The computer on my desk beeped to let me know I had a new email. I saw it was from Summer at the front desk.
"Hey," I said, "it looks like we've got the breakfast information from the Rainbow Buffet."
I opened the email and displayed it on the big wall-mounted TV. It was a printout of all the charges made that morning at the Rainbow Buffet and, more importantly, the times they were made.
The three of us stared at the screen. There was page after page of restaurant charges from hundreds of resort guests.
"Wow," Leilani said. "I didn't know so many people had breakfast there."
"Let's narrow it down to the charges made after eight and before about eight twenty or so," I said, scrolling through the printout until I found the page from the appropriate time frame.
"Aunt Audrey, Carly, and Justin all left the Rainbow Buffet at twelve minutes after eight," Dorothy said slowly as she studied the email. "Even if they walked straight to the conference center, it would take them four or five minutes. I'd say they're in the clear."
"That's a relief," I said, and I sincerely meant it. I'd hate to think that either the bride or groom could be involved in a murder. Talk about a wedding planner's worst nightmare. I continued to scroll down the page to see if we could spot anyone else.
"It looks like your billionaire left at eight-fourteen," Dorothy said as she studied the list over the top of her reading glasses. "If you're thinking the murder happened a little before then, I'd say he also has an alibi."
"Our game designer, Orson, left the restaurant at eight thirty-three," Leilani said as she pointed to the screen.
"I don't think that completely clears him," I said. "He would still have had time to kill Alex, then go to the buffet for a quick breakfast."
"Wow, could you imagine doing that?" Leilani asked, a haunted look on her face. "Kill someone you know, then have a nice breakfast?"
We couldn't find anyone else who left the Rainbow Buffet after Orson, so I scrolled back to when the restaurant opened at six.
"The Trapp twins left at seven-forty," Dorothy said as we examined the list. "So that's no help."
"Yup," I said. "Either one would have had plenty of time to kill Alex."
"They're both tall and athletic," Leilani mused. "Jake couldn't tell who Alex had been arguing with. Maybe the sisters tag-team murdered him?"
"Is there information on anyone else?" I asked, ignoring my best friend.
"Nope, that's all I see," Leilani said as she stared at the screen.
"It's possible the others had breakfast at the Loco Moco," Dorothy stated. "That restaurant has a separate billing system from the rest of the resort. Or they might have skipped breakfast altogether."
"Yeah," Leilani said. "Gearing up for a murder probably kills your appetite."
"I'll be with the group at the Loco Moco later tonight for dinner and karaoke," I said. "I'll ask around. Maybe we'll get lucky, and someone will confess."
"It's a bummer I have a class tonight," Leilani said. "Otherwise, I'd be glad to help you interrogate everyone. Plus, you know how much I love the mahi-mahi there."
"Well," Dorothy said as she smiled. "We've narrowed down our suspect list to the six most likely people. That should help."
* * *
The Loco Moco Café was situated off the resort's main lobby. The place was always busy, both from resort guests and as a brisk local take-out business.
I'd arrived a little after five-thirty and made sure we had reserved seating ready on the outside patio. A row of wicker tables was lined up near the small stage they'd set up for karaoke. Everything looked perfect.
Lively music played from overhead speakers, putting me in a great mood. I stood at the railing at the edge of the deck for a few moments, watching the sun as it started to dip toward the horizon of the sapphire blue Pacific.
The light breeze coming up from the beach was pleasantly warm with a soft touch of humidity. I could even smell the delicate fragrance of a nearby plumeria bush.
Even after living here for six months, I still hadn't grown accustomed to the beauty of the place. I doubted I ever would.
I'd been thinking about Jake and again wondered how he was doing. I didn't want to call in case he was still sleeping. Instead, I pulled out my phone and sent him a text: Hey, I hope you're feeling better.
I was a little surprised when I got a text back a few seconds later: Hi, Kristy. Feeling much better. Kai brought over some Thai food. I'm looking forward to our coffee tomorrow morning.
I grinned like a fool, and my heart sped up a notch. Feeling like a giddy teenager, I tried to think about how to answer without looking overeager.
I ended up typing: Glad you're doing better. See you tomorrow. Somehow that didn't seem friendly enough, so I added a smiley face and hit the send button.
* * *
Carly and Justin walked onto the deck a little before six. She was still wearing the white sash with The Bride splashed across it in gold lettering, but tonight it was twisted and hanging at a weird angle.
"Carly, how are you doing?" I asked as I took the liberty to straighten her sash.
She nodded her head and let out a long sigh. "We're alright, but it's been such a crappy day. I'm crossing my fingers that nothing else goes wrong."
"Is Aunt Audrey coming tonight?"
"She's still in the room. That detective came by a few minutes ago and said he wanted to know more about her stolen necklace. She'd already reported it to him on Monday, but he said he wanted to see the room and where she had kept it."
"And the robber took it out of her luggage?"
"I really don't know. My aunt swears she put it in the little jewelry case she uses when she travels. But if it was a burglary, I'd think the thief would have taken the entire box. In addition to the necklace, my aunt brought several other lovely and valuable pieces."
"I'm a little surprised she'd leave something that expensive in the room."
Carly sighed and rolled her eyes. "I know. She didn't trust the room safe, but the hotel also has a safe behind the front desk that she could have used. I told her she should have kept it there, but she wanted to keep it with her."
"I'm so sorry it happened," I said. "I talked with your aunt about the necklace. I know how much it meant to both of you."
She nodded. "I'm sure my aunt has it insured, she's big on things like that, but that's not the point. I have pictures of me wearing that necklace back to when I was a little girl. Of all of my aunt's pieces, it was the one I loved best. I always felt like a princess whenever she'd let me wear it."
* * *
The rest of the wedding party slowly ambled into the restaurant, everyone looking a little worn out. Between the wedding activities and the murder earlier in the day, it was understandable. Several people were also sporting fresh sunburns from afternoons spent on the beach.
Most of the group had dressed casually for dinner, with all the women wearing matching Team Bride sashes. The only person who'd made any kind of effort was Victoria. She'd obviously spent some time with her makeup and long hair.
She wore three shades of blended eye shadow and a shiny fire-engine red lipstick. It would have appeared clownish on anyone else, but it somehow suited her.
Her golden locks flowed halfway down her back in a cascade of big soft curls. She'd also unfastened the next button down on her bright blue aloha shirt to reveal some deep cleavage.
I wasn't sure if she was trying to impress the men or simply wanted to take some of the attention away from Roxanne. Either way, it seemed to be working. I couldn't help but notice the glances the guys were giving her.
Although the sisters had dressed alike again, Short-haired Madeline had gone with more subtle makeup. Her identical aloha shirt was buttoned a little more modestly than her flamboyant twin.
Judging by the looks the sisters were giving each other, whatever was bugging them was still going on. I only hoped it didn't bubble over to the rest of the group.
When Roxanne arrived, she was casually dressed in a black scoop-neck Aloha Lagoon T-shirt, knotted at the waist. Her long red hair was in a ponytail, and she wasn't wearing a lot of makeup.
The change was nice. It gave her a softer and more approachable look.
"Hey," I said as I walked over to her. "How are you doing? I know it's been stressful for everyone."
She snorted out a small laugh and nodded. "Yeah, it's not every day someone you know is murdered."
"You knew Alex all the way back to college?"
"That's right. We were pretty tight. But I guess I was close to everyone in our group back then." She blew out a breath. "Look, I know how Alex acted yesterday, but I think you've probably gotten the wrong idea about him. He wasn't always such a jerk."
"What do you mean?"
"Back in college, Alex was more or less the leader of our group. He was tall, handsome, and had a natural charisma. Everyone figured he'd do well in life."
"That wasn't the case?" I asked.
"Oh geez, no. From what I hear, Alex didn't have two quarters to rub together." She then shook her head and again snorted out a laugh.
"What?"
"Sorry, I was just thinking that it's funny that Derek's turned out to be the successful one."
"Why's that funny?"
"Oh, Derek was never the brightest or the one who studied hardest. Orson and Lauren were always the brains of our group. Derek always struck me as someone who was simply floating through life. You know, the kind of guy who cheated on tests because he couldn't be bothered to study."
I loved that she was opening up with me, so I decided to probe a little bit further. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened yesterday on the beach between you and Alex?"
At that, Roxanne did laugh. "Oh, he was acting like a jerk. He was a little drunk and made a not-so-subtle proposition. I suppose it was my fault. I had been teasing him, a little bit. When I turned him down and reminded him that he probably shouldn't be asking me things like that in front of, um, well everybody, Alex got pissed. He said I'd never been anything more to him than cheap trash. We traded a few insults, and he grabbed me."
"And then he tossed you into the ocean."
"Yeah," she said with a sigh. "I think me turning him down hurt him more than he let on. But I really didn't mean to do anything more than tease him a little. I was kinda buzzed from the drinks on the beach and wasn't thinking. Of course, I feel horrible about it now that he's dead."
I was getting some good background, perhaps not enough to establish an actual motive, but every little bit would help. I prodded her again, hoping to get more information. "Did you keep in contact with Alex after you graduated?"
She shook her head. "We were close for a while, and then I lost track of him. But it's the same with most of the people in our college group. Everyone drifted off in separate directions. This trip was the first time I'd seen Alex in years."
"Did you keep in contact with anyone in the group?"
"Not really. Well, except for Eddy, of course."
"Why Eddy?" I asked, confused.
"Oh, I thought you knew. We were married for a little over two years after we graduated."
"Wow," I said, a little taken aback. "No, I hadn't heard. I assumed you weren't that close from watching you two on the beach yesterday. Can I ask, what happened?"
"No, it's okay," she said with a small laugh as her face turned scarlet. "I guess you could say that sometimes weird things happen to show a relationship isn't meant to be."
I waited for her to go on, but it was clear the subject was making her uncomfortable. She gave me a weak smile and held up her empty Mai Tai cup.
"I think I need a refill," she said. "This seems like a good night for getting drunk in paradise." She then got up to look for Carrie, our waitress, to order another one.
* * *
Once everyone had a drink or three, I pulled out the office digital to take pictures. The sunset was spectacular, with the clouds on the western horizon nearly exploding with iridescent light.
I knew I only had about ten or fifteen minutes before the sunset would start to fade, so I used the glowing clouds and the coconut palms on the beach as the background for thirty or forty pictures on the patio's edge.
After a few test shots, I used a fill-flash to ensure everyone's face was lit correctly. I then took individual pictures of everyone and several small group photos.
Although most of the people were pleasant enough with each other, I could sense that some of the friendliness seemed to be forced. The emotions were particularly noticeable during some of the group shots. It was like they weren't thrilled to be part of the group but were maintaining a happy cover to avoid a scene.
When I lost my sunset background, I noticed a man with a handlebar mustache was sitting alone at a table on the far side of the patio. I wouldn't have thought twice about it, but I recognized him as one of the guests who had commented on Aunt Audrey's necklace during the Aloha reception. As I watched him, he stole three or four quick glances at our group.
As I tried to figure out who he was looking at, I noticed that Gamer Orson was by himself, leaning against a planter on the edge of the deck. He was sipping on his third or fourth Blue Hawaiian as he intently watched the colors fade on the horizon.
"Hi, Orson," I said as I walked up and stood next to him. He was a little glassy-eyed but seemed alert enough. "What did you think about the sunset tonight?"
"The colors were amazing," he said as he took a long sip of his latest cocktail. "The sunlight bouncing off the ocean caused some dramatic god-ray scattering effects through the clouds. I've tried to get that sort of visual intensity into my games for both sunsets and fire effects. But the colors never come across quite as vivid as they do in real life."
"Are you doing okay after everything that's happened today?"
"What?" he looked at me, a little confused. "Do you mean Alex?"
I nodded my head. "I know it's been hard for everyone."
Orson shook his head and looked at me. "Honestly, I hated Alex. I'm just as happy to see him dead."
I was a little shocked at that bit of honesty. "Wow, really? Why? What happened between you two?"
Orson barked out a short laugh. "It was a lot of things. All through college, Alex thought he was hot. He dated whoever he felt like going out with, even if the girl was already dating someone else. He was an academic moron, and he always asked me for help with his homework. It got to the point where I hated even being in the same room as him."
"So why would you still associate with him?"
Orson shrugged and looked uneasy. "I liked hanging out with both Justin and Carly. Alex was Justin's roommate all through school. He'd show up whenever we did anything with Justin, especially if he thought he could get some free food or there'd be women there."
"That must have been frustrating," I said with a shake of my head.
"The thing that sealed it happened a few months after we graduated. I was thrilled that I'd never see Alex again. But then he came over to my house one night, and we ended up getting into a fight."
"You're serious?"
"Yeah, that inbred sociopath hit me in the face. I went to the police and filed a complaint, but it never amounted to anything more than a slap on the wrist for him."
"Why would he do that?"
"Oh, I had my guesses, but maybe he was just an arrogant jerk."
"And you knew he'd be here, in Hawaii?"
"Yeah, I was pretty sure Justin would invite him." Orson took another long sip of his Blue Hawaiian, draining it. "But it'd been almost ten years since I'd seen Alex. I was hoping we could simply ignore each other and be polite, you know, for Justin and Carly's sake."
"Did you happen to mention any of that to Detective Ray when he talked with you?"
"Sure, I told him the entire story. The fight's a public record, so it's not like I can hide it."
"What'd he think of it?"
"Well, he made some notes, but he seems pretty clueless. Honestly, I think he's set on your photographer as the murderer."
"Jake didn't have anything to do with it," I said, feeling frustrated. "I think he interrupted whoever killed Alex and was almost killed himself."
"I don't think he was involved either. I've actually been trying to work out who could have done it."
"And? Who do you think killed him?"
Orson shook his head. "I don't know yet. Pretty much everyone here had some reason to hate Alex. It's going to take a day or two until I can find out who hated him enough to kill him."
"If you get any ideas, would you let me know? I don't want to see Jake arrested, and I especially don't want this to ruin Carly's wedding."
"No," he agreed. "It's been hard enough on her already."