Page 68 of Deadly Waves

“My friend,” Mandy replied. “He killed her to get my attention.”

“How did he kill her?”

“Tabitha, I don’t think this is proper dinner conversation,” Will admonished. “The Hardys are clearly uncomfortable talking about the situation.”

“No, it’s okay,” Mandy countered. “It’s … fine. I was walking outside of the courthouse where I used to work – I was a clerk but have since left my position – and my friend was shot in front of me. This … man … did it because he was delusional. She died right there.”

“That’s freaky,” Tabitha said, shaking her head. “Was it bloody?”

“Okay, that’s enough of that,” James said, shaking his head as he rested his hand on top of Mandy’s. “Your father is right. This isn’t proper dinner conversation. We should focus on something else.”

“That seems like a marvelous idea,” Will said. “Um … have you found anything during your search for Zoe?”

“I guess that depends on how you look at it,” James replied. He was happy to get off the topic of Mandy’s kidnapping and focus on something more immediate. He’d promised to let the guilt go – and he meant it – but that didn’t mean he could simply push all of the memories out of his head at will. That would still take some time. “We’ve been running background checks and I have a few questions.”

“Background checks?” Will’s face was blank. “On who?”

“Your employees.”

“But … why would you do that?” Will asked. “Surely you don’t believe one of the workers had something to do with Zoe’s disappearance? It had to be one of the guests. That’s the only logical conclusion.”

Either Will was being purposely evasive or he was legitimately out of touch with reality. James couldn’t decide which. “We’re not ruling anyone out,” James said, choosing his words carefully. “As for these employees, I was hoping you could answer a few questions to clear them. We’re not trying to railroad anybody.”

“I … well … of course,” Will said, shifting in his chair. “I’m willing to answer anything you wish to ask. You should know that I have full faith in my employees, though. I wouldn’t have hired them otherwise.”

“We’re not making accusations,” James said. “We’re looking for clarification.”

“Okay, well, that seems fair.”

“Let’s start with Jon Peterson.”

“What about him?”

“Did you know that rumors of sexual impropriety have plagued him for years?” James asked, refusing to mince words. “Did you know that he was rumored to have impregnated one student and another girl who named him as a sexual partner went missing and was never heard from again?”

Will balked. “I … um … what?”

“That’s not true,” Tabitha snapped, taking everyone by surprise with her fortitude. “Mr. Peterson is a good man. He was a great teacher. He got railroaded out of the school. That’s why my father hired him.”

James studied the girl’s features for a moment, trying to ascertain if she really believed her teacher was innocent or was simply covering up for something else. “Tabitha, your former teacher had close ties with a missing teenager and a teacher who appears to have fallen off the grid. That’s on top of the other student from five years ago.”

“I’m familiar with that story,” Will said, licking his lips. “My understanding is that the girl named the father of one of her friends when it came to paternity.”

“That is certainly true,” James said. “That man hung himself in prison, but a paternity test was run after his death and he was not the father. She accused him and later recanted. It’s in the depositions.”

“That’s horrible,” Will said, horrified. “That doesn’t mean Jon is guilty, though.”

“No, it’ doesn’t,” James conceded. “There was other testimony buried in those depositions from classmates, though. They said there was a rumor about the girl hooking up with Peterson. She never had another paternity test done after that, though, so we can’t know if he’s the father.”

“Listen, I admire how much work you’ve done on this, but I can’t believe Jon Peterson is a predator,” Will said. “I’ve known him for years. He was a wonderful teacher to Tabitha.”

“That’s right,” Tabitha said, all pretense of being flirty and sweet gone. “All of the girls in the school had a crush on Mr. Peterson and he didn’t show special attention to anyone. If he was a pervert, wouldn’t he have jumped on one of those girls?”

“I have no idea,” James answered. “We don’t know if Peterson had a specific type … or learned his lesson … or ultimately was innocent all along. This isn’t about assigning blame. It’s about getting to the truth.”

“Well, that’s not how it feels to me,” Tabitha said, balling up her napkin and throwing it on top of her uneaten dinner. “Mr. Peterson is a great teacher and he lost his job. I asked Dad to give him one on the ship because I hate what was done to him. You should be ashamed of yourself for accusing him of something so horrible.”

James ran his tongue over his teeth as he regarded the girl. Her chest heaved and her eyes were dark as she stared him down, no hints of the crush she harbored for days remaining in the green flecks of her eyes. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“Well, you did,” Tabitha snapped. “Mr. Peterson is a great man. He’s … just great. He’s not guilty of anything. You need to find someone else to focus on.”

With those words Tabitha spun on her heel and stormed away from the table. Will watched her helplessly as Mandy cast a sidelong look in James’ direction.

“Well, that went well,” Mandy said, reaching for a lobster tail. “Hand me the butter sauce.”