Sabrina looked over at Lisa, who was dozing in the passenger seat of the jeep after her Bloody Mary lunch, which was a relief. It gave her time before she arrived at Villa Nirvana to consider what she should do next. What was she supposed to do with the diamond necklace sitting in her tote bag in the backseat? She’d meant to return it to Heather earlier this morning when she brought the clean laundry to the Keatings, but then Sean had had another freak-out and she had gotten distracted. What if someone thought she stole it? That was all Detective Hodge would need to banish her from St. John.
She didn’t understand how or why Heather had the diamond necklace Gavin was giving to Lisa for their anniversary. And how had it gotten broken? Had Gavin broken it and asked Heather to get it fixed before he gave it to Lisa? Should she just hand it over to Detective Hodge, inform him how she came into possession of it, and let him figure it out? No, that would be crazy, Sabrina decided. When did telling the truth become so hard? But she knew the answer to that question. It all came back to the moment when she pulled the trigger and shot Ben. Nothing in her life, not even telling the truth, had ever been simple after she fired the gun that night.
Sabrina drove down the steep hill known as Jacob’s Ladder into Cruz Bay. Never a fan of heights, it had terrified her when she first arrived in St. John, but she had gotten used to it and the dozens of other dramatic slopes. Passing the Sprauve Elementary School on her left, she noticed kids playing soccer at recess. Did they know how lucky they were that their lives were so simple? She hadn’t back when she’d played hoops at the public school in Allerton where she attended grade school.
Without thinking about it, Sabrina turned and headed toward Bar None. Neil would know what she should do about the necklace. Maybe it wasn’t fair to ask him for advice when Detective Hodge was already scrutinizing him for overstepping legal boundaries, but Hodge didn’t have to know. Maybe she could give it to Neil and have him put it in the Bar None safe. No, that was a really crazy idea that could result in them being cellmates. At the very least, she could use the opportunity to get Lisa a coffee to go, which, by the sound of her snoring, would be a stellar idea. Maybe Neil would give her one of his bear hugs, which she always pretended were too tight but actually made her feel safe and impenetrable.
But Neil’s parking spot was empty, so Sabrina drove on, back through Cruz Bay, up Centerline Road, which ran right through the middle of St. John from one end to the other. She took a right at the ridiculously marked “Route 104” where wild goats and pigs roamed, although less so since the island dump was shut down. She headed past the fork in the road, a six-foot metal sculpture cut out in the shape of a fork, and up Gifft Hill Road, where Henry lived. Should she stop and put the necklace in his safe, which they used for Ten Villas? She and Henry had the keys and combinations to each other’s locks, safes, homes, and vehicles. They had no secrets, or at least Sabrina had thought they hadn’t, which was why it had been a little unsettling to hear Henry confess he’d gone to chat with Elena about the prenup.
Maybe she should drive on out past Villa Nirvana first to her own cottage high up on a hill in Fish Bay and leave the necklace in her own safe. No, the police had gotten search warrants for both her house and Henry’s condo the last time there had been a murder in one of their villas.
Sabrina began to feel like she couldn’t breathe, a sure sign she was in panic mode. Her cell phone began to play “Locked Away,” flooding her with relief because it meant Neil was calling her. She pulled over to the side of the road by the posh Rendezvous Bay neighborhood so she would have reception, just as Lisa jolted upright and awake in her seat. Damn. Sabrina had hoped Lisa would stay asleep long enough so she could speak privately to Neil. Life on an island was filled with draconian choices. If she got out of the car, there was a good chance the call would drop. Hell, even if she stayed still, reception could instantly vanish. Better to have Lisa overhear her conversation than to lose the opportunity to get Neil’s advice.
“Hey Salty, David and I’ve been over to see Cassie and got her blessing to use Larry’s plane. We’re going over to check it out now and maybe do a little trial run, just so David gets a feel for the plane and does a landing or two. He says it’s been about a year since he flew a seaplane over in Culebra.”
“That sounds like a good idea. I’m headed over to Villa Nirvana with Lisa Keating to meet the others. Detective Hodge is letting them get their possessions.”
“I’ll bet he’s got more than that in mind. Answer his questions in ‘yes’ or ‘no’ responses whenever you can. Do not volunteer any information. Remember, these guys aren’t your friends,” Neil said while Sabrina nodded a silent “aye, aye” to his instructions.
“Neil, can they search me or my things, like my jeep or my purse, without a search warrant?” Sabrina asked as she watched Lisa’s eyebrows arch.
“No, they can’t, and I doubt they have one yet, so don’t consent to any search. By tomorrow, David and I hope to have some information about Elena that may suggest why someone wanted to kill her. Did you know he’s fluent in Spanish?”
Another secret Henry kept from her, although she didn’t suppose this one had been intentional.
“Hey, Salty, listen. I’m calling for another reason. David and I reconnoitered your casa a little while ago. It’s a good thing you kept the cargo container in front of it,” Neil said. Sabrina detected a note of pride in his voice. It had been his gift to her, a full size cargo container, placed in front of her tiny cottage as a barricade against the press, who had come to hunt her down during the murder at Villa Mascarpone several months earlier. Neil wasn’t your average almost-boyfriend, and his gifts were proof of it. But wait, why was it good she’d kept the cargo container, which was still under a lease Neil had paid for?
“Neil?” she pressed, wishing Lisa had had three Bloody Marys and was still zonked so she would have some privacy.
“Sorry, kid, but they’re back. At least one was parked and hanging out in front of the container. You’d better stay with me tonight on the Knot Guilty.”
Neil had never invited her to his home, telling her he was a typical guy-slob, only worse because he lived on a trawler. She wasn’t sure if he was really a slob or if he had just been reluctant to share his entire world with her. Sabrina thought the invitation might mark movement in their relationship until she realized he’d only offered because he was concerned about reporters being at her house.
“We’ll see,” she said, instead of saying no, and hung up.
“How’s your head?” Sabrina asked Lisa, who was rubbing her forehead.
“I’m okay. I couldn’t help but hear. Are the cops going to be asking us questions?”
“They may be. Why?”
“Because I may want a lawyer if they do,” Lisa said.