Assassins and Liars

by Charles Dougherty

  I climbed up next to him and dragged him to the companionway, lowering him, letting him slide down the ladder. I went below and crouched next to Frankie again.

  "Sorry for the interruption. Where were we?"

  "I just told you, we been chasin' her ever since she killed my two boys in Atlanta and took off. That's about it."

  "So you snatched her off the street in Marin?"

  "Yeah. They took her to Aeolus. They're waiting for me to bring you back there."

  "Okay. Anything else you want to tell me?"

  "We can work a trade. You swap me and the files for Mary. I'll get Rory to call it even, and we can all go our separate ways. Just let me make a phone call, and I'll set it up."

  I laughed. "I don't think so, Frankie. Not today."

  "What other choice do you think you have?"

  "I'm going to get Mary. Then she and I will decide where to go from here. See, neither one of us trusts you and O'Hanlon."

  "You don't have a chance against the people on Aeolus."

  "You still don't know who I am, Frankie."

  "What do you mean?"

  "I mean I've been doing this shit since you were in diapers. I hate to do this, but I'm going to gag you. I know it'll be uncomfortable, but I won't be gone long."

  29

  I put the drop boards in the companionway and closed the sliding hatch, locking it. Frankie or his henchmen cut the padlock I normally used to secure the hatch, but I kept a spare in the cockpit locker.

  There was no point in leaving the boat open. I didn't expect visitors, but you could never tell. Until I could dispose of Frankie and his dead friend, I didn't want anybody to find them.

  I climbed down into the RIB they used, relieved to see it wasn't marked Tender to Aeolus or anything like that. It was 21 feet long; it looked out of place tied alongside Carib Princess.

  The big RIB wouldn't stand out so much when I approached Aeolus. It was a typical tender for a big motor yacht. That was the other reason I decided to use it for my rescue of Mary.

  As I approached the marina, I saw that the large yachts were all berthed in the same general area. Not only were there a lot of them, but they were packed together. The only way to see the names would be to ride up and down the fairways between the docks.

  My tentative plan was to find Aeolus and then tie the RIB to one of the marina's dinghy docks. Depending on the situation aboard Aeolus, I would either approach on foot or swim up to her stern platform.

  My worries about finding Aeolus without being observed were unfounded. I spotted her with no trouble; she was crawling with people in dark, military uniforms. They looked like members of a SWAT team. There were two patrol boats, big gray RIBs with French Douane markings, blocking the fairway.

  I changed course and headed for the dingy dock near the marina restaurant. Once I wedged my borrowed RIB in with the others, I strolled back along the boardwalk. When I reached the dock where Aeolus was berthed, I found a crowd of gawkers. They were milling around, watching the activity on Aeolus. Two policemen in bullet-proof vests were guarding the entrance to the dock.

  I joined the crowd, getting myself primed to speak French. Then I overheard two couples speaking American English. They were typical small-boat sailors. I walked up to them, and one of the men gave me a little nod.

  "Quite a show," he said.

  "Yeah," I said. "What's going on? Drug bust?"

  He shook his head. "A multiple murder. Somebody showed up to deliver a truck-load of provisions. Went aboard looking for somebody to accept the order and found five bodies."

  Mary worked fast. But then I didn't know how long Frankie and been waiting for me. "Five, huh?" I asked. "Any idea who they were?"

  "Nope. Somebody said one was the owner, and the rest were crew."

  I thought about it for a few seconds and decided it was a typical enough set of questions for a curious idler like me to ask. "Men? Women? What could have happened?"

  "No clue. All men is what we heard."

  I shook my head. "Hell of a thing. Might as well be back in Florida, huh?"

  "Yeah, no shit," he said.

  "Well, I gotta get on with it," I said, sidling away. "Take care."

  "Yeah, you too."

  Frankie said she was a killer. They knew what she was. How could she have done that? Wouldn't they have been on guard? And where the hell could she be? I was making my way to the taxi stand at the marina entrance, trying to imagine how she'd done it.

  My cellphone chimed and vibrated against my thigh. Taking it from my pocket, I entered the unlock code and read the text message. Glad to see you're back ashore okay. Goodbye for now. Outta here. Ditching this phone. Keep yours, please. Later.

  She must have been watching for me. I felt a pang of sadness, but I could tell from the text that she didn't want my company right now. Resisting the temptation to look for her, I got a taxi to take me to Ste. Anne. I'd make my way back to the boat from there; I could swim if there were no water taxis.

  30

  Carib Princess bobbed at anchor in Rodney Bay's slight chop as I approached in the dinghy. I made the three-hour sail from Ste. Anne last night and cleared into St. Lucia first thing this morning.

  On my way back to the boat, I stopped at the bakery downstairs from the Port Authority office to pick up pastries and coffee for breakfast. I tied the dinghy alongside and set the paper bag from the bakery on the side deck while I climbed aboard. Settling in the cockpit, I unpacked my food and thought back over the last 24 hours.

  I missed Mary. A lot happened since our breakfast ashore in Marin yesterday. I was tired from the stress and the activity, but more than that, I was lonely.

  I made my landfall in Rodney Bay, St. Lucia last night after the Port Authority office closed, so I couldn't clear in then. Hungry, I fixed myself a pot of beans and rice with chorizo. While it simmered, I stirred in the last packet of Mary's sazón.

  Wondering where she was, I ate and cleaned up the galley. Then I crashed on the starboard settee. That's where I woke up this morning, half-expecting Mary to bring me coffee. When my head cleared, I gathered up my papers and went ashore to clear into St. Lucia.

  I took a bite of pain au chocolat and replayed yesterday's events in my mind. The taxi from the marina in Marin dropped me at Ste. Anne's town dock. A water taxi took me back to Carib Princess from there.

  Everything aboard the boat was as I left it. Frankie gave me a questioning look, but I ignored him. He was of no further use to me.

  I opened the drawer where I kept my papers and picked up our passports and the inbound clearance document. With Mary on the run, I needed to leave Martinique myself.

  As I took my little inflatable back in to the town dock in Ste. Anne, I thought about how to get Mary off the crew list. The French authorities wouldn't grant me departure clearance unless everyone on the list was accounted for.

  Immigration authorities took a dim view of skippers who left crew behind. It was a captain's responsibility to make sure his crew didn't jump ship and stay in the country illegally. I needed to be able to show, on paper at least, that Mary could afford to leave Martinique when her visa expired.

  I found a travel agent on a side street in Ste. Anne and made a deal. It cost me a plane ticket back to the States in Mary's name and a couple of hundred euros in gratuities, and I was clear.

  The travel agent kept the ticket, and I was sure he would eventually refund the price to his account. But what the hell? He was an authorized agent of French Customs for handling clearance of private conveyances — yachts and aircraft. That meant he could handle my outbound clearance to St. Lucia, which was an unexpected benefit.

  Back aboard Carib Princess, I packed up the dinghy and got under way. Once I was in deep water out in the St. Lucia Channel, I hove to long enough to say goodbye to Frankie and his friend. A few feet of anchor chain around their ankles would keep them out of sight permanently.

  So here I sat in Rodney Bay, single again, and more than a
little depressed. Struggling not to read more than I should into Mary's brief text from yesterday, I thought about how she escaped after she wasted O'Hanlon and his boys. She was one hell of a woman, Mary was.

  I made myself take her text at face value. She saw me come ashore, so she must have been in the marina somewhere. Ignoring a wave of regret at having failed to see her, I wondered if she had waited to see if I tried to come to her rescue. I would let myself believe that. What was the harm?

  She made short work of O'Hanlon and his pals. Though I was sad that she opted to run instead of making her way back to Carib Princess, I understood her decision.

  Frankie said she was a pro; he was right. She cleaned out O'Hanlon and his pals and got clear. She needed to distance herself from her immediate past. That's exactly what I would have done in her situation.

  She must have had another passport stashed in Martinique. Or she found her own means of getting one. What about money, though? Then I realized she probably ripped off O'Hanlon again. He no doubt kept a good bit of money close at hand. People like him were never without plenty of cash. Besides, she was carrying her purse when his goons snatched her. She would have recovered it before she left Aeolus.

  I thought about that purse. It was in her backpack when she first joined me. When she was away from the backpack, she always carried the purse. It was nothing fancy. Like her other belongings, it was utilitarian.

  When I checked through her things early on, I skipped the purse. I was looking for weapons or drugs, not personal stuff. The purse wasn't big enough to conceal anything that would have worried me back then. But she could have kept another identity tucked away in the lining. Maybe that's how she did it.

  Thinking of her passport reminded me that I should add her new one to the stash that was fiberglassed into the keel. Mary Helen Maloney, Mary Elizabeth O'Brien. That brought to mind her quip about the foreign-born Irish. I felt a smile spreading over my face, the first one since we parted.

  I was feeling lucky. Fate brought us together the first time. Maybe my luck would hold.

  Meanwhile, I was overdue checking my satellite phone. I skipped it last night. Unlocking the companionway, I ducked below and retrieved it.

  Back in the cockpit, I took another pastry out of the bag while the phone acquired a satellite connection. I took a bite and washed it down with some coffee before the phone pinged.

  My employer was looking for me. I entered the security code and opened the text.

  Ready for another project?

  I grinned. Work would keep me from pining away for Mary, if nothing else. Who knew when I would see her again? Maybe never, given what we both did for a living.

  Yes. When and where?

  St. Thomas. Earliest convenience. Encrypted email to confirm details within 12 hours.

  I keyed in Okay. Thanks.

  I finished my breakfast and coffee. St. Thomas was a three-day sail. It was also part of the U.S. That was unusual. The target must be a foreign national. Would they want me to carry this out on U.S. soil? Probably not, but it wasn't unheard of.

  If there were constraints, they would be spelled out in the email. Until I knew more, I would rest. There would be time enough to make plans when I got the email. For now, I would rig my big awning to shade the boat. Then I would sling my hammock and laze the day away.

  Epilogue

  Once again, I was the first one in the door when the Port Authority office opened the next morning. The same agent who cleared me in yesterday handled my outbound clearance.

  "You don' stay long in our beautiful country, captain. Everyt'ing good, I hope?"

  "Yes, thanks," I said. "Everything's fine. I just have to meet somebody in St. Thomas a little earlier than I thought. Don't worry; I'll be back. St. Lucia's always a great place to visit."

  "We try to make it be that way. You are kind to say so. God bless, and have a safe voyage. Come back soon, captain."

  She stamped my papers and handed them to me across the desk.

  "Thank you, ma’am," I said. "Stay well."

  She smiled and nodded as I stood up and left. I headed downstairs to the bakery and bought pastries and coffee for another breakfast in the cockpit.

  Back aboard, I took a sip of coffee and thought about the follow-up email from my client that came last night. The target was a known member of ISIS. He was also a U.S. citizen, native born. They've been looking for this character for a couple of years. He was recently picked up through face ID when he entered the U.S. in St. Thomas.

  I finished my pastry and took a last swallow of coffee. I was ready to go; there was no point in lingering. I had a three-day sail ahead of me. There would be plenty of time to think about my new mission. And about Mary, and the time we enjoyed together.

  I was busy getting the boat ready for sea when I was interrupted by an incoming text on my smartphone. I entered my unlock code and glanced at the originating number. The message was from the 904 area code in the U.S. That was north Florida. I didn't know anybody in north Florida.

  I opened the message and read:

  Happy to see you got along all right with Frankie, but I knew you would. Don't bother looking for me. I left the area once I spotted you on the dock. I'm touched that you came to help, but not surprised. I could tell you feel the same way I do about us.

  I'm on my way back to where I came from. Got a couple more people to see back home before I can rest. Just ditch the stuff I left behind, please. I'm going to be honing my acting skills for a while until this quiets down.

  Sorry to run, but one of these days soon, I'll be in touch. Keep your phone number so I can reach you. I'm ditching this one as soon as I hit send. I'll let you know when I get one you can use to reach me.

  I'm thinking we could start over from the same place, maybe in a month or so, but I'll let you know as the time gets closer.

  I miss you, but it won't be long until I see you again. You were right; we make a good team. And just in case you couldn't tell, I love you.

  Mary Beth

  The place we started wasn't too far from where I was headed now. Going to St. Thomas would give me a chance to change the boat's name again. I would clear her in there as Carib Princess. When she left there wouldn't be any outbound clearance required, since she was U.S. flagged.

  Once under way, I would heave to and change her name back to Island Girl. I was partial to that name. While Mary Beth was around, I thought of her as my island girl. I grinned at the thought that she would be again, and soon.

  The End

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  A Note to the Reader

  Thank you again for reading Assassins and Liars, the first book in the J.R. Finn Sailing Mystery Series. I hope you enjoyed it. If so, please leave a brief review on Amazon.

  Reviews are of great benefit to independent authors like me; they help me more than you can imagine. They are a primary means to help new readers find my work. A few words from you can help others find the pleasure that I hope you found in this book, as well as keeping my spirits up as I work on the next one.

  Assassins and Liars was published in December 2018, and the audiobook was published in April 2019. You'll find progress reports and more information on my web page, www.clrdougherty.com. Be sure to click on the link to my blog posts; it's in the column on the right side of the web page.

  I also write two other sailing-thriller series set in the Caribbean. If you enjoyed the adventures of Finn and Mary, you'll enjoy the Bluewater Thrillers and the Connie Barrera Thrillers.

  The Bluewater Thrillers feature two young women, Dani Berger and Liz Chirac. Dani and Liz sail a luxury charter yacht named Vengeance.
They often find trouble, but they can take care of themselves.

  The Connie Barrera Thrillers are a spin-off from the Bluewater Thrillers. Before Connie went to sea, she was a first-rate con artist. Dani and Liz met Connie in Bluewater Ice, and they taught her to sail. She liked it so much she bought a charter yacht of her own.

  Dani and Liz also introduced her to Paul Russo, a retired Miami homicide detective. Paul signed on as her first mate and chef, but he ended up as her husband. Connie and Paul run a charter sailing yacht named Diamantista. Like Dani and Liz, they're often beset by problems unrelated to sailing.

  The Bluewater Thrillers and the Connie Barrera Thrillers share many of the same characters. Phillip Davis and his wife Sandrine, Sharktooth, and Marie LaCroix often appear in both series, as do Connie, Paul, Dani, and Liz. Here’s a link to the web page that lists those novels in order of publication: http://www.clrdougherty.com/p/bluewater-thrillers-and-connie-barrera.html

  In September of 2019, I published Villains and Vixens, the fifth book in the J.R. Finn series. A list of all my books is on the last page; just click on a title or go to my website for more information. If you’d like to know when my next book is released, visit my author’s page on Amazon at www.amazon.com/author/clrdougherty and click the "Follow" link or sign up for my mailing list at http://eepurl.com/bKujyv for information on sales and special promotions.

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  About the Author

  Welcome aboard!

  Charles Dougherty is a lifelong sailor; he's lived what he writes. He and his wife have spent over 30 years sailing together.