“I don’t suppose he gave you his name, did he?” Larry asked.
“A matter of fact, he did, Vernon McCarthy. But the way he said it, made me think that wasn’t his real name.”
“You didn’t give him your name, did you?” Trisha asked me.
“Uh, I think I did. Well, just my first name. I didn’t have much choice since he gave me his.”
“Okay, I’ll check out that life raft canister and we should get some sleep. Are you going to be all right tonight?” Larry asked, pocketing the valued necklace.
“I don’t think Ivan will be coming back again. Even if he does, I don’t feel he’s threatening to me. For some reason, I feel he needs my help. Larry, what will you do with the necklace?”
“It’s best you don’t know.”
“Okaaay.”
“Just be careful,” Trisha said as they made their way out of my cabin.
“I will,” I said, closing the door after them. I walked over to the balcony sliding door and locked it closed.
Chapter 16
The Necklace
The next morning after our breakfast, I returned to my room and emptied my store sacks. Then I repacked my suitcase so everything I bought would fit. I didn’t want housekeeping to think my purchases were garbage as I stuffed the empty plastic bags into the trashcan. Today, the ship docked in Kona, and the air felt drier and warmer. I don’t believe I would need my lined jacket. I’ll just take a light sweater.
The city of Kona has over 11,000 people with black and white beaches and their world famous coffee. A ferry from the ship will tender us to the island in the morning. We first had to meet in the theater to get the tickets for our tours. Trisha and I both had totes holding our hats and sunglasses. Larry wore his hat and carried his sunglasses in his shirt pocket. We looked like tourists.
When we located empty seats near the aisle while we waited for our tickets, Larry leaned over to me.
“Susan, I found the life raft canister you may have seen and conducted a swab test. You were right. It is blood. I’m going to report it to the Master of Arms. You two can go on your own today.”
“Are you sure, Honey? We can wait and take the next group out,” Trisha said.
“If I get back here in time. If not, don’t worry about me.”
“Okay, we’ll wait as long as we can,” Trisha said.
After we received our tickets for our tour ashore, we heard an announcement to follow our group out on the Fifth Deck to the tender ferry. Larry still hadn’t shown up to meet us.
The attendants guided us down a twelve-step metal stairway. At the rise of the tender’s gunwale, a handsome young man helped me walk across a rubberized gangway into the smaller craft. My long legs made it with ease, but shorter legged women had to allow the strong arms of the younger deck hands to lift them into the boat. The tender serviced about thirty to forty people. As soon as the boat filled up with passengers in our tour, the ferry’s jets revved up and we sped toward shore.
—-
Larry took the elevator down to the Purser’s office. He thought about ditching the jewels into the sea but knew that would never stop the thieves from trying this again on innocent passengers. He arrived at the office and asked to speak to the Master of Arms. A uniformed man, leafing through the filing cabinet, called to another person to help him out. The Purser came out of his office to greet him.
“Well, what can I do for you?” he asked.
“Here’s my business trade card,” Larry said handing over his business card.
“A bail bondsman, Larry Paige?”
“That’s right. I work part-time for the Firth Idaho Police. If you need any input from me, just call that number, it’s my cell phone. By the way, I came across something that looked like blood on one of your life raft canisters. After I read about the two men lost at sea a couple of weeks ago, I thought you should check it out. I carry these testers with me and this is the one I used,” he said, showing the officer the encapsulated tubing with the stained cotton swab inside.
“Can you show us where you saw the blood?” the Master of Arms asked.
“I can, and another item has come to my attention. A friend of mine found this. Maybe someone lost it,” Larry said holding up the jeweled necklace.
“You said a friend?” he asked.
“Yes sir, I’m not at liberty to say who, but let me try and convince her to come forward.”
Both men looked at the jewelry and back at Larry.
“Do you know when your friend found this?” the Purser asked.
“After last night’s show. My wife and I had a soda,” he said, stretching the truth.
“Thank you, Mr. Paige. We’ll look into this.”
Larry smiled and walked out of their office.
“Isn’t this–?” asked the Master of Arms.
“It is, how odd to find it like that,” said the Purser.
“Check his story and put that in the safe. I’ll call Honolulu. You check on his story about being in the bar. His soda should be on his account.”
Larry headed back upstairs to his cabin. The first priority on his mind would be to protect Susan and Trisha.
—-
Trisha and I found more goodies and trinkets to stuff in our luggage for gifts to our friends and families. I bought more boxed chocolate, a couple of tshirts for me and Jan, and Kona coffee for a few of my friends in Idaho. The warm air on this side of the island made us tired, so we stopped and had some shaved ice
“What are you going to say to this Ivan the next time you see him?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I’ll just play it by ear,” I said, scooping
