Stalked in Paradise

by Charley Marsh

  Alex nodded.

  “Right. Didn’t you say that nothing of Miss Monroe’s had been spared?”

  “Yes. Even her shoes were destroyed.”

  Fox waved one hand. “Well, this doesn’t appear to be the same wholesale destruction. In fact, only a small selection of the clothing has been sliced and diced.”

  Alex gave a nod. “I’m listening.”

  “Everything that was destroyed?” Fox picked up the thin, old sweats. “They’re like these, old and worn and about ready for the rag bin. It looks as if someone went through here in a rage, the way everything is tossed about, but when you look closely that’s not the story.”

  Alex nodded again, his mouth grim. “Agreed. What does that suggest to you?”

  Fox’s eyes narrowed. He threw the sweatpants back on the couch. “If the killer had broken in here and destroyed Miss Lana’s clothing he would have swept those enhancers off their neat little counters. And he wouldn’t have chosen her oldest clothes to destroy. I’d say Miss Lana cut up her own clothing in a bid for attention. The woman is a blowtop–a crazy person.”

  He looked around the sitting area with disgust. “And she lives like a pig.”

  Alex stripped off his gloves and stuffed them in his pocket. “I’ll deal with Miss Lana later. Right now I want to take you to the greenhouse where the body was found and introduce you to the head gardener, Solomon Ayers. He and Harriet have been close friends since they were teens.”

  Alex relocked Lana’s unit and they headed to the garage to grab his vehicle. On the way he placed a call on his link to Mary.

  “How’s Miss Lana doing?” he asked.

  “I see no signs of distress, sir. Her tears dried as soon as you left. She’s just sitting and waiting. I thought I heard her humming a short while ago.”

  Alex knew the droids possessed exceptional hearing. If Mary thought she heard Lana humming then Lana was humming. Pleased with herself. The thought disgusted him.

  “Please tell Miss Lana to go back to work. I’ll catch up with her later. I have–” He heard a commotion, then Lana’s tearful face appeared in the link.

  “Alex? When will you be back? I’m frightened. I need you.”

  Alex had to bite his tongue to keep from blasting Lana right then, but the conversation he intended to hold with her needed to be done in person.

  “I’m sorry, Lana, but something’s come up. I won’t be able to get back to the office for a few hours yet. Why don’t you go back to the kitchens and see if you can get some work done? There are plenty of people around there so I’m sure you’ll be safe until I return.”

  “But-but I want you to keep me safe.” Her lower lip quivered.

  She’s a good actress, observed Alex, but she’s overplayed her hand. “I understand, but that isn’t possible at this time. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  “And then you’ll stay with me?”

  “Then we’ll figure out what the best course of action is, I promise.”

  “I’ll wait for you, Alex.”

  “No. Go to the kitchens. You’ll be safer there. I’ll come find you as soon as I can.”

  “If you say so, Alex.”

  Alex cut the link call before she could say anything else. He tossed it in the console between the seats and blew out his breath.

  “You have a skull-buster,” Fox said mildly. He gave Alex a sympathetic look. “That girl wants you and she’s a whacko. Does she have anything to do with your dead body?”

  “I don’t think so,” Alex replied. “She’s not strong enough. You’ll understand when I show you where the body was found. We’re here.” He parked the SUV in front of greenhouse number four.

  Ten minutes later, Alex reengaged the lock. Fox stood with his hands in his pockets gazing at nothing, thinking. A pair of gardeners came out of greenhouse number two laden with several pots of red flowering plants and loaded them into the back of a golf cart. They took off, chattering and laughing.

  “Seems like a happy enough crew working here,” he observed. “So, this Solomon Ayers is a close friend of Harriet Monroe’s?”

  “Yes. Since they were teens.”

  “Would he have any reason to want Bradley Higgins dead? Jealousy, perhaps?”

  “No on the jealousy and no motive that I could find. Harriet and Solly are more like brother and sister. They look out for each other.”

  Fox glanced at him. “Sounds as if you like them both.”

  “I do. And I realize I need to keep an objective view here. The only motive I can find for killing Bradley Higgins points at Harriet. She’s his only beneficiary and he was worth a considerable amount.”

  “Money is a strong motive.”

  “Yeah, and it would be a prime motive here except that Harriet plans to set up a trust with all of it to fund a homeless shelter and a shelter for domestic abuse victims in Portland. She was honestly shocked when I told her about Higgins’ will. Doesn’t want the asshole’s money.”

  Fox raised his eyebrows as they climbed back into the SUV. “Asshole? The vic was an asshole?”

  Alex scowled, put the SUV in gear and peeled away from the greenhouses.

  “Bradley Higgins was stalking Miss Monroe.”

  “Another motive to want him dead,” Fox pointed out.

  “Yes. One that could point to either Harriet or her friend Solomon. Except that Harriet wasn’t on the island when Higgins was killed, and Solomon has a solid alibi. And more importantly, neither of them knew Higgins was stalking her.”

  “So we’re back to no motive.”

  “Exactly. No motive means I have nothing to work with. If it was a random killing then I’m looking for a whacko and it could be anybody.”

  “That’s a whole lot of whackos for one small island.”

  “You’re telling me,” Alex muttered under his breath.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  When she arrived at the amusement park to film video for her ad campaign, Harriet was pleasantly surprised to find the parking lot nearly filled with resort carts. Apparently the early guests had wasted no time finding the park. That would make Braxton Holliday a happy man.

  She parked her own cart at the far end of the lot, grabbed the camera from its case and headed for the gate. The greeter, a slim young woman dressed in a sparkling blue skinsuit, also wore a fake diamond tiara in her abundant brown curls, exotic eye paint, and a bright smile on her attractive face. Images of whirling roller coaster track shimmered on her skinsuit when she moved.

  “Welcome to Holliday’s Park. All the rides are free, but a few are restricted to protect our guests. No one under four feet tall or with heart issues can ride the coaster, and parental supervision is required for The Drop.”

  She leaned close to Harriet. “I suggest if you’ve just eaten that you hold off on the coaster. We’ve already had a few “accidents” if you know what I mean.” Her warm brown eyes sparkled.

  Harriet grinned at the greeter. “You couldn’t get me to ride the coaster if you drugged me and tied me into one of the cars. The carousel is more my speed.”

  She stuck out her hand. “I’m Harry Monroe, PR director. I’m here to shoot some footage for an ad campaign I’m working on.”

  “Raita Simms. My absolute fav ride is the coaster, but I think the carousel is our most beautiful and oldest traditional ride. If you need anything just ask. I’ll be on the gate all afternoon.”

  “Thanks. I appreciate that.” A man and a woman with two very excited young boys came up behind Harriet. The boys were urging their parents to move faster and begging to ride the coaster. Harriet winked at Raita and passed through the gate, heading straight for the carousel.

  Screams rang out overhead as she heard wheels race over the metal coaster tracks. She looked up in time to catch a dozen faces–a few looking terrified, most smiling, as the cars whipped around a sharp turn and up a steep incline. Harriet pressed a hand to her belly. Even watching the coaster made her feel nauseated.

  The look
on the guests’ faces as they came around that particular curve in the track would make great footage for her ads though. She decided to film the other rides and catch the coaster shots on her way out.

  Harriet spent the next three hours filming rides and guests. She asked the guests for permission to film them and produced release forms that gave the resort permission to use their images in future ads.

  Everyone cheerfully signed the forms, making her job easy. She picked the happiest faces and ended up with a nice blend of adults and children and plenty of film to edit back in her office.

  Mr. Wade had thought of everything she mused, when she found a busy food court on the far edge of the park. She remembered Raita’s warning about riding the coaster on a full stomach and hoped nobody in the food court planned to follow their meal with a coaster ride.

  She grabbed an icy lemonade and a crab salad roll and found an unoccupied table to sit at. The tart lemonade refreshed her waning energy. She thought she might be growing addicted to the summer drink. It tasted so much better on a warm tropical island than it ever had in Portland, Maine.

  The crab roll tasted sweet and succulent, with real mayo instead of the soy mayo Harriet was used to. She moaned when she bit into it then looked around guiltily, but no one was paying any attention to her. She relaxed and turned all her attention to enjoying her meal.

  When she finished she sat back in her seat and pulled her notes from her rucksack. She had the shots she needed plus a few bonus moments she hadn’t planned on. She only had to catch the last coaster shot on her way out and she’d be done. Oh, and a shot of the attractive Raita greeting guests. She added the shot to her notes and put them away.

  Harriet checked her watch. Time to get a move on. She needed to finish filming and return to her office. She’d lock the camera back into its cabinet with that day’s film and start the edit tomorrow after a good night’s sleep.

  Her link rang before she made it out of the food court however, and she stepped to the side to take the call.

  “Harry?” Cassie’s flustered face appeared on the screen. “Where are you?”

  “Hi, Cassie. I’m still at the amusement park, just finishing up. I should be on my way back to the office in about fifteen minutes. Do you need something?”

  “Thank heavens I caught you. Could you possibly pick up Mr. Blattsworth–my lawyer–and bring him to my office? I’ve been trying to get out of here for the last forty minutes but there’s been one disaster after another.” She made air quotes around disaster and rolled her eyes.

  “Honestly, I think my co-workers are worse than the guests. They’re so worried about everything being perfect they’re wound tighter than-than-I don’t know what. Jeeves told me you were at the amusement park so you’re halfway to the air shuttle pad. Would you mind? I’ll owe you.”

  Harriet grinned. “I’d be happy to pick up Mr. Blattsworth and you don’t owe me a thing. When does his shuttle land?”

  Cassie checked her watch and grimaced. “In about ten minutes. Are you sure? I need to get this divorce finalized so I can move on with my life and I’ve been so busy I haven’t been able to get off the island to sign the papers. I know you’re working and it’s a lot to ask . . .” Her voice trailed off.

  “No problem, Cassie. Honest. I’ll head out now. You should see us within an hour unless the shuttle is late. Call your lawyer and tell him I’m coming.”

  “Thanks, Harry.” Someone caught Cassie’s attention off-screen. “In a minute,” she snarled. She turned back to Harriet. “Sorry, I have to run. Thanks again.” The link connection broke.

  Harriet shook her head, still smiling. Poor Cassie. The resort manager had a lot on her plate, personal and professional.

  She took the few minutes she needed to get the last two shots she wanted of the coaster and Raita and headed for her car. More families had arrived over the course of the afternoon and the park was hopping. Colored lights flashed on the rides. Shouts and laughter blended with screams of delight and music. Mr. Wade would be pleased to hear that the park was a huge success.

  Raita waved goodbye as Harriet slipped out the gate.

  Once the carnival opened it would siphon off some of the crowd from the amusement park, but she imagined the park would remain a guest favorite. The delay in the carnival’s open date had been unexpected and unavoidable, but judging from the expressions on the faces she had filmed that afternoon, no one minded the crowd at the park.

  The number of resort guests was carefully regulated so they would never feel overcrowded. There were plenty of activities on offer as well as quiet things to do on the island.

  Her first ad campaign featuring the amusement park would be a winner, but Harriet made a mental note to do a future campaign featuring the more solitary aspects of the resort for those that wanted to simply get away from the hustle and bustle of their daily lives.

  She was smiling when she drove onto the air shuttle port. All three blue and white Resort Island shuttles were sitting side by side on the edge of the black shell pad. Thinking Cassie’s lawyer must have decided to wait for her in the open lounge, she drove around the pad and parked in front of the lounge, but found only the droid barkeep inside.

  “Excuse me. I’m looking for someone.” Belatedly, Harriet realized she had no idea what Cassie’s lawyer looked like. “His name is Mr. Blattsworth. Do you know if he arrived on the last shuttle?”

  “I’ll check for you, miss. One moment, please.” The droid spoke quietly into the bar link, then returned to where Harriet waited.

  “There was an Amos Blattsworth on the last shuttle. Does that help?”

  “A little.” Harriet looked around the empty lounge and frowned. “No, not really. Where is he?”

  “I do not know where he is at the moment, miss, but now that I’ve seen his photo I can tell you that I saw him get into a cart with a man.”

  “What? How long ago?”

  The droid’s eyes blanked a second as it checked its interior data bank. “Ten minutes, miss.”

  “Okay, thank you.” Now what? Walking to the edge of the open lounge, Harriet pulled her link from her pocket and rang Cassie. The resort manager looked even more frazzled than when she’d called Harriet less than thirty minutes earlier.

  “Cassie, I’m at the air shuttle port but Mr. Blattsworth apparently grabbed a ride with someone else.”

  “What?” Cassie’s eyes focused on Harriet. “That’s impossible. I told him I had someone to meet him at the air pad.”

  “Do you have his link number?” Harriet asked. “Try calling him. I’ll stand by.” She rang off. Cassie rang back less than a minute later.

  “Harry? Mr. B’s link doesn’t pick up. It dumps straight to message mode.”

  Harriet sighed. “I don’t know what to tell you, Cassie. Apparently he thought whoever he caught a ride with was sent by you. Maybe he can’t answer his link because he’s passing through a dead zone on the island. Why don’t you call Alex and ask him to keep an eye out for Mr. Blattsworth? I’m going to head back to the office since I can’t do anything here.”

  Harriet could hear the clang of sailboat rigging on metal masts through the trees and undergrowth, reminding her that the marina wasn’t far from the air shuttle port.

  She was halfway back to the main road when a thought struck her. What if Big Ed had learned of Mr. Blattsworth’s pending arrival? She knew the marina’s assistant manager didn’t want a divorce. He might have met the lawyer to try to talk him out of giving Cassie the final divorce papers.

  She could easily spare ten minutes to swing by the marina and see if Mr. Blattsworth had been stranded there and needed a lift to Cassie’s office.

  Harriet reached the main road and turned north, driving to the marina as fast as the moderately-paced vehicle would take her. A quick check told her the marina office was empty and locked. Where was the manager and Ed?

  She stepped beyond the building and scanned the docks.

  A family of four were being
helped into individual kayaks by a pair of droid dock workers. Beyond the docks a motorboat sped by hauling a waterskier behind it.

  Seagulls called and swooped over the docks, looking for food. Further out, several pretty blue and white striped sails caught the breeze and tacked across the mouth of the marina’s bay.

  She spotted Big Ed beside a powerful-looking speedboat on the end of the farthest dock. A man sat in one of the boat’s rear seats. The lawyer? Where were they going?

  Fortunately Harriet had swapped her sandals for trainers when she had changed clothes earlier. She took off at a run, determined to catch them before they could leave.

  “Ed! Ed, wait!” Harriet stopped by the boat and leaned over, gulping for air. She flapped one hand. “Give me a minute,” she gasped. She took several deep breaths to calm her racing heart. “Whew. I need to get back to running.”

  She smiled at Ed. He stood staring at her uncertainly, with the aft mooring rope already untied and in his hand. The stern of the motor boat began to drift away from the dock.

  “Is that Cassie’s lawyer?” Harriet took a step closer to the dock edge. “Mr. Blattsworth? Where are you going? I’m Harriet Monroe. Cassie asked me to give you a lift to her office. She’s anxious to see you.”

  Something was wrong. The lawyer’s head lolled against the back of the seat. His eyes were closed.

  Harriet frowned. “Ed? What happened to–” she never finished her question.

  Ed dropped the mooring line and pulled her to him. Before she could defend herself she felt pressure on her upper arm and her knees buckled. Her thoughts jumbled into a dizzy mess. “Wha–”

  The bastard had tranqed her. She lost all control of her muscles and could no longer stand. She felt big, beefy arms go around her and lift her. Then–nothing.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight