knew she had to let her budding feelings of attraction go. David had made up his mind about what his life was going to look like, and it didn’t include a relationship with her or anyone for that matter. She felt a deep sadness for him.

  She glanced at Sarge and then drew her attention upward.

  They were standing in the same place where the giant pot had been pushed off in order to kill her. She shuddered at the memory. Except for the near miss at the internet café, the assailant hadn’t come after her since the poisoning.

  David stepped a little closer and followed the line of her gaze. “He’s not likely to do the same thing twice.”

  “I know,” she said.

  “My biggest worry is that if he’s not coming after you, he might be spending his time stalking another woman preparing to attack her.”

  Fear twisted inside her. David was probably right. There was more at stake than just her own safety. They had to catch this guy before they got into port.

  * * *

  David and Maya made their way up to the internet café. This time they weren’t the only ones in the café. A middle-aged woman wearing a swimming suit cover-up and sandals sat making
a video call. David showed his ID so Maya wouldn’t have to pay for the time wishing he had thought to do that the first time they’d been down here. One of the perks of working on the ship. Maya had already settled in front of a laptop.

  David scooted in beside her. There was something about helping the pretty law enforcement officer stay engaged with her team’s investigation that eased the frustration he felt about their search for the killer on the ship. These cases were far removed from the immediate danger that she and any other attractive woman on board faced.

  Maya typed in the code that would allow her to make a ship to shore video call. She was sitting close enough to him that he could detect the floral scent of her perfume. If he was honest with himself, part of what was so appealing about helping her out was getting to be close to her. But he knew from experience that it took more than physical attraction to make a relationship work. David sighed, resolving just to enjoy this time with her and not open the door to there being anything more.

  A man with a thin face and round black glasses popped up on the screen. “Hey, Maya. Good to see you.”

  It looked like the man was in some sort of cluttered office. There was a stack of books, file cabinets and computers in the background.

  “Eli, how is it going?”

  “It goes like it does. Always good to see your smiling face.”

  Maya tilted her head toward David. “Eli, this is security chief David Garrison. He’s helping me out with the shipboard investigation. I’ve invited him to listen in on the progress with our cases on land. I value his input and experience.”

  The compliment elevated David’s mood. His job could be pretty thankless and petty sometimes. He was glad Maya acknowledged his expertise.

  Eli smoothed his hand over a mop of curly brown hair. “Nice to meet you, David.” He turned slightly. “So let me guess, you’re calling about progress with the wedding party murders?”

  “Just thought I would check in with the source. Lorenza said that you might have a lead on our missing bride. Someone called in to the tip line about seeing her. You were going to look at some surveillance footage?”

  “Yes, we think it is Violet James but in disguise—sunglasses and hiking hat low on her face. I had to watch the footage several times. She has some distinctive mannerisms and at one point for just a second, she looks at the camera, which means she doesn’t realize it’s there. She popped up again in the same area yesterday. We’re not sure why she keeps going to that area of Anchorage. This is the second time we had a direct feed from that camera when she showed up. K-9 Officers Sean West and Gabriel Runyon were dispatched, but they were too late.”

  “I wish she’d turn herself in. Being in disguise suggests a level of guilt or wanting to hide, but why is she taking the risk and coming into town like that?”

  Eli shrugged. “Who knows. To see someone she cares about? But she has no known relatives in Anchorage.”

  “If she’d just turn herself in, we could let her know that the groom and best man are under suspicion and missing now.”

  The tech guru nodded. “Exactly. It is hard to piece this together based on the way the people involved are acting. Maybe the groom, best man and bride were all involved in the murder of that guide and in pushing the bridesmaid off the cliff.”

  “The only one for sure we know is not involved is Ariel, and she insists Violet is innocent,” Maya said. “But we can’t believe her just because she’s engaged to one of the K-9 officers until the evidence supports that.”

  David leaned closer to the screen. “So is there any more news about tracking down the groom and best man?”

  “We’re watching their bank accounts and credit cards. Nothing so far,” Eli replied.

  “Text me if there are any changes, will you?” Maya said. “I want to hit the ground running with these cases once the one on the ship gets wrapped up.”

  “Sure thing.” It looked like Eli was eating a snack or late lunch. He’d taken an apple out of a nearby container as well as what looked like slices of cheese.

  “Eli, can I ask? How is your godmother?” She glanced at David and then looked back at the screen. “Only share if you feel comfortable.”

  David wasn’t sure what Maya was asking about, but judging from the change in Eli’s expression, the shadow that seemed to fall over his features, it was something pretty serious.

  “Bettina is hanging in there through the chemo treatments, but we haven’t been able to locate her son Cole and his family.”

  “Eli, I’m so sorry. I’m sure that weighs heavily on you knowing that the Seaver family is hiding out somewhere in the wilderness and your godmother may not have much more time.”

  “We’ll just keep trying. What else can we do?” Eli turned sideways to glance at a stack of papers. “Look, I better get going. Work is piling up. I’ll text you if there are any new developments.”

  “You got it,” Maya said. “Stay in touch.”

  She clicked out of the video feed then sat back in the chair and let out a heavy breath.

  “That sounds like some pretty heavy stuff Eli has been dealing with on a personal level.”

  “For sure. His godmother’s only wish is to be reunited with her son and his wife and her grandson. They’re survivalists. We think they might be hiding out in Chugach State Park. But people who choose to live off the grid like that don’t want to be found and that park is so big it really is like looking for a needle in a haystack.”

  The waver in Maya’s voice indicated how emotionally connected she was to Eli and what he was going through. Really the way she talked about the whole K-9 team sounded like they had each other’s backs, not just professionally but personally too.

  The last time he’d felt deeply connected to other people and part of something bigger than himself was when he’d been in the army. With the exception of a few people on the ship, he wasn’t overly social. He respected the other security officers, but didn’t feel close to them.

  When he saw how Maya lit up when she talked to one of her coworkers, he realized something was missing in his life.

  “It’s past lunchtime. Do you think you could eat something?” he asked.

  “My stomach is growling. Maybe something bland like chicken soup and crackers.”

  “I know the perfect restaurant to get that,” David told her. “And the perfect place to eat it so we don’t have to worry about an attack.”

  “Lead the way.”

  He took her up a deck to a restaurant called Almost Mom’s. Maya stared at the board posted behind the counter. While the service person waited for her to choose something to eat, David stood close to her. “Everything here is made from scratch and the chicken soup is their specialty. We can get it to go.”

  They ordered the food. It was late afternoon, and most of the lunch rush had subsided. Only two people, a couple, sat at a table and no one but the two of them were waiting for takeout.

  Once they had their lunch in a take-out bag, she turned toward him. “So where are we going?”

  “You know that round ball on a crane-looking structure at the back of the ship?”

  “Yes,” she murmured.

  “It’s called the North Star and one of the perks of working on the ship is that I can go up in it anytime as long as they’re not busy. It will give you a whole different view of the ship and the scenery.”

  “Sounds fun!”

  He phoned ahead to the operator to make sure he would be there to lift them up. By the time they got to the deck where the North Star was, the sky had darkened in the distance indicating rain might be on the way.

  The deck was deserted except for the North Star operator. David addressed the man. “Hey, Glen, this is Maya. I’d like to take her and her service dog up.”

  Glen glanced at the sky. “If the lightning gets too close, I’ll have to bring you down. Should be
nice viewing of the storm. Right now, it’s pretty far away.”

  Glen walked over to his operating panel. The North Star was a pod-like structure with windows that went around the entire ball. The door slid open. David and Maya settled into the seats and he set the bag of food on the floor. “We can eat when we’re elevated.”

  The pod door slid closed. There was a mechanical humming as the crane arm lifted them up.

  Maya stared through the window while Sarge sat at her feet. “Wow.”

  Being able to share this experience with her made his own heart soar. The crane stopped. Their view was of the thunderstorm moving toward them from a forest across the water in the distance.

  David reached down and pulled her soup and his sandwich out of the take-out bag. He handed the soup to her along with her crackers and a plastic spoon. They ate and watched as a sheet of gray indicating where the storm was moved across the landscape. The lightning and thunder were far enough away that it was not a danger to them.

  Maya took several spoonsful of soup and then looked out through the window. “God is doing some beautiful work today, isn’t He?”

  “I do feel closer to God when I go up here. Such an exquisite world He’s given us.” A light rain sprayed against the window. He took a bite of his chicken sandwich. “How’s your soup?”

  “Really good. It reminds me of the soup my grandma used to make. Mom and I could never get it right. It needed a touch of Grandma’s love.”

  “Has your grandma passed away?” he asked.

  “No, it’s just that she is still back in Puerto Rico. If I can swing it, I go back to visit her once a year.”

  “Why doesn’t she move here?”

  “The move and the cold weather would be really hard on her.” She set her empty soup container down.

  “That is neat that you have a close relationship.”

  She turned to look at him. “There isn’t anyone in your family you’re close to?”