Murder Beach — No Rest for the Righteous

As the two men approached the scene of the shooting, they moved carefully, mindful of the danger they might encounter. Darkness had rolled in from the east, casting the ocean in a churn of cascading shadows and the headlights of the cars were shooting out slanted pools of light, revealing the carnage Chance had left behind. Mike and Rick were both still struggling with their injuries, crawling along the ground, trying to get into the safety of darkness. Chance signaled for Linus to stop, then motioned for him to remain in darkness.

Chance moved into the light and said, “That’s far enough, Jacobs. Tell Mike to stand down, or I’ll start shooting.”

Rick’s answer was quick and vehement. “Fuck you, asshole. I’m not doing shit for you. When I get out of this, you are dead. It won’t be a quick death, either.”

Chance replied calmly. “Do what I tell you all put two bullets in your throat.”

Rick laughed and sputtered, “Killing me won’t save you. The company will come for you, your friend, your girlfriend. Everyone.”

“Not before I see you die. For every one of mine you take, I will kill three of yours. Eventually, even a bunch of thugs like you and your friends will understand that going after me is a losing proposition.”

Rick swore and turned toward pikes location. “Mike! Stand down. Leave Marlena alone. It’s over.” He laid back, resting his head on the beach.

Chance motioned for Linus to watch Rick and ran down to where he had shot Mike. He figured he could not have gotten far with the shattered knee and had to be near the same place he had been when they reentered the scene. As he approached, he could see that Mike was looking around for Marlena. He was pointing his gun first in one direction and then the other. Even badly wounded, it was clear Mike had no intention of standing down.

Chance worked his way around behind Mike and then came forward, walking closer to the light, though remaining in darkness. He pulled his hat low, concealing his face.

Mike heard his approach and whirled around as best he could with his damaged knee. “Come closer, shit face. Walk into the light and I’ll blow your fucking nuts off. You son of a bitch, you dirty son of a bitch.”

Chance waited for Mike to turn his back, then leaped into the light, catching the wounded man from behind, and put his gun at the base of Mike’s skull. “Drop your gun. I won’t tell you again.”

Mike stiffened, paused as if to resist, then relaxed and threw his gun aside, realizing he was out of options. “Who the fuck are you? How are you involved in this?”

Chance ignored the question and jabbed the gun against the back of mike’s head. He looked around and found the rope Marlena had cast aside. “Put your hands behind your back or I’ll grind my foot into what’s left of your knee.”

“Kiss my ass. Show me your face,” growled Mike.

Chance put his foot on Mike’s wounded knee and shifted his full weight against it. “How about now?”

“Okay, okay,” screamed Mike. “Just stop.”

“Put your arms behind your back and cross your wrists. Now,” said Chance, evenly.

Mike did as he was told. Chance wrapped the rope around each wrist and tied it firmly.

“Lay down on your stomach, then rollover.”

Mike squinted, attempting to get a better look at Chance’s face, then slowly assumed a prone position, wincing as he put pressure on his knee.

“Satisfied?”

Chance took off his hat and covered Mike’s face. “He jabbed the gun against Mike’s throat. “Don’t move.” He reached down and unbuckled Mike’s belt, then removed it.

Mike struggled to sit up. “What the hell? Don’t touch me.”

“Relax,” said Chance as he repositioned himself near Mike’s injured knee. “I’m going to put a tourniquet on your leg before you bleed to death.”

“Why the fuck would you care? You a cop?”

Chance pulled the belt tight around Mike’s leg, causing him to excel sharply. “Don’t ask too many questions. If I see you try to crawl away, I’ll shoot your other leg.”

Mike twisted his head around, hoping to identify his attacker. “I’m not going anywhere, asshole.”

Chance got up and walked out of the light, moving quickly to join Linus. When he got close, he motioned to Linus and held his index finger to his lips, showing that he needed to remain quiet. He motioned for Linus to follow him, and they walked toward Rich Jacobs car. As they neared the burning Charger, they found Rick rolling on the sand, moaning and holding his injured hand to his chest. Chance turned and motioned for Linus to stay out of the headlights.

Chance pulled his hat low over his head and walked toward Rick, his head down, proceeding carefully to stay on the edge of the light.

“Your hand is badly injured, and if it’s not treated soon, they’ll probably have to amputate. You’ve been shot in the shoulder and it’s still bleeding. Between your hand in your shoulder, it’s likely you might bleed to death. I suggest you not move around too much, or you’ll die. The best you can hope for is that someone arrives before you do.”

Rick felt weak and dizzy, and he was in no mood for a fight. Something about Chance made him uneasy. “I hear you. Get out of here.”

Chance did not reply. Instead, he motioned for Linus to follow him and they began running in the direction they had last seen Marlena heading.

The half-moon was supplying just enough light for them to navigate, depending on the bright pool from Chance’s small hi-lumen flashlight to search for Marlena’s footprints.

Chance ran closer to Linus and said, “We must verify that Marlena is safe. I saw her run in this direction after I shot Mike in the knee.”

“Why don’t we call for her, let her know who we are?” asked Linus.

Chance stopped running then turned toward Linus. “Look, we have to maintain our anonymity. Otherwise, the organization that it involves Rick Jacobs with will come after us. Not just you and me, but they would also kill Julie and Marlena.”

“They already know Marlena. It will be easy for them to find her.”

Chance nodded and looked across the rolling grasses of the upper beach, past Linus, towards the highway, expecting to see the headlights of the arriving authorities. “You’re not going to want to hear this.”

Linus grabbed Chance’s elbow. “What are you talking about?”

“The people that Rick Jacobs works for cannot let this event go unpunished. They will look for who did this, and they won’t give up. They’ll start by threatening Marlena, attempting to use her to get to us. Regardless of how that goes, they will kill her anyway.”

“There must be something we can do,” said Linus.

“The people that are coming here will know what to do. I’ll try to keep tabs after we get out of this, but I’m sure that they will have to put her in a witness protection program. It’s the only way she will survive.”

Linus shook his head. “She’ll lose her career. Her life never be the same.”

Chance patted Linus shoulder. “I know it’s hard. I know you felt something for Marlena. But now, she will have a life. Even if it’s not the one she would have wanted. I’m afraid you won’t ever see her again.”

Linus was quiet for a moment, then he said, “I know you’re right. I do. Let’s go find her, make sure she’s doing all right, then we can head back for your pickup and get out of here.”

It wasn’t long before they found Marlena meandering north along the access road, limping because she had lost one shoe. They watched her for a moment to determine that she would make it. Then Chance saw a group of headlights speeding north on the highway.

“That’s them. The police should be here any moment and they will take care of Marlena. We have to run.”

They ran south along the uneven Beach Road. As they neared the site of the shooting, chance suggested they run up towards the highway and run along the beach grasses so they would leave no prints to follow. After two hundred yards, they worked their way down to the beach and began running along the wet sand just above the waves that crawled up toward them.

When they got to the pickup Chance took off his shirt and handed it to Linus. He winced as he felt the pain in his shoulder from the bullet wound. “Take my shirt and hold it over the dome light until I get in close my door; after I get in I’ll hold the shirt over the dome light and you get in. We can afford to give ourselves away, and even a dome light at night can be seen from a long distance.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” said Linus. “You’ve got me this far in one piece, so whatever you say is good enough for me.”

Chance guided the pickup down to the ocean and into the shallow, foaming waters that were washing up the dark beach. Then he quickly turned his pickup South and continued toward Ocean Shores until they reached the next beach access road and turned south on Highway 109.

When the lights of the Four Queens casino came into view , Chance wondered if what they had done would change the lives of everyone in Oyehut Cove. Unlike the small local casinos that populated the western coast, the Four Queens casino was a well-run operation and important to local businesses. He knew that soon a Sunami of grim news and unwelcome changes would soon be imposed upon this peaceful community.

They parked near the rear exit. Chance pointed to the back seat. “Could you hand me my jacket? Wouldn’t want to frighten the civilians.”

Linus grabbed the jacket and motioned for Chance to lean forward. “Can you get your left arm through?”

Chance nodded. “Yeah. It’ a flesh wound, missed the bone by an inch. It looks worse than it is.”

“Always the hero, tough guy? I won’t tell Julie if you cry.”

“Right. Not my style. Could probably get a lot of sympathy from her, maybe get out of going to her parents anniversary.”

“She’s too smart to fall for that. Besides, you’re a lousy actor.”

Chance laughed. “True. Hand me the towel on in the side storage bin on your right. I want to make sure it doesn’t start bleeding in the casino.”

Linus and Chance got out slowing, checking for trouble or someone watching them. They hurried toward the back door, trying to be casual. Chance was checking his peripheral vision and looking for movement in the reflections from the hotel windows.

A noisy Shriner convention had descended upon the hotel, making it difficult to walk though the crowded lobby. Chance followed Linus as they weaved their way through the madding crowd. When they entered Hogan’s Alley, Chance spotted Julie sitting at the end of the long mahogany bar. A local cover band was belting out a Bob Seger standard, facilitating the middle-aged gamblers to relive their honky tonk youth, trying in vain to move with the grace and precision they once did.

As soon as Julie saw them, she jumped up and ran to chance and hugged him. “I was so worried. I kept thinking of all the things that could go wrong.” She stood on her tip toes and kissed Chance, hugging him fiercely. “Please tell me that Marlena is still alive.”

Chance struggled to resist, reacting noticeably to the pain that pierced his right shoulder. They ended the embrace quickly, and Chance took Julie’s hand and sat down beside her. He motioned to an open table away from the bar nested near one of the big windows that overlooked the players in the casino. “Let’s take the table by the window,” said Chance, pointing to a circular table a server had just finished cleaning. “I don’t want anybody overhearing our conversation.”

When they reached the table, Julie sat down between Chance and Linus, looking first at one, then at the other. “What’s wrong with your shoulder?”

Chance thought about denying the obvious, but decided it was better to get it out early. “I ducked a little too late on one of the shots Woody took. It’s not as bad as it looks. Missed the bone. I’ll be fine with a little TLC.”

Julie pursed her lips and sighed. “Fine. But you both look like shit. Please tell me you’re not going to be arrested.”

Both men stared back at her. She said, “Fess up. Chance, you look weird.”

Chance shrugged and looked at Linus. “Go ahead.”

“We had a rough time,” said Linus, leaning back and taking a deep breath. “The situation developed exactly in the sequence I remembered from my premonition.”

Julie nodded, “I remember. So, the gangsters, the cars on the beach, and Marlena tied up and struggling?”

Linus smiled and shook his head. “I know. It’s hard to believe. But we changed the events when we showed up.”

“Jesus, what did you do?” asked Julie.

“I mostly followed orders and tried to stay out of the way. But your boyfriend here, who sells himself as an unassuming game warden, suddenly became Joe Commando and took charge when the shit hit the fan. Soon as we heard the first few shots, all hell broke loose, and while Chance was dealing with Rick Jacobs, I was watching for the other men when I was taken hostage by a dick named Woody.”

Julie grinned and looked down.

“What?” asked Linus.

“Nothing,” said Julie, returning to a more serious posture. “How on earth did you get away?”

“Chance turned into Will Kane, and bullets were flying everywhere.”

Julie wrinkled her eyebrows. “Who?”

Linus looked exasperated. “I keep forgetting you’re not a movie buff like me. Gary Cooper played Will Kane in the movie, High Noon, back in the fifties.”

“High Noon?”

Linus shook his head and was about to explain when he saw Chance was laughing.

“Never mind. I must be getting older than I realized. He was sorta like Rambo.”

“Rambo?” Asked Julie with an amused look on her face.

Linus realized she was egging him on.” Let’s let Chance explain.”

Julie turned to Chance and said, “Tell me more about what condition Marlena was in when you left her.”

Chance sat up and pulled his jacket tighter across his left shoulder. “She was walking with difficulty because she had lost one of her shoes. She kept looking behind her because she was scared and didn’t realize what we had done to save her. Her dress had been torn off one shoulder and her hair wet with sand. I have excellent eyesight so I can tell you that even though she was disheveled, she was not seriously hurt. There was no blood. I was concerned about her going into shock. I watched her long enough to make sure that was not going to happen. When we saw the lights from the police cars approaching, we took off running as fast as we could, heading south along the beach till we got to the truck and then we drove along the beach until he got here.”

Julie eyed Chance suspiciously. “I think you left a lot out there. Linus being taken hostage, you shooting at other people, you getting a bullet wound in your shoulder, police cars coming, Marlena being dragged into the ocean, the owner of this casino involved with a crime syndicate, him trying to kill you. Just a few minor issues.”

“You’re right. I left a lot out. I don’t think it’s a good idea to talk about the situation any further. We need to leave the casino as soon as possible.” Chance suggested that they leave immediately and drive to his house so that Julie could help him with his bullet wound and they would be out of the public eye. Chance suggested that they all take their own cars to leave no reason for the police to be sniffing around.

An hour later, after Julie had cleaned and dressed Chance’s bullet wound, Chance and Linus had both taken showers and threw their clothes in the wash. Chance gave Linus a faded pair of jeans and a Husky sweatshirt to wear. Julie was cooking up a quick dinner of hamburger steak with brown gravy and mashed potatoes. The cooking smells from the kitchen, Julie working in the kitchen, and both the men now wearing clean clothes helped to lend a much-needed normalcy to their lives.

Chance suggested they wait outside on the deck. “How a about a beer?” he asked as he padded into the kitchen.

“Bring the six pack.”

“I heard that,” replied Chance as he grabbed the beer and joined Linus on the deck. He could see that Linus was a long way from a normal pulse. “Let’s relax for a moment and talk about something else until Julie tells us dinner is ready.”

Linus nodded and found a deck chair facing the ocean. He tried a breathing exercise to help himself , but it had little effect. He leaned back and stretched his muscles. He closed his eyes and tried to erase the images of their encounter with Rick Jacobs from his mind.

“Can’t stop thinking about our adventure?” asked Chance, handing him a beer.

“You know me. Just this side OCD.”

Chance sat down, opened his beer and took a long swig. “Don’t be hard on yourself. Most civilians would’ve fallen apart. You did fine. Really.”

Linus smiled weakly and raised his beer to Chance. “Thanks, bud. You came back for me, never gave up. Even after you got shot. Means a lot. You know I’ve got your back forever. Just don’t ask me to shoot anybody.”

Chance grinned, leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

As soon as they heard Julie call them for dinner, both men came back into the kitchen and helped her carry everything out onto the deck where they could get some fresh air as they watched the black ocean sending its waves banging up to shore. They all agreed to enjoy the dinner and then continue the discussion about the evening’s events afterward.

It was Julie who pushed her plate away, poured herself a large Sangria, and spoke first. “What if they find out it was both of you who spoiled their party?”