White Wake

The boat was smaller than most people expected when they heard the word chartered, which is why Evelyn had chosen it. The guests laughed about that when they boarded, but Evelyn knew it would be perfect. Intimate. Romantic. Exclusive. Her groom had kissed her temple and told her it was perfect.

Evelyn smiled now as the boat cut through the cool evening water, one hand resting lightly on the rail, the other curled so tightly around her bouquet that the stems pressed grooves into her palm. Behind her, champagne glasses chimed. Her future mother-in-law was already complaining about the wind. Daniel, charming as ever, was telling Cam and Sophie a story that made them laugh on cue.

The sound drifted across the deck and vanished into the open sea. Evelyn looked past them, watching the shore grow smaller on the horizon.

“Cold feet?” Daniel asked softly.

He stepped up beside her with that amiable smile, the one that had opened doors, softened judges, won over strangers, and ultimately pulled her into his vortex.

Evelyn turned to him and slipped her arm through his. “On a boat?” she said. “That would be stupid.”

He laughed and kissed her again. Over his shoulder, she caught the captain watching them through the wheelhouse glass, then looking away too quickly. The coast was almost gone now, reduced to a smudge of black against the blue sky, while the water beneath the hull rolled deep and steady.

The festivities began once the coast disappeared behind them. The captain announced it was time for dinner and took a seat beside Daniel.

“I hope everyone enjoys the food; dessert will be out in one hour,” the lone server said politely after he’d handed out the plates.

Daniel clapped Captain Arlo Hale on the shoulder between bites. “I’m so glad you came back from across the pond. I can’t imagine anyone else marrying us today.”

The Captain beamed. “I watched you and your friends grow up on this boat; I wouldn't have it any other way.” They shook hands warmly before the captain went back up to his post.

Conversation around the table ebbed and flowed, featuring a few awkward pauses between old acquaintances long grown apart. Utensils clanked against plates as people finished their food. As if on cue, the server appeared from below with a large tray of assorted sweets. He locked eyes with Evelyn and nodded.

Once the guests had finished the treats, the server gathered the small plates and went back downstairs. Evelyn turned to her maid of honour, an old friend from her days working at the club where she’d met Daniel, who had been surprised but excited by her proposition.

“Sophie, why don’t you go help the poor guy with the dishes? I wonder if we should have hired more help?” Evelyn raised her eyebrows gently and let her gaze float past her mother-in-law, who had handled the charter arrangements. The old woman straightened her shoulders and threw the end of her scarf over her shoulder.

“Uh, sure, I guess it won’t take too long,” Sophie said, pursing her lips for a moment before getting up.

Evelyn pushed her chair back from the table and walked over to the railing where Daniel and Cam peered into the water.

“What are you guys looking at?”

Daniel met her eyes with a goofy, lopsided grin. “Cam thought he saw a dolphin or something. What do you think?”

Evelyn had barely tipped her head over the railing when a sharp, shrill shriek rang out from the lower deck. Evelyn widened her eyes and looked from person to person. Finally, Cam spoke, “Was that Sophie? Is she downstairs?”

“She… went to help with the dishes,” Evelyn whispered. A pause settled among the group for one horrible, frozen second before everyone scrambled to the stairs and threw themselves below deck. They found Sophie cowering in a corner of the kitchen. The server was on all fours, fingers to the neck of a bloody, mangled body spilled across the tiled floor.

Marianne screamed from the top of the stairs. Daniel pushed past Cam and Sophie to glare at the server. “What did you DO?!”

“No,” Sophie said from the corner. “It wasn’t him. That guy fell out of the cabinet over there,” she pointed a shaking finger across the room where a set of narrow double doors above a counter had fallen open.

“Wait, is that…” Cam stepped forward and bent down. He gently rolled the body onto its back, bringing the face into the light. He screamed and jumped back, both hands flying to cover his mouth. His hands lowered after several seconds. “It’s… Ben.”

“No, no way,” Daniel started, head shaking vigorously. “Ben said he couldn’t come. That he’d be in Aruba. He was upset we planned this all so fast and couldn’t wait until he got back.”

“Well, I guess he came anyway because THERE HE IS!” Cam’s voice grew louder with each word. “What do we do now, huh?” He turned to the server. “Did anyone know we’d booked this ship? Why is MY BROTHER lying dead on your kitchen floor?!” He’d taken a few steps forward until his face was inches from the server’s.

“Hey, let’s just calm down, okay? We’ll call the Coast Guard and report foul play,” Evelyn put a hand on Cam’s shoulder and pulled him away from the young boy.

Sophie came up behind them and put her hand on Cam’s other shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Cam. How could this have happened?” She looked at Evelyn. “Someone must have known we’d be on this boat tonight, right? This can’t be a coincidence?”

“I’m not sure. It would seem that way,” Evelyn spoke quietly, as if too much volume might wake the dead. She made a point of looking at the server’s name tag. “Liam, why don’t you alert Captain Arlo and have him call the police immediately?”

The boy looked sideways at the body one more time before he nodded and ran up the stairs.

Cam sat crouched over the body now, face hidden, shoulders rising and falling. Daniel knelt down and wordlessly put an arm around his shoulder.

Evelyn pulled a tablecloth from a drawer and placed it gently over Ben’s body. “Let’s go back upstairs and get some air.”

The group nodded and climbed the stairs single file. Above deck, they found Marianne sitting on the edge of a chair, eyes wide.

“What’s going on?” She asked, her voice tight.

“Mom,” Daniel started, sitting down beside her. “We found a body downstairs. It’s Cam’s brother. We’re calling the police.”

Marianne’s mouth fell open, and she moved to stand, but Daniel put a hand on her arm. “Arlo will call the police. It’s all going to be okay.”

Just then, Liam came running back down from the captain’s post, face flushed.

“The radio’s dead.” He said between breaths, bending to place his hands on his knees.

“Well, can’t Arlo get it working again? Did he try turning it off and back on again?” Sophie asked as she instinctively gripped Cam’s arm and slid behind him.

“No, like, it’s smashed.”

Sophie’s grip on Cam’s arm tightened, and Evelyn sidled up to Daniel, looking up at him with a question in her eyes.

Daniel ran a hand through his hair. “Okay, this is bad. Honey, I think we should just have Arlo take us back to shore and deal with this there.”

Evelyn sighed. “Yes, I suppose you’re right. I guess we’ll have to reschedule the wedding.”

“Reschedule?” Marianne’s shrill voice broke through the dark, tense air. “You’re really worried about a wedding when the lifelong friend of your groom has just discovered his brother dead in the middle of the ocean?”

Evelyn’s mouth fell open. She looked to Sophie for support, who sheepishly shrugged her shoulders.

“No, I just - I mean, obviously we have to cancel.”

“Mom, we’re all in shock. Give it a rest, okay?” Daniel raised his eyebrows as his mother opened her mouth and shut it again. He nodded. “Alright, I’m gonna go tell Arlo that we need to turn this ship around and get back to port ASAP. Will you be alright for a minute, love?”

Evelyn nodded, squeezing his arm before casting her gaze to the ground.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Sophie cried, wrapping her arms around herself.

Evelyn turned to Liam, “Did you notice anything strange downstairs when you were prepping the food? Anything out of place?”

Liam scrunched his eyebrows together. “Nothing that I can think of. Though I haven’t worked on this boat very often, ‌I don’t exactly have every detail memorized.”

Marianne cleared her throat. “How do we know this little servant boy didn’t do it?”

“Marianne!” Evelyn scolded. “He’s not a servant boy, and he was working the whole time. You ate the food he made, remember?”

Marianne scoffed, and Evelyn opened her mouth to respond as a shout came from the captain’s post. Sophie’s gaze met Evelyn’s; her eyes wide and stricken with horror.

“Not again,” Marianne whispered, staring at the floor. Cam, Sophie, and Evelyn turned to look at the stairs to the Captain’s post, none of them able to make their feet move. Daniel came flying down the stairs, hands flailing. He tripped over the last step and crashed into the group, shoulder hitting the ground with a thud. He picked himself up and put his hands on Evelyn’s shoulders, legs shaking so hard he could barely keep himself up.

“Arlo’s dead. All bloody. Still sitting in his chair.” He lifted his head and scanned the group. “I think someone else is on this boat with us."

Sophie gasped. Marianne tightened her scarf around her neck.

Cam threw his hands up and fell back into a chair at the dinner table. “How is that possible?”

Sophie looked behind her before putting her hands over her eyes. “We’re all gonna die, aren’t we?” she whispered, voice barely audible.

Cam stood and straightened his shoulders. “No, not if I can help it. Server guy, what can we use as a weapon around here?”

Liam blinked several times. “Uh, well, I guess there are some knives in the kitchen. That’s probably it.”

“No secret gun? Not even in the captain’s quarters?”

Liam shook his head. “I’ll go grab the master key ring from the storeroom. We should probably lock up anything that could be used against us.”

Sophie nodded, “Thanks, Liam, that’s smart.”

“I think we should all stick together. Let’s go downstairs and see about arming ourselves with a knife.” Evelyn waved her hand gently toward the stairs.

“No, I can’t go back down there, no way.” Sophie closed her eyes, shoulders shaking.

“I’ll stay up here with Sophie,” Marianne said stiffly, staring straight ahead into the open water.

“Okay, just don’t split up, okay? And scream if you need us.”

Once downstairs, Evelyn turned her head sideways and covered her eyes with her hand.

“It’s okay, honey, just don’t look at him.” Daniel pulled her into a hug as she shook her head against his chest.

Cam went straight for the knife block and froze. “Guys, they’re all gone.” He turned around, face white. “Where did they go?” His voice grew quieter with each word.

“Hey-Wha-” Cam stuttered and looked to the ceiling as the room went black. “Hey! Who killed the lights?” He spoke loudly, but his voice wavered.

“Uh, I-” Daniel stuttered as the boat rocked gently beneath their feet. Evelyn could feel Daniel’s breath on her neck, quickening every second. The clock on the wall ticked softly.

“Daniel, what’s happ-” Evelyn’s shaky whisper was cut off by a warbled shout from Cam, followed by clanking.

Evelyn squeezed her arms around Daniel’s waist as more choking sounds floated through the darkness. Daniel pushed Evelyn’s shoulders back. “Hun, I have to turn on the lights.” He whispered right into her ear. He fumbled along the wall, Evelyn sticking close behind him. He finally found a switch, and light filled the room. Cam lay on the ground, hands clasped to his neck, eyes wide and locked on the ceiling.

“Cam, buddy, you’re gonna be okay. Evelyn, can you find a towel or something? I have to stop this bleeding.” Daniel didn’t turn around as he moved Cam’s hands away and put his own over the gushing wound.

“Ev? Honey? Can you find something?” Daniel’s voice had risen several octaves.

“No, I don’t think I can, honey.”

“Huh?” Daniel turned around, hands still pressed into Cam’s neck as his pulse slowed. “What do you mean? Are the cabinets empty?”

“No, I’m sure they’re fully stocked. Liam is great at this job, after all.”

“What on earth does Liam have to do with this?!"

“Oh, just everything.”

“Evelyn, DO something! He’s lost too much blood!”

“Oh, I know. A little more and he’ll be dead.”

Daniel stood. “What are you talking about?”

Evelyn hoisted her leg onto the table and reached under her flowing white skirt to produce a large kitchen knife from a leather garter. “Did you really think marrying me would fix it? Would erase everything?”

Daniel’s eyes widened as they fell to the knife. He raised his hands. “Fix what? Are you okay? Did you hit your head in the dark?”

Evelyn laughed. “I know you don’t think about it every day like I do, but don’t tell me you’ve forgotten?”

Daniel shook his head, “Forgotten what?”

“STOP playing dumb!” Evelyn laughed as Daniel flinched. “There’s no way you’ve forgotten the night you and your rich friends killed my brother.”

Daniel let out the breath he’d been holding. “Ev, I thought we were past this. He fell. I love you.”

Evelyn spun the knife expertly between her fingers. “Indeed, I suppose I should say thank you for that. Unfortunately, the feeling has never been mutual.”

Daniel let out a single, hysterical laugh. “Of course it has. We’ve been together for two years! Why don’t you just put the knife down, and we can talk?”

“Honestly? I’ve grown tired of talking to you.”

She took a step forward, and Daniel stepped back, landing his hands on the counter behind him. He squared his shoulders, jaw clenched. He leaned forward as if to lunge when a slow click went off in his ear.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you."

Daniel turned and stared down the barrel of a shotgun. He put his hands up again and looked back to Evelyn, “Really? The server? How’d she rope you into this, huh?”

Liam pressed the gun to Daniel’s temple. “After I saw Cam and Ben threaten to ruin my best friend’s life if he turned them in for stealing booze, I didn’t really need convincing when his body turned up later that night.” He didn’t let Daniel respond before he pulled the trigger. Daniel flopped onto the floor.

Evelyn dropped her hand to her side. “Ah, come on. You didn’t even let me say goodbye.”

Liam holstered the weapon. “What do we do about the two upstairs?”

Evelyn shrugged. “I’ve wanted to slice his mother’s throat ever since she told Daniel to secure a lawyer before they called the medics. You can take Sophie.”

“About that, do we really have to do Sophie, too? I mean, she wasn’t even there.”

Evelyn gave him a pointed look. “She lied for them. Multiple times. On the stand! Besides, do you really think we'll get away with this if she lives?”

“We could still convince them someone else is here. Maybe the mystery killer jumped overboard?”

“No. You said you were with me, right? We have to finish this.”

Liam looked at the floor.

Evelyn put her finger under his chin and lifted his eyes to hers, “I know you always had John’s back. And he always had yours. Keep your last promise to him. Make them pay.”

Liam sighed and squared his shoulders. “Okay. You’re right.”

They took the stairs two at a time.

Marianne stood near the wheelhouse door with a flare gun clenched in both hands, silk scarf snapping in the wind. A few feet away, Sophie crouched beside the lifeboat davit, fumbling uselessly with the release and sobbing under her breath.

Marianne’s eyes went first to Liam’s gun, then to the blood on Evelyn’s skirt.

“Where is my son?”

Evelyn said nothing.

Sophie made a broken sound in her throat. “Oh, my goodness! Please, no, shit shit shit.”

Marianne lifted the flare gun with both hands. “I knew it. You filthy little bitch.”

Evelyn laughed. “That’s not very nice language for a mother-of-the-groom.”

The flare went off with a violent hiss, streaking red past Liam’s shoulder and vanishing into the dark. Evelyn lunged before Marianne could recover. She caught the older woman by the scarf, yanked her forward, and buried the knife into her neck. Marianne gasped once, eyes wide with disbelief, then folded. Evelyn let her fall to the ground.

Sophie screamed and ran.

In her heels, on the wet deck, she barely made three steps before she slipped. Liam reached her first. He pulled her up and pinned her arms behind her back with one hand, the other holding the gun to her head.

“Please, why are you doing this?” She looked at Evelyn, eyes pleading.

“Oh, come on, you know why.”

“We’ve been friends for 15 years, Ev! You’re not thinking straight!”

“No, Sophie. We were friends for 10 years. Then you took their side and helped them cover up a murder.”

“No! They threatened me, too! They were gonna hurt my sister, get my dad fired… you don’t understand, they can do anything!”

“Oh, just do it already. She had her chance to tell the truth.”

Liam closed his eyes for half a second. “He was still calling for help,” he said, almost to himself, before he pulled the trigger.