by Ava Dunne
“But—”
“I’ll give you a giant size tranquilizer if you give me trouble. Knock you out until we get into port.”
“Okay, okay.” I raised my hands in surrender.
“I’ll be back later,” said Sebastian. “If you want me.”
“Yes,” I said. “I want you.”
He grinned. “Good.”
“Did Andrew sabotage the engines? Is that why there have been problems?”
Sebastian shook his head. “No, they’re just being cranky. It happens sometimes. We’ve got it fixed.”
“Good.”
Sebastian dropped a kiss on my forehead and left.
“You’ve got a good one there,” said Harmonia.
“For now, it feels right. Thanks for helping save my life.”
“You’re my friend,” said Harmonia. “What else am I going to do?” She smiled. “See you later. I’ve got to get changed and meet one of the VIP passengers for a reading. Not Kristina, don’t worry. Roz is outside. She’s itching to see you.”
Harmonia left and Roz breezed in. “Glad you’re not dead, sweetie, but really? You thought I was a jewel thief?” Before I could sputter a response, she added, “It’s flattering. You think I’m smart enough to be a jewel thief. Beats being thought of as a hooker. Andrew. Andrew! Blows my mind. Damn good actor. Too bad he didn’t go on stage instead of running around murdering people.” She checked her watch. “Gotta run. I’m doing the tea dance with Matt this afternoon. Not allowed to wear heels, can you believe it? I don’t know how Amy and management think they’re going to spin this narrative. Can’t wait to find out!” She kissed my cheek. “You ever scare me like that again, and I will kick your ass all the way to Cancun and back.” Roz sailed out.
Duncan Cooke entered and took a seat beside the bed. I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing. Finally, he said, “I was wrong.”
“You didn’t know it was Andrew, either?”
“Andrew’d gotten onto the radar, but we weren’t as far along as you. I was wrong not to take a chance with you when it was there. I was wrong for making you feel like I didn’t think you were worth it. You are.”
“Our timing sucked. It happens.”
He got up and looked at me for a minute. “Maybe one day, our timing will be better.”
When pigs flew or Sebastian and I broke up. I could afford to be gracious right now. “Maybe.”
He looked at me for a minute, smiled, and limped out.
Dhruv, Vallejo, and Madigan were next. I told my tale as best I could, stopping frequently for water.
“We can do this later, if you’d rather,” said Dhruv.
“No, I said. “I want to say it all now, and then sleep.”
When I was done, Vallejo and Madigan left, but Dhruv lingered. “Did you really think I killed Geri and Wendy?” he asked.
“I didn’t want to,” I said. “You had a reason to kill Geri—”
“A reason?” It was a half-laugh. “What possible reason could I have to take a life?”
“You couldn’t prove she was the blackmailer. You wanted to make the ship safe again.”
“By killing her.” He shook his head. “Okay, I’ll agree that I had motive. But what possible motive would I have for killing Wendy?”
“I couldn’t find one,” I admitted. “But the timing. I told you that Wendy was in her cabin alone.”
“I can’t believe you’d think that of me.” He looked at me. The hurt in his eyes pained me. “Did you think I set you up for the jewel thefts, too? Because I believed you were Geri’s partner? Couldn’t nail her, so I killed her. Couldn’t get you, so I set you up for theft? Did you think I’d try to kill you, too?”
“No.” I didn’t sound convincing, even to myself.
“I’m, I don’t know what to say.”
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“On an intellectual level, I understand,” said Dhruv. “But not on every other level.”
“All I can do is say I’m sorry,” I said.
“I had hoped we’d be friends.”
“Can we start over?” I asked.
“Maybe in time,” he said. “I need, I need to wrap my head around all this. I would like to be friends with you, but I need some time.”
“I understand.” In fact, he was more understanding than I would have been, had our situations been reversed.
“I thought I heard you call me,” Dhruv said. “That’s why I was down on Zero. Faint, far away, but I could have sworn. . .anyway, then Harmonia came running and shouting, and a whole posse charged out of the laundry room, so I joined them.”
“I was thinking about you, when Andrew had me trapped down there, telling me what he’d done,” I said. “But I didn’t think anyone would show up.”
“I’d always show up, if you needed me.” He sighed. “Be well, Sophie.” He leaned down and kissed my forehead before he left the room.
I have friends here, I realized, alone in the room. Even in just ten days, these people are my friends. They’re willing to put themselves on the line for me.
It was a good feeling.
…
I woke up to a quiet room. I reached for my water, and spotted a thick, cream-colored envelope beside it with my name in bold, flowing script. Taking a long drink first, I put the water aside and picked it up. I opened the flap and pulled out a matching card.
A sprig of fresh rosemary fell onto my lap.
The card read, “I’m sorry. Forgive me. I was wrong.”
No signature.
CHAPTER TWENTY
AMY LEFT INSTRUCTIONS TO STAY on board the ship once it docked in New York. Rowena Callahan wanted to speak to me. I waited in the yoga studio. I packed everything that was mine, and had my luggage ready, prepared to disembark once Rowena told me that my services were no longer needed.
I’d been summoned to meet with Captain Poulson, Staff Captain Christakos, and Hotel Manager Garcia before class. The Captain was a striking Dane in his early fifties. I could picture him as a Viking raider. Yet he was soft-spoken, and his eyes were kind.
“I read your statement,” he said, lifting it. “Is there anything you want to add?”
I wasn’t about to rat out the Orsinis or Viktor’s affair with Geri. “Everything relevant to the murders or Geri’s blackmail business is there,” I said.
I had the distinct impression all three men understood what I wasn’t saying. They hadn’t earned their ranks without intelligence.
“If you ever find out about any other such scheme, be it blackmail or drug running or anything in those lines, I want you to come to me,” said Captain Poulson. “Of course, report up the chain of command to anyone you feel you can trust. But always come to me. I don’t stay aloof from my crew or anyone who works on this ship. Understood?”
“Yes, sir.” Too bad I’d never get the chance, because I was about to get fired.
“Thank you, Sophie, you did well,” he said.
It was obvious I was dismissed. “Thank you,” I said. “All of you. These ten days have been a privilege.” I was proud of myself for leaving the room with my head held high and not bursting into tears, even in the corridor.
I said my goodbyes to the guests in that morning’s final yoga class, something my previous boss cheated me out of when she fired me. Was that really only two weeks ago? Guests from later classes stopped in with goodbyes and thanks. I hadn’t been able to do any of the poses in the final class due to my injuries, but I talked them through it.
“Joshua and I are going to go out,” Melodie confided. “See if we like each other beyond the ship. Maybe do a weekend in the mountains. Who knows? Maybe we’ll see you on another cruise?”
“Maybe.” My mixed emotions caused a prick of tears behind the eyelids, but I held them back and kept a bright smile on my face.
Luke was on his way upstate, to work at a sanctuary for abused animals. “Maybe we can help each other,” he said.
“I think it’ll be a good f
it for you,” I replied.
“I’m keeping up my meditation practice,” he promised. “I can’t think of anything better than doing sunrise and sunset meditations.”
Bridey gave me a mermaid sun-catcher, “because your smile is like sunshine.”
Lydia promised to write. “Real letters, not emails,” said Lydia. “Natalie and I are talking about going to summer camp together next year. In between visiting back and forth.”
Stella and Bartholomew stopped by, giving me a small box. “It’s not stolen, don’t worry,” Stella whispered, as she gave me a hug.
“Thank you for keeping our secret,” Bartholomew added.
I still wasn’t sure about that, but I smiled and wished them well. When I opened the box, I found a delicate, dolphin-shaped silver pendant on a filigreed chain. The dolphin’s eye was made of Larimar.
Keeping their secret would make Dhruv trust me even less, and I didn’t want to think about the repercussions if Sebastian ever found out.
Dhruv brought me a peace offering, a ceramic bowl for the meditation altar. “A building block to wipe the slate clean and rebuild a friendship,” he said.
I should be the one making the effort to rebuild. I was at fault for where things stood with Dhruv. Yet he took the initiative. At this point, he lived the path of truth and compassion better than I did. If he knew I lied by omission about Stella and Bartholomew, any possibility of friendship was destroyed forever.
But that was a worry for a different day.
Daciana dropped off an envelope from Kristina Murray, containing ten $20 bills. No apology, no thanks, just an envelope of money. Appreciation or hush money? I couldn’t decide. I wished Kristina offered an apology instead, or at least dropped off the envelope herself.
Kiki wouldn’t leave her cabin. I approached several times, knocked, begged, slipped notes under her door. She wouldn’t respond.
“It’s not just you, she won’t talk to anyone,” Hans confided. “Jacques wants her fired. Javier Garcia wants to be on her side, but she’s not making it easy.”
I wrapped up the locket, put it in a padded envelope, and, with Kulap’s help, paid the woman who cleaned Kiki’s cabin to slip it in. I hadn’t gotten a response, but didn’t expect one. I hoped Kiki would recover.
I wanted to find Remembrance Man. How could I walk the ship, sniffing all the men to see if they carried the scent of rosemary? I’d be in Bellevue in no time, wearing the latest in stylish straitjackets. For now, his identity remained a mystery.
“Sophie?” Rowena slid out of her shoes and stepped into the studio.
“Hi, Rowena.” I was ready. I had to remember that in this situation, she was my boss, not my friend.
“I heard you had a bit of trouble.” Rowena eyed me. “You’re hiding the physical bruises well. How are the emotional ones?”
“I’ll be okay.” I was confident about it. Between my friends on land and my friends on sea, I would be fine. And Sebastian. I wasn’t sure what would happen with Sebastian, but I wanted to explore our possibilities. “Kiki won’t be fired, will she?”
“No decision’s been made yet,” Rowena answered.
“If she wants to stay, I’d like to add my support,” I said. “She just fell in love with the wrong guy. I can relate to that. If it helps for me to talk to Hotel Manager Garcia or Staff Captain Christakos or even the Captain, whatever it takes. She shouldn’t be punished for this.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Thank you.”
“I like what you’ve done with the place,” Rowena teased, nodding at the bright, painted drying racks.
“Jacques hates them.”
“Jacques hates a lot of things that aren’t his business.” Rowena shrugged. “But he’s good at running the spa at a huge profit and hiring talented people to work in it, so we tolerate him. We ignore him when he oversteps. The guests raved about your classes.”
“I’m glad,” I said. “It was an astonishing trip.”
“Hans enjoys working with you.”
“I like working with him, too, although we don’t see much of each other.”
“That’s what Hans considers a good working relationship.”
I giggled. “I can live with that.”
“I hear you’re a pretty spry dancer, too.”
“I enjoyed myself, but I wouldn’t want to add that to my regular duties.” I sighed. “I regret missing the tea dance yesterday, though. I was looking forward to it. But Dr. Zhao wouldn’t let me out of bed.”
“If you could do anything you want here, what would you change?”
I thought about it for a minute. “A memorial for Geri, Gary, and Wendy, back here in the employee area. In the ideal cruise ship fantasy, I’d be able to open the windows and get in fresh air. I know that’s not an option with these windows, but I don’t like cold, re-circulated air all the time. I’d order more mats and towels. Tweak the schedule a bit, so I can hold more classes outside in nice weather. Drop the Pilates. Try it a few more times, but that’s the class with the least interest. Maybe have that slot be different every day — a crystal mediation class one day, a sound healing class one day, Pilates one day. Have at least one class a day for staff and crew.”
“Would you be willing to implement those ideas over time?”
A spark of joy flared. “Under the right circumstances.” I had another thought. “I’d like a budget, so I don’t have to pay to get the yoga blankets cleaned out of my own salary.”
Rowena frowned. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I need clean blankets at least every other day and I can’t get at the machine until about four in the morning.”
“Done.” Rowena pulled a sheaf of papers out of her briefcase. “Is a salary bump from $500 to $750 a week and a six-month contract the right circumstance?” She scribbled in the points we discussed. “I think we can skip the month-long training in Florida. Dealing with three murders and taking over a full roster of classes covers more than you’d get in the training course.”
“Ya think?” I teased.
“I do,” Rowena teased back. “Along with the other issues we just agreed, all good?”
I smiled as she reached for the contract. Sebastian and I would celebrate tonight. I named it luminous prospects. “May I borrow a pen?”
…
THE END
…
Continue reading for acknowledgements, tips on choosing a cruise, links to sights mentioned in the book, the first chapter of Davy Jones Dharma (the second Nautical Namaste mystery), teasers for Playing the Angles and Tracking Medusa, information about the Author and more!
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
BOOKS ARE BORN OF PASSION, research, and creativity. I have many people to thank.
Back in the mid-1980′s, when I worked regional theatre in San Francisco, I had a temp job in the office of a cruise line, while working in theatre at night. They kept me on for eight months. I was an administrative assistant, helping one of the Vice Presidents. He was one of the best bosses I’ve had anywhere. Unfortunately, he was the fall guy in a corporate shakeup, axed to protect someone less ethical higher up in the food chain, and I refused to stay. Had I hung on for four more months, I could have had a free cruise.
But while I was there, I was part of a group of four desks, two-and-two facing each other. My three office mates all handled bookings and other guest-related details. The woman beside me was named Sonia, and she was one of the smartest, funniest, and most spirited people I ever had the good luck to know. The four of us had a blast together, always ready to help each other out, always ready to make the guests feel appreciated.
At one point, there was a crisis (giving away the details would give away the line), and it was all hands on deck (pun intended) for days, twenty-four seven. It was during a rare week I was free in between shows, so I was part of it. For several days, we worked around the clock in shifts, taking quick breaks to sleep on cots in the office to get it sorted out. We called it
“corporate summer camp,” ate more take-out food than I can remember, and laughed a lot. We got it done. And yes, we were fairly paid for the extra hours.
This book is dedicated to Sonia.
My first cruise as a passenger was when I was twelve years old, and my mother and I took an American Express tour in Europe. Part of the tour was a five-day, or maybe it was a seven-day, cruise up the Rhine River, from Strasberg, Germany to Rotterdam, Netherlands. I was the youngest on the ship, and quite spoiled by everybody.
My experience working on the admin side of a cruise line was many years before I wrote this book. During the interim, I built my theatre and writing careers, and, in theatre, worked my way up to Broadway. Along the way, I met many people who’d worked in the cruise industry, especially on the entertainment staff, and they shared their stories with me.
When I decided to set a mystery on a cruise ship, I tracked some of my former colleagues down, and also ran into many former cruise ship employees who are now in other lines of work. I interviewed over 160 people doing research for this book, all of whom wished to remain anonymous. No individual is based on anyone specific; everyone is a composite sketch of different facets from different stories, and then allowed to grow into an independent character. Their stories root the fictional episodes in this book in truth; again, this book is fiction. I built a lot of “what ifs” into the tales told.
Yoga has been a big part of my life for years. I have spent some wonderful times at Kripalu, in Stockbridge, MA, deepening my practice, and much of what I’ve learned there and in other yoga studios I gave to Sophie. I thank Kripalu and all my teachers there and elsewhere.
I thank the many people who listened to me talk about this book and work out its many drafts, especially here on Cape Cod, where most of the book was written and re-written. I got advice that veered a few drafts into a direction that felt wrong, but I even thank those whose advice I found did not work for my vision. I would not have been able to clarify what I wanted without it.
I would like to thank Joelle Charbonneau, who was a big cheerleader of the book since we first talk about it in a Hell’s Kitchen bar. I would like to thank Annette Blair, Candace Havens, and Juliet Blackwell for their spirited heroines who led the way for the creation of Sophie.