by DL Havlin
Mystery
Chessie Partin is a 34-year-old ne’er-do-well living in her hometown of Vero Beach after a four- year stint with the Marines, now studying archaeology. She lives with her brother, Reading, a police officer on suspension for arresting the wrong person-someone with higher-up political connections.
Hootie Barnes, who runs a deep-sea fishing rig, offers Chessie a part-time job as a mate on the boat, cleaning the vessel and helping tourists with their rods. The money’s good, but Chessie soon discovers the downside to the job: dealing with the bait man, Rooster Cocker, who delivers chum to the outfit every week. Rooster is a gruff man who reeks of chum, a vile smell, and scared off Mary Perez, the last ship’s mate, with his unwanted sexual advances. He takes the same sort of liking to Chessie, who immediately despises him.
