Chapter 46
Cutter suggested Joellen move her things into the suite with Lola while he took her cabin.
Ajit threw a wrench in that idea. His nephew, Rishi, a slender boy of twenty-five with his uncle’s military bearing, had already set up monitors in the suite that were tied to the cameras in the hallway in front of Joellen’s cabin.
According to Rishi, this system ran off a duplicate router in addition to the regular security Wi-Fi.
Even if the unknown mole attempted to turn off the main feed, the second system would keep the cameras online.
In addition to the color monitors, Rishi paired the feed with both deputies’ phones, giving them an instant view of the hallway outside Joellen’s cabin door.
Joellen followed as Ajit showed Cutter and Lola to their suite, assuring them that his nephew would call as soon as he compiled a list of images of anyone who spent any significant time with Bart Preston.
Ajit ran the proximity card over the reader, then pulled the door open, waving his hand with a flourish. He gave one key card to Cutter and one to Teariki. “I’ll let you get settled,” he said. “I should return to my duties.”
Lola went in first, gasping like a kid on her first trip to the fair. “Ajit wasn’t lying. This place is sweet as!” She slid open the balcony door, creating a roaring wind tunnel. The front door slammed like a gunshot. For a moment, Cutter thought Joellen was going to climb up on his shoulders.
“Sorry,” Lola said. “All the flash yachty stuff is new to this island girl. We see the ships in port. We don’t get to set foot on ’em.”
The suite had a large sitting area with a sofa and two bedrooms—the main, which exited onto the spacious starboard balcony large enough for four lounge chairs and a small table.
The smaller bedroom was around the corner to the left, inside, with no window or view of the ocean.
Each had its own bath, but the Jacuzzi went with the main bedroom.
The junior deputy, Lola scuffed her foot on the carpet waiting to see which room Cutter chose.
“Knock it off,” he said. “You know me better than that.”
She brightened immediately. “Sweet as! I’m glad your granddaddy taught you the boss should always take the shitty end of the stick.”
“It’s a bed in a suite on a cruise ship,” Joellen said. “I’m not sure there is a shitty end.”
Lola’s nose turned up in a half-grimace, a clear no-one-asked-you implication.
Cutter glanced at his watch. “Two hours to departure,” he said. “We better grab our stuff from the hotel.”
“I’ll run back to the Gilmore and get it,” Lola said. “My legs could use a stretch.” She stood and looked at Joellen until the other woman got the hint.
“I guess I should go back to my room.”
“I’ll walk you,” Cutter said.
“Aren’t you afraid it’ll spook the bad guys if they see us together?”
“He’s not gonna hold hands!” Lola scoffed. “Anyhow, I reckon this whole brouhaha is because Bart Preston and friends had unfinished business with your date. If Cutter scares away an aggressor, that’s good. When it comes to protection responsibilities, we arrest when we can, but we protect always.”
“Lola’s right,” Cutter said.
“And what if they are still after me?”
“I’ll be right there,” Cutter said. “In the meantime, you can figure out if there is any other reason someone could be after you.”
“I was thinking about that, Arliss,” Joellen said. “You’ve pissed off hundreds of people over the years. What if you’re the target? Maybe this is all happening because my last name is still Cutter.”
Lola gave a well-I’ll-be-damned shrug.
Cutter nodded. Out of all the words his ex-wife had spoken since she first called, this made the most sense.
Lola put a telephone hand to her ear and looked at Cutter, mouthing the words, Call me if she tries anything, Boss, plenty loud enough for Joellen to hear. A moment later, she was gone.
“That girl really likes you.” Joellen smiled. “Can’t imagine why.”
“She’s fiercely loyal,” Cutter said. “We’ve been through some stuff, that’s certain.”
Joellen stood at the door, gazing at him like she was in a trance. He’d forgotten how pretty she was when she smiled. It made sense. She could have been Mim’s sister, which was what drew him to her in the first place.
“We should get you to your cabin,” he said.
“Right.” She shivered. “Listen to me, Arliss. I’m not trying to blow up what you and Mim have—”
“That’s a relief,” he said, deadpan. “Let’s—”
“Do you remember Grumpy’s little horseshoe nail story?”
“Of course I do.”
“I wonder what little thing happened to screw us up. … It wasn’t always bad. Was it?”
“Well, let’s see here, Joellen.” Cutter groaned. “To use Grumpy’s metaphor, our horseshoes were loose well before you and I even tied the knot. It wasn’t your fault.”
Joellen rolled her eyes. “Just what a girl wants to hear,” she said. “It’s not you, it’s me.”
“It was true then. It’s true now.”
“Don’t you wonder if this, I mean you and me bumping into one another, might be kismet.”
“You called and said you were in trouble, Jo. We didn’t bump into each other.”
“But look at us.” She leaned against the wall, both hands behind her butt, and gave a playful wag of her head. “I mean, you did come to check on me. You don’t think the universe is trying to tell us something?”
“Nope.” Cutter reached past her and opened the door. “I do not. The universe already came knocking and decided to make me a father after forty-five years.”
Joellen’s hands fell to her side. She bounced away from the wall, filling the narrow entryway. “I … I didn’t mean to … Mim didn’t say anything about a baby on the phone.”
“What’s she supposed to say, Jo? Hi Arliss’s ex-wife, sorry someone is stalking you. Just thought I’d let you know I’m pregnant with Arliss’s child.”
Joellen wheeled for the door. “I’ll be fine. You don’t need to follow me.”
“Knock it off, Jo,” he said.
She groaned. “A baby … Arliss Cutter a daddy. …”
She walked ahead, the swing in her hips far more exaggerated than it was when Lola was around. Maybe their breakup was just a little bit her fault after all.