Page 39 of Betrayal In Calusa Cove
Decker shook his head. “They know better than to ask an amateur to do something like that. I would’ve gotten caught. But I can guarantee it was someone who works for them. Someone who’s watching.” He glanced around, gaze shifting nervously.
“Are you worried they’re watching now?” Fletcher asked.
Decker chuckled. “I was told to reach out.” He shrugged. “Told to make my intentions with the Crab Shack clear, and that I’ve got more money and power than you. Thing is, I’d love to develop that land, but not as an owner. Not now. But I’d work for you, which is not what they want. They want me to work for them. To build what they want so they can run whatever through this town and launder money through small businesses that will quiet the noise in bigger cities.”
“Now I feel like you’re taking us for a ride,” Fletcher said. “Why would you switch sides?”
“Someone’s gotta draw up the plans, pull the permits, and oversee whatever vision you boys have.” Decker held up his hands. “But that’s a discussion for another day.”
“So, what do you want from us?” Dawson asked evenly. “Why are you even telling us this?”
“I want out,” Decker said. “I want protection. And I want to burn them down without destroying everything I’ve built…or without hurting anyone in this town.”
Dawson leaned back. “You’re suggesting we help you double-cross the Barbaros? Our best friends’ in-laws. Based on your word?”
“I’ve got evidence on who they are. And I’ve got some family willing to talk…quietly,” Decker said. “I’m also willing to let you use me. I’ll report back to them that this meeting went just like I told them it would. That you told me to fuck off and get out of town. That I told you good old boys that I wasn’t going anywhere. Then I stick around. We act like we still don’t like each other. I’ll let you tap my phone. My cabin. I’ll give you everything. The Barbaros destroyed my neighborhood in Miami. I watched them do it. They’ll kill Calusa Cove if they get a foothold with even one business here.”
Fletcher narrowed his eyes. “Why should we trust you?”
“Because I’m the only one who’s dealt with them directly. Because I came to you instead of running. Because I like this place. I didn’t think I would, but I do. I’m not your enemy.”
Dawson drummed his fingers on the table. “If we do this, you’ll follow our lead. You’ll tell us everything. You’ll wear a wire if we ask. You’ll keep your nose clean.” He leaned forward. “And if you fuck us over, I’ll be the one putting cuffs on your wrists and locking you up in a cell. I’ll also be enjoying that.”
Decker nodded, taking the bill the waitress had left moments ago. He tossed some cash on the table. “I’ll do whatever it takes to get out from under them and to make sure they don’t ruin this place.”
“Interesting that you don’t seem to be afraid of the latter part of that statement.” Dawson nudged Fletcher to get out of the booth. “Because if you screw us—if you lie again—there won’t be enough lawyers in the state to protect you.”
“It won’t matter. The Barbaros will find someone to put a bullet in the back of my head and feed me to the gators.” Decker eased toward the door.
Fletcher lingered a moment. “One last thing. If you so much as look at Baily the wrong way, I’ll forget every promise I made to Dawson and make you disappear into the Everglades.”
“You know what, Fletcher?” Decker said. “I like Baily. She’s a good person. And she’s damn lucky to have a man like you. Believe it or not, I mean that.”
Fletcher watched as Decker headed toward his fancy Range Rover, all decked out with every bell and whistle. “What do you make of all that?”
Dawson had already pulled out his cell. His fingers flew across the screen. “I really don’t know. Texting Keaton, Hayes, and Chloe…especially Chloe. I want her looking into Decker’s…” Dawson glanced up. “You can’t make this shit up.”
“So, you believe him?”
“Trevor, Tripp’s kid, he always said there was another group trying to muscle their way into Paul Massey’s drug business. Mentioned the cartel was working on a deal, but could never quite come to terms, but managed to avoid a war.” Dawson stuck his phone in his pocket and paced.
That was never a good sign. When Dawson paced, his mind was spinning. When his brain did that, shit was about to go sideways. “Trevor didn’t have a name. The cartel? They ain’t given one up. But what Decker’s saying sorta tracks.”
“What do you mean by sorta.”
“I’ve heard chatter of a big-time crime organization looking for small towns to quietly buy or develop local businesses to launder money. It’s all very Ozark, as in that TV show. But do it in a coastal town like this, they can also move small amounts of product and even human trafficking.” Dawson raked his fingers through his hair. “Criminals like that think cops like me can either be bought off or are just stupid.”
“Okay, but it’s the Barbaros we’re talking about,” Fletcher said, folding his arms across his chest. “We’ve had dinner at their flipping mansion.”
“I know.” Dawson sighed. “I don’t know what kind of game they think they’re playing, but it started years ago. At this point, I’m sure we’re simply collateral damage.”
“Jesus, I don’t want to have to tell Baily all this.” Fletcher lifted his gaze to the sky. “There’s no way Ken didn’t know. Maybe he distanced himself to protect us, or maybe he did it because he didn’t want to get caught. But either way, he screwed his dad and sister over. There’s no way to reconcile that.”
“But you have to admit that Ken was acting all weird near the end,” Dawson said. “He was solid in the field, but when we weren’t deployed, there was something lurking behind his eyes. I always believed it was because he was just done with the Navy. That he was ready for something else and had one foot out the door.”
“That’s what we all thought,” Fletcher added softly. “However, knowing he knew about that loan, and that notebook Ray left proves that, changes everything. The question we have to ask ourselves, especially after that conversation with Decker, is if Ken knew what he got his father involved in before Ray signed that loan…or did all that knowledge come in after the fact? Because, as much as we’re finding out that Ken did some shady things, I still struggle to believe that he willingly buried the marina in debt.”
Dawson let out a long breath. “If the Barbaros were making a play for this town years ago, they might’ve seen Ken as a way in since he did once deal for Massey.” Dawson arched a brow. “We don’t know how or why Paul let him go so easily. I mean, Ken could’ve taken down that operation, but he didn’t. Why?”
