Claire Gulliver #04 - Cruisin' for a Bruisin' (30 page)

“What do you know about it? Who are you to judge me? Of course she was my aunt, by marriage, but still we were related. And I was glad to find her. She was happy about that too. I helped free her from her depression. I made her last days meaningful. I made it possible for her to fulfill her life quests, didn’t I?”

Millie’s mouth fell open with growing horror at what she was hearing, at what she now realized had happened to Mrs. Bernbaum. She couldn’t help saying, “But she loved you. And..., and you killed her?”

“Well, let’s just say I gave her a little shove in the right direction. Hell, she was a crusty old girl. She might have lived for another five years...maybe more. I didn’t want to wait that long. I have plans for my own life. She had lived hers. It was time for her to go. Trust me, she died happy. She didn’t know what happened.”

“Oh, well I certainly feel better knowing that.” Claire’s voice dripped with sarcasm. Not waiting for more, she pulled on her mother’s hand and again tried to push her way toward the door.

Kim grabbed Millie, but Claire barreled through, hoping to get the door open so she could yell her head off in the corridor. No such luck. Richard wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her roughly back before she could reach the door.

“No, you don’t. Kim, open the door to the balcony,” he ordered, tightening his hold on Claire while capturing her arms and pinning them to her body with his other arm. Claire twisted and squirmed, trying to break free, but Richard dragged her backwards toward the balcony.

Meanwhile, she could see bits of her mother’s struggle with the woman called Kim. Kim held Millie’s arm, alternating between shoving her and dragging her out on the balcony toward the railing. But Millie wasn’t going quietly. Kim finally managed to press Millie back again the rail, with her head and shoulders hanging out in space. Still she couldn’t lift her captive high enough to push her over the top of the rail. She panted from her efforts as she hit and pushed Millie. Millie flailed and kicked and yelled at Kim, giving, almost as good as she got.

“Help me,” Kim hollered at Richard in desperation.

“Hit her with something,” Richard muttered, his hands full of the writhing Claire.

Kim let go of Millie to run into the cabin in search of something to use as a weapon. As soon as Millie was free of Kim, she attacked Richard, who now had a choke hold on Claire and was squeezing her neck, cutting off her air supply.

Millie was a tiger. She raked Richard’s face with her nails as she attempted to reach his eyes. Richard turned away from Millie, trying to avoid her attack by keeping the fading Claire between them. He yelled at Kim to get Millie away from him. And while he didn’t let go of Claire, he did relax his hold on her neck enough for her to get her lungs full of air and revive enough to score a couple of good kicks on his shins and one painful stomp on his instep.

Kim returned holding the heavy brass lamp from the desk. She swung viciously at Millie, missing her head, but thumping her painfully across her back. Millie had to back away from Richard to protect herself. Kim brandished the lamp as if it was a club, but Millie didn’t intend to let Kim get her, even as she was being backed once more against the railing. The four of them, desperate and determined, twisted and turned, while executing their intricate dance between death and survival on the balcony.

Richard tightened his hold on Claire’s neck in order to choke the life out of her. He needed her unconscious and helpless so he could help Kim dispose of Millie. Then he and Kim could easily lift Claire over the side. But Claire fought to remain conscious even though she started to fade out, blackness sweeping over her.

Then suddenly the pressure was gone and with her arms suddenly free she managed to grab the rail to keep from falling to the ground. Not yet fully conscious, Claire couldn’t quite understand what happened. It seemed that suddenly the balcony was really crowded.

Millie now held one of her arms, half supporting her. Someone, a man she didn’t know, held her up on the other side. Together they moved her into the cabin and guided her onto a chair. Millie, eyes still flashing her anger, leaned close to her daughter. “Claire, dear, can you talk? Are you all right?”

Claire nodded, massaging her throat as she tried to speak. “Where are they? What happened?” she croaked as she looked around with alarm. She tried to clear her throat, then coughed a few times. She saw lots of people, some standing in clumps in the living room. Richard and Kim were now standing quietly, perhaps because they were each held tightly by men wearing the security blazers. Then Ian came barreling through the door followed closely by Ruth.

“Hey, Claire, you wanted me...?”

“Millie, what happened? You’re bleeding. Are you all right?” Ruth’s voice was high with alarm.

Larry Smithston separated himself from the group around Richard and approached Claire and Millie. “Perhaps you can tell us what’s going on here?”

“I’ll tell you what happened.” Millie was still mad. “I came down to help Richard select an outfit for his aunt to be buried in, just as he asked me to.” Millie turned and glared at Richard, then turned back to Larry. “They, Richard and Kim, started talking strangely about people disappearing. I got quite nervous, actually. Then Claire came by and wanted to see me. I was ready to leave, let me tell you! But instead they pulled her into the cabin.

“Richard killed his aunt, you know. He told us that and then started dragging us outside. They were going to throw us overboard!” she said with outrage as she looked at Richard. “What on earth were you thinking?”

“Oh, would that be harmful to the porpoises too?” he sneered. His face marred with bloody scratches radiated his hate, while Kim, her hair in wild disarray, her expression sullen, glared at Millie.

Millie backed up a pace, shivering.

“Ms. Gulliver?” Larry asked Claire. “I thought you were going to just enjoy the rest of your cruise.”

“Well, I would have liked to, but it just didn’t work out that way. I know you didn’t think Richard was dangerous, but I didn’t agree with you. Not after I saw the way he tried to grab my mother last night. I was the one he pushed out of the way. He didn’t seem harmless then. So when Ruth told me my mother was down here helping him I immediately became alarmed and decided I would have to rescue her. But...” She shrugged before continuing.

“He wanted to know where I threw that bag of trash, so I just made up something. No way, was I going to tell him what I found in that bag, or that I gave it to you. But she,” she dipped her head toward Kim, “didn’t believe me. They wouldn’t let us leave. They said they were going to dump us over, and I believed them. They certainly tried their best to do that.”

“Well, apparently, I was wrong about him not being a danger. And who is this lady?”

Claire shrugged. “One of the passengers. I’ve seen her with him a couple of times.”

“Her name is Kim,” Millie said.

Larry nodded at his men, and they all watched as Richard and Kim were led away so discretely no one would even guess they were being escorted to the ship’s jail.

When the cabin door closed behind them the room was silent, everyone thinking about what had happened.

“How did you know we were in trouble? How did you get here in time to save us?” a puzzled Claire asked Larry. “Did Ian call you?”

Ian, who hadn’t said a word after his initial question when he arrived, shook his head in denial. She looked at Ruth, who shrugged helplessly, shaking her head.

The Head of Security smiled broadly. “It was the porpoises.” He pointed out at the balcony. They all went to the window where they could see the large school of porpoises swimming along side, playing and leaping and twisting while they escorted the ship.

“Everyone on this side of the ship is apparently hanging over the rails of all the balconies and decks watching the porpoises. We had five calls about the disturbance on this balcony and I immediately radioed my men to get down here. The phones were still ringing when I left my office. Kim and Richard would have never gotten away with it. There were way too many witnesses. And if he had dumped one of you over, we would have gotten a rescue boat in the water pretty darn fast.”

Claire looked at him, wondering if he thought that was any comfort to them, and shuddered, returning to her safe chair before her knees gave way.

“You know, I may have been a little reluctant to believe Richard engineered his Aunt’s death, but I certainly couldn’t ignore those calls.

“And I admit, Ms. Gulliver, I was having second thoughts about Dr. Walmer after you left. Of course, that email I got from Captain Dixon of the SFPD would have given me second thoughts anyway.”

She was a little embarrassed. “He didn’t take long to respond.”

“No, he seemed rather concerned. I gather he thinks you and your mother are very special people, and he said if you suspected foul play I had better have a good reason to ignore you. I take it you have worked with him in the past?”

Both Millie and Ruth nodded vehemently. “Oh, yes,” they chorused.

“It was because I asked her to stop by and take care of my cat. I didn’t know what would happen.” Ruth started to explain, but Millie cut her off.

“It was so scary. The cat got out and she tried to coax it back from the back porch. How was she to know the men sitting on the next balcony were drug lords? It wasn’t her fault.”Ruth wouldn’t keep quiet. “I didn’t know. Josie, the woman who lived there was in Guatemala visiting her family and her cousin’s son was house sitting. They didn’t want to be seen and they knew I was gone, so they thought it was a perfect setting for their meeting. Then Claire surprised them by coming out on the deck of the kitchen. They thought they had to get rid of her. You know, because she had seen them.”

“Well, they almost did,” Millie broke in continuing the story. “First they knocked her out and left her in an abandoned warehouse rigged to ignite. Fortunately she came to and managed to get out before the warehouse burst into flames. Sean got involved of course. He was my husband’s partner before my husband was killed all those years ago, and he’s been watching out for us since.

“But the police couldn’t figure out what happened to Claire, why she was in the warehouse. No one connected it to the people on the deck next door to Ruth’s house. But later, after that car tried to run her down and lost control, killing the driver, Claire thought he looked familiar. She finally realized where she had seen him. So then Sean’s people set up a sting operation.”

“Oh, it was very exciting. They used my house.” Ruth tried to interrupt again, but Millie wasn’t giving up the floor. After all, it was her daughter; she wanted to tell the story.

“Anyway, it turned out those men on the balcony were part of a drug cartel that had been plaguing the police for a long time. They were able to catch them, and convict the leader. Claire was a hero to the SFPD. I guess maybe she still is.” She looked at Claire proudly.

“I see.” Larry looked at Claire. “Well, I’ve sent for the doctor to come up and check you both. She’ll take care of that cut on your mother’s forehead. And while we’re waiting, is there anything else you want to tell me about this whole episode?”

Claire looked directly at Ian and then nodded. “Well, there is one thing.”

“Yes?” Larry was very interested this time, as were Millie, Ruth and Ian, whose face was visibly paling.

“Well, Mrs. Bernbaum was carrying her jewelry with her. She had a very valuable collection and I know for a fact it is stored in the wall safe there.” She pointed to the cupboard holding the wall safe. “I would suggest you remove it, inventory it and keep it in a more substantial safe until you turn it over to the authorities in San Francisco.”

“Good idea.” He shook his head. “We tell people not to bring their valuables on these cruises, but they never listen to us. I’ll get someone here immediately.” Just then one of his men admitted the doctor carrying a bag followed by her nurse pushing a wheelchair. Everyone forgot about the jewelry except Ian, whose pale face was now suffused with red as he glared angrily at Claire.

The four of them moved down the corridor toward the elevator, glad to be free and safe.

“I need a drink,” Ian announced.

“Me too,” Ruth agreed. “And a bite to eat. It’s a long time until dinner.”

Millie glanced at her watch. “I think they’re serving hors d’oeuvres in the Starlight Lounge. We could have a drink and a bite before going down to get ready for dinner.”

“That’s right, formal night.” Ruth grimaced.

The elevator arrived and Ian pushed the button for the top deck. When they arrived in the corridor outside the lounge, Millie and Ruth excused themselves to use the facilities and Claire found herself alone with Ian. He ushered her gallantly into the lounge, pointing to a table near the front windows.

“That was very mean of you,” he said in a low voice.

She didn’t even question his meaning, she knew. “I didn’t think you needed the temptation. And frankly I wouldn’t sleep worrying about it. It seemed the most sensible solution.” She selected one of the chairs, slipped her tote bag off her shoulder and sat it down by her feet.

“What are you, a grown up Nancy Drew? Just my luck you found me with my hand in the cookie jar,” he complained.

“Hardly a cookie jar. I’d say you were really lucky it was me and other things distracted me so I didn’t report you. I still can’t believe it. What do you do? Make your living taking cruises so you can steal from little old ladies?”

“Now you’re just being cruel. I told you I retired. I just had some unfinished business to attend to.”

“Sure, sounds like monkey business to me.” She settled back into her chair and looked carefully at him. “Well Ian, now we know each other a little better. You know I have connections with the San Francisco Police and I’m inclined to use those if necessary. And I know you’re not just a mildly flirtatious retired businessman. You’re a jewel thief on a mission. I think it is best if I don’t have any reason to suspect your involvement in any crimes in my immediate vicinity and then I won’t have any reason to meddle in your business, will I?”