Maggie prattled on about who knows what and Cody choked down what ended up being the best lobster roll he’d ever eaten, not that he could enjoy it. Halfway through the meal, he realized the three women were staring at him, and once again he’d missed whatever question had been tossed his way.

“Jackson Wirth?” Maggie swallowed a bite, still focused on him. “You really didn’t hear the story?”

Cody took his napkin from his lap and pressed it against his mouth, mostly because he needed something to do with his hands. “No, ma’am. I think I was supposed to be briefed this morning, but then—” He glanced at Louisa, whose eyes widened for a split second and then found her hands in her lap. “If it’s important, I’m sure they’ll fill me in tomorrow.”

“They brought in a new master chief, right?” Maggie asked.

The old woman knew everything that went on around the island—she always had. People told her things. She heard things. She observed things. Regardless of how she came upon her information, if there was anything happening in Nantucket, Maggie Fisher knew about it.

“Duncan McGreery,” Cody said. “He’s a good guy.”

“He’s got a big job ahead of him,” Maggie said. “Though I’m guessing your heroics today will make things a little easier.”

Cody wished women would just say what they meant. They had this way of skirting an issue, forcing a person to ask questions, like leaving a trail of bread crumbs. It was exhausting. He preferred straightforward, which was how he remembered Maggie. Maybe she was determined to entice him into a conversation, and this was her tactic.

Louisa had always been straightforward. He wondered if she still was. Did her mouth still get her in trouble? Did she still say whatever popped into her head? He glanced at her. She looked tired, drained. What was on her mind right now? Was she okay?

“I’m not sure I follow,” Cody said, aware that he wasn’t going to get the whole story if he didn’t engage.

This was how gossip worked, he supposed. He really wanted no part of the island rumor mill. He preferred to get his information from the source. But Maggie’s insider information could prove to be useful, especially since Duncan had hinted that the crew needed a morale boost but had failed to elaborate.

“Maggie’s trying to tell you that the Coast Guard got a bad reputation around here last year,” Louisa said.

“It got blown out of proportion,” Ally said.

Louisa frowned. “Not really.”

“Aaron wasn’t wrong,” Ally said.

“He shouldn’t have said what he said.” Louisa again.

Maggie set her fork down with a clang. “Ladies, let’s bicker about this later. We have a guest.”