Undercover Mission

by Sharon Dunn

  The entire contents of her purse had been dumped. Was he trying to figure out who she was? If it was the attacker who had come into her room, she supposed the fact that she had visited the areas where the murder and the other assault had taken place might make him suspicious about her. Maybe that was why he had asked her what she was up to. David probably was wondering the same thing.

  “The door wasn’t forced. Who would have the ability to break in here, anyway?”

  David tossed the remainder of Maya’s clothes in the suitcase that lay open on the table. He shrugged. “Lots of people. A staff member who had access to the card key. Someone who is computer savvy or has access to a master card key. Or perhaps even a passenger who stole a card key off a maid’s cart. It doesn’t happen often, but it does happen.”

  They packed up the remainder of her stuff and loaded it on the cart. David directed her to the service elevator which she noted required that he swipe a card key over it to get in. He pushed the cart while she held on to Sarge’s leash.

  They arrived at the lowest deck of the ship, where the staff and crew lived. David opened the room for her.

  He pushed the luggage cart inside, helped her unload it and then left it in the hallway. “I imagine you’re pretty tired.”

  “Exhausted,” she said and then flopped down on the bed. Sarge sat at her feet. Because this part of the ship was underwater, there were no windows in the room.

  “Make sure, the door is dead bolted after I leave.” The security chief turned to go and then looked over his shoulder. “Remember, I’m right next door.”

  “Thank you, David, for everything.” Though her body was fatigued, her mind was still racing.

  He left, closing the door behind him. She rose and clicked the dead bolt into place. Before turning out the light, she took note of the side door that must lead to David’s cabin. She slipped under the covers still fully clothed. Sarge lay down on the floor beside her. He would not jump on the bed unless he was commanded to.

  She drew her feet up to her chest. From the crime report that she’d read, she’d made assumptions about David that had been way off. He was obviously extremely conscientious about his work.

  Maya wondered how much longer she could keep from him why she was really on the ship. He knew that she had been to both the areas where the crimes had taken place and yet he hadn’t pressed her. Probably because he’d seen how shaken up she was after nearly falling off the ship. He already suspected something was off with her cover story, and if she told him the truth it would be nice to have his help. She’d have to clear it with her boss, Lorenza, first.

  Turning over on her side, she shuddered as she pulled the covers up to her neck. If the man who had attacked her twice was also the one who’d gone into her room, it meant she had an even bigger target on her back.

  * * *

  David slept fitfully. Partly because his leg hurt and partly because he was concerned about the attacks on Maya. He’d see to it that her old room was dusted for fingerprints. There were probably so many sets in that room that it would be hard to come up with anything conclusive. And maybe the guy had worn gloves. Frustration rose up in him. Chasing down fingerprints felt like a time-consuming rabbit trail.

  Anyone who worked for the cruise line went through a thorough background check. That meant that the culprit was either a passenger or crew member with no previous criminal history. What would set someone off to start attacking attractive young women with long dark hair? And now the break-in made it seem like Maya was being targeted in an even creepier way.

  He closed his eyes welcoming the fog of sleep as his mind finally started to shut down. His last thought was of Maya in the next room and how she had looked at him with those deep brown eyes.

  He had long ago given up the possibility of marriage and kids. His own family had been so messed up by his father’s alcoholism and adultery that he feared he would repeat the cycle. Even though he’d become a Christian after the IED had ended his army career, he didn’t trust himself to be a good husband. He best served his God by staying single.

  He drifted off to sleep with Maya’s safety weighing heavily on his mind.

  * * *

  Maya woke up early so she could check in with her supervisor about everything that had happened. After showering and getting dressed, she grabbed her phone and prepared to video chat with her boss.

  Though the connection was not great, Colonel Lorenza Gallo’s face came on her phone screen. “Maya, glad to see you checking in.”

  Because the nature of undercover work was so uncertain, they did not have an agreed upon time for Maya to update her commander, only the promise that she would stay in touch and let her know if there were any new developments.

  The screen glitched a bit. Maybe a room in the belly of the ship didn’t have the best Wi-Fi connection.

  Lorenza sat in her office chair at headquarters in Anchorage. In the background, Maya could see Denali, Lorenza’s older husky lying in his bed in the corner of the room. Her boss put her face closer to the screen. “How is everything?”

  “Things are not dull. I’ve been attacked two times since I boarded, and someone went through my stuff in my room.”

  Lorenza’s eyes grew wide. “Are you okay?”

  “Physically I’m fine. Just a bump on the head. Of course, I’m a little shaken emotionally.”

  The colonel ran her fingers through her short silver hair. “Sounds like we hit a nerve letting you go undercover. Do you think it’s the same guy who killed Crystal and attacked the other woman?”

  “Yes, I do. The first time he went after me it was with a knife just like with the others. The breaking into my room is no doubt linked to the other attacks. I’m concerned that he suspects I’m law enforcement and he was looking for some kind of ID in my room. Whether he figures out I’m a cop or not, my being here has caused him to escalate so maybe we can draw him out before anyone else gets hurt.”

  Lorenza’s expression softened. “Maya, please be careful.”

  The maternal tone of the older woman’s voice touched Maya deeply. “I will. I know how to protect myself. It helps that Sarge is with me.” She reached over to rub her dog’s ear.

  “I want you back on land so you can give us a hand with everything we have going on.”

  “Thank you. The hardest thing about this assignment is being separated from the rest of the team. I miss working the investigations together. Have there been any breakthroughs in the other cases we’re dealing with?”

  When Lorenza glanced off to the side, Maya figured she must be looking at her laptop. “Actually, we might have something hopeful with our missing bride case. Someone called the tip line. A woman matching Violet’s description was spotted in downtown Anchorage.”

  “Really.” Maya felt her spirits lift. At least there was some progress with that investigation. Two months ago, a wedding party had been visiting Chugach State Park outside of Anchorage with a tour guide. The bride, Violet James, along with her bridesmaid, best man and groom all disappeared. The tour guide, Cal Brooks, was found shot dead. Maya and Sarge had been part of the K-9 search party that had been sent to track down the bridesmaid, and later, after their team rescued the terrified young woman, the groom and best man were located as well. Violet James was still at large.

  According to the groom, Lance Wells, Violet had shot the tour guide because they were having an affair and Cal was about to spill the beans to Lance. Maya had found an engraved watch that belonged to Lance close to where the bridesmaid had been pushed off the cliff, which made her wonder if maybe the groom was not the innocent victim he said he was. Still, they needed more evidence.

  “We’re following up on the tip and seeing if there was any surveillance footage in the area where Violet was spotted,” Lorenza said. “So, I’m hopeful we’ll catch her soon.”

  Maya heard Denali let out a quick bark
off screen. The noise caused Sarge to come to attention and whimper. His tail wagged when Maya looked in his direction.

  She smiled at her partner. “You heard your buddy talking, didn’t you?”

  “I think some of the other officers must be on the floor. Denali always lets me know.” A door opened off screen. Lorenza looked off to the side and said something Maya couldn’t hear to whoever had stepped into the office. She turned back to look at Maya. “Hunter and Juneau are here. You want to say hi to them?”

  Maya clutched the phone a little tighter. “I’d like that.”

  “Hey there.” Hunter McCord’s face came into view. Though she could not see him, Maya imagined that Hunter’s Siberian husky, Juneau, was probably doing a sniff patrol of the office before greeting Denali.

  “Good to see you.” Her heart surged. She hadn’t realized how much she missed the rest of the team.

  Hunter offered her a warm smile. “How’s the undercover work going?” For some reason, the image of David and his electric blue eyes popped into her head.

  “Not as fun as working with you and Juneau.” Hunter had been one of the other officers to conduct the search for the missing wedding party. He had since become engaged to the bridesmaid, Ariel Potter after saving her from certain death when she was held at gun point by a fellow dog breeder who regarded Ariel as competition that had to be eliminated.

  Though the jury was still out, Ariel was convinced that Violet was innocent. She’d even received a letter from Violet saying as much. However, as a police officer, Maya had to go by what the evidence suggested. An innocent person didn’t usually evade the police like Violet James was doing.

  “Hopefully, you’ll be back with the rest of the team soon,” said Hunter. “Take care.” His face was no longer on screen.

  Lorenza reappeared. “Keep us in the loop, Maya. Check in when you can. I’ve got to get to a briefing.”

  “Okay, bye.” She pressed the disconnect button on her phone, feeling a heaviness in her chest. The prospect of undercover work had seemed exciting to her at first. But she hadn’t counted on the loneliness. Though she longed to be settled down and married, she didn’t have anyone waiting in the wings. With the kind of hours she kept for work, dating was a challenge. She visited her parents and siblings who all lived in Wasilla as often as she could and poured the rest of her energy into work. The K-9 team was really like family to her. No wonder she missed them so much.

  Her attention was drawn to the knock on her door from David’s room.

  * * *

  Maya smiled when she opened the door. He liked her smile. She was fully dressed in jeans and a pink blouse. Her long dark hair had been pulled up on her head in a braid.

  “Sleep all right?”

  She nodded. “Sarge needs to go up to the doggie play area and do his business.”

  “I’ll go with you.”

  “I’m sure I’ll be fine. There’s lots of people around.”

  His gut twisted. Her words, which almost seemed to push him away, reminded him that he knew she wasn’t being forthcoming with him. If she wasn’t a cop, she was hiding something else. Maybe she had some sort of personal connection to the attacker. “I’m going in the same direction.”

  She shrugged. “Okay.” They hurried up to the dog exercise area.

  Maya let Sarge off his leash to sniff around and do his business as well as introduce himself to the two other dogs that were there. As a rule, the ship allowed therapy dogs only on board, so the play areas were small.

  She had brought a toy with her that she tossed. Sarge retrieved it and brought it to her so he could tug on it while she pulled. The dog growled playfully.

  “He plays like a puppy,” David said.

  She smiled in response as Sarge whipped his head back and forth trying to get her to release the toy. “Some people think he’s a puppy because of his size, but he’s two years old.”

  “Yeah, his head looks almost too big for his body.”

  She let go of the toy and straightened, placing her hands on her hips. “Are you dissing my dog?” Her tone was playful.

  “No, not at all,” he teased back. “He’s cute...in a big-head sort of way.”

  He liked how bright her expression was and the way light flashed in her pretty, dark eyes. The moment of levity between them made his heartbeat faster. “Let me take a picture of you two looking so cute together.” He clicked on the camera icon on his phone and raised it up.

  “That would be great. Send it to me so I can show how Sarge and I are having fun on vacation.” She stood beside her dog.

  A second after he took the photo, his attention was drawn to a scraping sound above him. He looked up just in time to see a huge pot falling straight toward Maya. He leaped the distance between them, pushing her out of the way as the ceramic pot and the plant it contained fell on the ground and shattered. The other two dog owners had grabbed their pets and scooted to the edge of the play area. The few people that were walking around or headed to breakfast stopped and stared. Their gaze going from Maya up to the next deck where the plant had been.

  Sarge bounced up and down barking around Maya who lay on her stomach. David rolled off her. “You all right?”

  She nodded as she pushed herself up. “Nothing is broken. I’m just a little stunned.”

  He jumped to his feet. When he looked up, no one was standing at the railing looking down. If the plant had been pushed by accident, it seemed like the person would have stuck around to apologize and make sure no one was hurt.

  David took off running. Maya and Sarge were right behind him. He climbed the stairs two at a time to the deck above them. The plant had been one of three arranged outside an eatery that was meant to look like a French bistro with tables outside. There was a closed sign on the door of café. They were not open for breakfast, only lunch and dinner. This early in the morning no one was around.

  The other two plants were pushed back from the railing. That meant that someone had to have lifted the pot and tilted it over the railing. Sarge was already doing his thing with his nose to ground where the third pot must have been.

  They trotted down the boardwalk past shops preparing to open and where the lifeboats were secured to the outside of the ship. The area opened up to where passengers were doing laps in the pool. There were at least twenty people milling around or in the pool.

  The scent of chlorine was heady as Sarge slowed his pace. He circled the pool coming back to where he’d started. Then he paced back and forth and lifted his nose.

  Maya shook her head. “I think he lost the scent.”

  “I’m impressed with his skill...you know for just being a therapy dog.”

  Color rose up on her cheeks. “I’m hungry. Where is a good breakfast place?”

  “Maya you’ve been attacked three times and your place broken into. I don’t think it’s wise for you to just randomly go out in the open on the ship. I know this is your vacation, but please, let me see if I can arrange for another security officer to escort you around.”

  Her lips formed a tight line. “For the whole time?”

  “Look, it’s a big ship, but this guy can’t hide forever. I have some things I have to do for my job. Why don’t I take you back to your room? I can arrange for breakfast to be brought to your cabin. That gives me time to see what I can set up to ensure your safety.”

  “If we just had something more to go on besides him having green eyes. It seems like once we are in port in a few days, he’ll be able to slip off the ship.”

  David clenched his jaw. “True.” She thought like a cop. Why didn’t she just fess up to him? The evasiveness reminded him of past failed relationships. Maybe it was his own messed-up family life, but he’d always seemed to pick women who lied, cheated and withheld information. He hadn’t dated since he’d become a Christian and he sure wasn’t going to start. If Maya
not being forthcoming triggered him that easily, it was only more evidence that he needed to stay unattached. “Let me take you back to your room for now. You okay with that?”

  She nodded. They walked beside each other with Sarge pulling ahead as they went back down to the crew quarters.

  They stood outside her door. “I’ll swing by the crew mess hall to put in a breakfast order for you. They can bring it to your room. Then if you could wait in your room until I come by, that would be great.”

  Her forehead furrowed in frustration.

  “I don’t want your whole vacation ruined, Maya, but I don’t want you dead either.”

  She sighed. “I know.”

  “Give me your number. I’ll text you with the name of the person who will bring your food... Don’t open the door until he or she says who they are.”

  After she recited her phone number, he waited until she was safe inside her room and he heard the dead bolt slide into place. After stopping by the crew mess and putting in the order for Maya, he hurried up the stairs to the security office. His morning duties had piled up while he’d stayed close to Maya, but it had been worth it to save her life.

  David entered the security office. He made arrangements for another security officer to dust Maya’s old room for prints and then he opened up the report that the night security officer had filed. It was the usual incidents. Someone who had too much to drink had become unruly, lost jewelry had been reported and missing toys that had been located.

  One incident on the report caught his attention.

  Woman, Brenda Littleton, age 25 reported that she thought she was being followed as she headed toward upper deck. Officer checked out her claim but found nothing.

  Feeling a lump form in his throat, David called the reporting officer. He knew he would be waking him up, but his gut told him not to wait. The phone rang three times before the other officer, Hans Smith, picked up. “Hello, David. What can I do for you?” Hans’s German accent was heavier when he was barely awake. One of the neat things about working on a ship was the international flavor of the crew he worked with.