Page 114 of Hearts Aweigh
“What do we do?” Althea scurried in a circle. “We can’t let him get away with this.”
Emily thumped her cane against the wooden floorboards. “It’s now or never.”
“I vote for never.” Barney glanced at the phone, shoved it into Emily’s hands, and headed for the stairs.
Emily grabbed him. “Where are you going?”
“I don’t believe a word of your crazy accusations against Sarge.”
She released him. “Could that be because you have a good reason for knowing he’s innocent?” Emily brandished the phone. “Did you watch the whole video, Barney? Right at the end, the culprit’s hood falls back. There’s a bright, shiny bald spot with some very familiar freckles pointed straight at the camera.” Emily pointed her finger at Barney’s head. “You’re always so self-conscious about your hair. I would think you’d have noticed.”
Barney rubbed the bare patch on his head. “Wh-what? Now you sayI’mthe blackmailer? There’s lots of bald guys on this boat.” He swung his arms wide. “Is dementia contagious? The pack of you belong in a nursing home.”
Seamus thrust himself in front of Gerry. “Stay behind me. This could get ugly.”
The tall woman blinked in surprise, and her cheeks reddened.
“You’re right, Seamus.” Barney’s easygoing smile was nowhere to be seen. “You’ve chosen some ugly company.” He sneered at Emily. “Let’s suppose Iwasguilty. If you turned me in, your friends would go down with me.” He waggled his finger Daisy’s direction. “Your secret wasn’t illegal, but it would still be embarrassing if someone revealed it to your precious son.”
A blush infused Daisy’s pale cheeks. “I’ve already informed Spencer of my past sins. He was the only one who mattered. Inform anyone else you please.”
His finger dipped. “You can’t seriously want your fancy friends at home knowing you were a cheater.”
“As unpleasant as the experience might be, it will provide the perfect opening to tell them, as Althea says, it’s ‘under the blood.’ I’m sure they could also benefit from God’s forgiveness.”
Barney rolled his eyes. “Spare me the Sunday school lesson.”
Emily glared. “You need it the most. It’s not too late, Barney. God can even fix a greedy rat like you.”
“Be a little nicer to me,” he snapped. “The police won’t care if a murderer has confessed their sins to a priest or not. That dummy with the creepy mask in the lost and found might have been fake”—he leered at Gerry—“but the corpse you wrote the letter about must still be there.”
“What’s he talkin’ ’bout, darlin’?” Seamus’s eyes held a disbelieving twinkle. “Have you got a husband buried in the backyard?”
Barney chortled. “You might not want a date so bad when I tell you what she did to her last suitor—dumped him at the bottom of a lake.”
Gerry leaned over Seamus’s head. “It was a wishing well, you dolt. A lake is far too prosaic.”
“I don’t get it.” Barney waved between Emily and Gerry. “Your friend’s a psychopath, but you want to send me to jail for a few black envelopes.”
Althea bustled to Gerry and placed an arm around her. “She’s not a psychopath. She’s a writer.”
“You’re a bunch of fruitcakes.” Barney clasped his hands to the top of his head and laughed. “Go ahead and tell everyone your suspicions. They’ll think you’re senile. And don’t bother trying to use that video you shot. The app I installed should be finished erasing the footage.”
Daisy’s fingers scrambled as she swiped at her phone screen. “It’s gone! My whole photo gallery is empty.”
Barney shrugged. “That’s what you get for accusing an honest man.”
Emily rapped against the giant red box. “Did you hear, Adrian?”
“Yep,” a muffled voice answered.
The false mirrored door at the back of the magic box popped open, and Adrian Everson emerged from the hidden space inside. He crawled out, brushed off his black pants, and straightened. His eyes—for once not covered by his reflective sunglasses—drilled the junior officer who cowered in front of him.
“An honest man, you said?” Emily counted off on her fingers. “You’ve admitted to spying on a letter my friend wrote when no one was around. The only way you could have seen it was through the surveillance cameras. You also said you checked the lost and found.”
“I did no such thing.” Barney held his hands out to Mr. Everson. “They’re making this up, Sarge. I saw their video. That’s how I knew.”
Gerry stepped around Seamus. “The video never showed the mannequin we used. How did you know it was wearing a mask? It’s understandable why you screamed when you discovered the repulsive thing.”
