I stood up, turned toward her, and swung the tray at the same time. It met resistance as it banged into the side of her head.
"Ha, bet you didn't expect that, did ya?"
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Mimi's eyes crossed before she stumbled backwards and fell to her butt. I hoped I hadn't permanently hurt her, but I wasn't going to feel too bad since she'd struck me twice now.
I ran toward her and stepped on her fingers until she loosened her grip and the syringe rattled onto the tile, and then I kicked it beneath the sink. With the way she was slumped over, leaning against the legs of the table I'd just jumped off, I assumed she was unconscious or disoriented. I didn't want to take the chance that she'd get up and stick me.
"Zibby?" shouted Cady.
I leaped over Mimi's legs in an almost perfect grand jeté—because there was no point in perfection without an audience—to the fryers, grabbed the knife, and headed to the office. Four back-and-forth cuts on the rope and it broke free.
Aiden flung the door open and stared at me, the knife, and then Mimi. "What happened?"
Cady's wide blue eyes were full of fear until she saw me, and then her bottom lip quivered. "Are you okay?"
That was it.
I dropped the knife and broke into tears. "She tried to kill me. Again."
Cady wrapped me into a bear hug and allowed me to cry on her shoulder. Big, ugly sobs.
Aiden whispered, "I'll go get help. Watch her. Be safe."
Cady smoothed my hair with her hand. "We could hear people but not who it was until a second ago. Aiden left his phone behind the bar, and mine is at the table."
I pulled away and nodded. "She said that if I let you know she was out here, she'd kill you guys too."
The kitchen door swung open, and Sergeant Clarke and Constable Newton hurried in. Behind them was a very worried-looking ship doctor.
Shawn didn't watch the police as they walked to Mimi. He kept his gaze on me, which made me feel all kinds of better and made me stop blubbering. I was pretty certain I looked like a hot mess. Seeing him stare at me with concern and tenderness, however, made puffy eyes and a red, swollen nose no longer matter.
"Are you okay?" Shawn asked.
"What happened?" Sergeant Clarke asked.
Mimi groaned and started to stir.
I explained everything and pointed to the sink. "I kicked the syringe under there. It'll have her fingerprints on it."
And not mine. Ha!
I realized it looked wonky, what with Mimi struggling to get to her feet and a knife by mine, and I didn't want there to be any doubts that I was the good guy and she was crazed murderer.
"Why?" Finley asked. He and Whitney were hovering by the open doorway.
"Barclay was her half sibling and about to inherit half of their father's estate. Mimi didn't want that."
The sergeant helped Mimi to her feet and then arrested her. He pulled out a pair of handcuffs and let the constable lead her out of the kitchen.
"The rest of you, in the dining room, please. This room will be considered a crime scene, and until I can get forensics in here, it is off-limits." He stared at Aiden, who hung out in the doorway behind Whitney and Finley.
Aiden shrugged. "Since I'm no longer a suspect, that's fine by me. A few days off to regroup may actually be a good thing."
We followed the sergeant out of the kitchen. I was flanked by my two new personal bodyguards, Shawn and Cady. While Shawn looked distraught, Cady was clear, focused, and ready for action. She was not letting me out of her sight.
It would've been funny if I hadn't felt abused, sore, dazed, and in need of four ibuprofen and a week of sleep.
We all sat at a couple of tables next to each other, far from the one we'd just occupied, as if it was unlucky. There were no other customers, and Aiden shut the front doors and put up the closed sign.
"Where's Greer?" I asked.
The sergeant absentmindedly rubbed his chin. "He's being arrested for assaulting a police officer."
"So he doesn't know that Mimi…" Whitney whispered.
"He does now. He was in the back seat of my car when Mr. Griffith came out and got us. Constable Newton is taking them both in now. Considering the circumstances, he will probably be released tomorrow."
What a way to find out your girlfriend killed your college buddy.
The sergeant turned to Whitney and Finley. "I will send your passports to your hotel later tonight. You may leave as soon as you get them. Again, I am sorry for your loss."
"And that's it?" Finley pointed to me. "You're taking her word for it? Why?"
Sergeant Clarke raised a brow. "Because just before Mr. Griffith ran out to get us, I'd received a confirmation from my office that Ms. Janson's deceased father was a plastic surgeon who worked at Northshore Skin Care Specialists. She had access to the poison."
Finley and Whitney looked at each other, and I couldn't help but wonder what they'd do now. I made a mental note to pay attention to the Illinois news to see if he would become city councilman and for the news of their breakup or marriage. Who knew? Maybe they'd find a way to work it out.
"We can leave?" Finley asked.
The sergeant nodded.
They stood up, and Whitney looked at me. "Thank you."
I smiled and felt a small sense of happiness that I'd helped them…even if I also destroyed them.
"That leaves us," I said to the sergeant.
"How did you know she was the killer?" he asked me.
"I remembered seeing a logo on the shirt of the person sneaking into Barclay's home, and it was the acronym of the medical place. Mimi had its business card in her purse. Plus she told me one thing and then the constable another," I rambled, relieved it was over, but it was when I stopped talking that I realized I'd mentioned the video, which was on the—
"From the SD card you left on my desk?" He quirked a brow and an actual smile spread across his face.
I swallowed hard and hoped he hadn't noticed. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
He chuckled and patted the table before standing up. "Without that SD card, we never would've known to dig deeper when the background and family checks revealed how easily Miss Janson had access to the murder weapon."
So he wasn't going to arrest me too?
With the wave of his hand, Sergeant Clarke said, "Miss Foster, the island of Barbados thanks you for your service."
Shawn, Cady, and I stood up as he walked out. Cady stepped aside when Shawn and I turned to each other.
He tucked a curl around my ear. "You did good."
I may have beamed and stood on my tiptoes, in perfect pointe position. "I did, didn't I?"
"I need to go check on that boy with the asthma. I also want to check you out again too. Two head injuries is not a joke. I'll see you on the boat?"
I nodded, not wanting him to move his hand, but also not wanting to open my mouth and say something stupid.
"You had me worried," he said and took a step closer to me.
My stomach flipped. "I did? I'm fine."
"Yes, you are." His dimpled smile made me tremble. He stared into my eyes and then at my mouth.
This time the dizzy room was not due to my possible concussion.
I expected him to lean down and kiss me, but he squeezed my shoulder and left.
What just happened?
"Wow, I thought he was going to kiss you." Cady stepped up behind me.
"Right?"
"It's for the best that he didn't though," she said.
"Why?"
"Because you'd probably swallow your own tongue from the nerves. And then he'd have to do the Heimlich, and you'd be without a tongue. Not pretty."
I spun around and playfully slapped her arm. "Har-har, very funny."
Aiden stepped up behind Cady and said to me, "I'm glad you're okay, and thank you for helping me and Ocean Grille. Cady told me all you've done. I'll never be able to repay you."
I waved away his words. "Yo
u don't have to. Just be good to my friend."
I assumed they were still together from the way she hadn't moved away from him.
Cady glanced at him over her shoulder. "You still owe me an explanation. You said that you needed to show me something first?"
He patted his apron pocket. "And I have it now. It was in the safe behind the bar."
Cady turned away from me and to him. "What is it?"
Aiden looked my way. "The cab driver is my cousin. He was doing me a favor. I don't sell drugs. I don't even take anything more than the occasional pain meds."
Oops, so I was wrong. This time I didn't mind.
Aiden pulled a blue velvet box from his pocket. The kind of box that held jewelry small enough for a finger.
Oh my goodness.
Cady's face lit up, and I could tell from the way she eyed the box and the way her hand inched forward that she wanted to grab it and fling it open. But she restrained herself.
I took a step away back to give them privacy. Then I remembered my phone and snatched it up off the table and started recording. This was so much better than any confession.
Aiden bent on one knee and said, "Cadence Hart, we may not have spent a lot of time face-to-face, but I know you as well as you know yourself. You are smart, funny, beautiful, and kind. You light up my life with your words, your gestures, and your wonderful voice. I want to spend every day for the rest of my life with you, even if we're thousands of miles apart. Would you please do me the honor of becoming my wife? I love you."
Happy tears clouded my vision, and my smile was so big, my cheeks hurt.
Cady squealed and jumped up and down. "Yes, of course. Absolutely."
She held out her hand, and he glanced down at the box he'd forgotten to open.
"Oh, right," he said and lifted the lid.
Cady and I gasped at the same time.
Inside sat a round, brilliant diamond on top of a gold band that was three thin bands twisted around one another, and three tiny diamonds sat on each side of the bigger one.
Aiden lifted it from the box and slipped it on Cady's finger. "This was my mother's setting. I asked a local jeweler to set in new stones. I'd asked my cousin to take it to the place on the other side of the island. He came by to pick it up and then brought it to me the night at Lagoon Blue."
Ohhh!
"I would've done it myself, but the jeweler just had a baby and was working nights while I was here at the bar," Aiden said. "Do you like it? If you don't, I could—"
Cady placed her hands on his cheeks and kissed him hard. "I love it, and I love you."
Watching the two of them together hit me hard. I love my mother and dufus brother, but I knew that I couldn't leave my new best friend, awesome job, and a man who thought I was fine. I needed to tell them the truth. Tonight. Maybe Cady, in her engagement after glow, wouldn't be too mad at me for keeping secrets. As for Shawn, it wasn't as if we'd gotten to know each other that well. Hopefully he wouldn't be mad either.
I smiled at my decision. And then I looked away from my friends when their kiss grew passionate enough for me to shout "get a room."
* * *
"Farewell, Barbados. It's been…fun?" I shouted as Cady and I walked toward the docked ship, several yards ahead.
We'd considered helping Aiden clean up since I felt responsible for the mess, but after the engagement, no one wanted to stack dishes and sweep. They spent some time cuddled at one of the tables, talking about when they wanted to set a date, while I sat by the front window pretending to not eavesdrop. It wasn't as if they were whispering, and hearing them laugh had been the greatest sound all day.
The only reason they parted was because Cady and I had an hour before the ship left port. After the longest kiss good-bye, Aiden had pulled me in for a hug, and Cady and I left.
"I'm thrilled about you and Aiden," I said to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. It was hard walking in that position though, considering she was taller than me.
She held out her hand and stared at her ring. "Isn't it beautiful? I knew he was going to ask me. Okay, so I had my doubts after Barclay's death, but I knew he wanted to."
I smiled and let my arm drop. "Yes, it is."
"We didn't get much of a chance to talk about our future, and now that I have a second to think, I hope he doesn't expect me to quit my job and hang out on the island. I mean, of course I'll live here when I'm not on the ship, but I love Athena," she said with a touch of sadness in her tone.
"He knows how much you love your job. You guys will discuss it and figure it all out."
She nodded. "Yeah, right. It'll work out. We've gone this long not living on the same continent."
"Or any continent." We laughed.
"What about you?" she asked. "You are on the same ship as Hottie McDoc. Are you going to take the plunge?"
I didn't need to think about this. Deep in my heart, I wanted to see if there was more than a spark between the doctor and me.
"Yes," I said.
She squealed. "Seriously? What brought on this confidence? Was it my engagement?"
I chuckled. "A little. I also learned some news from back home earlier."
A frown formed on her forehead. "Oh, is it bad? Please, don't be bad. I've had enough dead bodies and angry suspects to last me a lifetime."
Me too.
"No, it's not bad, but I'd like to tell you all about it later."
"Sure. We'll get ice cream and champagne and stay up late talking about our futures. What's a few under eye circles for tomorrow's show. That's what makeup is for." She stepped ahead of me and turned around, walking backwards. Her eyes widened and she jutted her chin toward whatever was behind me.
Not taking chances with being snuck up on again, I turned and collided into Shawn, who was practically running toward us.
"Sorry," he said with a chuckle. "I was trying to catch up."
"No, I'm sorry, Hottie Mc…um, Shawn."
Warmth immediately flooded my cheeks, and I wondered if it was a crime to throw myself into the ocean.
How was I going to pursue a possible relationship if I couldn't even say his name correctly?
He laughed. "Well, that's better than cute. At least we're headed in the right direction."
Probably sensing my embarrassment, he said, "I need to hurry back, so I'm going to go ahead. But you're coming to see me to check your head, right?"
I nodded. Maybe he could give me a lobotomy.
Cady said, "I'll bring her there as soon as we're on board."
Which would be in less than five minutes, so I needed to get over this latest humiliation right away.
"Good," he said and sped past us.
When he was out of earshot, Cady wrapped an arm around my shoulder and laughed. "Why is it you're more comfortable around death than the good doctor?"
"I'm the worst," I said with a sigh.
"The worst. But you still got me."
We slowly walked to the ship as the sun set along the horizon.
* * * * *
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
USA Today bestselling author, Jennifer Fischetto, writes the Gianna Mancini Mysteries and Jamie Bond Mysteries series. She watches too much TV and movies, which fuel her never-ending supply of plot ideas, and is a rabid fan of suspense, horror, and everything supernatural. She lives in Western Mass with her family and a ridiculously large black cat and is currently working on her next project.
To learn more about Jennifer Fischetto, visit her online at: http://jenniferfischetto.com/newsletter/
* * * * *
BOOKS BY JENNIFER FISCHETTO
Gianna Mancini Mysteries:
Lipstick, Lies & Dead Guys
"Christmas, Spies & Dead Guys" (short story in the Coz
y Christmas Shorts collection)
Mini Skirts, Mai Tais & Dead Guys
Cupcakes, Butterflies & Dead Guys
Jamie Bond Mysteries:
Unbreakable Bond
Secret Bond
Lethal Bond
Dangerous Bond
Bond Ambition (short story)
Fatal Bond
Danger Cove Bakery Mysteries
Death by Scones
Other Works:
Killing in the Caribbean
"Rhinestone Ransom" (short story in the Pushing Up Daisies collection)
* * * * *
SNEAK PEEK
of the first Gianna Mancini Mystery
LIPSTICK, LIES & DEAD GUYS
by
JENNIFER FISCHETTO
CHAPTER ONE
I drop my purse on the hardwood floor and giggle like a teenage girl at her first boy band concert. The apartment is small, the bathroom so tiny there's only room for a shower stall, not a tub, and the toilet is close enough to the sink that I think they're married. The bedroom closet won't hold my growing boot collection or all of my handbags. I may have a slight addiction.
But despite the apartment's limitations, it's all mine. I don't have to share one single square foot. I can paint over the current off-white walls, fill the front windows with plants, and buy an excessive amount of cute pastel throw pillows.
I half-twerk, half-chicken dance across my new space. Yes, it's as bizarre as it sounds, but I only do it in private. And not very well.
Having my own place is a first for me. Of my twenty-six years, I spent the first twenty-three living at home. Then I moved to Connecticut and lived with my chatty, somewhat self-absorbed cousin for two years. She got married, and what did I do? I moved in with the super hot, super new boyfriend, Julian, hereafter known as Douche Nozzle. I should've immediately known we weren't soul mates. Who finds true love and moves in with them after one week?
Killing in the Caribbean Page 20