Tidewater Inn Read Online Free PDF

hard chair. “My business partner was kidnapped yesterday.”
    His gaze sharpened. “You’re Libby Holladay, the one who witnessed the kidnapping?”
    â€œYes. Is there any news?” Surely they had found Nicole by now. Alive, she prayed.
    He shook his head. “Nothing. All I found when I got to the lifesaving station was her car. No sign of her. I’ve called in the Coasties, but they’ve seen nothing.”
    â€œCoasties?”
    â€œCoast Guard. What can you tell me about your conversation? You rushed off before the Virginia Beach police arrived to take your statement.”
    â€œI wanted to get here and find her.” She described the men she saw, and he took notes. “One man gave her an injection.”
    â€œIt would help if we could call up the video, but it seems to have been erased from the server.”
    She bit her lip. Should she admit what she’d done? How much trouble could she get into for that? It was an accident, after all. But didn’t the police tend to blame the person closest to the victim?
    The phone on his desk rang, and she sat back in the chair while he talked. He rose when he hung up. “I have to go. There’s a problem at the jail. Where are you staying? Tidewater?”
    She nodded. “I hope to. I haven’t called yet.”
    He reached for some keys and tossed them to her. “I’ve got an old car I loan out sometimes. Go ahead and take it out to Tidewater. I’ll catch up with you there and get it back. Just follow Oyster Road to the end. You can’t miss it.”
    She took the keys and followed him out the door. There would be time to tell him about the video later. Maybe she could find the file and restore it. Then she wouldn’t be in trouble.

    The old truck reeked of fish, but it was the smell of money to Alec. The morning’s excellent haul would fetch a premium price at the restaurants. But he needed to get to the jail and pick up his nephew. As he maneuvered the truck along Oyster Road just outside of town, he noticed Tom’s red Honda along the shoulder. A woman crouched beside a flat tire. Tourist, from the looks of her.
    He parked his truck behind the car and got out. “Need some help?”
    Her sun-streaked light-brown hair framed a striking face with bold brows and large brown eyes. In her early thirties, he guessed. There was an air of tension around her as if she were about to explode.
    She held up the tire iron. “I’m not quite sure how to use this.”
    â€œLet me see if I can help.” Alec took the tool from her. “Everything okay?” He knelt by the tire and began to remove the lug bolts. “You’re driving the sheriff’s spare car.”
    â€œMy business partner is missing.” Her voice trembled. “I was watching on a beach cam, and two men kidnapped her right in front of me.”
    His hands stilled, and he looked up at her. “Nicole Ingram?” He’d gone out last night on the search for the missing woman. All they’d found was her cell phone on the sand, a chilling sight.
    She nodded. “She’d told me when she would be at the cam, so I got on the computer. Two guys came ashore in a small boat and took her away. I called 9-1-1, but by the time the sheriff got there, all he found was her car parked along the side of the road. No sign of Nicole.”
    â€œNo sign of her in any boats that were stopped yesterday either.”
    She studied him as she fidgeted with her large leather bag. “How do you know that?”
    He rose and stuck out his hand. “Alec Bourne. Part-time fisherman and full-time captain in the Coast Guard. The sheriff is my cousin, and he told me about your friend. My crew did a run through the area on one of the boats, but we didn’t see anything suspicious.”
    She grasped his hand in a tight grip. “I’m Libby Holladay. You have to find her.”
    He checked the spare. “This