Page 20 of Tiki Hut Tragedy (Cruise Director Millie Mysteries #6)

“You noticed something on the GoPro?” Millie repeated.

“Possibly, or it could be nothing.” Sharky told her he was on his way back to his office.

“I’ll meet you there.” Cutting through the center of the ship, she took the stairs closest to the maintenance department and managed to beat Sharky, who arrived moments later. “How did you get here so fast?”

“I know every shortcut around this ship. Plus, I get my steps in every day.”

“I bet you do.” Sharky swung the door open and waited for her to step inside. “How’s it going with your chow hounds?”

“They are definitely keeping me on my toes. ”

“Have a seat.”

Millie perched on the edge of the chair, watching as Sharky lifted the lid on his laptop and tapped the keys. “Patterson has already watched the GoPro video.”

“I heard. He told me that he didn’t notice anything suspicious.”

“Nope, and I’m kinda surprised he missed it.” Sharky slid it across the desk and plopped down in the seat next to her. “It’s a little hard to watch the first few minutes.” He pulled up the recording and hit the play button.

From the camera angle, Millie felt like she was riding along, launching off the inflatable ramp and into the water. The screen wiggled and jiggled. One second it was staring straight out while the next she was looking down at the waves.

She clutched her gut and closed her eyes. “It’s giving me motion sickness. ”

“We’ll skip this part.” Sharky fast-forwarded until the tiki hut appeared.

Millie looked away. It was difficult watching the women flailing around in the water, screaming for help. Zema dragged one woman onto the tiki hut. As soon as she was on board, he crawled back to the edge and reached for another.

Sharky swooped down and scooped a woman up, easing the PRV alongside the tiki hut and helping her board.

Again and again, Sharky and Zema plucked the women from the water and placed them back on the tiki hut. After what seemed like an eternity, they finished.

Sharky gave him the all-clear signal, and Zema took off, leaving the PRV behind to continue monitoring the area. He looped around twice and then slowly made his way along the coastline before returning to the ship. The recording abruptly ended. “That was it. The next time I went out was with you. ”

“I might be losing my touch because I didn’t see anything that looked like a clue either.”

“I wondered if you would catch it. It was at the three-minute, ten-second mark.” Sharky moved the bar at the bottom of the screen until he reached the exact time.

Millie squinted her eyes, studying Zema, who was dragging a woman onto the tiki hut.

Sharky hit the pause button and zoomed in on the frame. “There.”

“It’s Astrid. I can tell by her body shape. She’s curvier than the other women, but in a good way. Poor thing. She looks traumatized.”

“Maybe because her wig is off-kilter. There’s something in her hand. Do you see her dropping it into the water?”

Millie squinted her eyes. Sure enough, Astrid’s hair was tilted at an odd angle. “You’re right. She’s wearing a wig, and there’s something in her hand. Maybe it was a drink. ”

“Possibly,” Sharky agreed. “If you sift through the other photos, she also had some sort of tie-dyed bandana tied around her head.”

“It could be nothing. Maybe her hair is thinning, so she covers it,” Millie theorized. “Who knows what was in her hand? It could have been sunscreen, a drink, her cell phone.”

“I’m not a woman, but there’s no way I would wear a wig on a tiki hut excursion in the Caribbean as hot as it is.”

“Neither would I.” Millie thought about her conversation with Lola, about how Astrid kept her cabin super tidy.

“I’m sticking with my original assessment of the woman. She gives me a weird vibe. I would keep an eye on her,” he said. “There’s something different about that chick.”

“I will. Thanks for showing me the footage. While I’m here, can I look at the other recording, the one where you and I found Dixie? ”

“Sure.” Sharky clicked out of the screen. He opened a new one and began playing the recording of their recovery. Once again, Millie had to look away because of the wiggling and jiggling.

Finally, it settled down, and she followed along. A tightness formed in her chest when they reached the part where they spotted the splotch of blue. The scene continued, Sharky’s attempted recovery and when the marine rescue team finally arrived.

It ended when they reached the Siren of the Seas and the PRV returned to the ship. “Dixie’s body floated away from the initial accident spot,” Millie said.

“The current was strong.”

“The waves even picked you up at one point.” She slowly stood. “From what I was told, Dixie and Wendy, her cabinmate, argued before the tiki hut incident. Something about a slot machine and being kicked out of the casino. ”

“Brody handles casino security. You could ask him.”

“I’m heading his way later for trivia.” Millie backed toward the door. “I’ve been meaning to ask you…have you heard from your girlfriend lately?”

“Elvira? Yeah. She called the other day all bummed out.”

“Why?”

“They didn’t find any pirate treasure under Pete Taylor’s restaurant. The excavation was a bust. She was so sure they were going to strike it rich.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Millie said. “She still has the Alaska site she can work next spring.”

“Only problem is she’ll have to travel up there, and she was hoping to stay closer to home.” Sharky began fiddling with his pen.

“Are you two okay?”

“I dunno. I have to say that meeting up with her in Alaska was an eye-opener for me. ”

“She seems slightly obsessed with striking it rich.”

“Slightly?” Sharky rolled his eyes. “Extremely. I guess I’ll play it by ear.”

Millie patted his arm. “There are more fish in the sea. Elvira isn’t the only woman in the world.”

“I’m beginning to think I’m destined to be single for the rest of my life.”

“Do you want me to try hooking you up?”

Sharky’s face turned bright red. “You?”

“Sure.” Millie shrugged. “I know a few single ladies.”

“I’ll need to figure out what to do about Elvira first. I mean, I’m not ready to throw in the towel and call it quits, although dating long distance has its disadvantages.”

“I understand. Let me know if you need someone to talk to.”

“Thanks, Millster. You’re the best. ”

“Right back atcha. You’re a good man, Sharky Kiveski. One of the best.”

After Millie left, she said a small prayer for her friend. Living on board a cruise ship could be challenging, especially when it came to affairs of the heart. The perfect person was out there. Was it Elvira or someone else? Only time would tell.