4 Maui Macadamia Madness (3 page)

He tapped my nose.
“We’ll leave that up to the police.”

“But what if we get
another threat?” I stood and pulled the curtains closed.

“We’ll discuss that
if it happens.” Ethan picked up the phone, asked the
Wahine’s
to call the police,
then
dropped onto the sofa. “Let’s
cuddle until the cops get here.”

As hot as he was,
snuggling was the last thing on my mind after someone tried to kill us.
Nevertheless, we were on our honeymoon, and a few kisses would get me in the
mood fast enough. I closed my eyes and puckered up. After a couple seconds of …
nothing, I opened them. “What?”

“You aren’t in it.”

“Yes, I am.”

He shook his head.
“What’s going through that pretty red head of yours?”

“My hair is auburn,
thank you. Doesn’t it concern you that one of us could have been killed?”

“Yes.” He rolled his
shoulders. “I really did pray that we could have an uneventful ten days on
Maui. I see now that no time with you will ever be uneventful. What do you want
to do?”

Hope bubbled up in
me like the effervescent bubbles in the sparkling cider I had drunk. “Ask a few
questions? Find out whether Mr. Jamison died naturally or by evil intent.” I
kissed the end of his nose. “How many people get to solve a crime in the beauty
of Hawaii?”

“Seeing as how
someone wants us gone, I believe there
is
something to discover now.”

A knock pounded on
the door.

Ethan stood. “We’ll
come up with a plan after the cops leave.” He flashed a smile. “I might
actually enjoy being your sidekick for once, instead of the person telling you
to stay out of things.” He strolled to the door.

I couldn’t wait to
phone April and tell her what I’d landed in this time! Don’t get me wrong, I
still intended to witness all the wonders of the island while solving Mr.
Jamison’s murder. I was on my honeymoon, after all.

Officer
Manano
, and a younger African American policeman I hadn’t
seen before, bustled into the living area of the cottage. Officer
Manano
gave me a stern look, which I returned with a glare
of my own. “Where’s the spear?”

I motioned my head
toward the patio then leaped from the sofa. “I tried to tell you that I have
experience—”

He looked past me to
Ethan. “You said there was a note?”

“Yes,
sir.”
Ethan handed him
the ripped sheet of notebook paper.

“Hmmm.”
Officer
Manano
handed it to his partner, who tucked it into a paper bag. “Are you leaving? I
suggest you don’t.”

“Why?” I rushed to
his side. “Are we suspects? Someone threw a spear at us!”

“You are persons of
interest, yes.” His brown face remained emotionless. “All the guests here are.
I’ve heard of you, Mrs. Banning. You and your need to poke into police
business. My suggestion is for you to enjoy your honeymoon and let the
authorities handle this.”

I crossed my arms.
“How did you hear about me?” I was going to bash Susan Wood’s teeth in if she
was spreading malicious gossip about me to the police. Why had that woman taken
such a dislike to me? We had never met before the shuttle bus ride.

Officer
Manano
chose not to answer. He turned to Ethan. “Will you
be staying here for the duration of your stay?”

Ethan nodded, his
brows drawing to a V. Good. He wasn’t happy about being a suspect any more than
I was.

“What do you do for
a living, Mr. Banning?” Officer
Manano
nodded to his
partner.

I could see his
badge now, Officer Williams. He poised his pen over his paper.

“I’m a high school
woodshop teacher.” Ethan crossed his arms, giving me a delightful view of his
own ‘guns’. “My wife owns Summer Confections, a candy store in Mountain
Springs, Arkansas. We are on our honeymoon. We were married yesterday. Why,
exactly, do you have us as persons of interest? We didn’t know Mr. Jamison
before this afternoon. We aren’t the sort of people to poison someone’s
macadamia nuts.”

Poor
thing.
Unfortunately,
Ethan knew the drill when questioned by officers of the law. Something he could
pin on me because of my past escapades. Only thing was, this time he wasn’t
being questioned by a friendly face.

Officer
Manano
narrowed his eyes. “Who said anything about poisoned
nuts?”

“So, it is true.” I
popped a grape into my mouth. “I figured as much.”

“Mrs.
Banning.”
High spots of
color appeared on
Manano’s
cheeks. “If you don’t stay
out of my investigation, then I’ll be going with the assumption that you
planted those poisoned nuts in an insane attempt for more notoriety in solving
crimes and to get your face plastered in the Maui newspaper.”

Not many things
leave me speechless, but that comment did. Tears burned the back of my eyelids.
How could a complete stranger be so cruel? I hated having my picture taken.

Ethan marched to the
door. “I must insist that unless you have a warrant, it is time for the two of
you to leave.”

“Stick around, Mr.
Banning. We’ll be in touch.” Officer
Manano
strode
through the door.

Officer Williams
stepped onto the back porch, retrieved an awesomely carved wooden spear with a
shark’s tooth spearhead,
then
followed his senior
partner.

By the time Officer
Friendly and Officer No Speech left, my stomach was growling in earnest. I
didn’t think a few chunks of cheese and some grapes would do the trick. “I’m
starving.”

Ethan cast a
wide-eyed gaze on me. “How can you eat at a time like this? That man thinks we
killed someone just so you could get your name and face in another newspaper.”

I shrugged. “I’m
used to people thinking the worst. We’ll prove him wrong.” I slid my arms
around his waist and laid my cheek on his chest. His heart raced. Maybe I could
skip food in favor of something more delicious. I peered up at him. “
Wanna
go to bed?”

###

“I could not believe the nerve of that man. He really hurt my
feelings.” I scooted higher on the headboard and stared through the bedroom
door. Ethan would be home any moment with our breakfast.

“How do you manage
to get into these predicaments?” April sighed through the phone. “Joe is going
to throw a gasket when he hears.”

“You should have seen
Ethan. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so angry.” A breeze blew through the
open window and fluttered the white gauzy curtains. The sun rose above the
azure sea, calling for vacationers to don swimsuits and snorkel gear. I
couldn’t wait to get my feet wet. As long as I didn’t meet the shark whose
tooth was recently in our cottage wall.

“Since you’re knee
deep in another mystery, are you going to try and solve it?”

“Of
course.
You know me.” My
fingers itched to take up pen and paper and start taking notes.

“Yes, I do. Please,
be careful. On a better subject, how’s the honeymoon?”

“Wonderful.” I
snuggled into the pillows. “I married the best man in the world.”

“Actually, I think
Joe is.”

“Of course you
aren’t going to think your brother is the best. How
are your
wedding
plans coming along?” The front door clicked closed and the
enticing aroma of coffee made its way to the bedroom.

“Great.
Right on schedule.
And don’t say anything else about how a
June wedding is cliché, I know it is, but that’s what I’ve always wanted.”

“I’m happy for you.
Ethan is back with food. I’d better go. I’ll keep you informed. Bye.” I clicked
off, slid the phone onto the nightstand, and greeted Ethan with a smile. “Hey,
baby.”

“Still
hungry?”
He set a tray of
fruit and pastries on the bed then plopped next to me.

“Starving!”
I grabbed a cream cheese Danish. If I didn’t
start eating something of substance, all the
carbs
were going to make my behind as big as the island. “What’s on the agenda
today?”

“Do you want to
snorkel right off the beach here or go up to the resort?”

“Since I’ve never
snorkeled, I’d like to try here first.” The pastry melted in my mouth with
cheesy creaminess. I reached for another. By sticking around the B & B, I
might find an opportunity to question someone, anyone, seeing as how I had
absolutely no suspects at this point.
Except for Susan Wood.
She’s the only person here who knew who I was and who could have told Officer
Friendly I was in the paper back home.

Someone knocked on
the door. When Ethan moved to answer, I ducked into the bathroom. I might as
well get dressed. I had bought a new red bikini with white polka dots and a
sheer gauzy white scarf to tie around my hips. I couldn’t wait to dazzle Ethan.
Once dressed, I slipped my feet into sandals which sported a big red flower on
them, and stepped into the living room.

I smiled as Ethan’s
eyes widened in appreciation. Mr.
Wahine
grinned
beside him. Yep, I still had appeal.

Ethan strolled up to
me, the sparkle in his eyes never fading, and swiped a finger across my chest.
“Were you saving that blob of cream cheese for later?”

“Yes.” My shoulders
slumped.
So much for a sexy entrance.
“Good morning,
Mr.
Wahine
.”

“Aloha,
Mrs. Banning.
I came to
see how you were after last night’s fright.”

“All
in the past.”
I sat on
the sofa, crossed my legs, and tried to look as alluring as possible in order
to remove the mental picture of me with food on my bosom from Ethan. Although I
was built petite, God saw fit to amply endow me, and they tended to catch
‘things’ such as food. By the age of thirty, I should know better than to step
outside the bathroom without checking.

“We would like to
give you free tickets to a luau on Friday night for your misfortune.” He handed
them to Ethan. “My son and daughter will be dancing.”

“Thank you so much!”
I clapped my hands. I’ve always wanted to see men in grass skirts play with
fire.

Now might be a good
opportunity for the first of my questions. I avoided Ethan’s gaze so he
couldn’t send me signals to stop. “How are the other guests faring after Mr.
Jamison’s death, and now this?”

Mr.
Wahine
shook his head.
“As well as can be
expected.
My poor daughter is the most traumatized. My son seems to be
angry that this has happened, as it will not look favorably on the hotel. The
other guests are looking at it as excitement for their vacation.” His grin
returned. “We just booked our two-bedroom cottage. The party arrives in the
morning. This may help our business. You know what they say, any advertising is
good advertising.” He tossed us a wave and backed out of the room.

Hmmm.
I chewed my pinkie nail. Was the
Wahine
Bed and Breakfast in financial trouble? What sort of
business did Mr. Jamison do? I glanced out the window to see Susan Wood in a
black string bikini head for the beach.

“Ready?” I popped up
from the sofa, grabbed a waterproof bag that held towels, sun screen, and the
latest mystery from James Patterson.

Ethan cocked his
head. “What are you up to? What questions could you possibly have to ask
Susan?”

“I won’t know until
we start talking.” I kissed him and skipped out the door.

Ethan followed with
the snorkel gear. “I may soon regret saying you could try solving this.” He
closed the door and locked it behind us.

The
Aldrichs
came out of their cabin and headed for the beach.
Wonderful.
Sharon was much more communicative than Susan.

Ethan put his arm
around my shoulders. “Before you start bugging people, you have to go
snorkeling with me first. Don’t forget why we’re on Maui.”

“I wouldn’t dream of
it.” I slipped my hand in his and let him lead me to a stretch of sand a little
away from the others.

Off the shore, a
small reef formed an almost complete circle. The area looked safe enough for
me. It wasn’t big enough for man-eating sharks. I kicked off my shoes and
slipped on the flipper fins. Once I managed to get that mouth breathing
apparatus over my head without the rubber band pulling all my hair out, I
slapped my way into the delicious water. Ah, I could stay out there all day.

After a few minutes
of getting up enough nerve to let my feet come out from under me and to lay
face first in the water, I opened my eyes and surveyed the murky world around
me. I thought the water in Hawaii was clear?

My face mask fogged
up. I pushed my feet back to the
silty
ocean floor.
After removing the mask, I spit in it as I had seen divers on television do,
then slapped around until I was once again laying on my face in the water.
Someone tapped me on the head.