The Trouble With Paradise

“Shoot.”

“Well… Cadence’s worried about her job. Andy’s worried about getting hurt and losing his contract. I can’t stop thinking about the life I should have lived instead of the one I am living, but you…”

Brandy’s smile turned serene. “Yeah?”

“You don’t seem worried about much.”

Brandy looked away, and something within Dorie tightened. She hadn’t forgotten, not for one minute, that one of them had hurt Bobby, and that it could be any one of them.

Including this woman.

“You’re going to think I’m crazy,” Brandy finally said.

“Try me.”

“My life in Vegas? Not quite my dream life. I mean I make plenty of money, don’t get me wrong, but I turned twenty-nine this year.” She grimaced. “Okay, thirty. I turned thirty. Three years ago.” She sighed. “And I’m not going to look this hot forever, you know.”

“Are you sure? Because you’re pretty hot.”

“Ah, thanks, hon, but it’s all downhill from here for me. And I’m tired of trying to keep up. Out here, I don’t have to try at all.”

Dorie stared at her. “Are you telling me you like being here?”

Brandy lifted a shoulder.

“You do,” she marveled. “You like being here.”

“What’s not to like? It’s warm and very beautiful…”

“And deserted.”

“Right. And because it is, money doesn’t matter.”

“Deserted. Did I mention deserted?”

“I know you think I’m crazy, but trust me, in Vegas, I’m on borrowed time. I don’t want to dwell on regrets here, but on an island like this, who cares about lengthening mascara, or how high I can kick on stage?”

Dorie thought about working for Mr. Stryowski for the rest of her life. “Yeah. I guess you’re right.”

They were both quiet a moment, and Dorie lay there listening to the surf, her thoughts drifting.

“I think someone pushed Bobby,” Brandy whispered.

Dorie’s heart stopped. “What makes you think that?”

“I went to his room to find him, and I saw-”

“What?”

“Blood.” Brandy closed her eyes. “Lots of it.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Same reason you didn’t. I was afraid. Still am.” Brandy’s gaze was steady when Dorie looked at her. “You saw. I can tell you saw.”

“Are you looking at everyone,” Dorie asked quietly, “wondering who did it? Who hurt him?”

“Yeah.”

“For whole moments at a time I can actually convince myself I imagined this whole nightmare.”

Brandy let out a low laugh.

“I know. I blame my upbringing. My whole family is this together, organized, successful unit. I’m the black sheep, the romantic. The illogical one.”

“The dreamer,” Brandy said quietly. “Nothing wrong with that.” She shook her head. “I guess I was born cynical.”

“No one’s born cynical.”

Brandy’s smile was somber and just a little sad. “I’ve decided it’s not you, you know.”

Dorie appreciated that, she really did. And she knew Brandy’s expectant silence said she was waiting for Dorie to repeat the favor to her. But she couldn’t help but remember how comfortable Brandy had looked brandishing the knife that no one had even known she carried.

Extremely comfortable. Almost as comfortable as she’d looked while recalling how she’d wanted to cut off her ex-husband’s family jewels. “You really thought I hurt Bobby?”

Brandy lifted a shoulder. “If it makes you feel better, I considered Cadence, too. But she jumps at her own shadow, so I can’t see it being her. Christian takes his doctor duties far too seriously to ever break the physician’s oath, and then there’s Andy.”

“Who can’t handle the sight of blood,” Dorie said quietly. “Yeah, I noticed that today.”

“Sort of shrinks our options, you know? Because there just aren’t that many of us left now, are there?”

“No.” She hated this. She sat up, then held her head while it swam for a moment. “Not many options at all, except for the remaining crew. The very people Bobby trusted the most.”

“Trusted?” Brandy shook her head. “I don’t think they trusted each other at all. They work together, that’s it.”

Dorie looked over at Cadence’s empty pad. “And right now, Cadence is with one of them. Probably alone.”

“Yeah.” Brandy stood up, then offered Dorie a hand.

Dorie let her pull her up, then stood very still waiting for her world to stop spinning. “We’re going to check on her.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Even though she’s undoubtedly busy. Very busy.”

“Honey, she’s undoubtedly naked. We’re still going to check on her. It’s what friends do.”

Friends. Dorie wanted that to be true. They walked to the beach, and got yet another unwelcome surprise.

The Sun Song? Gone.

TWENTY-ONE

Third day of no chocolate.

(72 hours, or 4,320 minutes…)

The sun rose over the craggy cliffs, bringing a new day, and what should have been renewed hope. Instead, the morale in camp had sunk to a new low.

The boat had vanished, and no one knew how, or why.

Dorie looked around at the glum faces. Ethan poked at the signal fire, his movements jerky. Denny stood on the beach, the water lapping at his knees, staring at the spot where the Sun Song should have been as if he could bring it back by sheer will.

Andy dragged wood to the fire log by log, as if they’d be here for a while.

Dorie could only hope not.

Cadence was actually sitting. She had her head in her hands. Dorie and Brandy had run into her coming back to the pads, and she’d said nothing. She stood now. “I’m going for a run.”

Brandy, who’d been sitting by the fire reading the People magazine Dorie’d given her from her purse, looked up in disbelief. “Honey, you’re stranded on an island without a mall. There’s no reason to walk anywhere. And that’s the good news. Come read about the latest bitch fight that broke out in Hollywood last week between the two blonde It-Girls.”

“No, you don’t understand. I have to run.”

Brandy leaned in a little closer. “Didn’t you already get your exercise with…” She jerked her head toward Denny’s back. “You know.”

Cadence winced. “No. Actually, I didn’t.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “We didn’t get that far.”

“Why not?”

Cadence glanced at Denny’s back, then lifted a shoulder. “Something stopped me.” She shook her head at the questions in their eyes and stood. “Sorry. I’ve really got to run.”