Chapter 1
Marta, once known as Doctor Shearing, sometimes known as June Monroe and most lately known as Chambermaid Ingrid Bateman, stopped at the bottom of the CV Rainbow Seas' crew gangplank and resisted the urge to look back at the pristinely white floating sweatshop that had been her home for two weeks. She was never going to fold another bath towel, sheet or napkin for as long as she lived. Leaving the female crew dorm this morning in the pajama pants and t-shirt she'd boarded in, she carried a small plastic bag that held the last of the makeup Aaron had bought for her in Hong Kong and a few things gleaned from passenger trash – another t shirt with a carefully rinsed out wine stain, a half used lipstick in Marilyn Monroe red, two unused mini shampoo bottles, a few bars of soap, a new toothbrush, toothpaste and most precious of all, a plain gold band wedding ring. Scrubbing a toilet two cabins away, she'd heard the screaming fight that had led to that find. It had reminded her of Aaron Cross. She slipped the ring back on. She'd been wearing it to keep the lechs at bay. Plenty of those among the stewards and she wasn't yet good enough with Tai Chi to take them on.
Running her fingers through her new blonde pixie-cut, she tried to look around like Aaron had taught her without turning her head. She caught no sign of him. She hadn't seen him since the Honolulu docking two days ago when he'd passed her in the corridor and pressed a note into her hand. Maintenance crew gear had clanged gently on his belt as he glided away, muscles flowing smoothly like the tiger he was.
He had held a toilet plunger. Toilet issues were legion aboard the Rainbow Seas.
She'd wanted to stop him and hold his hand for a moment, say something, anything. Her skin had tingled where he'd touched her. He'd stroked the wedding ring on her finger as he passed.
"Wait for me at the pay desk" the note had said. Looking around the San Francisco cruise dock, teeming with luggage carts, silk Hong Kong designer rip-off jackets, Fijian floppies and dark sun glasses that covered entire faces, she couldn't see anything that suggested pay desk.
"Lost, Ing?" her fellow chambermaid Katra came up behind her.
"Gotta find the pay desk," she said. Together they wandered towards the red brick admin buildings.