Portside Peril (Cruise Ship Christian Cozy Mysteries Series Book 2) (9 page)

Millie was late.  She had five minutes to make it up to the bridge and pick up Scout.  She didn’t want the captain to think she was irresponsible and shirking her doggie duties.  Fortunately, Millie was getting fast at navigating the ship.  She was in front of the door to the bridge in four minutes flat with a whole minute to spare.

Captain Armati was off in the corner, talking to Staff Captain Vitale.  The two men nodded as Millie made her way across the bridge.  Captain Armati met her in the hallway, near the entrance to his private quarters.

He smiled at Millie.  “Ready for another day with Scout?”  He didn’t wait for a reply as he punched in the code that unlocked the door. 

Millie caught a whiff of cologne.  The smell lingered in the air as she followed behind him.  It smelled nice, and expensive, she decided.  Her eyes wandered to the back of his gray head.  A man in uniform.  Captain Armati was an attractive man.  She wondered if he was married.

Millie gave a mental shake.  What was wrong with her?  First, she was getting butterflies in Dave Patterson’s office and now she was admiring the back of Captain Armati’s head, trying to figure out if he was married! 

Was she finally, after all this time, coming back to life again?
  Millie figured that was all done and over with.  That she would never be interested in men again.  That she could wrap herself up in so many other projects there wouldn’t be room for someone else.

“…and Scout was sound asleep.” Captain Armati was talking.  Millie wasn’t listening.  She was still having that internal conversation about joining the living again and showing an interest in the opposite sex.

Millie’s mind had wandered and she missed what the captain had said.  She blurted out the first thing that popped into her head.  “Scout sleeps in your bed?”  She had never let Daisy do that.  Of course, that was Roger’s decision.  Millie might have, but Roger had always been adamant there would be no dogs in the bedroom.

She followed Captain Armati into the living room.  Scout was a bowl of wiggles and jiggles when he spotted Millie.  He pranced in a circle, which made Millie dizzy just watching him.

The captain picked Scout up and held him close before handing him over to Millie.  “No. I am afraid I would roll over and crush him in my sleep,” he admitted.

Which would be Millie’s fear, too.  Scout was so small, yet he was wiry.  He was definitely a bundle of energy as he pawed at her cheek, licked her chin and tried to climb up her neck all at once. 

Armati crossed his arms and watched the happy reunion.  “How is the investigation going?”

Millie peeled her gaze from the dog and glanced at the captain.  Of course, he would know all about it.  He had probably already talked to Dave Patterson and knew that Millie had been in Courtney’s room the night of her death.  “The list of suspects is growing.”

“Hmm.”  He picked up Scout’s bag and held the door for Millie to follow him out.  “We never had – uh – a death on board until the day you arrived and now we’ve had three right in a short amount of time.”

Millie had to admit it did seem kind of like too much of a coincidence.  First Olivia LaShay and now the young couple.  She shot him a glance.  Hopefully he didn’t think
she
had anything to do with the murders. 

Of course, she had been in the vicinity of all three incidents or had been the last person to see them alive, which would cause anyone concern.  “I-uh.  Yeah, it does seem like more than a coincidence.” Millie shifted Scout and reached for his bag.

One of the employees was heading their way.  Captain Armati patted Scout’s head.  “Behave yourself,” he told the pooch. 

Millie and Scout stepped into the hall.  It was time to head down to the theater for the square dance class!  Alison and Tara were already on stage, stomping around in their cowboy boots when Millie and Scout arrived.

Scout peeked his head out of the half window to catch a glimpse of the commotion.  When he saw all the activity, he began to head butt the front of his carrier.  Millie slipped her hand between his head and the carrier.  “Scout!  You’re going to hurt yourself,” she scolded him.

Alison stopped stomping.  She strode over to Millie.  “I heard a strange rumor about a pint size pup.”

Alison twirled over in her western skirt.  The skirt was cute.  The material consisted of alternating strips of denim blue jean and red bandana. She dropped to her knees and put her hand inside to pet Scout.  “Oh my gosh!  He’s adorable!” she gushed.

Her eyes sparkled as she looked up at Millie.  “Can we take him out?”  Millie didn’t have the heart to say no.  Plus, she wasn’t sure who was more excited: Scout or Alison!  She nodded.

Alison carefully unzipped the carrier and scooched back.  She patted the stage floor.  “C’mon out,” she coaxed.

Scout hung back for a second, which surprised Millie.  The dog was not shy!  At least not around Millie.  Finally, she was able to persuade Scout to leave his carrier. He wandered over to Alison and began to wag his tail, which shook his whole body. 

Tara dropped down beside Alison.  “This has to be the cutest Yorkie I’ve ever seen.”

“Miniature Yorkie,” Millie told them.  “He belongs to Captain Armati.”

Alison lifted her head and raised an eyebrow.  “This is Captain Armati’s dog?  But how…” her voice trailed off. 

“Ohhhh.” Tara slowly nodded. “Captain Armati
likes
Millie,” she teased.

Millie’s face turned bright red.  About the shade of the red in the bandanas on the girls’ skirts.  “My, my.  I’ve never known him to take a liking to any of the staff.” Alison waved her hands.  “Millie’s cast a spell over Captain.”

“No!” Millie protested, “He just asked me to entertain his dog.” It sounded lame.  Even to Millie.  Captain could have asked a hundred other people to do the exact same thing.  People he knew better than Millie.

Tara picked Scout up and nuzzled him.  “I heard Captain’s wife died a few years back. His daughter has been hounding him to retire.”

If Millie’s face was red before, it was fire engine red now.  Captain Armati was single.  Just like Millie.  Maybe he felt some sort of bond because they had both lost a spouse, in a roundabout way.

“Yeah. Not that some of the other women on board haven’t tried to get Captain’s attention.  He never seemed interested.” Alison’s sharp blue eyes honed in on Millie again, which made Millie squirm.

Alison had heard bits and pieces of Millie’s past.   That her husband had left her unexpectedly and she applied for the job on a whim, not really expecting the company to hire her.  Andy had told her that much. 

She seemed like a nice enough woman.  A bit on the grandmotherly side but it was a refreshing change from the competitiveness of some of the younger staff.  Plus, adventure and mystery seemed to follow her around.  Maybe the captain was attracted to that.  Millie seemed - what was the word? Spunky!

She could see she was making Millie uncomfortable so she quickly changed the subject.  “We have a skirt in the back I think you could fit into.” She eyed Millie critically, which made Millie blush for the third time in a row.  “You’ve got a little curve to you but that’s a good thing.”

Millie followed Alison to the back while Tara kept an eye on Scout.  Actually, Scout was on the floor now and the two of them were chasing each other around, darting back and forth across the stage.

When Millie and Alison returned, Scout was back in his carrier and he didn’t look the least bit pleased.  But guests were starting to wander in and it was safer for Scout inside his carrier. 

Even in his carrier, Scout managed to get a lot of attention as the passengers stopped by to pat his head and say hello.  Scout was eating it up. 

The square dance class was even more popular than the line dancing the day before, much to Millie’s surprise. Millie knew most of the moves and before she knew it, she was stomping and twirling away.  Millie was so caught up in the action; she didn’t notice Captain Armati as he approached the stage.

When Millie caught his eye, she tripped on the tip of her boot and almost ended up in a heap on stage.  The music finally ended.  The captain was off to the side, talking to Scout.  Millie tromped over to the two of them. 

Captain Armati shifted his gaze from Scout to Millie. “I see Scout’s having fun.”

Millie nodded. “I didn’t think he should be out for the dancing part but, yes, he’s having a ball.  He’s like a little celebrity. All two and a half pounds of him!”

Captain Armati smiled for the second time, right at Millie. She nearly melted right then and there.  Well, she didn’t melt but her face turned a pale shade of pink. 

“I thought I’d stop by to see how you two were doing.” He patted Scout’s head one more time and then glanced down at his watch. “I better go. I’m meeting with Detective Patterson to go over some things.”

His smile disappeared and he gave Millie a look that she was beginning to understand.  A look that said, please try to stay out of trouble or something like that.

Captain Armati strode down the center aisle and exited the theater.  “Wouldja’ look at that,” Alison whispered.  She lightly punched Millie’s shoulder.  “I think he likes you. I mean
likes
you.”

“That’s just crazy,” Millie argued. “He doesn’t even know me.”

“Ever heard of love at first sight?” Tara asked.  She tapped her cowboy boot on the wooden floor.  She began to sing an off-key rendition of “Love is in the air.”

Millie put her hands to her cheeks and rolled her eyes.  “Stop!  You’re embarrassing me!”

The guests still on stage had clustered off to one side.  They were looking at Millie and she could only assume she was the topic of conversation.  Millie wanted desperately to avoid that kind of attention! 

Alison stepped to the center of the stage.  “Back to work, folks.  The show’s over!”

The rest of the hour-long lesson flew by.  Millie’s heart was pumping and the exercise felt wonderful.  Or maybe it was the thrill she felt at knowing the captain had made a special point to see her.  Of course, maybe it was Scout. 

Millie carried Scout to the backstage. She set him on the counter and slipped back into her work clothes. She hung the skirt on a hangar and slid the boots underneath the rack, right next to the others.  She almost felt guilty; maybe she was having too much fun. 

“You’re the talk of the town – or should I say ship.” Andy was standing behind her as she wiggled her foot into her work shoes. 

“It does seem as if some sort of gossip is hanging over my head,” she admitted.  Millie pulled the ponytail holder from her hair and smoothed the locks back in place before rolling it into a tight bun. 

She reached for the dog carrier.  “What’s my next assignment boss?” she joked. She secretly hoped it was trivia.  Something a little more laid back, although the square dancing had been fun.

“Follow me.” He motioned Millie back to his cubby.  He settled in behind his desk.  Millie sat across from him. She set Scout off to the side.

“I just got back from a meeting with Dave Patterson and Captain Armati.  They are closing the internal investigation into Kyle Zondervan and Courtney Earhart’s deaths.  For all intents and purposes, it will be labeled a murder / suicide.”

Millie’s heart sank.  She just didn’t feel Courtney was the murderer.  “What about the evidence?”

“Millie, it’s just speculation because there really isn’t any ‘evidence.’ The quicker the case is closed, the quicker we can get back to business.  Giving passengers the best vacation possible.”

He lowered his head and stared into her eyes.  “That means you.  I’m here to tell you on the record to stop snooping around and let it go.”

Millie straightened her back.  Her lips drew into a thin line.  “Whose orders?  Patterson or Armati?”

Millie wasn’t sure if she liked either one of them anymore.  Someone was trying to stop her! 

He shook his head.  “I’d rather not say.”

Millie shot to her feet. She crossed her arms and glared down at Andy.  “Well, I’m not going to stop!” She waved her hands in the air.  “So they’re just going to let a killer get away with murder.”

“Authorities will take over once we get back to Miami.” He shrugged.  “They will do their own investigation.”

Andy leaned back in his chair and lifted his hands.  “Look. I’m siding with you.  I think there’s more to the story, but we have a job to do.  That’s why they pay us the big bucks.”

Millie snorted.

“Maybe you could let Cat or Annette take over,” he suggested.  “You know. Kind of work behind the scenes. Let them take the lead this time.”

Millie tapped her foot on the floor.  On the one hand, she didn’t want to bite the hand that fed her.  On the other, she didn’t like it when someone tried to tell her what to do.  Of course, they were paying her to do a job, not solve a murder or murders. 

Millie grudgingly admitted it was time to turn over the reins.  Cat made the most sense.  She had more freedom to move around the ship than Annette, who was pretty much stuck in the kitchen all day.

Her shoulders sagged.  Millie was ready to admit defeat, but just this once.  She decided to let it go.