Alvirah held her pocketbook tight after she left Celia and went back to her room. Willy was there and looked up expectantly. He was surprised that Alvirah, before she even greeted him, turned around and bolted the door of the suite.
“What’s that about?” Willy asked.
“Let me show you what it’s about,” she whispered. “And keep your voice down.”
Opening her pocketbook, she reached into it and pulled out the Cleopatra necklace.
“Is that what I think it is?” he asked as he took the three-strand necklace from her hand.
“Yes, it is,” Alvirah answered.
“Where did you get it?”
“Celia gave it to me.”
“How did she get it? Don’t tell me she was the one who smothered that poor old woman.”
“Willy, you know as well as I do that Celia Kilbride is no murderer or thief. This is what happened.”
Her voice still low, she told Willy everything Celia had shared with her. She finished by saying, “You can understand how frightened she is. She was absolutely certain that if people found out she had the necklace, they would never believe that Lady Em gave it to her.”
“I can see that,” Willy agreed. “So what do we do now? I don’t want anyone to find out you have it and end up killing you.”
“You’re right, Willy, and that’s why you have to hold on to it, keep it with you at all times. It will be safest with you.”
“But after we get off the ship, what do we do with it?” Willy asked.
“Celia told me that Lady Em was planning to give it to Ted Cavanaugh because she agreed with him that it belonged to the people of Egypt.”
“Well, I just hope they don’t frisk me,” Willy said, matter-of-factly.
He stood up and slid the necklace into his pants pocket, where it immediately caused a visible bulge. Alvirah saw the look of dismay on his face.
“When you put your jacket on, nobody will notice,” she said.
“I hope not.” After a pause, Willy asked, “Okay, what do we do now?”
“Willy, you know I’m a good detective.”
He looked alarmed. “Don’t tell me you’re going to try to solve this mystery. Don’t forget. You’re dealing with a killer who didn’t get what he or she wanted.”
“I understand that. But when you think about it, Lady Em told Celia that she was sure both Roger Pearson and Brenda were cheating her. Isn’t that awful?”
“We heard Roger and Yvonne at each other’s throats the other night. It’s a heck of a coincidence that Roger was dead less than twenty-four hours later.”
“I know it is. And Lady Em was dead only hours after she told Celia that Brenda had been switching her jewelry.” She continued, “You know, Willy, I’ve been wondering if Roger Pearson fell overboard or if he got a little help from Yvonne.”
“You don’t think she pushed him over, do you?” Willy asked incredulously.
“I’m not saying it, but I’m thinking it, just wondering about it. I mean you can certainly see that those two were not close. She was at Celia’s lecture today with a couple of friends. She sure didn’t look to me like a grieving widow. And when you think about it, with Lady Em dead and Roger dead, the question about what he was doing with her finances will probably just go away. And that is very good news for Yvonne.”
They stared at each other. Willy spoke first. “Do you think Yvonne might have also killed Lady Em?”
“I wouldn’t be surprised.”
“But what about this rumor about a jewel thief, ‘the Man with One Thousand Faces’?”
“I don’t know. I just don’t know,” Alvirah said, lost in thought.