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‘Not a surprise after what you’ve been through. But I’ve been meaning to ask … have you heard any more about that couple?’ Liam’s tone was casual, but Olivia could see the tightness in his shoulders, his jaw clenching.
Olivia hesitated. She’d seen him barely keeping control once before. Could she really trust him? What did she really know about him?
‘You do know something,’ said Liam, reading into her stalling.
Her brain was too tired; she couldn’t think on her feet. ‘They’re dead,’ she said, barely above a whisper.
‘Fuck!’ Liam’s hand balled into a fist, and he whipped around, punching the wall so hard the plaster cracked.
Olivia ran.
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‘Wait! Olivia, hang on.’
She was running, flying down the stairs as fast as she could manage. If she could get back to the cabin, she could lock herself inside and not come out for the rest of the cruise.
It seemed like the safest – maybe the only – option.
Liam’s anger terrified her. He didn’t seem stable.
He’d found them in the sauna. He’d also been wandering the halls the first night of the voyage. What ifhewas the one trying to scare her? The ring had been found inhiscabin.
He was quicker than her, stronger too. He grabbed her arm, pulling her sideways. She felt a blast of cold air as he dragged her through heavy double doors and out on to deck. The ship was moving now, heading to its next anchor point in Paradise Bay. She struggled against him, frantically searching for something she could use to stop him from doing whatever it was he planned.
‘Please, I’m not trying to hurt you.’ He finally let go, and she wrenched her arm back.
‘What the hell?’
‘Listen to me! Jesus Christ. I’m sorry. This is important. When we were in Ushuaia, I went out with the crew. I got properly munted. When we’re in port it’s our time to let loose, you know? Anyway, I ended up hooking up with this girl …’
‘Liam, I really don’t want to hear this.’ She couldn’t even look at him. She didn’t understand how what he was saying connected with anything – all she knew was that she felt afraid.
‘Please,’ he begged. ‘She found out I worked on theVigiland she asked me to do her a favour. Deliver a birthday gift to one of the cabins. A bottle of champagne.’
Olivia stopped in her tracks. ‘What?’
‘Yeah. Exactly. Clearly not a good idea, right? But she gave me ten grand to do it. That’s like almost double my wage for this cruise – just to put a bottle of champagne in a room.’
‘And that amount of money didn’t make you suspicious?’
‘You don’t understand – that much money … it could change things for me. I don’t want to be fucking about any more. I want to find a job that actually means something to me – and this would give me the time to do that. I couldn’t see any downside. I’m a fucking idiot.’
She didn’t need any guesses to know which cabin. ‘Soyoubrought the poisoned bottle on board?’
Liam hissed a breath in through his teeth. ‘I didn’t bloody know it was at the time. Just looked like a fancy bottle of fizz wrapped in pink foil. Not my normal style, but whatever. Then I spoke to Ranj. He said the liquid looked weird – brownish red and had a kind of aniseed scent. They sent it back with the couple in the chopper. If the police do any sort of investigation … my fingerprints are all over that bloomin’ thing.’
‘Liam … it was liquid MDMA. Cutler told me.’
His face drained of colour. ‘Shit. I swear, I didn’t know anything about it. I thought I was just doing somechook a favour. If I end up in Argentinian prison … I can’t even think of it.’
‘What do you remember about the woman who asked you to do this?’
‘Not much, to be honest. Like I said, I was wasted, but when I woke up, the champagne and the money were on the table. She had dark hair, really long. About your height.’
Olivia’s mind raced. First Sergei, now a woman involved? An accomplice?
‘Do you think she’s on board? Would you recognize her?’