Cash

by Tess Oliver

  The clamor of music, voices and the usual clinkering sound of the boats grew louder as we reached the pier. The brisk ocean breeze was warmed by the lights and crush of people. With the neighbors all huddled together in one space, the town seemed somehow bigger.

  Esme took my hand and, even with the various activities and dancing going on, we seemed to attract more than our share of attention as we stepped onto the wood planks. Every head seemed to be pulled from a conversation or plate of food as we strolled through the crowd.

  “Without making it too obvious, look to see if my fly is open,” I said from the corner of my mouth.

  Esme burst out laughing, garnering even more attention. “It’s not your fly.” She turned to look at me. “It’s because you are what is better known as a showstopper. You don’t even seem to notice that all the energy in a place or crowd, or even out here on this dock, flows toward you because you,” she sighed, “well, you are, like I said, a showstopper.”

  I leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. “You come up with some funny theories, sugar peanut, but I expect it has more to do with the fact that I just walked into the celebration holding hands with the hottest girl in town.”

  “Are you hungry?” she asked, which I answered with my silly question eyebrow raise. “Right, of course you are. Keeping you fed is sort of an all day chore, isn’t it?” She took my hand again. “The bakery makes these delicious meat pies complete with flaky pastry and grilled onions.”

  “That’ll do for a start.”

  Her two friends plowed through the crowd toward us just as we reached the food table. “You guys are late,” Olivia said. She looked me over. “Do you dance?”

  “Not exactly,” I said.

  “Did Bodhi really leave town?” Addison asked.

  “I’m afraid so,” Esme answered.

  Addison’s shoulders sank. “Great. There are no decent guys to dance with tonight. I might as well go home.” Just as she finished her small tantrum, a tall lanky dude with short brown hair came up behind her.

  “Want to dance, Addie?” he asked.

  She spun around making sure to add a dramatic flair with her hair. “Sure.” They left and Olivia quickly decided the third wheel thing wasn’t for her. She walked away with a pout.

  “Is she mad?” I asked.

  Esme waved if off. “Nah, that’s just the way she is.”

  Fortunately, the novelty of our presence wore off and Esme and I stood in a quiet corner and downed meat pies and hot cider. I looked around and spotted Ben sitting on his boat sipping drinks with some of his neighbors. “Ben seems to be having a good time.”

  “I’m glad,” Esme said. “He’s such a cool guy. He never deserved to suffer like he has.” She faced me. “I keep thinking about what Clint said. He is a total creep, but I just can’t see him doing anything as awful as murder.” Her long lashes dropped. “One day, when I was still in high school, I was alone at home. Clint showed up. He and Seton had plans to go out. I left him in the family room and went into my bedroom. He came in after me.” Her voice wavered and my fingers tightened into fists. I already hated the guy. It wouldn’t take much for me to break him in two. Esme must have sensed the sudden rage swirling around me. She pressed her hand against my chest. “Nothing happened. Bodhi walked in, and he told him to get the hell out. That was back when my dad still made rational decisions that mimicked parenthood. He told Clint he was no longer welcome in our house.” She smiled weakly. “I guess this time Clint brought him an offer that was too good to pass up.”

  “Except, it seems, that offer came with a lot of baggage.” I took hold of her hand. “Let’s stop talking about stuff that makes me want to tear heads off. I seem to remember something about you standing in my arms.”

  “You don’t have to ask me twice.”

  We headed to the section of the dock that had been bordered off with lights as a makeshift dance floor.

  Just as we stepped between the dancers, someone yelled “boat coming in!’’ Everyone’s attention was pulled to the harbor. In the distance, a light swung like a pendulum with the motion of the night tide.

  Esme squeezed my hand. “That’s the Tail Chaser.”

  Another onlooker added, “That’s Drake’s boat. What is that scoundrel up to now?”

  Esme shrank down in shame.

  “Maybe he’s finished with whatever they were up to,” I suggested.

  She nodded and forced a smile, but it seemed she would’ve done anything at that moment to not be part of the Drake family.

  The boat was moving pretty damn fast in dark waters. It didn’t slow down once it had passed the five miles per hour buoys. Conversations that had begun as disgusted murmurs about how far Drake had fallen, morphed into agitated, angry exchanges about his lack of following the speed limit in the harbor. I glanced over at the Molly Ray. Ben was standing outside of his boat with his friends, arms crossed and looking angry like the rest of the crowd.

  “Something’s wrong.” Esme’s grip on my hand tightened. She lifted her chin and ignored rude glares as she led me to the edge of the dock. The boat ripped along toward the pier, a pier filled with people. The same loud horn that’d blown the night the boats were untied blew overhead.

  The music stopped and a man’s voice shot through the speakers. “Evacuate the pier. Please leave in an orderly fashion.”

  Angry, sharp voices turned to frenzied shrieks and cries. The wood planks creaked in complaint as people moved in a giant frightened wave over the pier.

  Esme hid her face on my arm. “I can’t watch,” she cried. “They’re going to crash.” But just as she spoke the words, the engine collapsed to an idle and whoever was steering the boat threw it into reverse. The boat spun sideways and slowed considerably as it floated toward the dock. Some of the fleeing party goers returned to their angry mutters and moved slowly back to see what was happening.

  There were enough lights on the dock to illuminate the water a few hundred yards out. And as I squinted past the bright light on the bow, I could see a large figure. It was Esme’s dad. He seemed to be tilting to the side as if something was wrong with him. Esme noticed his strange posture too.

  She stepped right to the edge of the dock. “Daddy!” she yelled.

  As his image grew clearer, it was easy to see that his right arm and side were covered in blood. The heated anger in the crowd cooled to horror and concern. “Good God,” someone yelled, “Drake is bleeding to death.”

  I grabbed Esme’s arm before she pitched into the water. She held onto me for support as the boat came in. Several men lined up along the cleats to help tie off the boat.

  “They have, Seton!” Drake’s weak voice came through the darkness. “They have my son.” He was as white as the hull of his boat as he maneuvered it toward the dock with only one arm. Esme ran to meet it. The boat drifted sideways and smacked the pier hard enough to give it a shake.

  Zeke Banyon stepped out from behind the light and tossed one line to the men waiting on the dock. His gaze surveyed the crowd. His attention landed on me. “The men we were meeting have Seton,” he spoke to me as if I were the only person on the pier. His words were cryptic enough to keep the others confused. As he spoke, his two brothers came up along the stern. One of them looked only slightly better off than Esme’s dad. His hand was wrapped in a shirt that was wet with blood.

  Esme put her foot on the boat and stretched out her hand. “Dad, we need to get you to the hospital,” she pleaded.

  “No, not until we have Seton.”

  “I’ve called the police.” Ben’s neighbor held up his phone. “And they’re sending an ambulance. Greg, you need to let us get you some medical attention.”

  I looked around at the concerned faces, every one of them. What I should’ve seen was a group of people pissed that their night had been ruined and raising their fists to let Greg Drake know that his crappy choices had caused him to lose Seton and that he should rot in hell for his decisions. But that wasn’t wh
at was happening. There was this sense of loyalty amongst them all, a ‘we take care of our own’ type of strength that reminded me a lot of the club, only these people were less volatile.

  “How about it, Bedlam?” Zeke’s attention was still on me.

  “Where are they at? Aren’t they long gone by now?” I asked.

  “The fuel didn’t come in, and they’ve had to anchor offshore to wait for it. That’s why they took Seton. He’s assurance that they get away. They screwed us completely and—” He glanced toward Esme but still didn’t mince his words. “Seton’s a dead man either way.”

  Esme’s hand flew to her mouth. She turned to me with a pleading look that went straight into my chest.

  “Got any weapons?” I asked, figuring there was no reason for me to mince words either.

  “Yep, we’re set. We just need some reinforcement. Clint and Jacob took off at the first sign of trouble. Always figured them for a couple of weasels.”

  “Guess you’re not a great leader, taking on black market dealers with a novice, cowardly crew behind you.” He flinched at my words but recovered quickly.

  “Yeah, I discovered that a few days ago. That’s why I came after you, hoping to build up a little steel.”

  I looked at Esme’s dad. “Drake, you need to get off this boat. You need medical attention, and I’m not leaving unless I know you’re here to keep an eye on Esme.” I looked at Zeke. “Is your injured brother right handed?”

  He knew why I was asking. He nodded and turned back to him. “Ronny, get off. You are useless without your right hand, and you’ll just be another target.”

  The conversation drew some gasps from the crowd. The weight of what was happening seemed to finally be sinking in for them. Their secluded little village kept them from some of the harsh and shocking realities of the real world, but thanks to Drake, ugliness had now reached their doorstep, or in this case, their marina.

  Reluctantly, Esme’s dad climbed off the boat. Banyon’s brother followed. Drake staggered onto the dock. Several neighbors held his arm to support him. No one lent a hand to the other injured man. I glanced back at Esme. She ran to me and threw her arms around me. “Thank you. Please be careful.”

  I kissed her. “No promises about any of this, all right?” I had no idea what we were facing, and I’d certainly never been in a gunfight on the water. I hopped onto the boat. Esme stood with her arms crossed around her and a look of profound worry.

  “Thank you,” her dad called weakly as we pulled away.

  I motioned toward Esme. “Thank her, the only thing of value in your entire pathetic life. She’s the only reason I’m on this boat.”

  His face dropped. It seemed that tonight might well bring an end to his life of crime. I hoped so for Esme’s sake.

  Zeke steered the Tail Chaser out toward the endless stretch of black water. He pointed to his brother. “This is Dan.” As the land behind us disappeared, the sea grew darker. To a novice like me, we could have been floating around in circles and I wouldn’t have had a clue. But Banyon seemed to know how to navigate by the shape of the coastline. Once the ghostly looking lighthouse loomed over the water, I had my bearings again. We were nearing the cove.

  Zeke killed the light. “They are anchored just off the Trentville marina. They’ll hear us coming, but they won’t have a clear view of those of us on deck.” He reached down below the captain’s chair and brought out a Glock. “Are you a good shot?”

  I took the pistol from his hand. “I am on land. We’ll be at the same disadvantage of not being able to see who is on deck. And Esme’s brother will be amongst the human targets.”

  Banyon had no response.

  “Guess you didn’t give much of this any thought. What went wrong, anyhow?”

  He shook his head. “The deal was I deliver fifty grand of pharmaceuticals to these guys, and they hand me the money and then float off into the sunset. They claimed too many of the bottles were close to expiration, and they weren’t worth as much. They handed us an envelope with five grand and told us to get lost. We tried to stand our ground and shake some more money out of them, but they grabbed Seton and told us to get off the boat. Drake’s old man got to his boat and pulled a gun. Bullets were exchanged and Drake took one in the arm. My brother was hit in the hand.”

  “I’m going to tell you now, Banyon, I don’t give a fuck about your money or your goods. I’m only interested in bringing Seton back home, preferably alive.”

  His jaw tightened, but there was no way my declaration could have come as a surprise to him. “How many guys on deck and how many weapons?”

  “There are three that I know of. Don’t know anything about weapons except that they were all armed.”

  “Shit, sounds like you went to this completely clueless.” I got up and searched around the deck. A big, white cylinder that looked like the stubby end of a torpedo was chained near the stern. “Is this an inflatable life raft?”

  “Yeah. And that box next to it has flares and other things needed if the boat is in trouble.”

  I reached into the metal box and pulled out an orange tool chest. It contained a flare gun and cartridges. At least Drake had enough sense to keep his boat stocked for emergencies. I pulled out the gun and several flares. Zeke’s brother stood along the railing keeping an eye out for the boat.

  I loaded the flare gun. “Zeke, get us as close as you can, otherwise these flares are worthless.” I handed the flare gun to Dan, who stared at it in confusion.

  I tapped my head. “It helps to make a plan so we don’t all end up dead.” I squinted into the darkness. “I see the tugboat. It’s a good quarter mile off still.”

  Zeke slowed down the boat. The motor quieted some, but, like Esme had said, there was no way to sneak up on anyone with a fishing trawler or any boat on the open sea for that matter. It wouldn’t be long before they noticed a disturbance in the surface of the water, alerting them of an approaching vessel. They had to know that someone would be coming for Seton, but at the same time, they were probably resting confidently in the fact that the Banyons weren’t going to call the cops either.

  “Get within range,” I told Zeke, “and be ready.” I looked at his brother. “When I give the signal, send a flare toward their boat. The light it gives off will only last long enough to get in a few decent shots. When it dies down, shoot another flare. We’ll have the advantage of being able to see the people on deck. They’ll only be able to see the sparks from our guns.”

  The motor chugged just above neutral, and we drifted toward the anchored boat. My keen eyesight gave me some advantage, but the lack of light made everything a blur. There was activity on deck now.

  I looked at Zeke. “We’ve got their attention.” We floated closer, and, as expected, they fired the first shot. It was random and with no real target, only an attempt to stop us from coming closer. We had moved into a position that allowed me to have a clear shot at the deck in front of the pilot house where the men seemed to be gathered. It wouldn’t be easy, but in the fleeting interval of light, I’d have to pick out Seton from the others.

  I hunched down and found a good place to steady my hand and the gun. The constant and unpredictable movement of the boat was going to make good aim nearly impossible. “Closer,” I told Zeke. “Otherwise we’re just going to be spitting bullets into the water.”

  I stared at the Glock in my hand. It was a lot like the gun I’d carried when I was with Bedlam. I’d ridden for miles to find something different and the guns and shit had followed me. I should’ve known better. I was a magnet for trouble. And, even though none of this had to do with me, I couldn’t help but wonder if my new, unwanted partners would have been out here taking these guys on if I hadn’t been in town.

  Our opponents fired three more useless shots toward the Tail Chaser.

  “Banyon, I didn’t think you’d have the balls to come out here. You’re wasting your time,” someone yelled from the tugboat. In the shadows, I could see three figures on deck.
I had no idea if Seton was one of them.

  I looked at Dan. “On three.” I raised up my fingers to count three and he fired a flare. It landed ten feet off of their stern. The red glow lit up the boat and gave them all a ghostly appearance. I zeroed in on a target who looked too small to be Seton. I fired and a howl of pain followed.

  They fired back, leaving several holes in the hull of the fishing boat. We still had the advantage of darkness on our side. Our best hope was that they hadn’t been smart enough to arm their tugboat with the same safety supplies. Dan shot off another flare. I fired again. A second man grabbed his shoulder but recuperated quickly, assuring me it had been nothing more than a flesh wound.

  Zeke looked at me from his position at the helm. “Did you catch where Seton was?”

  I shook my head. “Nope, I was too focused on my target.”

  “They’ve got him tied up at the stern,” Dan said. “Caught a glimpse of him before the flare died out.”

  Unfortunately, I’d been wrong in my hope that they had no safety gear. The next flare came our way. “Duck!” Zeke yelled as a volley of shots came our direction. They were busting up Drake’s fishing trawler plenty, but their aim was less than stellar.

  “This is like a game of ping pong and none of us are scoring points,” I said. “I need to get on board.”

  Zeke’s eyes bulged slightly. “That sounds like suicide. How are you going to get there?”

  I pointed at the tube containing the life raft. “I’ll row a wide berth around them and come up at the stern. If I’m lucky, I can grab Seton and toss him overboard.”

  “And if you’re not lucky?”

  “Then everyone loses, and I end up fish food. I just hope it’s a big, one gulp type of fish and not a bunch of nibblers. That would suck.”

  Dan took one end of the line that held the lifeboat container. I grabbed the other end and we lowered it behind the boat. “Can you idle this boat louder?” I asked Zeke. “This raft will make some noise as it inflates. I don’t want to clue our buddies in.”