by Nancy Warren
“You say they were under the bed?”
“Yes. I caught a glint of a lens, but the bulk of the eyewear was under the bed. I recognized them because Dr. Madsen has seen my mother a couple of times. In fact, she had an appointment with him earlier today and he never showed up. I got the feeling that no one has seen him, perhaps since yesterday?”
“Ms. Diamond, I can assure you we are looking diligently for Dr. Madsen. He may have gone ashore yesterday and not returned. I’m sure he’ll turn up. He always does. In the meantime, may I suggest that we put those glasses in a plastic bag, which I will keep in my personal safe. When the doctor returns, I will make sure he gets his property back.”
She was very happy to pass them over, and even more happy to find that the captain was taking her seriously and further, that he understood without being told that those glasses might well turn out to be evidence of a crime. Of course he was playing down the disappearance, and of course she played along.
When she had seen the glasses bestowed in a plastic bag she stood to leave. The captain spoke. “Ms. Diamond?”
“Yes?”
“I trust we can rely on your discretion in this matter. There is no point in upsetting passengers.”
“Of course.” Her hand was on the door handle when she turned. “Thank you, Captain.”
As she walked away, she played back the conversation. In typical British fashion, the captain had downplayed any drama. He’d even said that the doctor had always returned in the past. Was it true? Had Dr. Madsen disappeared before?
And if so, where did he go?
Chapter Sixteen
You can’t help getting older, but you don’t have to get old.
– George Burns
When she got to the stateroom, Linda said, “You were gone so long I started to worry about you. How was she?”
“She?” Toni felt momentarily confused, and then realized that Linda had last seen her when she had been worried about Alicia. “Right.” She shook her head. “Sorry. Alicia is fine. But the doctor seems to be missing.”
“The doctor? Dr. Madsen? You mean the doctor who stood me up?” At first, when she’d returned from the spa, Linda had seemed almost relieved not to have gone through with the procedure. But now that hours had passed, Toni could see that she wished it had been done.
“I’m worried that something might have happened to him.”
“Wait. I’m confused. Now it’s the doctor we’re worried about?”
“Yes. Yes, I think so.” She understood that the captain didn’t want her speculating and causing trouble among the passengers, but there was no possible way Toni could stop herself from telling her mother about the incidents of the morning.
Linda listened, and when she got to the part about the glasses, her mother’s eyes bugged open. “What do you think happened to him?”
“I have no idea.”
“Why would his glasses be in Alicia’s suite? Did he pull them off for part of the procedure? Does she remember him doing that?”
“No. She takes a heavy tranquilizer when she knows she’s having one of those treatments.”
“Huh. That’s a good idea,” Linda said, clearly storing this piece of information for future reference.
“I wish I knew where he was, or how to find him.”
“Well, the one good thing to come out of this is that you’ve stopped thinking Wade is a murderer.”
“I didn’t exactly say—”
“You implied it. And he’s a very nice young man.”
“He’s good looking, Mama, which does not automatically mean nice.”
But her mom had made a good point. Whatever had happened in that suite, Wade had been far away.
“What are you planning to do next?”
Toni said, “Captain DuFresne made it very clear he would like me to stay out of this.”
“I didn’t ask you what the captain thought you should do. I asked you what you’re going to do next.”
Nobody knew her like her mama. “I’m going to talk to Wade. He’s the only one who might have some clue as to what happened. I wish Luke would hurry up and get back to me.”
“You must’ve forgotten to take your phone with you. I think Luke did try to call you.”
She had been so busy making sure she had the passkey and the blue coverall that she’d forgotten to take her cell phone with her. She headed straight for her phone, which was still plugged in and charging. Sure enough, Luke had left a message. In typical Luke fashion the message merely said, Call me.
She called him immediately and got voice mail. She tapped her fingers against her knee and left a message when she got the tone. Then she grabbed her cruise bag once more. “I can’t just sit here. I’m going to find Wade.”
As she had suspected he would be, Wade was with her daughter. She found them stretched out side by side in matching lounge chairs, deep in conversation. Her daughter’s expression was animated and she gestured with her hands as she spoke. Wade seemed to enjoy listening to her. His gaze was intent on her face.
Toni stepped closer. “Hi, kids,” she said.
Tiffany regarded her warily. Wade also regarded her warily, as though he were about to get in trouble. She smiled reassuringly at both of them. “I saw Alicia.”
Wade started to rise, but she stopped him. “It’s okay, really. I think she was glad to have a visitor. I understand that when you told me she was too sick to see anyone, you were only doing what she asked you to do.” She thought carefully about what she wanted to say next, and finally came up with, “Your grandmother thinks Dr. Madsen is very good.”
Her daughter was looking at her strangely. She knew that Toni planned to age gracefully for as long as she could.
Wade shrugged, still sitting bolt upright on his lounger. “Yeah, I guess.”
“What about you? She says you’ve been letting the doctor into her stateroom. You think he’s doing a good job?”
“I think my grandmother looks fine without all that stuff, but if that’s what she wants to do, I guess it’s her business.” He paused and said, “He seems kind of old. When I got back from the shore excursion yesterday I went to check on her, and they were both asleep.”
Toni’s eyes opened wide. This was not what she’d expected. “They were both asleep? What, you mean your grandmother and Dr. Madsen?”
Wade crinkled his face in disgust. “Well, not together, obviously. My grandma was asleep in her bed and the doctor was stretched out on the lounger on her balcony, fast asleep.”
“This was yesterday? After you and Tiffany almost missed the last tender?”
“Yes.”
“Did you talk to him?”
“No. I told you. He was asleep. I didn’t want to bother him.”
“When did he leave?”
“I don’t know. I went to my own room and showered and changed and then I went back out again. I have my own exit so I don’t have to bother my grandma. I checked on her again before I went to bed, but the doctor was long gone. The drapes were closed but I opened them and peeked out. I wanted to make sure he wasn’t still out there.”
“What time was that?”
The handsome face creased in thought. “I don’t know. Around eleven, I guess.”
Toni didn’t like the direction her thoughts were tending. When had she become so ghoulish? But she couldn’t shake the notion that when Wade had seen him out on the deck, Dr. Madsen hadn’t been sleeping.
He’d been dead.
*
Luke’s call came as Toni was trying to decide whether she should tell the captain about what Wade had seen. She was certain it was the right thing to do, but she also thought that Luke might have better resources.
“I am so happy to hear your voice,” she said.
“What’s up?” he asked. “You sound upset.”
“I think I need some advice.”
“Do you want it before or after I tell you about Alicia’s will?”
“After.” In all the
excitement, she’d forgotten she’d asked him to find out what he could about the will.
“Alicia Templeton is a very wealthy woman. If she should die before she gets divorced, her husband is her main beneficiary. But the grandson’s in for a hefty sum as well.”
“How hefty?”
When he told her, her eyes bugged out of her head. She had known they were wealthy, but not this wealthy. “Wow. So, even if she’s talking about divorce, and there’s a prenup, so long as she and her husband are still technically married, he’d get a huge inheritance?”
“That’s my understanding. Are you still worried that Alicia’s being poisoned?”
“I have new worries.”
“Tell me it’s an everyday worry, like choosing which shore excursion to take at the next stop.”
“I’m worried about the doctor.”
“The doctor? That quack who treated your mother?”
Naturally, she told him about her visit with Alicia and everything else, right up to her conversation with Wade.
There was a pause. She could imagine him taking it all in, running the story through his various filters and internal police procedural machines before responding. “So, Wade saw this guy sleeping and nobody’s seen him since?”
“As far as I know.”
“Don’t jump to conclusions. Sometimes the simple answer is the correct one. In fact, you’d be amazed how often the simplest answer is the right one.”
“What is the simple answer here?”
“The doctor’s old. He’s just spent who knows how long putting a tiny cosmetic needle into the delicate skin of a very wealthy woman who could end his career in a second if he gets it wrong. That’s a pretty stressful afternoon for anyone. So, he finishes injecting, he takes off his glasses, puts them down. He figures he’ll just sit outside for a few minutes, rest his eyes, make sure his patient’s doing well before he heads out. The boat’s rocking him like he’s a baby, it’s a warm afternoon in the Caribbean, and he falls asleep. He wakes up, maybe he’s disoriented. He doesn’t want to wake up his patient, so he gets the hell out of there. He doesn’t realize he’s forgotten his glasses.”
“Okay, that’s plausible. But where is he now?”
His voice was sharp as a newly honed knife. “That’s what the captain is going to find out.”
“There is no way the crew can do a thorough search of a cruise ship containing three thousand passengers without people being aware the search is going on.”
But even though Toni kept her word to the captain and didn’t discuss her findings, there were enough people on board who knew that Dr. Madsen hadn’t shown up for his appointments that rumor had already begun to spread like wildfire.
*
“I feel like this cruise is doomed!” Toni heard those words from one of the bridal party, crammed, as they so often were, into one of the hot pools on deck. She had deliberately set her chair close enough to hear their conversation, since she considered the bridal party a barometer of passenger feeling on the ship. If anything, due to the heightened nerves of the bride and the stressful situation, they were a particularly sensitive barometer.
“I hope that doesn’t mean my marriage is doomed,” Caitlyn said, close to tears, the steam from the hot tub flushing her cheeks. Toni couldn’t comment on that, but she suspected some of her friendships with her bridesmaids were very much in danger.
There were two ship’s doctors, as one was always on call, so it wasn’t as though the ship had no medical personnel. There were also nurses, a sick bay and the basic medical supplies.
While they were at breakfast the next morning, there was a reminder announcement about a cooking demonstration in the theater offered by the head chef, followed by an optional tour of the kitchen.
“Is the kitchen tour still on?” Toni asked their waiter.
“Yes, madam. Meeting place is the theater.”
“But what about the Norovirus? Is it safe to have passengers in the kitchen? What if some of them are carrying the virus?”
He smiled and leaned closer. “We have several kitchens. The tour will take place in one we rarely use.”
“Oh, good.”
“What do you think, Toni?” Linda asked. “Should we take the kitchen tour? I wonder if the chef will share his recipe for tiramisu? Not that I’d ever make it. But I love watching cooking shows.”
“Sure, why not?” Toni said. “Tiffany?”
“Let’s see, do I want to sit with a bunch of old people, inside, watching some old Italian guy tell me how to make a dessert I am never going to eat?” She put her head to one side. “Let me think about it. No.”
“Let me guess—you’re going to moon over a boy instead.”
“What’s the point of having a youth if you don’t misspend it?” Tiffany asked.
“Fine. Go. Tell Wade I said hi.”
She and Linda headed to the theater and found it set up very much like a cooking show on TV. The chef, wearing his big chef’s hat and a white apron, stood in front of a kitchen set and cameras filmed him making a prawn pasta dish, broadcasting the performance onto big screens so everyone could see the details. All the chopping had been done, so all the chef had to do was to talk about the recipes in a heavy Italian accent and explain how he mixed the ingredients, and then he cooked the meal in front of them. After healthy applause, he said, “And now we move on to dessert. I will show you how to make tiramisu.”
“Oh, be still my heart,” Linda said.
He moved along pretty fast, and his words sometimes got lost when he whizzed the ingredients in the blender.
“Are you getting all this?” Linda asked, leaning closer to Toni.
“No. But we can find a recipe on the Internet.”
When the demonstration was over, the interested spectators were invited to tour the kitchen. Toni loved going behind the scenes—it didn’t really matter where. She liked to see the non-public side of the operation. Linda decided to skip the tour and instead head up on deck.
Toni joined the lineup of foodies and snoops like herself. They shuffled along, through the exit, down a hallway, through a dining room she’d never been in and finally, through a doorway into the vast kitchen.
It was very clear that the kitchen wasn’t in use, since there was hardly anybody in it and all the surfaces were bare. Also, she suspected that the working kitchen would be a lot more chaotic. Still, it was interesting to see the huge ovens, acres of stainless countertop, an enormous wine cellar, locked away behind gates, and the massive refrigerators.
At one station, a kitchen helper was chopping cilantro.
There was a flurry of activity in another area where they were baking cookies. It smelled fantastic, and Toni could see ahead of her that yet another attendant was offering each tour guest a freshly baked cookie as they headed back out into the main part of the ship. She thought that was a nice touch and was telling herself that she did not need to eat a cookie simply because it was being offered, when the happy, sweet-smelling atmosphere was torn asunder by a terrible scream.
Chapter Seventeen
Someone has to die in order that the rest of us should value life more.
– Virginia Woolf
It was the kind of scream that makes the hair stand up on the back of your neck. The kind of scream that made Toni wish she’d opted for the seminar offered by the ship’s personal shopping director called Time to Talk Watches!
But she wasn’t at a shopping seminar. She was here.
She turned in the direction of the scream and saw a kitchen helper backing away from a walk-in fridge, her hand to her mouth. She was muttering hysterically in a language Toni didn’t understand.
All the tour guests stood rooted. The bakers in the corner froze. Even the girl handing out the cookies halted in place.
Toni pulled herself out of her stupor and strode toward the wailing kitchen helper. “It’s all right,” she said, putting a hand to the woman’s shoulder. “What’s the matter?”
The woman pointed with a shaking hand toward the gaping door of the fridge.
Toni gulped. She knew she’d go forward even as part of her yelled at her to stop. It was a meat fridge. Carcasses hung from hooks, an entire side was lined with shelves of bacon, and on the floor were boxes. Toni could see where the woman had moved one of the boxes out of the way and in doing so had revealed a tablecloth.
The tablecloth itself wasn’t remarkable except for the fact that a man’s feet protruded from beneath the bottom end of the fabric. The feet wore shoes. Black shoes with non-stick rubber soles, suitable for walking on a ship’s decks day after day.
She recognized the shoes, but, even so, she stepped deeper into the chilled air and gently slid the tablecloth away from the upper part of the body.
Even without his glasses it was easy to identify the dead man, for dead he most certainly was.
Dr. Madsen had injected his last cosmetic filler.
In the few moments she stood there, she searched for any evidence of the cause of death, but she could see nothing. Naturally, she didn’t pull the sheet all the way off, so perhaps the cause would be obvious once the police arrived and investigated. All she could do was to make sure the area remained uncontaminated until they were able to get here.
She stepped out to find the scene almost unchanged. She needed to get everybody out of here, preferably without causing panic.
“What’s going on?” an older man asked her. He had the look of a former military man, upright of bearing and commanding of presence. He wasn’t going to leave here because some woman in heels told him to. She beckoned him over.
When he drew near, she said, “I hope you can help me. We need to get everyone out of here. There’s a dead man in the fridge.”
He nodded, as though dead people in kitchen appliances were not new in his world. “One of the kitchen staff?”