Page 23 of Beach Reads and Deadly Deeds

I realized that this was the cliff that Jason had hang glided from. I could make out the dock to the south, where I’d arrived

yesterday.

“I brought snacks,” CeeCee said, and opened her large backpack. “They made them for me in the restaurant. Isn’t that nice?”

She pulled out containers with fruit, sandwiches, and pasta salad and laid them out on one of the three tables. “And champagne!

There’s plenty for all of us.”

She popped the cork and giggled when bubbles overflowed. “Sorry.”

CeeCee seemed harmless, except for that out-of-character comment and her strangely deep understanding of finance.

“This was thoughtful,” I said. The hike had made me hungry, the crepes now a distant memory.

“I knew I’d be starving ,” CeeCee said as she opened up the containers. “Help yourself.”

Brie went over to the edge of the cliff and made me nervous. She had her phone out and was taking pictures. Sherry went over

to Brie, and as CeeCee chatted, I watched as Sherry drew out her phone and took a selfie of her and Brie. Sherry laughed,

looking like she was having a great time, but as soon as the phone camera went off, her dour expression returned. She said

something to Brie. Brie shrugged and turned away.

Sherry sat on the bench across from CeeCee and me.

I took one of the plates and put two of the small sandwich triangles on it, some fruit, and a large heaping of the delicious-looking

pasta salad.

CeeCee said, “Sherry, we should all get together before we leave. Trevor is such a baseball fan.”

“Sure,” Sherry said, and smiled at CeeCee. “That would be fun.”

She was a lot nicer to CeeCee than to me. Because I was single and unattached? Did she consider me a rival?

I looked around and thought it might be fun to come up here with Jason. He didn’t work mornings, so maybe for an early lunch.

I didn’t really know him, and even though we’d almost kissed, I felt like I should learn more about him before throwing caution

to the wind and sleeping with him.

My face heated at the thought.

CeeCee said suddenly, “Mia! You didn’t tell me that you’re the one who found the body last night.” It was so out of the blue

it took me a second to process what she’d said.

“Me? No. I mean, I was there, but I didn’t find her.”

“I heard it was Diana Harden,” she said. “The guest who went missing. I told Trevor that something must have happened to her.”

“I’m sure it was an accident,” Sherry said.

“Did either of you meet her?” I asked.

CeeCee nodded, eyes wide, as she bit into a mango. “We arrived on Friday, but later than everyone else. Trevor had a meeting, so the resort was kind enough to send a helicopter for us Friday night. There’s a helipad on the top of the mountain.”

I looked around and didn’t see it.

“There.” CeeCee pointed south. I still couldn’t see anything through the trees. “It’s used mostly by Ethan Valentine, we were

told, but he sometimes lets VIPs use it. I was scared. I don’t like flying, and a helicopter is a gazillion times more dangerous than a plane. But ten minutes later, we were here!”

“Was she on the helicopter, too?” I asked, then remembered that Brie said Diana was on the ferry with her.

“No. Only Trev and me. But it was really late, and I was hungry, so we went to the restaurant, and Diana was there by herself. Reading, but also... well, she wasn’t

very nice.”

“How so?” I asked, curious.

“We had just ordered and were having wine, a really, really yummy prosecco, and she comes over and talks to Trevor. Completely

ignores me, except, well, she gave me a mean look. I know, I know, that sounds totally childish, but it was mean, and I almost cried.” She blinked, looked from me to Sherry.

“Trevor and Diana knew each other?” I asked.

“Yyyessss.” She drew out the word as if hesitant about saying anything.

I pushed. “How?”

CeeCee bit her lip. “Well, Trevor said they had met once through mutual friends, but he didn’t really know her. Claimed she

had wanted to do a business deal with him, but it was too small for his company. They only handle big projects. I don’t remember

the details. He didn’t tell me much, but when he turned her down, she was really angry.” She frowned. “I don’t know why people

are so mean all the time. My mama always said if you can’t say something nice, keep your mouth shut.”

I tried not to sound too curious but couldn’t help myself. “What did Diana say?”

I willed her to tell me, but didn’t push, not wanting to come off as nosier than I’d already been.

“Well, she didn’t actually say anything. It was like, she just completely cut me out of the conversation. She turned her back to me.”

“Rude,” Sherry said.

You’re one to talk , I thought.

“It was like I was nobody,” CeeCee said, “and I know I shouldn’t be upset about it, but I was tired, and she was mean, and

I said something to Trevor. He promised she wouldn’t bother us again.”

Promised? I wondered what he said—or did—to keep Diana away from CeeCee.

“And,” she continued, “she didn’t.” She nodded forcefully and drained her champagne.

The takeaway was that Diana had known Trevor before they saw each other on the island. She knew something about him...

and his business. Had she been blackmailing him? I wanted to review her notes again. Maybe there was some clue I missed. If

she wrote about him and I had a detail, I might be able to break her code.

Sherry got up and walked toward Brie, then Brie immediately came over to us, plopped down next to me. “Look,” she said, and

showed me the photos she’d taken on her phone.

“Nice,” I said. “I like how you framed the resort here. Your camera is better than mine.”

“Maybe I’m just a better photographer,” she said with a laugh.

“You are,” I concurred. “I point and shoot and sometimes get lucky.”

Brie showed me an app she had on her phone and explained how she used it to edit her photos. CeeCee asked Brie to show her

how to take better selfies, and Brie was happy to demonstrate. She tilted her head toward me, held the phone high, and said,

“Smile!” Click click.

“The trick is coming from above, not below, but hold your arm like this—” she demonstrated “—so you don’t get a weird angle

and the camera doesn’t go out of focus.”

CeeCee practiced making duck lips and acting sexy and coy. “Trevor will love these!”

Brie said, “No duck lips. It’s so 2010.”

“What?” CeeCee’s lips quivered.

“Smile wide, like this.” Brie demonstrated.

“Really?” CeeCee copied her, looked at the picture. “You’re right! So much better!” She leaned over and hugged Brie. “Thank

you!”

“Sometimes, it’s a plus being the youngest in the room.”