A Killing On The Water Read online

  Jasper whined, so I picked him up and let him lie across my knees. He panted and looked around at everyone, seeming much happier now that he was part of the action.

  “I’ll be interested to see what you think when you talk to Ray Preston,” I said to Shep. “I’m no detective, you know.”

  I ignored Shep’s snort of laughter, set Jasper on the floor, and stood to go.

  Shep followed me out the door. I was surprised to see Duncan Donovan waiting in the lobby. It was a strange coincidence, considering Erica and Allison had just been talking about him earlier. Shep called the young man back into his office and I decided to hang around and wait to talk to Duncan when he came back out. Maybe he could confirm Erica and Allison’s timeline. It wouldn’t hurt to have a definite picture of where everybody from the bed and breakfast had been on the day of Ms. Greenaway’s murder. Anyway, there had been a disagreement between Erica and Allison and Ms. Greenaway. Who was to say it hadn’t led to further trouble later?

  I didn’t have to wait long before Duncan came back out of Shep’s office.

  “Hi, Duncan,” I said. “How have you been?”

  “Oh, just fine,” he said. “Except I can’t find my motorboat!”

  “What’s that, now?”

  “Yeah, you know I have the big boat, the one I take the pretty girls out on, but I also have a little motorboat for when I need to get around in a hurry. I went to take it across the bay this morning, and it was gone.”

  “How strange. When was the last time you saw it?” I asked.

  “Well, I suppose it was sometime last week,” he said. “I’m not really sure. The days kind of blend together sometimes.” He chuckled.

  “That’s just terrible, Duncan,” I said. “What did Shep say?”

  “He had me file a report, but I don’t think anything will happen with it until the lost boy is found,” he said. “Not that that’s a problem,” he quickly added. “Of course the boy should come first. It’s just an inconvenience I didn’t plan on having to deal with.”

  I had planned to ask him what he had been doing on the day of Ms. Greenaway’s death, but Jasper’s sudden urgent whining made it clear he had important business to conduct outside. I had to wish Duncan a hasty goodbye and let Jasper drag me out the door and to the nearest patch of grass.

  Still, I turned over in my mind the situation with Duncan’s missing boat and wondered what it could mean. Could the theft be somehow related to Ms. Greenaway’s death or was it just a random coincidence? I thought about Erica and Allison and the other college girls back at the bed and breakfast and wondered whether any of them were in the habit of stealing boats. It wasn’t hard to see how a pretty girl could make her way past the rather clueless Duncan. For that matter, who else might have had access to the vehicle?

  Chapter 15

  I took Jasper across the street to the post office and stood in line to wait to talk to Ed. When it was my turn, I said, “Morning, Ed. I was hoping you’d remembered something about Saturday.”

  “Hey, there, Piper,” he said cheerfully. “I didn’t remember anything else, but Norman was here that day.”

  Ed nodded toward the elderly man sitting on a bench by the window. Norman generally spent his days sitting at either the post office or the hardware store, and he was well-known by the residents of the island.

  “He saw the whole thing,” Ed explained. “Maybe he saw or heard something I missed?”

  “Thanks, Ed.” I walked over to Norman and said, “Hi, Norman. How are you doing?”

  “No need for small-talk, I know you’re here about the dead woman.” Norman adjusted his dentures before going on. “Yeah, I was here when she was hollering at Ed. She was one of them people who think the bigger the fuss they make, the more likely people are to give ‘em what they want.” He chuckled. “Can’t argue with bureaucracy, though. All them rules and regulations may be a waste of time, but they’re pretty clear about how things are s’posed to go.”

  “Did she say or do anything in particular that stood out to you?” I asked.

  “No, she was just screamin’ at Ed because he told her she was too late to get the mail out on the early ferry. Like he can control the work schedules over on the mainland! She even tried to get Ed fired!” Norman shook his head. “Ed told her she needed to learn to be nicer to people or one day she’d regret it. I don’t know if she did regret anything before she died, but if she didn’t, she’s probably regretting it real good right about now!”

  He barked out a loud laugh that sent him into a coughing fit. I removed the lid from his bottle of water and handed it to him, giving him a good thump on the back for good measure.

  “Thanks,” he said with a grin.

  “Are you all right?” I asked worriedly.

  He nodded.

  “Anything else you remember about Ms. Greenaway? Or maybe about the boy she took care of, Jacob?”

  “Yeah, I heard that boy went missing. That’s a shame,” he said. “Real spirited, that one. Lots of energy. He kept jumping onto and off of the bench. Aggravated the nanny to no end.”

  “Did you notice anyone watching them? Anyone out of place?”

  “Everyone was watching them! She was yelling and making a scene! But no, no one suspicious was hanging around.” He sat back, indicating that he was done talking.

  “Thanks, Norman, you’ve been a real help,” I told him as I stood up.

  Jasper jumped to his feet and looked up at me. I waved to Norman and Ed and let Jasper pull me out the door. I glanced at my phone and noticed that it was nearly noon, so I decided to go back to the B&B to have lunch.

  I made my way back to my car, and just as I was putting Jasper in on the passenger side, a car pulled into the spot next to me, and Liam got out with a couple of the other filmmakers.

  “Hey, Piper!” Liam grinned at me.

  “Hey yourself,” I said. “What are you all up to?”

  “Just trying to get all of the shots and interviews we need for the documentary. We’re pretty close. I think we might wrap it up today. Any updates on the investigation?” He walked toward me while the other two men stood in front of the cars.

  “Nothing that will help us find Jacob,” I said.

  He nodded casually.

  His interest was perfectly natural, I knew. Lots of people on the island were interested in the development of this case and in finding the lost child. Still, I couldn’t help thinking Liam seemed to be following the whole situation more closely than most. Was that just because he wanted to add some extra drama to his documentary? Or was there some other, more sinister reason for his prying?

  I shook away my suspicion, afraid he would somehow sense it. I was being paranoid, I told myself. Earlier I had been wondering about Erica and Allison and now I had moved on to Liam and his crew? I had to stop looking at everyone around me as a suspect.

  “I’d better get going,” he said now, “but I’ll make sure to catch you before we leave the island tomorrow or Wednesday.”

  “Make sure you do,” I told him, waving goodbye to his friends. I got in the car and started it up.

  Chapter 16

  Back at the bed and breakfast, I had a quick lunch with Page and Blaire and then decided to call Shep to check in.

  “Hello, Piper,” he said when he answered my call.

  “Hi, Shep,” I said. “Have you learned anything new?”

  “Not much that you didn’t tell us this morning,” he said. “Ray Preston has been in here claiming that he had nothing to do with Ms. Greenaway’s death. There’s still no ransom note and no sign of Jacob.” He sighed loudly. “I don’t know what we’re dealing with here, Piper. The longer the boy is gone, the less likely it is he’s still alive, especially without a ransom note. I’m not sure where to go from here.”

  “What did the coroner have to say about the autopsy?” I asked.

  “The coroner confirmed Ms. Greenaway’s death was suspicious,” Shep answered. “There was a blow to the back of h
er head, but the cause of death was asphyxia due to drowning. Now, before you get any ideas, it’s just as likely that she hit her head and fell into the water as it is that someone else hit her and threw her in. It’s suspicious because murder is a possibility.”

  “So, we basically know nothing more than we did before.” I sighed heavily. I had been counting on the autopsy to give us the clue we needed to break the case.

  “We do, actually,” Shep said. “We know that she was alive when she went into the water, and based on where the body was found, there’s a ninety percent chance that she went into the water from a boat.”

  “We know that because…?”

  “Tide patterns,” Shep said. “I checked with an expert at the university on the mainland after talking to the tide pattern guy yesterday on the pier. The woman from the university wasn’t so certain Jacob would wash up on the island even if he went into the water at the same time and place as Ms. Greenaway, but she was able to confirm that it’s likely she fell or was pushed in from a boat.”

  “Okay, then whose boat was she on, and how did she get there?”

  As I asked the question, my mind went to Duncan Donovan’s missing boat. Then I thought about the island ferry and all the boats at the local marina owned by the Pelkey family. There was no shortage of boats on Sunrise Island. Whichever craft Ms. Greenaway had boarded could have belonged to anybody.

  “There’s another thing that’s bothering me,” I told Shep. “What caused Ms. Greenaway to leave the bed and breakfast so quickly that day, when the last time anybody saw her she was sitting around peacefully knitting? What’s going on here, Shep?” I sighed in frustration.

  “I don’t know, Piper. Those are good questions, and we’re looking for the answers.”

  We both processed his words silently for a moment.

  Then Shep said, “Oh, I forgot to mention this earlier. Be careful what you say around those documentary people. They keep showing up where I’m investigating. I’m torn over whether to be annoyed or suspicious.”

  Although he was following my own line of thinking, I tried to give Liam and the others the benefit of the doubt.

  I said, “I think they’re journalists at heart, wanting to capture the drama of a good story, but I’m also not telling them anything. You know you don’t have to ask.”

  “To cover my bases, I do have to ask. Listen, Piper, I’ve got to get back to it but let me know if you find out anything else.”

  “Same for you,” I told him. We ended the call, and I went into the living room to think about all that I had learned.

  Chapter 17

  I must have fallen asleep because I startled awake when Jasper jumped onto the sofa and started licking my face. He whined when I opened my eyes, so I hurried to take him out. Another storm was moving in, and the air was heavy with humidity. I watched Jasper do his business, and then brought him in and fed him. I ate an apple while I waited for Jasper to finish eating.

  I wanted to check on Mason’s house before the storm began, so I loaded Jasper into the car and drove over to Seven Palms Lane. Pulling into Mason’s driveway, I sat for a moment to admire his house. It was one of the Victorians Sunrise Island was known for. Painted a sage green, the house was two stories with a wraparound porch and elaborate yellow trim. The front right corner had a round tower with a steep, pointed roof. It was beautiful and well-kept, and I loved that I got to spend time in it.

  I got Jasper out of the car and walked up to the porch. Instead of going inside, I sat on the porch swing, which was painted to match the house’s trim. Jasper sat in front of me as I rocked the swing gently and watched the clouds moving in. The storm was slow-moving, reminding me of the search for Jacob. The poor boy had to be terrified after two stormy days away from his family.

  I thought through the different pieces, but I still couldn’t see how they all fit together. Ray Preston had the strongest motive, but he was believable when he denied having anything to do with Ms. Greenaway’s death. It was possible that the culprit was a stranger, or that it had all been an accident, but neither of those options felt right to me, and I trusted my gut.

  Right now, my gut was telling me to get up from the swing and get a move on. I went to the front door and started to unlock it, but I was distracted by the small guest house in the back yard. A smaller version of the main house, the guest house had been converted into an art studio. Mason had added a story to it that was his main painting area. Most of the walls were floor-to-ceiling windows, giving the studio plenty of natural light.

  I pulled the key back out of the door and went around to the studio instead. I opened the door and dropped Jasper’s leash so that he could explore. The bottom level was a living area that could be used if Mason had guests from out of town. At the top of the stairs to the second level, there was a locked door that took a different key than the one to the main door. Luckily, Mason had left it on the key ring when he gave it to me, so I went up to the second floor. Mason had taken out most of the walls on this level, which he used for storage.

  I flipped through some of his canvases. They were images of different parts of the island. There were a few portraits of Jasper and me mixed in, and I laughed at one of Jasper sitting on a pillow, looking like he thought he was the king of the B&B. It was an accurate portrayal of my little buddy.

  I ran my hand over the drawers of painting supplies as I wandered toward the stairs to the addition. I went up slowly, knowing the view was bound to be imposing on a night like this. I wanted to take the time to give it the appreciation it deserved. When I got to the top, I stood in the middle of the room and slowly turned in a circle, taking in the island’s full splendor. To the west, the massive clouds were backlit by the sinking sun, making it look like the sky was on fire. The trees bent and swayed with the increasing gustiness of the wind, and the waves to the east were growing in intensity.

  I wished Mason was there to capture the view on canvas, and I pulled out my phone to send him a few photos. He was probably getting the same storm over in Houston, but without the views of it I was getting on the island. I felt the need to gloat a little.

  As I was snapping photos, I wondered if I could zoom in enough to make out the pirate ship a couple miles to the south. I clicked the shutter several times, hoping one of the shots would come out good. Opening the gallery on my phone, I flipped through the photos. I deleted the ones that were blurry, and then examined the better ones more closely.

  Stopping on my favorite, I admired the splash of the waves against the wood. The line of clouds moving toward the ship gave the picture a foreboding feel. I wondered if I could get Mason to turn the photo into a painting. It would look amazing above the mantel in the living room of the bed and breakfast.

  Flipping to the next picture, something caught my eye. I flipped back and forth between the previous one and this, and something white appeared on the side of the ship on the second photo that wasn’t there on the first. Wrinkling my brow, I flipped my phone back over to the camera app and pointed it toward the ship again. Zooming in, I watched for a few moments. Finally, there it was: a light seemed to be flickering off and on from somewhere inside the ship.

  But no one was supposed to be out there. Only the film crew was supposed to have access, and they had been staying away from it since the storms first came through. Whoever was on the ship could be in danger if the storm turned rough.

  Something clicked in my mind. All of a sudden I knew it had to be Jacob on the boat. I didn’t know how I knew it, but if there was one thing I had learned since coming to Sunrise Island, it was to trust my instincts.

  I closed the pictures and opened the phone app. Before I could find Shep’s number in my contacts, a call from Page came through. I answered, but the connection was spotty, and I was only able to make out a few words.

  “…per! …took Jac…son! They…ote, and…sh…ines, they were w…”

  The call cut off suddenly, and I glanced down at the blank screen. “Oh, not now,” I
moaned, pressing the power button in hopes that there was enough juice to let Shep know what I’d seen. Nothing happened, so I started down the steps. At the bottom, I paused. What should I do? Drive into town to find Shep, who would then have to find a way out to the ship? By the time I got there, the storm would be on us, and we’d have to wait until it passed to go search the ship.

  No, I had to find a boat and go look for Jacob now, before the storm arrived. Jasper was asleep on the sofa, so I called to him, “I’ll be back, boy,” and locked the cottage up.

  “A boat,” I said, standing in the yard. I had only once been inside the ramshackle building that was the boathouse, and I was pretty sure Mason had sold the old boat he used to keep in there, but it was worth checking anyway.

  I ran over and found the door. The hinges squealed and the wood groaned, but I got it open. I left the door wide to let the remaining daylight into the dark building. On the walls hung ropes, paddles, and other boating supplies, and in the middle of the floor was a canoe. There was no sign of the motorboat than had once been housed in here. I guessed it was really sold and all that was left was the canoe. I hurried to the far end to push open the water-front doors to let in more light so that I could get a better look at the canoe.

  The wooden boat looked about as old as the boathouse, but there were no obvious structural defects, so I pushed it toward the water. Stopping at the edge, I went back and found an oar and a life jacket, which I pulled on before pushing the boat the rest of the way into the water. I watched it to make sure it didn’t sink, and then set the oar inside the boat and stepped down into it. Still holding on to the dock, I waited again to see if the boat would hold up.