Death on the Bella Constance (A Jesse Watson Mystery Series Book 6) (15 page)

I turned to Bella and said, “I’m curious to know how you
found out about the poison and Jimmy Carlson before me if Billy didn’t tell
you.”

“I have my ways.”

“I see you’ve been around my husband too long,” I joked.
“That’s what Billy always tells me when I ask him where he got his
information.”

“So, I’m a copycat.”

“You’re a trip, Miss Bella,” I said. “But can you keep this
bit about the insurance to yourself for the time being?”

“My lips are sealed.” She zipped her lips as if to emphasize
her intent.

“We’re assuming that no one knows about the policies,” Billy
said. “How would you feel if you broke bad on
Utah
,
Jeff, and Steven, only to find out this was old news to the girls?”

“I’d be wrong. I can afford to be wrong at least once.” She
laughed. “But what if I’m right? Then I’d get the chance to lambaste that
hateful Utah Hawks. The joy of it would be worth it to me. If those men did
what you said, they had bad intentions. I’m sure of it. I’ll confront them
without the presence of my daughters. That way I can fill my cup with
happiness. I’m sorry to think that Jeff or Steven would go along with
Utah
, but if they did, they will no longer be in my good graces.”

Bella Constance is a woman with strong principles. Cross her,
and you might as well go hang yourself from the nearest tree. Billy and I found
that out rather quickly, but it didn’t matter. She could count on us. Loyalty
is our family motto. We stick by the ones we love, and we break the ones who
try to hurt us. Bad guys don’t stand a chance with us.

So far…

After deciding that we’d keep mum about our discovery of the
life insurance polices and everything else until we got more evidence, Billy
demanded that Bella agree to stay out of the way.

“You have got to stop playing detective,” Billy said in a
stern manner he uses when he’s trying to get his point firmly across. “I know
you all have stuck your noses in some places you shouldn’t have. You need to
stop it right now. Jesse might seem like just one of the girls, but she’s also
a professional. She’s good at what she does. I’m afraid that if she keeps
running around with you and
Savannah
, she’ll get distracted. So, no more
lunches!” Billy laughed at both of us, and when he noticed that we weren’t
laughing, he stopped. “I was trying to add a little humor to a not-so-humorous
situation. Seriously, someone could get hurt.” He looked at Bella. “Enjoy the
cruise, keep your eyes open, and go on about your business as if nothing’s
wrong. In other words—be like a tourist enjoying the cruise. I’ll keep you
informed every step of the way. And if I need your help, I’ll let you know. You
can still hang around my wife as long as you behave yourself.”

Bella looked at me and said, “I guess he told me, huh?”

“He plays it straight from the hip. Billy don’t pull no
punches!”

“Such improper grammar!” Bella protested. “If your mother
could hear you now she wouldn’t believe her educated, beautiful, and brilliant
daughter would speak so poorly.”

“You don’t even know my mother!” I kidded her.

“I know everyone, my dear… everyone that matters. How do you
think I got to where I am?”

“By being educated, beautiful, and brilliant!” I mocked her.
“How else?”

“Power, my dear. If you have the know-how to achieve power,
you can have it all… know it all…”

I looked at Billy and interrupted her by saying, “Did we
bring our wading boots? We’re going to need them. It’s getting a little deep in
here.”

There was a light tap at the door.

“May I come in?” Loukas asked as he stuck his head in. “I
hope I’m not interrupting. What’s the topic of conversation?” He walked in and
closed the door.

“We were just discussing the same matters you and I talked
about earlier,” Billy answered. “I’m glad you’re here. I think it’s imperative
that we keep all our information limited to a very select group of people… a
very select group.”

“I agree,” Loukas said. He looked at Bella. “Don’t tell
anyone anything you know. Not even the girls.”

“I won’t,” she said. “Billy has already told me to keep
quiet. I know how dangerous this can get, so trust me, I won’t say a word. I
would never do anything to put my girls in jeopardy.” She stepped forward,
kissed Loukas on the check, and said, “Or you.”

The phone on the desk rang.

Loukas lovingly smiled at his wife, kissed her on the cheek,
and said, “You’re a good woman, Bella Constance.” Then he turned, walked over
to the desk, and picked up the phone. He mumbled a few words and then handed
the phone to Billy. “It’s your friend in
Atlanta
.”

Billy took the phone and excused himself as he walked to a
corner of the room. When he returned, he had some very interesting news for us.
“My friend and his men waited for the wife to leave and then searched Jimmy
Carlson’s house. You’ll never guess what they found.”

“What?” the three of us asked at the same time.

“They found a briefcase under the master bed with two hundred
and fifty thousand dollars in it. It has to be a payoff. Who keeps that much
cash hidden under the bed… in a briefcase?”

“The question is,” I said, “where did the money come from?”

“More to the point,” Loukas added. “The money just goes to
prove that he was involved.”

“Why did he try to warn you if he was part of the plan?”
Bella wanted to know.

“Perhaps he developed a conscience,” I suggested.

“I think he was involved, and then changed his mind, but
couldn’t find a way out,” Billy deduced. “And… I think he committed suicide.”

“He drank poison on purpose?”

“Here’s something I haven’t had the opportunity to tell you until
now,” Billy said to Loukas, and then looked at Bella and me. “Jimmy’s wife,
Eva, accompanied his body when they took it off the ship. As a courtesy,
Captain O’Riley promised that his crew would collect their belongings, and have
them sent to their home as soon as possible. So, as soon as I could, I went
through their things and found a bottle of Zanax. Now, the odd thing about that
is, the date on the prescription was four days ago, but the bottle only had
three pills in it. I think he took a handful, and then drank the champagne to
wash down the pills. He might not have known the glass was coated with eye drop
solution… or he might have.”

A light tap at the door interrupted our conversation.

“We should rejoin the others,” Billy said. “We can pick this
up later. Put on your poker faces. We will keep our secrets to ourselves.”

With that said, the four of us, straight-faced, walked out of
the office.

Everyone knows what a poker face is, but to be able to put
one on instantly is hard to do, especially if you’re in the company of someone
like Bella. Both of us almost laughed out loud when she looked at me and
smirked, distorting her face.

I leaned close to her and whispered, “Stop it, bad girl!
You’re going to get me sent to the principal’s office.”

It was all she could do to stifle her laughter, but she
rebounded and kept it together. For a minute, I thought I had her there. I just
knew she wouldn’t be able to contain herself, but she fooled me. What a prim
and proper woman!

“Sir, you should not leave my presence unless you’re in the
bathroom,” Jacob whispered to Loukas. “I can’t protect you if you slip out of
my sight.”

“Oh, Jacob, you worry too much,” Loukas replied as he patted
him on the back. “We were with Billy and Jesse. We’re safe.”

Captain O’Riley walked over and spoke to us. “The ship will
dock in the morning sometime before
noon
.
I can’t pinpoint the exact time right at the moment, but I’ll have an update
soon. I’m sorry we’re running a little behind, but out here the weather rules
the sea.”

“We understand,” Loukas replied.

Chatter commenced. Everyone went about their business
socializing. No one seemed to want to discuss the negative things that had
happened so far, which lightened the mood for everyone. Food, alcohol and good
conversation abounded.

After thirty minutes or so, I was ready to leave. I had eaten
way too much food, and chitchatted until I was exhausted. I was ready to take a
break. I wanted to check on Maggie and Teresa to make sure they were still
doing okay, and I wanted to have a little time with my husband before something
else happened… which I knew it would. Impending doom seemed to cloud my
thoughts. Utah Hawks was also on my mind. I couldn’t get rid of that nagging
feeling that he was up to something. Killing would not be hard for him. I’ve
seen his kind. They have no heart.

I gave Billy the look, and within seconds he announced that
we were leaving. He said he had business to attend to, but he didn’t elaborate,
and no one asked. He also conveyed to the group that he wanted a little private
time with his wife. He reached over, put his arm around my shoulder, and said,
“What do you say, `ge ya? Shall we take care of business and then head back to
our room?”

“I’m with you.” I looked into his eyes and smiled. “Lead the
way.” I stopped for a second and then said, “I’d like to check on Maggie first,
if you don’t mind.” I looked at the captain and asked, “Where is she?”

“She should be at the
Med
Center
with her daughter, but I can call to
find out for sure if you’d like.”

“I’d appreciate that.”

The captain pulled out his phone, walked to the other side of
the room for privacy, and spoke to someone. When he returned, he closed the
phone and stuck it back in his pocket.

“She’s still at the
Med
Center
with her daughter. Dr. Whitley says
she’s doing fine, and wants to know if you still have her medication. He says
that her blood pressure is way up and she needs the pills. We don’t stock
medication like that.”

Billy looked at me as I said, “I put them in a plastic bag to
protect them for fingerprinting. They’re in my jacket pocket. I thought they
should be turned in to someone as evidence, but I didn’t know who.” I looked at
Billy. “What do you think? Shouldn’t they be tested for fingerprints?”

“We’ll talk to the doctor. If he’s positive the blood
pressure pills are the right ones, I don’t see why she can’t have them. He can
put them in a separate bottle, and we’ll still have the original container.”
Billy looked at the captain and said, “I’ll talk with the doctor.”

The captain seemed to be satisfied that Billy had everything
under control, or so he let everyone think that he was. I still had my
reservations about him. Anyone who always appeared to be so nice, but would
talk so hateful to an employee had a personality flaw, or wasn’t really the nice
guy he appeared to be. Perhaps he was hiding something. That would be my guess.

As Allison walked over and handed us our jackets, Bella
strolled up and said, “Cocktails at seven. Dinner at eight.”

I looked at the buffet table and then back to her.

“After eating all that food, who needs dinner? I’m ready for
a nap!”

“That’s not the point, my dear,” she said in her lady-like
voice. “The idea is to socialize, enjoy ourselves, and take full advantage of
our cruise. You can sleep when you get home.” She winked at me.

“You know I’ll be here,” I replied, smiling. “I wouldn’t miss
it for the world. I love being in your company. But first, I have something to
do, and then I’m going to take a quick nap. I can’t keep going all day without
fifteen minutes of shuteye at some interval.”

As we headed to the door, her parting words were, “See you at
seven.”

Billy and I waved and mumbled our good-byes with the idea
that we would see everyone later. We didn’t know it at the time, but that
dinner was not to be.

The two of us talked as we walked close together toward the
elevator on our journey to the top deck. I had now developed a fear of the
death box and mentioned it to him.

“I know,” he said. “But I’m right here, and I’m not going to
let anything happen to my woman. You know I have your back.”

“Yes, I do,” I replied, a bit relieved at the notion that I
had a man who not only loved me, but would always protect me. “I trust you with
my life, so if you tell me that the death box isn’t going to suck me up in it,
I know it has to be true. I’m not afraid anymore. Let’s get this show on the
road, partner.”

We stepped into the elevator and rode one deck up. When we
exited, a familiar face stopped us, and said, “Thank you so much, Mrs.
Blackhawk! You were right. That man had my dad’s wallet and my mom’s jewelry.”

“Maura?” I questioned. “You’re Maura Rodrigus, right?”

“You remembered my name!”

“Of course, I do. That’s part of my job. I have to be
observant. So, your folks got back their personal belongings. I’m so glad to
hear it.” I looked at Billy, then back to Maura, and asked, “Have you met my
husband, Billy Blackhawk?”

“Not personally,” she replied. “But I’ve heard many good
things about him.” She looked at Billy and added, “It’s so nice to finally meet
you. I’m sure everyone on this ship is glad that the two of you are on board. I
never knew there was so much mystery on a cruise… and so much crime. How is
that guy doing who got stabbed with a fork? The rumor is he’s going to die. I
heard they handcuffed that crazy woman and now have her locked up in the
storage room. Is that true?”

Billy and I smiled.

“Rumors. That’s all it is,” he replied. “It’s a complicated
story, but the bottom line is, the man’s going to be fine, and the woman isn’t
crazy. Her medications got mixed up.”

“But I saw her,” Maura said. “She went nuts when she saw that
guy. She attacked him. And I don’t mind telling you, she had a crazed look on
her face when she did it. I think she’s dangerous.”

“Everything is under control,” Billy said, trying to reassure
her. “You have nothing to fear on this ship except the weather.”

Maura chuckled. “I guess you’re right,” she said. “Tongues do
wag, don’t they?”

“It was very nice to meet you, Maura, but Jesse and I must
take our leave. We have urgent business to attend to.”

“I’m sorry to have held you up. Is there anything I can help
you with?”

“No, but I appreciate the offer,” Billy said as he shook her
hand. “I’m sure we will see each other again.”

“Thank you for your help,” Maura said in a raised voice as
Billy and I started walking away.

I waved to her, and then looked back at Billy and said,
“She’s a nice person. I met her earlier. She sought me out to ask us to help
find her father’s wallet. Her parents don’t speak English, so she had to
translate for me. I’m just glad they have their stuff back.”