Riptide (Sam McRae Mystery #3)

Chapter 11

I am so screwed. How could I help Jamila, if no one in this wretched backwater would talk to me?

It was coming up on 12:30 and I was starving. I stopped at a roadside stand that sold crab cakes and soft-shell crab sandwiches. Have you ever had a soft-shell crab? Full of green stuff. Don't ask. I bought a crab cake on a roll.

I checked the time. The hour for meeting with Jinx was closing in. I directed myself toward the Route 50 bridge and tried to prepare for whatever she had in store for me.

The trip to Java on the Beach was quick but stimulating. Negotiating Coastal Highway traffic in early summer has that effect. The June bugs were out in abundance. They drove, bicycled and scootered their way through the throng, willy-nilly. The roar of glasspacks competed with hopped-up Harleys and bullet bikes. The ambient air was a stew of exhaust.

I turned onto the side street leading to the parking lot near the boardwalk—surviving a near miss with a boy on a moped who shot in front of me at the last second.

I found a space—miracle of miracles!—near the ramp leading to the boardwalk. From there, I plunged into a crowd of tourists. People wearing T-shirts bearing messages like, "I'm with Stupid." The kind of thing that was new thirty years ago.

Java on the Beach was tucked between a gift shop and a video arcade. The place looked dead. I strolled in.

The small box of real estate contained a counter and a motley collection of round tables with chairs. The few customers sat silent or spoke in hushed tones.

I spotted Jinx against the far wall. When we made eye contact, she jumped up.

"Yoo hoo! Here I am."

I surveyed the tiny shop. "So I see."

I put in my order and waited for my coffee. Jinx sat at the table, watching me and looking ready to burst.

I took a seat opposite her and leaned on my forearms. "So. What is it we need to talk about?"

She gave me a look of sheer rapture, eyes aglow.

"Ray Mardovich," she said.

For a moment, I said nothing. Just waited.

Jinx smiled and waited, too.

I said, "What about him?"

Jinx leaned across the table. "I know what he did to you."

"What are you talking about?" I wasn't going down without a fight.

She placed a confidential hand on my arm. I wanted to shake it off, but chose to keep our meeting from becoming confrontational.

"He did the same thing to me." Her eyes revealed pain. Pain I could completely understand.

I smiled and faked a small laugh. "I'm still at a loss."

"Sam, please." It was as close to begging as I'd ever heard from Jinx's lips. "Don't insult my intelligence."

She paused, biting her lip. "I know Ray was seeing you. He was seeing me before he got involved with you."

It was June and we were sitting in a stuffy little café on the boardwalk. The ocean breeze had died and the place smelled like rotten fish. Even so, my insides turned to ice.

I swallowed and said, "How do you know this?"

"I have photos. I followed him to your place." She gave me a hard look. "There's even one of you two kissing on the stairs. See?"

She pulled out a digital camera and turned it on. In the viewfinder, I saw an image of the stairs leading up to my apartment. Ray and I stood on them, K-I-S-S-I-N-G.

Swell.

"Jinx," I said. "Let's get to the point, shall we? We aren't exactly best buds. And I don't think you invited me here for tea and sympathy."

She nodded. "You're right. Okay, look. Ray's all set to be installed as the president of the state bar association, right?"

"Uh huh."

"Don't you see? He doesn't deserve it."

"Oh, I don't know." This whole discussion was making me queasy.

"Are you going to let this womanizing creep climb the ladder of success? Don't you think we should say something to stop him?"

"You're saying 'we' as if you and I were some kind of team. Pretty ridiculous, given our history."

"Look." She averted her gaze, then refocused on me. "I know we haven't been the best of friends."

I snorted. "There's the understatement of the year. Maybe the decade."

"But," she continued, undaunted. "We've both been hurt by this man. I say we pool our forces and get some payback."

"Exactly what is it you want to do?"

"Expose him. Tell everyone what Ray did. We have the pictures to prove it."

Yeah. Pictures of me.

"Jinx, I suggest you do as I did. Forget about the asshole. Seeking revenge will only wreck your life."

"Sam. I'm doing this. With or without your help."

I sat and gawked at Jinx. She smiled like the cat that ate the canary.

"Figures," I said. "Leave it to you to resort to blackmail."

"I never—"

"Stop right there." I rose and held up my hand. "Now I'm asking you not to insult my intelligence, okay?"

"I only—"

"I said stop and I mean it." I hissed the words through clenched teeth and leaned in toward Jinx. She clammed up.

"Now, listen," I said. "I can't stop you, if you really want to do this. I have no control over your actions. But, please keep in mind you're hurting people needlessly. I don't know if that means anything to you, since you're so capable of hurting people to satisfy your own interests. Even so, I hope you'll consider what I've said.

"No matter what, understand this." I stopped and shook a finger in her face. "I will not be blackmailed. You can threaten all you want, but I will not knuckle under to your demands. And I will have no part of your scheme."

I turned and, over my shoulder, said, "Thanks for the coffee. This has been fun," as I walked away.

Jinx, who'd been mute throughout my mini-rant, finally said, "Wait. I have another proposition."

I stopped and shook my head. "Are you crazy? What could you possibly offer me?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

This I had to hear.

I strolled back and leaned upon my vacated chair. "Fine. What is it?"

"An exchange." Jinx's eyes narrowed. "Your good friend, Jamila's arrest has already made the news. Wouldn't it be nice to get the charges dismissed before things went any further? What if I could help you with that? Would you help me then?"