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“No, I didn’t. That woman over there did.” When Aiden pointed, the police officer flicked his gaze to Phoebe. She regained consciousness, and she was leaning against her boyfriend.
“I’ll speak with her afterward.” Officer Shin nodded and turned back to face Aiden.
He pulled out a notebook from his front pocket. It was one of those folding metal clipboards with a pencil attached by a string. He flipped open the cover and poised his pencil to write. “What’s your name?”
“My name is Aiden Filipowski. F-I-L-I-P-O-W-S-K-I.”
Officer Shin nodded and jotted Aiden’s name on the notepad.
“So, what happened here?” He looked at Aiden expectantly, but I jumped into the questioning.
“We were about to get our dive briefing from the lead guide, Thomas Sullivan, but everyone calls him Sully.”
“And you are?” He peered at me through his lashes.
“My name is Claire O’Keefe.” I brushed my hands over my wetsuit in nervousness.
Officer Shin made a small noise as he added my information to his notepad. “Did anyone see or talk with him before his body was found?”
“I spoke with him while we were getting our equipment set up. I guess we all did.” Jeremy’s dad, Alan, volunteered and shrugged his shoulders to indicate that their conversation wasn’t a big deal. It was just the usual pre-diving banter that most people talk about before the dive.
Officer Shin nodded and looked around to see if anyone else had anything to add.
I pressed my lips, and I waited for Annisa to say that she had spoken with Trevor, but she didn’t say anything. Surprised, I turned to look at her, but she wouldn’t meet my gaze.
The officer didn’t notice our exchange, and when no one else spoke up, he snapped his notepad shut and tucked it back into his breast pocket. “Everyone, please stay here until we tell you that you can leave.” Then, he walked over to where his partner was.
I heard people grumbling, but I wasn’t sure if it was because the dive was canceled or that they had to wait around.
“If I have to stick around, I might as well get some more coffee,” Alan said to the group of divers next to him and Jeremy. They mumbled in agreement and walked toward the food truck.
I waited until the other divers and Officer Shin were out of earshot before I turned to Annisa and asked, “Why didn’t you tell the officer that you were talking to Trevor?”
“Wait a minute! What’s this?” Aiden brought one hand up as he heard this new piece of information. He tilted his head to the side, waiting for Annisa’s explanation.
When she didn’t speak up, I gave her a hard look and said, “I overheard Annisa talking to someone, and I think it was our diving guide, Trevor.”
“Is this true, Annisa?” Aiden was polite, but his tone was firm. He stared at her, and I could only imagine what it would be like to come across him in the courtroom.
Annisa chewed her bottom lip but remained silent. She also avoided eye contact with us and started to twirl one end of her braid with her fingers.
I was no psychologist, but she sure was displaying all the characteristics of someone who was guilty.
“Annisa, you have to tell the police what happened!” My raised voice made her flinch. I felt bad, but I was exasperated she wouldn’t admit that she had talked with Trevor before he died. Her evasiveness was puzzling. Trevor was friendly and not to mention easy on the eyes, which made Annisa’s attitude toward the scuba diving guide out of place.
“I don’t want people to think that I killed Trevor because I talked to him alone,” she blurted out. Her normal, poised expression was replaced by a look of alarm.
“Look, no one is saying that you did anything to Trevor, but in order for the police to figure out what happened, they have to have all of the evidence, including your conversation with him.” Aiden emphasized his point by placing his hand on her shoulder and making sure that she was looking at him.
“You need to tell Officer Shin what happened.” I mentioned the younger officer’s name because he seemed more approachable than his partner.
Her eyes darted from Aiden to me, desperately looking for another option. With no obvious alternative, she sighed in resignation and pleaded, “Fine, but will you come with me? I don’t want to go by myself.”
My jaw muscles tensed at her request. I didn’t want to get involved with Annisa because I didn’t trust her, but Julia’s voice popped into my head. “Will you help her?” Wrestling silently, I debated the pros and cons of getting involved. It wasn’t an easy choice, but staying on my best friend’s good side outweighed any hesitation I had about Annisa sabotaging my relationship with Aiden.
I gave the imaginary Julia a silent grunt in defeat. “We’ll go with you,” I said aloud and mumbled under my breath, “You owe me one, Jules.”
“Thanks,” Annisa replied. She batted her lashes at Aiden and smiled flirtatiously, making me doubt my decision to help. She walked toward the bathroom, and Aiden started to follow her, but I grabbed his arm to stop him.
