Darkest Journey (Krewe of Hunters #20)(87)

“What—what are you doing? Breaking into Jonathan’s suite?” she demanded, her hand fluttering to her throat.

“What are we doing here?” Charlie demanded. “What the hell are you doing here? And where the hell is my father?”

Jennie looked truly surprised. “I thought he was with you.”

“No, he’s not with me,” Charlie snapped and stepped forward aggressively. Jude caught her and pulled her back right before she could tackle the other woman. “I’m asking you one more time. Where’s my father?”

“If he’s not with you, I have no idea!” Jennie said.

“What are you doing here? And how did you get in my cabin? Why did you write on my mirror?”

“What are you talking about? I was never in your cabin, and I certainly didn’t write anything on your mirror.”

“What are you doing aboard this ship?” Jude asked evenly. “We can have you arrested for breaking and entering, you know.”

“Breaking and entering?” Jennie gasped. “You’re the one who broke the door down. I was just...waiting.”

“How did you get in here? And why were you waiting? Waiting for what? My father? Why? Were you going to stab him in the heart?” Charlie asked.

“What? No!”

“Then why are you here?” Charlie demanded. “If you’ve hurt my father in any way I’ll—”

“Hurt him? Are you crazy?” Jennie protested.

“Then...?” Jude asked.

“Oh, good Lord. Dammit, Charlie, I’m sleeping with him,” Jennie said.

Charlie was actually stunned speechless for a minute. Finally she managed to say, “What?”

Jennie let out a sigh. “We didn’t want to say anything to anyone yet, especially you. Your dad was worried what you would think. I mean, I’m only a few years older than you are. We’re friends. I think we were friends, anyway, and I hope we still are. I wanted to tell you. It was ridiculous, two adults sneaking around to be together. I came aboard to...to see him for a few minutes. He...he gave me a key. He told me to come aboard as a visitor when I finished on set, then slip in and get some rest, and he’d see me when your show was over. I begged off going to the café with the crew and came here instead. Charlie, I swear, I’m crazy about your dad.”

Charlie felt sick. “He said he was going up to watch the show?”

“Yes. He said he watched you every night, and did I mind,” Jennie told her. “I told him of course I didn’t. Charlie, you’re everything to him. He didn’t want you hurt, and he certainly didn’t want you to end up blindsided like this. He just wanted to be able to tell you in his own time.”

Charlie just stared at Jennie, still stunned.

“When did you last see Jonathan?” Jude asked.

“Right before he gave his speech at the church. I saw him from the bluff and went over to say hi,” she said. “He—he said he’d join me here as soon as the show ended. I didn’t know what to do when that steward showed up, so I just made my voice really deep and said I was fine. And when you showed up, I figured if I just ignored you, you’d go away, but then I started to worry. Charlie, I care about him so much.”

Jennie?

And her father?

But more important...

Where the hell was her father?

She turned to Jude. “We need to call Ethan and Randy and ship security and anyone else you can think of and...and I don’t know what. Jude, something is wrong. I know it. We have to find my father!”

“Where would he go if he didn’t come back to the ship?” he asked her.

She shook her head. “Nowhere, not if he said he’d be here. I know my dad. He’d be here if he could be. Something is wrong, something is really, really wrong.”

“All right, I’ll get you guys—except you, Jennie, you stay right here—back to our cabin, and then I’ll make the calls. We’ll get everyone on this. But, Charlie, you have to stay there where you’ll be safe. In the cabin, door locked. And you can’t leave, no matter what.”

*

Ricky Simpson had been in bed when they started pounding on his door.

He’d gotten up quickly and opened it, then looked surprised to see Ethan, Thor and Randy standing in the hall staring at him. He immediately flushed and looked uncomfortable, though he managed to ask, “Hey, what’s going on? Is there a problem?”

The three men pushed their way into the cabin. “Sit down,” Ethan told him.

“Hey, you may be with the government, but I know my rights. You can’t just bust in here and start pushing me around. I have my rights!” Ricky protested.

“There are a dozen charges I can haul you in on,” Randy said, adding drily, “Being the local man, you know. We know you did it.”

“Did what? What is this all about?” Simpson asked them.

He had to know, Ethan thought, though he was still doing a good job of faking ignorance.

“It’s about a message. A threatening message left on Charlene Moreau’s mirror. Written in lipstick.”

“Lipstick! Has to be one of the dancers or, more likely, one of the other singers. Those girls, they can get pretty jealous, and when they get jealous, they get mean.”