said evenly. “He knew who I was.”
“Clue me in, why don’t you?” Beth said, her tone heated and her heart wondering if he’d reveal his secrets to her.
“I’m with a company called Rescue, and most of our contracts are military,” Keith explained. “No one was supposed to know who we were or what we were doing,” Keith explained.
“I see,” she said, looking around at the group. It amazed her that even Maria was in on it, while she had been in the dark.
“Beth, you must understand. I already knew who he was,” Manny explained.
“And Maria knew, too. But you couldn’t tell me,” Beth said icily.
“You didn’t want to call the police when you were accosted at both gun-and knifepoint. If you had, they might have caught Brad and Sandy,” Keith said. “There’s plenty of blame to go around here.”
Beth glared at him angrily. “Not fair. Amber’s life was threatened.” She stared at Ashley. “And excuse me, but how the hell did this all come about?” she asked, gesturing at the group and their surroundings.
Manny cleared his throat. “I arranged for all this to happen today. You needed to see Keith.”
She hoped she hadn’t given away the fact that she’d begun to feel desperate to see the man. It felt as if her cheeks were burning.
“Why?” she demanded.
She didn’t get the answer she had hoped for or expected.
“I need to be at your Summer Sizzler tomorrow night,” he told her.
She almost laughed aloud—at herself. She managed not to, and instead stared at Keith, shaking her head. “You’ve gotten into the club on your own several times. Membership doesn’t seem to mean a lot where you’re concerned. You’re best friends with Manny and Maria. And Amanda would be happy to invite you to the party. You sure as hell don’t need me to get in.”
“You need to tell her everything you’ve discovered,” Manny said.
“Sit down, Beth. Have some tea. Please,” Maria said. She flashed Beth an apologetic smile. “It’s partially my fault that you’re here.”
“Oh?”
“Please, sit, Beth. I’ll explain,” Keith said.
She sat. He sat opposite her.
His eyes were on her, dead steady. “Beth, Manny knows me the same way Jake and Ashley do, through a previous situation here in Miami-Dade, that’s all.”
“And I know about him because Manny told me when I went to him for help,” Maria explained.
“Wonderful,” Beth murmured, still lost. She looked at Keith. “So you were never on the island looking for the Monocos from the start?”
“No.”
She stared straight at him. “Then you were looking for the ship.”
“What ship?” Maria murmured.
“La Doña,” Beth said flatly, staring at Keith.
He stared back at her. She realized that no one had known what he was really doing—they had just known who he was. And he didn’t appreciate the fact that she had spoken.
“It doesn’t matter,” Beth said, offering Maria a quick glance, then turning back to Keith. “Go on.”
“The point is, I want to be at the Sizzler from the start. I need to watch. And I don’t want anyone to know I’m there. I want access to your office, and I want to get behind the scenes, so I can watch what’s going on. Matt and Lee will be there. We’ve all been invited already.”
“The Masons?” Beth asked.
He nodded. “Amanda called and invited us,” he told her.
She tried not to stiffen. “I don’t understand what you want. You could have arranged this without me.”
“Actually, no.”
“Why?” she demanded. “What’s so important about you being there with my blessing?”
“I told you, I need free access. Everyone who was on the island will be there,” Keith said.
She shook her head, a wry smile in place. “Not exactly. Brad and Sandy aren’t invited.”
“I have a feeling they’ll be there anyway.”
“They wouldn’t dare be so obvious,” she protested.
“I think they’re confident enough in their ability to disguise themselves to risk it.”
“Then the police should be there.”
“The police will be there,” Keith said, glancing at Ashley.
“Then they can arrest them the moment they see them,” Beth said.
“They’ll have to know who they are—but it goes beyond just identifying them. Beth, here’s the thing. We don’t think they’re working alone. Or that they just want to get to you. They’re looking to get paid.”
“Paid!” she exclaimed.
“They disappeared really quickly after attacking you. I looked into the property surrounding your house, specifically at the block around the corner. Do you know who owns most of the houses in the area?”
“Who?” she demanded.
“Eduardo Shea.”
Beth stared at him in surprise. “You think Eduardo is in on the piracy? I don’t understand.”
“Among Mr. Shea’s investments are a number of boatyards on the South American coast,” Keith told her. “We know that whoever is stealing luxury vessels has to be making them over somewhere. The police have investigated all the local facilities, and everyone comes up clean. It would also make more sense to get the boats far away from this country, where all of them have been registered.”
“Now I’m really confused,” Beth murmured. “I don’t understand why Sandy and Brad would risk being at the club.”
“I think that Eduardo was talking to them on the phone the other day,” Maria put in.
Beth stared at Maria.
“Eduardo was distressed. He was threatening someone. Then, he said that he’d see them at the club. I told Manny,” she explained. “Manny was very upset. He contacted Keith and said we must tell him.”
“But…that’s so…I mean, they must know that they’d be in danger of exposure at the club.”
Keith shook his head, offering her a rueful smile. “How? They don’t know the police will be there. They don’t know that Eduardo Shea’s finances have been investigated.”
“Still, it would be a ridiculous risk!”
“Hide in plain sight,” Ashley murmured, joining into the conversation at last.
“I’m sorry. I still don’t get this,” Beth said, eyes hard as she stared at Keith again. “What is your involvement? Because, according to what you’ve told me, you were never out at Calliope looking for the pirates.”
He sat back. “My involvement is personal. I happen to believe that, if they’re apprehended, Sandy and Brad can answer a lot of questions,” he said flatly.
“I still don’t understand why you need me—why you need to be out of sight,” Beth murmured.
He lowered his head for a moment, then looked up. “There are a few other dynamics I need to keep an eye on. I’m asking you—no, begging you—to trust me. And not to demand answers that I can’t give you yet. I had Manny set up the dive—and no, your brother doesn’t know that