Page 20 of Dead in the Water (Lily Larkin Mysteries #4)

Chapter Twenty

Going for a morning sail on a motor yacht with a bunch of strangers didn’t feel like such a bad idea until Lily was standing on deck watching the harbour recede into the distance.

Maybe she should have at least told someone where she’d be.

All she’d told Jessica was that she’d be gone for a few hours.

She’d asked Kit to call in and check to see if Jessica needed any help, but when he’d asked over the phone where Lily would be, she’d only told him she was on an investigative mission.

He’d chuckled, but hadn’t seemed put out by her secrecy.

That secrecy seemed daft now. She should have told him where she was going. If she didn’t come back, Kit would have known what to do.

Or Flynn. He’d have been a good person to share her plans with. She still hadn’t answered his calls and messages from yesterday. Not properly anyway – she’d sent a thumbs up emoji when he’d asked how her day had been, but that was it.

Standing beside Russell at the helm of the boat, she toyed with her phone in the pocket of her denim shorts. There was still time to send a quick message and let someone know where she was. If she had a signal, anyway. She was about to pull her phone out to check when her eyes roamed over the deck.

Joyce sat nestled against Keith's side on the white leather bench seat – Joyce looking out at the endless expanse of water, while Keith had his head in a Sudoku book, pen poised in his hand. Across from them, Vic pursed his lips as he stared at his laptop on the table in front of him.

Looking at the sedate group, Lily’s worries about her safety seemed suddenly laughable. She was out for a gentle boat trip with a bunch of retirees. If anything, she might be in danger of being bored to death, but she couldn’t imagine she had much else to worry about.

Her fingers relaxed, releasing her phone in her pocket, and she pulled her sunglasses down from the top of her head as the sun slipped out from a cloud.

The shrieks of gulls occasionally interrupted the gentle hum of the engine.

Taking a moment to notice the scent of salt in the air, and the feel of the deliciously warm sun on her face, it all felt pretty intoxicating.

A day away from the ice cream shop may have been exactly what she needed.

“Look at that,” Russell said, pointing to a bunch of rocks where seals lay in the sunshine. “They look very chilled out.”

Lily smiled at the sight. “A friend of mine told me they’re really playful. If you get in the water, they’ll often swim right up to you.”

“We can stop if you fancy a swim,” Russell suggested.

She shook her head. When she finally got around to swimming with seals, she’d go with Seren, who’d mentioned it a few times recently.

Besides, they’d only left the harbour five minutes ago so she couldn’t imagine anyone would be keen to stop.

Briefly, she wondered how long the little sailing trip would last. Given that Joseph’s son should be arriving soon, she couldn’t imagine it would be too long.

“What time is James arriving?” Lily asked Russell quietly. Hopefully she might get a chance to talk to him.

“Sometime this afternoon,” he replied, only just getting the words out before being interrupted by Joyce who stood and inhaled an excited gasp.

“There are puffins on that rock,” she pointed out, picking up a bulky camera from the seat beside her. “There’s something so special about puffins.”

“Never mind the birds,” Kerry said, emerging from below deck with a bottle of champagne in one hand and a collection of glasses in the other. “Who’s ready for a drink?”

“It’s not even eleven o’clock,” Vic said, rolling his eyes but not looking up from his computer.

“Champagne,” Joyce squeaked. “That seems a little…”

“Inappropriate,” Keith said, finally dragging his attention from his puzzle book. “I don’t think anyone is in a celebratory mood.”

“They should be.” She offloaded the glasses onto Vic.

Keith cleared his throat. “What exactly are we celebrating?”

“Life,” Kerry said firmly. “Given our recent reminder of how fragile it is, I think we should make every day count.” She popped the cork and drizzled the frothy liquid into a glass. “Joyce, be a dear and fetch more glasses, will you? I couldn’t manage enough for everyone.”

“I don’t want one,” Joyce said primly.

“Everyone else does,” Kerry told her without getting confirmation on that. “Two more glasses if you’re really not having one.”

Joyce had a flash of defiance in her eyes, which was gone in a blink. She disappeared down the steps into the heart of the ship.

Lily moved to take a glass when Kerry thrust one in her direction.

She passed one to Russell too, but her eyes were on the steps when Joyce returned.

Hopefully, one of them would offer to give her a tour later, otherwise she’d suggest it herself.

She had said she hadn’t been on a yacht before.

They shouldn’t be surprised by her being curious.

“To the simple pleasures in life,” Kerry said, raising her glass when everyone except Joyce had one. “And to not taking anything for granted.” Smiling fondly she ran the back of her fingers down her husband’s cheek.

Taking a sip, Lily hid her bemused frown. Most people she knew wouldn’t consider drinking champagne on a yacht to be a simple pleasure. After a couple of sips she moved to sit beside Joyce, who smiled gently before she went back to enjoying the view. Keith’s focus was firmly on his book.

Kerry sat forwards in her seat. “How did you get into the ice cream business, Lily?”

“Quite by accident.” She paused, considering how much of her story she wanted to tell. “I came here for a visit and the owner of the ice cream shop was looking for someone to lease it. I suppose it was serendipity.”

“How long have you lived on the Scillies?” Vic asked, closing his laptop and extending his arm behind his wife.

“I only moved here earlier this year.”

“Who were you visiting?” Kerry asked.

Lily shook her head. “No one. I’d been to the islands when I was a kid and wanted to revisit them for a bit of nostalgia.”

“It seems it worked out well for you,” Vic remarked.

“Yes.” Her smile came automatically. “It did.”

“Interesting place to live.” Kerry’s playful smirk was slightly intimidating. “Can’t be bad when you find yourself spending your days off drinking champagne on a yacht.”

“I can’t complain,” Lily said, then cast her gaze to Russell, who was staring right at her.

He held his glass up. “Top me up, will you, beautiful?”

Kerry tutted and passed Lily the bottle. “I assume he’s talking to you.”

Stifling a wave of nausea, Lily walked over and refilled his glass, then did the same with her own. Maybe alcohol would make her feel better about the fifty-something man flirting with her.

“It’s hard to believe these islands are part of the UK,” Russell said. “The colour of the water is stunning. With the sun shining, it’s like some tropical paradise.”

“It is,” Lily agreed.

“Fancy having a go at piloting this thing?” With a hand on her back, he nudged her to the wheel, leaving her little space to protest.

“There’s nothing to it,” he whispered in her ear. “Just don’t tell that lot, or they’ll think they don’t need me.” He nodded at his companions and Lily could almost feel the heat of Kerry’s stare on her.

“It’s fun,” she said, dutifully holding the wheel and keeping them on a level with the coastline on the eastern side of St. Mary’s.

“Lily!” Kerry called. “Be a sweetheart and bring the bubbly back.”

Taking the bottle from Russell, she happily accepted the excuse to move away from him and his hot breath on her neck.

“Thank you,” Kerry said sweetly as she took the bottle and filled her glass to the brim. “You said you’ve never been on a yacht before?”

“No,” Lily said. “This is a first.”

“I’m sure you’ll want a tour then.”

“I’d love one,” Lily said, while Kerry poured the last of the champagne into Vic’s glass.

“I was going to show her around below deck,” Russell called out.

“I have no doubt about that,” Kerry muttered under her breath, then smiled brightly back at Russell. “You need to stay up here and captain the ship. Heaven forbid you leave one of us to do it. Haven’t we had enough mishaps this holiday?”

Joyce’s sharp intake of breath was edged with anger. “A mishap?” she said, eyes welling up. “Can you please try not to be so crass?”

“Don’t be dramatic.” Kerry waved her hand. “You know I didn’t mean anything by it. Come on,” she said to Lily. “I’ll show you around.”

With her glass in her hand, she sauntered down the few steps. “This is the galley,” she announced when the tight space opened into a compact kitchen and seating area. “Cosy, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Lily said, taking in the space with the white leather seating, in a similar style to that on the deck. “It’s more luxurious than I thought. It doesn’t feel cramped.”

“Not now it doesn’t, but with six people in here it feels a lot less spacious.

” She set her glass on the table. “Five now,” she murmured.

“It still feels surreal. I’m not actually the monster Joyce makes me out to be.

I just don’t see the point of dwelling on what we can’t change.

” With a flick of her wrist, she beckoned for Lily to follow her.

“This is where things get a little tighter,” she said, walking down a few more steps into a hallway with wood panelling so glossy Lily could just about make out her reflection in it.

“It’s actually very well designed, but it can still get a little claustrophobic. ”

“How many can it sleep?” Lily asked, peering into the door which Kerry pushed open to reveal a tiny bathroom.

“Comfortably? Seven. Theoretically, the galley could also sleep an extra person, but I can’t imagine that would be fun.

” She closed the bathroom door and moved to the door opposite.

“This is the master,” she said, but paused when she reached for the handle.

She gave a small shake of her head, then continued along the hall.

“Joseph’s cabin,” she said. “Probably better we don’t go in there. ”

“Yes,” Lily said, hurrying after her. “Of course.” As curious as she was, it felt like crossing a boundary. “Are the cabins all a similar size?”

“Not really. Ours is a similar size to the master.” She opened the next door and stepped inside.

A quick look around the room easily identified it as Kerry’s.

Even if it weren’t for the garish clothing hanging on the back of several cupboards, and abundance of cosmetics, the scent of it would have been a giveaway.

The cloying haze of floral perfume was almost tangible.

“We also have an en suite. Nothing fancy, just a toilet, sink and a tiny shower cubicle.” She pointed to a door at the back corner, then retreated out of the room.

“This is Keith and Joyce,” she said, opening the door opposite, but not moving inside.

“That’s… smaller,” Lily said.

“Yes. I’m afraid Joyce and Keith drew the short straw. Not that it matters too much. We stay in hotels whenever we’re docked.”

“That makes sense,” Lily murmured. Not financially, but it really would be tight to all stay on the boat for long periods.

“Also, their cabin is extremely comfortable when you look at the one Russell’s in.” At the next door, Lily peaked inside at the single bed in extremely tight quarters.

“I see what you mean. But for one person, it’s not so bad.”

“Yes. I imagine he’ll move into Joseph’s cabin at some point. It is the captain’s cabin, after all.”

Lily made a noise of acknowledgement, but wasn’t entirely sure what to say. Apparently Russell was benefitting nicely from Joseph’s death.

“That’s it really.” Closing the door, Kerry gestured back towards the galley. “Not overly exciting, I’m afraid. The best bit is drinking champagne on deck without a care in the world.”

“Sounds like bliss.” Though Lily wasn’t sure about the carefree sentiment since her friend had died just a few days ago. Hopefully Kerry’s comment was meant in a more general sense.

“Speaking of which…” She sauntered over and opened the fridge. “How about we crack open another bottle?”

“I’m still going with this one.” Lily held up her full glass, then inwardly grimaced when she noticed Kerry had drained hers while giving the tour.

She eased the cork off without spilling a drop and filled her glass. “I don’t know about you,” she said. “But I’m ready for some sunbathing.”

Smiling weakly, Lily followed her back up onto the deck.