by Junie Coffey
Jules turned back to the table with a smile, playing the charming host, and the guests relaxed. No one paid any attention to Tiffany as she marched to her seat and sat sulking.
Pansy was seated on Nina’s left, and she patted her hand under the table. The seat on her right was vacant. She looked at the place card. Ted Matthews. He arrived just as the starter was being served, bending down to kiss Kiki on the cheek and whisper an apology before sliding into his seat next to Nina. He sat back and exhaled before turning to look at her.
“Long day?” she asked.
“We have a full house this weekend, and I was out with a client from Boston until almost sundown. He’s been here three days and hasn’t hooked a fish yet. Although that’s not the be-all and end-all, we try our best to give the sports at least one good story to tell their friends back home,” he said. “Some of them come a long way for the experience.”
“So, did he get his fish?” asked Nina.
“Yes, he did. I was just about to call it a day, and he hooked a nice one. He was happy, but I think he got more than he bargained for,” Ted said, chuckling.
“What do you mean?” asked Pansy.
“Well, I was stowing the gear, and he waded away to answer the call of nature at a discreet distance. I had my head in the cooler when I heard a howl, then a lot of thrashing in the water. I looked up to see him slogging back to the boat as fast as a person in a pair of boots in thigh-high water can. Some sharks are attracted to urine, and a blacktip shark drifting nearby had given him quite a shock. By next week, that will be one of the highlights of his trip to Pineapple Cay.” He chuckled again and took a sip of water.
“I apologize, ladies. Maybe that’s not appropriate dinner-table talk. I spend most of my days in the company of men. Sometimes the porch talk gets a bit salty, and I start thinking it’s normal,” Ted said.
“No, that’s actually good to know,” said Nina. “Not the type of practical knowledge you pick up in Manhattan. So, I guess he didn’t get eaten by the shark?”
“Blacktips aren’t ordinarily much of a threat to an angler,” Ted said. “Now, come across a hammerhead when you’re in the water, and that’ll put the fear of God into you.”
“Makes me think about putting a pool in,” said Nina. “Something that blends into the landscape but is shark-free.” A factoid about bears and menstruation acquired during her upbringing in Maine popped into Nina’s head, but she decided not to share it.
Across the table, the older couple who had been chatting with Alice were now engaged in small talk with the elegant Lana Samuels. When that petered out, Lana turned to her other side to talk to the man in the charcoal-gray suit, and the older lady caught Nina’s eye.
“Hello. You must be Nina,” she said, smiling. “We haven’t had a chance to talk yet. I’m Cecilia Rathbone, and this is my husband, Derek. It’s always nice to have a new face in town.”
“Very nice to meet you,” said Nina. “Danish told me that you’re both artists.”
“Potters,” said Derek. “Self-taught in our misspent youth. You must come by the studio someday so we can give you the grand tour.”
Kiki Savage rose to her feet at the head of the table. “It is so nice to have you here tonight to mark this special occasion. Only once every thirty or forty years has a storied wreck like the Morning Star been recovered. What a thrilling event. We want to acknowledge Barry and Tiffany Bassett’s contribution to preserving the cultural heritage of these islands. May I propose a toast to the Bassetts.” She raised her glass and nodded to Barry and Tiffany, and then she sat down.
“Hear, hear!” said Jules Savage from the other end of the table, and other guests echoed the toast. Barry Bassett smiled a tight little smile and took a mouthful of his wine. Tiffany Bassett smiled magnanimously and sprang to her feet.
“Thank you so much, Kiki darling. You are such a pal. Barry and I are so happy to be able to donate the multimillion-dollar Morning Glory emerald to the Pineapple Cay Museum. Although, personally, I think it looks fabulous right where it is.”
She looked down at the emerald, which was nestled in her cleavage, and made a provocative little shimmy with her shoulders. Sitting beside her, Kiki Savage looked down at her plate. Given that the woman was the wife of a rock star, she must have seen worse behavior than that before. But gawd, thought Nina, Tiffany seems tone-deaf to good taste and common courtesy. Barry sat beside her, his face expressionless. He pulled a wine bottle closer to him and read the label while she spoke, then topped off his glass.
“Anyway,” continued Tiffany, “it’s our biggest hope that the necklace will become a huge tourist draw and will raise the Pineapple Cay Museum from its second-class status to a world-class tourist attraction. Thanks. Let’s have another drink.”
There was a smattering of applause. Kiki Savage rose quickly from her seat again as Tiffany dropped into hers.
“And, of course,” said Kiki, “we’re delighted to have the emerald and the other artifacts from the Morning Glory in the museum’s permanent collection, where they will be a wonderful way for the children of Pineapple Cay to learn about the fascinating history of their islands. In that project, we are so fortunate that Ms. Alice Rolle has recently accepted the position of curator at the museum. Welcome home, Ms. Rolle.” She smiled across the table at Alice, and the guests all clapped their hands. Alice smiled back and nodded slightly. Kiki continued.
“I know that all of you would also like to acknowledge the extremely generous donation of the late Miss Rose Knox, beloved longtime teacher at Pineapple Cay Comprehensive School. Miss Rose’s legacy will allow for the development and delivery of educational programs for children and other visitors to the museum for many years to come. To Miss Rose!”
She raised her glass in a toast to Miss Rose, and the other guests followed suit. Beside a now-smiling Kiki, Tiffany Bassett sat with her arms crossed and lips pursed.
“Looks like someone doesn’t like being upstaged,” said Pansy.
After the dinner plates were cleared and coffee and tea were served by two gangly teenage boys in crisp white shirts, a low murmur of conversation began to build around the long table. Nina saw Tiffany Bassett look at her gold bracelet watch like she was wondering how much longer she had to stay. She took a big gulp of wine and then called loudly to Alice Rolle at the other end of the table.
“Come on, then. Come to the powder room and help me get this off, then I’ll let you have it.” She rose from her chair, turned her back on the assembled guests, and disappeared into the house without even waiting for Alice. Alice looked taken aback, but she tucked her evening bag under her arm, pushed back her chair, and stepped quickly across the terrace to follow Tiffany, her heels clicking smartly on the stone tiles.
“It’s like she actually thinks, ‘What would be the most inappropriate, ungracious thing I could say right now?’ and then says it,” said Pansy.
“You can usually count on Tiffany Bassett to try to ruin an otherwise pleasant evening,” said Ted. “On the topic of more inspiring and productive ways to live your life, I ran into an old friend today when I was at the fuel dock on Wreath Cay. Rawson Light. He lives way down in the cays, at the national park headquarters on Turtle Cay.” For Nina’s benefit, he explained, “There’s a chain of mainly uninhabited cays south of Pineapple that the government has protected as a national land-and-sea park. Rawson works there doing park maintenance, cutting hiking trails, fixing the generator, and so on. I’ve run into him on several occasions supervising a bunch of school kids on some beach or another, or in the park picking up huge piles of plastic and other junk that has washed up onshore. He spent a couple of months cleaning and reassembling the skeleton of an eighty-foot-long sperm whale on the beach at Turtle Cay. The whale swallowed a plastic bag, which blocked its digestive system, and it slowly starved to death. It washed up onshore, and the park interpreter uses it to teach the kids about the fragile ecosystem of the cays. The fragility and the majesty.
“
Rawson did a stint in Iraq, although he never talks much about it. He went home to Florida after he left the army and set up an electrical contracting business. He hadn’t been home long when he was diagnosed with cancer and given six months to live. His marriage had ended, and his kids had both finished high school. He decided to spend what time he had left sailing in the islands. He bought a boat and was cruising the Caribbean when Hurricane Annie tore through here. Rawson helped at least four other boats get safely tied up in a hurricane hole before the full force of the storm hit. His own boat was torn off its moorings and lost to sea. No insurance. He found himself boatless in the islands. He ended up on Turtle Cay and made a new plan. That was three years ago, and he still looks fitter than a lot of men half his age, although I’ve never seen him eat or drink anything but diet cola. He’s gruff and solitary, but he’s always quick to smile and shoot the breeze. A remarkable guy.”
“There are certainly a million different ways to live your life,” said Pansy.
People began to disperse from the table and settle into comfortable chairs and sofas assembled around several small, cozy fires that had been lit in shallow metal fire bowls. The sky was a canopy of brilliant white stars set in black velvet. Candles floated on the surface of the pool, dancing specks of light in the dark. A man in a tropical flowered shirt took up a position on a stool under a potted palm and picked out a calypso melody on his guitar.
Across the terrace, Nina could see that Barry Bassett had cornered the man in the gray suit and was speaking vehemently at him, stabbing the air with his pointer finger for emphasis. Nina turned away, making a conscious effort to ignore the scene. She, Ted, and Pansy took up their coffee cups and were chatting with the school principal and her husband when Alice Rolle ran out onto the terrace, the staccato of her heels shattering the serenity of the gathering.
“She’s gone!” she screamed. “Something’s happened to her! There’s broken glass everywhere, and she’s gone! Uncle John, help!”
Roker sprinted across the terrace, pulling his radio from his belt as he went, speaking rapidly into it.
“Everyone, please stay here,” he said over his shoulder as he disappeared inside. Alice stood shaking, clutching her evening bag in front of her. In seconds, Pansy and Kiki were at her side, guiding her to a sofa and sitting on either side of her. Danish hovered beside them with a pained look on his face.
“I’ll be damned if I’m waiting here!” said Barry Bassett, and he followed Roker into the house. Nina perched on a chair beside Pansy, Alice, and Kiki while Ted stood behind her. Jules took up a station by the Minister of Culture, and they talked in hushed tones.
“Are you all right, dear? Do you want a glass of water?” asked Kiki.
“No, no. I’m fine,” said Alice. “At first I didn’t know where she had gone. I checked the powder room by the front door and looked into the living room, but there was nobody there. I could hear people in the kitchen, but I didn’t think she would have gone in there. Then I heard the sound of water running. I followed it and waited for her outside the bathroom for several minutes. I figured she was freshening up and would open the door for me when she was ready to remove the necklace. I didn’t want to make her cross by knocking. But then I got worried. She had been in there an awfully long time. Maybe she had become ill or something. I knocked and called her name. There was no answer. I was beginning to panic. I knocked again more loudly, and when she didn’t answer, I pushed open the door. The room was empty. There was water splashed all over the floor, and the towel rack had been pulled out of the wall.”
She took a breath and continued. “I was trying to find her, and I ran down a long hallway and into a bedroom. Maybe a guest room. It was destroyed! Chairs and lamps lying on the floor. Books pulled out of the bookcase. The bed looked like it had been pulled apart. The sliding glass door was open and off its rail. A piece of fabric from her dress was snagged on the handle.”
She looked up at them. “And there were drops of blood on the carpet.” She covered her mouth with her hand.
Blue Roker reappeared on the terrace and spoke to Jules Savage briefly, then went back into the house.
“May I have your attention, please, everyone,” Jules said, projecting his voice across the patio.
“Deputy Superintendent Roker and his officers need to secure the scene and conduct their investigation so that Mrs. Bassett may be found as soon as possible. Therefore, we must call a halt to this evening’s festivities. Chief Roker says that you’re all free to go now, except for you, Alice dear. He may call on the rest of you in the near future. Thank you all for coming, and I hope we meet again soon under happier circumstances. Good night.”
“I’ll stay with you, Alice, then I can take you back to your aunt’s house. I imagine Blue just needs to talk to you first,” said Pansy.
“I’m staying, too,” said Danish.
“Ted, can you take Nina home?” asked Pansy.
“Of course,” he replied.
“What a horrendous turn of events,” said Kiki. “Nina, I wanted to apologize for Tiffany Bassett’s dreadful behavior earlier this evening, but now that she’s apparently been abducted from my home, I confess, I don’t know quite how to feel.”
“Is it possible she just took off?” asked Pansy. “Tiffany specializes in making scenes, and maybe she didn’t like having to share the spotlight with Alice.”
“I guess anything is possible,” said Kiki. “We’ve never even had a break-in here before, let alone any kind of violence. But the blood on the carpet . . .” She was silent for a moment and then turned to Nina.
“Pineapple Cay prides itself on being the kind of place where you can let your kids roam free because everyone looks out for everyone else, where you can leave your keys in the ignition without worrying about your car being stolen.” Kiki sighed. “I was going to invite you to come by for a visit on Tuesday. I want to show you that we’re a generally hospitable crowd on Pineapple Cay, and also discuss your piece. I’m choosing to believe that Blue will find Tiffany safe and sound very soon, and that you won’t have to write the story of the empty display cabinet in the Pineapple Cay Museum—or something worse, God forbid. I hope you can still come.”
“That would be very nice, thank you. I’ll look forward to it,” said Nina.
The guests had lingered uncertainly for a few moments but were now making their way through the house and down to the parking area under the guidance of two uniformed officers. Ted shook hands good night with a few people and then opened the Jeep door for Nina.
They drove in silence for a couple of minutes before he said, “Quite a night.”
“Yes,” said Nina. “Quite a crime-ridden piece of paradise you’ve got here.”
“Tiffany and Barry Bassett seem to bring the rain with them,” he said. “I wouldn’t blame you for not believing it, but Pineapple Cay is usually a pretty quiet place. Blue Roker’s shop is generally occupied with keeping a lid on small-time smuggling, catching poachers in the national park, and providing security for the annual homecoming parade.” He glanced over at her.
“I gather you got a dose of Tiffany Bassett’s charm before I arrived,” he said.
Nina shrugged. She didn’t feel like reviewing the gory details. “Oh, well, I’ve never understood people like that. Do they enjoy being at odds with everyone?” she asked.
He was quiet for a moment and then glanced over at her again. “Tomorrow is changeover day at the lodge. The current batch of guests is leaving in the morning, and the next group doesn’t arrive until tomorrow night. If you’re free, maybe you’d let me show you some of the better things Pineapple Cay has to offer.”
Nina hesitated. Outside of work, it had been ten years since she’d spent time alone with a man other than her husband. The novelty of the situation made her anxious. But it didn’t sound like a date. He was just being friendly.
“Thank you. That would be nice,” she said.
“Great. I’ll pick you up at nine o’clock.
Bring your swimsuit. And with any luck, by sundown tomorrow Tiffany Bassett will be back at home giving Barry a hard time,” he said.
They had reached her gate. He got out of the Jeep and walked around to open her door. His mother raised a gentleman, thought Nina. She considered herself a feminist, but nice manners were admirable in everyone. They said good night, and she let herself into the cottage. He waited until she’d closed and locked the door before he got into his Jeep and drove away.
5
True to his word, Ted was back at her front gate the next morning at nine o’clock. He had a Boston Whaler with a Bimini top trailered to his Jeep, with a couple of fishing rods, a tackle box, and a cooler stowed inside.
“Good morning,” he said. “All set?”
“Yes, great,” said Nina. “It’s funny. The sun’s shining and the birds are singing. It’s hard to believe last night really happened.”
He nodded. It looked like they were going fishing, and she guessed fish or some other sea creature was on the menu for lunch. That was awkward. She slid into the passenger seat of the Jeep and then watched him go around the front, jump into the driver’s seat, and turn the key in the ignition.
“I’m a vegetarian!” she blurted out.
He paused with his hand on the key and looked over at her. “Is that a fact?” He was quiet for a moment as he looked in the rearview mirror, maneuvered the Jeep and attached boat off the shoulder onto the road, and headed south.
“We have a sign hanging in the lodge. It says, ‘Vegetarian: old Carib word for lousy fisherman.’” He chuckled. “Don’t worry. I won’t make you eat any fish.”
“Are we going fishing?” she asked.
“I thought you might like to try bonefishing. It’ll give you a different perspective on the island.” He looked over at her again. “We don’t eat them. It’s catch and release.”