‘Maybe because none of us had a professional grudge against him like you did?’ Astrid says, inspecting her nails to avoid my glare. ‘I mean, you literally argued over everything.’
‘And don’t get me started on the whole wooden block with the huge, dangerous nail sticking out,’ chips in Tiffany.
‘You did kind of bang on about how poorly he was running things. And he certainly didn’t appreciate you threatening to complain to head office about him,’ Shaun feels the need to add, scratching his chin as though he’s been put in charge of solving this potential murder case. ‘I’m not sure you saw eye to eye on anything at all, really.’
Turncoats, the lot of them.
‘We did disagree on a few things.’ I twist my hands together. Everyone is hanging off my every word. ‘But shoddy bookkeeping certainly isn’t enough of a reason to push him off the boat. What if he simply had too much to drink last night, causing him to slip and fall overboard? Wouldn’t that be much more logical? And I know what you’re all thinking.’ I pause for breath. ‘That the chances of being attacked and eaten by a shark in the Aegean are relatively low, even in these deeper waters, compared to global averages, 0.3 per cent, but itisstill possible.’
‘Slipped and fell?’ The captain is repeating. ‘Eaten by sharks?’
They look unconvinced.
‘Yes. I’ve heard that raki can make you temporarily blind and lead to lots of poor decision-making. Maybe he couldn’t see where he was going.’
Silence… and plenty of it.
‘Who? Who says that raki can make you temporarily blind or that it leads to lots of poor decision-making?’ Astrid would like to know. Probably because she frequently overdoes it on the shots and makes some poor decisions herself.
‘Erm, the ladies on the plane. They told me.’
More silence.
‘Which ladies? The LoveIt Holidays cabin crew?’ Jackson asks.
‘No. The lady with the giant baby and the one who was sitting next to me with the erm…’Zip it. Zip it right now.I’m not even sure Icanfinish this sentence, never mindwantto. ‘The erm, torn… you know… her bits.’Her vulva, fallopian tubes and her entire reproductive system in shreds. Absolute shreds.
‘Torn? Did you say torn bits?’ Astrid is aghast.
‘Anyway, the point I’m making is that it seems very likely that Garry was drunk, he slipped, he fell, he was eaten. I had no reason, whatsoever, to harm him. None.’
Emir tugs on my hand and reaches up on tiptoes to whisper loudly in my ear. ‘Tell them about him wanting to throttle you to death when my father gave you all the money instead of him.’
I’m too stunned to reply.
Emir continues his stage whisper. ‘And he kept calling you Clogsy, even though you kept asking him not to.’
Everyone can hear him, and they are now regarding me like some mastermind criminal hellbent on revenge.
Emir says something in Turkish to the police before proudly translating for me. ‘I told them he was not a nice man. And we didn’t like him.’
‘Maddie. Before you dig yourself into an even deeper hole, can I have a word, please?’ Jackson says stiffly. I gulp as I glance down at Emir, still clutching my hand, riveted, his eyes wide with excitement at this thrilling turn of events.
‘Sorry, Emir,’ I say. ‘I think you’ll have to stay with your brother for a while until this is all cleared up.’
He sulks, disappointed. ‘But I like solving problems. Like Scooby Doo.’
‘Exactly. You’re very good at it, aren’t you? Just like you’re good at chess. Why don’t you play a few games, and I’ll come find you later?’
‘That sounds like a very sensible idea,’ says Mehmet as he walks over to us. ‘And if you need an alibi for last night, you just let me know,’ he says, winking at me before turning his Hollywood smile on the group. ‘She was with me,’ he declares loudly. ‘Drinking raki and making poor decisions.’ His booming laughter is inappropriate at best, and I am mortified. Absolutely, unequivocally mortified as he and Emir climb the staircase to the upper deck.What is it with men?
‘He’s talking about the cards! We played card games. Yes, there were poor decisions but absolutely no raki. None.’
To say that Shaun, Astrid and Tiffany successfully stifle their sniggers would be something of an overstatement.
‘A man is missing!’ booms the captain. ‘I suggest you all take this seriously.’
‘I assure you, Captain,’ says Jackson, stepping towards him to swiftly take charge, ‘we will take it very seriously. LoveIt Holidays will ensure the continued safety and cooperation of everyone on board this vessel. We’ll use the dining area as a holding pen while we search all the cabins, and then we’ll interview individuals in their rooms while the rest have lunch.’
