Page 22 of Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds

“Women can be just as dangerous as men.”

—Holly Jackson, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder

I arrived at the Blue Dahlia a little early, hoping Jason would be at the bar. Instead, the same girl from this morning was

working. I tried not to show my disappointment.

“What would you like, Ms. Crawford?”

It still unnerved me that every staff member knew my name even if I hadn’t met them.

“I’m about to go on a hike. I’m not that hungry, but feel like I should get something.”

“I know just the thing—no alcohol. I call it Callie’s Energy Blast. Delicious, and also good for hangovers.”

“I don’t have a hangover, but I’ll take one.”

Trying not to seem like I was super interested in the answer, I asked, “When does Jason come on?”

“He was supposed to relieve me at one but needed to talk to security, so he said he’d be late.” She glanced at me, lowered

her voice. “We’re not supposed to talk about what happened last night.”

“I was there,” I said.

Callie nodded. “I heard. It’s awful .” She glanced around, leaned over, and said quietly, “I overheard the police talking at the dock early this morning. They

said she was strangled.”

I pictured the scarf around her neck. “So it wasn’t an accident.”

“She could have fallen off a boat somehow, got tangled in something.”

“But wouldn’t the captain or another passenger have alerted the authorities?”

“The police are questioning all of the boat owners on St. John. That’s where she was when she disappeared.”

Did everyone believe that except me? While I might not be a nautical expert, I just couldn’t see a body floating from St.

John to here—from one small island to a smaller island twenty miles away, separated by a vast body of water?

“Could she have rented a boat?” I asked Callie. “Because I don’t think her body could have floated all the way here.”

Callie’s eyes widened, and I thought about how my comment must have sounded. Before I could backtrack, she said, “Oh, I hadn’t

thought of that. Yeah, she could have, but God, I hope not, because then how did she die? You know? If she was strangled here ?” She shivered. “I’m sure the police will figure it out.”

“Yeah, me, too,” I said, though I didn’t believe it. Because it wasn’t the police investigating here, on St. Claire. It was

Gino Garman, security chief, who was seen arguing with the victim the night before she disappeared. If Diana had rented a boat on Sunday, why hadn’t the police learned of it in the two days she’d been missing?

Still, this was the Caribbean. Everyone acted more relaxed and casual than any place I’d visited. Even my Grams, who turned having fun into

an art, would have found this island too relaxed. She’d have been the daredevil to take Jason up on hang gliding lessons just to get her adrenaline pumping.

Callie handed me her to-go “energy blast” smoothie just as CeeCee walked into the Blue Dahlia, dressed in khaki walking shorts

and a tight tank top under an unbuttoned lightweight shirt. She wore cute ankle boots, a big hat, giant sunglasses, and a

designer backpack over her shoulders.

I felt out of place in my T-shirt, shorts, and well-worn sneakers.

“Hi, Mia!” she said enthusiastically. “Are you ready? I’m so excited.”

“I’m ready, but is it okay if Brie and Sherry join us? They were also planning to hike.”

I saw Sherry trudging toward the bar, not looking happy at all. Brie was a couple feet in front of her, grinning slyly.

“Of course!” CeeCee said. “The more the merrier!”

Every sentence was an exclamation. It was exhausting just listening to CeeCee.

Brie came up and quickly started talking. “Are you going up to the peak too? Great.” She winked at me “Sherry, Mia and CeeCee

are joining us. This’ll be fun.”

Sherry looked from me to CeeCee and then to Brie. Did she suspect that we’d set her up?

“Yes,” she said after a moment. “Sure.”

CeeCee clapped her hands. “This way, girls!” She led us through the lodge and out the back to the base of the mountain trail.

“It’s no fun hiking alone, and now it’s a party!”

“Trevor doesn’t like to hike?” I asked.

“Sure he does, but he’s always so busy with work. He doesn’t have much free time.”

I wished I’d had time to dig a little into Trevor. I didn’t even know his last name. CeeCee didn’t seem to fit with him, so

I was guessing either he was divorced and playing the field with a younger woman, or he was married and a cheater.

She had to know if he was married, didn’t she? He hadn’t been wearing a ring, but would a woman travel this far with a man

if she didn’t know his marital status? Maybe. Not every woman lacked the spontaneity gene like me. Or binge-watched true crime

documentaries and pictured how an affair could go horribly wrong. Sometimes, I thought Fatal Attraction should be mandatory viewing for everyone over eighteen.

I glanced back to where Brie and Sherry were only a couple steps behind us.

They weren’t talking. I caught Brie’s eye—she knew what the goal was, to find out as much about Trevor as possible to figure out if Diana had been blackmailing him.

She nodded, caught up to us. “CeeCee, I love your boots. Where did you get them?”

She looked down, laughed. “I’ve had them forever! Aren’t they cute? I got them in this little boutique in Charleston when

I was there on business.”

“What kind of business?” I asked.

She hesitated as if she wasn’t expecting the question. “Then? Um, I worked for a decorator.”

Brie started chatting with CeeCee, so I held back with Sherry. “It’s so pretty here,” I said, motioning to the flowering trees

that lined the trail.

“Yes,” Sherry concurred.

“This is my first vacation in years,” I said.

Sherry shot me a side glance. “And you came here alone.”

“My boyfriend and I broke up a few months ago.”

“St. Claire is not a place for singles,” she said. “I don’t think you’ll find a new boyfriend here.”

The comment was snide and rude, and I really didn’t know how to respond.

“I’m not looking for a relationship,” I said, sounding more defensive than I wanted to. I forced joy into my voice. “I just

came to relax.”

She harrumphed and stopped to take a picture. I kept walking, not caring if I left her behind. Sherry called out, “Brie, look

at these flowers! Let’s take a picture for your dad.”

Brie waved at her. “Maybe later!” Then she continued her conversation with CeeCee. I was right behind them when Brie asked,

“How did you and Trevor meet? He’s so serious, and you’re so much fun.”

CeeCee grinned. “Trevor isn’t serious all the time. He’s just in the middle of a big land deal and has to be in all these meetings . He never should have switched to cash basis accounting. He has to jump through all these hoops to prove his net worth to

his bank.”

Her comment surprised me. CeeCee didn’t seem like some one who understood the pros and cons of accrual basis versus cash basis accounting, but she was right that determining net worth was much harder under cash basis. Maybe something she picked up working for the decorator.

“Is that where you met?” Brie asked. “Through work?”

“I guess, sort of! I work for a caterer, and we served one of his corporate meetings.” She put her hands over her heart. “It

was love at first sight!”

Decorator to caterer?

Brie and CeeCee were chatting about the island, and Sherry remained ten feet behind me, so I just tried to enjoy the hike.

I thought about what CeeCee said and wondered what she meant by it. She might understand a lot more than she let on. She might

not be as... okay, dumb is a mean word. But why would someone who’s smart want to act like they weren’t?

Maybe I was reading too much into the conversation.

I heard CeeCee talking about the sunset cruise tomorrow and how she hoped Trevor would finish his work so they could go. “I

don’t want to go alone,” she said. “It’s supposed to be so romantic. If he finishes this big deal, he’ll be happy, and then we’ll have fun!”

I had read about the sunset cruise, and like CeeCee thought it sounded too romantic to go on by myself.

Sherry said, “Too bad it’s couples only, Mia. The cruise is a highlight of St. Claire.”

I hadn’t realized she’d caught up with me. She made a point of looking down at her left hand and tilting her bare fingers

in an odd, flashy manner. Suddenly, I realized she expected Andrew to propose to her. Was that why he’d brought her to the

island? I glanced at Brie. Did she suspect?

Neither Brie nor I liked Sherry, but I tried to be objective. Sherry Morrison was very pretty, with flawless, creamy skin,

large, dark eyes, perfect bone structure. Taller than me and always impeccably dressed, even when casual. Clothes, jewelry,

makeup—always appropriate for the occasion, never too much or too little.

We came off the trail at the top of the northernmost peak, a flat area roughly the size of a football field.

We could see everything .

To the south was the bulk of the island—lush and green with flashes of color where a flowering tree had exploded in growth.

Below was the resort, laid out like a child’s toy, the main lodge overseeing the myriad of cabins and cabanas, the blue of

the pool sparkling in the sun.

To the east was the ocean, calm and vibrant—so light and clear in some spots I could almost see the sand beneath—edging the

shoreline for at least a quarter mile. Then the sharp contrast of darker blue water as the shore fell away to the deep.

The ocean wrapped around the northern edge of the island like a glove, water on three sides, making me feel isolated. A flash

of me standing here, on this island, in the middle of the ocean gave me a sense of vertigo and smallness—a speck of dust on

the vast earth.

The wind whipped around us, but there was a picnic area with heavy wooden tables. Signs warned us away from the north side

of the clearing, proclaiming steep drops and rocks below. I had no intention of getting that close to any edge of the clearing.