Page 47 of Tiki Hut Tragedy
“I’ve watched their shenanigans on television. Hotshot Hannah. Wendy the Wolfette, Dixie the Destroyer, rest her soul. You have a nose formysteries.” Aliviah tilted her head, curiously eyeing Millie. “What’s your take?”
“Her death has been ruled an accident.”
“You don’t believe it?”
“Not entirely. Something is off.”
“Do yourself a favor and watch a clip of their most recent competition. It’s like the WWE or WWF of food. Those women have gotten into some knock-down, drag-out fights.” Aliviah became sidetracked and began talking about something else.
After she left, Millie finished her hosting event, thinking about Sharky’s GoPro and wondering what he’d caught on camera while rescuing the women. As soon as the room cleared, she called the maintenance office. The call went to voicemail, so she tried her friend’s cell phone.
“Hey, Millster.”
“Hey, Sharky. Where are you?”
“Leaving the engine room. There’s a minor issue with the propulsion system.”
“I heard. I thought it was some sort of glitch.”
Sharky made a clicking noise with his teeth. “I wouldn’t bet the bank on it.”
“Great, so there is an issue?”
“Maybe. What’s up?”
“I was thinking about Dixie’s drowning. There appears to have been some bad blood between her and some of the other contestants.”
“You’re not convinced her death was an accident,” he guessed.
“Let’s just say I’m skeptical. I was wondering if I could take a look at what your GoPro recorded during the rescue.”
“Sure. Actually, I was gonna ask you if you wanted to swing by because I noticed something no one else picked up on.”
Chapter 19
“You noticed something on the GoPro?” Millie repeated.
“Possibly, or it could be nothing.” Sharky told her he was on his way back to his office.
“I’ll meet you there.” Cutting through the center of the ship, she took the stairs closest to the maintenance department and managed to beat Sharky, who arrived moments later. “How did you get here so fast?”
“I know every shortcut around this ship. Plus, I get my steps in every day.”
“I bet you do.” Sharky swung the door open and waited for her to step inside. “How’s it going with your chow hounds?”
“They are definitely keeping me on my toes.”
“Have a seat.”
Millie perched on the edge of the chair, watching as Sharky lifted the lid on his laptop and tapped the keys. “Patterson has already watched the GoPro video.”
“I heard. He told me that he didn’t notice anything suspicious.”
“Nope, and I’m kinda surprised he missed it.” Sharky slid it across the desk and plopped down in the seat next to her. “It’s a little hard to watch the first few minutes.” He pulled up the recording and hit the play button.
From the camera angle, Millie felt like she was riding along, launching off the inflatable ramp and into the water. The screen wiggled and jiggled. One second it was staring straight out while the next she was looking down at the waves.
She clutched her gut and closed her eyes. “It’s giving me motion sickness.”
