Murder for the Halibut (18 page)

“Let’s get a quick shower before we go up to the Lido Deck,” Rosie suggested, sitting
up in bed and rubbing her eyes. “Although I gotta tell you, if I wasn’t so hungry,
I could sleep straight through the night.”

“Me, too,” Jordan agreed. “We need to find a minute to corner Ray and tell him about
breaking into Marsha and Casey’s room.”

“And about Thomas,” Rosie added. “In my opinion he has the biggest motive for wanting
to see Stefano dead.”

“Right,” Jordan said, before giggling. “Ray’s going to kick our butts for breaking
and entering.”

“My butt’s been kicked by way scarier people than Ray Varga,” Rosie said, laughing
out loud. “Besides, you’re his pet. He’d never holler at you. I’m a different story,
though. He loves bossing me around.” She raised her fist in the air. “Bring it on,
Ray.”

“Hey, do you want to try out the Jacuzzi after we eat?” Jordan asked, still laughing
because she knew Ray was smarter than to try to take on the hippie woman who was now
hopping around the bed hollering about girl power—at least not without backup. Even
then her money was on Rosie.

“Oh boy, does that sound terrific,” Rosie said, finally settling down. “My back’s
still a little stiff from riding in the limo all day.”

Both fully awakened now and in a good mood, they quickly showered, slipped on cover-ups
over their bathing suits, and hurried to the upstairs grill. Before they left the
cabin, Jordan tried to call Emily’s room one last time to see if she wanted to join
them. Her two other attempts had gone unanswered. She finally left a message telling
her to join them later if she could.

The Lido Deck was crowded by the time they arrived. Jordan wondered if perhaps the
other passengers had also partied too hard ashore and didn’t want to dress up for
dinner. As soon as she walked up to the grill, she discovered the reason everyone
was eating there tonight. She’d forgotten it was burger and shakes night, and apparently
there were a lot of people like her who preferred that fare over the fancy food downstairs.

With a large strawberry milkshake and a cheeseburger
piled high with grilled onions and jalapeños, Jordan found a table near the window.
She and Rosie sat down to enjoy their food.

Looking out over the water, she made a mental note to change the patch behind her
ear before she went to bed that night. The doctor who gave her the prescription told
her to change it every three days even if she didn’t feel queezy. The last thing she
wanted was to miss out on the shopping tomorrow because she was seasick.

As the waves lapped against the side of the ship, she wondered how it would feel to
be in the water right now. She drew in a sharp breath when an image of her treading
water with hungry sharks and God only knew what circling popped into her mind.

“You okay?” Rosie asked, concerned.

Jordan smiled. “I was daydreaming,” she replied, glad the interruption had made the
vivid picture disappear.

“Do you think Goose is carrying on with that woman from Señor Frog’s?” Rosie asked,
changing the subject.

Making a quick decision not to tell her friend that she’d seen Goose go back into
the bar after he’d obviously lied to them about a business meeting, Jordan shrugged.
“Who knows? But I’d be willing to bet that he’s not any different than a lot of other
guys out there who can’t say no when a pretty young thing throws herself at them.
Even men who look like Thomas obviously get propositioned.”

Rosie took a long drink of her chocolate shake. “Yeah, but Thomas at least has an
understandable reason to check out other women. And we’re not even sure he and Casey
did the deed. Maybe it was just a lot of flirting. You know the old saying, ‘Just
because you’re on a diet doesn’t
mean you can’t check out the menu.’” She chuckled, obviously pleased with her cooking
pun.

Jordan narrowed her eyes. “This from the lady who absolutely hates all cheaters?”

Rosie nodded. “I know. I must be going soft in my old age, but part of me feels sorry
for the guy. It has to be tough on the old male ego wondering if your son is really
your own flesh and blood.”

“So what about Goose? His wife doesn’t even know who he is anymore.”

“I suppose you’re right. I kind of liked thinking he was one of those really great
guys I wish I’d met earlier in life, though. I hate that he slipped a notch off that
pedestal I had him on.”

“Yeah, me too,” Jordan replied. “Speaking of Thomas, we really need to tell Ray what
we know.”

“Tomorrow, for sure,” Rosie said, slurping the last of her milkshake. “Come on, there’s
a hot tub over there calling our names. Worry about that other stuff later.”

Twenty minutes later, they were on their way back to the room, both agreeing the relaxing
water, coupled with their full stomachs, had only made them sleepier. They decided
to give in and get a good night’s rest before tackling a full day of activities tomorrow.

Walking to the elevator, they passed by the Starlight Lounge where the gang had met
the first night of the cruise—the night Jordan and Rosie had decided to play cops
and see what Marsha and Casey were up to.

“Yowza! Is that who I think it is?” Rosie asked, pointing into the lounge.

Jordan jerked her head in the direction of Rosie’s finger.
“Yep! Wonder how he managed to get away from his wife this time.”

Just then Marsha looked up from the corner table where she was sitting so close to
Beau Lincoln, you probably couldn’t have slipped a finger between them. She waved.

“My guess is he used a couple of bottles of champagne,” Rosie said, shaking her head.
“That man ranks right at the top of my ‘slimeballs I’d like to smack’ list.”

Jordan waved back at Marsha, deciding the woman was already trolling for game points,
gearing up for the next stage of the competition in two days. She wondered what the
probably-already-drunk-and-sleeping-it-off Mrs. Beau Lincoln would do if she could
see her hubby right now, playing touchy-feely with a woman she’d nearly ripped off
the stage in the theater the night before.

As Jordan stared at the two of them, she remembered the last words out of Charlese
Lincoln’s mouth after she’d slapped Marsha across the face:
Next time you decide to sleep with someone else’s husband, you’d better make damn
sure it’s not mine, or I’ll kill you myself with my bare hands.

Jordan hoped for Marsha’s sake that the scorned wife was indeed sleeping it off in
her room.

The next morning, Jordan, Lola, and Rosie were off the ship in Philipsburg by seven
thirty. Victor and Michael had signed up for a cruise around the island and barely
had time for breakfast. Ray and Goose were staying on the ship to finish up their
investigation into the robbery. Today, they were planning to sit down with every crew
member and question them, hoping to discover if any of them had walked away with Charlese
Lincoln’s diamond necklace. According to Lola, Goose and his security team had already
conducted a surprise check of all employee quarters the night before but had come
up empty-handed.

As Goose had promised, the driver, who identified himself as Ramón, was waiting when
they’d disembarked. Quickly, they were loaded into a Lincoln Town Car and on their
way for the day’s adventure. Ramón
explained Saint Martin was split into two sides, one populated by the French and the
other by the Dutch. Jordan was so caught up in the small island’s history that she
totally forgot about shopping and lying in the sun on one of the incredible beaches
Saint Martin had to offer.

“Here we are,” Ramón said when they pulled up to the marketplace. He checked his watch.
“It’s nearly ten now. How about we meet up back here around twelve thirty? That’ll
give us plenty of time to grab a quick lunch before I drop you off at Baie Orientale
for an afternoon on the beach.”

“That’s not one of those nude beaches I read about, is it?” Lola asked. “Because I’m
here to tell you, I can’t think of too many things worse than an ‘oldie but goodie’
like me in my birthday suit.”

Ramón laughed. “Orient Bay is Saint Martin’s busiest and most popular beach, but being
on the French side of the island, it is swimsuit optional. If you can handle seeing
an occasional naked man wandering by, you’ll do fine. And believe me, some of those
old French guys should have looked in the mirror before letting it all hang out. Still
want to go?”

When they all nodded, he got out and held the door open for them. “See you at twelve
thirty.”

One by one the three women piled out, excited about the prospects of shopping and
spending money and all chatting at once.

Walking through the marketplace, Jordan had the distinct feeling someone was following
them, although she didn’t see anyone or anything suspicious when she turned around
to check behind them. She chalked it up to all the
drama on the cruise, wishing again that she and Rosie had been able to talk to Ray
at breakfast. But he hadn’t shown up like he had every other day of the cruise so
far. Which was totally out of character. Ray Varga was a health nut and thought breakfast
was the most important meal of the day.

Lola had explained that Ray had gone down to the security office at six that morning,
hoping to find out why Goose hadn’t returned any of his calls. Since Ray was being
paid to make sure Beau Lincoln and all his possessions stayed safe on this trip, he
was more than a little concerned the head of ship security may have uncovered something
crucial about the robbery and had decided to keep him out of the loop.

After strolling down every aisle in the marketplace, some more than once to compare
prices, the three women stopped at a small snack stand for a soda just before noon.
Jordan pulled out the purse she’d purchased and admired it once again. It was made
completely of shells, exactly as the British woman had described. She was elated she’d
been able to talk the saleswoman down to twenty-five bucks and even mentioned she
felt like she should go to confession for stealing it before Rosie burst her bubble.

“Honey, trust me. These shop owners can sniff out an American tourist from a mile
away and probably jacked up the price when they saw you coming.”

It didn’t matter that she still felt like a crook for haggling, she couldn’t wait
to show Victor. He was the only man she knew who appreciated a bargain like she did.

Reaching for her soda, she took a long drink before wiping the sweat from her brow
with a napkin. Though
the eighty-plus-degree weather didn’t come close to rivaling the blistering Texas
temperatures, the humidity on the island was stifling.

Feeling a sudden hunger pain, she pulled out a banana she’d snuck off the ship in
her purse and was about to eat it when Rosie gasped. Still on edge about being followed,
Jordan jumped, nearly falling off her chair.

“Hello, Rosie, Lola. You both look good,” a voice said from behind.

Jordan twisted around, sure she would recognize that voice anywhere. Just as she turned,
Alex Moreland scooped her out of the chair and twirled her in the air before giving
her a kiss that curled her toes.

“Alex, what are you doing here?” she asked when he finally released her.

“I don’t care how you got here, it’s just so good to see you, Alex.” Lola said, smiling
at the newcomer.

“It’s nice to know Ray can keep a secret.” He pulled up a chair and sat down beside
her. “You going to eat that banana?” he asked, eyeing up the fruit. “I spent all night
getting here, and I haven’t had a thing to eat since an airport vending machine cheeseburger
right before midnight.”

She handed him the banana, forgetting about how her stomach had growled minutes before.
He smiled before he peeled it and then shoved a big hunk into his mouth.

“But how did you get here? You’re supposed to be deep undercover in El Paso.” She
still couldn’t believe her eyes as she watched him finish off the banana in two more
bites.

He held up his hand while he finished chewing. “We nailed the drug lord, and when
he crumbled, his entire
operation came tumbling down like a stack of dominoes. His commanders couldn’t cut
a deal fast enough.” He stopped to wipe his mouth and reached for her soda when she
offered it. After draining the can, he grinned. “The man responsible for millions
of dollars worth of heroin coming into Texas annually is now sitting in a federal
prison, and if all goes well, that’s where he’ll stay until they carry him out in
a coffin.”

Jordan barely heard a word he said. She was too busy staring at the man she’d only
talked to on the phone for the past few months. His dark blond hair was streaked with
highlights, compliments of the hot El Paso sun. A little longer than she remembered,
it now curled slightly at the ends.

When he caught her staring, he winked. “Are you glad to see me?”

Rosie laughed out loud. “Are you kidding? We’ve had to listen to her go on and on
about you since the last time you were here. I, for one, am really glad to see you,
if for no other reason than to get her talking about something else for a change.
No offense, Alex, but I’m sick of hearing about you.”