Mermaid Charade: Blue Moon Investigations Sacramento Book 7 by Alex Gates & Steve Higgs
Author:Alex Gates & Steve Higgs [Gates, Alex & Higgs, Steve]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-02-02T00:00:00+00:00
Part Three
The Ariel. Tuesday, October 31st. 0752hrs.
âWatch your step.â Officer James Billings reached out a pudgy, ballooned handâa father waiting to catch a wobbly toddler climbing a tree. âI wouldnât trust those rungs with my weight.â
Officer Billings of the Yakutat police department resembled a bear more than a man, complete with head to toe hair covering his body. For the sake of accuracy, he resembled a teddy bear. Rather hairy, with beady eyes, a pinched face, and a soft, inviting physique.
Maya considered having him as company in her basement apartment. The nights in Alaska proved cold and lonely, and Billings appeared a warm, cozy body to snuggle with.
She climbed the rusted steel ladder without spurring a single creak or groan from the old metal. She stepped over the guardrail and onto the Arielâs afterdeck.
Sixteen years ago, Charles, William, and Thomas had sat on that deck. Had looked over the black ocean in the dead of night. Had heard a strange, haunting song. Patricia had stood over the guardrail, watching the storm-stirred waters churn, and she claimed to have seen a mermaid.
Now, Maya occupied the afterdeck. Instead of a violent, malicious ocean full of wonder and mystery, she had a view to a warehouse. One filled with a variety of impounded vehicles.
Apart from the ocean scenery, not much had changed with The Ariel, at least compared to Charlesâ video recording. The exterior paint had faded, but it remained on the shinier side of rusty and the paler side of new.
Officer Billings grunted and huffed as he stumbled over the guardrail onto the deck. âI donât look forward to climbing down. Iâm not much for heights.â He lurched to the deckâs center, as if a terrible wave had tossed him off balance, and he leaned against the companionwayâs closed door.
Maya pushed out her lips. âOops.â
âOops?â
âIâm sorry.â
âFor what?â
âWell, you see, I wouldnât mind doing this alone.â
âIâm not supposed to leave you alone. Weâre standing within a crime scene.â
âFrom sixteen years ago.â
âI canât leave you alone on the ship.â
Maya tapped her pouted lip with her pointer finger. âWhatâs the harm in it?â
âYou could tamper with evidence.â
âIsnât it all recorded and archived?â
âItâs an unsolved crime. If additional evidence appears, or a new lead opens up, weâll need this ship undisturbed for further investigation.â
âSixteen years.â
Billings lifted his pillow-shaped shoulders and frowned. âI donât make the rules.â
Maya exhaled a flurry of air through her vibrating lips. âCan we⦠I donât know, work out a deal?â
âItâs illegal to bribe an officer.â
âNot bribery. See, Iâm a podcaster investigating the incident. If you allow me access to the shipââ
âWe have allowed you access. With supervision.â
Maya chewed on her cheeks. She hated working with rookie officers. They had a reputation to build, and they often refused to bend or fudge the rules of the game.
âMy podcast could reach thousands, possibly millions, of listeners. Imagine the potential for new leads? Use me as a tool to break open the unsolved case.â
âThatâs why youâre on the ship, Ms. Adler.â
âI thought it was because Detective Hale urged you to let me in.
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