Murder is a Beach (Maggie, PI Mysteries)

by Pressey, Rose

  “You have his number memorized?” she asked.

  “It’s an easy number to remember,” I said defensively.

  She shrugged and went back to her needles. About twenty minutes passed before I noticed Jake’s car pull into the parking lot. Since there were shops at the marina, at least I could lie to him and say we’d just been shopping.

  He stepped out of his car and strolled over to us. There was no mistaking the cocky grin on his face as he leaned down, placing his hands on my car door.

  “Hello, ladies. Having car trouble?”

  “Yes, I’m not sure what’s wrong,” I said.

  I seriously needed to learn more about car repair. My mother’s third husband had tried to show me a little, but it was hard to understand his instructions after he’d had a half dozen beers.

  Jake tapped the side of my car. “Pop the hood.”

  I hopped out and joined in front of the car. “Any idea what is wrong?”

  Jake reached under the hood and reconnected the cable onto the battery. “Looks like the battery cable came off. You should be fine now. Try to start it and see what happens.”

  I jumped back in and turned the ignition. The car started right away. I glanced at Dorothy. “It was just the cable.”

  She nodded, but didn’t stop knitting.

  Jake closed the hood and I hopped out again.

  “I’m sorry that I had to call you,” I said.

  “Think nothing of it. I’m glad you called.”

  Jake looked around, then gestured over his shoulder. “What are you all up to?”

  “What makes you think we were up to something?” I asked.

  He stared for a beat, then said, “Wild guess.”

  “We were shopping,” I said, knowing that I didn’t sound convincing.

  “Are you going back to the Captain’s Quarters?” he asked.

  I nodded. “We’re supposed to go back.”

  “Have you found anything interesting?” he asked.

  “There are some weird people there. One of the female employees, Megan Cass, thought that Kristin wanted to have an affair with the co-owner, Justin Mack. Megan is apparently having a relationship with him. Anyway, there’s another employee who I think may be involved with the man in the boat.”

  I hadn’t told him about the picture with the two women and the man’s arm. Or about the bracelet that I’d found. One thing was for sure, I needed to talk with this Sam who was supposedly Kristin’s boyfriend. If that was his bracelet I’d found, then he was probably involved with the man on the boat.

  Jake quirked a brow. “Really? What makes you say that?”

  “I saw the man from the boat talking with him,” I said.

  “Why didn’t you call me when you saw him?” he asked.

  “He was gone too fast. Why aren’t you talking to the employees?” I asked.

  “We’re looking into things,” he said.

  “You just like being mysterious. That’s kind of annoying, you know,” I said.

  “I think you secretly like it,” he said.

  “Well, you’re wrong,” I said, climbing back behind the steering wheel.

  “What are you planning next?” he asked as he leaned down to my window again. It was hard to resist looking at his handsome face.

  “How do you know I have something planned?” I asked.

  “You always have something planned,” he said with a smile.

  I shrugged. “Just going to check some leads I have.”

  “Are you going to share that info with me?” he asked.

  “I’ll think about it.” I smiled.

  Jake stepped back and I pulled the car out. I glanced in the rear-view mirror. He was watching me and I couldn’t help but smile.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  “Now that Jake is gone we can go over to the other marina near the restaurant and see if that boat is there. I need to track down the guy on the boat and find this other guy. The boyfriend named Sam.” I shifted the car into reverse.

  Dorothy shook her head. “I am not making my daily knitting quota.”

  I released a deep breath. “Okay, you’re right. I should just go by myself.”

  I knew that Dorothy would never go for that. She wanted to be a part of this no matter what she admitted right now.

  “No, it is dangerous. You definitely need someone to go with you.” She set her needles down and peered at me from over the top of her eyeglasses. “You should let me drive though.”

  “We did that before and I still haven’t recovered,” I said.

  “I’ll have you know that I’ve never had an accident or gotten a speeding ticket.”

  “Well, there’s always a first for everything,” I said.

  After a few minutes, we’d pulled up to the other marina. Dorothy and I walked around to the deck. If I didn’t get any answers here, I’d have to go to the restaurant and ask more questions. I was trying to avoid the restaurant right now. For one, I didn’t want them to ask me to work tonight, and for two, I didn’t want them to wonder why I was there on my day off.

  There were quite a few people around their boats. I didn’t know where to even begin this clue-seeking mission.

  “Why don’t you take this side and I’ll take the other side,” I said, motioning for Dorothy to start on the right. “Ask around and try to find out if the man with the boat has been here.”

  Dorothy nodded. “Come and find me if you find out and I’ll do the same.”

  I nodded and moved over to the first boat. I’d made my way to the fifth boat and was beginning to become discouraged when I spotted a man moving around the bow of his boat. I’d just stepped closer when he noticed me.

  “Hello,” he said.

  “I wondered if I could ask you a couple questions,” I said.

  He nodded. “Sure. What can I do for you?”

  “I know this is a long shot, but I’m looking for a boat. The name has ‘vida’ in it, but that’s about all I know,” I said.

  He looked over and pointed toward the water. “Is that the boat?”

  I strained to see, but I soon realized he was pointing out the boat that I’d been looking for. This was my chance, but what would I do now?

  “Thank you,” I said, running away.

  Dorothy spotted me as I ran toward her. “What’s wrong?”

  “The boat is out there. It’s leaving,” I said breathlessly.

  “Well, you’re in luck,” Dorothy said, motioning for me to follow her.

  I was almost afraid to find out what this idea was.

  “It’ll work. I promise,” she said.

  I hurried after her. “Okay, let me have it. What idea do you have now?”

  “I know someone with a boat. He’ll let us take it out and follow that boat. That’s one way to find out who this man is,” she said.

  “I guess that makes sense, but it sounds like a risky move.”

  “Since when do you let something like a risky move stop you?”

  “Well, never, I guess,” I said.

  Jake would definitely not go for this plan. But it wasn’t his case, so it didn’t matter. How could he be a cop and never take a risk? Well, other than the risk of possibly being shot every day he was at work.

  I couldn’t believe I was allowing her to talk me into this. It had disaster written all over it, but since I was low on options, I had to give it a try. Believe me, if I could think of a better idea I would have definitely tried it. I’d never driven a boat, but how hard could it be? Turn it on and steer the wheel, right? It would be just like driving a car, right? Maybe even better because I wouldn’t have to stay in the lanes or wait for red lights. As long as we could see land we’d be okay.

  Heck, maybe I’d like it so much I’d eventually get a boat of my own, although that would require solving a whole lot of cases in order to afford one. Maybe I could get one of those house boats and live on it. Then I thought better of that idea when I realized I would be constantly floating. Always
up and down. I wondered if I would have sea sickness. It would be too late once I got out there and realized that was the case.

  “Are you sure this person will let you use the boat?” I asked.

  Dorothy waved her hand. “Of course. This person owes me a favor. I got them out of a lot of trouble one night.”

  I wasn’t even going to ask what that was all about. “What are we going to do when we catch up to the boat?” I asked.

  “We’ll make him stop and ask him questions.”

  She made it sound so easy. If only it could be that simple.

  “By the way, do you know how to swim?” Dorothy asked.

  “I can stay above water, I guess,” I said. “What about you?”

  “Same here,” she said.

  I hoped this boat had lifejackets because it looked as if we both needed them. The only boat I’d ever been on was my mom’s third husband’s old fishing boat. That thing had been a rustbucket and I couldn’t believe that we hadn’t sunk the moment we’d gotten on the water. That had been one of the most boring summers of my life. I would probably never be able to go finishing again because of that experience. The lake had reeked of hot fish and the mosquitoes had had a buffet on my skin.

  We reached the boat. It was small and I was thankful for that. It would be easier for me to handle a small boat. My stomach flipped just thinking about navigating the waters. I barely knew how to turn the thing on.

  Dorothy rushed over to her friend and I stayed back to watch. I didn’t want any part of that conversation. The boat was still in view, but the longer we waited the farther away he would get. The man frowned at Dorothy and it didn’t look as if things were going in our favor. But after another minute he smiled and nodded.

  The next thing, I knew he’d handed Dorothy the keys.

  She bounced back over to where I stood. “We need to hurry before the boat gets away. Are you ready to go?”

  “Yeah, sure. Is he okay with us taking his boat?” I asked.

  She waved the keys in the air. “I have the keys, don’t I?”

  I nodded. “Well, yes, you do.”

  “Okay then. Let’s do this.” She motioned over her shoulder. Dorothy climbed onto the boat and sat behind the wheel.

  “Whoa. What are you doing?” I asked.

  She looked at me incredulously. “What does it look like I’m doing? I told you we are going to find the boat.” Dorothy sat behind the wheel of the boat with both hands wrapped tightly around the steering wheel.

  “Dorothy, something tells me you don’t know what you’re doing. Have you ever driven a boat before?” I asked.

  “No, but how hard can it be?” she said, adjusting throttle on the boat.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  I stared at her, but Dorothy didn’t look over at me. “Why don’t you let me give it a try?” I said in a sweet voice as if trying to talk someone off the ledge of a building right before they jumped.

  I’d experienced Dorothy’s driving skills on the highway. Her driving on the waterway was something I didn’t know if I could handle. How would I convince her to let me navigate the boat?

  “Dorothy, I’ll buy you a bunch of knitting supplies if you let me drive,” I said.

  She scoffed. “You don’t have any money. You couldn’t afford to buy me a ball of yarn. Now we’re wasting time.”

  Dorothy pulled on the starter cord and I knew my time was running out. “What if after I solve this case I get you a date with Mr. Grant?”

  She looked at me and for a moment and I thought that my offer had worked, but instead she shrugged and turned her attention back to the wheel.

  Dorothy put the throttle in the starting position, and then adjusted the choke. We took off at what I thought was Mach speed. The wind almost knocked me over and I was rendered speechless for a moment. It was like being on a boat in the middle of a hurricane. I held onto my seat, trying to steady myself.

  “Dorothy, for the love of all things knitting will you slow down,” I yelled over the roar of the engine.

  She whipped the steering wheel around and we headed in the opposite direction.

  “I think you’re supposed to navigate that way, not go in circles, Dorothy. We’re losing the boat. He’s getting away,” I said.

  “I know that, Maggie,” Dorothy yelled as she spun the wheel around.

  It wouldn’t take much of Dorothy’s driving to give me sea sickness. I looked around for a radio on this thing so that I could call the Coast Guard. Dorothy turned the boat in the other direction again and pushed the throttle. Finally at least we were pointing in the right direction, but unfortunately, I couldn’t see the man’s boat anymore.

  Dorothy spun us around again, so much so that I didn’t know up from down. I was pretty sure that she didn’t know up from down or left from right now either. I had to put a stop to this madness right now.

  “Don’t get too far away from the coast, Dorothy,” I said as she turned the boat in the wrong direction again.

  “This is the right direction,” she said with her eyes wide and focused on the water in front of her.

  “No, no, it’s that way,” I said, motioning over my shoulder.

  She eased off the throttle for a moment while she pondered what I’d said, then she pushed the gas again. “I’m sure it’s this way.”

  “Look over at the buildings. We’re going away from the marina. It’s in the opposite direction,” I said.

  Dorothy glanced over and it finally clicked. “Oh, dear. I guess we are going the wrong way.”

  There was no telling where we would end up if she was behind the wheel for much longer. I was ready to plant my feet on the land again. My first true boating experience might just be my last.

  Dorothy whipped the boat around again and I thought at any moment we would go flying off like little rag dolls. Water splashed up on the side of the boat and soaked the skin on my arms. I looked around for a lifejacket. That was something I should have done before Dorothy had ever turned the ignition.

  Finally I grabbed the jackets and tried to make my way over to Dorothy. I stumbled and grabbed onto the edge, trying to keep my balance. I was secretly hoping that we’d run out of gas, except that would mean we’d be stuck out there in the middle of the water.

  I made it over to Dorothy because I was going to insist that she put the jacket on. “I’ll hold the wheel while you put this on.”

  She finally relinquished the control of the boat over to me while she hurriedly put the jacket on and then grabbed the wheel.

  “Now you put your jacket on,” she said as she attempted to steer in the correct direction.

  I nodded and slipped into the jacket. Just then the boat started to sputter.

  “What’s happening?” Dorothy asked as she glanced back at me.

  I shook my head. “I don’t know, but it doesn’t sound good.”

  I looked over at the gas gauge to see if my secret wish had come true. But it indicated that the boat had gas.

  “What did you do to the boat?” Dorothy asked with a frown.

  “Me? I didn’t do anything. How could I? You’ve been driving, not me,” I said.

  “Well, you held the wheel for a moment,” she said.

  “Yes, for a few seconds. I hardly think that would cause the boat to break,” I said.

  “What will I tell the owner?” she asked.

  “I’ll go to the back and look.” I held on to the side of the boat, trying to make my way to the stern.

  Heck, I had no idea what I was looking for though. The engine, maybe? What would I do once I got back there? Make sure that the boat still had an engine? The way Dorothy had been driving it wouldn’t surprise me if it had fallen off. At least for the time being Dorothy had stopped the boat though.

  My hair was plastered to my head from the spray of water that had splashed across the boat and I felt as if I’d been on one hell of a ride at the amusement park. I looked over the edge of the boat. The engine was still back there, but I ha
d no idea if it was still working.

  “Well, we still have an engine,” I said.

  “Thank heavens for small favors.”

  “Are you sure we have gas? Maybe the gauge is broken,” I said.

  “Oh dear, I hope we didn’t break it,” Dorothy said.

  “There should be no we in that sentence. I had nothing to do with it,” I said.

  “Is there a way to see if the boat has gas?” she asked.

  “Other than using the throttle, I have no idea.”

  I leaned over a little again and the boat lurched forward. I fell forward and the next thing I knew I’d hit the water.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The splash had startled me and the water was colder than I would have expected. I was definitely underneath the water for a moment. For a second, I saw my life flash before my eyes. Okay, maybe it wasn’t my life, but more of a montage of what could have been. This was it for me and I was going to drown.

  My head finally emerged from under the ocean and I spat out the water in my mouth and gasped for air. Dorothy was standing at the edge of the boat staring down at me with a look of panic in her eyes. My legs dangled in the deep water and all I could think about was that damn movie Jaws.

  The more I thought about it, the more I was convinced that there were sharks circling me. I’d heard the stories and I knew there were a lot of sharks in the water right off the coast.

  “Dorothy,” I gasped. “Get me out of here. I’m sure there are sharks all around me.”

  “You’re panicking,” she said.

  “Well, do you blame me for panicking?”

  “There are no sharks, now swim over here and grab my hand.” Dorothy motioned for me to come closer.

  “I told you I can’t swim well. The sharks are going to eat me alive and it will be your fault. I think I’m sinking.” My voice had reached an all-time high panic level.

  She shook her head. “You’re wearing a lifejacket. You can’t sink.”

  “Something is touching my leg,” I said breathlessly.

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake. Now get yourself together and swim back over here to the boat,” Dorothy demanded.

  She was right. I had to get hold of myself. I’d take a deep breath and just kick my legs and arms. After all, I could almost touch the boat from where I was now.