The wind picked up, and thunder began its low rumble across the sky. The air temperature dropped, and I shivered. If it was true that someone killed Boone a world away, then it seemed like Vivi was in terrible danger too. All this time, I’d thought her only fear was being charged with murder. But maybe staying alive was the true concern.
If I was really honest with myself, maybe it was a big concern for me too. The sideswipe and the fire might have been more than someone trying to scare me. They might have been failed attempts on my life. I should have realized this earlier. I guess I had been in denial because I couldn’t figure out why someone would want to kill me. But I wasn’t in denial anymore.
If someone took Boone out, they would have thought Vivi was their sole remaining obstacle. Until I came along. Maybe someone wasn’t after me for what I’d learned, but for what I’d inherited. And Vivi too. Maybe they thought Boone’s death would break Vivi and she’d sell the bar. I needed to ask Vivi if she’s had any recent offers to buy the Sea Glass. If she had and she’d refused, they—whoever they were—might have changed tactics. If that didn’t work, killing Elwell behind the bar and making her a prime suspect might do the trick.
But who knew that I was now part owner of the bar? I’d only told Joaquín, and I was guessing Vivi hadn’t told anyone or I would have heard about it.
That left the lawyer. Our lawyer.
CHAPTER 37
Ed. Who I’d sat out on this very porch with a couple of nights ago, discussing who might have killed Elwell. I thought I was so clever talking to him, when all the while he was finding out what I knew and what I planned to do next. Vivi! Ed could get to her under any number of pretenses if he thought his plan was falling apart. I could picture him telling her I’d decided to sell my share of the bar. Could he come over to talk to her about it? Or maybe he’d just drop by, like he had here the other night.
I called Vivi’s landline. No answer. Bits of anxiety rushed and swirled around me, pelting at me like blowing sand. I shoved on flip-flops and raced out to my car as I called Joaquín. Overreacting. That’s what you’re doing. She’s out with friends. Or sound asleep. I leaped into the car. It didn’t start. No lights. No noise like it wanted to start. I’d just driven it home without any problem.
I got Joaquín’s voice mail. Told him to call Vivi. Told him my worry about the lawyer. As I got out of the car, I heard a branch snap on the other side of the car. It hit me that the brand-new floodlights weren’t on. Lightning flashed and illuminated two grinning cowboys. I bolted.
“Dang it. Now we’ve got to chase her. If you weren’t scared of fire, this would be over.”
I dashed around the side of the house through the scrub brush and soft sand. I heard them grunting behind me like two wild pigs as I kicked off my flip-flops. At least I didn’t have cowboy boots on. Something pierced my foot, but I kept on running, even though it stung. I’d learned when I was ten to keep going or you died. Those were my two choices now.
“You might have escaped us in your car on the bridge, but not tonight,” one of them yelled.
“You can run, girl, but you’ll only die trying,” the other yelled.
Their laughter followed me as I sped down to the surf to find the hard sand. I raced eastward toward Vivi’s house. Maybe it wasn’t too late. Maybe I was fast enough to outrun these guys. Shouts rang out behind me.
The Gulf was riled up. Waves crashed. Lightning flashed again, closer this time. Made it easy for the cowboys to spot me. The waves and lightning took me back to my ten-year-old self for a moment, and I slowed. Lake Michigan had been riled up with waves bigger than these. I tried to look forward, not focus on the waves on the Gulf or the waves of my past. The air choked me and I couldn’t breathe.
I risked a glance back now. I had to stay in the present. To fight. I could see one cowboy was struggling about twenty yards behind me. His cowboy boots and jeans slowing him down, making him flounder in the sand. Like I’d floundered in the water eighteen years ago. Where was the other cowboy?
I forced myself on and ran as fast as I could, passing the stand of pines up the beach, weighing my options. Continue on the hard sand where I was faster, or cut up to Vivi’s house, which I could see now? Vivi’s dark house. Please, be sleeping. But if they were after me tonight, they were probably after her. Maybe their boss—Ann? The lawyer?—was at Vivi’s now. Someone Vivi trusted and would invite in without question. Now I was coming up with conspiracy theories—at least I hoped that’s what they were. But the men chasing me said otherwise.
I fished my cell phone out of my back pocket without breaking stride. Dialed 911 and gave them Vivi’s address. Told them there was a possible intruder and a medical emergency. I would have told them anything if I thought it would make them get there faster.
I started to angle up toward Vivi’s house when I heard the whine of an engine. I looked back as a dune buggy with the other cowboy in it flew over a dune. It bucked and rocked. I hoped it would flip over, but it righted itself and headed straight for me. I didn’t know if I could make it to Vivi’s house before it caught up with me. But I would die trying if I had to.
The driver must have decided it would be easy to catch me, because he detoured to pick up his partner. Keep going, I told myself. Stride, stride, glance back. Both the cowboys were in the dune buggy now. Whooping and hollering like I was the calf they were going to rope at the rodeo. Like this was some game.
I propelled myself forward and made it to the steps that led to the long, wooden sidewalk that went over the dunes to Vivi’s house. I could run faster here, but my foot hurt more each time it slammed down on the splintered wood. I forced myself to ignore the pain. I wasn’t sure what I was running toward, but I knew what I was running from.
I made it to Vivi’s back porch. Her back door was wide open. That wasn’t good. It was still dark in the house, and I wasn’t about to flip on any lights. I closed the door gently and flipped the lock. The lightning flashes picked up, which helped me move through the house without tripping over anything, but also had me cringing. I didn’t want to call out to her or cry out accidentally because of the storm. Once I reached the front door, I unlocked it quietly. Hoping it would let the deputies in faster. Hoping it wouldn’t help the cowboys.
I stopped and listened, which wasn’t easy to do as the thunder rumbled closer and the wind lashed out. A scraping sound came from upstairs. A moan. I couldn’t stand there and do nothing. There was a large, black umbrella with a curved wooden handle and a long, pointy end in a stand by the front door. It wasn’t much as weapons went, but it was better than nothing. That’s what they’d said in the self-defense-for-librarians class I’d taken—use whatever you can. I started up the steps, staying toward the edge, hoping they wouldn’t creak. Hoping the thunder would cover any sounds I made. At the top, I stopped and listened again, pressed against the wall before stepping into the hall.
“Got it,” a male voice said. “I’ll take care of her, but get your asses up here. Bust a window if you have to. I can’t do everything.”
Ed Ashford. I figured what he was going to “take care of” was me. That the cowboys must have called him to let him know I was in the house. I glanced back toward the front door, wishing I could run outside and just keep going until I was back home in Chicago. Not possible. Focus.
I poked my head out to look down the hall just as Ed turned to come down the steps. We stared at each other for a millisecond. Then I hooked the umbrella handle around the back of Ed’s knee and yanked. His knee gave out. I pulled him toward me, then let go of the umbrella. Watched him tumble down the steps. Yelling and cursing until he smacked down on the floor. He lay at the bottom unmoving. Now silent.
I looked down at him, shocked that what I’d done had worked. Shivered at the image of his surprised eyes as he flew past me, the sound of the thumps as he somersaulted down the stairs.
“Vivi?” I yelled. Where the heck were the deputies? This town wasn’t that big.
�
��Take a left. Third room on the right.” That was followed by some swearing.
Vivi sounded as mad as a drunk customer who’d gotten cut off. And it was one of the best sounds I’d ever heard. I hobbled toward her. Finally feeling how hurt my foot was. Trying to move quietly because I knew the cowboys were still out there. As I reached Vivi, who was tied to a chair in her bedroom, I heard sirens.
* * *
Thirty minutes later, Michael sat beside me on Vivi’s living room couch while an EMT examined my foot. Joaquín sat next to Vivi on another couch, facing us. She’d leaned her head against the back of the couch, her face pale. Ed had been hauled off in handcuffs, and the cowboys were caught out on the beach.
“Ed told me he killed Elwell. Set me up for it by taking a channel knife he saw me use.” Vivi sat up. “He hired those two thugs to go after Chloe.”
“At least this time, the third time, wasn’t a charm,” I said.
“That bastard was going to chum the water around his boat and toss me in and leave me to the sharks.”
There was a group shudder as that sunk in. What a terrible way to die. How diabolical for Ed to have thought about killing Vivi that way. It would have seemed like a tragic accident. But Vivi and I had survived. I knew overcoming this night and its aftermath would be easier than overcoming my friend’s death when I was ten.
Back then, my dad had gently encouraged me, along with a therapist, to get back in the water. To not let water hold any power over me. I’d taken that advice. Probably to the extreme. Always wanting to conquer some new water sport to prove I wasn’t afraid. Running, trying to stay strong, so I could survive. I’d learned that it was okay to survive. Not easy, but okay. It had helped me through Boone’s death too. Maybe that’s why Boone wanted me here. Maybe that was what he wanted me to help Vivi with. Survival.
I looked over at Vivi, spitting mad, strong, determined. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe Boone wanted Vivi to help me.
“It’s hard to believe Ed sat in the bar day after day, knowing he’d framed Vivi. That he’d killed Elwell,” I said.
Rhett stood near the front door, arms crossed over his chest. He’d shown up after the deputies, along with most of the volunteer fire department and the EMTs. When Rhett saw me limping, he’d carried me over to the couch so an EMT could look at my foot. Most of the other firefighters had left, but Rhett had declined to go with them.
“Ouch,” I said. I tried to draw my foot away, but the EMT held firm.
“You need stitches,” she said.
“I’m sure it will be fine.” Vivi’s wood floors had dots of blood on them where I’d traipsed around the house.
Everyone started to protest.
Michael stood up. “I’ll take her to the hospital. Joaquín, you stay with Vivi.”
I hobbled over to Vivi and took her hand. “I can stay.”
“No,” she said, “get your foot looked after. Thank you for coming. I’ve misjudged you, and yet you stayed.” She tightened her grip for a minute, then released my hand.
I had stayed, but I knew I wouldn’t for much longer.
CHAPTER 38
Wednesday morning at eleven, there was a sign on the Sea Glass’s sliding glass doors saying there was a private event. My foot was stitched, bandaged, and sore, so I’d missed my morning run. The storm had blown through and the beach was packed with people enjoying the weather. In here, it wasn’t as festive. There was no island music playing over the speakers. The heritage business owners were all here, as was Ann Williams.
Last night at the hospital, I’d told Michael my terrible fear that Ed Ashford had Boone killed. He’d pulled me aside this morning. Michael had found out, through his old Navy connections, that Ed didn’t have anything to do with Boone’s death. The military had found videos taken by insurgents the day Boone was killed. One of them had done it. As sad as it was, I was glad, because it would have been difficult for all of us, but especially for Vivi, to handle if Boone had been killed over someone wanting the bar. Michael had also managed to trace the IP address of the bad reviews posted after Elwell was killed to Ed.
Vivi and I had a long, hard talk about Ann, the bar, Boone, and my 25 percent ownership. It was interrupted when everyone showed up.
Fred Russo’s head hung down so low, it almost touched the table.
“What is going on with you, Fred?” Vivi asked. She put a hand on his arm, and he lifted his head.
“Y’all may never speak to me again.”
“Better to just get it out there,” Wade said.
He sat on the other side of Vivi. Their arms were touching like they leaned on each other for support. Maybe the events of last night had changed things between them for the better. I hoped Wade’s love wouldn’t be unrequited.
“Elwell found out I’d been passing off farmed shrimp from overseas as Gulf shrimp. Farmed shrimp that was grown in polluted waters,” Fred said. “It saved me a bundle of money, but I shouldn’t have done it.”
I thought about the dinner I’d cooked the other night. Inferior shrimp from polluted waters. Ick.
“So he was blackmailing you?” Ralph’s voice boomed across the bar. “To vote for the new zoning regulations.”
“Ed and Elwell had a lot of resentment built up against all of you, and dollar signs in their eyes. I saw the designs they had drawn up for this stretch of beach. They already owned Two Bobs.”
“Why didn’t you just tell someone?” Vivi asked. “It would be embarrassing, but not the end of the world.”
“Because not long after Elwell started blackmailing me, someone started threatening my family. I was scared.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Might have been Elwell for all I know, just to keep me quiet.”
“Did the threats stop after Elwell died?” Vivi asked.
Fred look out at the Gulf with pursed lips. “No.”
“So it might have been Ed, just to keep you in line,” Vivi said. “Hopefully, the sheriff will find out.”
“Who was the man in the store last time I was there buying shrimp? The one who said you’d better deliver. The one you said was a supplier?” I asked.
“That was one of the prodevelopment councilman. He wanted to make sure I was going to deliver my vote. He knew I was vacillating.” He looked around the group. “In the end, no matter what, I wouldn’t have betrayed you. Betrayed Emerald Cove and all it is.”
I wasn’t sure that was true, but everyone else nodded. “Why did they resent the heritage owners?” I asked.
“It didn’t really make sense,” Fred said. “Your ancestors all started businesses and y’all worked hard to keep them going, but they thought y’all were entitled. When in reality, they were the ones who were. Wanted to snatch away what you’ve built without putting much work into it.”
Ralph leaned forward. “I heard from Delores that the councilman was picked up for questioning this morning. Probably won’t be long before he’s arrested and charged when they hear Fred’s testimony.”
“Elwell must have been wearing that armadillo shell to our businesses to drive customers away.” Vivi frowned. “Then he and Ed could get us to sell.”
“Seems like a long shot,” Ralph said.
“It seems like Ed had a two-pronged attack,” Vivi said. “Blackmail Fred so he’d give them the last vote they needed to change the zoning laws. And try to ruin our businesses so they could buy them cheap before the vote next month.”
“After the vote, the value would skyrocket,” Leah said. Oscar sat by her side. We had exchanged some long looks. Now he knew I wasn’t just some tourist.
“And they’d have some prime real estate to build their monster high-rises on,” Vivi said. She was still pale, which wasn’t surprising, considering what she’d been through the past couple of weeks.
“But why kill Elwell?” asked Ralph.
“I talked to someone who said Elwell was going off the rails. Ed couldn’t trust him to stay silent,” Ann said.
Ann had come to
my house this morning. I’d been sitting on the screened porch with my foot propped up, reading. She’d told me she’d contacted a Secret Service agent she knew after she’d thought about our conversation. What had started out as a small favor had turned into something bigger than she’d expected. “I won’t know who did it until we read it in the newspaper.” She had sounded a little frustrated.
“Is Oscar going to be in trouble?” I’d asked.
“I lied and kept him out of it. And Leah’s going to make sure he doesn’t have access to the glass-bottom boat, or any other boat at night.”
“What’s the deal with the two cowboys? Was Ed involved in the liquor smuggling too?”
“No. But they talked their heads off to the deputies. Bad dudes for hire by whoever would pay them.”
I nodded. I was finally convinced she was on our side. At least this time.
A knock on the sliding-glass door startled me back to the present. Rhett stood out there. Vivi looked long and hard. She glanced over at me. “Let him in.”
Rhett said his hellos, settled in a stool across from me, and smiled. “I’m glad you’re both okay.”
I smiled back. I was happy to see him. I noticed everyone at the table was watching us and refocused on the conversation.
“Delores heard Ed killed Elwell right outside Vivi’s door and made it look like she did it as another way to hurt the Sea Glass,” Ralph said.
“Boone had his will prepared up in Chicago. The lawyer up there sent it to Ed at my suggestion. Ed must have been furious to find out you owned a quarter of the business when he read Boone’s will to us.” Vivi shook her head. “It almost ruined his plan. Well, it did ruin his plan.”
Everyone gasped and looked at me. Vivi smiled. “Yes. You heard that right. Chloe and I are partners. Right?”
Rhett gave me a slow smile. My face warmed.
“Right,” I said. “But I’ll be a silent partner. I’m heading back to my job in Chicago tomorrow.” I glanced over at Rhett. He stared down at his hands. Nothing to see here, folks. It made me sad. Maybe I’d been hoping he’d leap up and say, “Don’t leave.” Not that that would have kept me here. It was for the best. Long-distance relationships rarely worked.
From Beer to Eternity Page 21
