Beach Wedding by Michael Ledwidge

Author:Michael Ledwidge
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hanover Square Press
Published: 2021-12-01T19:23:59+00:00

49

I was standing by the keg after the game had ended when the commotion started.

Up by the front of the beach mansion, there was some loud beeping, like trucks backing up. We watched as a couple of our cousins came jogging across the grass from under the porte cochere.

“What’s up?” my brother Tom said, putting down the keg pump spout.

“Hey, everyone! Listen up,” one of them called out. “Some asshole cops are towing cars up on the road.”

“What?” Tom cried. “You have to be kidding me. I bent over backward to get the permits. I had my lawyer call twice. It’s been completely cleared with the town. This is complete bullshit.”

“Yeah, well, looks like no one bothered to tell the cops,” our cousin said with a shrug. “And they’re taking cars.”

I immediately followed Tom across the lawn. As we reached the end of the driveway by Meadow Lane, we saw it was true. Two tow trucks were hooking up cars parked along the shoulder as a third one arrived.

There was a uniformed cop there as well, wearing aviator shades and sitting on the hood of a police cruiser across the road. I knew he was some kind of brass by his crisp white shirt and black tie.

I followed Tom across the street toward the cop.

About six-one with broad enough shoulders, the man had some size on him, I noticed. But he wasn’t really in shape. He was soft in the middle and sort of pear-shaped.

“What’s the problem, Officer?” Tom said as we stepped up. “We cleared the event with the town. I have the permit right here on my phone. There must be a mistake.”

“It’s ‘Chief,’ not ‘Officer,’” he said, casually straightening his tie. “Chief Tapley. And I’m not from the town. I’m from the county.”

I couldn’t believe it. Marvin wasn’t kidding. Tapley was definitely not on the up-and-up.

“But it’s right here, Chief,” Tom said, offering the phone to him. “Please, if you would just take a look.”

“Get that shit out of my face unless you want to watch it land in the bay,” Tapley said nastily.

“What?” Tom said, confused.

The smirk that slowly crossed Tapley’s face had some real mirth in it, I saw. Like other psychos I had unfortunately worked with from time to time on the job, this loo-loo seemed to have a real high opinion of himself.

And he was truly enjoying this.

“I’m from the county,” he repeated. “You need a hearing aid? This is my county.”

“Oh, the county,” Tom said, peering at him. “I get it now. Let me see. Do I genuflect now or bow? Salute maybe?”

Tapley removed his shades as his smile disappeared. His eyes were cold and gray as sheet metal.

“You tone down that smart mouth,” he said. “This is a county park police matter. Permit or no permit, you’re blocking access to Shinnecock east county park, and I will do what I need to do to render the situation safe.”

“Shinnecock east! That’s three miles away down Meadow Lane!” Tom said, pointing.

“Doesn’t matter,” Tapley said.

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