Turning the Tide (Eastern Shore Swingers, #5)

by Phoebe Alexander

  “I want to know why the hell you’re trying to ruin my career and make up lies and rumors about me. What the hell is in that for you?” He tried to state his case clearly and without emotion, but a couple of “hells” weaseled their way in.

  “I haven’t made up anything, Luke. You are a victim of your own tasteless, classless, unethical actions. I saw the video of you and your whore at work. And yeah, I know it wasn’t Jasmine. It was you and that old lady Jim hired a month or so ago.”

  “That ‘old lady’ looks and acts years younger than you,” he fired back, feeling the need to defend Connie but then realizing he incriminated himself at the same time.

  “Whatever helps you sleep at night,” she hissed. “We got Jasmine to play along because Jim knew Connie would never admit to it. She’d try to protect you.”

  “How do you know that?” He searched her mud-caked face for the truth.

  “Beverly knows every damn thing that goes on in that office, or have you forgotten? She’s been on to you and Connie for weeks. She knows you have been fucking all over the place.”

  Damn it. He thought he could trust Beverly. What was he thinking?

  “And besides, it doesn’t matter which one of your little slut nurses you banged. All it matters is you breached your partnership agreement, and now you have to leave. Those are the rules. That’s what you agreed to,” she spewed.

  “What are you getting out of this?” He shook his head, unable to understand how she could suddenly hate him so much as to want to see him destroyed. He was still the father of her children, whether she liked it or not. He’d still put a roof over her head and took care of her all this time. Why now? What had changed?

  “Once you leave the practice with your pitiful severance package, Jim will be in control of the business and its assets. And, therefore, I will too. Don’t you see? It’s simple math. I’ll have half the assets instead of being entitled to a quarter of them.”

  “That’s really messed up.” He realized his head was probably going to shake right off, it had swiveled back and forth on his neck so many times just during this brief conversation.

  “Look at it this way: Jim wanted to have you killed and be done with it. Then, being your beneficiary, I’d gain all your assets. But death is messy, and all that paperwork and legal shit would take a while. At least I talked him into sparing your life,” she shared like she was the heroine in this story. “But not for me. Only for your kids’ sake. I’d hate for them to be fatherless.”

  A sick feeling began to swim in his stomach. Did she actually say Jim wanted to kill him?

  “So I just have to walk away from the practice. Then you’ll divorce me and leave me alone?” he questioned. He was almost ready to do it, too. He just wanted this nightmare to be over. He’d still have Connie. He still had some money in savings. He could start over somewhere else. He doubted Connie would go with him, but—

  “You’re such a fucking pussy, Luke. Why do you think I stopped wanting to fuck you?” She glared at him, the vitriol leaching out of her mud-caked pores into the air around her. He could almost smell her foul stench from the five yards away where he stood, the ax still in his grip.

  He wondered if Calvin Jr. had the house bugged, if he could hear what was happening. If he was going to swoop in at any moment.

  He thought about defending himself, but the truth was, it didn’t matter what she thought of him anymore. He knew he wasn’t a pussy. He did put up with her selfish and abusive treatment for a long time, but that didn’t make him weak. He simply had to see the light and decide to stand up for himself. Connie had helped him see he was worth doing that.

  “Jim is a real man,” she continued. “Strong. Tough. Not afraid of anyone...” She looked off to the distance as if she realized she’d just spouted a lie. “Well, he won’t be after this is all over with, anyway.”

  “What do you mean? Is he in some kind of trouble?” Luke pressed, wondering if he could wrangle some information out of her.

  “It’s none of your business,” she fired back. “We paid off Jasmine and Beverly, and we have to pay off a few other people to bail Jim’s son out... Then Jim has one more score to settle, and we’ll be livin’ large. Beach houses, yachts—and not in fucking Delaware or Ocean City, Maryland. We’re talking where there’s actual money. Where all the rich people live.”

  “Do your parents know what you’re messed up in right now? How about your sister?” Her parents were retired, but Barbara’s sister was still practicing law in Washington DC, and her brother practiced in Virginia. “Does Chloe know? How about L.T.?” He thought he’d use the same tactic on her that she’d been using on him for years. “How are they going to feel when they find out you screwed me over so bad?”

  “All they’re going to know is that you cheated on me and cut off all my money,” she fired back. “That’s it.”

  A creepy smile cracked the mud on her face as her lips spread wide. “Now get the hell out of here, Luke. Sign the papers. Walk away from the practice and get on with your life. Either that, or Jim will come after you, guaranteed. And that old whore you’re seeing too. Consider that my one and only warning.”

  EIGHTEEN

  Sometimes if you want to see a change for the better, you have to take things into your own hands. – Clint Eastwood

  Luke shot Cap a sheepish look as he made his way back into the bar area of The Factory. He stealthily slid the truck keys to him under the bar, where Cap sat with Casey and Connie. Connie’s face was lined with anger. So much for her passing out from drinking, Luke thought with disappointment.

  “Where did you go?” She wasn’t bothering to hide her frustration.

  “Let’s go talk.” He offered her his hand. She climbed down from her barstool without taking it. He hadn’t been gone that long, but she’d sobered up considerably in that short amount of time. He saw Calvin Jr. slip in behind him just as he was guiding Connie back upstairs toward the office area.

  “You didn’t come back from the restroom,” she accused as they took their spots in Leah’s office. “How am I supposed to trust you when you don’t do what you say you’re going to do?”

  He let out a sigh. “Listen, I went to talk to Barbara.”

  Her jaw dropped, and rage flared in her eyes. “You did what?” She clenched her jaw as her hands balled into fists at her side. “Why the hell would you do that?”

  “I wanted to know why she is doing this,” he explained, though he thought it would be obvious. “I’m ready for this to be over. I wanted to know if she would make a deal.”

  “And?” A fraction of the rage dissipated, with curiosity taking its place.

  “Two things: first, Jim wanted to off me, apparently. But, instead, Barbara came up with the wonderful alternative plan of framing me for an affair so I would be forced to leave the practice. Secondly, they know about you and me.”

  “How?” She shook her head. “We were pretty careful.”

  “Beverly.” He let out a sigh of disappointment. “I thought I could trust her. But look—it does sound like he’s mixed up with some bad guys. She said something about his son’s mess, and how after they took care of that and ‘one more score Jim had to settle’ they were moving someplace ritzy.” He shook his head as the conversation played on repeat in his mind. “She sounded like a crazy person, mostly.”

  “And you told her we knew about her and Jim.” Connie’s head swiveled down to glance at her watch. It was nearly midnight, and her face reflected her exhaustion.

  I hate that this shit show is wearing on her so much, he thought. Then he vowed to keep her away from the rest of the action. She was here now, and it was safe, and he’d make sure she stayed safe. She wouldn’t be showing up for work, that was for sure. Not now that Jim knew the truth about their affair.

  “Luke?” she prodded him. He’d failed to answer her question.

  “Yes, he knows.” He reached out for her hand and pulled her over to where he sat on the sofa. She collapsed we
arily on his lap seconds later. “Which is why you can’t go to work.”

  “What? I can’t—” She looked up at him, her eyes wide with panic. “I don’t have a choice. I can’t pay my rent if I don’t work.”

  “Your life is in danger too,” he finally admitted. “I feel horrible for getting you messed up in this whole thing. I wish I could have protected you better. But the least I can do is pay your rent and anything else you need while we figure this all out. Calvin just needs to collect the evidence against Jim—establish the Mob connection—then he’ll go to the police. This could all be over in a matter of days. Then we can move on. Everything will work out; you’ll see.”

  She laid her head against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her body. He loved the way they fit together. Now that she was in his life, he was going to do everything in his power to prove she could trust him. He’d start by making sure she remained safe—no matter what.

  Calvin Sr. was pounding on the back door of the club bright and early that Saturday morning. Groggily, Luke swung his legs off the bed in the dungeon and went to see what he wanted. He shielded his eyes to prevent the glaring morning sun from blinding him.

  “You shouldn’t be coming to the door unarmed,” Calvin said, presenting him with a small handgun.

  “Uh, what the hell is that?” Luke backed away. He was not a gun person. He’d never even shot one.

  “Relax,” Calvin said. “I’m going to teach you and Connie both how to use it. Cap will be here soon. He has some targets set up out in the woods on the other side of the parking lot.”

  “But I don’t want a gun,” Luke insisted. “I really don’t want a gun. This has gotten crazy enough.”

  “I heard about the shit you and my son pulled last night going over to Jim’s beach house. What the hell were you thinking? That was not advisable, not in the least. You should have at least taken me with you.”

  “Your son said it was okay,” Luke noted, shrugging. “Besides, I did find out some valuable information.” He relayed it to Calvin, same as he did to Connie last night.

  “Okay, so your crazy soon-to-be-ex-wife said your ex-partner wanted to kill you, and she’s the hero keeping you alive? Man, you want a gun.” Calvin gave him a cocky look and finished making his entrance into the back stockroom area of the club. “Plus, we have the link now. And when you hear it, you’re going to want more than one fucking gun. You’re going to want a whole arsenal of weapons.”

  Cap showed up then, whistling as he stepped up the back steps and into the building. “Any reason this is open?” He pointed to the door.

  “Just got here,” Calvin explained. “Come on, let’s go sit. You may even want an adult beverage to wash down this information.”

  “It’s eight o’clock in the morning,” Luke noted. “How about coffee?”

  Cap nodded. “I’ll make some.”

  The detective settled his broad body into one of the wooden chairs in the bar area and clasped his hands together on top of the table. “Okay,” he began, “so, a man by the name of Terry Barnes is Jim’s contact. He is a pretty small-scale drug and human trafficker out of Florida, definitely working with some bigger operations up north. Most of the drugs and—” he sighed with disgust, “—people are coming out of Central America, and instead of bringing them up from the south all the way to New York on the interstates where interdiction is a big risk, they bring them by boat to, guess where, the Ocean City Marina.”

  “Fuck me, are you serious?” Cap asked, coming over from the bar area to join them. “Which boat? I know them all.”

  “Have you seen a vessel called Afternoon Delight?” Calvin asked, glancing down at his notes in his ubiquitous yellow legal pad.

  “Terry Barnes...Afternoon Delight,” Cap said, running his fingers through his beard. “You know what? I think I met him last year during the White Marlin Open. I wouldn’t forget a boat with a name like that.”

  “So what’s Jim’s connection to all this?” Luke questioned, “Other than just being here?”

  “We suspect Jim is the connection between Terry and the guy who receives the shipments and drives them up to New York, a man by the name of Walt Kroft. And his connection is none other than Sam D’Angelo, who is known to have mafia ties. It probably goes through a network up to a boss, and we’re still working on that part.”

  “So, Jim’s getting a cut of the profits?” Luke questioned.

  Calvin nodded. “Do you think there’s something else?”

  Luke thought about it. “I have a feeling there’s more going on. There has to be a reason he’s trying so hard to get rid of me at work—and so fast—”

  Calvin’s eyebrows rose as he waited for Luke to expand on his idea.

  “I’m going to go grab the coffee.” Cap’s chair scraped against the wooden floor as he stood up.

  “Can your son break into the computer system at my medical practice?” Luke sat back in his chair and waited for the detective to answer.

  “I don’t see why not. What do you think you’ll find?”

  “Money laundering,” Luke said. “I have a hunch, and I want to confirm it.”

  Calvin reached for his phone. “Let’s call and find out.”

  “Let me go with you,” Connie insisted after Luke stepped out of the shower and began to towel off.

  “Didn’t we just go through all this last night? How dangerous this is and how I want to protect you?” His eyes raked over her body, knowing how guilty he’d feel if one tiny square inch of her was marred in any way.

  “I can help you search the records and the billing stuff. I probably know those systems better than you do, anyway,” she insisted. From the look of her stern stance, she wasn’t planning to back down.

  “I learned those systems when we first implemented them. I’m sure they’ll come back to me.”

  She stepped closer to him, her eyes trailing up and down his still-damp body. He had the blue towel knotted at his waist and could feel her mentally untying it. She circled him, running her fingers down his moist skin and letting out a soft sigh when she returned to his front and walked her fingers down to the bulge growing under the terrycloth.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” He gave her a sharp look. It was like she was begging to be disciplined.

  In a flash, she hooked her finger under his towel and jerked it away, revealing his half-masted manhood. “Now what are you going to do?” she challenged him.

  “You know they’re waiting on us, right? We are going to go out and practice shooting while we wait for Calvin to get here.” He grabbed the towel off the floor and wrapped it around his hips again.

  “You’re no fun,” she pouted. “I have a better idea for something we can practice.”

  He rolled his eyes. “You are insatiable, aren’t you?”

  “Oh, whatever, you love it!” She gave him a beaming smile. “I fully expect you to punish me for being such a naughty girl later, though.”

  “I’ll take that under consideration,” he promised as he pulled a pair of shorts from his suitcase and slid them up his thighs. “Now go get dressed.”

  The woods were not as quiet as Luke expected them to be. Not only were the four of them stomping through and cracking branches underfoot, but all manner of creatures from cicadas to birds were composing a swelling symphony that seemed to crescendo as the day wore on. Cap gave them a few gun safety rules as they walked deeper to where his targets were set up in a wide open space. He’d obviously cleared away the trees just for this purpose.

  “Here, put these on.” He handed them each a pair of headphones from a camouflage backpack slung over his shoulder. “Who wants to go first?”

  Luke volunteered as he thought it was expected of him. In actuality, he was nervous as hell and felt he could go the rest of his life with never owning or shooting a gun. They just gave him a sick feeling. His dad hadn’t been into guns, nor either of his grandfathers. It just wasn’t a thing in his family. His in-laws were different. Ba
rbara’s dad and brother had invited him to shoot at a range close to DC a few times, but he always declined.

  Calvin Sr. showed him how to stand and aim. He lowered the handgun, which felt small but powerful in his grasp, lining it up with the target. He pulled the trigger, and in a split second, it popped into the target toward the outer ring of the bullseye.

  “That’s not bad,” Cap said. “Let’s try it again.”

  When it was Connie’s turn, she stepped up, let Cap put her in position, then she fired a perfect shot right into the center of the target. She didn’t even crack a smile.

  “What the hell? You’ve been holding out on us!” Cap cheered. “Great shot!”

  She had gone along with it when all the men assumed she had a novice status like Luke. “My dad only had daughters, so he shared his love of guns with us. He used to take us out hunting in the woods with him when we were little.”

  “Wow, Casey too?” Cap mused. Luke suspected his outdoorsman friend was also trying to picture Casey, who always looked so meticulously dressed and coiffed, out in the woods with a shotgun hunting wild animals.

  By the end of the lesson, Luke was reminded once again not to underestimate Connie. She was a damn good shot. Maybe I should let her go to the office with me this afternoon, he thought as they headed back to the club. But then he remembered how scared he was of anything happening to her and made a firm final decision to make her stay behind.

  Calvin Jr. arrived with lunch, which was welcome after their trek through the woods. Connie scarfed down her meal and leaned over to whisper in Luke’s ear, “How long before we leave for the office?”

  “An hour,” he answered, knowing Calvin wanted to get a few things done at the club to prepare for Saturday night’s party before they left. “But you’re not going with me.”

  “Oh, come on!” She folded her arms under her chest and pursed her lips. “You saw how I shoot. You don’t think I’d be an asset? You know, besides knowing the damn system you’re breaking into.”