Chapter Six
The day had been warm but a chilling fog was creeping inland, bringing with it the sharp stench of the ocean, which aggressively attacked my nose and eyes. I drove through thick bands of grey, only to break out into the dazzling sunshine, then moments later dive into a bank of teasing clouds, transparent white that shifted before my eyes. A narrow switchback in the road took me away from the ocean until the road evened out for another half mile when it slowly descended into the coastal valley and the town of Rio Marinas. Tiny. Picturesque. With just enough fishing commerce and salty old residents to keep the place sensible and out of the hands of developers who would have quickly turned it into another Carmel by the Sea. I dropped down onto the main thoroughfare, noting the sm
