Orchid Beach Stuart Woods
This book is for
Carol Nelson and Harry de Polo
Contents
Chapter 1
Holly Barker, with the rest of the crowd, was called…
Chapter 2
Holly drove across the bridge over the sound at the…
Chapter 3
Holly found the municipal building half a block off the…
Chapter 4
Two minutes passed before Hurd Wallace made his entrance. Holly…
Chapter 5
Holly stopped by the station and took the trash bag…
Chapter 6
Holly waited a moment, then got down on her knees…
Chapter 7
Holly went through Hank Doherty’s safe and found three hundred…
Chapter 8
Holly went back to the station, taking Daisy with her.
Chapter 9
Holly lay in a deep sleep, dreaming of nothing in…
Chapter 10
Holly stood in front of the little airport terminal building…
Chapter 11
Holly picked up some groceries on the way home, avoiding…
Chapter 12
Holly was finishing a sandwich at her desk the following…
Chapter 13
Holly drove the chief’s car home after work. She stopped…
Chapter 14
Holly entered the courtroom and took a seat in the…
Chapter 15
Holly followed the two officers into her office and closed…
Chapter 16
Holly drove south on A1A and slowed at the spot…
Chapter 17
The car was a Toyota Camry, late eighties, before the…
Chapter 18
Holly started to change out of her uniform. “I’ve got…
Chapter 19
Holly slept alone, though Jackson Oxenhandler had made it clear…
Chapter 20
Back at her desk, Holly called in Hurd Wallace and…
Chapter 21
Holly drove north on A1A, with Daisy in the front…
Chapter 22
Holly worked seven days a week for her first two…
Chapter 23
Holly set down the drinks, got the Beretta from her…
Chapter 24
Holly heard the surf before she opened her eyes. Then…
Chapter 25
They showered together, then went for a walk on the…
Chapter 26
They drove north on A1A from the center of the…
Chapter 27
Holly nearly fell into the trailer, with Daisy snarling, trying…
Chapter 28
Holly woke up at nine forty-five and reached for Jackson,…
Chapter 29
Holly and Jackson led the way, followed by Ham and…
Chapter 30
Palmetto Gardens had only one listed phone number; apparently all…
Chapter 31
On Sunday afternoon Holly, Jackson and Ham took Chet Marley’s…
Chapter 32
Jackson used a card with a magnetic strip to open…
Chapter 33
Jackson set the little airplane down on the sand, cut…
Chapter 34
The middle of the following week, Holly had her job…
Chapter 35
Holly was sitting at her desk half an hour later…
Chapter 36
They were shown to a table overlooking the ocean and…
Chapter 37
Holly stood in the entrance hall of the municipal building,…
Chapter 38
Holly drove out A1A to Sebastian Inlet, and took a…
Chapter 39
Holly started the next day by asking Jane Grey to…
Chapter 40
Harry Crisp looked less like an FBI agent than Holly…
Chapter 41
Holly had begun going through the departmental personnel files, something…
Chapter 42
Holly didn’t have to wait long. When she got back…
Chapter 43
Holly worked late on the personnel files, then went home,…
Chapter 44
At eleven o’clock the phone on Holly’s desk rang. She…
Chapter 45
Holly sat and waited, staring at Mosely. Daisy made the…
Chapter 46
Holly went straight to Jackson’s house after work. One of…
Chapter 47
The next morning, Holly was back at her desk. She…
Chapter 48
After work, Holly drove out to Jackson’s house, with Hurd…
Chapter 49
Rita Morales showed up at the service gate to Palmetto…
Chapter 50
Holly sat at Jackson’s dining table and listened to Rita’s…
Chapter 51
Ham Barker got into bed and turned on the TV,…
Chapter 52
Rita turned up on time for work at Palmetto Gardens,…
Chapter 53
Harry Crisp looked at his wristwatch, then at the group…
Chapter 54
Holly was wakened from a deep sleep by the telephone.
Chapter 55
Holly went into the office like a good girl, but…
Chapter 56
Holly got changed and fed Daisy. She still had a…
Chapter 57
Holly, Daisy, Hurd, Jackson, and Ham all arrived at the…
Chapter 58
At two A.M., after nearly eight hours of briefings and…
Chapter 59
Harry Crisp jumped out of his seat. “There’s five!” he…
Chapter 60
Holly sat in the dining room of the Palmetto Gardens…
Chapter 61
Holly waited for Hurd Wallace to arrive and take over…
Chapter 62
The evening was growing cool. Holly and Jackson sat on…
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Praise
Other Books by Stuart Woods
Copyright
About the Publisher
CHAPTER
1
Holly Barker, with the rest of the crowd, was called to her feet as the panel of officers filed into the courtroom. She was a spectator now, no longer a witness, but she wanted to be here for this.
Colonel James Bruno stood at the defense table, ramrod straight, and watched his judges with beady eyes. For the first time since his trial had begun, he was not smiling.
“Seats!” the clerk of the court called out, and all sat.
The brigadier general, who was president of the court, cleared his throat. “The following three verdicts have been reached unanimously,” the general said. “As to the first charge, sexual harassment, we have reached a verdict of not guilty.”