Deep Waters

ship cult in tow?"
    "Uh-huh." Charity swallowed another spoonful of delicious noodles. "Makes you wonder, doesn't it?"
    "Gwen's up to something, all right," Yappy said thoughtfully. "Must be cash in it somewhere. That woman always knew how to make money. Pitt was an idiot to dump her. Business hasn't been near as good for him since the divorce. Jennifer can't sell real estate the way Gwen could."
    "I'll tell you one thing." Newlin's fingers clenched around his can of pop with such force that the thin aluminum crumpled. "Gwendolyn Pitt shouldn't be al lowed to get away with what she's doing. She's ruining people's lives. My Arlene turned over every cent she had to that damn cult. Someone oughta take care of Gwendolyn Pitt for good."

3

    The most dangerous tides are those that swirl in the shallow waters close to shore where a man believes himself to be safe.

    - "On the Way of Water," from the journal of Hayden Stone

    "Things are looking up, Davis. The new owner says he's going to renew the leases."
    Charity scrunched the phone between her ear and her left shoulder so that she could use both hands to unpack a box of books that had just been delivered that morning. Although she had no competition as yet from other bookstores, she believed in getting the latest titles out onto the shelves as quickly as possible. Regardless of the size of a business, good service was the best way to ensure customer loyalty. She had salvaged the Truitt chain with that simple philosophy and saw no reason to alter it with Whispers.
    "You got contracts yet?" Davis asked with typical pragmatism.
    "No. And you don't have to tell me that nothing is for sure until the paperwork is signed in September, but this guy is a little off-beat. Definitely not your typical business mentality. I think we may be out of the woods."
    "He knows about the town's plans for Crazy Otis Landing, and he still wants to renew the leases at the old rates?" Davis still sounded skeptical.
    "That's what he says." Charity smiled as she discovered twenty copies of the latest Elizabeth Lowell re lease in the box she had just opened. She had a long waiting list of readers who were eagerly awaiting the popular author's newest title.
    "What kind of an idiot did you get for a landlord, Charity? Must be a life-is-like-a-box-of-chocolates kind of guy."
    "Not exactly. He's more of a noodle type."
    "Noodle? As in limp?"
    Charity grinned in spite of herself. "Wrong image, Davis. Try a life-is-like-water-but-if-the-water-is-muddy-you-don't-get-a-good-reflection kind of guy."
    "That doesn't sound like much of an improvement."
    "Actually, he's a little hard to explain." After ten days of having Elias in the vicinity, Charity found him more intriguing than ever. Her curiosity and her fasci nation were both growing daily. "Anyway, about the leases. As I told you, we're not in the clear yet. But you know me and my intuition. Something tells me that Winters isn't likely to change his mind next month."
    "The new owner's name is Winters?" Davis asked sharply.
    ''That's right. Elias Winters."
    "I'll be damned." Davis whistled softly. "There wouldn't be any connection to Elias Winters of Far Seas, Inc., would there?"
    "Yes. You know him?"
    "Not personally." Davis paused. "But I've heard about him. Very low-profile, very high-impact. Has important connections all over the Rim. Knows the right people."
    "He said something about being a consultant."
    "Word has it that if you need help establishing business relationships in certain quarters, he can open doors. For a price. He can also close them, if you get my drift."
    "I see. How come I've never heard of him?"
    "He's strictly Pacific Rim, and Truitt wasn't involved in Rim trade when you were at the helm. But lately Meredith and I have been thinking about expanding again. Winters's name came up when I started exploring certain possibilities."
    "Hmm."
    "Far Seas is apparently a one-man operation," Davis continued. "Winters seems to have carved out a unique niche for himself. He handles business negotiations in small, out-of-the-way places that others ignore. Speaks two or three obscure languages that no one else can be bothered to learn. His clients are usually very rich and very low-profile. The kind of big-money movers and shakers who avoid the spotlight. Are you sure you're dealing with that Elias Winters?"
    "That's who he claims to be. What's wrong?"
    "I'm not sure," Davis admitted. "But I can tell you that, from what I've heard about him, he