Page 12 of Betrayal In The Bay

“Phone calls? Did you meet Trevor before today?” I asked, interrupting Annisa. I was surprised she had already met the dive master because Aiden and I only met him this morning along with the rest of the group.

“Yes, he was the one who certified me for the open water certification. And we went on a date, but it was just one date.” Annisa added the last part in a rush.

Ah-ha! That was the part that I overheard. Annisa and Trevor had gone on a date.

“Why didn’t you return his phone calls?” Officer Shin inquired, taking control of the questioning. He gave me a look, warning me not to interfere.

“Well, he wasn’t my type,” Annisa replied. She must have realized that her answer sounded a little shallow, so she averted her gaze to her feet.

I looked at Aiden in confusion. Annisa’s answer made no sense because the diving guide was exactly like someone that I could see her date. Trevor was tall and athletic. With his wavy, dirty blond hair and tan skin, he fit the image of a handsome California surfer. And, for someone who usually relished talking about her life, her responses continued to be awfully brief.

When the two officers looked at each other, Officer Frankel lifted his eyebrow, giving his partner a skeptical look.

“Ah-hem,” Officer Frankel cleared his throat. “And, what made Mr. Jones not your type?” He tried to make his tone light, but it came out condescending.

Annisa gave the officer a deadpan stare and snapped, “I don’t know. He just wasn’t, okay?”

Officer Frankel let out a loud sigh. “Was Mr. Jones still alive when you left him?” By now, he was irritated by the vague explanations.

Annisa opened her mouth in outrage. “Of course he was! Don’t you think I would have called for help if he dropped dead in front of me? And if I did something to him, would I still hang around getting ready for a dive?”

“It might sound ridiculous, but we have to ask these questions.” Officer Frankel conceded and then looked to his partner to ask the next question.

“Did you see Mr. Jones talk to anyone else?” Officer Shin pressed for more information, but he gave Annisa an apologetic look. She warmed up to the younger policeman and smiled. The change in her personality was instantly noticeable. I recognized the look that she gave him, and I knew that Annisa found Officer Shin attractive.

“Oh geez,” I muttered under my breath and quickly looked around to see if anyone heard me.

“No, I’m sorry, I didn’t.” Annisa batted her eyelashes at Officer Shin, and his face flushed.

“Ah-hem,” Officer Frankel coughed again. He stared at his partner until his face grew even redder.

“What about Trevor? Do you know how he died?” Aiden asked. He had remained silent until now.

Officer Frankel looked at Aiden and asked, “Who are you, and did you see anything?”

“My name is Aiden Filipowski,” he said, returning the officer’s blunt stare with a level look.

When Officer Frankel nodded for him to continue, Aiden added, “I was supposed to go on today’s dive with Trevor, and I spoke with him briefly about diving the aquarium area as I was setting up my equipment.”

“Uh-huh,” Officer Frankel said noncommittally. “What about you, Miss? Did you know or speak to Mr. Jones?” He turned to look at me.

“I’m Claire O’Keefe. I hadn’t met or talked to Trevor before today. I just knew about him because Sully wrote in the group email that there was going to be another dive master on the trip named Trevor.”

Officer Frankel looked thoroughly annoyed with the lack of information that he’d gotten from us. “Okay, I think we’re done here. If you’ll leave your name and contact information with Officer Shin, you can go.”

He turned to leave, but Aiden stopped him.

“Wait a minute! Is there anything you can tell us about how Trevor died?” Aiden asked again.

Officer Frankel gave Aiden another a hard look, but it didn’t ruffle him. Aiden calmly returned his stare. The few seconds we stood in silence felt like an eternity as the two guys faced offed. It was like they were playing chicken. Finally, Officer Frankel answered, “At this time, there’s no clear indication of how the victim died. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have to talk to the woman who discovered Mr. Jones’ body.”

The officers walked away, and I released a breath that I had been holding while Aiden and Officer Frankel had their staring contest. For a moment, I thought the situation might escalate. I rubbed my temple and pressed my shoulders back to relieve the tension. It was hard to believe the morning started out so nice, only to have it turn out like this. I glanced at the blanket that covered Trevor’s body and then, at Annisa.

“Poor Trevor,” she said, wiping away a tear that had fallen.

I nodded in agreement. Poor Trevor, indeed.

Chapter Eight

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