Darkest Journey (Krewe of Hunters #20)(68)

*

When it came time to head upstairs for lunch, Ethan brought the files containing photos, including some of Chance Morgan’s, of people who had been aboard the Journey before Corley and Hickory had been murdered.

He left Jude to watch over the Southern Belles and enjoy lunch, and he headed straight to the infirmary. He hadn’t seen Dr. Amerind flirting with passengers at the Sun Deck buffet, so he had to assume the doctor was in his quarters or seeing a patient.

Two attractive young women in nautically themed nurse’s uniforms, a blonde named Mindy Gunderson and a brunette named Haley Howell, greeted him as soon as he entered the infirmary.

Haley explained that Dr. Amerind was in with Mrs. Vineland, a frequent passenger. She suffered from motion sickness but cruised aboard the Journey time and again anyway. She simply liked the ambience of the riverboat and the various excursions available when they were in port.

Ethan noticed that she had a chart in her hand; she had obviously been about to join Dr. Amerind and Mrs. Vineland.

“I assume you were both here the day of the big reenactment, right?” he asked pleasantly.

“Of course,” Mindy said. “We’re under contract, so we don’t have a choice. At least the reenactment was something a little bit different.”

“You don’t enjoy the shipboard programming?” he asked.

“There are only so many lectures about history a girl can take,” Haley said. “The best is when we’re in port in New Orleans.”

“We get a week off the ship once a month—fill-in nurses, waiting for full-time jobs with the cruise line, come on. Time for us to have fun,” Mindy said, and winked. “I mean,” she added solemnly, “we’re purer than the driven snow while we’re aboard.”

“No drinking allowed, and I have no problem with that. We never know when we might be needed,” Haley explained.

“Then you’ll make good witnesses,” Ethan said.

“Witnesses?” Haley gasped. “Does this have something to do with those two reenactors who were murdered? But why? It’s not like they were killed here on the ship.”

“No, they weren’t,” Ethan agreed. “But we’re trying to piece together everything that was going on in their lives before they were killed, in case there’s a clue in there somewhere.”

“But you can’t blame the Journey for what happened!” Haley said, clearly upset.

“No one blames the ship. We’re just trying to find any hint that could lead us to their killer,” Ethan said. “Dr. Amerind told me two people were arguing with Albion Corley up on deck. A man and a woman. I have pictures. Would you mind taking a minute so I can show them to you? I’m trying to figure out who might have been arguing with Mr. Corley.”

“No prob,” Haley said, and then flushed. “Oh, if you don’t mind a slight delay. One of us is supposed to be in with the doctor when he has a patient, so he’s waiting for me.”

“I’m happy to hang out till you’re free,” Ethan told her.

“I can help you right now,” Mindy said, and smiled at him. “You’re really a Fed? That’s a big deal, huh?”

“Not so much,” he told her, and laid the pictures out on the check-in counter, first shots of Albion Corley and Farrell Hickory.

“Those are the dead men, right?” Mindy said, looking up at him.

He nodded. “I have pictures of some of the other people who were there. Can you tell me if you remember any of them, especially if you saw them with Professor Corley when he was here on the deck after the program?”

“I can try. We were half watching, half working and, honestly, kind of bored,” she said, wincing apologetically.

“That’s all right. I appreciate anything you can tell me.”

He laid out more pictures, these of Brad and Mike Thornton, George Gonzales, Barry Seymour, Luke Mayfield, Jennie McPherson, Jimmy Smith and Grant Ferguson.

She looked up at him, pleased with herself. “I saw them all!” she said.

“After the reenactment was over?”

“Not these two—” She pointed to the Thornton brothers. “But this chick,” she said, pausing to point to Jennie. “I had a long talk with her after. She was playing a nurse. She was really nice and even did my makeup before we left port.”

“She’s a makeup artist,” Ethan said. “And the others?”

“Those men, yes.” She pointed at the pictures of George, Barry, Luke, Jimmy and Grant. She zeroed in on Grant. “Very distinguished, said he’s an accountant, but I’ve seen him in some commercials. I didn’t see him talking to Mr. Corley, though. He was talking to a passenger, and he looked pretty tense and kind of annoyed. And this guy... He was cute.” She pointed to Jimmy’s picture. “He knocked into me on his way to do something, and when he apologized, for a minute I thought he was going to ask for my number. He didn’t, though. He just looked at me kind of funny. I’m sorry he didn’t ask. He really was cute.” She looked more closely at the pictures of George, Barry and Luke. “I don’t remember much about them, but these guys hung around for a while before we sailed, too. These two,” she said, indicating Barry and Luke, “were talking to each other. One wanted to hang around, and the other wanted to get going. I forget which was which, though. And this guy...” she said, indicating George. “He just looked hungry. The reenactors were welcome to eat at the buffet, so that’s probably what he did.”