Jack Beale 00 - Dangerous Shoals

but then they’d move on, because of its condition. Exactly what he needed right now. And as an added benefit, there was some pussy waiting for his return. He smiled.
    He could see that the beach was only a quarter of a mile or so down the road, so he turned and walked that way. As he walked, he thought about how he would make his plan work. It was risky, and time was against him. It had to be today. The longer he remained in the area, the greater the likelihood of being caught and even worse, failing. Now that the pain in his hand was fully masked by the painkillers, he was starting to feel like his old self again. He had just about convinced himself that he could pull off the plan when he spotted his car. He stopped. A cop was standing next to it, writing a ticket. Reflexively he stepped into the small beach store to his right. Next to the door was the newspaper rack. He picked up a paper, and while feigning interest in the local news, he watched the cop. When the ticket was safely tucked under the windshield wiper, the cop turned and walked away from the car toward the beach. Luck was still with him. Kurt exhaled and felt the tension begin to leave his body.
    As he went to put the paper back on the rack, the headline caught his eye. He had been so intent on watching the cop, he hadn’t seen it, even though he was looking straight at it. PHARMACIST AND CLERK MURDERED. His heart began to pound and suddenly he felt as if everyone in the store was staring at him. He took a deep breath, lowered the paper, and slowly looked around. Nobody was even looking his way. He reached into his pocket for change and as calmly as he could, he walked over to the counter, flashed the paper at the inattentive clerk, and dropped the change on the counter. “Have a nice day,” the clerk said to the back of Kurt’s head as he left the store.
    When he reached his car, he ripped the ticket out from under the wiper blade. “Fuckin’ A,” he mumbled. As he unlocked his door, he heard a gentle honk behind him. He looked around, and saw another car already waiting for his spot. The man at the wheel smiled and waved at him. Kurt forced a smile and returned the wave, opened the door, got in, started his car, and pulled out. As he drove away, he glanced in his rearview mirror. One very happy vacationer had just scored a great parking spot.
    He drove back to the motel and parked in front of room number nine. Before getting out he opened the paper and read the story of last night’s murders. When the pharmacist hadn’t come home, and had ignored several calls to his cell phone, his wife had called the police. They found the store locked, but the alarm hadn’t been set and his car was still there. When they finally got in, they found the two bodies. The police chief had made a generic statement, and no information was given as to any evidence that may have been recovered. Kurt knew that there would be none. A reward was posted, pleas for help were expressed, and the Crime Line phone number was listed.
    He was just finishing the story when door number nine opened and Holly stepped out. She was still wearing the same revealing shirt and shorts, and she smiled at him. She had a coffee in her hand and he could see her saying, “Aren’t ’cha coming in?” Since his windows were up and his car was still running with the a/c on, he couldn’t hear the actual words, but he knew. He nodded and put the paper down, forcing another smile. She turned and with a less-than-subtle shake of her ass, she disappeared into the room.
    Despite his hand, the news, and the parking ticket, he still felt pretty invincible. A few hours with Holly would be entertaining while he waited to finish the job.

CHAPTER 93
    JACK FELT REJUVENATED after his run. He still had a couple more hours before Max would be out of work, so he had some time to kill. Even though they had talked only a few hours before, he called Tom. He had heard nothing new about Kurt or the disc. No medical facilities had seen anyone matching either his description or the wound that they were convinced he had. “But what about the break-in in Amesbury where the pharmacist was killed?” pressed Jack.
    “Nothing. I just talked with the Amesbury police again, and they seem convinced that it was a simple robbery gone bad. I offered my thoughts about Kurt, but I got the feeling that they were just humoring me. You know, if someone came to me with the same story, I probably wouldn’t take it too