As Lynch took on the first few steps, the younger man remained frozen.
“What are we going to do with him?” Casper asked, pointing at Teddy’s bloodied body.
Lynch thought for a moment, then smirked. “Put him in a sack and sink his body in the deepest part of the channel.” He took one final look at the body, then chuckled and added, “Thanks for the idea, Ted.”
EIGHT
I found Scarlett out on the balcony, feasting on fritters and steamed shrimp while singing along to the Wayward Suns. She didn’t want to leave, but she knew what had happened and didn’t fight it. If it were any other night, we’d hang out until midnight, but Harper needed to go somewhere and relax.
I pinned a twenty beneath Scarlett’s empty glass, then said good night to Jack’s skinny, pale-faced nephew, Isaac. On the way to the door, Nick Alto caught me and told me that the Robalo was tied off at the marina, then offered me a drink. I thanked him but told him we were calling it an early night.
The four of us piled into the Tacoma with Atticus, and I drove us east. After a quick stopover at Harper’s place so she could pack a night bag, we pulled into our driveway on Palmetto Street.
Atticus sprang out from the truck and bounded up the stairs at the side of the house. We followed, me with Harper’s bag slung over my shoulder. The gray stilted house had been Ange’s and my home for over two years. It was simple, just twelve hundred square feet, but it used the space well. We’d purchased it more for the property than the house. The backyard extended to a narrow channel that weaved up into the Gulf, allowing us to make quick and convenient escapes out into open water.
While Harper showered, Ange and I went to work cleaning, seasoning, and grilling the lionfish. Half an hour later, we were all enjoying the succulent fresh seafood along with wild rice and green beans. When we finished, Ange mentioned that it would be fun to play a board game. My considerate wife had thought it would be nice for everyone to take their mind off things.
“How about RISK?” she suggested.
“Does that ever end well?” I said with a grin.
It was a game that I never played with Ange if I could help it, mainly because there was no winning. If I came out on top, she’d be angry at me for the rest of the night, and if I lost, she’d never let me hear the end of it.
“How about Monopoly?” Scarlett asked enthusiastically. She glanced at Harper and added, “Mom and Dad never want to play with me.”
“That’s because you always win,” I said. “Scar’s the Gordon Gekko of real estate.”
Scarlett steepled her fingers. “Greed is good,” she said in her best Michael Douglas impression.
Our daughter swayed the room, then slid the rectangular box with the white-mustached rich guy on the cover out from under the couch. We cleared the table and Scarlett quickly had the board out, the cards and money and pieces set.
We popped a few bags of popcorn, rolled the dice, and before long, we were all smiling and enjoying the friendly game. It was good to see Harper laugh and forget about what had happened, at least for a little while.
It only took an hour for Scar to have me yearning to go to jail every time I rolled. Once I was wiped clean, it didn’t take her long to finish off Ange as well. But Harper was giving her a run for her money.
I glanced at my dive watch, then handed Scarlett the bowl of popcorn. There was a lot on my mind that I wanted to talk to Ange about. After giving her a nod, we both rose, stretched, then shuffled toward the back door.
“We’re gonna be outside for a bit,” I said.
“They’re gonna track down the guy who attacked you,” Scarlett declared, keeping her eyes on her stack of money as she counted it.
“Play,” I said. “We’ll be back in soon.”
The air felt good out on the back porch with the ocean breeze off the water. We leaned against the railing and looked out, watching as the moonlight danced on the dark surface of the channel and listening to the palm fronds jostling overhead.
“Quite the story, huh?” I said. “I feel like these islands have more secrets than…”
Ange stared at me. She knew I was stalling.
“We’ve got to do something, Ange,” I said, my tone shifting from playful to serious.
“I know. No harm in at least checking out the Upper Keys. Looking around a little bit. See if we notice anything or anyone suspicious scouring for a lost Civil War treasure.”
I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her in close. My warrior woman wasn’t afraid of anything.
“Ange, there’s no one like you.”
After a few more minutes of talking and enjoying the fresh air, I slid my phone from my pocket and called Jack.
“You mind staying at the house with Harper and Scarlett for a few days?” I asked when he picked up on the third ring.
“You sure you don’t want me to tag along, bro?”
“I think we can handle it. Provided we even find the killer.”
There was a short pause.
“I’ll be there in the morning with Isaac.”
I thanked him, hung up, then Ange and I strode back inside.
“I won!” Scarlett exclaimed as we entered the living room. “Harper gave me a good run, but once I got Park Place and Boardwalk, it was all over.”
“You mean once you swindled me out of them,” Harper fired back with a chuckle, then tossed a handful of popcorn at the flaunting victor.
It was good to
