Chapter 5

Suddenly Single—What a Trip!

Trip Tip: Create a cruise-themed scavenger hunt with your travel buddies, searching for hidden gems and fun sights around the ship. You can even provide your own prizes! A gift card to the ship's mall could bring out the competitiveness in just about anyone.

Roger Maxwell'sbeard looks that much more scraggly—albeit not a garden snake in sight—and he's donned an eye patch and a gold scarf to complete his torn and tattered look as he addresses the masses here on the promenade deck. "I want to welcome each and every one of you to buccaneer days aboard this shiny ship that we've commandeered for our own shenanigans and tomfoolery."

Another hoot of approval circles the crowd.

"Avast, me hearties, listen well, for the days ahead be full of fun! We've charted a course through treacherous seas, where laughter and adventure blow through the breeze. From the crow's nest to the galley, we've planned events where ye can show your true pirate spirit, bold and free, with contests of skill on the deep blue sea!" Another cheer breaks out. "Feast your eyes on the roster grand"—he holds up the ship's newsletter, the Seabreeze. "A pirate's feast on the moonlit sand, a sing-along of shanties of old, and tales of treasure, brave and bold. You can test your mettle in a sword fight fair, or join the costume bash if ye dare!"

More hoots and hollers break out as the passengers howl into the sky.

"But that's not all," Roger continues. "Oh no, for the best is yet to come, you know. A treasure hunt, a quest so fine, with prizes and gold that could be thine. Jolly Roger Spirits, generous and kind, has buried treasures for ye to find—right here on the ship!"

A gasp of delight circles the crowd just as a raucous applause breaks out.

"Here's your first clue, so listen tight," he calls out. "Where the moon meets the water on this fine night, seek the spot where the X does mark, the beginning of your quest—the start of your lark."

The crowd settles as they wait with bated breath for more.

"In other words, the staff of this here grand ship will be passing out instructions or you can download them from the online version of the ship's newsletter, the Seabreeze," he continues. "So grab your maps, ye buccaneers bold, and seek the treasures better than gold.

"May the winds be fair and the seas be kind, as you embark on the adventure you're destined to find! In layman's terms, there's a stack of maps situated next to every bar on the ship. And even better than that? Every bar on the ship has been generously stocked with libations provided by Jolly Roger Spirts.

"We've got Crosshair's Concoction, Buccaneer's Bliss, Rumrunner's Rapture, Sunset Cay Cocktails, Pirate's Potion, Jolly Roger Juice, Skull and Crossbones Spirits, Mariner's Mirage, Siren's Spirit, Pleasure Trove Tonic, and every other bottle of brouhaha they let me smuggle aboard courtesy of Mr. X. And you know Mr. X only brings the good stuff—and the very good stuff only the elect few can get their hands on. Play your cards right and he just might make all of your dreams come true—just like he did my own. That is, if he doesn't kill me first!"

The crowd erupts into another round of laughter and cheers as Roger jumps down from the table and nearly topples over from the effort.

His girlfriend Connie is right there to steady him and quickly hands him a blue glass of something guaranteed to make him stumble for the rest of the night as well.

The music goes up another notch as does the merriment as the ship's staff passes out pamphlets with the instructions for the onboard treasure hunt.

"Hear that?" Nettie elbows Bess. "They've got a cocktail called the Siren's Spirit. And seeing that I'm a siren myself, I'd best go wet my whistle and see if I approve of this concoction." She takes off for one of the many bars currently congested with guests this evening.

"Wait for me," Bess calls out before turning my way. "I'd better make sure that siren's spirit doesn't dislodge from her body. She's not built for speed when it comes to hard liquor." She takes a step then backtracks. "And if I were you, I'd stay stone-cold sober when you tell Ransom the truth. But after I spilled the supernatural secret, I'd most likely down a bottle."

She takes off and I nod to myself because she's probably right. Although too bad for me, I'm not a drinker by nature, so I'll be stone-cold sober right up until the bitter end.

A crew member hands me a treasure map and I quickly scan over it.

Golden Galleon's Quest Hosted by Jolly Roger Spirits

Ahoy, mateys and marauders of the Emerald Queen!

The spirit of adventure beckons you to embark upon the Golden Galleon's Quest, a treasure hunt like no other. Are you savvy enough to claim the bounty?

Rules of the Quest:

Form Your Crew: Teams of three to six buccaneers are allowed. Solo pirates will be assigned to a crew.

The Map: Pieces of the map are scattered across the ship. The first clue to the whereabouts of your initial map piece is: Where the mermaids sing, near the heart of the ship, your journey begins.

Clues and Riddles: Each piece of the map will lead you to another through riddles and challenges. Some will require wit, others bravery. All will test your pirate spirit.

The Final Clue: Once all pieces of the map are collected, present them to the Captain's Council for the final clue.

X Marks the Spot: Solve the final riddle, and the treasure is yours to claim. But beware, the seas are treacherous, and others seek what you seek.

The Prize: A chest filled with gold doubloons (in the form of a generous ship credit), exclusive Jolly Roger Spirits, treats, and candy for the tots and those with a sweet tooth, and a mystery prize that promises to bring adventure to your very doorsteps long after our journey ends.

The quest begins tonight, under the cloak of darkness—let the stars guide you to your first clue.

May the trade winds be ever in your favor. Remember, trust no one, for in the quest for treasure, a pirate's greed knows no bounds.

I shake my head as I finish it up.

Cute. I might just play along with Bess and Nettie. I'm all for discovering any and every sweet treat possible.

A scream goes off to the right, followed by the sound of two women going at it.

"I said take your hands off my man," Connie, the spirited redhead, shouts. She's still snug in that gold tube sock of a dress, the knee-high boots are still laced up to her thighs, but by the look of the treasure chest's worth of jewels she's wearing, she's added a few extra baubles to her ensemble just for the welcome party. "You don't get to look sideways at my honey. You got it?" she snips at the brunette before her just as the brunette gives a frenetic nod and takes off with her faux sword between her legs.

Honestly, there have been more than a few women who I've wanted to say those exact same words to when it comes to Ransom. But then, who am I to stop the ardent worship of a deity roaming among us?

Roger steps over to Connie and she swats him three times hard over the chest before the two of them go at it. And just when things look as if they're about to take a turn for the violent, a dark-haired man steps in and breaks it up. In fact, I recognize him from the gangway, too. I believe he was the one having that conspiratorial conversation with Elsie before we left. He is a looker, I'll give him that.

Connie gets one last swat in on Roger and the pirate in question barks right at her.

I'm guessing Roger isn't taking too kindly to the fact Connie all but peed a circle around him.

You'd think his ego would be flattered, but then, some men are impossible to please. Although, the screaming and the vigor of the verbal attack were a little much. But with the hard liquor flowing freely, that will hardly be the first verbal confrontation of the evening. I'm no expert, but I bet things are about to get physical this evening, too.

Speaking of getting physical, where is Ransom? I've yet to properly thank him for my flowers—or drop a bomb the size of a black hole that threatens to swallow our relationship in one greedy bite.

A part of me wishes I never promised him any such thing, but well, the last trip just so happened to have a rather cranky poltergeist on board. And while I was grilling that ghost for details in the ship's library about his connection to the homicide case that was still active at the time, he sort of went into a tizzy and created a ten-foot tall and ten-foot wide Kraken complete with eight giant tentacles by way of every book in that room. Security cameras caught it all on tape and Ransom wanted answers on how that literary sculpture came to be while I seemingly looked on.

I was caught red-handed. And even though the truth is the only way out of this Kraken-shaped pickle, the fact there is still plenty of ways for this conversation to go sideways is not lost on me.

The night wears on. The stars are shining up above like diamonds twinkling just out of reach as the revelers grow that much more boisterous.

There's no sign of Ransom. I may as well go help Bess try to stop Nettie from selling herself to the lowest bidder looking to purchase a wench for the night.

I make my way through a tangle of flesh, rubbing, touching, and squeezing far too many humans for my liking as I struggle to make my way toward the middle of the deck and my feet just keep moving until I step back inside the ship, away from the hustle and bustle of bodies. I close my eyes as the noise dissipates into the distance and savor the serenity for one stolen moment.

A pair of strong arms wrap themselves around me and the scent of a familiar spiced cologne envelops me at the very same time—my favorite spiced cologne, might I add.

"Hello, beautiful," Ransom says and lands a kiss to my lips before my lids can flutter open.

"Well, if it isn't my favorite pirate," I tease as he dances us to the left into a darkened alcove where nary a soul can spot us. "Thank you for the flowers and all the beautiful decorations. I love them, but you really shouldn't have."

"I'm glad I did and I'm glad you enjoyed them." His lips flicker with dark intent and my stomach bisects with heat in approval.

"I guess this is the perfect opportunity," I say, giving a quick glance around. "Alone on the first night, with no one around to interrupt." I nod his way. "I promised that I would tell you exactly what was going on with me. And I'm going to do just that," I pant out the words as if I had run a marathon to the moon and back.

"Hey, it's okay." He shakes his head. "You don't have to."

"I do," I insist.

He acquiesces with a nod. "Know that I love you no matter what."

My mouth opens and closes as I sputter.

"You can just say it, Trixie. I promise I won't judge you no matter what. You can spill all the words at once like ripping off a bandage."

"Like ripping off a bandage." My heart races as I nod. "Okay, here we go." I lock my gaze onto his ocean-blue eyes. "I see the dead."

Ransom tilts his head a notch just as something large and heavy swoops between us, forcing us apart, and we both jump back to find a scraggly bearded pirate falling onto his back, one of his eyes staring up at the ceiling—the other obstructed by a patch of leather.

"Hey, that's Roger Maxwell," I say with a gasp.

Ransom drops to his knees and checks the man's pulse before jumping on his chest with a few compressions and checking it again.

"You called it, Trixie." Ransom looks up and shakes his head. "Roger Maxwell is dead."