Page 72 of Fire and Ice Cruise

“You sound like you’re in the know,” I tell her. “I’m guessing you’ve attended a few?”

“I float through most things on this ship. It keeps me entertained.” She examines her ghostly nails, perfectly manicured, naturally. “Though I must say, watching that woman talk about finding your authentic self while clearly Botoxed to within an inch of her life was quite amusing.”

I almost laugh. “You’re terrible.”

“I’m dead. There’s a difference.”

She leans against the railing beside me, her translucent form flickering slightly in the wind that doesn’t touch her.

“You wanted to talk to me about Gideon.”

It’s not a question.

“I want to understand him,” I say carefully. “Why he was the way he was. Why he enjoyed hurting people.”

Celeste’s expression softens. Just slightly, and just enough to show something real underneath the flirtation and sass.

“He wasn’t always cruel, you know. When we were young, he was brilliant. Funny. He saw things other people missed. He made connections to things that no one else could see.”

“What changed?”

“He realized people’s secrets had value.” She stares out at the water as her voice grows distant. “And he also learned that fear was the best currency. He learned he could make people do anything. Pay anything. Promise anything. If he threatened to expose what they wanted hidden.”

I nod. “And he enjoyed it.”

“Oh, he loved it.” There’s no judgment in her voice. Just acceptance. “The power. The control. Watching people scramble and beg. It was like a drug for him. The bigger the secret, the more important the person, the more he savored it.”

The wind picks up, sending my hair across my face. I push it back.

“That’s awful.”

“That’s Gideon.” Celeste turns to look at me, and there’s something achingly sad in her eyes. “But I loved him anyway. Even when he became the worst version of himself. Even when he hurt people for sport. And I can’t wait to be with him again.”

She sighs, long and wistful, and for a moment the pink sparkles dim and she looks exactly like what she is—a woman who lost everything on a rainy night thirty-two years ago.

“We can send you to him right now,” I say, afraid to pull us out of this moment. “Just tell me the name of the killer.”

Celeste’s attention snags on something over my shoulder. Her whole demeanor shifts as the sadness vanishes and is quickly replaced by predatory interest.

A man walks past us, heading toward one of the hot tubs. Mid-forties, impressively muscled, wearing swim trunks and confidence in equal measure.

“Oh my,” Celeste purrs. “Now that is promising.”

“Celeste—”

“I’ll tell you who killed my Gideon,” she says, already drifting after the buff stranger. “Right after I have a little fun with this one.”

She disappears in a shower of sparkles, leaving me alone with the ocean, the wind, and the growing certainty that solving this murder would be significantly easier if my primary witness wasn’t a ghost with a one-track mind.

CHAPTER 24

Suddenly Hitched—What a Trip!

Hello, Trixie!

Final update from Exhausted and Kissed—I’m now officially Exhausted but HOPEFUL!

The cruise ended yesterday, and I gave Sean my number. We stood at the gangway saying goodbye for twenty minutes like teenagers, and yes, there may have been more kissing involved. He’s coming to my city for work in three weeks, and we’ve already made plans for dinner. I’m terrified and excited and feel like I’m fifty going on fifteen, but in the best possible way.