Page 33 of Tiki Hut Tragedy
“I think there may have been some animosity toward the victim, but at the end of the day it was an unfortunate accident.” Patterson consulted his notes. “This group sounds familiar. Are these the same ones who were involved in the food fight yesterday?”
“They are.”
Sharky tapped his chin. “There’s something different about that chick.”
“Wendy is a professional eater. I suppose professional eating could be considered an unusual line of work,” Millie said.
“Not Wendy. The other woman.”
“Astrid?”
“Yeah. She’s giving off a vibe.”
“A timid vibe?” Millie asked.
“Wimpy but maybe something else. You don’t sense it?”
“No, although I have to say, her bandana is an interesting choice for a tiki hut outing, but other than that, I’m not feeling it.”
Sharky shrugged. “Maybe it’s a guy thing. Anyway, if you want my two cents, I don’t think it would hurt to keep an eye on her.”
“Keeping an eye on Astrid won’t be a problem. I’m handling a bunch of their events. Amerifinest is hosting a major competition in Miami next week,” Millie said. “Astrid and the contestants are under a lot of pressure right now.”
“But how much is really at stake?” Patterson arched his eyebrow. “A few thousand bucks and bragging rights?”
“And a television pilot program with the winner being offered a contract.”
“That might make it worth the risk to take out the top competitor,” Sharky said.
Patterson slid his notepad into his pocket. “I’m heading out to speak with the tiki hut owner again.”
“I’ll go with you, boss,” Sharky said. “Between the three of us, maybe we can figure out exactly what happened.”
The men took off, heading to the gangway to track Zema down. Millie checked her schedule. As luck would have it, she was hosting another Belly Buster event, minus one contestant.
Was it a case of a tragic accident, or was something much more sinister playing out? If Millie hung around the group long enough, she might be able to figure it out.
Chapter 14
“The Belly Busters have met their match with this contest.” Annette handed Millie the foodie scavenger hunt. “Good job in coming up with some interesting items.”
“I can’t take the credit for this one. It was all Felix who, by the way, should be here any minute.”
“You called an emergency meeting,” Annette said. “What’s up?”
Millie filled her friend in on her conversation with the pastor. “The bottom line is he’s struggling, and I want to help.”
“We’ve all been there.”
“If not for meeting you first, then Cat, not to mention Andy taking me under his wing, I don’tknow if I would have made it,” Millie said. “He needs some encouragement.”
Before Annette could reply, the galley door swung open. Felix, Danielle, Cat and Andy appeared.
“Good morning, ladies.” Andy cheerfully greeted them. “Millie is looking bright-eyed and chipper for a sea day.”
“We have a lot of fun events on tap.” Millie patted her activity app. “A full day of fun in the sun before arriving in Puerto Plata tomorrow.”
“I just left a meeting with some of the other senior staff members,” Andy said. “Captain Armati told us about the drowning yesterday. Counselors have met with the women who are part of the group. A few of the details about what exactly happened are still a little unclear. I guess we’ll have to wait for the official report to get that information.”
