Below The Deck
GENDARMERIE MARITIME DE POLYNéSIE FRAN?AISE
INTERVIEW EXCERPT SIX
Interview subject: Captain Sophie Taylor, Captain on board Lusso di Mare charter
Interview conducted by Chief of Police Henri Robert
M Robert: Captain Taylor, I understand Michaela Stevens alerted you to the incident in the master stateroom while you were in the engine room attempting to start the back-up generator, is that correct?
Capt Taylor: Yes, Chief, that’s correct. It was taking us some time, and it took the four of us – me, my first officer and the deck crew – to get it up and running. We were down there for close to an hour, perhaps even longer.
M Robert: I see. So your guests were left unattended for some time?
Capt Taylor: Not really, no. The stews were still there, and our chef, if they needed anything. And the power failure was the most urgent priority, after we’d come through the squall.
M Robert: I understand. As you may be aware, we’re hearing conflicting accounts of what happened in the moments before Mr Michaelides’ body was found.
The suspect insists that he was led below deck by Lucy, and that she handed him the weapon which had already been used in the murder – that Nick was already dead.
Who do you believe? What do you think happened to the victim?
Give me your take on events, please, in as much detail as possible.
Capt Taylor: Well, I believe what I saw, and what the four passengers and my interior team have told me.
That Sam got access to the master stateroom during the squall when the rooms all became unlocked.
That he told Talia to leave the cabin, and after she’d left, he murdered Nick Michaelides with a nautical sculpture that he found nearby.
I think Sam had become obsessed with Talia, and I believe he had quite the history of surveilling women, as part of his attempts to blackmail Rory Ashworth – including placing a camera in Eleni and Nick’s cabin.
M Robert: And what evidence do you have to support this version of events?
Capt Taylor: Well, I don’t have anything on tape, if that’s what you mean.
There’s no CCTV below the deck, and all our cameras above deck were down during the power outage.
So I can’t give you anything concrete. But I have no reason to doubt the testimony of my crew and passengers – or what I saw myself: Sam alone in Nick’s cabin, next to his body, holding the implement that was used to kill him.
M Robert: Indeed. Thank you, Captain. All of this does align, as you say, with several accounts we’ve heard and the evidence we’ve found so far. And are you quite confident that none of the female guests, or crew members, had any involvement in Nick’s murder?
Capt Taylor: Absolutely confident. My guests all have quite clear alibis placing them elsewhere during the attack.
As for my crew – they would have no reason to do something like this.
My chief stewardess was irritated by Nick’s unwanted advances, yes – but it’s hardly unusual for her to receive this kind of attention from male guests.
My crew acted with all their usual professionalism and care during this charter, doing everything they could to keep the guests safe at all times.
None of us can be held responsible for the things people do to each other when we’re not there to stop them …
M Robert: Thank you, Captain. I can’t deny it concerns me that – as you yourself say – on the same vessel, the same day, there were two separate calls to the emergency services – one for Rory’s injury, and the other a murder.
However, I see that you’ve followed protocol, and it appears that your version of events is supported by everything else we’ve found out.
There’s no evidence to suggest that you or your crew were involved.
I have no further questions for you at this time.
You and your crew are all free to leave.
[TRANSCRIPT ENDS]