Page 11 of Waylaid in Whittier (Cruise Director Millie Mysteries #5)

Annette hurried down the path and caught up with Brody. “Whoa!”

Cat, who was hot on her heels, nearly collided with her friend. “Whoops.”

“Sorry for the sudden stop.” Annette checked the map, confirming they were in the exact location Elvira had drawn. “This is it. It looks like a colony of gophers got loose.”

“We need to take a picture and send it to Millie,” Brody said.

“Good idea. Unfortunately, I don’t have much of a signal. Hopefully, the message will go through.” She snapped a photo, added a brief message , and pressed the send button.

Tink. Millie replied in a nanosecond. “Are you positive?”

Annette: It’s the spot on the map. I thought you said Elvira hasn’t been digging around.

Millie: She said she dug a small sample, but the location was in pristine condition otherwise.

Annette: Someone has definitely been here digging around.

Millie: It wasn’t the woman Elvira argued with. She’s still in the hospital. At least she was the last we heard.

Standby for more info. Annette stepped lightly, dodging a series of fresh holes. “I wonder if whoever it was found anything.”

“If they didn’t, it wasn’t for lack of trying,” Brody joked. “We should’ve brought some tools with us.”

Cat placed her hands on her hips. “Your gun won’t dig holes. Although if I had to choose between excavating tools and a gun, the gun wins, hands down.”

“We’re already here,” Brody said. “We might as well look around.”

“Let’s maintain a visual on our starting location,” Annette said. “I don’t want to get lost in Alaska’s wilderness because of Sharky’s kooky girlfriend.”

“Me either.” Cat rubbed the sides of her arms, warily eyeing their surroundings. “Call me paranoid, but it feels like we’re being watched.”

“Paranoid,” Annette teased. “Although I have to admit, this isn’t my cup of tea.”

While the women talked, Brody ambled off.

Annette followed suit, heading in the opposite direction, with Cat following close behind. “I wonder if whoever was digging around here had anything to do with the woman who was attacked.”

“There could be a connection.” Annette snapped another picture. “I’ll see if Millie can somehow get this to Elvira to confirm we’re in the right place.”

Cat straddled a freshly dug hole. “How on earth did Elvira find this spot?”

“Millie mentioned she has some sort of special tool.”

“I see a shiny object.” Cat clambered over a pile of rocks. She swooped down and grabbed hold of what was left of a shovel, lifting it over her head. “Look what I found.”

“A busted shovel?”

“It’s better than nothing.” Cat dug into the ground and scooped up a pile of dirt.

“Good luck.” Annette walked along a small embankment, mindful to keep a visual on Brody and Cat. Every few feet, she found small piles of dirt, all fresh, as if someone had recently been there.

She wondered if Millie and Sharky were having any luck in figuring out who may have attacked the woman. What if it was Elvira? Annette had only chatted with her briefly during her previous cruise.

How Sharky had ever become involved with the annoying woman was beyond her. Maybe it was one of those “opposites attract” situations. But then, Sharky was a one-of-a-kind in his own right.

Annette thought about Jose, how he had come back on board the Siren of the Seas and sought her out. On the one hand, she was perfectly happy with her life, uncomplicated by romantic relationships. She had her friends, her career. But Jose had a way of turning her thoughts inside out.

He made Annette’s heart pitter-patter. The way he looked at her. His easygoing, soft-spoken manner. Running the galley was stressful. Day in and day out, putting out fires, handling one crisis after another, always on the go.

Jose was like a breath of fresh air. Calm. Cool. Never seeming to be stressed. She knew Amit wasn’t a fan and was leery of him. Annette couldn’t blame her friend. The first time he’d worked on board the ship and after they had started dating, Jose had shown up in the galley one day out of the blue and announced he was transferring to another ship.

To be honest, she’d been devastated. Her heart healed and then she became angry. Finally, she’d convinced herself it was for the best. And just like he’d left, he waltzed back into her life, determined to pick up where they left off.

She had given him the cold shoulder. To Jose’s credit, he was persistent, had pursued her, sending her notes, buying her flowers, planning a romantic afternoon on their day off. And he’d apologized multiple times, claiming he had fallen for Annette and been scared.

Annette was no dummy. A small part of her suspected there was more to it than Jose getting cold feet. History could very well repeat itself and she was setting herself up for another round of being letdown. But she wasn’t getting any younger.

Her friends were all happily committed. Millie and the captain. Cat and Andy. Danielle and Brody. Shoot, even Sharky and Elvira.

Maybe she felt she was missing out, and there was no harm in giving Jose another shot. People could change. Maybe he had. One thing was certain, he’d come back to Siren of the Seas, had sought her out, and wooed her.

She hadn’t fallen for Jose hook, line and sinker, but she was open to seeing what happened—at a slower pace, of course.

Cat began waving her broken shovel in the air. “I think I found something.”

Annette changed direction and hurried toward her friend. “What is it?”

“This.” Cat held a rock in her hand. “I found gold.”

Brody jogged over and inspected her find. “That isn’t gold.”

Cat’s smile vanished. “It has flecks of gold. Are you sure?”

“Positive.” Brody flipped it over. “I take it back. It is gold…fool’s gold, also known as iron pyrite. See the streak? If it was real gold, the streak would be yellow.”

“Crud.” Cat took the rock from Brody and threw it on the ground. “What a bunch of baloney.”

Annette patted her arm. “You aren’t the first person to be fooled by fool’s gold, and I’m pretty sure you won’t be the last.”

“I’m ready to head out. It’s a shame I didn’t plan ahead and bring a few tools with me so we could take a proper look around.”

Cat kicked at a pile of dirt. “And waste our time finding more faux gold?”

“At least you’ve gotten a glimpse of the real Alaska, not the tourist traps in town.” Annette flung her arm around her friend’s shoulder. “Panning for gold or digging for gold isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

The trio returned to their starting point and climbed back into the truck.

“I wonder how Millie and Sharky are doing,” Brody said.

“I don’t know. So far, we’re striking out.” Annette buckled her seatbelt. “All we know for certain is someone has been digging around in Elvira’s spot.”

“The same someone who attacked Wanda,” Cat added. “What’s our next step?”

“Head back into town.” Annette patted her stomach. “I don’t know about you two, but I have a hankering for a bite to eat. I noticed a fast-food joint on our way up here.”

“Food sounds good to me.” Brody swung the truck around.

“I’ll give Millie a buzz.” Annette pulled her phone from her pocket and dialed her friend’s number.

“Hey, Annette. Are you still at the dig site?”

“We just left. We’re on our way to Whittier.”

“Were you able to find anything else?”

“Nope. I have you on speaker.” Annette nudged Cat. “Cat found some fool’s gold.”

“What a joke,” she griped.

“You didn’t notice anyone lurking around?” Millie asked.

“No one was around, but someone has been there, as you can see from the photos.” Annette switched her phone to her other hand. “Where are you?”

“Sharky and I are heading back to the ship.”

“You’re done searching for clues?”

“Danielle needs help in handling a passenger issue. Sharky and I will be back on the hunt as soon as I’m done.” Millie told her they planned to check out the gold mining group’s base camp. “Do you want to meet us there?”

“Sounds perfect. It will give Brody, Cat and me a chance to grab a bite to eat.” Annette asked Millie to forward the camp’s address.

“It’s on the way.”

Annette confirmed receiving it. “How long do you think it will be before you get there?”

“I’m not sure. Danielle wasn’t specific. It has something to do with a behind-the-scenes tour I was scheduled to host this morning.” Millie told her as soon as she figured out what needed to be done, she would let her know.

“I’ll keep my phone handy.” Annette ended the call and waved her cell phone in the air. “I don’t know about you two, but a double-decker cheeseburger with a large order of French fries is calling my name.”