Chapter 11
“Felix, do you copy?”
“Go ahead, Millie.”
“Can you start my crafts class up in the library? I’m helping Patterson get the rescued passengers settled and am running behind.”
“And we got unlucky.”
“Unlucky?” Felix repeated. “How so?”
“Let’s just say at least one of them is ungrateful, which might be an understatement.” Millie told him she was at Guest Services, searching for clothes. “I should only be another half an hour or so.”
“No problem-o. Got you covered, boss lady.”
Millie thanked him before clipping her radio to her belt.
Nikki Tan, the Guest Services supervisor, stood quietly listening. “I watched part of the rescue. From what I could see, they were on a fancy-schmancy yacht.”
“Which belonged to Daddy back in Miami, who won’t be happy when he finds out Sea-nanigans is probably on its way to the bottom of the ocean.”
She flinched. “I wouldn’t want to be in their shoes.”
“Me either, and not necessarily because I thought my dad would be mad. The spoiled ringleader is an unpleasant person.”
“Great.” Nikki reached for her mouse. “What’s his name?”
“Jeremy Manning.” Millie gave her the other names. Curious to find out what her friend was doing, she leaned over the counter and peered at the computer screen. “What are you doing?”
“Adding them to the PPP list.”
“What is…”
“The PPP list? Potentially problematic passengers. It’s a watchlist to keep the other Guest Services staff in the loop in case we run into an issue.”
“Jeremy Manning definitely fits the bill.”
“You mentioned crew members from the yacht. Do you have cabin numbers and names for them as well?”
“Sure do. C119 through C122.” Millie told her the names of the yacht employees. “They’re saints, at least as far as working on board Sea-nanigans is concerned.”
“When you have their specific cabin numbers, let me know. I’ll have something special sent down from the galley.”
“A treat?”
Nikki printed off the keycards and set them on the counter. “You betcha. Us crew members need to look out for one another. Thanks for the heads up. You ready to come back and check out the clothing?”
“Yes, please.” Millie tucked the keycards in her pocket and followed Nikki into the storage room.
“I only have a few items from the last voyage. The rest are in Sharky’s storage area.”
“The naughty confiscated area?”
“You know it.” Nikki plucked a beach wrap from the top of the pile.
“This is pretty.” Millie ran a light hand over the soft fabric.
“I’ve had my eye on it. If no one claims it, I think it would fit me.” She held it up. “What do you think?”
“It looks like a nice wrap and well-made.” Digging through the pile, Millie set aside several items—a pair of brand-name flip-flops, a floppy hat, a ball cap, women’s sunglasses, and men’s khaki shorts she hoped would fit the yacht’s crew members. “I’ll run downstairs to see what Sharky has.”
Nikki followed her out and locked the door behind them. “I’m sorry I don’t have much to give you.”
“No worries. I’m sure I’ll find more.” Millie took inventory of what she’d grabbed. “I’ll also need toiletry travel kits.”
“Cat keeps some at the store.”
“You’re right. I’ll swing by there seeing it’s on my way.” Taking the center stairs two decks up, Millie walked to Ocean Treasures. She found Cat standing in the back ringing up a purchase.
Cat completed the transaction and waved her over. “Hey, Millie.”
“I thought you were going to the crafts class I haven’t started hosting.”
“It’s been super busy, so I stayed to help.” Cat clasped her hands. “Whatcha got?”
“Clothes for our rescued passengers. They’ll also need toiletries.”
“I have some handy dandy packs ready to go. How many do you need?”
“Seven. There are four yacht passengers and three crew members.”
“Be right back.” Cat darted to the storage room. She returned with several small plastic shopping bags and set them on the counter.
Millie peeked inside a bag, noticing a toothbrush, a travel-size tube of toothpaste, dental floss, a cheap plastic comb, and a disposable razor. “This covers the necessities.”
“Nothing fancy but it’ll do in a pinch. So…what happened to their yacht?”
“I don’t know, other than it belonged to the father of a passenger who wasn’t too keen on calling his dad to give him the bad news.”
Cat rubbed her thumb and index finger together. “They must have some money.”
“I think Daddy is a Miami area attorney. In fact…” Millie set the items aside, reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. “It might not be a bad idea to find out. The friend called his father James. James Manning.”
She grew quiet, tapping the screen and entering James Manning Miami in the search bar. Seconds later, a site popped up. The man in the photo looked vaguely familiar. “I’ve seen this guy before.”
Millie turned her phone so Cat could see.
“I recognize him. You’re right about him being an attorney. He runs ads on local Miami television channels all the time,” Cat said. “He has a catchy slogan.”
“I think I’ve heard it. Something along the lines of, In a crash? Call us for cash. South Florida’s largest injury law firm.”
“Yep,” Cat confirmed. “Sounds snake-y, huh?”
“Based on what I’ve learned so far, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree in this family.
” Millie tapped on the link, About us. She sucked in a breath.
“They have a bunch of lawyers. Great. Jeremy will beg his father to sue Siren of the Seas for not hooking onto his sinking yacht and trying to save it.”
“The Zodiac can’t rescue a yacht.”
“You and I are smart enough to figure this out. Mr. Manning wasn’t convinced. He was ranting and raving about it.”
“Trying to save his own hide.” Cat wrinkled her nose. “So these were the people you ran into in Bimini when one of them grabbed Scout and you thought the guy was going to throw him overboard?”
“Same.”
“Does he remember you?”
“Yep.”
“What did he say?”
“He called me, Gloria, Liz and the others old biddies.”
Cat stared at her. “Are you serious?”
“I felt like slapping him.”
“He would have deserved it.”
“Big time.”
A mischievous smile spread across Cat’s face. “Where did you say you were going next?”
“To track down Sharky and try to find clothes for them to wear. Why?”
Cat held up a finger. “Don’t leave.” She hurried off and had a word with the other store employee. After finishing, she ran to the back, returning moments later, carrying a small red bottle.
“What’s that?” Millie asked.
“Payback potion. You might not be able to give Jeremy Manning what he so richly deserves. We can, however, in a roundabout way, make his life a smidgen uncomfortable.”