Mayhem at the Orient Express (12 page)

I leaned an elbow on the bar and propped my chin in my hand. “On a night when it was
snowing like a son of a gun?”

He cocked an eyebrow at me. It was a nonchalant sort of gesture, and as sexy as sin.
No doubt he’d perfected it on a thousand women before me, and just as certainly, every
single one of them had succumbed. It was another shot at distraction on his part and
he was way off base if he thought there was a snowball’s chance in hell of it working.
Then again, this distraction was far more interesting than the last. The first time
he may have just wanted to divert the conversation from the unpleasant topic of murder.
This time, he was definitely trying to avoid talking about what he may or may not
have seen on the night of the crime.

“Like I said, the locals like a place to escape, and on Monday night, the heat was
still working. We had pool players . . .” When I followed his gaze into the darkness
on the other side of the room, I made out the shapes of two hulking pool tables. “We
had people at the bar. We had plenty of dinner orders, too.”

“And you were so busy, you didn’t notice a thing that happened across the street.”

It wasn’t a question. Which was why I wasn’t surprised when Levi didn’t answer. There
was a tad more wine in the bottle, and he divided it among our four glasses, starting
with Kate and working his way back down the bar to me. He drained the bottle into
my glass. “The cook I hired for the summer hasn’t come over to the island yet,” he
said, setting down the bottle and meeting my gaze straight on. “Good thing I’m really
good at a whole lot of things.” He paused here long enough to make it clear that,
just for a second, we weren’t talking about running a bar any longer. When he was
sure I got the message, he got back on track. “I was pouring drinks and flipping burgers
in the kitchen. If there was anything to see . . .” His gaze drifted to the Orient
Express before it moved again to mine “Whatever happened over there, I didn’t see
a thing.”

I didn’t so much give him a smile as I tried to move my lips, just to make sure they
weren’t frozen. “I bet that’s what you told the cops.”

“How do you know the cops talked to me?”

“They would have been stupid not to, and don’t tell Chandra, but Hank Florentine doesn’t
strike me as a stupid man.”

“But I do.”

“I never said that.”

“But you expected me to tell you something I didn’t tell the cops.”

“Did I?” I drained the wine in my glass. “And here I thought I just stopped in to
be part of the communal wake.”

I slid off the barstool and prayed the other ladies got the message. Whatever we’d
hoped to find at Levi’s, it wasn’t forthcoming. Neither was Levi himself. There was
no use prolonging the visit or the agony of being so carefully studied by that steady,
molten gaze.

Tugging down hats and rebuttoning coats, our little group shuffled to the door.

“We’ll see you later?” Chandra called back to Levi. “Remember, Bea’s got a generator
and lots of heat.”

I had my back turned, but there was a mirror nearby, so I could see that Levi’s teeth
were clenched. From this distance, I couldn’t be sure, but I swear his answer was
something like, “The Ice Queen? That’s hard to believe.”

Me? Get angry at the slight? Not to worry. When he turned his back on the door and
hoisted up another case of beer, I got a good look at his butt.

So I mean, really, who had the last laugh?

• • •

“I brought burgers.”

The last person I expected to see at my back door later that Wednesday afternoon was
Levi, so it was only natural that I’d stand there with my mouth opening and closing
like the walleye I’d heard the fishermen in these parts loved to catch.

If he held it against me, he didn’t show it. Without being invited, he stepped into
the house, and just inside the door, he dropped the bedroll that had been under his
arm. I stepped back, he stepped forward, and we did a little backward shuffle all
the way into the kitchen, where he set down a couple overflowing shopping bags. “I’ve
got fries, too,” he said, unloading the bags onto the counter top. “And chicken wings
for lunch tomorrow. And onion rings. Do you like onion rings?”

I love onion rings. I didn’t bother to mention this. But then, I was a little busy
stepping back so I could cross my arms over my black sweater and say, “Wow, it must
have gotten as cold as hell at the bar. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be desperate enough
to opt for the Ice Queen’s palace.”

Good thing Chandra picked that moment to come waltzing in because, really, I was pretty
sure he was going to pretend he didn’t know what I was talking about, and that would
have been a major disappointment.

“Oh, this is perfect,” Chandra crooned. “I’ll set another place at the table. Oh . . .”
Her mouth dropped open and I could see that she was doing some quick mental calculations.
“If we only had one more,” she purred, “there would be thirteen. Thirteen suspects
gathered together in the snow. Just like in the book!”

I didn’t give Levi the opportunity to ask what she was talking about. I suggested
he leave his sleeping bag in the parlor until we figured out a more permanent place
to house him, and told him dinner would be served at six.

Yeah, it was cruel to leave him hanging like that.

But then, two could play the game.

12

A
s it turned out, Chandra got her wish. Just as we were about to sit down to dinner,
Jayce Martin, the owner of the local ferryboat fleet, showed up at my door. By this
time it should have come as no surprise that he was looking for a place to stay.

Thirteen.

There were thirteen of us in the house.

But not thirteen for dinner.

I was waiting at the door to the dining room, directing my guests to their seats,
when Amanda came down.

“Oh.” She stopped just short of the dining room, one hand on the wall to steady herself.
“I think maybe . . .” She pushed off and back toward the steps. “I’m not feeling well
again. I think I’ll just go back upstairs and relax.”

I couldn’t imagine it was the fabulous aroma of the burgers wafting from the kitchen
that caused her cheeks to pale and her hands to shake, and after I promised her a
bowl of soup once we were done eating and watched her go back upstairs, I went into
the dining room, wondering if I’d been right about Amanda all along.

Maybe that threatening note she received meant she wasn’t ill, but was hiding from
someone.

Maybe when she came down to dinner, she saw that someone seated at my table?

With a cold chill on the back of my neck, I stood at the head of the table until everyone
else was seated, using the opportunity to take stock of my guests. Her back to where
I stood, Kate was at the far end of the table nearest the windows with Chandra to
her left. Levi was next to Chandra, Hank was next to Levi. Ted had automatically grabbed
the chair here at the head of the table, and there was an empty seat to his left that
I would slip into as soon as everyone else settled in. That would put Meg next to
me, but not her kids. They had chosen to eat in the kitchen. Luella was next to Meg,
and Mariah (who was dressed to the nines in slinky black pants and a gorgeous red
cashmere sweater) was next to her. Jayce was at the far end of the table. He was a
rugged, dark-haired guy about our age, and it didn’t take a rocket scientist to see
that no lights and no heat were the least of his problems.

Two minutes into dinner I realized Jayce couldn’t take his eyes off Kate. Fifteen
minutes later, and the story was no different. The poor guy was head over heels.

Kate might have noticed if she weren’t so busy checking her text messages.

“So, what do you think, Bea?” Luella passed a plate heaped with the burgers Levi had
donated to the feast to Meg, and from Meg, it came to me. Since I already had a burger
on my plate, I passed it on to Ted, who eagerly took a second. “I know it’s not my
place to decide, but I couldn’t help but wonder about the logistics. If we all stay
in the rooms we’re in, and Jayce and Levi bunk together in the parlor—”

It was exactly what I had been thinking, so I told her, “That’s the simplest solution,
though it’s not going to give you a whole lot of privacy.” I glanced down the table
toward Jayce, but since he was so fixated on Kate, he hadn’t even heard me. I had
no choice but to look across the table at Levi. No skin off my nose, especially when
I had the chance to add so very sweetly, “There’s a fireplace in the parlor. You should
be plenty warm.”

I wondered if anyone else noticed that the smile Levi gave me was just a little too
tight around the edges. In addition to the burgers and onion rings, he’d also brought
salads that he said he didn’t want to see go to waste. He reached for the bowl, took
another helping, and drizzled on blue cheese dressing. “I appreciate it,” he said
with a nod toward me. “The floor to sleep on as well as the warmth.”

Was it his way of apologizing for the dig back at the bar?

I didn’t have a chance to find out.

Chandra finished the last of her burger and spoke with her mouth full. “This is perfect.
Now that we’re all gathered in one place, we can talk about the murder.”

Hank Florentine was seated directly across from me, so I couldn’t miss the way one
corner of his mouth pulled into a grimace. Or the fact that he rolled his eyes. “That’s
not a polite topic for a casual gathering,” he growled. “You should know better than
that, Sandy. Nobody wants to talk about the murder.”

“Shows what you know.” I wasn’t sure if Chandra was referring to the subject of murder
or his use of her legal name. Either way, she shot a look down the table at her ex.
“It’s news, isn’t it? And people always want to talk about the news. Especially around
here. Murder is sensational, and let’s face it, life here on the island can sometimes
be a little dull after winter’s over and before the tourists arrive.”

“I like dull.” When Jayce spoke up and Kate looked across the table at him as if it
was the first she realized he was there, the tips of his ears turned red. “I mean,
dull as in a routine. Routine is good. It makes me feel comfortable and in control.”

Poor Jayce. I could have told him it was the wrong opening gambit. Dull and Kate were
not words that were commonly used in the same sentence.

I bet Levi knew that.

I slapped the thought from my head. Though they were seated near each other, Kate
and Levi had barely exchanged a word throughout dinner, much less a glance. But then,
if they didn’t want anyone to know they were involved . . .

Once again, I shook the thought aside. I had more important things to think about
than . . . well, than that.

Like how to corral Chandra when she started in again. “I bet Jayce knows more than
he’s letting on,” she said, jiggling her eyebrows to emphasize her point. “After all,
he gets a first look at everybody who comes and goes. You know exactly who’s come
to the island in the last few days, don’t you, Jayce?”

Jayce was finishing up a bite of salad and he held up a finger as a way of indicating
he’d answer as soon as he swallowed. I couldn’t blame him for not catching on to the
subtext of Chandra’s question. After all, who in their right mind would actually think
that we were looking to solve Peter’s murder?

“The weather’s been pretty mild this spring,” Jayce said, “and some of the summer
residents have been showing up to get their cottages ready. A few of the restaurants
are open, too. Places like Levi’s. So there have been a few tourists, too. So the
answer . . .” He sat back. “Who’s been coming? Plenty of people.”

“But who hasn’t left?”

I could have kicked myself the moment the words were out of my mouth. I hadn’t meant
to say them out loud.

Hank’s gaze shot to me. But then, so did Ted’s. And Mariah’s. None of that was nearly
as unnerving as the look I got from Levi. Cold? Those blue eyes of his were suddenly
icicles.

“Who hasn’t left?” Completely oblivious to the fact that this was one question I shouldn’t
have asked in a houseful of strangers, Chandra laughed. “Well, all of us. That’s for
sure!”

A couple heartbeats later, the gravity of the question and all it meant finally struck
and Chandra’s eyes went wide. She took one moment to glance around the table, her
gaze flitting from one guest to the next. That is, before she fixed it on her empty
plate.

“Levi brought apple cobbler.” I popped out of my chair and headed into the kitchen
to get it, grateful that I remembered and thankful for the diversion.

Apparently, so was everyone else. A murmur of anticipation went around the table along
with a couple heartfelt thank-yous to Levi for his generosity.

“It’s no big deal.” His voice rumbled its way to me in the kitchen. “I’m happy to
share. Besides, I didn’t want to have to throw any food out. Ever since the storm
started, it’s been really slow at the restaurant.”

• • •

Chandra and Kate helped me clean up the dishes. Luella took dinner up to Amanda. Now
that the parlor was officially a guest room and not a place for gathering, my other
guests disappeared into their respective suites. Once our chores were finished, so
did Chandra, Luella, and Kate. Fine by me. I poured a cup of coffee and turned off
all the lights in the kitchen except for the one above the breakfast bar, where I
sat down.

By this time, the howling wind had become nothing more than background music, and
I looked out the window and saw that once again, the snow had picked up. Since we’d
gotten home from our foray into town, there were another couple new inches of the
white stuff on the back porch. Freezing outside, but warm inside, thank goodness.
I wrapped my hands around my coffee mug, enjoying the heat seeping through to my fingers
and the comfortable quiet inside the house.

Alone time.

That’s what I needed to get my thoughts in order.

I reached over to the nearby built-in desk, grabbed a legal pad, and made a list.
If anyone happened to see it, I could always say I was trying to get everyone’s bill
straight.

What I was really doing was trying to figure out if any of my guests had a motive
for murder.

I’d gotten as far as writing down everyone’s names when the door swung open and Levi
stepped into the kitchen.

Since his name was at the top of my list, I flipped the legal pad facedown on the
counter. “Kate’s in my suite,” I told him. “Last I saw her, she was surfing the Net.
I’m sure she’s still awake.”

He pursed his lips. “And I care about that . . . why?”

It wasn’t a question I expected. I sucked in a breath and sat up straight. “I thought
that—”

“Me and Kate?” He took a couple steps farther into the kitchen and, damn, but I wished
I could see his eyes better through the gloom. Something told me they were sparkling,
but whether with amusement or derision . . . well, that remained to be seen. “Interesting.
I mean, the fact that you spent that much time thinking about me.”

The sensation that scooted up my back wasn’t a thrill. It was a bristle. That pretty
much sealed the deal. We were talking derision here. “Trust me, I hardly spent any
time on it at all,” I said, my voice as tight as my smile. “Sometimes, I just get
a gut feeling. You know, an impression. I’m usually right.”

“Not this time.”

I did not sigh with relief. I swear.

What I did do was try not to look like a complete moron. I went for a smile, and this
one actually might have convinced both Levi and me if it didn’t wobble around the
edges. “Sorry. I just thought—”

“Sure you did.”

“That is, I didn’t—”

“No, I mean, why would you?”

I couldn’t exactly tell him it was because both he and Kate were so attractive and
they seemed so comfortable together and so I just naturally assumed . . .

When I realized my voice was actually shaking, I could have crawled in a hole and
died. “I just naturally assumed—”

“You were sort of on the right track. Kate and I, we met right after I arrived on
the island and opened the bar. I went out to the winery to do a tasting and place
an order. She’s easy to talk to. That is, when you’re talking business. We hit it
off, and I actually met her for coffee once.” Levi poked his hands into the pockets
of his jeans and rocked back on his heels. “Once was all it took. But then, I’m kind
of a gut-instinct guy myself. It didn’t take long for me to realize that Kate is—”

“Beautiful, accomplished, and successful?” At times like this, it is best to show
that jealousy—or sour grapes—has no place in the conversation.

Levi chuckled. “I was going to say uncomplicated.”

“And that’s a bad thing?”

He slid onto the empty stool next to mine at the breakfast bar, his knees and mine
nearly touching. The only polite thing to do was turn slightly in my seat, the better
to keep his space his and my space personal. I knew this. For some reason I couldn’t
explain, though, I couldn’t move a muscle.

“With Kate,” he said, “what you see is what you get. She’s ambitious, smart, and,
yes, very pretty. Some guys wouldn’t complain. That’s exactly what they’re looking
for.”

“You mean some guys like Jayce?”

Another chuckle, this one as warm as the darkness that surrounded us. “Poor sucker.
He has no idea how out of his league he is. Then again, if he’s looking for a woman
like Kate . . .”