Jaws by Peter Benchley Read Free Book Online Page A

Philadelphia or Cleveland?”
    “You flatter yourself.”
    “Balls. You know what I mean. And you know what the real estate situation is like around here this summer. We’re right on the edge, and other places are, too, like Nantucket and the Vineyard and East Hampton. There are people whostill haven’t made their summer plans. They know they’ve got their pick of places this year. There’s no shortage of houses for rent … anywhere. If I run a story saying that a young woman was bitten in two by a monster shark off Amity, there won’t be another house rented in this town. Sharks are like ax-murderers, Martin. People react to them with their guts. There’s something crazy and evil and uncontrollable about them. If we tell people there’s a killer shark around here, we can kiss the summer good-bye.”
    Brody nodded. “I can’t argue with that, Harry, and I don’t want to tell the people that there
is
a killer shark around here. Look at it from my point of view, just for a second. I won’t dispute your odds or anything. You’re probably right. That shark has probably gone a hundred miles from here and won’t ever show up again. The most dangerous thing out there in the water is probably the undertow. But, Harry, there’s a chance you’re wrong, and I don’t think we can take that chance. Suppose—just suppose—we don’t say a word, and somebody else gets hit by that fish. What then? My ass is in a sling. I’m supposed to protect people around here, and if I can’t protect them from something, the least I can do is warn them that there is a danger. Your ass is in a sling, too. You’re supposed to report the news, and there’s just no question but that someone killed by a shark is news. I want you to run the story, Harry. I want to close the beaches, just for a couple of days, and just for insurance’s sake. It won’t be a great inconvenience to anybody. There aren’t that many people here yet, and the water’s cold. If we tell it straight, tell people what happened and why we’re doing what we’re doing, I think we’ll be way ahead.”
    Meadows sat back in his chair and thought for a moment. “I can’t speak for your job, Martin, but as far as mine is concerned, the decision has already been made.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “There won’t be any story about the attack in the
Leader
.”
    “Just like that.”
    “Well, not exactly. It wasn’t entirely my decision, though I think that generally I agree with it. I’m the editor of this paper, Martin, and I own a piece of it, but not a big enough piece to buck certain pressures.”
    “Such as?”
    “I’ve gotten six phone calls already this morning. Five were from advertisers—one restaurant, one hotel, two real estate firms, and an ice cream shop. They were most anxious to know whether or not I planned to run a story on the Watkins thing, and most anxious to let me know they felt Amity would best be served by letting the whole thing fade quietly away. The sixth call was from Mr. Coleman in New York. Mr. Coleman who owns fifty-five per cent of the
Leader.
It seems Mr. Coleman had received a few phone calls himself. He told me there would be no story in the
Leader
.”
    “I don’t suppose he said whether the fact that his wife is a real estate broker had anything to do with his decision.”
    “No,” said Meadows. “The subject never came up.”
    “Figures. Well, Harry, where does that leave us? You’re not going to run a story, so as far as the good readers of the
Leader
are concerned, nothing ever happened. I’m going to close the beaches and put up a few signs saying why.”
    “Okay, Martin. That’s your decision. But let me remind you of something. You’re an elected official, right?”
    “Just like the President. For four thrill-filled years.”
    “Elected officials can be impeached.”
    “Is that a threat, Harry?”
    Meadows smiled. “You know better than that. Besides, who am I to be making threats? I just want