“We don’t have anything, Mister,” Leilani said.
Stretch dug into his pocket and reached out his hand to both women. “Here’s a thousand each,” he said. “Go ahead, take it.”
Fiona took one of the two rolls he held out and looked at him, puzzled. “Are you people for real? None of this makes any sense.”
“Take some of that money,” he said, ignoring her question, “and get Angelique to take you into town in the morning for some clothes. Get enough to last you a week and a suitcase to carry it in — or you can have her take you to the airport and just disappear on your own. But when we get back, if you’re still here, we can make disappearing a lot easier.”
As the two climbed down, Malcolm was stretching a hose across the boat. The old man and the young black woman stood beside the boat, waiting.
When Stretch climbed down, he went straight to the old man on the dock and shook his hand. Fiona’s sharp eyes caught something in Stretch’s hand which he palmed into the old man’s.
“I’m Henry,” the man on the dock said, smiling. “You got nothing to be afraid of here. Hardly anyone even knows where here is.”
Fiona was surprised at the black woman’s bright blue eyes. Even in the subdued lights from the boat and a single bright light over the gas pumps, she could see that the woman was obviously of mixed ancestry.
“Come wit me,” she said, smiling broadly. “We have plenty of room. All our cabins have two beds, would yuh be needin’ one of dem or two?”
In her tight skirt, Fiona had to sit on the side of the boat and swing both legs over at the same time. She looked back to Leilani, a question in her eyes.
“We can share one,” Leilani said.
“One or two,” Angelique said, raising her hands, palms up. “Or three even, no matter. Dere ain’t but two of dem occupied now anyway.”
Fiona looked down the row of cabins, each one smaller than the boat they’d arrived on. There were eight of them, plus the larger house on the end.
“You live in the bigger house?” Fiona asked.
“Lord no, girl!” Angelique exclaimed. “I jes work for dis old fool, I ain’t his house woman.” She smiled, putting Fiona at ease. “I live in di second little one; di blue one wit coral shutters.”
“We won’t be any trouble,” Fiona said.
“Don’t you worry,” Henry said. “This ain’t the first time he’s dropped girls off here that he’d plucked from danger.”
Charity stepped down to the dock and shook hands with Henry, introducing herself to Angelique. Taking Fiona and Leilani by the arms, she led them away from the others. “We’ll be back tomorrow,” Charity said. “By then, all this will be behind you. I know it’s difficult to swallow, but there really are good people in the world, and you’re among some of the best I know.”
“What happens tomorrow?” Leilani asked.
Charity looked back toward the others before answering. “We’re kinda scattered right now. My boat’s in Nassau and my helicopter is on Cat Island. When we’re finished with this in the morning, we’ll come back here and work it out. But while the legal system deals with them, I think you two should disappear. We’ll hole up on my boat for a few weeks, somewhere that can’t be found.”
Fiona looked around. The setting was straight out of an old sitcom she used to watch, with a bunch of castaways on a deserted island. “You mean like this place?”
“By comparison, this will look like it has giant cartoon arrows in neon pointing down at it.”
Fiona looked back toward the others. “What did the old man mean by it’s not the first time Stretch has dropped girls off here?”
“I wasn’t a part of it, but as I understand it, a woman and her granddaughter were kidnapped by Jamaicans and taken to Cat Island. Our team, Stretch included, rescued them and arrested the kidnapper.”
“I thought you weren’t cops,” Leilani said.
“We’re not, they were working with the FBI. That’s who actually made the arrest.”
Fiona felt the wad of cash in her hand. It was the most money she’d held in her whole life. But what this woman was offering was worth a lot more. She exchanged a glance with Leilani, then extended her hand to Charity.
“Thanks for doing this,” she said. “I still think all of you are nuts, but thanks. We’ll be here.”
Charity smiled. “Tell Angelique you need clothes for sailing. She should know a place that will have what you need.”
As Charity turned to shake Leilani’s hand, the smaller woman stepped past her hand and hugged her. Fiona was moved by the display and wrapped her arms around them both.
After an awkward moment, they stepped back. Charity turned and went back to the others. Malcolm was handing the fuel hose back to Henry, and Stretch was waiting up on top, the engines already running.
In minutes, Charity boarded the boat and they’d untied the lines. The big boat slowly started to move away from the dock, then began to spin around without moving forward. Fiona thought that was a neat trick. Charity glanced back and waved, as the boat started toward the canal. Fiona and Leilani waved back.
“You ladies look about done in,” Henry said.
Fiona turned toward him. Angelique was nowhere to be seen.
“She went to her place to fetch y’all something to sleep in,” Henry explained. Then he glanced down at Leilani. “I’m afraid you’ll be sleeping in something baggy. Are you all growed up?”
“I get that a lot,” Leilani said. “I’m twenty-four, so I’m pretty sure I won’t be getting any taller.”
The old man chuckled and turned to walk down the dock. “Come on this way, then. We got you in cabin three, right next door to Angelique’s place. The two cabins down at the far end are taken by a couple of my fishing guides. They’ll be heading out early, so I doubt you’ll see them in the morning. They’re harmless guys, though; both of ’em grew up right here on the island.”
Angelique came out of her cabin as they approached, carrying a small basket. “I got some clothes here,” she said. “Nuff to get you through di night and to di store tomorrow.”
Henry turned toward the bigger house. “I’m goin’ to bed. Wake me if ya need anything.”
“Come,” Angelique said. “I show you to di cabin.”
Walking into the little house, Fiona was surprised. It was bigger than a regular motel room, but not by much and only because it had a loft. The one big room was decorated to create a light, airy, island vibe, with natural driftwood wall-hangings instead of the usual paintings by some unknown artist.
“Di beds are up dere,” Angelique said, pointing toward a ladder attached to the wall of the bathroom.
The front room was a simple living area, with a small sofa, two chairs, and a coffee table. Beyond it was an efficient little kitchen with a tiny table and two wooden chairs.
“I put clean linens on di bed when Mistuh Henry tell me dat Jesse was bringin’ guests.”
“Jesse?” Fiona asked.
“Di cap’n of dat boat yuh came in on,” Angelique said, placing the box of clothes on the coffee table. “Anyway,” she continued looking Fiona up and down, “we be ’bout di same size, clothes in here will fit yuh okay till tomorrow.”
Turning to Leilani, Angelique said, “Dere was a woman and her granddaughter here some time ago. Di girl was only thirteen or so, but as tall as you, and she left some things. I’m afraid dey are kids clothes.”
Leilani grinned. “I mostly shop in the kid’s department anyway.”
“We set till we get to di mall tomorrow, den.”
“Mall?” Fiona asked.
“Di outdoor market place in town,” Angelique replied, opening the refrigerator. “Dere is water here, and I just started my little grill on di front porch. I was gonna cook up a lobster and got more if yuh hungry.”
“Lobster?” Fiona asked,
incredulously. “God, I just realized how hungry I am.”
“Oh, we got plenty. Sometimes we eat dem little bugs two times a day. I like to cook dem on di grill, still in dere shells. Mmm, dey good.”
“Would it be too much trouble—” Leilani started to ask.
“No trouble at all,” Angelique replied with a big smile. Fiona found that she liked this Bahamian woman. “Ole Mistuh Henry go to bed early, but I never go to sleep before midnight.”
“How does he fit in with the others?” Leilani asked.
“Henry?” Angelique asked. “He and Cap’n Jesse’s grandfather fought in World War Two together, in di Marines.” She turned to go and stopped by the door. “I will get some more lobsters from my fridge. Y’all get cleaned up and come over to my porch in half an hour. I have some good homemade wine, to go wit di lobster.”
After Angelique left, Fiona turned to Leilani. “This is all weirdin’ me out. How did you stumble onto these people?”
Leilani walked over and sat on the sofa. “Brent and I found a lot of money on that boat; we were running. I’m sorry.”
Fiona sat beside her only friend. “You don’t have to be sorry. I’d have done the same thing. We both promised, remember? How much money?”
“We didn’t count it all, but I’m guessing over three hundred thousand.”
“Dollars?” Fiona asked, her eyes wide.
“Yeah, the guy was some sort of spy.”
“So what happened?”
“We could almost see Miami,” Leilani explained. “Brent had said he was going to kill the guy whose boat we were on and take it. He said he knew people in Miami. When he got the captain to stop, Brent hit him with the one-ball.”
“Brent’s an animal,” Fiona said.
“Yeah, well, just after Brent threw the captain overboard, a helicopter hit us with a big spotlight and another boat came up. Malcolm and another man were on the boat, and Charity was flying the helicopter.”
“She’s a pilot?”
“Among other things,” Leilani said. “They all used to work for the government. Brent had a gun we stole from the guy’s boat and tried to pull it out. They both shot him. Then Malcolm put me on the helicopter while it just hung in the air a few feet in front of the boat.”
“Whoa,” Fiona breathed. “Brent’s dead? That had to be scary.”
Leilani went on to tell her friend about the ride to where they met Stretch, whose name they now knew was Jesse. She told her about how easily Charity had captured Jeff and Doug, knocking them both out, and taking them one at a time out to the boat.
“They were on the boat?” Fiona asked.
“Did you see those trap doors in the floor in the back of the boat?”
“Fish boxes,” Fiona explained. “That’s where they keep the fish they catch.”
“Jeff and Doug were in the fish boxes.”
Once clear of the barrier reef, Charity and Jesse went below to get some sleep, leaving Tony on the bridge. The ride to Little Stirrup Cay would only take them two hours and once there, they’d all be able to get a little more sleep before the cruise ship arrived.
Alone in the guest cabin, Charity stripped down to her tee-shirt and panties, then lay on the bed and stared up at the darkened ceiling. The only light in the cabin was what moonlight spilled in from the porthole. A shower was definitely in order, but not a good idea while underway.
The ride was smooth. The boat was taking the long, slow rollers on the starboard bow, rolling only a few degrees as it pushed through each wave. McDermitt had chosen his vessel carefully. Even rough seas were no match for the powerful fishing machine. This was like a ride on a pond.
She remembered watching Jesse at the helm of Vic’s boat. He’d seemed a natural there, the boat merely an extension of him. He had to take Vic’s boat. She couldn’t think of anyone else, and even though Vic and Jesse hadn’t known each other well, she knew there was a mutual respect.
Closing her eyes, Charity put everything out of her mind. Sleeping while underway had never been a problem for her, and within minutes she was asleep.
A change in the pitch of the engines woke her. She looked at her watch and saw that she’d been asleep for two hours. It was still several more hours before sunrise. They’d planned to make their move an hour before first light.
Listening, she heard the anchor splash into the water. Then the boat backed down on it and the engines stopped. She hadn’t heard anything from Jesse’s forward cabin, and assumed Tony was anchoring the boat himself. When they’d worked together, Tony, Andrew, and some of the others had learned how to run all the systems on Jesse’s boat.
A moment later, she heard the salon hatch open and close, then it was quiet. Rolling onto her side, Charity soon fell back to sleep.
It seemed like she’d only dozed a few minutes when the alarm function on her phone went off. The steel drum alert tone brought back a memory from just a few months earlier, when she and Victor had spent the night ashore on Jost Van Dyke. They’d gotten a little drunk, listened to a great steel band play at Foxy’s, and spent the night in a hammock on the beach. She’d added the ring tone to her phone the following morning, making it her alarm. This was the first time she’d used the alarm in a long time.
She rose and dressed quickly, hearing stirring sounds coming from the forward cabin. When she opened her cabin door, she nearly ran into Jesse.
“Ready to do this?” he asked. “The cruise ship will be here in a little over two hours.”
“Do you really think we can get in and out without being seen?”
The smell of coffee greeted them as she followed Jesse up to the galley. Tony was pouring mugs for the three of them.
“Should be easy enough,” Jesse replied.
Tony handed him a mug. “The ferry crews won’t be arriving until after sunrise,” he said, passing another mug to Charity. “There’s only thirty-two people who live on the island, so there shouldn’t be much activity around the docks until maybe an hour before the ship arrives.”
They drank their coffee quickly, then went out to the cockpit. Jesse locked the salon hatch as Tony climbed up to the bridge and stood on the port bench to reach the roof. A moment later, the tip of a stand-up paddle board appeared at the aft roof edge and Tony slowly lowered it. Jesse grabbed the board and moved it to the swim platform, standing it on its tail. Within minutes, they had three boards and paddles in place.
“You first,” Jesse said to Tony.
Taking the first board, Tony placed it in the water next to the swim platform. Stepping on it, he moved back on the board, until he was well behind the usual paddling position, the nose of the twelve-foot-long board riding high. He nodded his readiness.
Jesse opened both fish boxes and bent down next to one, patting the man inside it on the cheek. “Wakey, wakey, turd fondler.”
Jeff Maple lay on his side, his legs pulled up in a near fetal position inside the cramped box. Jesse pulled his feet out first, then, with Charity’s help, they got him under the arms and hoisted him to a standing position. The man’s eyes were open, and he looked both angry and frightened.
“Here’s the deal,” Jesse hissed at the bound man, his mouth taped shut, while holding him steady by his shirt front. “We’re taking you for a ride on that.” He pointed to where Tony was standing on the board, just off the platform. “You just have to lay on your belly and be sure not to move around. If you fall off the board, it’s a sure bet that you’ll drown. Nod if you understand what I just said.”
Jeff glared at Jesse and shook his head violently.
“Yeah, I kinda figured you wouldn’t like it,” Jesse said, patting him roughly on the cheek again.
McDermitt’s as good a man as they come, Charity thought. But when it came to criminals and bad people, he just didn’t have much sympathy.
“Do what I say,” he growle
d at the man, “and you won’t get cracked over the head with a paddle.”
He half-carried, half-dragged Jeff over to the transom door, dropping him unceremoniously onto the swim platform on his back. Jeff looked very uncomfortable lying on top of his bound hands. Jesse didn’t seem to notice.
When Tony brought his board up alongside the platform, Jesse simply rolled Jeff onto it, face down. “If he moves, just crack his skull with the paddle.”
Tony nodded, and moved the board a few feet away, as Jesse looked up at Charity. “You have everything?”
She removed a plastic freezer bag from the cargo pocket of her shorts. In it were Jeff’s and Doug’s cell phones, along with a folded sheet of paper. “All set,” she said.
Jesse didn’t need help with the smaller man. He just reached down and hoisted him to his feet. “Did you hear what I told your buddy?”
Doug Bullard nodded, eyes wide with fright.
“Good,” he said, dragging him over to the platform and dropping him onto it in the same manner he had Jeff.
With Bullard in position, Jesse dropped the second board into the water and stepped onto it, maneuvering it alongside, obviously very accustomed to it. When he was in position, Charity rolled the man onto the board.
“Let’s go,” Jesse said, pushing away from the boat with his paddle.
Charity grabbed the third board and dropped it onto the water. She was no stranger to paddle boarding and stepped easily onto the board, paddle in hand. The three immediately started paddling, aiming the noses of the SUPs toward the rock jetty at the entrance to the ferry terminal.
Paddling hard, all three kept a watchful eye on the shore. The east end of the island was where all the activities took place, but the few residents lived a bit further west on the mile-long island.
Tony had anchored the Revenge just a hundred yards east of the entrance, closer to it than the other five boats in the anchorage. They made the opening in just a few minutes. Charity moved into the lead, being lighter, and rounded the turn into the basin. The ferries were tied up at the dock, directly ahead of them. Just to the left was a sand beach of sorts, though not very big. She angled toward it and paddled harder.
Enduring Charity: A Charity Styles Novel (Caribbean Thriller Series Book 4) Page 20
