Page 22 of Trick of Light
Chen squinted at her. “I might take that bet. You seem like the type who can’t resist a challenge.”
“I’m the type that likes to stay alive. Whoa, are you okay?”
Chen had just staggered and retched a bit. “Seasick. Happens every damn time.”
“Can I help? Do you need anything?”
“Got any applesauce on you?”
“Uh…no, I’m all out.”
“Then I’ll just gag a few more times and nearly lose my lunch but I’ll be fine.” She gulped in a few extra lungfuls of salt air. “One of these times I might get stuck out here because I refuse to get back on a boat.”
With a snap of her wrist, she extended the handle of her spinner suitcase and headed off the dock. Gabby ran after her.
“Wait. Why did you come out here? Business or personal?”
“Business. You think I’d get on a boat for fun?” Chen waved at a golf cart heading toward her. Most of the golf carts on the island belonged to the Lightkeeper Inn, although a few other folks owned one, especially the more elderly or disabled islanders. But this man, she didn’t recognize.
“Are you here about Amelia Burnhauser? Because if you are, I might have some helpful information for you.”
Chen stopped and cocked her head at Gabby. “We’re working out of the constable’s office. I’m not exactly welcome at the Lightkeeper Inn. Come see us there.”
“Us?”
The golf cart stopped next to them. A paunchy, broad-shouldered man sat in the driver’s seat, beaming a genial smile at them from under a Harbortown PD baseball cap.
“This is my partner, Detective Hooper. Hoop, this is Gabby Ramon. You might remember her from my report from the last time I got sent out here.”
“Sure do.” That folksy manner didn’t fool Gabby. She noticed the way his eyes flicked across the twists in her hair and noted her “Phenomenal Woman” black hoodie. He had some kind of opinion about her, and she could sniff it a mile away. “Hop in, Chen. We’re going crime-solving.”
“So has it been determined that there was a crime?” Gabby asked in her nicest possible tone. “I was there when they found Amelia. I’ve been helping Luke locate her next of kin.”
“Have you?” Detective Hooper asked. “How is that going?”
“Not very well,” she admitted. “Her emergency contact is dead, and the number disconnected. The only family we’ve been able to find is back in Germany. None of them are able to collect her body. If she has a will, we haven’t been able to find it yet.”
“I’m sure you tried your best.” Hooper’s patronizing tone made Gabby want to poke a hole in his golf cart tire. “We’ll take over from here.”
“Catch you later, Gabby.” Chen swung into the golf cart and plopped her bag into her lap. The golf cart did a tight spin that kicked road dust into the air, making Gabby step back, then zoomed off.
She hadn’t found out much, but she’d confirmed the important part. The two detectives were here on account of Amelia Burnhauser’s death. Whatever had happened to her was being considered foul play.
That meant that she and Heather were smack in the middle of an actual “true crime” currently ongoing.
In other words, podcast jackpot.
Good timing, considering that their episode about Sasha and Tamara had just been torpedoed thanks to Barnaby Carmichael.
She grabbed the bike Heather had lent her and pedaled toward the Bloodshot Eyeball to tell Heather about Chen and Hooper’s arrival.
At the last minute, she changed direction. Now that the police were on the island, they would no doubt be wanting to search the crime scene. During their time in Amelia’s house, she and Heather had been very careful not to disturb anything. But something had caught her attention, and she wanted to check it out further before anyone else stomped around in there.
At Amelia’s house, she hid her bike in the shrubs and hurried up the long staircase. Although they’d left the house locked, as instructed, she knew the key was tucked inside a small pottery hedgehog next to the door.
A moment later, she was inside. She slipped her shoes off so she could make as minimal an impact as possible, and stepped carefully to the doorway of the kitchen. She and Heather had obeyed the order to stay out of that room, but they’d bent the rules a little by leaning in as far as possible while holding on to the doorjamb for dear life.
Now she decided to actually break the rules—but in stocking feet so no one would notice. Someone had already cleaned up the mess left during Amelia’s final moments. Hopefully that fact wouldn’t interfere with the investigation.
