by Ivy Dawson
“Vanessa,” Luci said slowly. “Is she the tall thin woman with the mole on her lip?”
“Yes,” Alexa lifted her head to look at Luci. “She’s got brown hair and dresses worse than my granny.”
“My grandmother always had style,” Luci sniffed, and Alexa rolled her eyes at her, “but yes, I think I know the woman. She was at my club yesterday. They had to send her out during the middle of my first song because she was so drunk.”
“To be fair, you only get on stage in the middle of the night,” Alexa pointed out. “She had plenty of time to get drunk.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Luci said, waving her hand dismissively. “The woman made a fool of herself.”
“Maybe someone posted it online so I can watch it when she’s driving me crazy,” Alexa joked.
Shae frowned as she suddenly thought of something. She quickly found the Ashcrofts’ address before adjusting her search engine. Before long, her screen was filled with various blogs written by teenagers who lived near the couple. One girl, a high schooler who posted pictures of her cheer squad and her house, was exactly what Shae was looking for her.
Whitney Carrington wrote extensively about the drama at her school and seemed to document every moment of her existence. Shae scrolled through the girl’s blog, and eventually her other social media. Finally, she found a post dated a few months ago.
Shae clicked on the video, and Whitney’s face popped up. She was sitting on a couch laughing about something.
“You guys,” Whitney said, widening her eyes, “you’ll never guess what! My neighbor just got arrested for yelling at his wife.” She quickly turned the phone to the window, and Shae could vaguely make out Grant disappearing into the police car.
“Drama on my street,” Whitney sang before making a peace sign at the camera. “Stay tuned for more!”
“What was that?” Alexa asked curiously.
Shae looked up to see that Alexa and Luci were both staring at her with strange expressions on their faces.
“I’ll tell you later,” Shae promised, saving the video and jumping to her feet. She tucked her laptop under her arm as she walked out. “I’ve got to go.”
“Where are you going?” Alexa asked, but she made no move to get to her feet. She was comfortable now, and there was no way Alexa was going to do anything productive after she got comfortable.
Shae quickly made her way to the right cabin, dodging the drinking tourists as she went. When she finally got to the right cabin, she took a deep breath and knocked.
“What do you want?” Grant snapped as he pulled the door open.
Shae wordlessly turned the laptop to him and pressed play. Whitney’s voice started speaking again, and Grant went pale. Once the video stopped, she pushed the laptop closed and looked at him expectantly.
“Whitney,” Grant sighed, shaking his head in annoyance. “I should’ve expected something like that.”
“It’s not about her,” Shae told him. “This was months ago. Harry only started working with Nova about a month ago. At least, that’s what you said during your interview with Business Weekly. Why were you arrested?”
“It wasn’t a big deal,” Grant assured her. “Come in, and I’ll explain everything.”
Shae looked at his cabin with trepidation, then quickly took a step back and shook her head. Grant groaned but didn’t push it.
“I got arrested for disturbing the peace,” Grant admitted. “Nova and I got into an argument, and someone called the cops. Now, I think it’s Whitney who called the cops. But that doesn’t matter.”
“Most couples don’t fight that badly,” Shae pointed out, “and you can’t blame Harry. He wasn’t around back then. What was going on between you two?”
Grant scratched his neck in annoyance. He opened his mouth to answer, but then someone walked past. He stepped out of the way, and Shae kept a careful eye on him. After a few seconds, Grant sighed in frustration, then tried again.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “My wife didn’t love me anymore, and I didn’t know how to handle it.”
“What do you mean?” Shae asked, narrowing her eyes at him.
“I mean, she didn’t care what I did or where I went. All she wanted to do was be alone and do her own thing. She never wanted to be seen in public with me and was always picking fights about the business.”
“That must’ve made you angry.”
Grant groaned loudly and crossed his arms as he leaned on the doorway. More people came past, and he just looked down at the floor until they passed.
“It did,” he admitted, “but not like that. I just wanted things to go back to normal. I don’t know why she was acting like that. I didn’t recognize her anymore. All I wanted was for her to be herself again.”
“Do you know what might’ve caused her to change so quickly?” Shae asked. “Did something happen between the two of you?”
“I don’t really know,” he said, shaking his head. “I came home one day, and she was in our room crying. When I asked what it was, she just threw a magazine at my head and slammed the door. Ever since then, we haven’t stopped fighting.”
Chapter 9
“She’s neglecting her duties,” Mark spat, refusing to look over at Shae.
Shae felt like she had been hauled into the principal’s office. She sat meekly in front of the captain’s desk while Mark ranted about her. The captain had a serious expression on his face, and had his hands out in front of him.
“I understand why you think she should do this,” Mark continued, “but I’m seriously doubting her capabilities. It won’t be long before she makes a serious blunder.”
“Don’t you think this is a bit of an overreaction?” Captain Tim asked, scratching his head. Mark’s face reddened, and he looked over at Shae who shrugged innocently.
“I must insist that you fire her,” Mark said through clenched teeth. “She’s a menace.”
“That’s hardly fair,” Captain Tim pointed out. “Why don’t we give her a chance?”
“Fine,” Mark spat, turning on Shae with a vicious expression. “Tell us what you have so far.” She could see that he didn’t believe she’d have a good answer. Shae had never been a rebellious person, but Mark was such a bad leader that he inspired the rebel in every employee.
She lifted her jaw defiantly, and quickly explained what she’d found so far. Captain Tim nodded seriously as he listened, while Mark just smirked at her.
“See,” he declared triumphantly, “she doesn’t have anything.”
“I disagree,” Shae told him. “I’ve learned a lot about Grant and Harry. They both agree that she was probably killed by someone she knew.”
“They’re right, I think you should follow the husband around,” Captain Tim agreed, nodding thoughtfully. “My money is on him.”
“Excuse me,” Mark said in frustration, “am I the only one with any sense left? This is crazy. Since when are we detectives?”
“Don’t you have an opinion on this?” Captain Tim asked sincerely.
“I have many opinions,” Mark ground out, and Captain Tim laughed heartily.
“I’m sure you do, but I think we should let Shae get back to her work. Don’t you?”
There was an edge to Captain Tim’s words that warned Mark from protesting. Despite this, he glared at Shae as if she was the source of all his problems.
“Like I said,” Captain Tim said, “follow the husband. I bet he did it. Mark, can we just agree that she’s been doing a good job?”
“Not as a photographer,” Mark pointed out. “I’ve been getting complaints all day.”
“You have?” Captain Tim asked in alarm. He looked over at Shae who was just as surprised as he was. “Well, it takes a while to strike a balance, I suppose.”
“That’s if she finds a balance at all,” Mark pointed out, smiling again. He glanced at Shae with a dangerous glint in his eyes. “If she fails at this, we’ll have to reconsider her contract. After all, why pay her if she ca
n’t do either job?”
“That’s a little harsh,” Captain Tim said quickly, but he didn’t disagree with Mark’s statement. Shae felt her heart start beating a little faster.
“You’re right about the whole balance thing,” Shae said quickly, sensing that her place on the ship was in jeopardy. “It’s only my first day. I’m sure I’ll get the hang of it all.”
“I forgot about that,” Captain Tim remarked. “It feels like you’ve always been a part of the crew. Mark, we’re going to give her a chance. After all, it’s only her first day.”
“Then she better get back to work,” Mark suggested, looking pointedly at the door.
She quickly left the office, trying to ignore Mark’s hateful stare. Alexa was leaning on the wall outside, biting her lip nervously.
“What happened?” Alexa asked immediately, walking up to her friend with a concerned expression. “Did you get fired?”
“No,” Shae shook her head, smiling in relief. “The captain actually stood up for me.”
“Of course, he did,” Alexa exclaimed in relief. “He’s a big ol’ softie. I told you to get the captain to like you. Now Mark can’t get you fired.”
“That’s not a guarantee,” Shae reminded her. “I’d better get this solved, otherwise the captain won’t be able to defend me. I haven’t really been paying attention to my other job.”
“Then let’s solve this,” Alexa said in determination.
With her job on the line, Shae felt even more pressure to get the murder solved. Fortunately, the pressure seemed to be sharpening her mind, and she was thinking more clearly than she had in years.
“Do you think you can track where Grant’s using his card?” Shae asked, looking around at the bustling crowds.
The sun had set by now, and it was time for the adults to enjoy their playground. The hallways were crowded with people who were in various states of drunkenness. Loud party music emanated from the clubs, and Shae struggled to hear Alexa’s reply.
A few minutes later, Alexa managed to pinpoint Grant’s location to Luci’s club. It was a stylish place that was designed to look like a 1920’s speakeasy. All the staff looked like they stepped right out of an old film, and Luci was crooning into an old-fashioned microphone onstage.
“Do you see him?” Alexa asked, stepping behind Shae as they took in the packed club. It was still early, but people were already dancing around and drinking. Shae was taken aback by the sheer amount of alcohol that was being served.
“Let’s see if he’s at the bar,” Shae suggested, pulling Alexa to the bar at one corner of the club.
Grant was grieving. He wouldn’t want to sit at a table and be reminded of how alone he was now. He would want to drown his sorrows. Shae didn’t find him immediately, but after walking the length of the bar, she found him.
He was sitting at the end of the bar, nursing an empty glass and staring straight ahead with glassy eyes. Shae quickly pointed Alexa to an empty chair and sat down across from her.
“Why don’t you go talk to him?” Alexa suggested.
“I’ve spoken to him enough today,” Shae pointed out, rolling her eyes. “He’s not going to tell me anything new. I want to follow him around and see what he does.”
“Great,” Alexa said happily, motioning for a waiter and ordering a cocktail.
“I don’t think we should do that,” Shae warned, watching her friend start drinking.
“Loosen up,” Alexa suggested with a grin. “He’s not going to do anything exciting for a while. Let’s just relax.”
“I need to be able to think,” Shae pointed out. “I don’t want anything bad to happen.”
“You’re such a spoilsport,” Alexa teased.
Shae was spared from having to reply when Luci’s song ended, and people started clapping enthusiastically. Shae turned to the stage and clapped supportively. Luci spotted them and frowned. She waved at the crowd before walking off the stage and heading toward their table.
“Did you come to support me?” Luci asked curiously. She looked as glamorous as ever in her emerald flapper dress that accentuated her curves and olive-tone skin. Her eyes were thickly rimmed with eyeliner, but on her, it looked tasteful. She shook her head slightly and her faux-bob glinted under the club’s lights.
“No,” Alexa said immediately, “we followed that guy here.” She pointed over her shoulder to where Grant was still sitting.
“I thought you were amazing,” Shae said quickly before Luci could respond. “This club is so cool. It was such a good idea.”
“Yes,” Luci sniffed, looking unimpressed, “but if I were you, I’d put the drinks away.”
“I’m off duty,” Alexa said proudly, spreading her arms out and doing a little shoulder shimmy.
“Not for long,” Luci chuckled, lifting her chin and looking pointedly behind Alexa. Shae followed the singer’s gaze and winced when she recognized the reporter who Alexa was supposed to be babysitting.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Alexa groaned, covering her head with her arms in an effort to hide from the reporter.
Thankfully, Vanessa hadn’t seen them yet, but it was only a matter of time. Luci smirked triumphantly and sashayed off, while Alexa continued hiding.
Shae took a moment to study the reporter. Vanessa was an imposing woman, but she was a mess. She laughed too loud, spoke too quickly and gave off the impression that she was an inch away from a meltdown. She was already staggering, and most people seemed to be avoiding her.
She’d dragged a poor employee into joining her and was barking orders at them. Vanessa swayed dangerously as her ankle twisted underneath her. She struggled to gain her balance and grabbed onto the nearest person, which happened to be Grant Ashcroft.
He instinctively reached out to steady her, but when he saw who it was, he jerked back in shock. She laughingly looked up to thank him, but her face paled when she saw who it was.
“Is she gone yet?” Alexa groaned again.
“Something’s happening,” Shae said quickly, tapping her friend’s shoulder. Alexa immediately looked up curiously.
Vanessa turned away from Grant and stumbled away with a horrified expression on his face. She looked right through Alexa and passed her without recognizing her.
“What happened?” Alexa asked curiously.
Shae shushed her and watched as Grant smacked his glass down on the counter and stalked off in the opposite direction.
“I think Grant knows Vanessa,” Shae explained as soon as Grant was gone.
“How would he know her?” Alexa asked in confusion, wrinkling her nose. “Isn’t he like a billionaire? I mean, the whole travel writing thing pays well, but I don’t think they run in the same social circles.”
“Well, she’s a reporter, isn’t she?” Shae pointed out, her mind working a mile a minute. “Maybe she wrote an article about him.”
“She must’ve done a really bad job,” Alexa commented, turning back to her cocktail.
“Yes,” Shae said thoughtfully, “and maybe it wasn’t about him.”
“What do you mean?” Alexa asked in confusion, tilting her head slightly as she looked at Shae.
“Come on,” Shae said, picking up her things, “I want to see something.”
It didn’t take them long to get back to Shae’s room, and she immediately picked up her laptop.
“Grant said that Nova started acting strangely a few months ago,” Shae explained, patting at the space next to her. Alexa sat down dutifully and looked over Shae’s shoulder. “He says that she threw a magazine at his head and wouldn’t speak to him.”
“So she had anger issues?” Alexa summarized.
“Or something bad happened,” Shae said. She typed in “Vanessa Langdon” and “Ashcroft” but nothing relevant came up.
“I’m not sure what you’re looking for,” Alexa admitted.
“I thought maybe Vanessa wrote something about them,” Shae said with a sigh, “but I don’t see anything.” She deleted “
Ashcroft” and pressed enter.
A bunch of articles came up, but they all had different names. Eventually, Shae found Vanessa’s website.
“Vanessa Langdon is a freelance writer,” Shae read out loud. “It looks like she uses different names for the different types of writing.”
“Oh,” Alexa said with a little gasp, “like here, this is one of her novels. She used the name Jaime Morgan.”
The website was hard to navigate, and it was clear that Vanessa hadn’t spent too much time developing it. Every few seconds, a pop-up ad blocked their view. It also didn’t help that the internet didn’t work properly on the ship. Shae closed her eyes and took a few calming breaths before continuing.
“Here’s a business article,” Shae said, clicking on it. “She used the name Margaret Jones.”
Shae went out of the website and typed “Margaret Jones” and “Ashcroft”.
Immediately, a Business Weekly article popped up.
“The Ashcroft Empire in Ashes,” Alexa read, squinting at the text. A few minutes later, she and Alexa turned to each other in shock.
Chapter 10
“My visit was enjoyable,” Vanessa explained primly, sitting with her legs crossed and showing off her neat pantsuit.
Captain Tim nodded, taking the occasional note as she spoke.
“I wouldn’t say it was my best vacation, you’ve got a few things to sort out before you can earn a five-star rating from me. For example, your staff wasn’t nearly as helpful as they should’ve been.”
“Do you have any specific examples for us?” Mark asked, balancing his notebook on his knee and chewing on the end of his pen.
“Yes,” Vanessa nodded, folding her hands primly, “that girl you assigned to show me around. She was late for our first meeting, ignored most of my questions on the tour, and kept running off to be with her friends. I’ll be honest with you; your rating would’ve been higher if it weren’t for her.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Captain Tim said sincerely.