The Rachel Scott Adventures, Volume 1 by Traci Hohenstein Read Free Book Online

sent almost all of her paycheck home to support her family in Mexico. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have enough to eat.
    It was funny. That was one perk for people who took cruises—food was available twenty-four hours a day. Passengers could go to the all-night, all-you-can-eat buffets or order room service. Whatever your tastes desired, the ship had it. Especially if you were one of the penthouse guests.
    But something peculiar had happened last night at the end of her shift. She’d gotten a room service call to the Jacobsens’ cabin—cabin 101A—the one next to the missing girl’s. She’d dropped off a New York strip steak with new potatoes, broiled lobster tails, and two ice cream sundaes. Mrs. Jacobsen signed for the order and thanked Consuela. Mrs. Jacobsen seemed all right, even though she looked to Consuela to be no more than twenty years old.
    But Consuela’s friend Gladys, who was responsible for cleaning the Jacobsens’ suite and taking care of whatever they wanted, said that Mr. Jacobsen spent all yesterday in his suite talking with some of the ship’s employees. Consuela thought that might be all right, because the whole staff had been told that Mr. Jacobsen was a friend of Mr. Morrotti, who owned the cruise line. At first she’d thought Mr. Jacobsen was evaluating the employees, or something. But Gladys said that every time she came into the room to clean, Mr. Jacobsen and his guests would get quiet. Gladys heard something about shipments, and Mr. Jacobsen mentioned Josh’s name a lot. Consuela didn’t want to know any secrets, and she told Gladys many times to be careful about what she said to other crew members. Gladys liked to gossip, and one day it would get her into trouble.
    Consuela didn’t know Josh that well, and their paths didn’t cross that often. But what she did know—she liked him okay. He made a point to know her name and say hello every time he saw her.
    That’s why the last time she saw him something didn’t seem right. She’d just dropped off the Jacobsens’ room service order and was heading back to the kitchen when she realized she’d forgotten to get the room service check from Ms. Jacobsen. She went back, and this time Mr. Jacobsen opened the door. When she told him what she forgot, he said, “No problem,” and handed her the leather check cover. He yelled to his wife that he was heading out for a minute and walked out behind her.
    It was then that she saw Josh and Amber walking down the hallway toward Amber’s room. Josh had his arm around Amber’s waist—not in a romantic way, but like he was helping her to walk. Consuela thought the girl was sick or maybe had had too much to drink.
    Josh said hello to her as they passed, like he always did. But what struck her as weird was that he didn’t say hi to Mr. Jacobsen, and Mr. Jacobsen didn’t say hello, either. If Mr. Jacobsen talked about Josh so much, wouldn’t he know him?
    Consuela looked back at them—she couldn’t help herself. She saw Josh enter the suite behind Amber.
    Mr. Jacobsen was watching them, too.

CHAPTER 12
     
    T he smell wakes her up. A smell of bitter coffee and cleaning solution. Something strong, like ammonia or bleach. She opens her eyes and takes a slow look around. She’s in a small room with a single dresser and a nightstand beside her bed. The blinds are closed, but a bit of sunlight peeks through. Is it day or evening? She isn’t sure. She feels pressure on her arm and looks down to see an IV line plugged directly into her vein.
    She tries to remember where she is or how she got here. Did she have an accident, and is she in the hospital? If so, then where is everyone? Thinking about it makes her head hurt.
    She tries to sit up, but her head is too heavy to lift off the pillow. She looks around for a button to push but can’t find one.
    “Hey. Someone help me.” She tries to speak, but it comes out as a whisper. Her mouth is so dry. She needs some water. Where am I? She tries