Clint Faraday Collection C: Murder in Motion Collector's Edition by CD Moulton

it.”
    “ You
exposed it. That was the same thing. Those people can thank
you.”
    “ Crap!”
Clint retorted with feeling.
     
    Clint Faraday Mysteries #12
    Dead
Certain
    © 2011 & 2013 by C. D. Moulton
    This is a work of fiction. Any resemblances
to persons living or dead is purely coincidental
     
    Some new people, arrogant people who were too
used to giving orders instead of requests move onto Isla
Bastimentos. People said there would be trouble for dead
certain!
    That was a too literally true statement!
     
    Contents
    Lazing Around
    Phone Chat
    Super Rich Bums
    Mobs?
    Politicians?
    Private Talks
    Revelations
    Porno?
    California
    Pragmatic
Solution
    Finally Home
     
    Dead Certain
     
    Lazing Around
    Clint was just lazing around the house. It
was a truly beautiful day, but he didn’t really want to get
involved in anything for awhile. His last case had him running all
over the country never quite knowing exactly what was happening
until it was almost over. He decided to go into town to chat with
people in all the regular spots. He didn’t want to become involved
in things, but that didn’t mean he wanted to be ignorant about
local happenings.
    It wouldn’t rain until mid-afternoon,
probably. It was that time of year when it rained for an hour or
two in the afternoon, then cleared by nightfall. He would be back
before that. If not, he would stay someplace with the chatter until
it was over.
    He greeted a number of people on the walk
into town. Quite a few greeted him. He stopped to chat with several
people, then continued. It took him until a little after ten to
reach the parque. The regulars were sitting at their usual table at
the Golden Grill and called him over. He sat to have coffee and
empanadas and to chat. The talk was mostly about how much rain
there was here lately and how the old-timers remembered the year it
rained for seventeen days and nights straight. The way Martinelli
should concentrate more on stopping the petty thieves who were
stealing the tourists’ cameras and cel phones. The way something
would have to be done about the boats at night with no running
lights. How rude the taxi drivers were in the town. Whatever came
up.
    There were some people who bought a place on
Isla Bastimentos in the wrong place for white gringos, particularly
ones with arrogant superior attitudes.
    “ The
Dickersons? They aren’t really so bad,” Bob suggested. “They just
are used to treating the natives like servants. They lived in India
for two years, then in the Philippines for two, then the states,
now here. I talked with them. They weren’t happy anyplace they’ve
been for long. They always had plenty of servants and can afford
them. They just let it run over into the way they treat everybody
they come across. The Indios don’t let it bother them, the blacks
get all het up.”
    “ Yeah,”
Aaron added. “They picked the wrong place for their type to try to
build anything. Those people won’t put up with that kind of crap.
Remember what happened to those Fordyce people. They headed back to
England with their tails between their legs in less than a
month!”
    “ They
chose the wrong place to build. There’s gonna be trouble with the
locals out there for dead certain, I’m afraid,” Bob
agreed.
    “ You
can’t tell them anything. They know everything about everything,”
Tom put in. “I tried to explain from my own experiences with the
people here that they’ll never be accepted. That’s true even here
in Bocas. It’s true in spades on the other islands.
    “ Well,
they won’t listen to me, it’s their own problem.”
    Clint had to bite back a remark. He didn’t
like Tom at all. The ass was worse than the people he was
supposedly giving the benefit of his great experience. If there was
anyone at all in Bocas Town who knew everything there was to know
about everything and who wouldn’t listen to a word from anyone who
disagreed with him it was Tom. All the people at that table were
accepted and