The 

Seaside Rest

was an old school motel. They washed dishes by hand. Made home cooked meals. Gave guests cloth napkins; these would be washed and given to the next guest.

There was no continuous menu. The motel made what they did based on whatever ingredients they had and you either ate it or you didn't. Most mornings it was steel cut 

oats

with salt and butter. Sometimes they'd serve something more substantial. Eggs, bread, and salad.

The motel was operated by the family that owned it. The employees were either literal family or so close and intimate that they were like family. The community embraced the motel. So when the 'murder' took place there, the community didn't just let it pass. They were tossing over every stone. Where was this body?

"Cremated!"

"Who was this Dave guy?"

"Well. He was a marketer."

"What company?"

The people at the Blue Group were confused. Why was this community so interested in this random murder. Shouldn't they just let it go. That's how it went every other time. The community might gossip a bit. But they'd forget eventually and move on with their lives.

Not The Seaside though. This community seemed like... well a community. Tight knit. Real 

old school

.

There was a ring leader. Some handsome blue collar man who always drank beer by that bar Dockside. He was always surrounded by armed men. The Blue Group couldn't fake an accident. It'd be too much to send in mercenaries and kill all the collateral men as well.

The Blue Group was in a doozie. What to do? What was the plan. Right now the plan was just to hope this all went away. That Jimmy and his gang would grow bored and move on with their lives.

Now that Dave was exiled out east his agency was now no longer employed by The Blue Group. The hunt for the purse was now on pause. Suddenly, finding the purse no longer seemed important. Now all that mattered was quieting down the folks at Seaside.

The easiest thing, Sarah thought, was if they could somehow get Jimmy Ellison alone. Then they could poison his drink and make it seem like he had a heart attack. But the man was never alone. It was like he was aware that they were watching him.

Sarah considered more than once a day... calling an old contact. The wire had been inactive but it was still live. She had never talked to the hitman himself. Only heard stories through this contact. A person who went by the name Big Joe. Was able to pull off hits in plain sight. Highly crowded, public areas in broad daylight. What kind of name was that anyways? Sarah thought. 

Big Joe

.

----

Keith had two weeks of vacation. He knew where he'd take them. There was no question. He couldn't help but smile as he pulled up to the tight parking lot. He could already feel the salt in the air. He cut off the engine and all he could hear were the gulls and the ocean.

It was good to be back.

The bell dinged as he opened the front door. The man named Matthew looked up at him.

"Hello," Keith said. Was about to say something more friendly but noticed something off about Matthew.

"Welcome, friend."

"i'd like to stay two nights." Keith said slow. Instead of weeks... he said nights.

"Sure thing."

He was shown to his room. As soon as the door closed behind him he sat on the bed and thought while looking out the window. What was off? The host had previously been so warm. Now there was a gloom to him. Keith tried shrugging it off. Like the man was just having a bad day.

But that look. It didn't seem like just a bad day. It seemed like a bad month at least. How could he tell? He had his ways. No way to explain though.

He would call Imogen later. She was coming back. Would stay with him at least ten days. Her husband still had no idea about the affair. She still ran the cafe out there in that little town of hers.

They had made up a lie together. A coffee conference they said. The two of them laughed so hard. They spent hours repeating it to each other. Coffee 

conference

. One of them would say it and then both would burst out laughing again.

Keith didn't even believe it would work. Neither did 

Imogen Howe

. By this point she was expecting her husband Alan to divorce her. So what did she care saying this ridiculous story. But he believed it. And so they ended up carrying on with their marriage. Only now it was a few months past her escape to the west coast. And she found herself needing to be back out west again. Back with Keith. So she made up another lie. She had to talk to a distributor out west.

Alan looked like a dejected puppy. "Can't you just talk to them through video?"

"I need to be there Alan. With the beans!"

This time around she would fly there. Keith couldn't wait.