Page 87 of Terminal Voyage

"It really doesn't matter what I think anymore."

"I swear to you, I didn't know what she had done.”

I climbed out of bed and moved to the door. I lingered, thinking about opening it, but I didn’t trust anyone.

"I couldn't stop seeing Anya,” Declan said. “There was something about her. It was never going to go anywhere. I just… The circumstances under which we met prohibited anything meaningful. I… I was in love with her, but I wasn't going to marry her. She was an escort for crissakes. I loved Vanessa, too, but it was different. I thought if we hurried up and got married, I would stop fooling around. But I was just lying to myself.” He paused. “I went on a trip with Anya. Out of the blue, Vanessa showed up in Corazón Bay. By that time, she had gotten suspicious. I had Anya pretend to be crew. And I made arrangements to get her off the Vesper in Corazón Bay and fly her back to Miami. But I guess she never left the boat. Vanessa must have killed her, then disposed of the body while we were underway.” Declan paused. "I know you probably don't believe a word of what I'm telling you. But it's the truth."

"What difference does it make now?”

"I don't know. I just needed to get it off my chest. It's a lot to carry.” He paused. “I’ve instructed Captain Curran to return us to Corazón Bay. I’ve arranged for a private charter to take you back to Coconut Key. I’m sorry.”

I packed my things. I don’t know what Vanessa had put into my drink, but I had a hell of a headache now. At least I had my wits about me. I couldn’t get off the boat fast enough. I’d had my fill. I certainly didn't want to hang around long enough for the local police to start asking questions. But even if they did, they didn't seem too eager to solve cases around here. As far as they knew, Vanessa’s disappearance was a tragic accident. I don’t think Declan wanted anyone snooping around more than necessary. Was the story he told me the truth? Had he been involved in Kate’s death? Who knows? Maybe he was right about the whole justice thing. But Karma caught up with Vanessa.

It was morning by the time we made it back to the marina. I had managed to get a few hours of sleep.

Pete knocked on my door pretty early, but I was up and ready to go. When I pulled open the door, he said, "I just came by to get your bags."

"Thank you."

"Some vacation, huh? I don't expect you’ll be coming back to this boat anytime soon.”

I shook my head. "No.”

“That’s too bad, but understandable.” Then he muttered, "Between you and me, I'm glad you're not the one who went overboard."

I chuckled. "Me too."

I think Pete was a little sweet on me.

He took my bag, and I followed him up to the main deck. "If you'd like to eat breakfast before you go, I'll have this waiting for you and take you to your car when you're ready."

"I'm ready to go now."

Luciano and Sophia stepped to the aft deck to see me off. They both gave me a hug.

"I'm sorry to see you go," Luciano said. “But I'm glad to have met you. You have made this adventure much more interesting."

"Indeed," Sophia said with a smile.

"If you’re ever looking for a different career path, you'll always have a place in my organization.”

"Thank you. I'll keep that in mind. Just out of curiosity, are you still going to do the deal with Declan?”

43

"In light of current circumstances," Luciano said, "I think moving forward is not an option at this time. Perhaps we will reevaluate in a year. But anyone who is so compromised in their personal affairs is a liability in business."

We said our goodbyes, and Pete escorted me to the dock and down to the parking lot. A black town car waited for me. Pete put the bag in the trunk and gave me a handshake goodbye. "Best of luck to you."

"You too. Do you think I could borrow your phone for a minute?”

“Sure thing.”

He handed it to me, and I called Tyson. I didn’t know if he’d pick up from an unknown number. He hated answering those calls.

“This is Deputy Wild?” he said after a few rings.

“My flight got delayed,” I said, omitting the drama for now. “But I’m finally about to get out of here. I’ll be in Coconut Key in a couple of hours. Do you wanna pick me up from the FBO?”