No Hiding Behind the Potted Palms! A Dance with Danger Mystery #7 (40 page)

“I don’t understand. What
are you telling me? That there’s no grand jury
investigation?”

“That’s exactly what we’re
telling you.”

“Why would Declan lie about
that?” I thought back to the conversation we’d had. We argued about
me taking this cruise. I wanted to stay in New Rochelle and work on
a series of new paintings for an upcoming exhibit. Declan said I
was endangering my future by staying.

“I’m still disturbed by that
suicide note,” answered Angelo, taking his seat again, his legs
thrust out in front of him. “It stinks to high heaven, especially
since someone went to a lot of trouble to take over your worldly
goods.”

“Is Declan really claiming
that I’m his wife? Did he put my condo on the market? Why would he
do all that? It doesn’t make any sense. It’s...bizarre.”

“It is, isn’t it?” agreed
Bob. “It’s so bizarre, it actually makes sense to me.”

“It does?”

“It does, Mariem. You see,
someone went to an awful lot of trouble to set you up. That took
months. And then Declan wanted you on this cruise. It’s not just
because someone wants your money, although it’s clear that’s a
goal. Someone needs you dead because you’re a threat. You have to
look like a suicide. That tells me they’ve laid the groundwork, so
that when investigators come in after you’re dead, the facts will
all jive. Folks will sign on the dotted line and release your
estate to your heir.” Angelo put his hands behind his head and
leaned back in his chair, thinking hard.

“Do I have an heir?” I
wondered. “I told Bob I didn’t do a will yet.”

“Didn’t Declan want you to
marry him sooner, rather than later?” Bob put his pen down and
picked up a bottle of water. He took his time unscrewing the cap,
and took a long swig, and then recapped it. “Did you ever give him
power of attorney for you?”

“No,” I insisted.
“Never.”

“Not even after the mugging
or the traffic accident?”

“He wanted me to, but I
refused.”

“Maybe you had those
accidents because he wanted you to do that,” Bob suggested. “Maybe
he was driving your behavior by controlling not only the
information you had, but also by terrorizing you. He got you to
turn to him for help, didn’t he?”

That sunk in as I sat there,
minutes ticking by, reviewing my relationship with Declan over the
last two years. From the moment that the federal investigators
showed up on my doorstep, with their concerns that Henri was killed
by a cartel in retaliation for planning to cooperate with the
Department of Justice, Declan wanted to be in charge of Henri’s
reputation and business affairs.

“Angelo, we’re moving her
again. What suites do we have available that would be appropriate
from a security standpoint?”

“We’ve got the Windward on
Deck 11 or the Grand Family on Deck 7. The Grand Family gives us
more room to spread out and the verandah has a little more
privacy.”

“Let’s set her up in that
and put a watch in place. She’ll have the private bedroom, but we
can keep her safe up there.” Bob turned to me, addressing me with a
note of compassion in his voice. “I know this isn’t the way you
planned to enjoy the cruise, but do you mind if we set you up in
one of our larger suites and keep you out of the public spaces
until the Beauty docks in Bermuda? The suite has an outside hot
tub, butler service, and plenty of amenities. We’ll do our best to
make the rest of your journey as pleasant as possible, under the
circumstances, Mariem.”

“That sounds fine. I
appreciate what you’re doing for me.” I gave Bob a small smile in
return.

“Angelo, grab Thompson and
Fortuna. Do a sweep, leave Fortuna in place, and come back for
Mariem.”

“Sure, boss.”

Half an hour later, I was
led into a large suite with a master bedroom, a twin bedroom, a
large living area, a dining area, and a verandah that overlooked
the bow of the ship.

“Think of this as your home
away from home for the next five days,” Angelo announced. “We’ll
have our people take shifts. You won’t be alone, but we’ll try not
to be intrusive.”

“Thanks.”

Twenty minutes later, I was
enjoying lunch on the verandah, served by Joseph, a gracious man
with a gentle manner. Liz Thompson arrived as I was having a cup of
coffee. Bright-eyed and cheerful, she got to work.

“What do you like for
movies? We’ve got a DVD player.” She got to work picking out a
handful of choices. I left her to it, with one rule -- no scary
movies. My nerves were already shot. There was a knock at the suite
door, so she answered it.

“Lizzie,” said a younger man
wearing a loud plaid shirt and khaki shorts, brown leather sandals
on his feet, as he came through the door. He looked like a tourist.
His hair was jet black and he sported a gold neck chain. “I brought
the cards. I’m going to whoop your fanny this time.”

“Not likely, unless I fall
asleep in the middle of a game, Tony.”

The two of them played cards
at the table out on the verandah while I read. They bantered back
and forth throughout the afternoon like siblings, taunting and
teasing each other. I joined them around three for an hour’s worth
of gin rummy, before taking a soak in the hot tub. At five, Bob
arrived. He brought me a gift bag from the beauty salon. The ladies
there had given him the makeup fundamentals -- mascara, eye shadow,
blush, lipstick, and foundation, all in tiny sample
sizes.

“Thank you,” I smiled, eying
the contents of the tiny blue bag.

“I thought you might want
them for when you disembark tomorrow.”

“I’m leaving the ship?”
Panic hit me like a knife wound, terrifying me. Was Ocean Magic
kicking me off the ship, to fend on my own? “Do I have to
go?”

“Relax, Mariem!” He squeezed
my hand. “We think we’ll have all this wrapped up by then. You’ll
be in safe hands. I would never let anyone in danger out of my
sight.”

“Oh,” I sighed.

“You don’t believe me?” Bob
turned to his fellow members of ship security, feigning shock. “She
doesn’t believe me!”

“You should believe him,”
said Tony. “The guy is a complete pain in the....”

“What Tony means,” Liz
explained, hastily interrupting the younger man, “is that Bob is a
consummate professional. He was once Treasury Agent of the Year. He
won’t let you down. If anything, he’s overly-cautious.”

“Which is why I said the guy
is a complete pain in the....”

“Gin!” crowed his opponent
as she laid down her cards. “That makes ten dollars and ninety
cents you owe me.”

Bob was joining us for
dinner. Joseph set the table for four. At quarter to six, Tony’s
pager buzzed.

“Pickpocket Central is on
the hunt. We just got a report of a missing wallet in the casino.
Murph is reviewing the tapes, but in the meantime, I’m on deck. Who
do you want me to send up as a replacement?”

“Have Weinstein join us. And
tell Zahady to double up on the foot patrols. It looks like it’s
going to be a busy night.”

“Right, boss. By the way,
Lizzy, I’ll be back for my money, so don’t spend it
all.”

“What does that mean,
Fortuna -- you want a rematch? Bring it on, brother!”

Chapter Seven
--

I excused myself, retreating
to the sumptuous bathroom with the little blue bag, a black jersey
dress, and my toiletries case in hand. I might not be able to join
my fellow passengers in the main dining room, but I could at least
look like I was enjoying my cruise. After I showered, I slipped on
a pair of snakeskin-print flats, gold button earrings, and a gold
necklace. I ran a brush through my curls, dabbed on some makeup,
and gave a final glance in the mirror before rejoining the folks in
the living room.

Bob was on the verandah,
deep in conversation. Lizzie was talking on her phone. That left
the older man in the wild Hawaiian print shirt.

“You must be Mariem,” he
smiled broadly. “You look lovely, my dear.”

“And you must be Mr.
Weinstein,” I replied.

“One and the same. But call
me Sammy. You’re young enough to be my daughter, but if you call me
mister, I’ll feel like an old geezer, instead of a man of the
world.” He gave me a wink. “Shall we get this party started? Why
don’t we decide what we’re having for dinner? I have a menu
here.”

Half an hour later, the four
of us were eating the salad course when Lizzie’s pager went
off.

“Boss, we’ve got a domestic.
The husband had too much to drink and now he’s barricaded in the
room, beating the crap out of his wife.”

“Where?”

“Cabin 734A.”

“Go. And keep me informed.”
Bob grabbed his phone and started making calls.”Mary Sue, get me
Rashid and Birdsong.”

“Why don’t we go out on the
verandah and do a little star-gazing?” Sammy suggested. He gave me
a bright smile, but his eyes were watching Bob.

“I take it that a domestic
incident is tough to handle on the ship,” I remarked as we moved
outside.

“Dangerous. You never know
how far people will go. That’s a balcony unit, so we have to be
prepared for the bastard to toss the wife over the railing, for her
to jump, or for one of them to accidentally fall.”

“Were you a cop, Sammy?” I
was making conversation in the soft moonlight. The verandah was
illuminated by lamps, but I could still see the sparkle of the
ocean below.

“Thirty years on the job. I
was chief of police in a little town along the Hudson River.” We
talked for some time about his years on the force. He shared
stories about some of the more unusual cases he investigated.
Joseph brought us our dinner on the verandah, followed by a dessert
tray of assorted tartlets and coffee. I could see Bob still talking
on the phone in the living room. Without warning, the peaceful
night was shattered by the sound of a loud emergency
alarm.

“Damn!” Sammy grunted.
“Wouldn’t you know it!”

He was on his feet and into
the living room a lot quicker than I expected for a man his age. I
followed.

“I’ve got this, Bob. You go.
She’ll be fine,” he promised.

“Lock up. Don’t open the
door until you get confirmation. You know the drill.” Bob was
already unlocking the suite door. Joseph stood ready. “You call if
there’s anything unusual.”

“Go!” Even as that word was
out of my mouth, I was surprised. “Hurry up!”

Bob did a double-take before
shutting the door behind him. Who was I to tell the director of
security for the Beauty of the Seas to respond to an emergency? And
yet I felt that sense of urgency as the alarm trilled.

“Chutzpah,” Sammy grinned
when we were alone with Joseph. “I like that in a woman. Makes her
interesting.”

“I really don’t know where
that came from,” I admitted. “I’m not in the habit of telling
people what to do.”

“Don’t worry, Mariem. In
this case, it’s a good thing to do,” he reassured me.

“How will they find the
person who went overboard?” I asked. Sammy explained the
procedures.

“We can’t see it because the
cabin is on the other side of the ship, but there are a lot of
spotlights trained on the water right now. We have a team trained
for recovery, whether it’s for a live person or a dead
body.”

The minutes ticked on, even
after the alarm was silenced. Fifteen minutes after Bob left,
Sammy’s phone rang.

“Right, boss. Right. On my
way!” Sammy scrambled to get on his feet. “We’ve got trouble on the
Lido Deck. Some jerk just went ballistic on the dance floor.
Joseph, can you hold down the fort here? Don’t let anyone in until
you get the 311 code on your phone, okay?”

“Sure. No
problem.”

“I’m sorry about this, kid.
Joseph will take good care of you.” Sammy reiterated the need to
lock the door as he slammed it shut. Joseph quickly
obliged.

“Don’t worry, miss. I’ll
make sure you stay safe.”

“Thanks.”

Joseph started to clear the
table. He loaded the concierge cart with the dirty dishes and
wheeled it over to the wall by the suite door. When that was done,
he straightened up the room. The silence was almost overpowering. I
couldn’t even imagine what was happening. I turned on the TV,
flipping through channels until I found the ship’s station. There
was a warning that the Beauty of the Seas was experiencing a
serious emergency. All passengers were asked to remain where they
were, to allow the ship personnel to respond to the crisis. The
ship’s camera was trained on the bow, where a crowd had gathered on
one side to watch the attempted rescue. I could hear muted voices
through the audio link.

A thud startled me. Joseph
was on his knees, curling up in a ball as he was tasered by a man
dressed all in black, his face obscured by a balaclava. The
intruder stood in the living room, waiting for the butler to drop
again, and he quickly bound him with cable ties. I was on my feet,
ready to move, with nowhere to go. If I went to the veranda, my
only option was to toss myself over the railing to avoid the
killer. I didn’t think I could get past the man in black and out
the door. I thought about running into the bathroom and barricading
the door, but his eyes followed mine and I knew he was faster and
far more agile than I. He took a step forward.