Midnight Rambler: A Novel of Suspense

I dropped my car at a body shop in Dania, and Russo drove us to the Sunset. He parked in the lot and left the engine idling. It was another beautiful day in paradise, and we sat in his car and watched waves crash against the shoreline.

“I've got a gang examining the Skell file,” Russo said. “Half of homicide, two investigators from Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and one of those crackerjacks from the FBI. I'd bring in the Boy Scouts if I thought it would do any good.”

“Nothing, huh?”

“Actually, there is something I think we can use.”

I felt a spark of hope. “What did you find?”

“Melinda Peters.”

“But she testified at the trial. The judge has already heard her.”

“I read her testimony and compared it with the deposition she gave before trial,” Russo said. “Her testimony at the trial was shorter. She left out some really sick things that Skell did to her when she was locked up in the dog crate in his house.”

“She was traumatized by the experience, so the prosecutor toned it down,” I explained. “It was the only way Melinda would agree to testify.”

“Would she tell the whole story now?”

I shook my head. Victims of sexual crimes were slow to heal and sometimes never healed at all. I couldn't see Melinda reliving the experience.

“I want a judge to hear what happened to her,” Russo said. “It's hard evidence that Skell is a sexual predator. Predators can be held in jail indefinitely in Florida if they're considered a threat.”

“But Skell wasn't put in prison for being a sexual predator.”

“It doesn't matter. If the judge determines that he is one, the state will hold him. It's called the William's Law, and we'll ask him to invoke it.”

I shook my head again. I didn't see Melinda doing it.

“Melinda likes you, doesn't she?” Russo asked.

“What does that have to do with this?” I asked.

“You can talk to her,” Russo said. “Take her out to dinner, beg her; hell, sleep with her if you have to, but get her to help us. She's our last chance.”

Melinda's coming on to me was still fresh in my mind. She probably would agree to testify if I tricked her by lying about my feelings, but I wasn't going down that road.

“I'll try,” I said.

I got out and retrieved Buster from the backseat. Russo backed out of the spot and pulled up alongside me. He leaned out his open window.

“I'll be by later this afternoon with the transmitter, and we can run those list of partial license plates,” I said.

“You do that,” Russo said. “Oh, by the way. I don't take IOUs. You still owe me three hundred bucks for the repairs on my Suburban.” Before I could tell him I didn't have the money, Russo drove away.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

The ocean had turned rough.

With my flippers propelling me through the choppy waves, I swam to the spot where I believed the transmitter had sunk, stopped to adjust my mask, and dove down.

Nearing the ocean floor, I stopped as a sand shark with a mouthful of frightening-looking teeth and small darting eyes swam past. Having spent my life swimming in Florida's waters, I'd encountered sharks many times and did not fear them. They were docile creatures, generally content to prey on smaller fish and roam with other sharks.

The sand shark left, and I resumed my search. The ocean floor was covered in a brownish silt. Hovering about it, I paddled my flippers and moved the silt around. Broken seashells and an assortment of bottles and rusted cans appeared before my eyes, but no transmitter. I paddled for a minute, then went up for air.

Breaking the surface, I spotted Sonny on the shoreline, holding a cordless phone in his hand while looking up and down the beach.

“Over here,” I yelled.

Seeing me, Sonny started to wave.

“I've got a phone call for you.”

“Who is it?”

“Kumar.”

“What's he want?”

“He's got a job for you, helping some couple find their lost kid.”

“Tell him I'm busy.”

“For Christ's sake, Jack. Ralph is coming by tomorrow. What am I going to tell him?”

Ralph was the Sunset's long-distance owner and made a monthly appearance to make sure the place hadn't burned down. Normally, Sonny didn't care about Ralph's visits, and I guessed he was afraid Ralph might fire him over the busted TV. The idea that Sonny might lose his job because of something I'd done didn't sit right with me.

“Tell Kumar I'll take it,” I yelled back.

“For real?”

“Yeah, for real.”

Sonny relayed the message, then ended the call.

“Kumar said the couple is coming to his restaurant, and you can meet them in his office,” Sonny yelled.

“Right now?”

“Yeah.”

I couldn't deal with Russo and try to help Kumar's friends at the same time. I decided Kumar's friends could wait, and dove back down.

Nearing bottom, I encountered another shark. This one was six feet long, with a yellowish brown tint, dual dorsal fins, and small pointed teeth. I decided it was an adult lemon shark, which were extremely rare. Fisherman believed lemon sharks brought good luck, and I was half tempted to rub my hand across its back.