Carter asked, "What does TBD stand for?"
"To be delivered," I answered.
"That description doesn't really help us, does it?"
I shook my head. That could match either gal. Pushing the radiogram in my pocket and looking at the captain, I could feel how tired I was, even with a cigarette in my mouth. I hadn't forgotten my manners, however. "Your men were very helpful, Captain."
He smiled and pulled on the brim of his cap. "Good to know, Mr. Williams. Did you find anything?"
I explained about what happened in the forward section of the "B" Deck. "Sergeant Vasco suggested a room-to-room search of that area. In particular, take a look at any empty rooms. After last night, we know she has a passkey or some way to get into rooms."
The captain nodded thoughtfully. "I think you're right. I'll ask Mr. Harris to organize that. Meanwhile, I can't thank you enough for your help so far and am afraid I'll be relying on you further."
I nodded. "You're welcome and I understand. But I think we need to get some sleep before we become zombies."
. . .
We were both sound asleep when the phone began to ring. Carter stood up suddenly and said, "What?" He'd been holding me close on the bed. Before we'd went to sleep, I'd pulled everything off to get down to the bottom sheet. We were both in our BVDs and, even without a covering sheet or blanket, we were both sweating. I was sure he was as disoriented as I was to be woken up in the bright daylight at whatever time it was. He picked up the phone as it rang again and growled, "Yeah?"
A voice spoke for a long moment and then Carter said, "Wait. Repeat that." The voice spoke again and, after another long moment, Carter said, "I understand. Give us thirty minutes." He put the phone down and stood there, looking tired but handsome.
I sat up in the bed and grabbed my Camels from the bedside table. "Want one?"
He nodded. I lit two and handed him one. As I did, he leaned over and kissed me on the forehead. I took a drag and felt myself begin to come alive. I asked, "Who was that?"
"It was Mr. Harris. They found something in one of the rooms on the 'B' Deck. He wants us to meet him there."
I stood up and stretched. As I did, Carter yanked the cigarette out of my mouth, put it in the ashtray, and then dug his fingers in my ribs. I doubled over laughing.
"Hey!" I protested as he pushed me to the floor with a thud. Stretched out over me, he dug his fingers into my ribs again. I started laughing so hard, I could barely breathe. After a few confusing seconds, I said, "Uncle!"
Carter sat up on his haunches and looked down at me. He reached over, got my cigarette, and put it back in my mouth. "I warned you once, son. I ain't gonna do it again."
"Is this about Randolph--"
He dug his fingers in my side again.
"Cut it out!"
He shook his head. "Don't talk about it, don't mention it. I told you. I don't like that."
I pulled away from him, but not too much. "Why? What's the big deal?"
"None of your business, son. Now, let's get ready." He stood up, reached down, took my hand, and yanked me up.
. . .
I knocked on the door to Stateroom 536 and waited. Carter was rubbing my neck and then stopped as soon as we heard the lock turn in the door. Mr. Harris silently pulled the door open and beckoned us in.
The room was a mess. There were three small valises of different styles tossed around the room. Skirts, dresses, blouses, stockings, and various undergarments were scattered on the floor, on the dressing table, and in the wardrobe, which was open.
This cabin had two beds. One was normally a couch but had been made into a bed. The other was a Pullman-style deal that dropped from the wall above the lower one. The upper bunk was still closed. The sheets on the lower bed were dotted with blood. I walked around the small floor and looked for more bloodstains. I found a trail and followed them over to the wash basin, which was the only in-room plumbing in this section of the ship.
Carter looked at the blood on the floor and said, "This isn't what I thought it was."
I nodded. "It could be as simple as a bloody nose." I noticed that there were a variety of bottles, tubes, and containers of lotions and make-up on the basin and that none of it matched. I turned around and surveyed the clothes scattered around the small space. None of them matched either but everything could easily go together. To my eye, at least.
I looked over at Mr. Harris, who was standing with his arms folded and his back to the door. He was angry. In fact, he was glowering at me. I reached into my pocket and produced my pass key. "I still have mine, if you're wondering."
"Thank you, Mr. Williams. Now, if you don't mind, can you explain why Miss Russell, her husband, and Sergeant Vasco's wife were members of your little scouting team last night? Was the captain not clear in his instructions?"
Carter came up behind me and put his hand on my shoulder. I sighed and said, "They insisted."
"How did they even come to know about any of this? I didn't want to say anything in front of the captain last night, but I would have expected professionalism from you and Mr. Jones although now I can see my confidence was misplaced."
I heard Carter breathe in sharply right then, so I stepped backward and pushed him against the wall to keep him from taking a swing at the chief steward.
"That's just fine, Mr. Harris. Feel free to recruit among your own crew to do a job that you should be doing yourself. You won't be disappointed again." I said all of that calmly and without raising my voice. I took the key, which was still in my hand, and put it on the dressing table.
Mr. Harris looked away from me and out the porthole window for a long moment. Finally, he sighed and turned back. "Again, my apologies. You're quite right to refuse to help us any further."
I looked at him for a moment. I felt sorry for the guy. He was between a rock and a hard place and I was sure he didn't like either of us and that was making things worse. But we were this far along and finding the corpse in our cabin had made things personal. So, I reached over, picked up the key, and dropped it back into my pocket.
"Now," I asked, "what about all this stuff?"
"We've been receiving complaints all day from passengers in this section about petty thefts from their rooms."
"I don't see anything valuable."
"Precisely. Only a blouse here or a makeup bottle there has been pilfered. Furthermore, I feel quite certain that not all of the owners have yet to discover their losses."
"So, she knows how to get into a cabin but not one that's closed off."
"Yes. I have a steward closing off every vacant cabin."
I nodded."Good. We probably should have thought of that last night."
Mr. Harris smiled grimly. "Yes. And, unless we find this person soon, I fear the captain will confine all passengers to their cabins."
Carter said, "That won't sit well with most folks, I'd imagine."
"Not at all, Mr. Jones. Not at all."
. . .
After we left Mr. Harris, we walked up a flight of stairs to the "A" Deck. The doctor's office was on the starboard side of the forward section.
Pushing open the door, we found a nurse sitting at a small desk making notes. She looked up, smiled, and asked, "May I help you, gentlemen?"
I asked, "Is Dr. Kilpatrick in?"
She shook her head. "He's visiting a passenger in her cabin. Is there something I can help you with?"
I smiled. "My name is Nick Williams. This is Carter Jones."
A curious look crossed the woman's face. "You're here about the body?"
I nodded. "Do you know if the doctor was able to determine the cause of death?"
She pursed her lips. "Why don't you have a seat. He'll be back any minute."
There were three wooden chairs on the wall opposite her desk. We sat down and waited. As we sat there, the nurse returned to her notes. The only sound in the room was the scratch of her pen and the ticking of the clock on the wall. The ship was rocking slightly, much less t
han earlier that morning, and I could feel myself falling asleep, so I stood up and pulled out my package of Camels.
The nurse looked up and said, "I'm sorry, Mr. Williams. We don't allow smoking in this area."
I smiled, put my cigarettes back, and asked, "You don't happen to have any coffee, do you?"
She smiled indulgently and shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't. If you're feeling sleepy, you might want to try a brisk walk up and down the corridor."
Carter stood up and said, "That's a good idea, Nurse. Come on, Mr. Williams. Let's do that." Pushing me towards the door, he said, "We'll be on the lookout for the doctor."
With that, I walked out into the passageway with Carter on my heels. Once the door was closed, I asked, "Why the quick exit?"
"I was falling asleep. Also, I've discovered that I don't like being in rooms that don't have windows."
I nodded and began to stroll down the passageway, moving forward to the front of the deck. On this level, there was no outside section. We walked along the starboard passageway, past the stairs and the bathrooms at the very end, and came back along the port passageway.
As we did so, I was looking at the sections of cabins. There were six small cabins whose doors opened into a small vestibule. As we passed the third of these on the port side, I saw a bright red head of hair duck into a cabin and close the door. I kept walking until we got to the next small opening and then I abruptly turned into it, pulling Carter along with me.
"What?" he whispered.
"I think I just saw Rosie."
"Where?"
"In the little group of cabins we just passed. She ducked into the one that was all the way back on the left."
"I'll go check. You wait here."
I nodded as Carter stepped around the corner and headed back forward down the passageway. I followed him, waited around the corner from where the cluster of cabins was located, and listened.
I heard him knock on the door.
A faint voice asked, "Who is it?"
Carter said, "Room steward."
"Just a moment."
After about fifteen seconds, I heard the door open and a voice say, "You're not a steward."
I then heard Carter say, "I'm sorry, ma'am. I was playing a practical joke on a friend. And, apparently, I have the wrong cabin. I hope I haven't disturbed you." His voice was thick with honey and was hitting a full five on his scale of southern charm.
The voice replied, "You're a tall drink of water, aren't you?" I rolled my eyes.
"Yes, ma'am. I hope you'll forgive me but I better be going. I'm gonna lose that bet after all."
"Well, it might not be such a bad thing, after all. My friend has a date tonight and I'm all alone."
"Well, ma'am, you see, my girlfriend--"
With that, the door slammed hard.
Carter came trotting out and pulled me down the passageway with him as I tried hard not to laugh.
. . .
We walked around the forward section of the deck two more times before we saw the doctor. He was walking into his office just as we were rounding the corner by the foyer across from where it was located.
Carter opened the door and the two of us walked in. The nurse, who had been whispering to the doctor, stopped suddenly as we did so.
"Good afternoon, Dr. Kilpatrick," I said.
The man turned and smiled tightly. "Yes, Mr. Williams." Looking over at Carter, he nodded. "Mr. Jones." He didn't offer to shake.
I got right to the point. "Were you able to determine the cause of death?"
The doctor shook his head. He made a motion for us to follow, so we did. He led us into an examination room behind the nurse's desk. The body was laid out on the table.
"The chief steward is sending up a couple of men to move the body into the ship's freezer. I've done as much as I can with what instruments I have."
"Find anything?" I asked.
"No. And that's puzzling. No contusions or lacerations. No cuts or bruises. No sign of a struggle. Nothing other than a few more scars that point to repeated electroshock treatments. Whoever she was, she had treatments over a number of years, I'd say. As for anything else, we'll have to wait until the coroner in Honolulu has a look to know more."
We stood there and looked at the body for a long moment in silence. She looked very peaceful. I wondered what Rosie, or whoever she was, had done.
Chapter 7
Diamond Head Room, "B" Deck
S.S. Hilo at sea
Friday, August 13, 1954
Second sitting for dinner
Dinner that evening was a bit more subdued than the night before. We were all the same group, but shifted around again. I ended up between Miss Kilgore and Gale Storm. Both ignored me and talked to each other and around me, which was fine by me.
I realized Miss Kilgore was having the time of her life and was neglecting her job as hostess at the table. The captain was equally distracted. Ros and Freddie arrived late, as usual, with Ros making a sweeping entrance. She was wearing a dress in a dramatic shade of emerald green and looked beautiful.
The two younger girls were on either side of Carter and were trying to flirt with him. It was shameless and amusing to watch. His charm meter was almost off the scale.
I was enjoying a dish of fresh pineapple sherbet when Mr. Breaux walked up to the table. He handed the captain a folded-over piece of paper and then handed me one as well.
I wiped my mouth on the napkin and then opened the paper.
NICK WILLIAMS C/O CORAL LINES SS HILO AT SEA. C THOMAS ALIAS JENNIFER RUDSON. FORMER PATIENT NAPA. TREATED FOR NYMPHOMANIA STARTING 1942. DESCRIBED AS VOLUPTUOUS. YOU HAVE A LEAK. SAM SAYS SAT EXAMINER TO HAVE FRONT PAGE SPLASH. CRUISE SHIP HOMICIDAL MANIAC ON LOOSE ETC. NOTORIOUS NICK ETC. MIKE.
I looked up at the captain and our eyes locked. The expression on his face was one of controlled anger. He glanced around the table and said courteously, "I'm sorry ladies and gentlemen, I have a problem I need to attend to." With that, he stood and motioned to me to follow.
I stood up and said, "Excuse me." I looked at Carter and nodded. He stood up and repeated the same. We quickly caught up with the captain who was walking aft through the rear of the dining room and towards the elevator.
When the elevator door opened, several passengers walked out, leaving the car empty. The three of us walked in and the captain pressed the button for the Sun Deck. We rode in silence, stopping at the Main Deck to take on more passengers. The captain chatted pleasantly with them as we made our way to the top.
Once the doors opened, we followed him down the port side to the Radio Office. He opened the door and said to the officer on duty, "Mattingley, please wait outside and don't let anyone in until I open the door."
The man saluted and replied, "Yes, Captain." Once he was gone, the captain put his back to the door and glared at me. He pulled out the radiogram from his coat pocket and thumped it. "This is what happens--"
I said, "Before you start accusing anyone of anything, maybe you should look at the outgoing radiograms."
The man's jaw tightened and he stood there for a long moment. Finally, he relaxed his stance and said, "You're right. Please wait for me outside."
Stepping forward, he opened the door and we walked out into the night air. From inside the office, the captain barked, "Mattingley!" The other man jumped and walked into the office. The door slammed behind him.
Walking over to the railing, I pulled out my package of Camels. I looked at Carter who nodded. Putting two in my mouth, I let him light them both, and then gave him one.
"What's going on?" Carter asked after taking in a drag.
I pulled the radiogram from my tuxedo coat jacket and handed it to Carter. He stepped under a light to read it. Sighing, he walked over and handed it back to me. "So, the woman in the rose dress was actually Jessica Tremaine?"
I nodded. "And the one on the loose is Jennifer Rudson."
"Why all the aliases and switching names?"
I sh
rugged. "Why all the clothes?"
"Maybe it's as simple as--"
"They're both nuts."
I turned around, leaned against the railing, and looked at the stars. It was another clear night. The ocean was calm. The stars were there for the plucking. And I was exhausted. After we'd left the doctor, I hadn't been able to get back to sleep so I'd left Carter in the cabin and walked forward to the pool and soaked in the sun, reading more of Uncle Paul's journal. After an hour of that, I'd headed back to the cabin and woken up Carter with a kiss. We'd made love for a nice long time and then took a long shower together before dressing for dinner.
Carter put his arm around me. I leaned into him. There was no one on that end of the deck and, besides, I was beyond caring who saw us or what they might say.
After several minutes, I heard the Radio Office door opened. Carter stepped back and we turned around to see Mr. Mattingley motion us over. We walked into the office and he closed the door behind us.
The captain said, "My apologies, Mr. Williams. We went through all the outgoing messages and found nothing."
I nodded. "Probably someone on the take in the Western Union office."
Mr. Mattingley said, "That's outrageous!"
I smiled grimly and nodded. "Yes. It's rare, but it does happen. I want to call Mike Robertson, the president of our company and talk to him about this, if we can."
The captain nodded at Mr. Mattingley, who moved behind the counter, reached down, and pulled out a telephone without a dial. Placing it on the desk, he asked, "What's the phone number?"
I gave him Mike's home number which he wrote down on a pad. He then turned around, removed a headset from a hook, put it on his head, and plugged it into a console built into the wall behind him. After flipping a switch, he began to slowly turn a large black dial. He listened for a moment while carefully tuning to the right frequency. Then he said, "King Mike Item, King Mike Item, this is Coral Station WLVD." He waited for a moment and then said, "Roger. Receiving you clearly. Advise when ready." After a short moment, he said, "San Francisco Klondike 9921. Repeat San Francisco Klondike 9921." He pressed a button on the console, turned back to face us, and said, "They're calling through. Signal is good."
The Voluptuous Vixen (A Nick Williams Mystery Book 9) Page 9