Dreamboat (28 page)

Mina threw her hand over her mouth and gasped, while Monika's eyes opened wide with alarm.

Rudy's face curdled into an expression of disgust. “That's horrible.”

“Then the telephone rang,” Crissy continued, “and it was the breather again.”

Mina gasped and banged her hand on the table, rattling china and crystal. “You must get Security on this.”

“I have,” Crissy replied.

“What do they say?” Rudy asked.

“They're working on it,” Crissy said, “but they've asked me not to discuss their plans with anyone.”

The waiter appeared and took their orders, during which time there was no talk of what had happened.

“You must've been scared to death,” Mina said when the waiter left.

“I was,” Crissy admitted, “but I think they'll take care of it.”

“I still say you've been teasing some guy and made him crazy enough to do it,” Jenny said.

“That's absurd, and you know it,” Crissy said.

“Don't you think that women so often ask for trouble of that sort?” Monika said to no one in particular.

“If you're talking about me,” Crissy said angrily, “the answer is no.”

The waiter appeared again and began serving dinner. With Mina's help, Rudy steered the dinner conversation over less serious topics.

Later, Crissy excused herself and left without any further explanation. They would assume that she was going to see Luca, but she wasn't going to offer them any information she didn't have to.

She went down to the cabin and called the hospital.

“Hello,” Voula answered.

“It's Crissy Fitzgerald,” she said. “Could I speak to Luca, please?”

“Of course,” Voula said. “Just one minute.”

Crissy was put on hold for quite some time, but Luca finally picked up. “Hi,” he said. “Sorry to take so long, but it couldn't be helped.”

“How's it going?” she asked.

“Okay,” he said. “It could be worse. It looks like I'll be free with
scheduled appointments somewhere around midnight. Something could come up after that. You never know, but why don't you come down here around then? Or why not meet in the disco? You won't have to sit around in the cabin waiting, and maybe we can have a couple of dances. Is that all right with you?”

“All right? I can hardly wait,” she said.

Luca laughed. “Neither can I,” he said. “Now I have to run.”

Crissy hung up the telephone and sat smiling at her reflection in the mirror above the desk area.
I am the luckiest woman in the world,
she thought. She decided to change into a dressier outfit for the disco, but she took her time. If she got there early, she could sit with her dinner partners. The music and dancing would make conversation difficult, with much less argument, and besides, Mina and Rudy would be there to help diffuse matters. When she was finally ready, she carefully climbed the stairs to the top deck, wondering what it would be like on the dance floor tonight, considering the terrible pitching and rolling of the ship.

Going into the disco, Mina spotted her and waved from the table they usually occupied. There wasn't a crowd to worm her way through, because of the storm, she supposed. She took a seat next to Mina, who was alone at the table.

Mina gave her an air kiss. “I'm so glad you made it,” she said. “Rudy is dancing with Monika, and Jenny and Dr. Von Meckling are dancing, too.” She laughed. “So here we are, like two old maids.”

There was a light tap on Crissy's shoulder. “May I have this dance?”

It was Valentin.

“Sure,” Crissy said. She turned to Mina and winked. “One old maid now.”

Valentin led her the short distance to the dance floor and took her into his arms for a slow number. “I'm so glad to see you, Crissy.”

“It's nice to see you, too, Valentin.”

“You haven't been here for awhile,” he said. “What have you been doing?”

“Oh, this and that,” she said, smiling up at him.

“We've missed you,” he said. “
I've
missed you.”

“That's sweet of you to say, Valentin,” she said, “but you're always busy dancing with someone, so I don't see how you could have missed me.” She didn't want to tell him that she knew he was paid by the cruise
line to dance with the ladies. Why not let him play his little game of being interested in her?

“Yes, I'm always dancing,” he replied, “but the others aren't like you.”

Crissy laughed lightly. “How's that, Valentin?”

“You are beautiful,” he said, “and you have nice manners.”

“Thank you,” Crissy said, “but I think you've told me this before.” She couldn't take anything he said seriously, but she had to admit that it was nice to hear such compliments.

“That's because I mean what I say,” he replied, “but you still don't take me seriously.” He pulled her closer to him, and Crissy felt uncomfortable. His strength was formidable, and she was much more aware of the contours of his body and the heat that emanated from him.

The music changed to a fast number. “I'd better sit this one out,” Crissy said. “I have to talk to my friends.”

Valentin looked momentarily disappointed, but he led her back to her seat, then immediately disappeared as usual.

Mina was still sitting alone, smoking a cigarette and taking tiny sips of her wine. “How was it?” she asked.

“He's a very good dancer, but I wish he would quit acting like he's interested in me,” Crissy said.

“He seems very interested in you,” Mina said.

“And nearly every other woman in the place,” Crissy said with a laugh.

“How are things going with your doctor, if you don't mind me asking?”

“I don't mind
you
asking,” Crissy said. “It's the others I'd rather not discuss it with.”

“Listen, darling,” Mina said, “they're just jealous. That's all there is to it. You mustn't pay any attention to them.”

“I try not to, but it's not easy. Especially when they say nasty things about Luca.”

Monika and Rudy returned to the table, so they quickly changed the subject. “Valentin seems like a harmless sort,” Mina said.

“Oh, I think so,” Crissy agreed.

“Don't tell me that you two are discussing that wretched Bulgarian,” Monika said.

“Yes,” Mina said. “He's already asked Crissy to dance with him. She thinks he's pretending to be interested in her.”

“No doubt,” Monika said. She looked around. “Jenny and Dr. Von Meckling haven't returned?”

“No,” Mina said. “They'll be along soon, I think. They've danced nearly every dance—a miracle, considering the way the dance floor moves under your feet.”

“Such a happy pair,” Monika said, “and so appropriate, don't you think?” She focused her shrewd eyes on Crissy.

“Appropriate?” Crissy repeated. “I really don't know, Monika,” she said. “I don't see anything wrong with it, but I didn't picture Jenny marrying a man old enough to be her grandfather. She always seemed to like them young and . . . energetic.”

“How naive of you,” Monika said. “But I shouldn't have expected more from you. Appropriateness has nothing to do with age, Crissy. Besides, youth and energy, as you put it, are soon gone. Wasted, usually.”

Jenny and Dr. Von Meckling reached the table at that moment. “Hi,” Jenny said, waving a hand in a circle. “We've danced every dance so far. Between trying to stay on my feet and Ludwig, I'm exhausted.”

Ludwig? So they were on a first-name basis? Something Crissy gathered took a very long time to achieve among Europeans as opposed to Americans.

“She is a wonderful dancer,” the old doctor said as he took a seat.

“You looked perfect together,” Monika enthused.

Jenny gazed across the table at Crissy. “So you're here alone?”

Crissy nodded.

“Where's that quack that calls himself a doctor?” Jenny asked.

Crissy felt her blood boil, and before she could think, she spat back, “Why must you demean him? Did he refuse your advances or something?”

Jenny turned crimson.

“That's it, isn't it?” Crissy went on. “You tried to get him into bed, and when he wasn't interested, you turned on him.”

Jenny picked up her wineglass and threw its contents across the table at Crissy. “You bitch,” she snarled.

Wine hit Crissy's face with a splash and rolled down onto the bodice of her dress. She grabbed cocktail napkins and started slowly wiping the wine away, as Mina and Rudy quickly gathered up more and handed them to her.

Mina dipped a napkin into a glass of water and began wiping at the
bodice of Crissy's dress. “There,” she said after a few moments. “It's going to be all right.”

Monika wore a tight, smug smile when she turned to Crissy. “My dear,” she said, “I think I would watch my tongue if I were you. One doesn't make such outrageous accusations in public and expect to suffer no consequences.”

“I don't need your advice, Monika,” Crissy said. She knew she had already gone too far to return to that place where she had been a dutiful, uncomplaining, submissive companion who would put up with anything, no matter how demoralizing. “You're the same kind of backstabbing ‘friend' that Jenny is, and I think I'd be a lot better off without knowing either one of you.”

“What an ungrateful little hellion you are,” Monika said. “Spiteful, willful, and
common.
”

“Maybe I am,” Crissy said, “but if you're an example of what's highborn, then spare me. You both make me sick.”

Jenny stood up abruptly. “I'm going down to our cabin,” she said, “and I'm getting an attendant to help me move my things right now.”

“You're welcome to use my cabin,” Monika said. “I have a suite, and there are two beds, my darling, as well as the sofa bed.”

“Thank you, Monika,” Jenny said. “That's what I'll do if you mean it, otherwise . . . I think Ludwig would let me camp out there.”

“It might be much more appropriate if you camped out with me for the time being,” Monika said, giving Jenny a significant glance. She knew that Dr. Von Meckling would want to keep up appearances, and having Jenny there for meals or sleepovers was one thing, but moving her in was another.

“Good,” Jenny said. “Could I have your key card?”

“Certainly, my darling,” Monika said. She fished in her enormous gold leather handbag and extracted the card. “Here it is. Let yourself in and use whatever space you need.”

“Thank you,” Jenny said. She leaned down and whispered into Dr. Von Meckling's ear, gave him a pat, then stood up, glared at Crissy, and swept out of the disco, grasping at chairs, tables, and support beams to maintain her balance.

“Would you like to dance, Crissy?” Rudy asked.

God bless him,
she thought. “I'd love to, Rudy,” she said.

He took her to the dance floor, and began moving to the slow tempo
of the music. “You mustn't let them upset you,” he said. “They're both well-heeled, smart, attractive, sophisticated women.” Then he added, “And monsters who will chew you up and spit you out.”

He and Crissy both laughed. “I just wish I hadn't lost my temper,” she said, “and especially here in a public place.”

“If I were you, I wouldn't give it a second thought,” Rudy said. “They've been taunting you for days because they're jealous that the handsome doctor is after you.”

“It's so hard to escape it,” Crissy said. “I can't just jump overboard.”

“A definite disadvantage to a cruise,” Rudy agreed.

After the dance, they returned to the table, and Crissy looked at her wristwatch. It was almost midnight, so Luca should be here soon. She sat down next to Mina, avoiding Monika's glances, trying to appear as if all was normal. She glimpsed the captain and his party arriving, but she couldn't tell if Luca was with them or not. They had gone toward the back—a swath of white moving across the disco—and she didn't get a good look.

She felt a tap on her shoulder, and there stood Luca, smiling. “Hello,” he said.

“Hello,” Crissy said, barely able to keep from rising into his arms.

“Care to dance?” Luca asked with feigned formality.

“Why, thank you, Doctor,” she replied.

They danced for a long time, slow and fast dances, unable to contain the joy they felt at being together. Finally, he led her by her table to pick up her purse.

Monika looked up at them, her fan moving rapidly at her bosom. “Are you off?”

“Maybe,” Crissy said noncommitally. “Good night, if I don't see you later.”

Monika nodded slightly.

As they headed out, Luca said to her, “So, I think it must be time for your appointment.”

She clutched his arm a little harder. “I think you'll find I'm a very compliant patient.”

The man entered Mark's cabin as easily as always, closing the door quietly behind him. Mark had left lights on as usual, and he saw the trunk where it always was. As he approached it, he heard the distinct sound of a key card being slipped in the door behind him.

Jesus Christ!
he thought. He practically flew across the room to the balcony door, slid it open, and slipped out onto the balcony, hunching down to the side of the door to make himself as invisible as possible.

As he watched, Mark tossed his key card onto a table, shrugged out of a sports jacket that he tossed on a chair, then made himself a drink.

Fuck!
the man thought.
I could be here all night at this rate, waiting for him to go back out or go to bed. That crazy old man of his. It's his fault, wanting another check on the goddamn explosives.
He'd told him that he would get them out of the trunk tonight and take them down to his own cabin. It would soon be time to use them anyway. He had wanted to wait until the last minute because he was subject to searches, should there be any reason to conduct one. Not only that, but he had less privacy in his cabin and little in the way of a secure hiding place.