Gina Cresse - Devonie Lace 04 - A Deadly Change of Power Read Online Free PDF Page B

you mention it, he didn’t blink an eye.  I’m just so used to the guys at the track coming to me for engine advice, it didn’t occur to me that he should be any different.”
    Sam thought about her response for a moment, then made a note in his tablet.
    “So the engine quit and you went below to check it out.  Did Charlie go with you?” Sam asked.
    “Yeah.  He showed me where the engine was, then left to find the toolbox.  I waited a few minutes, then I heard another boat come alongside.  I figured it was a sailor checking to see if we needed help.  I waited a couple more minutes, then I heard the boat take off.  I thought Charlie must have had a lot of confidence in me to send away a potential rescuer.  Anyhow, I kept waiting, but no Charlie.”
    “You didn’t go look for him?” Sam asked.
    “I tried to, but the door was locked.  I shouted and banged on the door, but he never came back.  I hunted around for a key.  That’s when I found the bomb attached to the fuel line.  It looked like a big blob of Silly Putty with wires stuck in it.  I took a closer look, then realized I was in big trouble.  There was a timer dangling from one of the wires — like the ones we use at the track — counting down from four minutes.”
    My jaw dropped.  “My God.  What did you do?” I asked.
    Sam set his pencil down and raised his flattened hands in a mock karate stance.  “She probably busted the door down with a karate chop,” he said, smirking at me.
    Ronnie kept a straight face.  “Actually, I found a small screwdriver and removed the hinges,” she explained.
    I leered back at Sam.  Here was a woman who could think on her feet in the face danger, and he was making stupid jokes about karate chops.  He seemed a little embarrassed when he lowered his hands and picked up his pencil.
    “Then what happened?” he asked.
    “I climbed the steps as fast as I could and got to the deck.  The bomb must have gone off just as I jumped overboard.  The next think I remember clearly is waking up in the hospital.”
    I watched Sam write in his notebook.  “Now, wouldn’t it help to know who told Ronnie the wrong time for when the boat was leaving?  It sounds to me like she was set up,” I said.
    Sam glared and pointed a finger at me.  “Don’t even think about getting involved in this investigation.  Don’t you have some other business to take care of?  Oh yeah, a new husband.  Why don’t you go bother him for a while.”
    Craig’s timing couldn’t have been better.  He pushed through the front door and hurried into the living room.  “Sam, I’m glad you’re still here.  I just ran down to the hospital this morning to get the scoop on Ronnie’s admittance.  Bruce was working the ER that night, so he filled me in.”
    Craig plopped down next to me, patted the puppy on the head, and glanced at each of us.  Then his eyes landed on Sam’s harsh glare.  “What’s wrong?” Craig asked, oblivious to Sam’s frustration with me and my interference with his questioning.
    Sam shook his head.  “Now I’ve got two of you,” he complained.
    “Two of who?” Craig asked.
    Sam dropped h is shoulders in defeat.  “Never mind .  What did you find out?”
    “Well, a couple fishermen found Ronnie hanging on to an ice chest floating about ten miles off shore.  There was a bunch of debris floating around and it looked to them like some sort of explosion destroyed a boat.  They fished her out of the water, but couldn’t find any other survivors.  They radioed ahead and an ambulance met them at the dock.  She was admitted Wednesday night, around nine o’clock.”
    While Sam was busy writing, I asked my question again.  “So who told you when and where to meet the boat?”
    “Lance told me.  The plan was to spend about a week, heading south to do some fishing and sight seeing.  Then we’d fly back home from Cabo.”
    “No one called to change the plans?  No messages?” Sam