Page 1 of Tiki Hut Tragedy (Cruise Director Millie Mysteries #6)

*****

“Chin up.” Millie nudged a reluctant Amit toward the galley door. “Annette isn’t firing you for the minor incident that happened earlier. It was an accident.”

“Miss Millie, you were not there. You did not see the chaos I created. There was flour everywhere. Not the ordinary run-of-the-mill flour, but Caputo Fioreglut, the most expensive flour on board the ship.” A look of pure misery was etched on Amit’s face, and although Millie understood his distress, she clearly didn’t understand the depth of it.

“I’m sure you cleaned it up, and no one will ever know disaster struck. ”

“But this!” He plucked his cell phone from his pocket, tapped the screen and handed it to her. “Even Bakun did not escape the destruction.”

Millie tried not to laugh, truly she did, but the snapshot of the watch captain, the person who oversaw the galley operations, covered in the fine powder, his brown eyes a sharp contrast to the bright white, was a sight to behold.

She burst out laughing. “I’m-I’m sorry, Amit, but the look on his face is priceless. ”

Amit gloomily shoved the phone back in his pocket. “It took hours to clean up the mess. Flour on the floor. Flour on the ceiling and walls. The fans blew it everywhere. Poof.”

She gave him a quick hug. “Remember when I set the smoke alarms off during the cooking demonstration? Everyone makes mistakes, even Annette. ”

“Then why would she call me to the galley to meet with Captain Armati?”

“I don’t know,” Millie fibbed. She knew exactly why they were on their way to the galley, and it had nothing to do with him being punished. In fact, it was exactly the opposite. Boy, was her friend in for a surprise!

Reaching the crewmembers’ entrance, she hurried ahead and peeked inside the darkened room.

“What do you see?” Amit anxiously peered over her shoulder.

“Nothing.”

“Nothing?”

“It’s dark. It looks like the lights are off.”

Amit clutched his chest, the color draining from his face. “It is worse than I thought,” he whispered. “The flour got into the wiring and caused a major electrical malfunction. ”

Instead of answering, Millie called out Annette’s name while simultaneously grabbing Amit’s hand and dragging him inside. “We’re here.”

With the flick of a switch, bright lights flooded the galley.

Millie’s husband, Captain Armati; the ship’s purser, Donovan Sweeney; Dave Patterson, the head of security; Bakun, the watch captain and others…

crewmembers who worked in the galley alongside Amit stood just inside the door.

A beaming Annette Delacroix, the director of food and beverage, was front and center.

Amit’s jaw dropped as he gazed around the room. “You are all here to say goodbye?”

“Say goodbye for what?” she asked.

“For blowing flour all over the galley and making a big mess.”

“That?” Annette waved dismissively. “We cleaned it up hours ago.”

“Then why am I here? ”

The crowd parted. Captain Armati and Donovan Sweeney, both grabbing the side of a large metal cart, wheeled a towering, tiered cake across the room. “We’re here to announce your promotion.”

“And to celebrate it,” Annette added.

“Promotion?”

“To the bakery chef.”

Amit’s eyes grew round as saucers. “You are putting me in charge of the bakery?”

Nic placed a light hand on his shoulder. “Congratulations. When Annette recommended your promotion, Donovan and I both unanimously and wholeheartedly agreed.”

“I thought…” Amit turned to Millie. “Did you know?”

She nodded. “I added my two cents and recommendation, as well.”

Annette stepped closer, her expression softening. “You’ve been my right-hand man for many years now and have helped me in so many ways. I would love for you to continue working as my partner, but it isn’t fair to keep you in the position. You deserve this.”

“The promotion and a raise,” Donovan added. “Effective immediately.”

“Speech…speech.” Millie began chanting. The others joined in.

“Thank you very much.” Amit swiped at his eyes, overcome with emotion. “I will do my very best not to let you down. I will make Siren of the Seas’ bakery the best bakery in the Majestic Cruise Lines’ fleet.”

Everyone gathered around, congratulating Amit and patting him on the back. “I had no idea. Bakery chef has always been my dream.”

“Time to cut the cake.” With Annette by his side, Amit passed out generous slices of vanilla cream-filled cake, all the while assuring his friends and co- workers he would always be available to lend a hand when needed.

Nic congratulated him once again. He slipped in next to his wife and whispered in her ear. “You sneaked out early this morning.”

“Turnaround day is always crazy.” She scooched in closer. “Plus, I wanted to get my steps in on the jogging track before it got too hectic. I even had time to admire the mansions on Fisher Island. The Miami port has some of the best views.”

Siren of the Seas had recently returned from its summer in Alaska, and although Millie had enjoyed the change of scenery and rugged beauty, she was thrilled to be in warmer climates, returning to their home port, officially known as “PortMiami.”

Nic’s radio went off. Staff Captain Vitale needed him on the bridge. “Duty calls.”

The others weren’t far behind. Because of the busy port day, the party ended quickly .

Millie lingered, helping Amit cover the leftover cake and place it in the fridge. “So…do I need to call you Chef Amit now?”

“No, Miss Millie. I will always just be Amit.” He pressed his hand to his chest. “I had no idea I was being promoted.”

“You deserve it,” she said sincerely. “It couldn’t have happened to a nicer person.”

“Here, here.” Annette made her way over. “Although you won’t be working directly under me, I might need to steal you away a few times during this new cruise. The Belly Busters group has several special meal events scheduled.”

“You’ll be seeing a lot of me,” Millie said.

“I’m hosting quite a few of their activities.

” As soon as the ship began making the journey south, she’d discovered a group of contestants, the Belly Busters, would be cruising with them.

The group was part of a national food-eating competition being held in Miami and sponsored by Amerifinest Foods, one of the largest food companies in North America.

From what Millie could glean, the cruise would be used as a floating training ground for the upcoming competition. It was actually a clever idea. What better way to prepare for an eating competition than on board a cruise ship where food was plentiful and available twenty-four hours a day?

To prepare for their arrival she’d done some research and discovered the competition was garnering a great deal of attention. Millie and her team, including assistant cruise director Danielle, had met to go over the game plan, making sure the Belly Busters got top-notch A+ service.

Intrigued by the idea of the contestants—all women—competing by eating, she was looking forward to meeting them, which reminded her. “Our elite passengers are boarding soon. I need to head to the gangway. ”

Taking the quickest route to the atrium, she arrived to find Danielle already there. “Hey, Millie. Thanks for inviting me to Amit’s surprise promotion party.”

“You’re welcome. You sneaked out.”

“I had a couple of errands to run.” Danielle tapped the top of her radio. “Suharto radioed to let me know the VIPs are on their way.”

Millie straightened the lapel of her jacket, beaming from ear to ear. It was one of her favorite times of the week. She loved to see the expressions on the passengers’ faces, the excitement in their eyes when they finally stepped on board the ship knowing their vacation was just getting started.

Although Majestic Cruise Lines worked hard to ensure the boarding process was as seamless as possible, there was no avoiding the stress and occasional chaos—unloading luggage, handing it off to the porters, being herded through security, bags and belongings all checked .

While the ship’s crew skipped the long lines passengers were forced to endure, she had been on hand to observe the process and knew the employees worked hard to help the boarding passengers complete the process as quickly as possible.

The first wave appeared, many of whom Millie greeted by name. Up next were suite guests, followed by boarding groups. The process appeared to be going smoothly, like clockwork, until the line came to a screeching halt.

Danielle nudged her. “Something is going on.”

Loud voices echoed from the entrance to the boarding bridge, a glass enclosure linking the terminal to the Siren of the Seas. Suharto appeared, followed by a group of passengers, all women.

As they drew closer, it dawned on Millie what the commotion was all about. “What in the world?”