“Anything that will help Regan is my first priority. No matter how early.”
After our server poured our coffee and scribbled down our breakfast orders, Steve stared at his cup, deep in thought.
I nudged his foot with my sandal.
“Sorry,” he said. “I’m struggling with the best way to share this information.”
“How about just the facts for now. We can proceed from there.”
My goodness, didn’t I sound official? I was a regular Nikki Heat!
“Okay. Our brochures advertise that the Sea Jinx provides entertainment for the guests on the sunset cruise. The boat isn’t big enough for a full troupe, but the guests enjoy the music and dancing along with their drinks and pupus.”
I grinned. The thought of those Hawaiian appetizers always brings a smile to my face.
“About a week ago, Noelani, the principal dancer, called in sick. Both Keiki and Walea had covered for Noelani a couple of times in the past. This time Keiki was available and she agreed to perform. As usual, she was amazing. Had the male guests eating right out of her hand. In fact, the tip jar almost wasn’t big enough; it overflowed with ten and twenty-dollar bills.”
“Sounds like a profitable evening for her,” I said.
“Therein lay the problem. The crew and the entertainers normally split the money in the tip jar. You might remember one of my crew, Timmy Soong, from your snorkel cruise. Since Keiki wasn’t a regular, he said she didn’t deserve as big of a share of the tips. She claimed the jar was full because of her performance. The two of them got into a huge argument. One minute she was yelling at him; the next minute he was shouting at her. From the water.”
My eyes widened. “He fell in?”
“She pushed him in. That girl was in great shape.” He looked off to the distance and smiled.
Interesting.
The server chose that moment to bring our orders. I was attempting to be good so I’d only ordered the small stack of macadamia-nut pancakes. It would be back to boring bran flakes soon enough. Steve dug into his bacon-and-cheese omelet and for a few minutes, we were content eating our excellent entrees.
“So then what happened?” I asked.
“The guys and I pulled Timmy out of the water. Rick, one of the musicians, and Rafe, the other member of my crew, thought it was hilarious. The more they ribbed Timmy, the madder he got. I finally pulled him aside and told him to dry off and cool off. I grabbed some extra cash from my wallet and gave it to Keiki. I figured that was the end of that. As the guys walked away from the boat, their conversation drifted up to us. Timmy yelled a parting remark.”
“What did he say?” I asked, stabbing a piece of pancake with my fork.
“You gonna die, bitch.”
Chapter 21
My hand shook and my pancake flipped on to the table. “Do you think Timmy killed Keiki? Over something so petty?”
“I didn’t even remember the incident until they arrested Regan. But now that the police have definitely declared it was murder, I wonder.”
“How did Keiki respond to Timmy’s threat?”
“She was real shook up. I didn’t want her walking back to her car alone and thought she might like some company. We ended up going over to Hugo’s Hula bar and had a couple of drinks. At the bar, she explained that she’d dated Timmy’s younger brother for a few years then suddenly ended it two months ago.”
“Regan mentioned something about Keiki dumping her former boyfriend and then him tragically dying. Did Keiki say why she broke up with him?”
Steve shrugged. “She didn’t elaborate. Said it wasn’t meant to be. That it wasn’t,” he made air quotes, “the direction she intended to go. She had bigger plans.”
“Do you think those plans had anything to do with her murder?”
Steve’s face paled beneath his tan. “At the time, I didn’t give much thought to her comment. Keiki was an attractive woman and she seemed driven. I don’t know if she wanted fame, fortune or both. I guess being one of the most gorgeous dancers around wasn’t enough for her.”
I narrowed my eyes. “Were you interested in Keiki?”
Steve’s eyes clouded over, and he appeared distracted for a moment. “Let’s say I wasn’t completely immune to her charms and leave it at that.”
Then he smiled. “Of course, that was before my best friend’s little sis stumbled into my life.”
I felt my cheeks turning the color of the koi that swam past at that moment. I could swear it winked. Was it just me or did the supersized goldfish also think something fishy was going on?
“Now that the police have confirmed Keiki was murdered, are you going to tell them about Timmy’s comment?”