Maui Madness (Zoe Donovan Mysteries Book 7) (2 page)

“Close.” Levi laughed. One of the games was a sort of musical chairs in which one chair in each round had something gross on the seat. If it was the only seat left, you were forced to choose between sitting in it and forfeiting the game. It just
happened
to work out that I was standing in front of the gross chair every time.

“Actually, my favorite part was the p
hotos I managed to take for my Facebook page.”

“You didn’t
!” I growled as I grabbed for his cell phone.

“
’Fraid so. The picture of you climbing out of the Dumpster with spaghetti in your hair already has two hundred likes and the shot of you turning green as you chocked down that black slop has gone viral. You’ll be famous by morning.”

“Take them down,” I
demanded as I tried to grab Levi’s phone.

Levi held his phone over my head where I couldn’t reach it.

“Zak, make him give me the phone,” I insisted.

“Sorry, he’s your friend
.” Zak laughed. “I try never to get between you and your friends.”

“But it’s humiliating,” I
wailed.

Za
k stopped walking. He turned so that we were facing each other and tucked a stray lock of my still-wet hair behind my ear. “Actually,” he began, “the sight of Louise peeking out of your bikini top while you climbed out of the Dumpster with green slime on your leg and pasta in your hair is the sexiest thing I’ve seen for a very long time.”

“You are seriously deranged.”
I rolled my eyes.

Zak kissed me on the lips.
“No, I’m just totally in love with this wonderful person who would go to so much effort to make sure that her friends are having a good time. You really are a uniquely awesome person, Zoe Donovan.”

I wrapped my arms aroun
d Zak’s neck and gave him a kiss. A real one.

“Get a room,” Ellie teased.

That, I decided, was exactly what I was going to do.

“So how
’s Hawaii?” Jeremy Fisher and Tiffany Middleton, my assistants at the animal control and rehabilitation shelter we run, asked in tandem during our first video conference since I’d arrived.

Jeremy snickered
, so I figured he’d found Levi’s photos online.

“Hawaii is great. We
’re having an excellent time,” I responded.

“Taken in any good shows on the island?” Jeremy laughed out loud.

“Very funny.” I stuck out my tongue at him.

“Seriously
, that video of you doing the whole musical chairs thing left me lying on the floor in stitches. And the look on your face when you choked down the mud pie was hysterical. I’m thinking of freezing a few of the frames and printing portraits to hang in the lobby.”

“If you do
, you’ll be looking for another job.”

Jeremy obviously didn’t take my threat seriously
because he held up a photo of me climbing out of the Dumpster that he’d printed from Levi’s Facebook photos. “Did they let you keep that bikini? Because it’s really something.”

“Leave Zoe alone
.” Tiffany kicked Jeremy. “Other than the comedy club and the momentary lapse in judgment when you volunteered to be a participant, how are you liking the house and the island?”

“It
’s so awesome.” I smiled at Tiffany in gratitude for changing the subject. “Truly. Words cannot describe the awesomeness of this awesome island.”

“That’s a lot of awesome,” Tiffany
said.

“Seriously
.” I giggled. “The island is everything I dreamed it would be and the house is really gorgeous. Let me give you a tour.”

I held up the computer
, which featured a camera, and began to walk around the house on Maui’s west shore that Zak’s friend Keoke had let us use for two weeks. “This is the awesome living area.” I showed my friends the large great room, which was open to the outside through huge glass doors in the wall. “When you roll back the glass wall, it’s like having no wall at all,” I said, demonstrating.

“Wow
.” Tiffany gasped in awe. “It must feel like you’re sitting on an outdoor patio even though you’re actually indoors.”

“
Yeah, it really does. You can sit in comfort while listening to the waves crash and enjoying a summer breeze. This is the seating area.” The room featured multiple sofas, a top-notch entertainment center, and the best feature in the huge room, an enormous saltwater aquarium that displayed colorful fish that could be found in the ocean just steps from the back door.

“And it has a full kitchen?” Tiffany asked.

I walked toward the kitchen, which was open to the living area. “This is the dining table.” I showed my coworkers a long table that could easily seat twenty. “And this is the kitchen.”

“I love the granite co
untertops. And the appliances,” Tiffany drooled. “You could cook for a lot of people in that kitchen.”

“The owner uses it for corporate retrea
ts as well as a family getaway, so no expense has been spared. The bedrooms are down this hall.” I pointed the camera toward the hallway. “I won’t go poking into everyone’s private space, but each room has an ocean view and a private bathroom. Zak and I even have a Jacuzzi that’s more than big enough for two.”

“It looks like h
eaven on earth,” Tiffany sighed.

“I haven’t even shown you the best part.”
I walked the computer outside. “This is the pool area. As you can see, it’s situated right on the ocean.” It was a beautiful day, the sun shining down on the big waves that rolled onto a white sand beach. “There’s a huge patio with a fire pit and an outdoor kitchen that’s three times as large as my indoor kitchen at home.”

“It’s
really beautiful,” Jeremy commented.

I just glared at him.

“I’m sorry I teased you,” he apologized, “and I really am glad that you’re all having a good time. Forgive me?”

“Are you going to destroy the photos you printed?”

“Already done.” Jeremy tore them in half.

“Okay, then I guess I forgive you.”

“So other than the comedy club, tell me about your visit,” Tiffany encouraged.

“
I’ve been here less than forty-eight hours, but I’m already in love with the place.” I set the computer on a table and sat down on one of the lounge chairs. The sun hitting my bare legs was warm in spite of the fact that it was still early in the morning. “I sat out here earlier and watched dolphins jumping in the distance as I drank my coffee. It was so peaceful and relaxing to listen to the waves crashing onto the beach. I understand if you come during the winter, you can see whales as well.”

“I’d love to see whales,” Tiffany gushed.

“Zak said they’re regular visitors to the channel on this side of the island. I’m hoping I can convince him to bring me back during the winter.”

“I’m sure Zak will do anything you want,” Jeremy assured me.
“Is that Molokai in the background?”

“Yes
. How did you know?”

“The scenery you showed us looks similar to the
landscape that was in the background when I saw a news report on that missing judge. The reporter mentioned that the island you could see in the distance was Molokai.”

“Missing judge?” I asked.

“You didn’t hear about that? It was all over the national news this past week,” Jeremy informed me.

“I guess I haven’t watched much television lately,” I admitted.
“I’ve been pretty distracted, getting everything taken care of that needed to be handled in order for me to be gone for two weeks.”

“S
ome judge and two of his friends went sailing last weekend and never returned. There was a huge search, but they still haven’t been found. It’s quite the mystery because it was a bright, sunny day and the judge was an experienced sailor.”

“Wow, how awful. Zak
hasn’t mentioned it, but then, he’s had a lot on his mind.”

“I’m sure you’ll hear about it now that you
’re in the area. They’ve called off the search, but I imagine that a missing judge is a hot topic, and the manner in which he disappeared is pretty freaky. The reporter was camped out in front of the judge’s house and the scenery in the background looked very similar to what I’m seeing now, so I’m betting he lives in the area where you’re staying.”

I had this sinking feeling in my gut. At times I can’t even explain how I know things
, but somehow I knew that before our time on the island was over, I’d somehow become involved in the saga of the missing judge and the boat that seemed to have disappeared into thin air.

“How is
Charlie doing with the new atmosphere?” Tiffany asked.

I smiled
, grateful for the change of topic. “He’s taking everything in stride. Say hi,” I said, pointing the camera at a padded lounge chair next to the pool where Charlie had been napping.

“Hi
, Charlie,” Jeremy and Tiffany both greeted him.

Charlie looked up as he tried to figure out where the voices were coming from.

“How did Charlie do on the flight over?” Tiffany asked.

“Rea
lly good, actually. Since Zak chartered a private jet, he was able to sit next to me and look out of the window for most of the journey. I thought the noise and confusion might frighten him, but he seemed to enjoy the experience. Once we landed, he followed Zak down the stairs onto the tarmac and hopped right into the limo that was waiting for us when directed to do so. How are Marlow and Spade?”

Tiffany had volunteered to stay at my boathouse while I was away to take care of the precious kitties in my life. I could have taken them over to my parents
’, but I knew that in the long run they’d be much happier at home, in a familiar environment, and Tiffany had assured me that she was thrilled to stay at my lakefront property.

“They
’re doing fine. Marlow has been testing his limits a bit since you’ve been gone, but I think we’ll be able to come to an understanding.”

“Uh
-oh. What’d he do?” I asked. Marlow, my huge orange-and-white tabby, was by far the more active and mischievous of the two felines.

“Nothing serious. He just seemed to think it would be funny to empty the hamper and hide my clothes all over the house. I’ve looked and looked
, but I’m still missing one sock and a bra.”

“Don’t feel bad
; he does that to me at times. I think he gets bored being alone all day. It would seem Spade would be good company for him, but Spade is a lazy cat who likes to sleep all day, while Marlow likes to play. I’ve found the best remedy to the missing clothes situation is to keep the hamper in the bathroom and then keep the door closed while I’m gone.”

“Have you thought about getting one of those towers that cats can climb and play on? Maybe Marlow just needs more exercise.”

“I’m not sure where I’d put it. My boathouse is pretty small,” I pointed out.

“I think my mom has one in her garage from a cat I had as a kid. She
’s coming to have lunch with me tomorrow. I’ll ask her to bring it, and if Marlow likes it, we can work on somewhere to put it.”

“
Okay, that sounds like a good plan. So how are things at the Zoo?” I asked the question I’d called to find out in the first place.

“You’ve only been gone two
days,” Jeremy pointed out.

“I know
, but Zak and Levi went fishing and Ellie decided to go for a walk, so I’m home alone with time to think, and I started wondering about the dead squirrels in the campground and the stray dog who has been terrorizing picnickers on the beach.”

“You’re at the house alone?” Tiffany asked without answering my question. “Why didn’t you go fishing with the guys or walking with Ellie?”

“I didn’t go with the guys because I hate fishing, and Ellie seemed like she wanted to be alone with her thoughts. It was such a hectic few days getting ready to make the trip that I tend to forget it’s only been a week since Rob broke her heart.”

“How
is
she doing?” Jeremy asked.

I sighed. “Honestly
, I’m not sure. She was really quiet on the trip over, but she seemed to loosen up last night while I humiliated myself in front of hundreds of total strangers. She laughed with everyone else and really looked like she was having a good time. I thought things were going to be okay, but then she came out of her room this morning looking like she hadn’t slept at all. She said she needed to think, so I decided to give her some space.”

“The poor thing is taking this breakup really hard,”
Tiffany sympathized.

“She really is,” I agreed.
“I honestly feel that what happened was the best thing for everyone involved, but I hate to see Ellie go through this. I know how much she loves Hannah, and how much she was looking forward to being her mother, but I can’t help but feel happy that Hannah and her real mother have been reunited.”