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me any good if I’m six feet under.”
    “You’re not chickening out, are you? After
the firefights you survived in Korea?”
    Giganticorp had investigated his military
career. Found out about Melody. Now Casey was appealing to his
manhood. He really wanted Drake on this run. Why? Something to
think about. He changed the subject again.
    “I wonder if a really high tide ever reaches
those houses we passed.”
    Casey took in the entire beach around them
with a sweep of his hand. “This belongs to everyone. Nobody should
be allowed to build houses on the beach.”
    “You mean because of the danger that they’ll
be washed away?”
    Houses on Malibu Beach, north of Los
Angeles, were periodically damaged during storms.
    “Because the beach belongs to everyone.”
    Casey was repeating himself. Drake decided
to test him. “According to California law, the part of the beach
below the mean high-tide line does belong to everyone. The part
above that is private property where it isn’t a government-owned
recreation area.”
    “The boundary line between public and
private property should be at least an eighth of a mile
inland.”
    Melody laughed. “Based on my observations so
far, I would say it’s a little late for that.”
    Casey looked up as if searching the heavens
for some kind of truth. “Is it?”
    Casey stayed with them as they ran along the
isthmus between the bay and the ocean. They ran on the silky white
sand instead of the pavement of Silver Strand Boulevard because the
softer surface was easier on Drake’s back.
    “Unidentified vehicle at nine o’clock.”
    The other two followed Melody’s pointing arm
and saw a jeep coming across the sand at an angle to cut them off.
She turned to Drake. “Do we need to take evasive action?”
    Although what evasive action they could take
without weapons, in the middle of the beach, Drake didn’t know.
They certainly couldn’t outrun the jeep. They stopped running and
watched it approach. Melody moved away from Drake so that they
wouldn’t present an easy target. Casey watched the jeep too, but
didn’t seem to be alarmed.
    The driver wore a fatigue uniform, and Drake
concluded he must be a naval officer. He relaxed a little. As far
as he knew, the navy didn’t have anything against him.
    The jeep stopped beside them, and the
officer bid them good morning. When they responded in kind, he
said, “There may still be unexploded shells on this part of the
beach from training exercises. For your own safety I recommend that
you run on the road.”
    “No problem.” Casey smiled at the officer.
“We’ll do that. We don’t want to get blown up.”
    The officer thanked them and drove away.
    Casey turned his smile on Drake and Melody.
“False alarm. I told you I’d protect you.”
    Drake noticed that he took a large
handkerchief out of his waistband and wiped the sweat from his
forehead.

    CHAPTER 4
    The San Diego-Coronado Bridge opens today,
Sunday, August 3, 1969. It has a distinctive curve and soaring
sweep and is the first structural conquest of San Diego Bay,
joining the Island of Coronado and City of San Diego. The bridge is
2.1 miles long and has a vertical clearance of approximately 200
feet, so that the tallest ships can pass beneath it.
    ***
    A crowd had gathered in the park near the
entrance to the San Diego-Coronado Bridge to watch the opening
ceremony. A platform, covered with red, white, and blue bunting,
was set up with seats for Coronado and San Diego city officials.
They took turns praising themselves for constructing this
magnificent structure.
    Fred had herded the Running California group
into an area near the platform. Drake, who wasn’t much for
speeches, tuned out the droning from the platform and looked at the
other people. Many of them were dressed in shorts and T-shirts. The
first traffic allowed on the bridge would be pedestrians—runners
and walkers. After several hours, the bridge would be closed to
pedestrians and opened to vehicle traffic.