Whodunnit? Murder In Mystery Cruise

3 The Emerald Of The Seas

Giles found himself rolling his luggage in to the cargo bay. It had been six hours since the invitation to the cruise had been given to them. Rowena had immediately booked them tickets. "We will be okay." She kept telling herself. She said this as the pair boarded the plane to England, she repeated it when they landed, then again when they reached the coast.
"We will be okay. It's going to be okay."

Giles put a hand on her back, smoothing his hand over the fur of her coat. "Don't you think it's a bit cold for a boat ride?" Rowena was saying as they boarded the ferry to get to the cruise. Giles nodded."Very cold. The killer however is far more cold. Cold in his or her heart." Giles turned to her. "Do not let your guard down for a second, you hear me?" He was holding tightly. Neither of them moved until a surprise guest boarded the boat.

"It's her." Giles pointed at the person walking towards a seat on the ferry. It was indeed the woman from the airport, red hair curled at her neck and an intense look about her. Rowena gritted her teeth. "The audacity. I should give her a piece of my own mind." She moved to corner the woman but Giles held up his hand. "Let me." He put down his bag and walked over to where the woman was opening a book.

Giles slid into the seat in front of her. "Good evening." She did not look up or acknowledge that he was there but Giles knew she was very aware of his presence. " He looked out at the sea and spoke again. "I know what you think you're doing." At this, the woman stiffened. "What is it that you think I'm doing?" She spoke. There was ice in her voice as she finally turned to look at her companion. Giles shook his head. "It's sad really. You think you're doing the right thing and then poof you're gone."

Just around the corner, Rowena watched the two with interest. "Who is she?" She asked herself. It could be a companion of the killer or someone else roped into the horrible game. She doubted that last theory very much. She turned to pick up her purse when a man approached. He was tall, black haired, with a simple mustache. "Pardon me ma'am, do you happen to know a Mr. Monsieur?" Rowena almost dropped her jaw, but remained in composure.

"I may." She said simply. The man sucked in a breath. "Oh dear, he's gotten you too." There was some silence between them when the horn of the cruise sounded. A man's voice came through an intercom. "Welcome ladies and gentleman to the Emerald Of The Seas! We have many special treats aboard this vast ship. For our first event of the day, we have a cocktail party on deck 4!" As the man rambled on, Rowena nodded at the man and parted to find Giles.

* * * * *

Giles paced the length of his room as Rowena read the letter. When the couple had found their room, there had been a crisp white letter siting on their bed. The writing on the front said two words. "Dear Giles." Now, Rowena was reading it out loud in the emptiness of the room. "Tonight at the cocktail party, you will meet the guests aboard this cruise, I will be among them." Rowena read the rest of the letter and Giles stared ahead.

"He or She thinks they are going to pull one over on me. I don't want you to play this game." The butler turned to Rowena, who had a tear in her eye. He patted her on the back. "My dear Row. You must get to know these guests better than I can. Find out every single detail about them. Make haste about it." He continued into some specifics and rose from his bed. "Tonight, we have the upper hand." Deep down, Giles believed himself, but he knew anything could change.