Welcome to the Love Boat, or is it Love American Style?
In this week's episode: cash trumps commitment on the high seas
In this week's episode: cash trumps commitment on the high seas
Something in Common by David Summers
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Keith never
dreamed his wife would block his way to the top, yet she was doing exactly
that. He’d just sold his software company for a bundle, and now was in a
position to make even more money, serious
money. He assumed Pamela couldn’t wait to become wealthy, but he was wrong.
“What’s the
point of just making more money?” she said. “We have all the money we need,
more than we need, actually.”
She told
Keith she had her own goals, and becoming rich wasn’t one of them. It was her
money too, she said, and she wanted to use it to benefit the community. “I want
be known as someone who’s done something to improve the lives of others, like
building physical fitness centers for disadvantaged youth.” When Keith tried to
talk some sense into her, she just shook her head, and looked at him as though
she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
He could
have guessed she would bring physical fitness into it. Unlike Keith, she was a
regular at their fitness club, and worked hard at staying in shape. She looked
great, he had to give her that, but her looks weren’t the problem. Her attitude was the problem, thought Keith.
He
remembered thinking they were a perfect match when he first met her ten years
ago. Fresh out of college, she had impressed him with her drive, her
determination to get ahead, but something apparently had changed. If they had
anything in common now, he couldn’t see it.
The more he
thought about it, the more he was convinced that Pamela had to go. He was
young—only thirty-five—and not bad looking. He shouldn’t have any trouble
finding someone else, someone who wouldn’t try to give his money away as fast
as he made it.
He assumed
that making a change would cost him, but when he broached the idea with his
lawyer, he was shocked. “You can divorce her or she can divorce you,” his
lawyer said, “either way, she’ll get half.”
Never,
thought Keith.
Afterward,
Keith spent hours trying to think of a safe way to get rid of Pamela, and had
always drawn a blank. He might have given up had it not been for this Alaskan
cruise she’d insisted on.
*****
It was past
midnight and most people had left the bar to head back to their staterooms, but
Pamela wasn’t ready to call it a night. Several of her friends from the fitness
club were on the cruise and a few were still in the bar. Keith had heard their names
before, but couldn’t keep them straight, the men especially. They were just big
guys who looked like they worked out with weights. Keith barely listened as
they blathered on about muscle-building supplements and other meaningless crap.
Tuning out the
babble, Keith fantasized about Pamela sliding beneath the waves and out of his
life. He pictured her walking on deck and being thrown off balance by the
rocking of the ship, stumbling out of control, then hitting the railing and
pitching over into the sea. How nice, he thought. He wondered if he could do
anything to make it happen.
Pamela
finally signaled she was ready to leave. “Let’s go out on deck,” she said,
clinging to Keith and brushing her lips against his neck. “Just you and me, a
couple of lovers enjoying the moment.” She seemed unsteady on her feet.
Could she be
drunk, he wondered, or was it the ship’s motion? He doubted the ship was
rocking enough to cause her to stumble, but with his help she could still end
up in the water. If she decided to lean against the railing, all it would take
is one hard push, up and over.
He would
yell for help, but in water this cold she’d be gone by the time the captain
turned the ship around. She might not even survive the fall. Even though this was
a small cruise ship, from this deck, it was a good fifty feet to the water,
probably more.
The story
would be simple: She’d been drinking and had carelessly leaned too far over the
railing. Before he could pull her back, she lost her balance and went over.
There might be doubters, but unless there were witnesses, his story should hold
up. He quickly glanced around, and saw no one else on deck.
Was it
ruthless? Sure, he thought, but sometimes you have to be ruthless to get what
you want. Everyone knows that.
*****
“Come stand
beside me,” Pamela said, leaning against the railing and gazing into the
darkness. She had begun to breathe deeply, as though savoring the tangy aroma
of the sea.
Keith joined
her at the railing, and looked down at the black water, wishing he had thought
everything through before now. How could he move behind her without arousing
her suspicions, and then, once he was in position, where should he grab her to
gain the best leverage? While still trying to visualize his moves, he sensed
that Pamela was edging away.
Puzzled, he
turned his head toward her. As he did, he caught a glimpse of a large figure
moving quickly toward him out of the shadows. Before he could do anything but
try to strengthen his grip on the railing, he felt powerful hands grab him by
the seat of his pants and the back of his collar, and then in one fluid motion
hoist him over the railing. In an instant, he was tumbling toward the frigid
sea below.
The brutal
shock of hitting the water left him almost paralyzed with pain, unable to do
more than flail about weakly. In the half-minute or so before he took his final
breath and slipped beneath the surface, he was vaguely aware of someone
shouting, “man overboard.” He even thought he heard Pamela crying out for someone
to save her husband, sounding almost like she meant it.
