Terror at Sea: Three mysteries aboard a cruise ship

by Debby Mayne

  “This is something I don’t think you want her to hear.” Myrna’s jaw tightened as she glared at her sister. “It’s serious stuff, Betty.” She spoke with a low growl that made my skin crawl.

  Betty’s eyes narrowed, and her mouth formed a straight line as she looked at Myrna and then Aileen before dropping her gaze to mine. Finally, she nodded. “Why don’t you go somewhere, Autumn? My sister and this other woman won’t leave us alone if you don’t.”

  “Or you can come with us, Betty,” Aileen said. “Don’t punish Autumn for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. She has every right to relax on deck.”

  “That’s okay.” I got up again, only this time no one tried to stop me. “I have stuff to do anyway.”

  Before anyone could say another word, I hightailed it back toward my cabin. I’d barely rounded the last turn when I ran into Andrea.

  Her face lit up in a smile. “I was just looking for you. I didn’t see you at dinner, and the captain said you were supposed to be at his table if you weren’t able to get a flight out.” She paused. “Then someone said they saw you come back on the ship, so I got worried.”

  I explained what I did. “I’m not really up to any kind of celebration right now.”

  “I understand, but maybe you can at least come for a little while.” She shrugged as she continued smiling. “And who knows. Maybe it’ll cheer you up. This is my favorite event on all the cruises.”

  I wasn’t in the mood to be cheered up, but I also knew I’d sound like a curmudgeon for saying that. “I don’t know.”

  “Please?” Her forehead scrunched as she begged. “Just for half an hour? If you hate it, you can come back to your cabin. It’ll make the whole crew feel better if you do.”

  Half an hour wouldn’t be too bad, I figured. I could endure almost anything for that long.

  “Okay, I’ll go for a little while, but I really don’t want to stay long.”

  She gave me a clipped nod and a satisfied expression. “Understood.”

  “I need to change first.”

  She looked me up and down. “You don’t really have to change.”

  I laughed. “Well, since you put it that way, I really want to. It’s the least I can do since I didn’t show up at the Captain’s Table.”

  Andrea tilted her head and looked at me from beneath her perfectly manicured eyebrows. “Would you like for me to wait for you?”

  “I don’t want to keep you from your work.”

  “That’s okay. I don’t have to account for my time right now.” She let out a giggle. “Contrary to what some people think, we do have a little bit of free time during cruises.”

  “Okay, if you want to hang out, that’s fine with me.”

  We went into my cabin, and she plopped down on the chair and took off her shoes. “My feet are killing me.”

  I glanced at the stilettos she’d kicked off. “Why do you wear such high heels?”

  “Because I’m five-foot-two, and I hate being patted on the head.”

  “Tell you what.” I pulled out a long black skirt and loose-fitting top. “I’ll wear flats, so if you want to change shoes, you won’t be the only short person at the party.”

  “You’re such a sweet person,” she said. “I bet you have a bunch of friends back home.”

  “I have a few.” I thought about the people I called friends and realized most of them were acquaintances. “But just a couple of really close pals.”

  “Same here. After I got out of high school, everyone scattered to different colleges and jobs. Then after college, I lost track of so many people.”

  “Do you have a Facebook page? That’s how I keep track of all the people who moved away from Nashville.”

  She nodded. “I do, but in case you haven’t noticed, Internet onboard the ship can be quite sketchy, and cell phone service isn’t much better.”

  I finished getting everything I needed. “I’ll get ready in the bathroom. It’ll only take a couple of minutes.”

  “Take your time.” She leaned back, propped her feet on the ottoman, and folded her hands in her lap. “I’ll just enjoy a few minutes of quiet.”

  I smiled at her as I closed the bathroom door. After hanging my skirt and top on the door hook, I thought of something I forgot to ask. So I opened the door, and to my dismay, she had her back to me as she was standing in front of my open suitcase and rummaging around. I quickly closed the door, carefully turning the knob so she wouldn’t be able to hear the click.

  What on earth could she possibly hope to find in my things? I didn’t have anything worth worrying about, but the very thought of someone digging through my stuff bugged me.

  I slowly changed into my skirt and top. And right before I opened the door, I coughed to make sure I didn’t catch her doing anything she didn’t want me to see. When I walked out of the bathroom, she was back in the chair, looking relaxed. I glanced over at my suitcase and saw that she’d closed it. I’d left it open.

  When I turned back to her, I saw a look of shock on her face. She probably figured out what I’d noticed, so I started talking about something to get her mind off of it. Fortunately, she took the bait.

  I managed to keep the conversation light as we made our way to the elevator. I offered to go along with her to her cabin to get some comfy shoes, but she said she had some in her office. After stopping off so she could pick up her flats, we went to the party that was in full swing.

  The first thing I did was to find the captain so I could apologize for not making it to his table. He gave me a cursory nod and half smile, said it was okay, and walked away. Okay, so he was annoyed, but at least I tried to make things right.

  For the next half hour, regardless of who I talked to, all I could think about was Andrea going through my suitcase. When I saw her talking to Aileen, I noticed a different expression on her face. In fact, they seemed awfully close and in tune with each other—almost as though they had some special connection.

  Someone had started handing out party noisemakers. I accepted one, but I stuck it in my pocket since I had no intention of using it. The party was raucous enough as it was.

  I finally decided I’d had enough, and it was time to leave. I approached Andrea. “I’m really tired. I think I’ll go back to my—”

  “No.” Her loud abruptness startled me, but she dropped her voice down a notch. “I mean you can’t go yet. The party hasn’t gotten started.”

  “I’m really not much of a party girl, and the noise—”

  Before I had a chance to finish my sentence, she grabbed me by the arm and led me to a quieter area. “How’s this?”

  “Better.” I glanced around. “But I still want to go to my cabin.”

  “Please stay.” She tilted her head and gave me a puppy dog look. “I really don’t like being the only person our age here.”

  “There are some younger people over there.” I pointed to a couple standing over by the captain. “Why don’t you talk to them?”

  “Because they’re a couple, and I’m … well, you know …” She tilted her head and gave me another one of her pleading expressions.

  If I hadn’t caught her rifling through my things, I might have taken pity on her, but something didn’t seem right about this whole situation. And of course, I totally didn’t trust her or anything she said.

  “Andrea!” The sound of a masculine voice caught both of our attention, and we turned around to see Doc Healey coming toward us, appearing as though he was on a mission. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”

  Chapter 22

  She took a step toward the doctor, but when I tried to follow, she lifted a hand. “You stay right here. I’ll be back.”

  I did as she requested, but I was annoyed about it. The two of them had serious looks on their faces as they stood very close to each other and spoke. I wondered if something had happened to another passenger.

  As I waited, I watched the partiers, as they seemed to be having a great time. I wished there was so
me sort of magic volume button so I could turn down the noise. My head felt as though it might explode with the next drumbeat.

  Finally, after what seemed like forever but was probably only five minutes, Andrea came back toward me, a plastic smile on her face. “The doctor said he’d like to chat with you.” She leaned closer. “He thinks you’re very attractive.”

  “Thank you, but I really need to head back to my cabin.” Instead of waiting for her to argue, I turned around and started for the door.

  Somehow the doctor made it to the door before me, and he stood there, grinning, arms folded, and his feet shoulder width apart. “Don’t tell me you’re leaving so soon.” He winked. “It’s still early … the night is young.”

  “I’m sorry, but I’m not much of a night person.” I tried to sidestep him, but he was faster than me. I forced a smile. “Please. I’m really tired.”

  He glanced at something behind me before finally letting out a deep sigh. “Okay, if you must go. I’m just disappointed that we haven’t had a chance to get to know each other.”

  “Maybe some other time.”

  He offered a tender smile, belying his demeanor from a few minutes ago. “Yes, some other time when you’re more rested.”

  As I exited, I managed to glance over my shoulder to see what or who he’d been looking at, and I saw that he was already deep in conversation with Andrea again. Before I had a chance to duck out of sight, the doctor made eye contact with me and nodded. Andrea glanced up so quickly I felt like a deer in headlights.

  I started to my cabin, but before I got to the elevator, I heard Andrea calling my name. “Wait up.”

  My heart sank as I kept going, pretending not to hear her. All I wanted to do was be alone in my cabin, away from the insanity on this ship.

  Once I got to my cabin, I let out a sigh of relief. I went over to my suitcase and hesitated for a few seconds as I thought about how I’d seen Andrea looking through my things. When I lifted the top, I was surprised by how organized everything still seemed—just as I’d left it.

  That fact made me take a step back and wonder about Andrea. Betty was right. There was definitely something different about her, but I couldn’t put my finger on what it was. When she and Doc Healey had their heads together, talking a few minutes ago, I’d noticed a familiarity that went beyond the coworker relationship. I wondered what was going on between them and if they had a romantic relationship. But then if that were the case, why wouldn’t it bother Andrea to know that he’d asked me out to dinner, and why would she tell me he thought I was attractive. There was obviously a clue here that I couldn’t wrap my mind around.

  My first thought was to call Summer and tell her the latest, but I thought about how my charges kept mounting up. Then I considered the fact that there was no amount of money I could put on safety, and this whole situation felt about as unsafe as it could get.

  She didn’t even let the phone finish the first ring this time before answering. And she started talking without even saying hello. “I’ve been doing some checking around, and I found out some stuff that might interest you.”

  I cleared my throat. “Like what?”

  “Like the fact that the cyanide tests came back on those people who died, and they found other elements that they’re investigating. Did you know that a lot of foods naturally have cyanide?”

  “You already told me a lot of fruit seeds have it.” I thought for a moment. “And I sort of remember one of my students saying not to chew apple seeds because they have cyanide.”

  “But you’d have to eat an awful lot of apple seeds to get enough cyanide to kill you.”

  “What other foods have it?” I asked.

  “Well, a lot of the pits of stone fruits contain a massive amount of cyanide, and if someone ingests enough of them, they can die?”

  “Stone fruits?” I asked. “Like what?”

  “Cherries, apricots, peaches …”

  “No, but they’re hard. I just about broke my tooth on a cherry pit.”

  “Not if they’re ground up.”

  I thought about that for a moment. “Are you saying someone ground up some cherry or peach pits and fed them to the passengers?”

  “Not exactly, but the authorities doing the investigation have discovered that the passengers who died had consumed a large amount of cyanide, and they’re not able to find any source that might have sold it to them. So now they’re wondering if the murderer got it from a more natural source. It would still take quite a bit of it to kill someone.”

  “So all the person would have to do is grind up a cherry pit and add it to someone’s food or drink?”

  “It would take more than one.”

  “That just sounds weird to me.”

  “I know, right?” Summer paused. “Sorry I hijacked the conversation, but I couldn’t wait to tell you what I’d learned. So what’s up?”

  I told her about Andrea’s odd behavior and how she’d gone through my luggage.”

  “Is anything missing?”

  “Not as far as I can tell. Looked to me like she was hunting for something specific.”

  “I wonder what that could be.”

  “Well, there is something else I learned,” Summer said. “Ever since the ship went back into commission, there’s been law enforcement onboard.”

  “Isn’t there always?”

  “I think the cruise lines hire security, but I’m talking investigators who are planted to find clues and step in when needed.”

  “Oh.” I thought about all the people I’d encountered, and I couldn’t recall anyone who looked the slightest bit like an investigator. “I haven’t seen anyone who—”

  “Who looks like an investigator?” Summer chuckled. “I remember people saying I didn’t look like a detective, which was why I was so good at going undercover.”

  “Good point. I wonder who it is.”

  “Are there any passengers who stand back and watch everyone else?”

  “I can’t think of anyone.”

  “Have you noticed that the same people are always present when the turmoil increases?”

  I had to think for a moment before answering. “Yes, in fact, insanity seems to follow Betty.”

  “Maybe it’s Betty.”

  She seemed to be the least likely. “I don’t think it’s her.”

  “Okay, so does anyone seem unduly interested in conversations that don’t appear related to them?”

  “Once again, Betty. But I can’t imagine her in law enforcement.”

  “Maybe she’s a plant,” Summer said. “Remember they come in all shapes, sizes, and ages. Plus it’s expensive to live on a ship full-time. Does she appear wealthy enough to throw her money away like that?”

  “She doesn’t appear terribly wealthy, but she said her sister is helping her out with the expenses.”

  “Her sister? Why would she do that?”

  “Oh, sorry, I forgot to tell you that Betty’s sister Myrna is married to the captain, and she showed up unexpectedly. Betty was shocked.”

  “What? Start over and tell me everything from the beginning.”

  I spent the next couple of minutes telling her about Myrna surprising everyone. She asked a few questions that I answered, until I couldn’t think of anything else.

  “You do realize, there’s a lot of good stuff here. I would do anything to be there right now.”

  “You’re incorrigible, Summer. I’ve never seen anyone but you get so excited about finding a murderer.”

  “I’m afraid it’s in my blood.” She laughed. “But I suppose that’s better than having cyanide in my blood.”

  “So what should I do now?”

  “Watch for signs of someone taking notes or using their cell phone more than normal. You also need to pay attention to someone who always comes to the rescue—especially if they appear out of the blue. And when someone suddenly takes extra time getting to know you or anyone else when there isn’t any reason, they just might be fishing for fact
s related to the investigation.”

  “Wouldn’t that be too obvious?” I asked.

  “Only if you were suspicious. You’d be surprised by how few people realize they’re being questioned by law enforcement.”

  I thought about Betty and how nosy she’d been. “So you think Betty might be in law enforcement?”

  “Could be, but there’s no way I can be sure unless I’m there.”

  “When can you be here?”

  Again, Summer laughed. “You should have asked me before you went. But I can’t just up and leave.”

  “I know. So what else do I need to do?”

  “The most important thing is to pay attention to everyone and everything. Try to avoid being in a position of having people standing behind you.”

  “The old back-to-the-wall thing, huh?”

  “Exactly.” She paused for a few seconds. “One last thing I want to recommend is to be careful what you eat. Don’t take anything from another passenger.”

  “I’m almost afraid to eat anything after what’s been going on.”

  “I totally understand,” Summer said. “I’d be the same way.”

  “All these phone calls are going to cost me a fortune, so I’d better get off for now.”

  “If you need help with your phone bill, just holler.”

  After I disconnected the call, I smiled because I knew that Summer meant what she’d said—that she’d be willing to pay all or part of my phone bill. She’d always been that kind of person—helpful to a fault. She was one of those people who went into law enforcement because she truly wanted to make the world a better place. And I had no doubt that many lives had been touched and improved by her mere presence.

  I was about to change into my pajamas when another knock came at my door. I froze in place for a few seconds before I decided to find out who it was.

  Before I had a chance to say a word, I heard Betty hollering, “Autumn, you and I need to have a talk. Open up, will you? I know you’re in there.”

  Chapter 23

  I opened the door and let Betty in. Before I had a chance to close it, she grabbed it and slammed it shut.