“It is a long way off,” Willy hastily added. “And only Category One.” He then related the mate’s explanation as to why this was a safe thing to do.
On hearing Willy’s comment that the vessels did not matter because they were insured Mrs van der Heyden said bitterly, “That’s alright for some, but our boat isn’t insured.”
On seeing the surprised look on Willy’s face Julia added, “We used all our money to buy this boat.”
Willy nodded and thought, ‘There must be a treasure for them to do something like that.’ He tried to think of something to say.
Suddenly Jacob stared past Willy, a disbelieving look on his face. He cried, “Saurian!”
Willy looked around, scanning the mangroves and river for signs of a crocodile. “Where?” he asked.
Jacob went very pale and looked agitated, then pointed down river. “That boat. It is the Saurian !”
Willy looked and saw a motor launch coming into view around the bend close to the sea. The hull of the launch was painted a dark grey and its upperworks dark green. Two heads could just be seen looking over the cabin.
Jacob now became very agitated and even grabbed Willy’s arm. “Look! There is ‘Gator’ Smith, and he’s got a gun.”
Now Willy saw that both the heads that were visible wore balaclavas but he could also see what might be the barrel of a rifle or shotgun poking up. He was tempted to ask how Jacob knew that the hooded man was ‘Gator’ but presumed Jacob could tell. Then he saw the launch turn directly towards them.
Now real fear showed on Jacob’s face and sounded in his voice. “They are coming here! They want the maps! We must get away!”
Willy saw that Jacob was grabbing at the large wallet on his belt. He looked at the launch, then at Andrew and Carmen, then back at the van der Heydens. There was no doubt that Jacob was now terrified.
Jacob almost gibbered with fear, then looked desperately around. “Oh quick! They killed Karl and now they will kill me! We must get away!”
A surge of fear overran Willy’s doubts. Noting that the boat was tied alongside on the side away from the approaching Saurian he reasoned that the yacht could provide cover most of the way back to the LCT. He looked around then quickly gave orders. “We will be safer on the Wewak. Quick Graham, get into the boat and start the engine. Andrew, untie the bow line and be ready to push us off. Carmen, get aboard and steady people and seat them. Mrs van der Heyden, Julia, follow Carmen aboard, quick!”
To Willy’s relief nobody argued. Both Graham and Andrew scrambled nimbly into the boat, followed by Carmen. Willy then grabbed Jacob’s arm as he went to jump in next. “Wait Jacob. Women and children first is the traditional way,” he said sarcastically, amazed at how cool he felt.
Mrs van der Heyden jumped into the boat, almost pitching over the side. Carmen grabbed her and forced her to sit. By then Julia had slithered down and sat next to her mother. Willy then let Jacob go. Jacob scrambled down so hastily he almost overturned the boat. Only the combined efforts of Carmen and Andrew prevented this and he was shoved unceremoniously onto another thwart. By then Willy was hanging over the side. As he lowered his feet onto the same thwart he took a last look over the top of the yacht’s deck.
He saw that the Saurian was only a hundred metres away and one of the masked men had moved up onto the foredeck. The man was holding what could only be a gun and Willy felt a thrill of fear. “Shove off! Get us back fast Graham. Try to keep the yacht between us and them,” Willy called.
Graham nodded and opened the throttle. Even as Willy lowered himself onto the thwart he felt the boat move. Andrew pushed them clear and Graham shoved the outboard controls hard to starboard. The boat surged around sharply to port, then lifted its nose as Graham straightened up.
By then Willy was in a fever of anxiety. He dimly heard a man yelling at them from the Saurian but could not make out the words over the roar of the motor. By this time he wished he had sat facing aft as he had to swivel his head around to look back. ‘Half way,’ he estimated. ‘Still no sign of the launch.’
Glancing forward Willy saw that Graham was turning them so that they would go around the stern of Wewak. He understood before Graham explained that such a manoeuvre would place the hull of the LCT between them and the launch while they climbed aboard. But it also meant they swung out into view of the launch for fifty metres.
And there it was! Willy saw the bow of the Saurian appear. He also saw the man on the foredeck pointing at them. Then the launch’s bow turn to port and it came out from behind the anchored yacht, a creaming white bow wave indicating it was now going much faster. The man began shouting at them, calling on them to stop.
Crack! Zipp!
Water flew up close alongside. Willy stared at it in disbelief. “They shot at us!” he cried. Graham shoved the tiller over and the boat slewed to port.
Crack! Tiiing!
Willy heard the bullet go past and then strike the steel side of the Wewak. ‘They wouldn’t dare!’ he thought in astonished disbelief. ‘There are adults there.’ To reinforce this belief he saw the engineer look out the door at the rear of the saloon.
Graham pulled the tiller across and the boat went surging around to starboard. A second later they shot behind the protection of Wewak’s steel hull. Willy saw Capt Kirk staring down at them, a surprised look on his face. Pointing aft Willy shouted up, “Pirates! Murderers! Get a gun!”
Graham eased the throttle and yelled, “Get aboard!”
But Jacob screamed no. “No! I am not safe there! They will kill me. I am a witness to Karl’s murder.”
“They wouldn’t dare surely,” Carmen suggested. Her face was strained and tight-lipped.
Glancing back Willy did a quick calculation. ‘We will never get aboard in time.’ He looked at Graham. “Graham, we won’t make it in time. Take us round the bow before they come into sight.”
Graham nodded and Carmen dragged Julia down as the boat surged forward. As they sped along close beside the rusty and weed-encrusted black hull Willy kept glancing back, hoping they would get out of sight before the launch appeared. And there it was! The Saurian slid into view seconds before they reached the bow.
CHAPTER 32
DESPERATE CHOICES
As though in slow motion Willy saw the masked man on the foredeck of the launch raise his rifle. It appeared to be aimed straight at him. His whole being seemed to freeze and he could only stare in horrified fascination. Then he saw the man twitch and the tiniest puff of smoke was instantly dispersed by the wind.
Tiing! Whheee!
Willy cringed as the bullet smacked into the steel side of the LCT and then ricocheted off across the river.
“Only a ‘twenty two’,” Graham grunted.
Willy marveled at how calm Graham seemed. As they slid under the shelter of the bow ramp Willy looked around. “Which way should we go?” he asked. He could see there were three options: try to run upstream to find somewhere to hide; get aboard the LCT and hope the adults could protect them; or run back down the river along the other side of the Wewak.
The others had also obviously been assessing the alternate course of action open to them because Jacob pointed upriver. “That way!” he shouted.
Graham shook his head and slowed the boat as he reached the other side of the ramp. “No. It is half a kilometre to the next bend. They would either catch us or shoot us. The only reason that mongrel missed then was because the launch was bouncing around on our wake. Besides, there is nowhere to go.”
“But there must be a town with police,” Julia cried. She looked terrified and was crying.
Willy stared at her in disbelief. ‘Has she not looked at a map of Cape York Peninsula?’ he wondered.
“There isn’t,” Graham snapped shortly. He didn’t wait to debate but turned the boat sharply to starboard. They scraped through under the mooring rope which stretched across to the nearby mangroves. Then Graham opened the throttle and the boat surged along the LCT’s starboard side.
Andrew did so, but immediately bobbed down again. “Get going!” he hissed. “One of them is climbing aboard with a pistol.”
Before anyone could argue Graham opened the throttle and the boat lifted its bow and started off. Willy and the others all stared up at the deck of the Wewak as they slipped past the superstructure. To Willy’s consternation he saw Mrs Kirk step out and block the path of the man. The man had an automatic pistol and, as she tried to stop him, he pushed her roughly aside and waved the gun in her face.
Carmen saw this and gasped. “Graham, that man has got your mum!” she cried.
Graham glanced back and swore, then his mouth set in a hard line. But he kept the throttle open and the boat pointed down river. A couple of seconds later the boat sped past the stern of the LCT and out onto open water. Willy looked back and saw the hooded gunman shove Mrs Kirk aside. Then the man ran along the deck to the stern and raised his pistol.
“Come back or else!” the man screamed.
Willy cringed and hunched lower, conscious that Graham had no intention of obeying. A glance showed they were now 25 metres away already.
Bang!
The heavier thump of the pistol sounded simultaneous with the crack of the passing bullet. Where it went Willy had no idea. Graham sent the boat into a skidding side slew, then back the other way. Willy cringed and clung on.
Bang!
‘Missed,’ Willy thought. He glanced at the others to see if any were hit. None seemed to be. His eyes met Julia’s and he realized that hers were wide with terror. Jacob looked ashen and was trembling, pale and sweating. His mother looked appalled and was sobbing. Carmen and Andrew both just looked tight-lipped and serious and Graham was obviously angry.
50 metres away. Another glance back showed Mrs Kirk and Kylie struggling with the man. The man rammed Mrs Kirk hard against the bulkhead and swung the gun to point it at Capt Kirk’s face as he appeared on deck. ‘Oh my God!’ Willy thought, fearing the worst.
75 metres. 100 metres. The boat surged down river past the yacht. As it did Willy looked back and saw the Saurian alongside the Wewak. There was a man on the launch, pointing at them and shouting to his mate.
Carmen pointed to the yacht. “We could use the radio to call for help,” she suggested.
A grim-faced Graham shook his head. “We won’t have time. We need to get out of the area. I will look for a trawler or ship,” he replied.
So they roared on down the river. To Willy’s enormous relief he saw that the gunman on the Wewak had let go of Mrs Kirk and was shepherding her, Kylie and Capt Kirk into the saloon.
‘I hope he isn’t going to shoot them all,’ he thought. The horrible thought crossed his mind that his father might be shot. It made him feel ill. He doubted if the men would really murder the eight people still on the LCT but there was a dreadful feeling of apprehension. ‘But they might shoot us if they catch us,’ he decided.
Spurred on by that terrifying prospect Willy felt relief as they rounded the bend in the river and the other vessels vanished from view. After his ordeal of being under a death sentence by some crooks back in June he knew just what real terror was.
Graham did not slow down. All he did was scan the banks for possible landing sites. “We could land you and you could scatter and hide,” he suggested.
Even as he said this Willy saw a huge crocodile slither down the bank and vanish into the murky water off to port in a swirl of foam and bubbles. ‘Bloody hell!’ he thought. ‘Talk about being caught between the devil and the deep blue sea!’
The others saw it too and Julia gave a near hysterical shriek and cried, “I am not going ashore here!”
“Further along the coast on the beach then,” Graham replied.
By then they were at the mouth of the river and Willy was amazed at the change an hour could bring. What had been miles of sandy flats and shoals were now just water and the ripples of gentle surf. The open sea spread out to the horizon.
Despite the urgent need to get away Graham slowed down and Andrew stood up to act as lookout in the bows. “We will look a right pack of clowns if we run aground and get caught,” Graham commented.
As far as possible they followed the same deepwater channel out. This curved left and went west for half a kilometre, the sand spit now all but submerged. Because the wind was blowing offshore the waves were tiny and of little help in detecting shoals.
Once they were out past the more obvious shoals and sand banks Graham opened the throttle again and set course North East, aiming directly across the bay for the tip of the Bathurst Range.
“Where are we going?” Julia asked.
“The Rattlesnake Channel,” Graham answered. “That is a shipping route. I am hoping to find a big freighter or a trawler. They will have a radio we can use.”
The surface of Princess Charlotte Bay was a mass of tiny waves over which the boat thumped in a hammering smack-smack-smack-smack. Each impact threw up a small shower of spray but as the wind was from astern and they were traveling much faster than the tiny waves it was not bad going.
Then Willy saw Julia’s face go drawn as she looked astern. “Oh no! Here they come!” she cried.
Willy looked astern and saw the far off shape of the Saurian. Because of its colouring the launch was very hard to see against the dark coastline but the little puffs of white at her bows were plain to see.
“About two kilometres astern,” Andrew estimated.
Graham frowned. “They didn’t go as far west as we did to get through the sand bars,” he commented.
Carmen answered that. “They possibly know the river better.”
Willy agreed. “If they have been hiding ever since the murder then that might be their hideout?”
“Quite likely,” Graham agreed. He kept looking astern and then began biting his lip. “I think she is faster than us,” he said. “Andrew, Carmen can you measure their size and then keep checking? I want to know if she is catching up.”
“I know how to do that,” Carmen said. “Andrew, use your finger. Note the size of the launch against it, but keep the finger the same distance from your face each time,” she explained.
Andrew gave a wry smile. “Aren’t you supposed to use a sextant to do that, to measure the height of the other ships masts by exact degrees?”
“Don’t be a smart aleck little brother. Just do it,” Carmen replied.
For ten minutes they sped on. Willy did some comparing with the others. By then he was sure and he felt his heart sinking. “They are definitely faster,” he said.
“They are gaining alright,” Andrew agreed, “And also heading closer inshore than us.”
Jacob gave a sort of whimper. He looked ashen faced and was visibly trembling. His mother cried, “Oh do something! Get us out of here!”
That really annoyed Willy. “Oh be quiet!” he snapped. “We are doing the best we can.”
“But they might catch us!” Mrs van der Heyden wailed.
“Then give them the bloody map to the treasure and maybe they will leave us alone,” Willy snapped.
“But they might still kill us,” Mrs van der Heyden replied amid sniffles.
“So there is a treasure map?” Willy asked, meeting Jacob’s eyes.
Jacob nodded and then sobbed. “Oh they can have it! I’m scared.”
Willy curled his lip and then asked sarcastically, “Do you have spare copies of the map?”
Again Jacob nodded. Willy thought about this and then decided that the gunmen might still feel driven to have to cover their tracks by murder. “Too risky. Anyway, we can’t negotiate out here in a little boat on the open ocean,” he said.
He saw Graham nod. Graham then turned the boat to angle it in towards the shore. But because they had been steering directly across the bay they were nearly five kilometres out and the beach was just visible. G
raham said, “I will try to land most of you on the beach and you can hide in the bush while I go on and look for a ship,” he said.
That seemed like a good choice to Willy so he nodded. The others made no reply. For the next fifteen minutes the boat sped on, blatting across the wave tops, the waves now coming in on the starboard quarter and causing some rolling and spray.
At the end of that time the boat was about 3km offshore. By then the mountains were looming large and looking very rugged. The flat shoreline where the mouth of the river lay had long since dropped out of sight below the horizon. Graham kept studying the launch and then shook his head. “We aren’t going to make it,” he said with flat finality. “Those mongrels are gaining and they are inshore of us.”
“Converging course,” Andrew commented. Willy understood. Not only was the larger boat a bit faster but it had a shorter distance to go.
Reluctantly Graham changed course, once more aiming for the tip of the cape. This was now only about 5 kilometres away. Graham scanned the coast and then the horizon, shaking his head in frustration. “Oh, where are all the ships?” he muttered.
Willy looked around the horizon and remembered Capt Kirk’s words. ‘The empty ocean,’ he called it’. The strong possibility that they might not meet another vessel at all sent a deep chill of fear through him but he said nothing.
Andrew said, “Maybe we can lose them in the dark?”
Both Carmen and Graham shook their heads. “It is only seventeen thirty. There are another two hours of daylight almost. They will be up with us by then,” Carmen said.
That brought another whimper from Julia and sniffles from Mrs van der Heyden. Willy felt sick, and it wasn’t only from fear. Forty five minutes of thumping across waves of ever increasing size and with the following wind wafting the fumes from the motor forward were also having an effect. On top of a splitting headache he felt sick in the stomach and very thirsty. The sight of the blazing sun and the clear blue sky made him heartily sick of the sea.
Then another crisis slowly emerged. The launch crept closer all the time but in doing so moved up until it was nearly abreast of them and in between them and the land. Willy estimated that it was only a kilometre away. There was obviously very little chance of them getting past it to the shore.
Coasts of Cape York Page 38
