Bermuda Nights - The Boxed Set (15 page)

Her eyes lit up in delight as she took in the state of the bed and our disheveled looks. “Oh, Amanda! At last! The magic of Bermuda has gotten through those walls of yours!”

Evan nodded to her, then looked back at me. “I’ll see you soon.” He moved past Amanda and the door fell shut behind him.

Amanda kicked a pair of emerald heels out of the way as she made her way to her bed and plunked down on it, facing me. Her face glowed with interest. “All right, spill it girl. That man looks like a sex god, and it’s about time I get to hear the story. Was he as good as he looks? He’s a guitarist – does he play your body like a well-tuned instrument?”

For a moment the images swept back in on me, of our first time together on the moonlit beach, to the way he expertly caressed me in the massage room, to the utter release of our joining just a short while ago.

I pushed it all away. It couldn’t matter. Not now, not when so much was at stake.

I shook my head, taking her hands in mine. There wasn’t a lot of time. Best I make this short and as pain-free as possible. The heart-stopping ripping free of hair during an intimate waxing.

“Kayla – the ride back to Boston will be boring. We’ll be stuck at sea for days. We’ve been offered three nights at the best resort in Bermuda – the Pompano Beach Club. Everything paid for, sun-filled days, wild nights, and then free flights home. First class.” A flare of fire burned within me. Evan could certainly pay for that upgrade as well, if he wanted to buy our silence.

Kayla’s brow creased in confusion. “Stay on Bermuda?”

I nodded, squeezing her fingers, forcing a smile to my lips. “Yes, exactly! Extend our vacation. Sun-drenched beaches and seductive campfires. Mojitos in tangerine and aquamarine. Top notch everything. It’ll really be something to boast about when we get home.”

She shook her head. “But Amanda, I don’t want to go back to Boston.” She reached into her purse, pulling out a folded piece of paper. “I’m starting the process to become a bartender on the ship. I’m going to stay on board.”

I stared at her, aghast. “You can’t be a ship bartender!”

She chuckled. “Of course I can, silly! I have awesome references from everywhere I’ve worked. They love me. I’ve already shown my stuff at several of the bars here and they’re impressed with my action.” She shrugged. “And besides, when Evan got called up from his bartending post to take over the vacant guitarist’s spot, that left them down a bartender. This is the perfect solution for them.”

My mind flailed back to the conversation I’d overheard in Evan’s room. “But I thought Sven wanted you to stay in Boston?”

Her brow creased, but she made a shooing motion with her hand. “Of course he does. He has that red-head slut in the maid’s ranks that is hot for him. I’m sure there were several other sluts on board who had their share of his libido. It’s all part of the weaning process, hun. He needs to realize that I’m more than enough to satisfy him. Another few weeks and I’ll have him settled into my new system.”

My throat closed up in panic. “But Kayla –”

She drew me into a hug. “Oh, Amanda, I’m touched. Really. I know we’ve been together for practically our entire lives. And I’ve always looked out for you like a big sister.” She leant back. “But there’s going to come a time where we have to part ways. We have our own lives to lead. You have your accounting job in Boston, and your tidy apartment in Cambridge. But I …” Her eyes gleamed. “I’m going to soar free, Amanda. This is what I was meant for. I’m going to see the world, and Sven will be there at my side. We’ll be Bonnie and Clyde.”

I winced. “Didn’t they end up dying in a hailstorm of bullets?”

She winked at me. “Only the good die young, sweetie. We’ll be at it a long, long time.”

I twined my fingers into hers. “Kayla, you have to come with me. Please. We can talk about it once we get to the resort. But the ship is leaving soon, and we need to get off.”

Her face smoothed into calmness. “I’m sorry, hun. But I’ve made my choice. I’ll help you pack, and see you off the ship, if that’s what you really want. I’m sure you’ll have fun snorkeling with your fish and watching the sun set.” She crossed her arms in front of her. “But my destiny is on this ship, with Sven.”

I shook my head, every muscle of my body tightening. “Kayla, he’s not good for you. Sven isn’t good for you.”

She chuckled, her eyes gleaming. “Oh, Mandy, Sven is
very
good for me. He’s exactly what the doctor ordered, and I need doses of him every morning, noon, and night.”

My throat closed up on me. I had to get her away from him. It went against every instinct in my body to destroy her happiness. But I could see in her gaze that she was firmly entrenched in staying. I would not be able to pry her loose.

Not unless I told her the full truth.

My voice was barely a croak. “Kayla – I have to tell you something. Something … about Sven.”

Her eyes lit up with interest. “Oh? Did Evan let you in on something? Do tell. I barely get any details out of Sven. You’d think he was in witness protection or something. What’s the scoop?”

I swallowed, then held her hands firmly in my own, looking into her eyes. I was her best friend. She deserved to hear this from me. I would be there for her, as she absorbed it, and as she cried in the coming days.

I kept my voice steady. “Kayla, Sven is a heroin dealer. My guess is he moves heroin between Bermuda and Boston. From what I overheard, he wants you in Boston so you can distribute the drug for him to all your contacts at the bar.”

Kayla looked at me for a long moment, her eyes round in surprise.

Then she burst out in peals of laughter, her arms wrapping around her side as she shook.

“Good God, Amanda, is that what this is all about? Of course Sven and his crew do heroin. How could you not know that?”

Chapter 4

I stared at Kayla in shock, my mouth hanging open, as she giggled in amusement. It was a long moment before I could sort through my jumbled thoughts enough to speak.

“You knew?”

Her grin was wide. “Lord, Amanda, how could I
not
know? Heck, they had their gear out at the campfire before we were settled in the sand! Never mind the state of their room. I’d have to be blind not to have known it.”

A tint came to her cheeks. “But, of course, I understand why you didn’t see it, sweetie. You’re not around the rough types that frequent bars. You live in a gentler world.”

The campfire scene came back to me, how casual the bass player had been about using in front of the group. I hadn’t stopped to think about it; I’d been swept up in my own reaction, and Evan’s coming after me. And, of course, our passionate interlude which followed.

Kayla’s eyes sparkled and she nudged me. “God, Evan must be really good if you were too distracted to notice the track marks. Sven, Hank, Tom, they all have them. Heck, I’ve seen them all using.” She chuckled. “Guess it’s true what they say about guitarists and their fingers.”

I stilled.

I had just thoroughly examined Evan’s arms. There had not been one sign of needle use on either one.

The thought came to me, suddenly, that perhaps Evan was caught up within something beyond his control. After all, he had only come on board to be a bartender. He simply wanted to get his feet back underneath him. He was blessed by a dream spot with the ship’s band. It was only then that he realized, once he moved into their room, that they maintained an illicit life as drug smugglers.

What could he do, as the new guy on board, against three veterans? Maybe he chose to ride it out, fake acceptance of their lifestyle, with the knowledge that soon he’d be away from them all.

A soft glow returned to my heart as I absorbed the idea. It made sense, now, the way Evan had asked me to keep certain parts of his life history a secret. He didn’t want to upset the delicate balance. He just had to get through two more months.

I looked up to Kayla, my resolve firming. Evan might have a short time before his tour ended – but Kayla was talking about starting up a fresh one and delving whole-heartedly into the chaos.

I just couldn’t let her do it.

I leant forward, putting my hands on my knees. “Kayla, I know you’re looking at this as a wild romantic adventure. I understand. Sven is handsome and charismatic. He’s an amazing singer. You’d get to experience exotic ports.” I shook my head. “But they’re not just fun-loving musicians. They’re heroin dealers. That’s a dangerous crowd to be mixed up with.”

Kayla chuckled. “Oh, Mandy, you’ve been watching too many TV dramas. These guys have done heroin for years. It’s just part of their creative juice, like lava lamps or beaded curtains. When they took on this ship gig, it became much harder to keep the supply flowing. They realized if they were going to do all this smuggling-on-board work anyway, why not get the habit to pay for itself?” She shrugged. “Perfect business sense, of course. They’re doing quite well for themselves.”

My brow furrowed. “Kayla, this isn’t like medicinal marijuana.”

She shrugged, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “Heck, Amanda, it’s no worse than those prescription drugs I used to steal from my mom’s closet. Heroin was first sold over the counter. Puritans make it out to be some sort of a demon drug. It’s not. It’s simply a fun way to enjoy life.”

My fingers clenched. “Tanya didn’t enjoy her life.”

Kayla’s eyes softened, and she reached forward to take my hands. “Oh, hun, I know Tanya’s death affected you immensely. You were always much closer to her than I was. But really, that was years ago. You can’t keep obsessing about it. If a friend died in a car crash, I’d be sad, but I wouldn’t swear off driving for the rest of my life. You have to move on.”

Kayla’s hands were right there in mine, but it was as if she were slipping down a twisting, shadowy tunnel and I was powerless to draw her back up again. “Kayla, this is different!”

She shook her head. “It isn’t. Heroin comes from a flower! It’s a natural substance like tobacco, alcohol, or marijuana. Governments like to move them on and off banned lists for tax money, to earn the soccer-mom’s vote, or who knows what else. But, heck, millions of people use heroin.”

Her eyes glowed. “Those connoisseurs are not evil people! They’re dedicated lovers of a historic delicacy.” She sniffed. “It’s just our high-collared government which forces them to be criminals.”

My heart constricted with worry. “Please come with me, Kayla. Stay on Bermuda with me.”

She sighed, gently patted the side of my head, and then rose. “You stay, Mandy. You swim with your fishes, watch the sun set, and have a peaceful flight back home. Don’t worry about me. Our lives are just different, and that’s all right. You’ll settle into your nice accounting job and sip a glass of wine each evening while the scullers row by on the Charles. Someday I’ll get an email that you’re engaged to a nice comptroller at some multinational bank.” She smiled down at me. “I’ll be very happy for you. Wherever I am, I’ll be sure to make it back for your wedding. I’m sure you’ll be lovely in white.”

She walked to the door. “Let me go, Amanda. I have my own path to lead, and I’ve finally found the perfect partner. There’s no way I’m going to let him get away.”

She pulled the door open, stepped through, and then the room echoed in its emptiness.

I stared at the door, my heart pounding. With every ounce of my energy, I willed her to return.

There was a knocking at the door.

I leapt to my feet, relief hammering at my chest. Thank God. She was coming back. She was going to leave the ship with me, we’d go home, and everything would be just the way it had been. I raced the inches to the door, grabbed the handle, flung it open –

Evan stood there, his green eyes shadowed but firm. “I saw her head out. Is she going to say goodbye to Sven before you both pack? There isn’t much time, you know.”