Chapter 17 Summary

Wiley's column that is sent from the Bahamas is harmless, and talks about his vacation there as if it were a normal trip. He mentions how the tourists there are bothersome to the locals, but, of necessity, tolerated just as the tourists are tolerated in Miami. Cab Mulcahy tells Keyes that he had no choice but to publish it and Keyes tells him everything, particularly how Wiley is the leader of the Nights of December.

As they continue to talk, they decide one possible way to get Wiley back to Miami is to let Bloodworth rewrite Wiley's next column and then publish it under Wiley's name. They could then get Wiley arrested at the airport. As they talk further, Keyes tells Mulcahy about the plot to violate the sacred virgin, and they figure out that he plans to kill the Orange Bowl queen...