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She rubbed at her eyes. It was almost time for her to get ready for the VIP drinks. She needed to have some time to prep. She logged out and closed the laptop.
She caught a glimpse of a large iceberg out of one of the library windows and shivered. They’d left the volcanic Aitcho chain of islands, of which Barrientos had been one, and were heading further south towards the Antarctic Circle. As they sailed, the icebergs were getting bigger. Each one seemed so dangerous, like some sort of mythological beast, able to take down a behemoth. But theVigilwas built for this environment, to cut through great swathes of sea ice. The icebergs wouldn’t bother them – no matter what they might be hiding under the surface.
She stepped out on to one of the outer decks, wrapping her jacket close around her body. She needed some fresh air to clear her head. Her eyes followed each mountain of ice as they passed by. It was hard to keep her eyes from the wildlife that abounded too – the petrels that rode on the wind and the occasional penguin.
‘Know what that’s called?’
She turned around to see Liam coming through the open deck doors.
‘Porpoising,’ he continued. ‘They do it to confuse predators. Zippy creatures, aren’t they?’
‘Amazing,’ said Olivia.
‘So … that was quite the morning on the kayaks yesterday, wasn’t it? Hope your roommate is OK.’
‘She was a little shaken up, that’s all.’
‘And how did your meeting go with the captain? I wanted to ask you about it before but it was all so hectic.’
‘Oh, that. He had a message for me from the mainland.’
Liam nodded. He put his hands on the rail, his knuckles turning white as he leaned forward. ‘Makes sense. That all? I know you were curious about the helicopter … I wondered if you’d asked about that.’
Olivia nodded. ‘I did ask about it. Well, more specifically, about what happened to the two people who had been in my former cabin.’
‘What did he say?’
‘That I had nothing to worry about. Which is weird, because I’d spoken to the doctor who implied that they had … well, that there needed to be an autopsy.’
‘Shit. Those peopledied? Ranj told you that?’ Liam said, his words garbling together, his Kiwi accent getting stronger in his panic.
‘Not Dr Ranjeed – Dr Tove. But shouldn’t you know more than me?’ Olivia folded her arms across her chest, confused by Liam’s change of tone.
‘Nah, they didn’t brief us all – need to know and all that – just that the chopper was for a medical emergency.’ He ran his hands through his hair, but it was more of a nervous twitch than a rakish gesture. ‘She say what happened?’
‘Poison. She mentioned their champagne bottle as a possible source, but I guess it’s all got to be investigated.’
Liam clenched his jaw, a hard look in his eye. Suddenlyshe was aware that she was all alone on the outer deck with Liam – someone much bigger and stronger than she was. The boat was moving at speed, the wind rushing past. If she went overboard, would anyone notice?
She took an involuntary step back. ‘But I should be clear, the captain said they were recovering in Ushuaia.’
Liam frowned. ‘Whoa, hang on a tick. So which is it? Are they dead or are they OK?’
‘The doctor mentioned an autopsy. The captain said different. But I don’t know. I’m just a passenger. You’re the crew.’
‘Yeah, well. This is a very important cruise and I’m sure whatever it was, Cap doesn’t want to make a big scandal out of it.’
Olivia thought back to what Annalise had said, about all the money they’d invested in renovating the ship, how it was a keystone of the Pioneer relaunch. She could imagine the PR firestorm if it got out that people were dying on board, even if it wasn’t the ship’s fault.
‘If you find anything else out, would you tell me?’ he asked.
‘Will you tell me?’ she shot back.
‘Blimey, yes. Yes, of course. I appreciate it, Olivia.’ He reached out to touch her arm, but she stiffened.
‘I have to go.’ She turned, moving quickly towards the heavy metal door. She placed a hand on the handle, then looked back at Liam. ‘I also told the captain about seeing your roommate that first night coming out of cabin sixteen. I don’t know what he’ll do with that information, but I wanted to let you know.’
She didn’t wait to hear a reply. Instead, she hurrieddown to the cabin. She had to get out of the jittery headspace Liam had put her in and prepare for the drinks.