Cruise Ship Christian Cozy Mysteries Series: Box Set: Books 1-3

by Hope Callaghan

  Millie hid just inside the entrance to “Formals,” the tuxedo shop, and behind a mannequin that sported a navy blue tuxedo. She had an unobstructed view of the kitchen door and could easily slip behind Veronica as she made her way to Donovan’s office.

  Along the path was a small, side corridor rarely used by staff. It would be the perfect spot for Veronica to slip inside and poison the sweets.

  Cat was waiting for Noel on the other side of the kitchen. Noel would head in the opposite direction, towards Patterson’s office on a lower level. Her task to trail Noel would be a bit trickier since there were a lot more stop off points where Noel could poison the food. Cat would have to be on her toes!

  Cat tipped her foot to the side and gazed at her black velvet stilettos. They weren’t the best shoes to wear when in stealth-mode. What on earth had she been thinking?

  Millie had problems of her own. She wondered what their next step would be if this mission failed!

  She glanced down at her watch. Any second now…

  At precisely 5:15 p.m., Veronica stepped out of the kitchen and strolled past Formals. Millie silently slipped in behind her, careful to keep her distance.

  Veronica meandered along. She stopped in front of the mirror, which was just inside the display case of the jewelry shop, and fiddled with her hair.

  Satisfied each silky lock was in place, she continued walking. Veronica slowed when she got to the side corridor. Millie slowed and turned so her back faced Veronica as she pretended to look out the window. She could see Veronica’s reflection in the glass.

  Veronica had reached the upper level of the atrium, just steps from Donovan’s office. She paused for a moment, then pushed the half door open and stepped behind the guest services counter, sans a dish of poisonous goodies.

  ***

  Cat peeked from behind the exit door. Noel, with a bounce in her step, carried her covered dish through the hall, humming as she walked.

  She waved at each person she passed. After about the fifth pass-by and her sickeningly sweet greeting, Cat wanted to throw up. Could anyone really be that nice?

  Noel descended the side steps and stopped on Deck 2 where she turned in. The area was deserted.

  Cat tiptoed down the steps. The heel of her shoe caught on a corner of loose carpet and stair tread.

  Cat jerked her foot. Her troublesome shoe refused to budge and she started to lose her balance.

  She teetered back and forth, one arm holding the rail in a death grip. Her other arm flailed in circles like a windmill on steroids.

  Cat finally regained her balance and pulled again – harder this time.

  The carpet ripped, releasing Cat’s shoe and she started to tumble down the step. Thump! Thump!

  Cat reached out and wrapped both arms around the railing, desperate to halt her free fall.

  Noel turned back at the sound. She tilted her head and looked up.

  Cat flattened her body and lowered her head. She sucked in a breath, squeezed her eyes shut and prayed Noel hadn’t seen her.

  Noel shrugged and continued to walk.

  When she reached the entrance door that separated the crew quarters from the guest area, she stopped.

  Noel’s eyes scanned the small hall, starting on the left and travelling all the way over to the right.

  Convinced that there was no one around, she lifted the lid of the tray and tucked the cover under her right arm. Next, she delicately lifted one of the chocolate covered morsels and popped it into her mouth before sliding the rest of the pieces around on the plate to fill the empty gap.

  Noel finished her walk down the long corridor.

  Cat peeked around the corner and watched as the door to Patterson’s office opened and Noel stepped inside.

  Cat leaned her forehead against the metal door. If Noel was the saboteur, she had not poisoned that batch!

  ***

  “Millie! Do you copy?”

  Millie unclipped her radio and lifted it to her lips. Her eyes never left the guest services desk as she waited for Veronica to emerge from Donovan’s office.

  “I’m here. Perp number one is inside Donovan’s office.”

  “You need to get in there. I’ve been trying to call Donovan on his radio and office phone and there’s no answer. You need to make sure he doesn’t eat those desserts!”

  “So we have a positive ID?”

  “We do and it’s not who you think,” Annette answered. “Look, I gotta go. I need the tray back as evidence.”

  “10-4. I’ll retrieve the goods and return stat.” Millie clipped the walkie-talkie to her belt and hustled down the steps. She pushed the half door and made her way to the back.

  Zane Gretski lifted a hand, as if to stop her.

  Millie wasn’t in the mood. Not right now. “Don’t bother!” she warned him.

  Millie tapped on Donovan’s door and waited - no answer. She knocked a second time – louder this time.

  “Come in,” Donovan’s muffled voice echoed through the door.

  Millie sucked in a breath, grabbed the door handle and pushed it open.

  Her eyes went right to the silver tray in the center of Donovan’s desk. She let out a sigh of relief when she noticed the lid was still in place.

  Veronica’s eyes narrowed when she saw Millie. She rose from her chair, directly across from Donovan. “I should get back to the kitchen.” She nodded at Donovan, ignored Millie and flounced out of the room, irritated that Millie had interrupted.

  Millie watched her leave and shrugged. “Good riddance.”

  She nodded to the dish. “You didn’t eat…”

  “Nope. You told me not to,” he pointed out.

  She reached for the tray. “It was for a good reason. Annette just radioed.” Her eyes narrowed. “She’s been trying to call you.”

  Donovan reached for his radio, sitting on the edge of his desk. “Huh. It’s off.” He clicked the button to turn it back on.

  “Anyways, she said I needed to bring these back. They’re evidence.”

  Donovan leaned back in his chair. “Veronica?”

  Millie shook her head. “I’m not sure. Annette said it wasn’t who we thought.” Which would mean it wasn’t Veronica – or Noel. But if it wasn’t those two, who was it?

  Alison had seen a woman who fit Veronica or Noel’s description leave the poisoned coffee on Andy’s desk.

  Millie picked up the tray and headed for the door. She was about to find out.

  Chapter 26

  A small group had gathered in the galley. Annette, Amit, Raj, Cat, Veronica, Noel and Dave Patterson, along with a uniformed officer who stood off to one side, blocking the exit.

  Annette looked up when Millie stepped into the kitchen. “Good. You’re just in time.”

  Millie set the covered tray on the gleaming counter and pushed it towards Annette.

  Annette pulled the tray in front of her. “These desserts have been poisoned.” She lifted her finger and pointed at Raj. “Raj did it.”

  The color drained from Raj’s face. “I-I…”

  Annette waved a dismissive hand. “Don’t bother. I caught you red-handed, squirting droplets of liquid on these.” Her eyes dropped to the front pocket of his jacket. “Empty your pockets.”

  Raj crossed his arms and straightened his back. “What if I refuse?” he challenged.

  Dave Patterson and the officer took a step forward. “It would be in your best interest to do as you were told,” Patterson said in a low voice.

  Raj slowly reached inside his pocket and pulled out the contents: a tube of ChapStick, 3 breath mints and a small, clear bottle with a pale green liquid inside.

  Patterson grabbed the bottle and held it up. “Is this the bottle?” he asked Annette.

  “Yes, it is.”

  Patterson turned to Raj. “This is a serious matter - attempted murder. You could have killed someone. You almost killed Captain Vitale.”

  While Patterson addressed Raj, Millie studied the faces of the small
group. They all looked shocked. Everyone that is, except for Noel Kalani. Sweet, little Noel looked terrified. She licked her lips and stared at Raj, her eyes never leaving his face.

  Raj had applied for Annette’s job. Millie remembered seeing his application. He had motive and opportunity, but something was missing…

  The officer stepped forward and grasped Raj’s wrist.

  “Wait!” Millie blurted out.

  All eyes turned to Millie.

  Millie eased through the crowd and came up next to Noel.

  “What’s going on here, Noel? Do you know something about the poisonings?” Millie probed.

  Noel’s eyes grew as round as saucers. She began to shake her head. “N-no. I-I’m as shocked as you,” she said.

  Millie tried a different tactic. She nodded her head towards Raj. “Raj really likes you.”

  “Yes.” Noel nodded.

  “Amit, too.”

  “Hmm,” Noel agreed.

  “Raj, Amit and you. All three of you submitted applications for Annette’s job but not Veronica.”

  A mask dropped over Noel’s sweet face. Her eyes glittered with anger. “She didn’t deserve the job.”

  The remark ticked Veronica off. She stomped across the room and stuck her face in Noel’s face. “Why not?” she demanded.

  “Because all you can do is flirt and bat your eyes.” Noel imitated Veronica’s eye batting to a “T.” Despite the seriousness of the situation, Millie covered the grin that spread across her face.

  “So I don’t deserve the job, although I am as qualified, if not better qualified than you are. On top of that, I’m prettier,” Veronica spat out.

  “I don’t think so.” Noel rolled her eyes before continuing. “I never told Raj to poison anyone. He did that on his own.”

  “But you knew about it.” Annette was incredulous.

  Noel shrugged. “I had my suspicions.”

  The pieces were falling into place.

  Millie leaned forward. “So you hinted to Raj that if you got Annette out of the way, you could take her job.” Millie wondered what would possess someone to hurt others over a stupid job!

  Cat picked up where Millie left off. “You couldn’t stand Veronica so you made sure she was the one to deliver the poisoned coffee and food and take the rap. Annette would be out of the picture, Veronica would be in jail and you would have your dream job.”

  Whack! Veronica slapped Noel across the face.

  Noel, in retaliation, grabbed a handful of Veronica’s hair and the two women began punching each other.

  Patterson and the officer quickly broke up the fight but not before they got a couple sharp, gut punches in.

  “Noel Kalani and Raj Soo Ang, you are both under arrest for attempted murder.” Patterson said.

  The group watched in stunned silence as Patterson led Noel and Raj out of the kitchen.

  Poor Amit stood silently watching, his mouth gaping in shock. Millie was glad Amit hadn’t been involved for Annette’s sake. He was a good guy and Annette considered him a friend.

  Cat shoved a hand on her hip. “Well, doesn’t that just take the cake.”

  After the dust settled, the crowd dispersed, which left only Cat, Annette and Millie.

  Millie was curious. “The glasses worked.”

  Annette reached inside her pocket and pulled them out. “Like a charm.”

  If not for Annette’s brilliant idea, the blame would have fallen squarely on Veronica Chang’s innocent shoulders. Millie wasn’t Veronica’s biggest fan. One never knew about people. If she put the two women side-by-side with what little she knew, she would have picked Veronica as the culprit all day long. This was a good lesson for Millie: never judge a book, or in this case, a person, by the cover.

  The dinner rush would soon be in full swing. Cat needed to return to the store, Millie to check in with Andy and to start her evening routine.

  Guests had started to congregate outside the theater for the Captain’s Cocktail Party. It was a fun event for past guests, full of food and free drinks, which was always a hit. The place was packed.

  She stopped by guest services to chat with Donovan for a moment. He had escaped his poisoning, thanks to the girls and she wanted his take on their discovery.

  He was on the office phone when she wandered inside. He waved her to the seat. “Yes, sir. I’ll take care of that and I agree with you one hundred percent. We have the best crew on board Siren of the Seas.”

  He hung up the phone and grinned at Millie. “Just the person I was looking for.” Donovan opened his right hand desk drawer, reached inside and pulled out Millie’s keycard – the one that gave her access to almost all areas of the ship. It was the card he’d taken from Millie when they discovered she’d used it to sneak into his office.

  “You can have this back.” He slid it across the table. “You earned it.”

  Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Millie pulled the temporary lanyard from around her neck and slipped her permanent one on. “Sweet. Thank you.”

  The two chatted for several moments before Millie glanced down at her watch. She needed to get backstage to prep for the main show.

  Millie stood.

  Donovan held out a hand. “Oh! I’ve been hanging onto this pile of mail for a couple days now. There is something in here for you and a couple pieces of mail for Cat. Do you mind dropping this off on your way to the theater?”

  “No problem.” Millie grabbed the mail and made her way out the door. She had just enough time to drop Cat’s mail on her way.

  Millie flipped through the small stack as she walked. There was a letter from her cousin, Gloria. She folded the envelope in half and shoved it into her front pocket.

  The other two pieces were addressed to Cat. One of them looked like a letter from a court and the other piece of mail, addressed to Cat, had been handwritten, her name scrawled carelessly across the front. The ship’s name and address below it.

  She lifted her eyes to the top left hand corner. There was no return address: just one word, one name – Jay.

  The end.

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  Lobster Bisque

  Ingredients:

  1 cup chicken broth

  1/4 cup diced yellow or red onion

  4 tablespoons butter

  4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

  1 cup whole milk (or substitute w/reduced fat milk)

  1 cup heavy cream

  1/2 teaspoon salt

  1/2 teaspoon pepper

  2 tablespoons tomato puree (optional – for color)

  1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

  1 pound cooked and cubed lobster meat

  1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

  1 pinch ground cayenne pepper

  Directions:

  In a small frying pan place 1/4 cup chicken broth and the onion. Cook over a low heat for 5 to 7 minutes.

  In a medium size pot over medium heat melt the butter. Slowly whisk in flour. Whisk until a creamy mixture is blended.

  Gradually pour in remainder of chicken broth, whisking constantly.

  Whisk in milk, heavy cream, salt, pepper, onion, garlic powder, lobster meat, Worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper, tomato puree (optional).

  Simmer soup for one hour

 

 

 
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