Page 23 of Waylaid in Whittier (Cruise Director Millie Mysteries #5)

Millie, frantically trying to get away from the figure lunging at them from the shadows, collided with Annette, nearly knocking both of them to the ground.

“Gotcha!” Brody burst out laughing.

“You jerk.” Danielle slugged him in the arm. “You scared us half to death.”

Sharky emerged from behind a post, snorting loudly. “I wish we could’ve seen the looks on your faces.”

“Very funny.” Millie turned to Annette. “I didn’t mean to crash into you.”

“I’m fine. We should’ve known these clowns would pull some stunt.”

Brody sobered. “I’m sorry if you got hurt.”

“The only thing hurt is my bruised ego.” Millie straightened her jacket. “I’m not much of an intrepid sleuth if my friends can scare the daylights out of me, now am I?”

“Friends who were intentionally trying to frighten you.” Danielle wagged her finger at them. “You know what they say about paybacks.”

Millie changed the subject. “Did you find anything, any sort of clue?”

“Nope. Nada. Zip.” Sharky shoved his hands in his pockets. “What about you guys?”

“Same here. If Morley hid gold mining clues on his property, he hid them well,” Millie said. “Although in our defense, it’s tricky conducting a thorough search when you’re working by twilight.”

“This was a big fat nothing burger.” Sharky sighed. “We’re not any closer to getting my babe exonerated.”

“Which could be viewed as a good thing, seeing how you weren’t keen on her surprising you in the first place,” Annette pointed out.

“I’ve gotten over my initial reluctance and was actually looking forward to spending time with her. Which reminds me, she should be on the ship by now. Reef offered to escort her through security and show her to my cabin.”

As soon as they were back in the truck and on their way, Sharky called the night supervisor, his friend Reef, who worked in the same department.

He put the call on speaker and let Reef know.

“Hey, everybody. Did you find anything?”

“Nope. Not a clue,” Millie said. “It looks like Elvira might be on her own in figuring a way out of this mess.”

“Speaking of Elvira, she’s here,” Reef said. “Or at least she was.”

“Did she bring a lot with her? Cuz I don’t have a lot of room in my cabin to store extra items.”

“Not too much. She had a big suitcase, a backpack crammed full of stuff, and a smaller bag. Maybe it’s normal behavior for her, but to me, she was acting kinda squirrely.”

“Acting squirrely,” Sharky repeated.

“Secretive. I tried to help her with her bags. She nearly went ballistic. She didn’t want me touching them.”

“She can be sort of…protective with her belongings,” Sharky said. “Do you know where she is now?”

“No. I took her to your cabin and let her in.” Reef told them he started to leave when she stopped him. “She wanted to know if it would be possible to check out the maintenance area. Like if I thought anyone would question what she was doing.”

“The maintenance area,” Sharky said. “I wonder why.”

“She didn’t say. I went back to check on her a little while ago to see if she needed anything. She didn’t answer the door.”

“Maybe she’s out exploring the ship,” Brody said.

“Or grabbing a bite to eat,” Danielle added.

“Could be. The bottom line is Elvira either is or was on board.”

“But maybe not for long,” Millie muttered under her breath. “Hopefully, she didn’t unpack and settle in because things aren’t looking too good for her right now.”

Sharky thanked Reef and signed off. “What’s the plan?”

“I don’t have a plan. We need Elvira’s help if we’re going to crack this case.”

Ping. Ping. “ Speaking of the devil. She’s calling now.” Sharky answered his phone. “Hey, Elvira. How’s it going?”

Although Millie could only hear one end of the conversation, it was clear she was making headway with whoever was behind Wanda’s attack.

“You and Wanda are on your way to Bay Bar & Grill. You want to know if I have time to meet you there? I’ll see if Brody can drop me off.” Sharky covered the receiver. “Elvira claims she knows who was behind the attack.”

“I gotta get back to work,” Danielle said.

“Ditto for me,” Annette said. “I need to make sure the galley is ready for the morning meal.”

“The bar is right around the corner,” Sharky said. “What about you, Millie?”

“I…”

“I can cover for you,” Danielle offered. “Go with Sharky. He might need help.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. I’ve always been optimistic about nabbing the bad guy, but I have to say, this one might get away. Hopefully, Elvira has something solid.”

“I’ll drop you off,” Brody said.

Sharky resumed his conversation. “Brody is dropping Millie and me off. We’ll wait for you out front.”

Making a quick U-turn, Brody drove into town and followed Sharky’s directions. Within minutes, they arrived at the bar.

“Can you find a ride back to the port or will you need me to swing back by and pick you up?”

“Elvira still has her junker. I’m not sure if she’s spending the night on the ship, although I think she is based on what Reef said and the fact she brought all her stuff.” Sharky hopped out and started to close the door. “Thanks for trying to help. I’m sure Elvira appreciates it.”

“We did it for you,” Annette said. “Good luck.”

“Thanks. We’ll need it.”

After they left, Millie flung her arm around Sharky’s shoulder. “I’m not sure Elvira deserves a great guy like you,” she teased.

“Or maybe she does deserve me,” he laughed. “I hope she gets to cruise with us. It would be a bummer to see her standing on the dock watching us sail off into the sunset.”

Millie caught a faint rattling sound, similar to the one Elvira’s junker made. The truck flew around the corner and careened into the parking lot.

Elvira parked near the road and emerged, along with an attractive woman who was in her late twenties or early thirties, if Millie had to guess. The woman was on the thin side and she walked with a slight limp.

Sharky greeted them first. “That was fast.”

“The old jalopy has some get-up-and-go.” Elvira made the introductions. “This is my beau Sharky and his friend, Millie Armati, the ship’s cruise director.”

Wanda shook their hands. “I’ve never been on a big ship. Elvira has been telling me about her last cruise and how she met you.”

“It was an interesting adventure,” Millie said. “I’m sorry to hear about your attack. How are you feeling?”

“I have a rip-roaring headache, but other than that, I’ll be okay. I have exceptionally keen reflexes, if I say so myself. Which probably saved me from a more serious injury.”

“You do seem fast on your feet, like you could definitely defend herself.” Elvira patted her stomach. “I don’t know if you guys are hungry, but we’re starving and I’m buying. The bar’s late-night menu has really good food.”

“If you’re buying, we’re eating,” Sharky held the door. “After you, ladies.”

They stepped inside and found the place jam-packed. The only empty seats were at the bar.

“I guess we’ll have to sit at the bar,” Sharky said.

The bartender Millie and Sharky had met during their previous visit greeted them and brought them drinks. He returned a short time later and jotted down their orders.

While they waited for their food, Wanda and Elvira told them about swinging by the RV and catching Carter Morley trying to open Elvira’s door.

“I found a story about a man named Gold Morley,” Millie said. “Any chance he’s related to Carter Morley?”

“Yeah. Carter is Gold Morley’s grandson.”

“That’s what I thought, or at least suspected.” Millie noticed the bartender looking their way. “Who is the guy who waited on us?”

“Lyle Gardner. He owns this bar,” Wanda said. “He’s been around for a long time. Why?”

“He keeps looking our way.”

“Maybe he thinks we need more drinks while we wait for our food.” Sharky lifted his hand and signaled for him to come over.

Instead of Lyle, another bartender made his way over. “Can I get you something?”

“Another round of Diet Cokes for the gals and I’ll take another root beer,” he said.

“You got it.”

The food arrived a short time later, delivered by Lyle this time. “Burgers for three and a salad for this young lady.” Lyle placed the salad in front of Millie. “Can I get you anything else?”

“Thank you. This’ll do it.”

He turned to go and then swung back around. “Wanda. I didn’t recognize you at first.”

“Hey, Lyle.”

“I thought you were in the hospital.”

“I was. I got out earlier today.”

Lyle tipped his head in Elvira’s direction. “I see you two worked out your issues.”

“We did,” Elvira said. “Wanda is dropping the charges. She knows it wasn’t me who attacked her.”

“I think investigators are taking a closer look at someone else,” he said.

Millie’s heart skipped a beat. “Who?”

“Carter Morley.”

“Carter?” Wanda and Elvira exchanged a quick glance. “My brother didn’t say anything about Carter.”

“Your brother wasn’t one of the cops who showed up asking questions. He may not have heard yet.”

“Why do they think it’s Carter?” Wanda asked.

“While they were here questioning me, I got to thinking about it. I was working the night of your attack and remembered seeing Morley leave and come back in the bar after you and Elvira argued.”

Millie lifted her eyes, studying the ceiling. “I see you have cameras. I’m sure the investigators went over the video recordings.”

“They would have had they been working. I have a wiring issue and need to get an electrician to come by. They’re on the fritz.” Lyle leaned his elbows on the counter. “Other than your bandage, you look pretty good for someone who got hit with a crowbar.”

“Like I was just telling Elvira and the others, I have excellent reflexes and only got grazed during the attack.” Wanda turned to the side and showed him her bandage. “The clunk could’ve been worse.”

“I’m glad to see you’re going to be all right. Maybe it’s a good thing the gold mining season is ending,” he said.

“Right?” Wanda squirted a glob of catsup on the edge of her plate. “Elvira and I are gonna be partners.”

“You still have your eye on Mount Baldie?”

“Yeah.” Elvira bit into her pickle. “The place is huge, with a lot of ground to cover. Having a partner makes more sense.”

The group made small talk, and Lyle eventually walked away.

Millie waited until he was gone. “I hate to say it, but Carter Morley is looking more and more like the person who attacked Wanda.”

“It seems we’re all going in the same direction. Proving it’s him might be tricky,” Sharky said. “We searched Gold Morley’s place before we got here.”

“I knew old Gold. Did you find anything?” Wanda asked.

“Nope.” He gave her a thumbs down. “It was clean as a whistle.”

“And creepy as all get out,” Millie added.

“Someone was murdered there.”

Millie’s jaw dropped. “You’re kidding.”

Wanda grinned. “Yeah, I’m kidding. It would make a great story for a scary movie, though.”

“Sounds like a place I want to avoid.” Elvira gobbled up her burger and slurped her soda. “The food was delish.”

“It appears the authorities are on top of the investigation. The issue now is confirming it was Carter,” Millie said.

“Wanda and I are gonna hide out near Mount Baldie tomorrow morning to see if Carter shows up while the team is working on their final taping of the season.”

“Like Lyle mentioned, Alaska’s DNR—the Department of Natural Resources is shutting the mining sites down for the season after tomorrow,” Wanda explained. “If he’s gonna make a move, it will have to be within the next few hours.”

“How early are we talking?” Millie began mentally calculating whether she could fit a stakeout into her schedule.

“The team heads up at eight,” Elvira said. “I figure if we’re in position at 7:30, we can stake out our spot and catch whoever it is.”

“I’m in,” Sharky said. “I can make it.”

“Me too,” Millie said. “I think we’re close to figuring this out.”

After finishing their meal, the group piled into Elvira’s truck. She dropped Wanda off first, promising to pick her up in the morning before they drove off.

Reaching the port, Elvira parked her clunker next to Brody’s spiffy rental, and the trio trekked up the gangway. Thankfully, their bags weren’t flagged and soon they were back on board.

Millie sent a group text to Danielle, Cat, Annette and Brody, bringing them up to speed. She swapped out her jeans and shirt for her work uniform, making her rounds around the ship to check in on the final late night activities.

While she worked, a nagging clue lingered in the back of her mind. Exhausted from a long day, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t quite figure out what it was.

Finally, her shift ended. She met Nic at home and they turned in, knowing tomorrow would be another long day.

As Millie drifted off to sleep, the little niggling bounced around in her head.

With any luck, Elvira would be on board, in good standing with the Whittier authorities, and Siren of the Seas would embark on its final journey through the Alaska frontier.