Cruise Ship Christian Cozy Mysteries Series: Box Set: Books 1-3 Read online

  They stepped into the bright room packed full of people. It reminded Millie of a can of sardines. Young. Slender. Fit sardines.

  At the end of the crowded aisle, Millie spied the man she had seen earlier in the atrium. The one that was telling people to move off, away from the young woman’s body that had been lying on the ground.

  Andrew Walker must have felt eyes staring at him. He turned to face Millie. “Let me guess. Mildred Sanders.” Now that she was close to him, she got a good look at her new boss. He wasn’t tall, but he was burly. Not fat. More thick and muscular.

  His reddish hair was sparse and cropped. He sported a moustache that matched the color of his hair. His thick, bushy eyebrows moved up and down when he talked. Millie’s first thought was that it must tickle. He reminded her a bit of Yosemite Sam. Except with less hair and less moustache.

  His dark eyes narrowed – just a bit – as he studied Millie. That lasted for a fraction of a second. He flashed a big smile and a dimple appeared above the pencil-thin moustache.

  Millie sucked in a breath as he cleared his throat. He thrust his hand out and began to pump Millie’s as he talked. “Andrew. Andrew Walker. But you can call me Andy.”

  He pulled a handkerchief from his front pants pocket and dabbed at his thick brows. “The dang lights in here are cooking me alive.” He shoved the handkerchief back in his pocket before continuing. “I am so glad you’re here! I was going to track you down but…”

  He paused, as if considering his next words carefully. “We had a small – err – unfortunate mishap down in the atrium earlier.”

  Milling was nodding now. “A terrible tragedy. I happened to stumble on the scene myself.”

  Heads in the room started to turn as others began to tune in to the conversation. Andy glanced around. He nudged her elbow. “Let’s step outside where it’s cooler.”

  He led her out of the brightly lit room and into the large closet area, which was empty. The entire staff had congregated inside the claustrophobic area. As if they enjoyed being in tight quarters together. Millie made a mental note to avoid the area during peak times, if at all possible.

  “C’mon. Follow me.” Andy didn’t wait for an answer as he headed down the steps and out of the theater. He abruptly stopped outside a door marked “Crew Only.” With a twist of the handle, he opened the door and gave it a sharp push. He stepped to the side and waited while Millie crossed over the threshold.

  The area reminded Millie of the deck where her cabin and other crew facilities were located. The only difference was this place was empty and it smelled better. More like fresh paint.

  Their steps echoed on the gray metal floor as they walked. Millie wasn’t sure if the subject was taboo, but she did wonder about the poor, unfortunate woman that had died. “Any idea what happened to that girl in the atrium?”

  Andy gave her a sideways glance but never changed pace. “They’re still trying to sort it out.” He looked up ahead and then behind him. He lowered his voice. “It appears that she had been bitten by something.”

  Andy shook his head. “Nasty, ugly wound on her ankle.” He lifted his hand and separated his thumb and forefinger. “It was this big around. A large, gaping sore.”

  Millie’s brows furrowed. “Wow! Any idea what might have caused it?”

  “Someone said it looked like a spider bite.”

  The thought hadn’t occurred to Millie, but it made sense. Cruise ships traveled to islands. Islands with tropical forests and jungles. Jungles meant creepy crawlies. She decided right then and there to do a thorough inspection of her cabin and her bed.

  They were coming up on another door. Andy stopped abruptly. “Just between you and me, the young lady had been off the ship on break and had just gotten back on board for her next contract. I hope that means that whatever she got into, she got into whilst she was onshore.”

  That did little to ease Millie’s mind. There was no guarantee that the woman hadn’t been bitten on the ship. “What was her name?” She thought the girls had mentioned it earlier but couldn’t remember what it was.

  “Olivia LaShay. She worked in the gift shop.” Andy went on. “Sweet enough girl but she had a lot of drama. You know, lots of different boyfriends that also worked on the ship. Wasn’t real popular with the other women, either. She made a game out of stealing their boyfriends and then dropping them like a hot potato when she got bored.”

  Millie perked up. Maybe someone had murdered her! Even though she had rarely been part of Roger’s street investigations, she frequently helped him work on the different cases. He’d always said she had good gut instincts.

  Andy opened another large, metal door. Millie was careful to step up and over the metal frame. She was so intent on making sure she didn’t trip and fall, and make a fool of herself, she ran smack-dab into a tower of confection. A cake. The tiered kind. With lots of frosting. She pulled her arm back, which was now sporting a thick layer of ocean blue creaminess.

  Behind the towering creation were two piercing blue eyes that peered at her over the top of wire-rimmed glasses. Dark brown locks poked out from under a towering white hat.

  “Will ya’ look at that.” The wisp of a woman slid the damaged goods onto the top of the stainless steel cabinet beside her and grabbed a clean dishrag from a nearby drawer.

  She held the rag in one hand. Using the index finger on her other hand, she swiped at a mound of thick frosting still clinging to Millie’s arm. She stuck the frosting-coated finger in her mouth. “Hmm. Not bad, but it could’ve used just a tad bit more sugar.”

  Without waiting for permission, she started to scrape the frosting from Millie’s arm. “This cake is destined for the dumpster. Believe it or not, this is the second run in this cake has had with body parts. I won’t tell you the other body part it made contact with.” She winked. “Three strikes, you’re out!” She made a thumbing motion.

  Andy cleared his throat. “Not on my watch, Annette!” He kept a close eye on the woman, who was still wiping the frosting, as he pushed the cake out of reach. “You know I’ve got to have that cake in an hour for the captain’s party.”

  “I know. Just kidding. I’ll fix ‘er up in a jiff,” she promised.

  The woman dropped the frosted rag on the counter and crossed her arms. “I guess you’re not going to introduce us. Some cruise director you are,” she teased. She turned to Millie. “Annette Delacroix, Food and Beverage Manager, at your service.”

  Millie took her hand. She liked this woman. She seemed straightforward and to the point. It also didn’t hurt that she appeared to be somewhat close to Millie’s own age. “Mildred Sanders, Assistant Cruise Director.” She released the hand. “But you can call me Millie.”

  Annette’s eyes crinkled in a warm greeting. She gave Andy a sideways glance. “About time you got someone decent over in your department.”

  Andy jerked back. “And what was wrong with Toby?” he demanded.

  Annette stuck her hand on her hip and locked eyes with Andy. “Nothing. As long as you could find him. When he wasn’t hitting on every single female wearing a skirt.” She turned back to Millie. “Yep. He didn’t last long.” She wagged her finger. “Can’t have him fraternizing with the guests.”

  Annette picked up the damaged dessert and turned to go. “It was nice meeting you, Millie,” she called over her shoulder. “If you need anything, you can almost always find me right here in the kitchen.” With that, she rounded a corner and disappeared from sight.

  Andy headed in the opposite direction. “Annette’s a real gem. A little tough on the outside but a real softie on the inside.”

  The kitchen was huge. It wound around, back and forth, almost like a maze. It was a good thing she was with Andy. Otherwise, she’d be lost by now and in a kitchen of all places!

  Millie nodded and waved at several of the staff who were hard at work prepping food. She followed him through a revolving door on the other side, which led into one of the dining rooms.

  S
everal employees were setting tables, arranging flowers and wrapping silverware. Andy nodded here and there but never stopped.

  They exited the double glass doors and entered a large, open area that looked down on the atrium.

  Millie shuffled to the railing and peered down. Her eyes wandered to the bar area. To the spot where the woman’s body had been just hours earlier.

  The sound of music drifted up. Off to one side was a baby grand piano. Sitting at the keyboard was a woman. The tune she was playing was vaguely familiar.

  Andy came up beside her. “Such a sad thing about that young woman,” he commented.

  He pointed to a spiral staircase. On the other side of the staircase was a long, gleaming counter. “We’re headed over there.”

  Andy picked up the pace as they strolled around the walkway and headed down the stairs. She followed him over to the counter and to a man standing behind it. The man didn’t look up. He was studying pages in a thick notebook was open on the counter. Every second or so, he would put a check mark next to something in the book.

  Andy tapped lightly on the countertop. Finally, the man lifted his head. Millie grinned as she looked at his hair, which spiked out in every direction. If the spikes made contact at just the right angle, Millie was convinced they could poke an eye out.

  “How are you doing, Donovan?”

  The young man set his pen on top of the notebook. “Getting things in order.” His eyes traveled from Andy to Millie. “Is this your new sidekick?”

  Andy moved over. “Donovan Sweeney, this is Millie Sanders.” Donovan didn’t offer his hand like the others had. Instead, he reached inside the drawer in front of him and pulled out a key card. He laid it on the counter and pushed it in Millie’s direction. “Welcome to the Siren, Millie.” He tapped the tip of his finger on top of the card. “You’ll need this,” he told her.

  She glanced at Donovan’s tag before she picked up the card. On the front was her picture. With the same deer-in-headlights, I’m-about-to-get-arrested look.

  The card was colorful, unlike her room card, which was plain. A palm tree with waves lapping at the bottom was in the lower corner. She glanced over at Andy, her eyebrow raised.

  “Don’t lose that.” He pointed to the card in her hand. “It gives you access to areas of the ship that other crew members don’t have.”

  Donovan nodded. “Like the bridge and the safe deposit area.”

  So that’s why they did a background check on me before I was hired, Millie thought to herself. It made perfect sense.

  She swallowed nervously. It was a good thing the fire department back home had decided not to charge her with arson.

  “I’ll guard it with my life,” Millie assured them as she slipped it in her front pants pocket.

  Donovan glanced around and then motioned Millie and Andy off to one side. The three huddled near the edge of the guest services desk. “Did you hear what they found shoved in the corner of the closet of Olivia LaShay’s cabin?” Donovan whispered.

  Andy bent forward, shaking his head.

  “An aquarium,” Donovan said. “Perfect for keeping a spider.” He gave them a dark look.

  The muscle in Andy’s jaw tightened. “You don’t say.”

  Donovan nodded. “Police are beginning to think Olivia’s death was a homicide.”

  Andy turned to Millie. “Pets are strictly prohibited.”

  Millie’s brow arched. She would never consider a venomous spider a pet. Of course, this was Florida. People in Florida were always doing crazy things. At least it seemed that way from watching the news.

  If the aquarium wasn’t supposed to be on the ship, or in Olivia’s room, wouldn’t someone have noticed it? Her roommate perhaps? Millie wondered.

  Donovan read Millie’s mind. “They already questioned Olivia’s roommate, Maribelle. She told them that Olivia was deathly afraid of spiders.” He shook his head. “On top of that, she’d never seen an aquarium in their cabin before today.”

  Other staff was beginning to gather behind the desk. “I better get back to work.”

  Andy and Millie headed towards the stairs. She glanced back at Donovan. His dark head lowered over the notepad again. “He’s the purser,” she said.

  Andy nodded. “Yeah. He’s in charge of all the money on the ship. Kind of like a banker,” he added. “We have one more stop to make before you’re free to explore the ship on your own.”

  They walked for several long moments in silence. Millie quickly figured out they were walking towards the front of the ship.

  The long hallway abruptly ended. A large, vault-like door covered the wall in front of them. Above the knob was a numbered keypad, along with a slot for key card access.

  Andy fished a card from his front shirt pocket and swiped his card through the slot. A high-pitched beep sounded. Andy pushed the door open and stepped inside.

  Millie followed behind. It didn’t take but a second to figure out where they were. They were in the bridge. Millie’s heart began to pound a bit faster. She had a sneaky suspicion she was about to meet the big shot. The man in charge of it all. The captain of the ship.

  Millie swallowed hard as the captain came towards them. At least she thought it was the captain. He looked familiar…

  Her eyes widened when she realized it was the man she had bumped into down in the atrium. Right after she stumbled on the young woman’s body. He was still wearing the white uniform.

  She noticed the bars or stitching on the shoulders of his shirt. Millie assumed that showed his rank as an officer. Captain Stubing from the Love Boat came to mind.

  He was tall and muscular. Something she hadn’t noticed on their last run in. His hair was mostly gray with streaks of black. He gazed down at her and smiled. Somehow, the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes.

  Millie instantly interpreted the look as a look of disapproval. Or maybe he was just having a bad day. She hoped it was the latter.

  The introduction was brief and moments later, they stepped back out of the bridge and into the hallway. The door closed. Millie turned to Andy. “Is he always that – uh – friendly?” she asked.

  Andy shook his head. “Captain Armati can come across as a bit standoffish but he’s not. He just runs a tight ship.” Andy chuckled at his own pun. “Tight ship. Get it?”

  Millie smiled. Well, at least it wasn’t personal. She hoped.

  Andy led her back to the atrium and stopped. “You’re on your own for the rest of the afternoon,” he announced. He looked down at his watch, then over at the watch on Millie’s wrist. “Good. You have a watch. You’ll need it.”

  “We have a staff show at 8:00 p.m. tonight. Kind of a warm up before the passengers arrive tomorrow. Meet me back behind the curtains at 7 sharp.” He didn’t wait for a reply before he turned on his heel and walked away.

  Millie watched his retreating back until he disappeared around the corner and out of sight. She looked at her watch. It was only 3 p.m. There was still time to explore the ship.

  She glanced around. To her right was the casino. To her left, a row of shops. I wonder if one of these was where the poor girl had worked.

  She wandered down the hall and glanced inside the first window. Brightly wrapped candies and bags of pink and blue cotton candy filled the shelves. Next to that was a liquor store. In the window was a huge glass bottle. The largest liquor bottle Millie had ever seen.

  When she got to the third store, she noticed the door was open a crack. She could hear the faint strain of music as it wafted through the narrow opening.

  Millie’s eyes wandered to the large glass window and an array of trinkets on display. Stuffed animals with the ship’s logo. Coffee mugs. Boxes of saltwater taffy. Above that was a collection of T-shirts.

  Millie gently pushed on the open door and peeked inside. The music was louder now. There was another noise. She could hear banging coming from the far corner, behind the checkout counter. She paused. There was a good chance she wasn’t supposed to be in the
store…

  Before she could change her mind, she pressed on - or maybe it was more like barged in.

  Off to one side was a small glass checkout counter. On top was a cash register. A mound of grayish black bobbed up and down. The top of someone’s head.

  The beehive bounced around as the unseen person pulled small boxes from a much larger one and set them in neat stacks on a cart nearby.

  The only thing in Millie’s line of vision was the tip top of the “do,” and blood red fingernails.

  Millie decided she needed to make her presence known without scaring the daylights out of the person. Luckily, she didn’t have to.

  The massive cone of hair tipped back - just far enough to bump into a glass figurine on the shelf behind her. It teetered for a few brief seconds before falling off the shelf and landing with a muffled thump as it hit the carpeted floor. The woman with the “do” reached forward and picked it up.

  Her back was still to Millie as she placed the figurine back on the shelf. Finally, she spun around. Bright green eyes met Millie’s eyes.

  She stepped out from behind the counter. The woman’s form-fitting blazer clung to her hips. She had what Millie quickly decided was an hourglass figure. Raquel Welch came to mind.

  Millie frowned and glanced down at her own drab uniform. The woman made Millie feel old and frumpy. Although now that she got a good look, she was probably close to Millie’s age.

  “I-I’m sorry,” Millie stuttered. “I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”

  The woman’s lips curved in a welcoming smile. “Y’all didn’t scare me.” She reached a hand behind her head and patted the beehive. “This crazy hair is always messin’ me up.”

  She tilted her head and studied Millie’s nametag. “I’m Catherine.” She winked. “But you can call me Cat.”

  “I’m Mildred Sanders, the new assistant cruise director,” she said. “Uh - You can call me Millie.” Millie didn’t wink.

  “Okay. Millie.” Cat picked up a small box of key chains. She grabbed a handful of the ship-shaped metal trinkets and began unloading them into a display tray on the edge of the counter. “Are you finding your way around?”