Page 8 of Waylaid in Whittier (Cruise Director Millie Mysteries #5)

Carlita Garlucci-Taylor’s cheery voice echoed across the miles. “You must have been reading my mind. I was thinking I should call you to find out what’s goin’ on up there. I’m in Ravello’s kitchen. Let me step outside where it’s not so noisy.”

Millie could tell Carlita was on the move. The loud voices faded, and it grew quiet. “Much better. I’m sure you’re calling about Elvira.”

“Sharky is beside himself.” Millie filled Carlita in on what she knew so far, which wasn’t much. “We know Elvira is being held in the Whittier jail. Dernice called Sharky to see if he would visit her and figure out what happened.”

“I know about as much as you do. Elvira told her sister she had found a promising dig site. Next thing we know, she’s in jail. Something about another miner, a woman, who was part of the same group. She and Elvira argued. The woman was attacked after leaving the local bar, and the authorities are charging Elvira with the attack.”

“Wow.” Millie shifted her feet. “So, there were eyewitnesses to the altercation?”

“Apparently. Not to the actual attack, but to their argument.”

“Between you and me, do you think it’s possible Elvira injured the woman?” Millie asked.

“Maybe. If it was self-defense.”

“Which would be the case for almost anyone. According to Siren of the Seas’ head of security, he spoke with someone from the jail and found out Elvira is allowed to have visitors. Sharky asked me to go with him to see her.”

“I’m worried about her. She comes up with some cockamamie ideas and when she gets obsessed with treasure or gold, all bets are off.”

“Elvira and her group are in a fairly remote area up here. I’m not sure how large the jail or prison system is, but something tells me it might be tricky getting her out if the charges stick. Did Dernice mention the name of the place where her sister and this woman argued?”

“Hang on a minute. She sent me a text with the name.”

The other end of the line grew muffled. Carlita returned. “It’s Bay Bar & Grill in Whittier, Alaska.”

Millie repeated the name. “Thanks. It will give us a starting point, after we see Elvira, of course.”

The women chatted for a few more minutes, with Millie promising to have Elvira check in as soon as possible. “It might take some time.”

“Any help you can give is greatly appreciated.”

After the call ended, Millie gathered up what she thought they might need. Something told her because of the limited timeframe, she and Sharky would need to move fast.

She pulled up a street map of downtown Whittier and began jotting notes. The distance from the cruise port to the jail. The location of Bay Bar & Grill. Millie hadn’t thought to ask Carlita about the area where the gold mining team was staying. She added a note to find out when they talked to Elvira.

After finishing, she folded the paper in half and stuck it in her pocket. Saturday was shaping up to be a long day, although probably not nearly as long as Elvira’s day. How Sharky had ever become involved with a woman like Elvira was beyond Millie. Perhaps it was a case of opposites attracting.

Maybe it was the excitement. She also suspected Sharky preferred long-distance relationships. Whatever the reason, he cared enough about her to want to try to help.

Something told Millie they would need to hit the ground running if they were going to figure things out. She and her friends had solved some complicated cases, but Alaska had its own unique environment.

Would they be able to figure out what had happened? She hoped so. If not, there was a very good chance Elvira would remain Waylaid in Whittier indefinitely.

*****

Millie arrived at the gangway at exactly eight the next morning. Sharky was already there waiting, sporting a bulging backpack, a bag so full it wasn’t fully zipped. She tapped the top of a wooden handle sticking out. “What’s this?”

“What’s what?” Sharky stretched his neck.

“It looks like a hacksaw.”

“You would be correct. I also have binoculars, bottled water so we can stay hydrated, a pair of vice grips, and some other stuff. I have no idea what we’re getting ourselves into and want to be prepared.”

“Why the hacksaw? To sneak into the jail and saw off the bars to set Elvira free?” Millie teased.

“In case we’re out in the wilderness. C’mon, Millie. You know a hacksaw won’t cut through steel bars. We would need explosives, and I’m fresh out of them.” Sharky shaded his eyes. “Where’s the rest of the team?”

“On standby. We may need to divide and conquer. Time will be our biggest hurdle today.”

“You’re right. Which is why we’re taking the Flamethrower. So we can get where we’re going fast.” Sharky grabbed Millie’s arm and propelled her toward the bow of the ship.

Parked off to the side, spit-shined and ready to roll was his prized possession, his souped-up fire engine red scooter, which Millie suspected was barely street legal. “Are you sure it’s safe for us to drive this around on the streets?”

“Why not?”

“Remember our last scooter incident,” Millie reminded him.

“I learned my lesson.” He made an “x” across his chest. “Scout’s honor. We’ll ride nice and easy around town.”

“We had better. We won’t be any help to Elvira if we’re behind bars, too.”

Sharky handed Millie a helmet. “Like I said, I’ll be cool as a cucumber. No worries.”

Despite her skepticism about what her friend considered cruising around nice and easy, she climbed on, her helmet firmly in place.

Like Millie, he had done his homework, knew exactly where they were going and how to reach Whittier’s jail on the outskirts of town.

They pulled into the parking lot and found an empty spot near the front. A posted sign designated it for snowmachines.

“This looks good enough for me.” Sharky kicked the kickstand down and waited for Millie to hop off. “Not much to look at, is it?”

“Most police stations and jails aren’t.” Millie removed her helmet and studied the building, consisting of red brick on the lower half and some sort of rustic wooden slats covering the top.

She caught up with Sharky on the sidewalk, making the short trek to the front door. Big, bold arrows directed visitors.

To the right was the fire department. To the left was the EMS station. Straight ahead was the place they were looking for—the police station.

“One stop city services,” Millie quipped. “Saving residents both time and money.”

Stepping inside, they found a large reception desk with clear glass window partitions. Sharky greeted the clerk behind the counter. “Good morning. My friend and I are here to visit Elvira Cobb, an inmate.”

“Elvira Cobb.” The woman peered at them over the top of her glasses, her eyes flitting from one to the other. “Are you related to her?”

“Do we have to be?” Sharky asked.

“No. I’ll need a copy of your photo identification.”

Millie and Sharky handed the woman their driver’s licenses. She made a clicking sound with her teeth. “You both live in Miami?”

“We live and work on a cruise ship,” Millie explained. “However, we need a physical address, so we use PO boxes in Miami, which is our home port.”

“Ah.” The woman’s eyes lit. “You came in on the mega cruise ship this morning.”

“We did,” Sharky confirmed. “Ms. Cobb is a friend of ours.”

“Do you know if she’s still here?” Millie asked, hoping there was an off-chance Patterson had old information and Elvira had been released.

“She’s still here. The judge hasn’t set bond.” The clerk ran their licenses through a machine and handed them back. “A guard will be up shortly to store your belongings and escort you to the visitor’s area.”

Millie and Sharky thanked her and stepped off to the side.

A guard appeared moments later, calling their names. He led them through a heavy metal door to a side room. “You’ll need to leave your backpacks and bags in here.”

Making quick work of stowing their stuff, Millie questioned whether she could bring a pen and paper with her, to which the guard cleared both items.

Back in the hall, they followed him to the end and turned left. The trio trekked down another hall to an identical metal door. Using his keycard, the guard unlocked the door and ushered them inside.

Millie’s first impression was the room was dark and dreary, or perhaps it was a lingering depression from those who had passed through. Troubled souls, anxious inmates, those who had given up hope.

Hopefully, Elvira wasn’t one of them.

On closer inspection, Millie noticed tables and chairs lining both sides, each group strategically placed an equal distance apart.

“Your friend is over there.”

Sharky saw Elvira first. He gave a quick wave and hurried over. Millie slowly trailed behind, giving them a few moments of privacy to greet one another.

“Thank you for coming.” Elvira hugged Sharky and shook Millie’s hand. “It looks like I got myself into a real pickle this time.”

“You sure did,” Sharky said. “Between the three of us, I’m hoping we can get to the bottom of what happened.”

“I know what happened.” Elvira pointed at Millie. “And don’t take my comment as me being cocky or unappreciative because believe me, I need all the help I can get.”

“We heard the judge hasn’t set bail,” Millie said.

“Because the woman who was attacked is related to one of the local cops.” Elvira wrinkled her nose. “The good news is Gold Grade Mining Group’s producer knows the judge. He’s working on getting me out of this place and seems to think I’ll be released soon.”

“Unfortunately, we don’t have a lot of time,” Millie said. “We need to have this wrapped up and be back on board the Siren of the Seas by tomorrow afternoon.”

“I figured Millie and I would get a little background info on the woman who was attacked, swing by the bar where the incident occurred and go from there,” Sharky said.

“Talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I thought Wanda and I were like this.” Elvira twined her fingers together. “Friends don’t attack friends.”

“Tell us everything that happened,” Millie said.

“It all started when the mining team headed over to Bay Bar & Grill…”