Killer Knots Read Free Page B

for ten, so we’ll meet new people. Do you suppose the waiter will wait until everyone arrives to take our orders?” She glanced around the room, decorated with crystal chandeliers and floor-to-ceiling windows. “Some passengers may choose to eat in the cafe upstairs.”
    “Who knows? Can you pass the butter, please?”
    As Marla complied, some of their other table companions appeared. She was startled to recognize the older couple from the lifeboat drill. Even though the newsletter indicated this evening’s dress code was casual, they’d changed into fancier outfits than they’d worn on deck.
    “I’m Oliver Smernoff, and this is my wife, Irene,” the man said in a baritone voice. He wore a black suit that contrasted sharply with his graying temples. Most of the hair on top of his head had receded, leaving him partly bald, but his even features and tall stature made him attractive for a man in his fifties. His wife wasn’t as young as she’d seemed at a distance, judging from her hands more than her face. The veins stood out on her overly tanned skin, making Marla rub her own hands and wish for lotion.
    Irene attempted to smile, but her stiff facial muscles turned it into a grimace. She wore an elegant blue sheath dress and a necklace that shimmered with diamonds.
    The newest arrivals, on the other hand, boasted a distinct age difference. “Thurston Stark at your service, and this is my wife, Heidi,” the man boomed to Marla and Vail. He was a big guy with a confident smile, hazel eyes, and wheat-brown hair. With his broad shoulders, he might have been a football player in his earlier days. Heidi looked about thirty years younger, a typical blond trophy wife with a vapid expression. She wore a black dress so revealing that if the ship rocked, her boobs would risk tumbling out.
    While Thurston and Oliver exchanged hearty greetings, their wives acknowledged each other with tepid nods. It appeared they already knew one another. Before Marla could inquire as to the nature of their acquaintance, more of their tablemates arrived.
    “We’re out of seats,” Marla noted to Vail in an undertone. “What happened to Brie and your parents?”
    “You’re right.” Half rising, he scanned the dining room. “I don’t see them anywhere.”
    Marla’s stomach sank. “Great, and I figured nothing could go wrong this week.”
    Vail gave a snort of disbelief. “The way you’re a magnet for trouble, sweetcakes, we’ll be lucky to get off this ship alive.”

CHAPTER 2
    We’re missing our companions, Vail said to the restaurant manager, a mustached fellow wearing a tuxedo. “We need to change seats so that we’re at the same table with my parents and daughter.” He gave their names and cabin numbers.
    “I’ll check my charts,” the man said in a foreign accent, “but be aware the ship is fully booked, and any changes had to be made this afternoon upon arrival.”
    “I didn’t realize there would be a problem. We reserved our cruise together. How could we have been separated?”
    “Let me see what I can do, sir.” Flashing a conciliatory grin, the man scampered off.
    Marla touched Vail’s arm. “Maybe we can find where your folks are sitting and ask someone at their table to change places. I don’t understand how this could have happened.”
    Vail scowled. “Neither do I. Hold the fort while I go look for them, will you?”
    After he left, Marla smiled at the strangers surrounding her. “There’s been a mistake,” she explained. “I don’t think we’re supposed to be at this table.”
    Nonetheless, she and Vail were stuck there, according to what he said when he returned. “I found Mom and Dad, but their table is full, and no one wants to move. This is ridiculous.”
    “Another table might free some spaces. Let the maitre d’ work on it.” Their waiter arrived to take orders. “In the meantime, I’m starved.”
    Vail plopped down beside her and picked up his menu. “So am I. What are you