Chapter 4
Alex paddled out into the water. It was a beautiful summer day in L.A., and the surf was near perfect. Head-high and glassy, just the way she liked it. One of the perks of her job – working at her friend Serv’s roadside lunch shack - was the flexible hours. The job didn’t pay much, but it was worth it to be able to call off and surf whenever the waves were good, such as it was this morning. After having checked the surf report while drinking her morning coffee, Alex had called Serv and told him she would be late to work. An added bonus of today - the waves were big enough to discourage the plethora of annoying beginners who invaded the beach when the waves were small, so she was all alone and had the whole break to herself.
Alex reached the takeoff spot, where the waves start to break. She spotted a good one and paddled into it, letting the wave take her. She carved out a few nice turns and then hopped over the crest of the wave. She paddled back to the takeoff spot and caught another one. Then she paddled back again, and as she did, she noticed a lone figure with a surfboard standing on the shore.
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“Look, this is our best way in”, Abby said. She and Tobin were leaning against Abby’s car in a parking lot on a bluff that overlooked Palos Beach. There was only one other car in the lot, parked at the other end. Tobin looked over the bluff onto the ocean. A single surfer had just paddled out into the water, and from what she could tell, it was a woman, with long brown hair and an athletic form.
“So, you’re telling me that the FBI is going to pay me to learn how to surf?” Tobin asked Abby skeptically.
“No, kid. The FBI is paying you to fight crime and arrest criminals. For this case, you just so happen to need to go undercover as a surfer”, Abby said, staring at Tobin. “Next one you might get sent undercover as a hooker”, Abby jabbed, and Tobin scowled at her. “No, seriously - it’s either you or me on the board. And c’mon – you’re the star athlete, right?”
Tobin rolled her eyes. “Alright, I’ll do it”, she said.
“That’s the spirit!” Abby said and clapped Tobin on the back. Then she handed Tobin the cheap surfboard and the wetsuit they had just bought at a surf shop a mile away. “Let me know when you’re done splashing around. Now go out there and make a friend”, Abby said with a wink.
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Tobin laid down on her board and paddled out into the surf. It hadn’t looked too bad from the shore. It looked like just some small waves from where she had been standing. Tobin had never tried surfing before, but it looked pretty easy. At least the woman surfing a couple hundred yards in front of her made it look easy. Plus, I’m an athlete, Tobin thought. This can’t be that hard. Just a bit of balance needed, and I’ll figure out the rest when I stand up. Probably just like learning to ride a bike, she thought.
Tobin kept paddling out. As she paddled, she looked around at her surroundings, and she got lost in the beauty of the scenery. The beach, the water, the sun, the clouds, the trees – it was all so peaceful. It made her forget for a moment that she was actually working a case. Then she was hit with a face full of water that brought her back to reality. She looked up and froze. Somehow the water had gotten much choppier than it had been closer to shore. She looked back towards shore and realized that she was much further out than she had thought. The waves, which had looked small from shore, were much bigger and thumping around her. A small feeling of uncertainty crept into her. Maybe I am in over my head. Maybe I should get back on land. I’ll just ride the next wave in, she thought. She turned her board towards shore and started to paddle. She felt a wave surge under her and she tried to stand up and ride it in, but she fell right off, six feet down into the raging water. She landed on her back, and right as she did, the wave took her as it curled up and slammed her down. The impact made her inhale sharply, and she sucked in a mass of seawater. Her lungs exploded as she coughed up water, and as she struggled for a breath another wave crashed down on top of her. She tumbled underwater, disoriented, and she felt her breath start to give way. She propelled herself towards the surface and was met with a third wave crashing on top of her. She went under again. Blackness start to encroach her vision, and stars started to twinkle in her periphery. Her lungs gave out, and she gasped for air, but she was underwater. She inhaled what felt like half the ocean, and just before she went black she felt a strong hand grab her arm.
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Tobin opened her eyes. For a moment she didn’t know where she was, and then it came to her. She had been surfing and had almost drowned. Now she was on the beach, on her back, staring up into the sky. And staring back at her was the woman who had been surfing further out. The sunlight was reflecting off of her glistening hair, giving her an angelic appearance. She’s beautiful, Tobin thought. She went to talk, to thank the woman for saving her, but the woman launched into her first.
“What the hell were you doing!?” the woman yelled.
“I-I-I-“ Tobin creaked out, but her voice wouldn’t come.
“What the hell were you doing, paddling out into that surf, when it’s clear you don’t know the first fucking thing about surfing!?” The woman stared at her for a moment and then continued. “Does it look like amateur hour out there? Huh? No, it doesn’t! Do you see any fucking amateurs out there? No, you don’t! That’s because you don’t belong out there!” The angry brunette paused and looked at the woman she had just rescued. She was athletic, and yes, she was very good looking, in a slightly tomboyish kind of way. And she felt sorry for her. She had almost drowned herself once, when she had first leaned to surf. She empathized and felt bad, but that still didn’t excuse this woman in front of her. She had been stupid to paddle out into waves this size, way over her skill level. And stupid is how people die. When people do stupid stuff, that’s how tragedy happens, the brunette thought. She softened her tone but kept her eyes hard. “You should rest here for now. And when you’re able, get up and get the hell off this beach”, she said. And with that, she turned around, grabbed her board and ran towards the water.
“Thank you!” Tobin tried to croak out. She tried to sit up but couldn’t muster the strength so she laid back down, and as a last parting shot she willed her voice to come back and yelled, “My name is Tobin!”
“I don’t care!” the brunette yelled as she waded into the ocean and jumped on her board.
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“That is your surfing contact?” Abby said, incredulous, as she looked at Tobin’s computer screen. After Tobin had recovered from her near-drowning experience, she had walked back up to the parking lot. Abby was gone, but Tobin had gotten the license plate number of the only car the parking lot. “Alex Morgan”, Abby said, reading. “26. 5’7”. Long brown hair. Jesus Christ, kid”, Abby groaned, looking at the photo of the model-esque woman on Tobin’s screen.
“That’s her”, Tobin said. She continued to scan Alex’s profile. “I need a way in”, she said. She pulled up Alex’s criminal history.
“Speeding, reckless driving, lewd behavior in public”, Abby said, reading the rap sheet. “Wait – does that say ‘indecent exposure - surfing naked?’ Oh my God”, Abby said, throwing her hands up. “Really, kid?”
Tobin smiled at Abby, half amused, half thinking about the beautiful Alex Morgan. Even though their first meeting had consisted of Alex rescuing her and then scolding her as she laid on the beach, Tobin couldn’t help but smile when she thought of her. Then she turned her attention back to her computer. “There’s nothing here that I can use”, she said as she continued to read through the rap sheet. Then she clicked on a button titled “Miscellaneous Information”, and she smiled. “Here we go. Both parents deceased. Died in a car crash five years ago”, Tobin said. She stood up and smiled at Abby. “That’s it. I’ve got my way in.”