Archery is a demanding sport, after all, and only through diligent practice can one hope to get any good at it. And since the only reason Tex, Chase and Alec were members of the club was because the price of the lukewarm beer they served in the clubhouse was the best price in town, they didnÆt stand a chance of ever going to the Olympic Games.
Carlotta Brook herself was there, of course, and so was CarlottaÆs husband Dennis, who was in charge of the clubÆs financial side: collecting membership fees and such. And it was with exactly this important task in mind that he now set foot for Alec Lip and discreetly led the police chief away from the others.
ôI see you havenÆt paid your fees yet this month, Alec,ö Dennis said, lowering his voice when discussing this oh-so-delicate matter with the errant member in question. ôIf youÆre having trouble, we could maybe set up a payment plan? Easy weekly installments?ö
ôThat wonÆt be necessary,ö Alec grunted, looking a little annoyed. ôJust a minor oversight, thatÆs all.ö And when the other man stared at him, he added, with a touch of incredulity. ôSurely you donÆt want me to pay you now, Dennis?ö
ôIf you could. You can call me nitpicky, but I like everything to be just so.ö
ôOh, all right,ö said Alec, and took out his wallet to pay the man. He quickly glanced over, but both Tex and Chase had discreetly turned their heads the other way. No one likes to intervene in a close relativeÆs financial affairs. That way only trouble and strife lie.
Once Tex had settled up, he rejoined the others, and as they stood sipping from their lukewarm beers, and idly gazing at the target somewhere in the distance, they talked about this and that, happy for this chance to shoot the breeze and strengthen those all-important bonds of friendship.
ôSo book club last night, huh?ö said Chase. ôHow was it? Odelia wouldnÆt tell me.ö
ôPlenty of gossip, from what I understand,ö said Tex. ôEmma Kulhanek and Lynnette Say locked horns again, and Adra Elfman wanted to know how the others had all met their significant other. Marge was annoyed, I can tell you that much. She spends a lot of time preparing for these weekly meetings, and when all is said and done, nobody reads the book, nobody is interested in discussing the book, and the only thing she takes away from the meeting is the minutiae of everyoneÆs love life, which isnÆt exactly the point.ö
ôIÆll bet itÆs more interesting than the book itself,ö said Alec with a grin. ôWhy did Emma and Lynnette lock horns?ö
ôLynnette seems to think Emma is too dowdy for book club. She wants to raise book clubÆs profile, and Emma isnÆt a good fit. With Charlene she has the mayor, Marge is a doctorÆs wife, Odelia is a prominent reporter, Carlotta is an Olympian and plays an important role in the local community as a Rotary Club member, and of course runs the archery club, and then thereÆs Valina Fawn, whoÆs a major celebrity in her own right.ö
ôSo where does Adra Elfman fit in?ö asked Chase. ôSheÆs hardly a celebrity.ö
ôAdraÆs husband Gene was the long-time chairman of the Chamber of Commerce,ö said Alec. ôAnd heÆs still very well connected, even though heÆs now retired, of course.ö
ôBut isnÆt EmmaÆs husband something big with Valina FawnÆs site?ö asked Chase.
ôNorwell is a developer,ö said Tex. ôSo in LynnetteÆs eyes heÆs a computer geek.ö
ôHeÆs more than just a developer,ö said Alec. ôNorwell is ValinaÆs business partner.ö
ôAnd Emma is a teacher, which isnÆt the kind of person Lynnette wants to be seen associating with,ö said Tex, shrugging his shoulders.
ôIn other words, Lynnette Say is a big, fat snob,ö said Chase.
ôA snob with a lot of money, and since Marge is always on the lookout for people interested in donating to her libraryàö
Just then, ChaseÆs phone chimed, and he took it out. He frowned at the display. ôDid you guys see this? Looks like Valina Fawn has been hacked.ö
ôValina Fawn or her site?ö asked Tex.
ôThe site.ö ChaseÆs frown deepened. ôUh-oh. The hackers have put a list with the names of all of Valina FawnÆs customers online.ö
And as they glanced around, suddenly phones of other members started beeping frantically. And as men took out their phones, faces blanched, muttered curses were uttered, strangled cries emitted, and before long a minor stampede was in motion, with people hurrying off to the parking lot and making a hasty departure.
When the dust had finally settled, the only ones left were Tex, Alec and Chaseà and of course Carlotta and Dennis Brook. Though the latter looked very much ill at ease as he came face to face with his wife.
Carlotta stared at her husband with ill-concealed rage displayed on her sinewy face. Then she hauled off and hit him squarely in the stomach and walked off on a huff.
Dennis, whoÆd doubled up and staggered back, now stared at the departing image of his wife, his hand massaging his injured midsection, clearly stunned by this development.
Alec shook his head.ôI just hope this wonÆt lead to any problems,ö he said.
ôPretty sure it will,ö said Chase, and drained the last of his beer. He frowned when his own phone chimed, and took it out. ôFamily meetingùnow!ö he read from the display. He looked up to find both his father-in-law and uncle-in-law gazing at their own phones.
All three men shared a look.
The trouble had begun.
Chapter 4
A family meeting was called and took place in Marge and TexÆs home. In the same living room where the day before Valina Fawn had been called away on some unspecified emergencyùwhich I guess itÆs safe to say we now knew was the big leak her site had sprungùthree men were being grilled to within an inch of their lives by the respective women in thoselives.
ôThatÆs not me,ö said Chase blankly when he was confronted with the evidence. It was a bold defense, and I was certainly not a little bit curious if heÆd be able to back it up. ôNo, I swear. I never signed up for that site,ö he assured an irate-looking Odelia. ôWhoever put that picture of me on that damn dating site definitely has got some explaining to do.ö
ôI donÆt know, Chase,ö said Odelia. ôFormer NYPD cop? Likes to work out and spoil his lady love? Must love dogs? It all sounds very much like you.ö
ôOh, honey, Chase would never do such a thing,ö said Marge. ôThe man is about to become a father for the first time. Which canÆt be said about you, Tex. What were you thinking!ö
ôI was just curious, honey!ö Tex cried. ôWith all the hullabaloo around the site, I just wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I was never going to do any actual dating.ö
ôYouÆre cheating on my daughter,ö said Gran, ôwhich means youÆre cheating on me. And frankly I think you should just kick him out, honey. Once a cheater, always a cheater.ö
ôYou canÆt throw me out of my own house, Vesta,ö said Tex tersely.
ôOh, yes, we can. Just do it, honey,ö she told her daughter. ôItÆs one small step for you, but a giant leap for all womankind. Go on, or do you want me to do the honors?ö
Meanwhile, Charlene sat eyeing her boyfriend with a cold eye.ôI donÆt get it,ö the Mayor said. ôYou could have told me you werenÆt happy, Alec. We could have talked about it. But instead you went behind my back andùö
ôI already told youùI just wanted to trap the Black Widow!ö
ôOh, is that the code name she uses? So what does she look like, this secret girlfriend of yours? Do I know her?ö
ôThe Black Widow is a known criminal,ö said Alec. ôSheÆs already killed five men, and rumor has it that sheÆs in Hampton Cove right now, living under an alias. The FBI has credible intel sheÆs on Valina Fawn, which is how she managed to lure her victims to their death, and so I just figured IÆd try to find her by creating a profile and drawing her out!ö