Day Four (21 page)

‘Then you have to wait in line twice.’

Jesus.
‘I’m not doing that. Look. I didn’t eat anything yesterday, so it’s not as if I’m—’

‘That’s your problem. You can’t hoard food.’

A murmur of agreement came from the people standing behind her. Maddie looked to the friendly guy in front of her, but he’d turned his back. Maddie suddenly felt tearful.
Don’t give into it.
She wouldn’t have lasted very long as Celine’s PA by being a complete pushover. Maddie squared up to her. ‘So what is my friend supposed to do? She can’t leave her cabin.’

‘That’s not my problem.’

The anger came hot and quick. ‘It’s everyone’s problem, you dumb bitch.’ Maddie was shocked at herself. First Ray, now this.

The woman blinked. ‘What did you call me?’

‘You heard me.’

‘You . . . you can’t—’

‘You’re the one who’s getting in my face. Why don’t you mind your own business?’

‘There’s a system here.’ The woman outweighed her by forty pounds or so, but hopefully it wouldn’t come to that. Maddie glanced around for a security guard, but there was none in sight. ‘You can’t just help yourself to stuff like this when we all have to line up. It’s not fair!’

A man stepped in between them – the blogger, Xavier. He touched Maddie’s arm and said, ‘Thanks, babe.’ Before she could respond he said to the disgruntled woman: ‘She was keeping my place.’

The woman wasn’t mollified. ‘She’s got two plates. She’s hoarding. She can’t do that. And you can’t keep places.’

‘Yeah. Sorry about that. I was . . .’ – he tapped his stomach – ‘you know.’

The woman twisted her mouth. ‘Don’t do it again.’

‘Hey, I won’t. Thanks for being so understanding.’

‘Yeah.’

The woman stared at her a little longer, but Maddie didn’t rip her gaze away. ‘Something else bothering you?’

The woman dropped her eyes. ‘No.’

The man in front of Maddie turned and said, ‘Tempers are running high.’

‘Yeah, thanks for all your help, dickhead,’ she said, surprising herself again, and Xavier snorted. The man coloured and looked away.

‘Thanks for doing that,’ she murmured to Xavier.

‘No problem. Smart with the gloves. Wish I’d thought of that. Apparently you can get the norovirus again. Wouldn’t that just take the fucking biscuit?’

Finally they reached the head of the queue. A deli meat sandwich flopped onto each of her plates, but at least the bread looked fresh. She thanked the server, but he stared at her blankly, mask in place.

‘You really going to eat that?’ Xavier asked.

‘I haven’t eaten since yesterday.’

He gave her an assessing glance. ‘Come with me. I want to show you something.’

‘What?’

‘It’s interesting.’

She held up the plates. ‘I have to take this to my friend.’

‘I’ll come with you.’

‘No. Wait here. I won’t be long.’ She didn’t know him; it wasn’t a great idea to show him exactly where Celine’s cabin was located.

He gave her a sardonic grin. ‘Cool.’

She hurried back into the atrium and across to the VIP deck. A clump of soiled red bags was dumped outside one of the suites, and she tried not to look.

Helen took the food with a tired smile, and Maddie returned to Celine’s cabin. She took a bite of the sandwich, the bread like carpet on her tongue, and put the rest in the bar fridge – pointless, as it wasn’t working.

She could just stay in here. Did she really want to get entangled with that blogger? But she had to admit, part of her was curious about what he wanted to show her. Sod it. What else did she have to do?

He gave her a cocky salute as she walked up to him. ‘Thought you might have changed your mind.’

‘What is it you want to show me?’

‘C’mon. It won’t take a second.’

He waved her towards the stairs that led up to the jogging track. A young woman in a bikini greeted him and gave Maddie a curious look as they zigzagged their way through the mattresses and chairs covering the deck. Several people glared at them as if they were trespassing on private property. Self-conscious in her outlandish outfit, Maddie kept her eyes glued to Xavier’s back as he strode over to the viewing deck. She joined him and looked down at the passengers and crew littered over the Lido and main decks, feeling a twinge of vertigo.

‘Look.’ Xavier leaned closer to her and pointed towards the bow of the ship. On the far left side, a small band of crew members were fussing around one of the crew lifeboats.

‘What are they doing?’

‘Someone’s going out there. Someone’s planning to go and see what the fuck is going on. Which can only mean we’re in deep shit.’

‘They’re sending out a lifeboat?’

‘A tender boat. One of the lifeboats that’s equipped with a larger engine. You know, the kind they used to take us across to Foveros Island. That pretty much tells you all you need to know about the situation. If they knew the cavalry was on its way, why send out a boat? It’s got to mean we’re not where we’re supposed to be.’

‘Why haven’t they just radioed for help?’

‘Wi-Fi’s down, maybe the radio’s also poked. It’s not right. Remember when
The Beautiful Wonder
got stranded?’ Maddie didn’t, but she nodded anyway. ‘One hour into that ship losing power, the whole world knew about it. We’re on day two of this mess, and nada. We’re on our own. They’re not going to be able to put a lid on this much longer. They must be thanking their lucky stars for the norovirus. You saw what it was like in that line. It’s only a matter of time before there’s a full-on mutiny. There are no guns on ships.’

‘It won’t come to that.’

‘Yeah? You think?’

A beep, and then: ‘G’day, ladies and gentlemen. Damien your cruise director here. I’d just like to let you know that the captain will be speaking to you shortly about developments. In the meantime, our guest celebrity on board, Celine del Ray, has generously offered to put on a show for any of you who would like to join her. She’ll be appearing in the Dare to Dream Theatre in thirty minutes.’

Xavier gave Maddie a look. ‘That’s three times the size of the Starlight Dreamer Lounge of hell. She must be expecting quite a crowd. I tried to get in there yesterday, but got blocked.’

Maddie snorted. ‘Big surprise.’

‘What is she doing, starting a cult?’

‘I don’t know what she’s doing. This isn’t like her at all. She’s had a radical change of personality overnight. She says she’s helping people.’

‘Yesterday you said that that’s what she does, period.’

Shit. But what did it matter what she said to Xavier? She was going to quit; she had her plan in place. ‘Yeah, but she’s helping people without being paid. That’s not like Celine.’

‘Ah.’

‘And I don’t know where she’s getting the information she’s using.’

‘She usually googles this stuff, right? And I’m guessing the rest is cold reading.’

Maddie shrugged. She wasn’t prepared to go that far yet. ‘Maybe.’ Could Ray be doing her dirty work? She hadn’t seen him anywhere near the lounge after her run-in with him yesterday, but it was possible Celine had sent one of the Friends to find him.

Down at the tender boat, an officer in whites was gesticulating to a couple of men in blue overalls.

‘I wouldn’t mind having a chat with her,’ Xavier said.

‘I bet.’

‘You could get me in there. C’mon, you owe me a favour. I got you out of hot water in that line, right?’

He smiled at her again. He wasn’t exactly what she’d call attractive, and he certainly wasn’t her type (not that she had one these days) but nor was he completely vile, as she and her friends used to say at school. Christ, where had that come from? Maddie thought about it. Celine was more than a match for Xavier, and it might be interesting. ‘Why not? You want to meet Celine? I’ll take you to Celine.’

‘Awesome.’

As they left the main deck and headed down towards the theatre, Xavier continued to pester her with questions about Celine’s methods, but Maddie kept him at bay. She wasn’t going to make it that easy for him.

A small but steady stream of passengers were making their way into the theatre. There was no sign of Jacob or Eleanor or any of the other Friends, but as the last group passed through the doors, she saw Ray standing outside them, his arms folded across his chest, his legs slightly apart. A bouncer pose.

‘Let me deal with this,’ she murmured to Xavier.

Ray greeted her with one of his cheesy grins. ‘Hey, Tiger. Celine said you’d show up. What the hell are you wearing?’

‘I thought you didn’t give a toss about Celine. What are doing here?’

‘Well, babe, turns out this is where it’s at. Got a job to do.’ Something flicked over his face.

‘She say something to you, Ray?’

‘Nah.’ He was lying. Celine could easily have used a fact from the file his security agency would have sent her. Twisted it, so that it sounded like something she could never have known. But Maddie didn’t get it; Ray knew how Celine operated. Maybe he really was that dumb. Or maybe there was another explanation as to why he was doing his job.

‘How much extra is she paying you?’

A crafty smile. ‘Hey. A bonus is a bonus, right?’ He appeared to see Xavier for the first time. ‘You the guy who tried to bust in here the other night?’

‘Yeah.’

‘What you doing with this asshole, Maddie?’

‘We want to see Celine.’ Maddie moved to step past Ray.

‘Sorry, babe. Celine don’t want to see you.’

‘What are you talking about?’

‘You can’t come in here. Not till she says you can.’

‘She’s my boss.’

He shrugged. ‘My orders. Don’t bother trying the other door, Maddie. Been secured. Celine says you’re not ready yet.’

‘Ready for what?’

‘Just passing on the message, babe.’

‘Let me through.’

‘Can’t do that, Maddie.’

‘How about we pay you?’ Xavier asked.

‘You offering me money?’

‘Yeah.’

‘You a rich boy?’

‘I do okay.’

Ray nodded. ‘I getcha. You figure a dumb old ex-cop like me would go for a bribe.’

‘Not what I’m saying.’

‘Listen, Ray,’ Maddie jumped in. ‘There’s no reason why this has to get nasty. I’ve worked for Celine for years and you—’

‘It’s a public space, you can’t stop us,’ Xavier spoke over her.

‘Watch me.’

Maddie realised that people were bottlenecking behind them. They wanted a show, she thought, and now they were getting one. She tried the charm offensive. ‘Come on, Ray. Just a quick look. We won’t stay long. You can tell Celine we sneaked past you.’ Why was she even bothering? All she knew was that it was suddenly very important to her that she get in there.

Xavier pulled two hundred-dollar notes out of his wallet and fanned them in front of Ray. ‘Take it.’

‘I don’t want your money.’

‘Take it.’

‘I
said
, I don’t want your money.’

‘Come on, dude. Two hundred dollars, where would a guy like you—’

Ray lunged, grabbed the blogger’s shirt, pulled him towards him and head-butted him in the face. Xavier staggered back, clamping his palms over his nose. Maddie froze, only moving to help Xavier steady himself when one of the women behind them screeched.

Ray leaned towards her. ‘Get the fuck away, Maddie.’ She could now smell the alcohol on his breath. ‘Get the hell away from here now.’

The Condemned Man

Snuggly. Warm. Dreamy. Gary liked it in here, it was cosy and quiet. White walls, warm air, stuffy, but not unbearably so. He shuffled onto his side. A man lay in the bed next to him, a thick bandage on his arm. The man was swarthy, like a pirate, and he was staring straight ahead, his mouth open. Gary craned his neck to follow his gaze.

A large black man wearing dungarees and with a rumpled face was standing against the wall opposite, his head bent, wringing his hands. Gary couldn’t see his eyes, they were hidden in the folds of his face. A distant part of his mind registered that this should have been alarming, but it somehow wasn’t. ‘Hey,’ Gary croaked.

The dungareed man darted a grey tongue out of his mouth and put a finger to his lips. ‘Shhhhhh.’

‘Sorry,’ Gary whispered. ‘Do you work here?’ Wherever here was. The ship. Of course! He was on the ship. The cruise. Ooooh. His head. Swimmy. It was all jumbled.

‘Shhhhhhh.’

‘I won’t say anything.’

The large man giggled, and Gary giggled along with him. Friends all together. He liked this man. Like the kids at school would say, he was cool.

Was it night-time? Daytime? What time was it?

Who cares? And mmmmm. He felt nice, as if he’d been rolled in cotton candy; as if he was floating in a large tub of warm water. He snuggled deeper under the sheet covering him. Ow. Something was pinching his arm, and he looked down to see a tube snaking out of the crook of his elbow. A needle. Ugh, no. Get it out. He pulled and pulled, but it wouldn’t come free. Tape. It was taped in there. Pick it off. His fingers didn’t want to work, but then he understood. They weren’t his fingers! They weren’t attached to him. Someone else’s fingers. All numb. He could work them, though. Yes. Work the other person’s fingers with the power of his mind. Pick, pick, get the edge up and . . . riiiiip. He snatched out the needle, watching as a rivulet of blood lazed down his arm. It was very red. That was okay. That was better. He tried to lift his head to get a better look at the man with the bandaged arm, but it was heavy. Tired. Sleep. Yes, that would be nice. He’d have a little nap.