4 Maui Macadamia Madness

by Cynthia Hickey

  The Wahines sat around one, the rest of the guests scattered among the other tables, not that there were many of us left. Maybe that accounted for the frown on our robust host’s face.

  David Hatcher fit the body build of last night’s beach wanderer, so did Leroy Wahine and the gardener, Manuel Mokiao. Of course, that didn’t necessarily mean our attacker was a man. I was sure most Hawaiian women could blow a dart, or was that stereo typing? And, if the darts were poisonous, we’d be dead by now. Ugh. My mind was wandering, again. I needed a concrete clue to follow.

  “Joe, can I go with you to talk to Manano?” I stabbed my fork into a chunk of pineapple.

  “No.” He downed the rest of his coffee and stood. “I don’t think he likes you.”

  “That’s never stopped her before,” Uncle Roy joked.

  “Ha ha.” I folded my arms and dropped my head on them. “I haven’t a clue, literally. I’m going to the bathroom.”

  Wanting to be alone, I shook my head when April made a move to follow. I needed to do something, and it wasn’t the restroom. Instead, I ducked out the back of the main building. If one of their employees smoked, there’d be an ash tray. There was, and a few of the butts had lipstick on them. Still, the person on the beach last night had been a man, I was certain. So, tonight, I’d come back and find out who smoked. Then, I’d pounce on them with questions. I didn’t have a lot of faith in Manano. If Joe wanted to do things the proper way, well, good for him.

  Instead of returning to the table, I stopped right outside the double doors. Luckily for me, the Wahines’ and Susan and David sat close enough for me to eavesdrop. So far, no one was speaking. I rubbed my leg where the dart had pierced me. It didn’t hurt, really, not nearly as much as the knowledge that someone would take down Ethan to get to me.

  Footsteps alerted me to the fact someone was either leaving or joining one of the tables. I froze and held my breath.

  “This is out of control,” Susan hissed.

  “I know.” Manano! “I thought when Jamison was found dead, things would settle down. Instead, they’re escalating and I have no idea who’s behind it.”

  “Not that Banning woman?”

  “No.” Manano scoffed. “I just used her to set the real killer off guard. She’s not smart enough to head up an operation like this.”

  Whatever. I could head up anything.

  If Manano had no idea of the killer’s identity, and either Susan didn’t either or she was a very good actress, I was back to square one. The idea didn’t sit well with me. With only a few days left on the island, I needed to get to the bottom of all this. My gut told me it had something to do with Jamison’s scam to get people to buy into a timeshare. Obviously, the list from the box was a list of those people.

  Except, Uncle Roy wasn’t listed. Maybe because he hadn’t actually paid any money yet.

  Another set of footsteps caused me to stumble backward. I tripped over a planter and landed square on my bottom. Goodness, I was a graceful as a turkey. I stood and rubbed my aching tush.

  “Summer, if you’re finished goofing around, would you mind stepping inside so Officer Manano and I could have a word in private?” Joe stared, brow furrowed.

  “Sure.” It didn’t take a rocket scientist to know I’d been eavesdropping. Sigh. I started to head back to the dining room and changed direction. I needed some quiet time with the Lord.

  A conversation with Him was long overdue. I wanted to smack myself in the head. Like the other times, I plowed forward without asking for His guidance. When I finally did, pieces would start to fall into place. Why should this time be any different?

  I popped back to the patio, asked Joe to tell Ethan I was headed to the beach, then hurried off before anyone could stop me. I desperately needed some prayer time alone.

  In clear view of our cottage, I plopped into an empty beach chair and watched the sun glimmer on the waves. Outside, in God’s creation, was the best place to get close to Him, in my opinion. Walls built by human hands left something out. A bit of God’s glory, perhaps.

  I bent my knees and pulled the skirt of my dress to cover them. The morning wasn’t cold, but a bit of a chilly ocean breeze blew, kissing my face and playing with my hair. Closing my eyes, I lifted my face to the sun.

  No words were needed. Just an open heart. God knew my worries, my fears, my needs. I allowed myself to empty in His hands. Soon, the breeze carried more than the salty scent of the water, it held His promise to never leave me. Tears rolled down my cheeks, not sad tears, but ones of happiness. Strange, not how wonderful prayer made me feel, but that I took so long to take the time to worship.

  Drying my tears on my knees, I stood and stretched. I turned to see Ethan sitting a few feet behind me. My guardian angel. I should’ve known he wouldn’t let me too far out of his sight. Without speaking, I moved to him and slipped my hand in his.

  He kissed me and whispered that he wanted to make good on his promise. I warmed hotter than the volcano and let him lead me to our room.

  ###

  Later, Ethan and I snuggled on our deck and watched Joe trudge toward us. I guessed he finally had some information for us.

  He stopped and took an empty deck chair. “Well, Manano is an idiot.”

  I giggled. “That’s no surprise.”

  “I have no idea how he became a cop.” Joe sighed. “I showed him the papers, he took them without looking at them, and then promptly told me that I had no jurisdiction on Hawaii and to stay out of his investigation.”

  Now, my cousin knew how I felt on a regular basis. “And he promptly told you he has no suspects, am I right?”

  “I guess you gathered that much from eavesdropping. The only thing of value he told me was that Susan and David aren’t talking about you being a hassle.” He narrowed his eyes. “And this goes no farther than this deck. But, rather, they’re talking about David’s wife.”

  “His wife?” I straightened.

  “Seems she found out about their little affair. They were buying a timeshare so they’d have a safe place to get together. Anyway, Mrs. Hatcher has the ability to ruin Susan’s reputation. Seems she’d the daughter of her town’s mayor.”

  Oh, what tangled webs we weave. “We’re back at square one.”

  “Pretty much.”

  “Except.” Ethan spoke up. “We’re pretty sure the murderer is a man. We also know Jamison died by poisoned nuts of the same variety the hotel gives out. We also suspect our killer might be a smoker.”

  “We do know a little.” I felt better. “But, we’re running out of time. How safe would I be back home if someone really believes I might know their identity?”

  Joe shrugged. “No idea. But if we don’t find out something soon, we’ll have no choice.”

  “What do the Wahines say about the scam?” Ethan asked.

  “Mr. Wahine had no idea there were rumors that he was selling. This patch of island land has been in his family for generations. They’re behind on taxes, but he believes he can pull out with a steady stream of customers. He’s going to put extra effort into marketing.”

  “But if someone were afraid of losing the family land, that would be an incentive for murder.” I chewed the inside of my lip. “I think we need to focus more on those directly involved with the B & B.” It seemed as if all the guests were as much victims as we were. Some, more so, since they’d been killed.

  “Manano did confirm that the brake lines were cut on Bruce and Maryann’s rental. That makes the body count up to three. Whoever our perp is, he’s racking up bodies. I don’t want one of us to be next.”

  Neither did I. “So, what do we do?”

  “What if we all choose someone to watch? Roy and Eunice take Mr. and Mrs. Wahine, you and April take the staff, and Summer and I take the Wahine kids?”

  “That’s a great idea, Ethan.” I patted his shoulder. “We’re going to solve this. I can feel it. My question, though, is why aren’t we threatened in the daylight? Every time we’ve been atta
cked, it’s been under the cover of night. I think we need to find out when people around here go to bed. If someone constantly sleeps in and then stays up late, they could be at the top of our suspect list.”

  “Kind of an elementary way of looking at things,” Joe stated. “But, it’s as good a theory as any other we have.”

  Well, thank you for the left-handed compliment.

  Manuel, the gardener, strolled by with a leaf blower in his hand. He nodded a greeting and turned on the obnoxious tool, scattering leaves and flower petals all over us. “That’s rude.” I had to shout to be heard.

  Ethan put a restraining hand on me. “Don’t irritate any of our suspects. We’re in enough trouble.” He picked a leaf out of my hair.

  I crossed my arms and gave Manuel’s back an evil glare. It wouldn’t do any good to complain to the Wahines. Not with them being our only solid suspects. Of course, if the Wahines wanted us dead, all they had to do was poison our food. “I don’t want to eat anymore meals here.”

  “Okay, Miss Random.” Joe stood. “I’m going to go explain our plan to the others. We’ll meet at lunch,” he glared at me. “Somewhere. And compare notes.”

  “We’ll meet in the dining room.” Ethan smiled. “If the food were poisoned, they wouldn’t eat it. Just don’t eat anything the Wahines don’t eat.”

  Oh, but my husband put too much trust in people.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “What do we do now?” Since Ethan and I were assigned the task of shadowing the Wahine siblings, we needed to find out what their morning routine was.

  “Camilla works the front desk, not sure what Leroy does.” Ethan headed toward the reception area. “I’ve seen him all over the island.”

  “We need to split up.” And I needed coffee.

  “I hate that idea, but you’re right. You take Camilla. At least there will be people around.”

  “But what about you? You were stuck with that dart, too.” Ethan needed to stop being a hero. We were both in danger, possibly even the rest of the family, although no attempts had been made to harm them. Yet.

  I gave Ethan a kiss, promised to be careful and not tire myself too much not to enjoy the luau scheduled for that evening, then hurried to the foyer of the main building. I grabbed a few tourist brochures and poured a mug of coffee before finding a plush wicker chair to spend some time in. A place where I could watch Camilla work at the front desk.

  Luckily for me, the foyer was also a place for guests to sit and relax. Comfortable seating arrangements were scattered throughout the room, inviting folks to linger, so I wouldn’t attract too much attention by sticking around.

  The phone rang a couple of times, but other than that, no one stopped by the front desk. How could Camilla stand it? At least back home in the candy shop, I had candy to make in between customers. There was always plenty of work to do. I’d be bored to death otherwise. I was bored now. How many times could a girl read the same travel brochure? I sighed and picked up my mug, now cooled to where I could take sips without scalding myself.

  The view outside the floor to ceiling windows was breathtaking. The ocean waves capped with white. A few surfers on colorful boards. Palm trees swaying in a gentle breeze. What I wouldn’t give to be outside, hand-in-hand with Ethan.

  “May I help you, Mrs. Banning?” Camilla smiled, her mocha face beaming. “You’ve been here for a while. Are you all right? Do you need something?”

  “No, I’m fine. Just enjoying the view.” I set my mug back down on the wicker end table. I guess an hour was too long to sit unnoticed.

  “Wouldn’t the view be easier to see from outside?” Camilla’s grin stayed in place. “I’m leaving for lunch and want to make sure there isn’t anything I can help you with first.”

  “No, I’m fine. Trying not to get too much sun.” Great. Now, I’d have something to do. I could follow Camilla, incognito, of course. I wondered whether Ethan fared any better.

  Leaving the mug on the table, I waited a few seconds for Camilla to leave, then followed her, keeping out of sight behind bushes and posts. She headed for the beach and turned right. There wasn’t going to be a lot to hide behind soon. Hopefully, she would be focused enough on her destination not to turn around.

  She sped-walked to a cottage, just off the hotel grounds. The little cottage needed paint, but might once have been a nice shade of sea-foam green. Camilla knocked, a man’s voice called out for her to go in, and she pushed open the door.

  A boyfriend, perhaps? One she didn’t want the family to know about, or did I once again jump to conclusions?

  Camilla stepped inside, kissed the young man on the lips, then pushed himself with a declaration that someone might see. Definitely not an approved romance. I wondered why. The boy was attractive and looked like a native. Was it possible the Wahines had someone else in mind for their daughter? I shrugged. It wasn’t any of my business. There were plenty of other things to take up my time.

  Heading back the way we’d come, Camilla caught me watching. I quickly studied the sand as if looking for shells, and meandered toward her.

  When I got close, I glanced up. “I took your advice and decided to enjoy the outdoors.”

  “Uh huh. Were you following me?” She crossed her arms, tapping a bare foot against the sand. “You’re a guest here, Mrs. Banning, but that doesn’t give you the right to interfere in our personal lives.”

  “I…” Wanted to lie. But, I couldn’t. “I’m sorry. Are you dancing at the luau tonight?”

  “Yes.” Camilla turned her back to me and started walking. “Leroy and I always participate. It’s a tradition that, sadly, might be coming to an end.”

  “What do you mean?” I half-skipped to catch up with her.

  “Nothing.”

  “It’s not a secret that the B & B is hurting for money. After all, that’s why Jamison did the scam.”

  She cast a sideways glance at me. “Really? I had no idea we were in financial straits. You shouldn’t listen to gossip, Mrs. Banning.” Stopping, she whirled to face me. “My family had nothing to do with Mr. Jamison’s death!” All prettiness fled from her face. Spittle escaped her lips. “He was an evil man out to harm innocent people. If you believe the rumors, then you are as bad as he was.” With a swish of her flowered skirt, she dashed back to the main building.

  That didn’t go over very well. I’d managed to make a normally placid-seeming young woman angry enough to spit. I really did have a gift.

  A glance at my watch showed it was almost lunch time. Hopefully, the others fared better. Just in case they did, I didn’t think it a good idea to discuss things openly in the dining room. I waited outside while they arrived and recommended Uncle Roy’s and Joe’s cottage since it was larger, and we could talk in private. They all agreed. We hit the buffet and, with plates loaded down, headed toward our meeting.

  Once we’d settled into the comfortable chairs and sofas at the large cabin shared by my relatives, I made a motion for prayer. “We seem to be heading into this investigation without asking God for direction. If I’ve learned anything from the past, it’s that not asking Him is a big mistake.”

  Aunt Eunice patted my knee. “I agree. See, Roy, we did raise her right.”

  Was there any doubt? I frowned, wondering, exactly, what her comment meant. Of course they raised me right. If not for their love after my mother’s death when I was five, I knew I would have perished. Not once in the last twenty-five years have I ever felt unloved.

  We held hands while Uncle Roy prayed. “Heavenly Father, we ask for your guidance. Without it, we’re nothing but a bunch of chickens running around. We need to find this killer before he kills one of us. Amen.”

  Uncle Roy’s prayers were nothing if not short and simply stated. We all sat. Joe, the showoff, had notes. Fine, he could take charge. I sat back and folded my hands in my lap.

  “Roy, Eunice, what did y’all find out?” Joe poised a pencil above his notebook.

  “That the Wahines are bor
ing.” Aunt Eunice shook her head. “The Mrs. scurried around like a mouse putting last minute touches on the luau. Mr. Wahine stayed in the library crunching numbers on that old dinosaur-of-a-computer. When I went in on the pretense of looking for something to read, he glared at me the whole time.” She huffed. “The man has two personalities. He’s like a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”

  Joe scribbled something on his paper. “Roy?”

  “Nothing more than what Eunice said. They don’t seem up to much at all.”

  “Well,” Joe flipped a page in his notebook. “The gardener is busy getting the place ready for the luau. Didn’t do anything out of the ordinary.”

  “Neither did the maid,” April injected. “But she is a nervous little thing. Flitted in and out of the pantry several times, counting the boxes of nuts. Almost like she was afraid of a reoccurrence happening on her watch. I think she’s clean.”

  “Leroy did gopher work all day. He checked the pig roasting pit, which smells heavenly.” Ethan grinned. “And set up tables and chairs on the beach. But,” he held up a finger. “He does smoke. So, he’s most likely the man we saw on the beach the other night. I asked him about the use of that old sofa, and he said he dragged it there years ago because he liked to sleep out under the stars.”

  “Then, he’s our killer!” I clapped.

  Joe shook his head. “Just because he smokes and resembles the shadowy figure in the photos, doesn’t mean he’s our guy. Lots of young men on this island resemble that picture.”

  The air went out of my balloon. “The only thing I learned about Camilla is that she has a temper when cornered and a secret boyfriend.”

  “Maybe the boyfriend is our killer.” April leaned forward. “What did he look like?”

  “Like a young, handsome Hawaiian.” Tears stung my eyes. “We’re no farther than we were this morning.” Someone else would die before we caught the murderer.