by Anna Collins
I could feel him getting to the moment of truth. It was that feeling of the vein throbbing inside me, not to mention how the head had swelled to two times its size that was the most telling. His balls were heavy each time they struck me, but I knew that it was just a matter of time before those contents would no longer be a part of him. I squeezed down, and I used those internal muscles to make him weak to my advances.
“I’ve just about…had it and I’m not just talking about what we’re doing right now. It’s a wonder I’m even able to do this after the beating I took from a man who I should’ve killed. Yes…I’m about to go off…ANGELLLLLLLL,” He said as he spewed in continuous waves punctuated with sharp jabs of his hips to get him as deep as he could possibly go.
My insides were gripping him tightly and holding him. There was no mistaking I was joining him in one last moment. The moaning I heard in my ears was not only his but a combination of both his and mine. I knew this was more than nice. This had gone beyond any of my expectations and each time was more explosive than the last. It was as if we were challenging each other to have a deeper understanding of our bodies.
He finally lay on top of me with his hot breath on my neck and sweet nothings from his heart. He had unlocked the door to my heart, and I felt I had done the same thing for him. Droplets of our sweat were clinging to our skin; sticking to us and making us feel we were inseparable. I was lucky I was sane after everything we had been through and I had Casper to thank for that. He was also the cause of much of the danger I was in. These experiences made me feel like I was never going to be the same again.
His excitement was slowly subsiding and with it the grip on him. He slid out with some of his creamy seed making its way to the surface. I wanted to rush into the bathroom and clean up, but I had nothing left.
“There will never be a day that goes by I don’t want to feel you next to me like this. We have a few hours we can sleep, but then we’re going to have to move quickly. The Raven will have people watching and waiting for us to stick our heads out of whatever hole we come out of. He will never rest. His duty to Nash is not exactly a secret. I knew I was barking up the wrong tree when I offered him the money in exchange for letting us go. I always find a way to get out of certain predicaments. It’s a matter of watching and waiting. Keep them talking and they won’t notice you are contemplating other ways to get out of whatever hell you are in,” Casper said with a distance between us. It was a memory which held him like a knife to his throat.
“We both think everything is in our control, but it doesn’t feel like this sometimes. We learned to roll with whatever is thrown at us. We’re stronger together than we are apart. I’m not just saying this to make you love me, even though those words have never been hard for you to say. It happens to you after sex, but what better way is there to show our undying affection for each other than getting physical?” I said while lazily putting my hand on his chest and feeling his heart beating against my fingertips.
“This whole thing is my burden to carry, and I thought I was meant to carry it alone. Your body shakes, and there’s no doubt we are in deep. Another kiss is all we need to seal our fate once and for all. I can’t get enough, and I believe I have this addiction for everything you are,” Casper said lying there with the sheets covering his better half. I could still see the outline of it through the thin material, but it was well satiated and asleep after a very difficult ordeal.
“I may as well face it. There’s no denying we are together for a reason. My mother told me there would be days like these. She asked me to watch out for the kind stranger who is offering candy. You are the kind of man every woman would like to get their hands on. I would like to think I was immune to your good looks and physique, but I can’t say this with a straight face,” I said letting the deep feelings I felt for him draw me into a relaxed state of mind.
Chapter 34
We stood there in the dock wearing stolen clothes. The pants were a little baggy, but the knit cap over my head including the shoe polish to give me a more masculine look was a good way to hide in plain sight with the rest of the longshoremen. The boats were getting ready to disembark, but Raven had shown up and was going over every compartment to make sure there weren’t any stowaways.
“I don’t want to hear it. We need to find them, and Nash was pretty damn clear about what happens if we don’t. I’ve never let him down before, and I don’t wanna start now. Fan out and use the picture I gave you of the both of them to see through whatever disguise they are wearing at the moment,” The Raven said as he stood no more than a few feet away from where Casper and me were standing.
“We know for sure they’re not on the boats. We’ve checked each and every one of them, and there’s nothing to indicate anybody is lying low within any of their compartments. That only tells us they are still here waiting to get on board. They will have to go through us, and it doesn’t matter what they disguise themselves as,” This man said as I felt Casper tugging at my sleeves and moving us further into the shadows.
“Nash is going to make this difficult for us, but I wouldn’t have expected anything less. He will want some kind of proof, but he really does feel like he has all of his ducks in a row. He will have security where they are about to sign on the dotted line. According to my calculations, I would say we are going to barely make the time limit, and that’s being generous. We need to get on a particular boat, and I do hope you can hold your breath for a long period of time,” Casper said as he walked us toward the water’s edge where there was no light.
Taking off his shirt was not something I was going to miss for the life of me. I touched those scars on his back; tracing them with my fingers and seeing him cringe like those marks were extra sensitive to touch. He dropped seamlessly into the water with barely a ripple left behind. I couldn’t see him in the murky depths, and I didn’t know if he had resurfaced. I was going to have to take it on faith alone he was going to be there to make sure I didn’t become just another victim.
“My patience is wearing thin. We checked almost everybody, and still they elude me like they’re mocking me. I need to find them and bring them to Nash dead or alive. His preference is alive so he can lord his accomplishment over Casper’s head before he kills him. I don’t have any such interest keeping him alive. He has already shown to be quite resourceful, and the woman that’s with him is just about as much of a problem as he is. I thought I was magnanimous when I gave her a free pass, but I didn’t see how she was able to think a few steps ahead,” The Raven said as he admonished his men and had them moving around like chickens with their heads cut off.
I took a long and deep breath and held it in my lungs and followed that up with dropping myself into the water. I wasn’t as seamless as Casper, but it didn’t seem to matter. I could barely see anything in front of me let alone which direction to go. I resurfaced, and I saw him beckoning me towards a boat bobbing up and down in the water. We hid behind the hull. The times we felt somebody was near, we would dive back down and hold our breath for however long it took for them to cast their suspicion on something else.
Casper climbed up with the help of a burly hand weathered and worn like old sea captains. I was floundering, and my legs were fatigued. It was probably not a good idea to indulge in extracurricular activities. I thought I was at my best. I could see Casper was struggling and doing what he could to make sure those wounds he had been given courtesy of the Raven would not stop him.
I felt somebody grabbing me by the collar and heaving me over the side like I was the big catch of the day. I lie there in the boat, my chest heaving, and my body feeling like it didn’t have anything left. I looked up into the weathered face of the sea captain. He really did remind me of the old man in the sea. He had the look of someone who had seen and done it all. There was nothing to surprise him. The surprising thing for me was the way Casper was friendly with him up to the point of giving him a hug.
“Lucas, it is really good to see you. I was afraid I wasn�
��t going to make it in time. I hope you don’t mind extra baggage. She won’t take up too much room, and I will be responsible for her,” Casper said as the old captain took off his hat and showed his years; not only with the wrinkles around his eyes but the lack of hair on his head also.
“I’m only doing this because of the money. Our friendship means a lot to me, but business needs to remain business. This is not the first and won’t be the last time I use my boat as a way to hide people. I don’t need to know the details of the reason why you need safe passage. I’m just happy to see all of those zeros in my account. You drive a hard bargain. I think you both should get down below and one of my men will show you where you can hide. I can’t promise they won’t find you, but this was custom made for such an occasion,” Lucas said as a young man looking not at all the least bit interested in our story gave us a motion of his head to follow.
I did hear him speak, but it was in a language I was not proficient in. There were only snippets of his conversation with himself I really understood. For the most part, he was following orders, but his doubts about how this was going to affect them were making him anxious. We followed him to what looked like a wall, and then he revealed a small compartment; it could barely fit one let alone two. It was a very snug fit, and you would have to know it was there. He left us, and we had to be very quiet as we heard people scuffling on the other side.
“This one is clear, and we can’t keep them for any longer than we already have. It’s just going to raise a lot more suspicion and the possible intervention of the local authorities. I understand, and I promise I won’t give up until we find them. We’re just going to have to take each boat one at a time and make a very detailed search of every nook and cranny. I’m leaving now,” The man said as his boots stomped in the other direction.
“The things I do for you, Casper, are out of my comfort zone. You really are a different kind of man. I’m not saying this as any kind of complaint. I know you have the fortune to fall back on. I also know you have a prenuptial agreement with your wife after the divorce is finalized. You said she wasn’t going to be very happy,” I said hoping his wife wasn’t going to be the fly in our ointment.
“The one thing I don’t have to worry about is my wife doing something to keep me from finding my revenge. We came to an arrangement and one that benefits her more than it does me. It hurts me in the only way this matters. I have more than enough money, but I’m going to have to get out from underneath these charges. They are looking for me still, and that’s not going to stop until Nash set things right. If I know him as well as I think I do, then he will have the proof close. I’ll send some of my loyal followers to find it,” Casper said as he was shallow breathing and trying to keep this huge frame from making any sort of noise in this enclosed space.
Chapter 35
The engine turned, and it was kind of deafening considering we were right beside it. The door opened as the boat lurched forward and began to take on more speed crashing against each wave as it came in contact.
“We are on our way, but I would stress you stay down here. You have the run of the ship, but I would express my concern if you were to go topside. My men are not exactly happy by any of this, and it would do us no good to ruffle their feathers any further. They might find it better to ink some kind of deal of their own. Everybody has mouths to feed, and this business is a harsh reality for most. There are good weeks, and there are bad weeks. It’s the bad weeks keeping people from staying any longer than six months. I have compensated all of them for their time and effort in this matter,” Lucas said not mentioning what kind of cut he was getting and how much he was forfeiting for the silence of his crew.
“I was going to ask you what the split is going to be between you and your men. If I were in your position, I would take 50% and use the other 50% to keep everybody from saying anything. I don’t want to know, but my curiosity is making me wonder how much you are getting off the top of what I paid you,” Casper said with Lucas standing there shrugging his shoulders feigning innocence when we both knew he didn’t have any.
“I have been dying to tell somebody, but I think I’ll keep that to myself. You never know if the walls have ears. I’ve always been fair to my men, and they know that. Their undying loyalty is something I do not take for granted. They don’t fear me necessarily, but they know I will do whatever it takes to make sure they come home to their loved ones. That’s the difference between my crew and the others. Here, we are a family, and I treat them as if they are all my brothers. We look after each other out here with the sea unforgiving. I’ve lost a few good men, but this is the nature of this business. I mourn for each and every one of them, and they know their families will always be taken care of,” Lucas said with a trace of humility; it made him look more human than a taskmaster.
“I’ve learned the hard way to trust my instincts. We haven’t known each other for that long, but I always make it my business to find someone who is not out for just himself. We talked on several occasions when I came down for the freshest of the seafood. You can’t get any fresher than right off the boat. It might cost a little more, but you avoid the headache of going through middlemen. You’ve always been a man of honor. It’s the reason why I reached out to you and made these arrangements ahead of time. I told you one day I may need you and you said for the right price anything was possible. I took you on your word, and this is a bond most men would never break. It’s those who have no honor will tell you anything you need to hear and then turn the tables to give them more of the green,” Casper said as Lucas looked at him and then put his hand on his shoulder like they were two brothers in arms.
“I can tell you’ve been in one battle after another. You can rest assured here you are safe and nobody will give you any problems. If they do, then you need to set them straight by sending them to me. When you came out on the boat with me a few times, it was as if you were trying to butter me up. I knew something was up when you mentioned you were running from something,” Lucas said while he was stroking his beard and his light white hairs currently displayed.
The only thing I’m worried about is Raven. He is going to find out you are known for smuggling. What kind of assurances do we have others won’t speak out of turn? I only ask because I don’t want there to be a sort of boarding party. I’m very close to unraveling this mess, and I don’t want anything to get in my way,” Casper said.
“It’s no secret I’ve been responsible for smuggling more than just people. I don’t care what it is. It could be weapons, people, drugs and it really doesn’t matter as long as I get my cut. Those who know only speak about it in hushed tones, because they know I will personally track them down and make them eat their words. There’s always the possibility somebody will talk for the right price, but I seriously doubt it. They know money can never contend with the kind of vengeance that will never let them rest. I’ve made a few examples over the years. Let’s just say my point is abundantly made,” Lucas said with a small smirk giving me a cold chill down my spine and not in a good way.
“I’ve heard a few of those urban legends when I was drinking with some of the boys. They do love their stories, and they exaggerate to make them bigger than life. It’s something every fisherman will do because they feel more important if they look like some kind of hero. It takes a lot for them to open up. The Raven would have to get them pretty damn drunk to get them to speak openly and honestly. He won’t have this kind of time, not with Nash demanding results. He’ll spend as much time as he can questioning them, but then he will hopefully leave well enough alone,” Casper said as the boat was rocking back and forth.
I was in no position to complain about the fish smell; it was most likely going to permeate into my clothes and even skin. These people lived their lives from one day to the next waiting for the net to pick up whatever was at the bottom of the ocean floor. I admired them, but I also could never do what they did on a daily basis. One day surrounded by this much testosterone was more tha
n enough for me.
I touched the grease staining some of the walls and an oily substance came back I couldn’t seem to wipe off. Lucas was as tough as they came. He was kind, but he could show his might to those who thought they could undercut him. He was the type who would negotiate on good terms. They would come to an arrangement and if something were to change like asking for more money then his anger could be seen seething on the surface. He spoke candidly about some of his exploits.
“I appreciate your need for discretion, and I believe you will be rewarded handsomely for your efforts. You already have the initial payment, but I think a bonus is in order. You’re only going to get it when we get safely to where we need to go. One of these islands, and I’m going to refrain from mentioning the name is waiting for us to arrive. There is a plane to be fueled and ready to take off at a moment’s notice. I want you to stay in touch. I think a man of your unique skill set can come in handy from time to time. I may be in need of smuggling something out without the government sticking their noses where it doesn’t belong,” Casper said alluding to the fact his business was not necessarily on the up and up all the time.
