Portside Peril (Cruise Ship Christian Cozy Mysteries Series Book 2) (11 page)

Millie’s next stop was the lido deck.  Her next assignment was supervising the ice carving competition.  Something she’d never even seen before, let alone supervised.  Sarah had told her it was cool so Millie was excited to watch the artisans in action. 

Millie trailed behind the workers as they wheeled the large carts with blocks of ice out to the pool deck.  Two young chefs followed behind, supervising the workers as they carefully eased the carts across the uneven deck. 

Although the hottest part of the day was over, it was still a scorcher.  As soon as Millie stepped outside, she began to sweat.  Her brow, her neck, her armpits. 

Sweat dripped down the back of Millie’s neck and clung to her shirt.  Whoever came up with an ice-carving contest in the tropical heat, in the middle of the afternoon needed to have their head examined. 

Of course, the passengers didn’t seem to mind the heat.  But they were wearing swimsuits and shorts.  Not long pants and thick cotton button down shirts.

She grabbed a paper napkin on her way to the sculpting area. She almost felt cooler as she envisioned flinging her body on the frozen chunks of ice. 

It was fun to watch the two men compete and Millie was glad she was there to see it. One carved a sculpture of a dolphin breaking through a wave and the other, a mermaid sitting on a rock.

As she wandered back inside, she still couldn’t believe they paid her for this, watching people having fun while having fun herself.

She thought about poor little Maisie and the trauma she’d gone through.  The whole group of friends seemed to be plagued by a black cloud of death and disaster.  What if someone had been trying to kill the Bains and they accidentally took out Kyle and Courtney instead?

She wondered how well Zack knew the Bain family – or the West family.  Determined to find out, Millie headed to the other side of the pool deck.  She could hear Zack’s booming voice over the speakers.  He was interviewing contestants for the Heart and Home series.  It was a show where guests – married couples - competed against other married couples.   Millie had never seen it but heard it was hilarious and a favorite among passengers. 

Zack caught Millie’s eye as he finished an interview.  She stood off to the side and studied him.  He was a nice looking young man.  Kind. Funny.  A good catch.  The girls seemed to like him.  He had dated poor Olivia. The young woman who had died the first day Millie boarded the ship. 

Now there was poor Courtney.  Also dead. Her brow arched.  Two girlfriends.  Both dead.  Millie didn’t want to suspect him but – wow - what an unusual coincidence.

Zack’s voice echoed in her ear. “You got that look, Millie.  I can see the wheels spinning in your head,” he joked.

“They are,” she admitted.  “I was wondering if you knew any of the other passengers – the friends of Courtney and Kyle that are on board the ship.”

He nodded.  “Went to school with Justin Bain and Adam and Melissa West.  Of course, Kyle was closer to them than I was.  Kind of hard to keep up the friendships when you live on a cruise ship.”

He had a point, which would eliminate him from suspicion on the fire that Kim Bain had told Millie burned their house to the ground.  “Sad story about the little girl not talking.  She’s a cutie.”

Millie had to agree.  Maisie was adorable - and lucky to be alive, apparently.  “What’s your take on Kyle and Courtney’s death?”

Zack’s eyes watered.  The thought of Courtney still hurt.  Not that he loved her anymore.  Still, he certainly didn’t want to see her dead.  “I can’t imagine Courtney killing Kyle.  Of course…” He trailed off.

“What?” Millie prompted.

“Well, Chloe confessed to me that Courtney and Kyle were having problems.  That Courtney had just found out that Kyle was cheating on her,” he blurted out. 

Millie’s brows formed a “V.” Well, that made an interesting turn of events.  “Do you know who it was?”

Zack shook his head.  “I can only guess that was one of the things Courtney wanted to talk to me about.  She was looking for advice.  ‘Course, we never got a chance after Kyle went overboard.”

Millie studied Zack’s expression.  “Courtney told me someone had sent her a threatening note,” she said. “Do you think there’s a chance she didn’t commit suicide and that someone killed her instead?”

He shrugged. “What about Chloe? Chloe was in love with Kyle. I think I mentioned that before.”

Millie nodded.  She remembered Zack telling her about the tattoo that Chloe had on her arm – the one with Kyle’s name on it.

“Can you think of anything else? Any other clue that might be useful?” Millie had yet to talk to Adam and Melissa West, and now that the “powers to be” had told her to keep her nose out of an investigation that was, for all intents and purposes, over. 

Zack shook his head.  “Nope.  If I do, you’ll be the first to know,” he promised.

Cat was her next stop.  Cat would have to do a little sleuthing for Millie.  Millie’s heart sank when she saw all the passengers packed inside the gift shop. A sea day seemed to keep the shops and casino buzzing with customers and gamblers. 

Millie waited until it cleared out before she headed to the back.  Cat pushed back a piece of her beehive hairdo that had dropped down across her face. She tucked it behind her ear.  “How’s Scout?”

“Good.  I took him back to the captain.”

Cat’s face fell.  Millie hadn’t realized how much Cat liked the pint-sized fellow.  “I’ll bring him back tomorrow,” she promised.

Then she remembered it was private island day and she’d be on shore the entire day.  “Oh. I can’t tomorrow but the day after for sure.”

Millie leaned an elbow on the glass top.  “I need some help.” She explained how she was supposed to stop snooping around Courtney and Kyle’s death.  She told Cat about the young couple and the fire. 

Cat rolled her eyes. “You mean there are even
more
of them?”

“Don’t worry about them.  What I’m interested in is Melissa and Adam West.  Their cabin was right next door to Courtney and Kyles and the cabins had a connecting door.  Perfect access for someone to slip inside Courtney’s cabin unseen.”  She lowered her voice.  “Plus, Chloe, Courtney’s sister, seems to think somehow Melissa West may be involved.”

Cat’s coiffed “do” bobbed up and down. She tapped a bright red nail on the counter. “I’m on it.  What would you like to find out - other than where they were the night Courtney Earhart committed suicide?”

Millie waited for a customer to pay for their purchase before she answered.  “If you can, find out who had access to their cabin, if they heard any strange noises coming from the cabin next door and if they think Courtney was capable of murder or suicide. You know…her general state of mind.”

Cat frowned.  “And make all of that sound like every day conversation.”

A customer walked up, her shopping basket full of trinkets.
More like cheap junk made in China,
Millie decided. She smiled.  The kids that were with the young woman looked excited with the treasures, which was all that really mattered.

Cat winked at Millie. “Will do.”

Andy had given Millie a new assignment that day: head down to guest services and chat with the supervisor on duty.  Find out if there were any grumblings or griping about the activities.  Millie hoped not.  She couldn’t imagine guests not being happy with the variety of stuff going on every single moment of every day. 

Guest services was a short walk and two floors down.  Nikki, Sarah’s friend, was behind the counter.  She smiled when she saw Millie.  “Hi Millie.  I haven’t seen you around much.” Nikki leaned in.  “Heard you’re working the man overboard and suicide case.”

Millie’s smile faded.  “I’ve been told to drop the investigation.”

Nikki nodded.  “So what brings you to my neck of the woods?”

“Andy asked me to check in.  See if there are any customer complaints about activities and such.”

Nikki shook her head.  “Really. The opposite.  Several have come up to mention that there’s an adorable little dog on board.  He’s been seen on deck, at one of the dance classes - even up near the mini golf course.”

Millie’s face reddened. 

Nikki burst out laughing.  She lowered her voice.  “I heard he was watering the green.”

The look on Millie’s face told her that was
exactly
what Scout had done.  “Desperate times call for desperate measures.”

“Well. No one complained,” Nikki assured her.  “Can you bring him by next time?  I’d love to meet him.”

Millie promised she would before she left. 

She pulled her schedule from her pocket.  There was one more activity on her schedule before she had a couple hours off.  Millie slipped her glasses on and studied the paper. Ship-wide scavenger hunt.  She folded the paper and shoved it in her pants pocket.  This was something that would be right up her alley!

Millie bounded up the steps on her way back to the lido deck.  A crowd – larger than the one that normally showed up for trivia – was standing off to the side.  She grabbed the microphone from a table nearby and switched it on. “Who’s ready for a scavenger hunt?”  Several whoops echoed from the enthusiastic band of sunburned passengers. 

She pulled the now-familiar manila folder from behind the bar and studied the instructions.  It certainly sounded easy enough.  Hand the passengers a list of clues while she held onto the answers.  Then wait for the first team – or person – to return with all the items. 

Millie had a slight dilemma. She wasn’t sure if she should have teams or an individual competition. She decided to let the participants pick.  In an overwhelming decision, the passengers paired off in groups of four. 

“Ready! Set! Open your list!” The groups studied their first clue and darted off toward the stairs.  All of them took off except for one group.  The group that was standing next to her, decided to start from the
bottom
of the list and work their way to the top.  It was a smart move, guaranteeing they wouldn’t collide with the other teams, all racing for the same thing. 

She had a hunch she knew which team would take the gold, or in this case, the palm trees on a stick!

Millie studied the list and mentally checked off which ones she knew and which ones she didn’t.  It wasn’t the piece of cake she assumed.  She grinned.  These folks were gonna get a little exercise on this scavenger hunt!

She wondered how Cat was doing and what she’d found out, if anything.  Millie was bummed that she wasn’t the one to talk to Adam and Melissa West!

Cat watched the last shopper leave the store.  It was time for her dinner break.  Every day at 5:00 p.m. sharp, she locked the store and headed to the crew dining room.  At 6:00, she would open back up and then stand around with nothing to do.  Most of the passengers were either eating dinner or in the theater watching the show.  

The store, like most stores on cruise ships, was in a well-thought-out location.  It was on a direct path to one of the most popular areas of the ship: the theater and the casino.

Cat dimmed the lights and turned to lock the door.  Out of the corner of her eye, she spied Adam and Melissa West across the hall.  They were heading into the casino.  Stumbling would be a more accurate description.  Adam had a beer in his hand. Melissa was holding and spilling her martini. 

Cat finished locking the door and edged her way into the casino, careful to make sure she was not in the West’s line of vision. 

She needn’t have worried.  They were sitting side by side at two slot machines; their backs were to Cat. 

Cat glanced in both directions, then circled around the bank of machines until she was on the other side.  She peered through the machines to make sure she was in the right spot. 

Purser Donovan passed by.  He gave her an odd stare, shook his head and walked on.
Great
, Cat thought.  Just what she needed.  Donovan spreading rumors she was a gambler! 

Melissa was talking.  Cat leaned in, her ear as close to the other side as she could get without actually wedging her skull in the narrow opening.  She patted her up-do.  That would definitely mess up her hair!

“Chloe said we’re suspects,” Melissa told her husband in a hushed voice - at least the woman thought it was hushed.  Actually, it was quite loud, which was a good thing.  The dinging of the machines made it difficult for Cat to hear her words.

“No Melissa.  That’s not true.  Detective Patterson told Zack that the case was closed and they considered it murder and suicide by Courtney.”

Cat’s brows deepened into a “V.”  What on earth was Zack doing talking to the Wests?  It wasn’t his place to be discussing the case.  She made a mental note to mention it to Millie.

“Well, I never thought it was Courtney,” Melissa told her husband.  “I think it was Kim.  You know how she had that huge crush on Kyle and how mad she was when he told her to leave him alone.”

Melissa went on.  “I also think Kim set their house on fire, trying to get rid of her husband and daughter.  Why, I’d bet money she has a life insurance policy on him and Maisie.”

Adam laughed nervously.  “C’mon, Melissa.  What person in their right mind would want to kill their own child?”

“That’s what I mean, Adam. Kim isn’t in her right mind.”

Adam mumbled something else. Something Cat couldn’t hear. She stayed a few more minutes but they had changed the subject and were now discussing Adam’s bad grooming habits, which Cat did not want to hear.  She popped out of the seat. 

On impulse, she pulled a dollar from her pocket and stuck it in the slot.  The machine looked lucky.  Maybe it had something to do with the image of the woman on the front.  Cat admired her slinky black outfit and awesome hairdo. 
Elmira, Maiden of the Dark
.  Anyways, she liked the looks of the machine.

She pressed the button to play one quarter.  Nothing.  She pressed the button again.  Still nothing.  There was a fifty-cent credit left in the machine. Cat pressed max and hit play. The lights on top of the machine started to blink and the machine began to make a dull beeping sound.

Dario, the casino’s bartender, stepped over.  “Cat!  You won $500!” he told her.

Cat put her finger to her lips to shush him but it was too late.  Adam and Melissa West popped around the corner.  Melissa’s eyes widened when she saw who it was.  “Cat!  I didn’t know you were allowed to play in here.”

Actually, Cat wasn’t 100% sure she
could
play.  Of course, no one ever told her that she couldn’t.

She shrugged.  “Beginners luck.  The machine was calling my name.”

She pressed the cash out button, grabbed the ticket and headed to the cashier.  This sleuthing thing was starting to pay off!

Millie just happened to pass by the casino as Cat was at the counter cashing in her ticket. “Cat! I didn’t know you liked to gamble.”

Cat shoved the five $100 bills in her front pocket, grabbed Millie’s arm and led her over to a small alcove off to one side.  Cat sat down and patted the seat next to her.  “Here.  Sit.”

Millie leaned in.  The look on Cat’s face meant she had something juicy. After she told Millie what she had overheard, she told her how the machine had looked lucky.  Millie knew the exact machine she was talking about and the woman on the front – Elmira – looked a lot like Cat!

“So let me get this straight.  Let’s start with Zack. Zack dated Courtney.”

Cat: “Check.”

Millie held up a second finger: “Kyle Zondervan was engaged to Courtney but had previously dated Courtney’s sister, Chloe, who was so in love with Kyle she had his name tattooed on her arm.”

Cat: “Yep!”

Millie: “Now, on top of all that Kim Bain – Maisie’s mother – was after Kyle.”

Cat: “Bingo. Sounds like he was a real stud,” Cat added.

Millie gave her a dark look.

Cat shrugged.  “It’s true.”

“The only woman apparently
not
in love with Kyle was Melissa West.”

Cat interrupted. “Or was she? I mean, maybe he rebuffed her advances.  After all, their room was connected to Kyle and Courtney’s.”

“True.” Cat had a good point.  “But what about the husbands?  If they found out their wives were hot for Kyle, wouldn’t that be reason to want to get rid of him?”

Millie went on.  “How does Courtney fit into all of this?” There were too many suspects!  This guy had more reasons to have men hate him than Don Juan! 

Earlier, Millie had seen a picture of Kyle and Courtney when she wandered up to the photo gallery to study the other couples.  They all looked happy. None of them struck Millie as killer material.  Kyle didn’t look like he would have women swooning.  Of course, Millie wasn’t the best judge of that. 

Cat glanced at her watch.  “I need to go grab a bite to eat before it’s too late.”

The girls parted ways in the I-95 corridor with Millie heading to her room and Cat to the crew mess hall.

Millie stuck her key card in the slot and pushed the door open. There was a note on the floor.  Millie had a moment of déjà vu. It reminded her of the time someone had slipped a threatening note under the door when she was investigating the Olivia LaShay murder. 

Millie unfolded the note and slipped her reading glasses on.  It was from Annette:

“Meet me in the kitchen.  Stat!  I have a plan.”

Millie couldn’t wait to find out what that might be.  She made a pit stop in the bathroom before heading to the kitchen. 

Annette was facing the revolving door when Millie popped in. She stopped what she was doing and met her on the other side of the gleaming stainless steel counters.  “I talked to Cat.  My theory is it was the couple next to Courtney’s room.  They had access and motive.”

Millie cut her off.  “What motive?”

Annette stuck her hand on her hip.  “Why, that woman was messing around with Kyle.”

“How do you know that?”

“Every good detective has hunches,” Annette huffed.

Millie stiffened her back.  The girls were hijacking
her
investigation!  It wouldn’t be long before Cat and Annette cut her out of the action!

Annette could see that from the look on Millie’s face she was upset.  “No, I mean.  You’ve taught me so much already, I feel like a pro,” she soothed.

Millie softened her stance.  True.  She was a good teacher.

“Anyways,” Annette went on.  “I baked a batch of special brownies.” She winked. “You know – the ones that make you a little loopy.  Loose lips sink ships and all that.”

Millie frowned. “Great idea but how do we execute the plan?”

“How do they get to the room?” Annette tapped the side of her forehead.  “Thinkin’ girl.  Always gotta be thinkin’.”

“Anyhoo, I’m having Amit deliver a batch to their cabin, a special delivery, compliments of the captain.”

“What if it backfires and they call the captain to thank him for the brownies?”

Annette frowned.  “I never thought about that.” She quickly dismissed it as a minor roadblock.

“Check this out.” Annette stepped over to the counter and grabbed a plate.  The plate was one that the kitchen used for room service. She flipped the plate over.  There, in the center, on the bottom was a small black square.  “It’s a microphone.”

Annette looked around before she reached over the back of the counter and grabbed a set of headphones.  “We get the brownies into the room.  After they eat some, they start blabbing. We have our killers’ confessions.”

She paused dramatically.  “Voila! Case solved.”

Millie took the headphones from Annette.  “Where in heavens name did you get such a thing?”

The muscle in Annette’s jaw twitched.  “Let’s just say, these came in useful in my previous life.” 

The look on her face made Millie hold back from asking the million questions that were now bouncing around in her brain.  “Cool.  But how do we – you know – listen in.”

The twinkle was back in Annette’s eyes.  “That’s the beauty of it.  We sneak into Courtney and Kyle’s cabin.  We’ll get great reception in there since it’s right next door!”

Millie frowned at her friend.  “That sounds a lot like breaking and entering.” Although, technically, the room did belong to the cruise line, and they were employees. On top of that, Millie had done the exact same thing when she let Chloe snoop around inside.

Still, no matter how Millie tried to spin it, she was certain they could get in trouble.  Not to mention the fact that Andy had already warned her to back off.

But if she told Annette she was out, then Annette and Cat would get to have all the fun. Millie crossed her arms defiantly.  It wasn’t fair!  She nodded her head firmly.  “Let me know when you’re ready to go!”

Annette smiled brightly.  “Good!  I knew I could count on you.” She looked around, then slid the headset into the cabinet and pushed it all the way to the back.  “Amit will deliver the goods at 1950 hours.”

“Which is?”

“7:50.”

That would give Millie enough time to make her rounds, check in with Andy and assure him she’d be back to help with the Heart and Homes show that started at 9:30.  She hoped this wouldn’t be a complete waste of time. 

She didn’t relish the thought of putting her job on the line based on Annette’s “hunch.”  Maybe she could take Scout with her.  She quickly dismissed the idea.  What if he barked and blew their cover?  On second thought, she decided she better leave him behind. 

Maybe on their next investigation she could bring him along.  Surely, a dog could be useful in the crime-solving business.