The Starboard Knife: A Crime Fiction Thriller Novella by Lindsey Ernie

Author:Lindsey, Ernie [Lindsey, Ernie]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Published: 2014-08-27T16:00:00+00:00

PART SEVEN

Anxious, wary, and terrified, the remaining eight, minus Wade, stared at Alex in disbelief, stoic statues of incredulity. The moment hung there, a fat, pregnant pause, amazed at his suggestion, floating, floating, until their confusion and panic erupted.

“Stay cool? What do you mean stay cool?”

“Erica is dead, Alex.”

“One of you is a goddamn murderer, and I want off this boat.”

“Alex, take us back, please,” Jenn begged.

Their voices blended into a miasma of curses, questions, and demands.

He couldn’t think clearly. Wade was right. They needed time to consider motives.

We can’t do that, he thought. Coast Guard. Radio the Coast Guard. It’s too dangerous to stay here. They’ll escort us in, maybe take everyone into custody until—no, he said they might hold me responsible. My yacht. A murder on my yacht. Okay, okay…if we can figure out who did it, we can tie them up with the extra mooring line downstairs. It can’t be that hard to figure out who did this, can it? There are only so many choices, just like he said.

“Quiet!” he screamed. “We’re not going anywhere. We’re going to stay right here, we’re going to wait on the Coast Guard, and we’re going to let them handle this.”

“Seriously?” Karen said. “So, what, we’ll all just stay here, trapped like sardines out in the middle of the ocean, while one of you takes a knife to the rest of us?”

Sharon stepped forward, hand on her chest, brunette ponytail swishing back and forth as she shook her head, saying, “One of us? One of us? How do we know you didn’t do it?”

Karen’s head whipped back as if she’d smelled something disgusting, like putting her nose to a carton of spoiled milk. “Chet and I were in our room all night. Jenn slept on our floor. She knows we didn’t go anywhere, right, Jenn?”

Alex watched Jenn as she opened her mouth, closed it, then admitted, “I guess so, but I was asleep. I mean, I’m not saying you did anything, but I can’t say yes for certain.”

Karen’s hands went up in the air. Chet, still bleeding from the forehead, crossed his arms and turned on her. “Are you kidding me?” he asked.

“I’m not trying to blame you,” Jenn replied. “I’m only saying I didn’t stay up all night watching you. Do I think you could’ve done it? No. Do I think anybody on this boat could’ve done it? No. And for that matter, neither one of you can say that I didn’t get up and leave the room because both of you were snoring like foghorns. Okay? Okay?”

“She’s got a point,” Alex said, though unintentionally planting that seed of doubt about her whereabouts wasn’t the best idea. “Nobody knows where anybody was. Nobody has an alibi except for Wade.”

The others whipped their heads around to face him, skin swishing against nylon windbreakers.

“How’s that?” Mark asked.

Wade eyed Alex, annoyed, but he shook his head and lifted his hands in resignation. “I cheated. I was on the phone until about four in the morning.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.