by Bobby Akart
Jake ran up onto the transom and hustled into the main cabin. This Grand Banks model had two bridges, one inside the main cabin and another in the Skylounge on top. Jake grabbed his rifle and took the stairs two at a time to reach the top.
He shouldered his weapon and stood dumbfounded as he studied the dials, gauges and levers on the instrument panel. The only thing that looked remotely familiar to him was the wooden ship’s wheel.
“Okay, Wheeler, calm down,” he said aloud as he ran his hands across the instruments. Jake took a deep breath and pulled the key out of his pocket. It was attached to a floating keyring bearing the San Francisco Giants logo. He inserted it into the ignition.
Jake looked around for a glove box or some kind of pouch which held the operations manual. He fumbled through a seat pocket behind the captain’s chair, when he heard Ashby yell to him in a hushed tone.
“Jake, they’re searching the docks. Hurry!”
He found the manual and frantically thumbed through the pages. He talked aloud. “Safety guidelines. Before embarking. Cruising checklists. I don’t care about this crap. How do you start the damn thing!”
“What?” Ashby shouted her question.
He shouted back to her. “Untie the lines and come inside. It’s not going anywhere.” Literally, he thought to himself.
Jake continued to thumb through the manual. He was mumbling to himself. “Turn on the chartplotter. What’s a chartplotter?” He studied the diagram of the instrument panel and searched for a toggle switch. There! He switched it to on.
He turned the page and read the word, WOBBS. “Huh?” He disregarded this and moved on.
He shouted to Ashby again. “Are we plugged in?”
“Plugged into what?” She responded as she stepped onto the Skylounge deck.
“Oh, sorry. Shore power. Were we plugged in?”
“Not that I can see,” she replied calmly. She looked around the Skylounge and located his rifle. She picked it up and asked, “Is this thing ready?’
“Always, why?”
“They’re coming down B-dock.”
Chapter 48
Moss Landing
Monterey Bay, California
Jake was overwhelmed but he kept his focus as he learned how to operate the complicated vessel. Ashby took up a position on the side of the Skylounge facing Mike and his men who were walking briskly in their direction. She planned on waiting until all of them were in range, and in the open, before she fired warning shots at their feet. Ashby hoped they’d heed the opportunity she was giving them to turn back.
“Progress,” said Jake as he began flipping toggle switches. He continued to read the instructions aloud. “Port side first. Pull up the cold start plunger. Advance the throttle all the way forward. Depress the plunger and bring the throttle to idle. Engine switch to on.”
Suddenly, an alarm sounded from the instrument panel.
“What now?” he said in frustration.
That’s when Ashby opened fire with a burst of six rounds toward the approaching men.
“Holy crap, Ashby!”
“Jake, you wanna trade places?”
“No, I’ve almost got it, I think,” he mumbled. He ignored the alarm and pressed the start button. The large Volvo D13 engine powered up, causing the motor yacht to rumble in the water. Jake quickly started the second Volvo, enjoying the power of nine-hundred horsepower at his fingertips.
Mike and his men began to return fire sending bullets whizzing by them. Ashby sprayed more cover fire in the direction of where they were hidden behind two boats.
“Here we go,” said Jake as he pushed both throttles forward in unison. It was too much, too fast. The stern sunk into the water as the torque of the twin engines thrust the bow upward. My Wet Dream lurched forward, bouncing off the sides of the slip as Ashby hadn’t pulled up the bumpers.
They both lost their balance with Jake crashing back into the captain’s chair and Ashby tumbling onto a padded seat which lined the interior of the Skylounge.
Jake grabbed both of the throttles, overcorrecting and throwing the engines into a near stall.
“Crap! Crap! Crap!” He shouted as more bullets sailed by.
“I got this,” said Ashby as she sat on two knees and began firing back. Jake eased the throttles forward this time and began to slowly guide the vessel out of its slip. As soon as he’d cleared the dock, he pointed it toward the entrance channel and pushed the throttles down to full power again.
He gripped the wheel and kept the motor yacht on a straight course, not being concerned with the massive wake he left behind as evidenced by moored sailboats and smaller craft on the nearby docks crashing back and forth.
He narrowly missed the no wake sign and the subsequent channel marker as he turned the vessel to port. Jake finally exhaled as the gunfire had stopped and they sailed away from Monterey Bay.
Chapter 49
Moss Landing
Monterey Bay, California
Ashby found some binoculars in a compartment under a seat cushion. She observed Mike and his men standing on the end of the dock. They were animated as they talked about what had just happened, before suddenly turning and jogging back toward the parking area.
It was Ashby’s turn to relax. She set the rifle down on the cushion and joined Jake behind the wheel.
“Well, how’s that for excitement, Wheeler?”
Jake laughed. “I miss Yellowstone.”
They both broke out in nervous laughter. Nothing about their lives had been the same since they met one another during that initial strong earthquake in the YVO. For the first time, the two fell at ease as they were completely alone, cruising down the Pacific Coast at fifteen knots.
The sun was setting, a huge orange ball obscured slightly by sea spray and ash fallout over the Pacific. It cast an odd, golden glow on the rugged cliffs of Big Sur as they sailed past.
Jake bent down to kiss Ashby as the two of them enjoyed the first truly romantic moment of their relationship. They rode along in silence, enjoying the security provided by their arms being interlocked. Ashby laid her head against Jake’s shoulder as a California Condor swept across their bow, its nine-foot wingspan carrying it effortlessly back toward the shore.
Jake broke the silence with his best British accent. “This is your captain speaking. Where shall I chart our course, madam?”
“South, please sir,” Ashby responded with a chuckle. “As far as our fuel will carry us. It’s time for a new adventure.”
Jake grinned and gave the motors a little more throttle, causing the engines to roar, which, unfortunately, obscured the sound of the boat which had just raced out of Moss Landing Harbor in pursuit of the young couple in love.
THANK YOU FOR READING YELLOWSTONE: FALLOUT
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READ ON FOR A BONUS EXCERPT from YELLOWSTONE: SURVIVAL, the final installment in the Yellowstone series.
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2018 Bobby Akart Inc. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of Bobby Akart Inc.
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