And he was angry.
“All this you’re doing... You know that something awful just happened. You didn’t even mention your friend! Didn’t warn people to be careful of who they choose to be around because someone in this field is out to hurt others! You shouldn’t go anywhere near Mr. Thompson!” the man was saying angrily.
Well, it was natural, of course. Word of Jane Sewell, who killed five people and then herself, had hit the news everywhere.
Maybe the real oddity was that it hadn’t come up from anyone until now!
“Sir!” Jeff said indignantly. “We were as stunned and horrified as anyone else who might have heard about what happened. But that... that was a tragic event that had nothing to do with us, nothing to do with this cruise. The sad fact is that horrible things happen all the time. Sad, tragic and horrible, but still, that’s not part of our day-to-day lives! For you to assault us—”
“I haven’t touched you!” the man snapped.
The hospital nurse was on her feet, asking the unknown man and Jeff and Celia to please tone it down, to remember that they were in the ship’s hospital and that she was hoping she didn’t need to call security to have them removed.
“I knew it would come up!” Edward said quietly.
“Young woman,” Celia said. “My husband and I were doing nothing but coming to see to the welfare of our good friend Mr. Thompson when this man ran in after us and attacked us!”
Chloe stood, ready to move fast, if necessary, but thankfully Wes and George chose that moment to return.
“What’s going on here?” Wes asked politely as George hurried on past the visitors to enter Edward’s room.
Naturally, since a window covered the upper portion of the hospital room so that a patient could be seen from the nurse’s station, he could still watch what was going on.
“Do you know who that is?” George asked Chloe.
Edward answered quickly. “Celia and Jeff Henderson, two of the computer folks giving the lectures on the ship. And the man...”
“I don’t know him, though I did see him in their class,” Chloe said.
Wes was handling it, defusing the situation. He’d gotten the man to introduce himself; he was Howard Markowitz, an executive with a clothing chain, and while he had wanted to learn more about promotion from them, he had the ship’s Wi-Fi package and had just seen another article on how all the people killed in Broward County had been in the tech industry.
“And I realized, that’s what we all are!” Markowitz said.
“Sir, I can see your concern, but to suddenly attack these people for giving classes to those who want to go... Well, please. Strange and horrible things do happen every day and I’m afraid you can’t go around accosting the people on this ship who happen to be in the same business,” Wes said gently. “You being troubled is natural, sir, but everyone here was horribly upset by what happened.”
Markowitz was a man of about forty; tall, with brown hair and a neatly trimmed beard and mustache. Chloe could imagine that in a suit he made an impressive-looking businessman.
“My wife is on this cruise with me! I just...” He paused and let out a long breath. “I’m sorry. I just... I’m leaving now. No need to call the ship’s security.”
He turned and left the waiting room.
Celia turned to Wes.
“Boy, you are a lifesaver!” she said. “In many ways.”
“Well, naturally,” Wes murmured to Jeff, his tone a little sheepish. “My wife and I have grown fond of Edward, and...”
Jeff laughed. “Oh, so it was cool that he attacked us, just not in front of Edward?”
“No, no, it’s just why we were down here, to see him,” Wes explained. “And it’s true, of course. I mean, pretty much anyone with a phone saw the news about that poor woman who allegedly killed all those people... So very tragic and sad, but she took her own life, as well...”
“We all knew Jane,” Jeff said. “And she was lovely. It’s heartbreaking what happened, but we understood that she was... well, heartbroken herself. And maybe she felt that the world was taking away her chance to be really loved or... I don’t know. None of us understands what goes on in the hearts and minds of others, right?”
“Too true,” Wes told him. “Anyway...”
“Anyway! Onward! We’re going to step in to see Edward! No classes tomorrow—we’re in Jamaica!” Celia said.
“Absolutely. Jamaica!” Wes agreed.
