Chapter 1
IT WAS FRIDAY morning, the last class of the spring term was behind me, and I would graduate in a few days. I’d already signed up for a summer term to begin working on my master’s and was, at the moment, looking forward to a day of creative loafing. Sally, my roommate, was at work, and I had the apartment all to myself. The harsh sound of the doorbell interrupted my reverie.
“It’s open,” I said in a loud voice, wondering who would be at my door on a Friday morning.
I heard the door open and a familiar voice say, “It’s just me.”
“Hi, Norm,” I said to my best friend, Norman Simms, and when I heard the door close behind him I added, “What’s up?”
“Not a lot. I’m headed out to the beach, and I’m going to take you with me.”
“After what happened last time, I shouldn’t think you’d
