Gretchen parked in the space Penelope had vacated and got out. “What’s going on?”
“Penelope just suspended us for a week for breach of licence.”
Gretchen gaped at him. “You’re kidding.”
“Wish I was. What are you doing here?”
“Dot asked me to come back.”
They walked back to the boat. Rob was still chatting with Dot. “How’d you go?”
“No luck.”
“I’ve never known someone so inflexible,” Rob said. “She’s new, you know.”
Sam nodded.
“You wanted to see me, Dot?” Gretchen said.
The sergeant nodded. “Yeah, I thought the interview with these two would go longer than it did, and Penelope would want more statements. Sorry.”
“It’s fine. I’ll call her and offer my version of events. I’m sure she’ll see reason.”
“Don’t bet on it.” Sam glanced at Dot. “You don’t need anything else from me?”
“No.” She smiled and stood. “Welcome to Retribution Bay.”
He laughed. He had plenty of time for the short, dark-haired woman who ran a tight ship here. Both times he’d visited Brandon, he’d had to deal with the police and found her capable and likeable. Unlike a certain red-haired park ranger. As they walked out of the cabin, he said, “I’m sorry about your brother.”
The smile vanished and she nodded once. “Thanks. I’ve got to get back to work.” She strode away.
Damn it. He shouldn’t have brought it up. It was only a couple of weeks since Dot’s brother had been killed.
“Let’s go,” Rob said. “We’ve got a lot of phone calls to make.”
That’s right. They had to cancel all their passengers. “Can we get them on another boat?”
“Maybe. I’ll call the other captains. Let’s go to the shop.”
The crew had finished washing all the equipment and cleaning the decks. Sam thanked them as Rob locked the cabin and then they all walked back to their vehicles. This was not how he’d envisioned his first day.
***
An hour later, they had slotted their passengers for tomorrow’s tour on different boats. Gretchen had phoned Penelope and given her version of events, but it hadn’t made any difference. She’d left them making phone calls as she had to pick up her son from his friend’s place.
“That’s enough for today,” Sam said, stretching. “I’ll go chat to the manager of PAWS tomorrow and plead our case. Do you think he’ll only suspend us for a couple of days?”
“Maybe. I’m not sure if he can overrule her, but I’ll go with you.” Rob packed his things and handed Sam a set of keys. “You should have these now. The shop, the bus, the marina, and all the boat keys are on it.”
“Thanks.”
“Might be a good chance to teach you about the shop tomorrow,” Rob suggested. “Paperwork’s not fun, but necessary.”
“Good idea.” Sam waved. “I’ll meet you here in the morning.”
“Do you want a lift?”
“No, I’m good. I need to walk.”
