Read Falafel Jones - Max Fried 02 - Payback's a Beach for Free Online Page A

Inlet. I was headed out to the pool to discuss my plan with Mariel when my cell phone rang.
    “Max, Ed. We’re all ready. How soon can you get here?”
    “You found divers?”
    “Yeah, I called Coronado Scuba and hired a couple of their staff. They’re on their way. Meet us at my place ASAP.”
    “Just finished lunch. I’ll be right over.”
    “Good, the sea waits for no man.”
    I told Mariel I had to go and we made plans for later. When I pulled into Ed’s driveway, I had to park behind an SUV and a pickup I didn’t recognize. Sheila answered the door. “They’re out back.”
    When I got to Ed’s dock, I found him untying lines in preparation for releasing the Shimmering Sea. He called out, “You just made it,” and helped me on board. As Brenda motored the ship away from the dock, Ed said, “C’mon, I’ll introduce you to the crew.” We went below decks where two people in wetsuits leaned over a map on a table.
    Ed put his hand on one man’s shoulder. “Max, this is Chuck Luciano and that’s his partner Marty Farley.”
    In their black rubberized wetsuits, both men looked like actors auditioning for a Batman movie. Luciano appeared to be solid muscle and built like a rock but Farley looked like he could bench press Luciano with just one hand.
    They looked up and nodded at me. I nodded in return and they went back to their map.
    Ed leaned in to whisper, “I had an embarrassing moment when I accidentally referred to Marty Farley as Farty Marley…” Ed shrugged, “but then I got the impression he’d heard that before.”
    I shook my head in sympathy. “Considering his size, I can’t imagine anyone calling him that intentionally. So, why do you need me here?”
    “I need you to take custody of whatever we find, preserve the chain of evidence.”
    “Can’t you do that?”
    Ed raised an eyebrow. “How would that look? The Coast Guard couldn’t find it but the defendant’s father just happened to locate the murder weapon that exonerates his daughter. Brenda may be your client but you’re a professional investigator. You should have more credibility with a jury…” Ed sighed, “if need be.”
    “Forest OK with this?”
    “Yeah, he’s got a son and a daughter. I apologized for being heavy handed and he said he understood. Coffee?”
    “Sure, thanks.”
    Ed and I took our cups outside to the cockpit and I sat enjoying the ride while Brenda navigated the ship into the inlet. A few minutes south of the drawbridge, Brenda brought the boat to a halt and dropped the anchor. Luciano and Farley went over the side and we waited. Watching divers work is like watching submarine races. There isn’t much to see unless you like to look at bubbles. The divers surfaced a few times, gave the sign for “Nothing found,” and then moved on to another spot.
    As time passed, I started to enjoy just watching the water from the boat, excuse me, ship and I wondered if it would be uncool to take a nap. My eyes closed and almost made that decision for me when I heard Ed sputter. I looked out over the water and saw Floyd on his paddle board approaching us from shore. Then I heard the cabin door close as Brenda went below decks. Floyd paddled up to the Shimmering Sea and grabbed onto the ladder. Ed leaned over the side and demanded, “What do you want?”
    Floyd said, “I saw the divers. You’re too far east. That guy’s boat was further west.” Floyd pointed. “You need to look in that direction.”
    Ed waved dismissively, “Yeah, thanks. I’ll tell them. Goodbye.”
    Floyd stood there holding onto the ship. After a while, he seemed to realize Ed wasn’t going to pay him any more attention and Floyd paddled away.
    I closed my eyes again and enjoyed feeling the ship swaying and the sun warming my face. I dozed for a while until I woke myself up by snoring. I sat up to see if I missed anything and saw Brenda in the cockpit reading her Kindle and the two divers swimming up to the side of the Shimmering Sea .