Burned

11

“Y ou take me to the safest places,” Regan teased Kit as they headed back to their room.

“Leave it to me,” Kit muttered. “But it is a little scary to think that there could be someone at the hotel who murdered Dorinda Dawes.”

“Let’s take a quick walk on the beach,” Regan suggested.

“I thought you were tired.”

“I am. But now my mind is focusing on this case. I want to see what it’s like out here at night.”

They walked past the Grand Pool where a hula show was performed every few nights and stepped out onto the sand. The Pacific Ocean lay before them. The waves lapped gently at the shore. Palm trees swayed softly in the breeze. The moonlight reflected on the water, and the lights from the Waikiki Waters and hotels down the strip made for a beach that was not too dark at all.

Kit followed Regan out to the water’s edge. Regan kicked off her sandals and walked into the water until it covered her ankles. She then turned left and started walking, staying close to the shore. Kit did the same. The beach curved around, and they hit a dark cove that couldn’t be seen from the hotel. Just beyond it was the jetty that Regan figured must have been where Dorinda would stop and sit on her way home.

A couple was sitting there on the rocks in the cove, kissing. They pulled away from each other when they felt the presence of Regan and Kit.

Kit watched in amazement as Regan said, “Excuse me. Could I have a word with you?’

“I just proposed to my girlfriend on a moonlit beach, and you gotta interrupt?” the guy asked Regan incredulously.

“I guess you weren’t here last night then?” Regan prodded.

“It was too cloudy last night. I always wanted it to be a moonlit night, so I waited. Tonight there’s moonlight, so I proposed.”

“I assume she said yes,” Regan quipped.

“I did,” the girl cried happily. She held out her hand to Regan and displayed a diamond ring.

Regan stepped toward them and leaned down. “It’s beautiful,” Regan said sincerely. “I just got engaged, too.”

“Let me see your ring,” the girl enthused.

Regan held out her left hand.

“Wow! Yours is gorgeous, too!”

“Thanks.”

“Where did your boyfriend propose?” the guy asked. He seemed to be thawing.

“In a hot air balloon.”

“That must have been real special,” the girl cried. “A hot air balloon!”

The guy frowned. “I should have thought of that.”

“No, sweetie. A moonlit beach is perfect.” She leaned in for a little kiss. He gave her two.

“Were you by chance out here at all last night?” Regan asked.

“No. I walked out to see if the setting was right to get engaged, but it was too cloudy. So we went dancing.”

“What time was that?”

“Just after ten.”

“Did you notice if there were many people on the beach?”

“I didn’t see too many people. People wander out from the pool area sometimes, but the pool closes at ten. The outdoor bar is open late. We had drinks there the other night and saw a few people stroll out to the beach and take a quick look at the ocean before they went to bed. But most of them are on the beach all day, so they’ve seen enough. You know what I mean?”

“You didn’t see anyone swimming?”

He shook his head. “No. You’d be crazy to swim at night. There are riptides and strong currents around here. You get sucked under, and nobody’s around to help. We stuck our feet in here and felt the swirling.”

“We did, too,” Regan told him.

“You trying to figure out how that lady drowned?”

Before Regan could answer, he continued, “I find that a lot of people take a walk on the beach at night when they’re very upset.”

“Jason!” the girl protested.

“It’s true, Carla.” He turned to Regan. “I woke up at three in the morning last night, and she’s gone. I was a wreck. Where is she? I got dressed, and she walks in the door. She told me she couldn’t sleep and went for a walk on the beach. At three in the morning! I said it would have been nice to leave me a note. Now she tells me she was upset because she was sure I was going to propose last night and didn’t. It was our a

Ten years, Regan thought. I’m glad Jack didn’t take that long.

“She transferred to my school in the middle of the seventh grade.”

“My father’s job required a lot of moves,” Carla explained. “But I didn’t walk far on the beach. It felt a little scary. I figured if he was never going to propose, then so be it. There are other fish in the sea.”

“Thanks a lot, honey.”

She hit his arm playfully. “You know what I mean.”

“Did you see anyone out here at that hour?” Regan asked.

“Not a soul! That’s why it was scary. I ended up ru

Her fiancé pulled her close. “Don’t leave me like that again.”

“I won’t.” They started to kiss again.

“We’ll leave you two alone,” Regan said quickly. “But if you recall seeing anything even a little bit odd last night, could you let me know? Anything at all, even if it seems insignificant, might be important. The hotel just wants to ensure the safety of the guests. You can never be too careful.” She gave them her name, room number, and cell phone number.

“Sure,” the girl said. “I can’t think of anything now. I’m kind of too excited. But if I think of something, I’ll give you a call. My name is Carla. We’re in the Coconut Tower.”

“Thanks, Carla.”

Regan and Kit walked back to their room. Kit flopped on her bed. “You’re amazing. Only you could interrupt a couple in a clinch who just got engaged and end up being their pal.”

“I don’t know whether I’m their pal or not,” Regan replied, “but if they call me with anything that might help explain what happened to Dorinda Dawes, then they’ll be my pals. And something tells me that when the excitement of their engagement dies down just a little, she’ll want to talk. Believe me, I’ll be hearing from her.”

12

N ed and Artie were in their room. It was decent-sized but small for two adults, particularly two adults who didn’t want to spend much time together during the day, never mind those vulnerable hours at night. Artie liked to play tapes of his mystical healing as he drifted off to sleep, which drove Ned crazy. Ned always had the television turned to the sports cha

Roommates.com would never have paired them up, but the twins had snapped up the opportunity to save money, so Artie was stuck. He couldn’t complain too much since the trip was free, and as Gert and Ev pointed out, everyone shared a room and you should only be in the room to sleep when you’re in a beautiful place like Hawaii.

Ned loved his job at the Waikiki Waters. Because they’d given him a room, he was on call almost all the time, but he didn’t mind. His personality was such that he needed to be on the go continually. His colleagues thought he was intense. Some called him crazed.

It was now midnight, and Ned was doing a set of one hundred sit-ups. Artie was in bed, with his earphones plugged into his CD player. The light was on. Artie had his eyes shut tight, with the sheet over his head. Finally he pulled the earphones out of his ears.

“Ned, could we please turn out the light? I need my rest.”

“I’ve got to finish my sit-ups,” Ned said, breathing heavily.

“I thought it wasn’t good to exercise right before you went to bed,” Artie whined.

“It relaxes me.”

“Last night you took a swim in the pool. Why don’t you do that again?”

“Why don’t you take a walk on the beach, Artie? You’ve been doing that every night. But you didn’t tonight. Something tells me you need it.”

“I like to think things through at the end of the day when I walk on the beach, but tonight I’m tired.”