“Are Nwankwo’s sisters with you?”
“Yes. They’re safe too. We don’t have much time. We spiked the whiskey hours ago and it’s gonna be wearing off soon. Come on, Chinyere and Chioma. We need to leave.” Billy hears them getting up and then he sees the three of them as they come into view closer to the door.
“The captain is still out. He drank more than the rest so he may stay under for a while,” Tawny informs him.
“Let’s get out of here.” Ken leads the way down the corridor with Chinyere carrying Chioma behind him and Tawny and Billy bringing up the rear. They stop dead in their tracks when they hear the gunshots.
In a moment the singing pirate is out of his room and racing toward the staircase with the other pirate closer up also bolting from his room. Neither of them notices the small group escaping the captain’s quarters. No other pirates run from their rooms.
As the shooting continues, the escapees move quickly down the hall toward the staircase behind Ken’s lead.
“Do you think we should continue to walk straight into the gunfire?” Tawny does not understand their peril.
“We have to keep moving. Nwankwo won’t attack the ship and we have to get to the skiffs before he leaves,” Billy hurriedly explains.
“Nwankwo came to save me?” Chinyere is amazed.
“Yes. He thinks you saved everyone and he says you deserve to be rescued.” Billy lets her know why her brother is making this unprecedented trip to pick her up.
“She deserves to be rescued because she’s a person.” Tawny is fired up.
“I know that but they think differently here. This is not the place for this discussion, Tawny. We have to escape a ship full of pirates. I’m guessing they’ve seen Nwankwo and are firing at him. We have to move quickly. Now go.” Increasing her pace she follows her boss’ orders.
Coming up the staircase they pile together behind a smoke stack. Pirates are shooting from all angles and no one can see any of them. Huddled together like this they are sitting ducks. Chinyere suddenly begins to softly sing what sounds like a lullaby to Chioma. The three year old has awakened and is quietly crying.
Chioma has been an angel since the initial tantrum from the kidnapper’s car and into the skiff that brought them to this mothership. Chinyere reassures her with her soft voice and consoling words. The little girl intently watched them play blackjack and then fell asleep. She ate whatever her older sister put on her plate and never said a word in protest.
Now she is scared. Tawny has seen her temper erupt. Chinyere could not calm her at the time but she was just as scared as her little sister. A lot has changed since then. Chinyere’s increased courage combined with Tawny’s ingenuity have spared them from the lustful whims of a crew full of pirates. Chinyere probably never dreamed of such adventure much less lived it but her natural draw is motherhood. Taking care of little Chioma is her sole goal at this moment.
Comforting the tiny child amidst rocketing gunfire is a challenge that Chinyere meets. Whatever it is, the voice, the words or the firm embrace of her big sister successfully assures the little one that everything will be just fine. At sixteen Chinyere has become a woman.
Chioma hides her face in her sister’s neck and covers her ears with her little hands. The toddler will not give them away.
With the baby under control Tawny realizes they need a plan. They cannot stay together like this. They must split up. But what is their goal? She needs to know. Whispering in Billy’s ear over the shooting she asks him.
“Nwankwo is waiting at the stern. We need to reach him,” Billy whispers back.
“We have to divide into at least two groups. Maybe three.” Tawny is calculating how to split them up.
“What are you thinking?”
“Chinyere and Chioma are one and they’re comfortable with me.” Tawny thinks out loud.
“Ken and I have guns. I think those two with me or him and you with the other gun.”
“Then put them with Ken. You’re too mean. You’ll scare them,” Tawny says it straight.
“I am not,” Billy defends himself.
“Billy. A sixteen year old and a three year old? Really? I don’t think so.” Billy understands Tawny’s remarks and concedes that Ken is better with the two young girls but he is not sure that he and Tawny should be together. They are younger and more courageous than the older Ken. Perhaps Tawny should stay with the girls.
“I’ve got it.” She gathers the group closely together and speaks aloud.
“We’ve got to split up or we’ll get caught and they’ll shoot us. We have to meet Nwankwo at the stern. Do you know where that is, Chinyere?” Tawny asks.
“Dat way.” She points in the correct direction.
“Chinyere, you follow Billy. Don’t stand near him, just follow him. Ken, you follow Chinyere. All of you head toward the stern by moving from smokestack to those big square things. Don’t stay behind the square things too long because the gunfire is coming from above and they’ll be able to see you better behind those. Never be at one of the points together.” Tawny’s mind is working a mile a minute.
“Where are you going?” Billy inquires.
“I’m gonna play my cards.” Tawny winks.
“Tawny, this is no time to be adventurous. Just follow Ken and make your way to the stern,” Billy instructs her.
“I’ve survived this long. I think I can manage. I know how these men think. Well, sort’ve. Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing,” she reassures him. “Now go. We’re losing time.” She leans her head at Chinyere, who immediately skirts from the smokestack to the square storage tin, crouching with the baby all the way.
“I thought I was supposed to go first.” Billy is confused.
“You need to go to that smokestack down there. She can’t run as far with the baby. You need to get ahead of her. When you move to whatever you see works, she’ll run to your smokestack and Ken will crouch behind the storage tin. Now go.”
Billy takes off in one direction and Tawny runs in the opposite direction. He is headed for the stern and freedom while she is going to get a birds-eye view from above. Ken watches her and wants to pull her back but he knows she will do as she pleases. He is going to follow her guidance this time without question. She is a brilliant planner and he trusts her instinct as well as her ability to maneuver tricky situations all the while she is manipulating men.
Billy hates being told what to do by his associate. How can a girl get into such crazy situations and then, instead of being scared and acting like a damsel in distress, she takes charge and controls everything and everyone? He feels so inadequate right now. What is she up to? Blending into the smokestack he searches for his next target spot.
Another smokestack is in the distance that will move them directly to where they need to be. He could make it but it is a risk for Chinyere to get to with Chioma. He has to find something closer that she can make the quick dash. A large round drum is nearby but it is out of the direct line to the waiting boats. If they dart to it they are much nearer to the smokestack and should be able to reach it undetected.
Deciding to take the longer route and use more time than they should in order to remain concealed, Billy takes off. As soon as he does Chinyere races hunched over with Chioma to his smokestack while Ken hunkers down and waddles as fast as he can to the metal container.
Bullets are still flying everywhere and Billy feels like they have to get to their destination quickly so he darts to the smokestack. Chinyere follows suit and so does Ken. The gunfire suddenly stops. Voices are talking madly. Billy is not certain what is happening but he is going to find out.
Putting up his hand to halt Chinyere while he rushes to the front, he scurries to a very small tin container. Turning his head to where he was, he is surprised when he sees she moved forward. Obviously she did not understand the hand signal. What is worse though is that from his angle Billy sees Nwankwo’s skiffs roaring away from the boat. Now they are all stuck on the enemy’s mothers
hip.
Tawny watches their movements from her perch up top in the tower. Sneaking around firing pirates intent upon taking out any invaders is easy. They are not expecting the young associate to be in their line of fire. But now the shooting is over. It is time for her to kick it into gear.
Sliding into the tower, no one detects her entry. Two pirates are in there with her and do not see her as she slides behind a short wall. They are furious at being attacked in the middle of the night and engaged in an animated discussion. Where is the captain? And the other pirates? What is going on?
From her point of view Tawny counts ten pirates on deck. Ten more are out cold in their beds. Five escapees. Two pistols versus a warehouse of automatic weapons. Two children. Well, three if you count Ken. Big-hearted as they come but not equipped to fight pirates. Then there’s the wild card, Billy. Hard telling what his arrogance will lead him to do. She is the only one that can protect those two. Chinyere is vulnerable because she is holding Chioma but she is smart and small. She can stay hidden better than the two men. Thank goodness they both are armed.
Tawny needs one of these pirates at the helm to leave so she can grab the AK7 from the other one. Creating a diversion is her specialty. She has done it many times at home on the farm while playing with her brothers and her cousins in the fields. Taking the practically empty water bottle from her back pack she crumbles it and tosses it just outside the open door.
It makes just enough noise to catch their attention. To her relief one of the two pirates investigates. In a moment she lurches out and grabs the gun from the one remaining behind. She never shot anyone before and is not eager to do it now but it is either him or her so she pulls the trigger and does the deed. Bleeding from his leg she only maimed him with one bullet.
The second pirate returns upon hearing the gunfire but Tawny is ready for him. Swinging her long leg up as he flies back into the tower she kicks him hard in the groin, grabs his gun and shoots his leg. Two down. Eight to go.
Tawny sees Nwankwo’s boats leaving and wonders how this small team is going to overtake the pirates. They have been alerted to trouble with her shooting. Now she is defending herself without the comfort of the men to back her up.
Tawny suddenly hears footsteps hurrying to where she is. Climbing on the instrument panel she shoots out the window and steps on the frame. Jagged glass is everywhere and she cannot see well enough to avoid all of it. She will just have to try her best.
With the two machine guns thrown across her body, she places both feet on the frame of the window and turns toward the interior of the tower facing the onslaught of pirates making their way into the helm. Falling forward, her hands smash against the top of the tower and she pulls herself on to it as quickly as she can. Expecting to cut herself on broken glass she is pleasantly surprised to have missed it with her hands but as she pulls herself up her leg brushes against a jagged edge and pierces her thigh.
The pain is excruciating but there is no time to think about it now. Working her body to the top of the tower, Tawny makes her way toward the tall smokestack behind it. Then the fireworks begin.
AK7s spin out bullets faster than a torrential downpour. Crawling up the smokestack like climbing a tree back home, she manages to reach the top in record time. Grabbing one of the guns swung around her chest she aims and fires hitting three from her key vantage point. Five more to go.
Billy now knows that Tawny is in control. No need to fire back at a pirate. But where is she? The blasts seem to come from high above. No way she is on top of the smokestack. And then she sends a message across the sky. Oh yeah, she’s on top.
CHAPTER 28
N wankwo hears the gunfire. It is different from a normal attack. It is in the air, like a signal. He waits. More gunfire but this time it is combative. The pirates would not attack each other so that means the escapees are doing battle.
Nwankwo is the fiercest pirate in the Gulf of Guinea but he is running away from the fight. They will call him a coward, leaving three females and two American men to fend for themselves. No one will respect him.
His sisters are on that boat.
“Turn around and go back,” Nwankwo’s orders are immediately obeyed.
As Nwankwo is returning, Tawny is nailing two more pirates. Three remain but they changed their positions. It is difficult for anyone to see in the dark but they know where she is. They will trap her and kill her.
Leaving the tower the three pirates make their way to the deck to form a triangle. They will each shoot at her and knock her off with their bullets. As the one nears, Billy comes from behind his small cover and hits the guy from behind taking his gun. Punching him hard he knocks him out cold.
With one more gone, Billy returns to the smokestack to make certain the girls are safe but when he arrives Chioma is alone. Chinyere left her. The little girl reaches for Billy’s neck and he lifts her into his arms.
Billy watches Ken surprise the second pirate and shoot him in the leg to keep him from harming Tawny. Now there is only one more to find. That becomes easy when he fires at Tawny. She fires back but misses him. She probably cannot see a thing and has to rely on instinct, which is not as acute so high up and far from her target.
The boat is quiet for a long time. The lone pirate on deck does not know who he is fighting and his brother pirates must be down since they did not fire. Alone, he is not sure where his enemy hides. The one on the smokestack is not firing. Who is up there?
“Shoot them! Shoot them all!” The roar of the captain’s voice tells them that he is awake and taking charge. Ten more pirates hit the deck.
Ken takes out one right away. Billy cowers toward the stern with the toddler clinging to his neck. Trying to protect her and help in the fight is proving difficult. Tawny can see him by the moonlight and instinctively knows she has a partner lurking somewhere in the dark.
Then she sees two pirates coming after an unsuspecting Ken. From her perch she fires down on both of them. Raining bullets hit them and Ken is momentarily saved but Tawny revealed her position and they are coming after her. Eight pirates plus the captain to overcome. This is not going to be easy.
“Capture him!” The captain screams and three pirates take Ken down. Struggling to hold onto his gun they are able to snatch it from his hands. “Don’t shoot him.” Again the captain barks his orders.
Ken is held by two large pirates. Tawny knows she can shoot no more without watching them kill her dear friend. Billy will be close behind. He is a sitting duck with and without Chioma.
“Tawny, come down and ve vill not kill your friend.” The captain knows who to blame.
Tawny waits a moment. She is not sure what to do. Then she feels her smokestack vibrate. Someone is climbing. Poised with her gun, she waits to see who it is.
“I stopped de one down dere.” It is Chinyere and she eliminated number eight. Seven plus the captain. “Climb down to help your friend. I shoot from up here. Dey not know I is here.” Tawny pulls off one gun and hands it to the teenager.
“You have good aim?” Tawny whispers back.
“Even beder dan poker.”
“You go girl.” Tawny shouts to those below, “I’m coming. Don’t shoot or I will.”
Shimming down the smokestack to the roof of the tower and then into the tower and back out of it and down to the deck she takes her time but makes certain they know where she is.
Billy huddles close to the stern with the little girl. As he overlooks the water he relaxes and sits down in his hiding place.
As Tawny appears she is ready to fire.
“Drop de gun,” the captain orders.
“No,” she replies.
“Den ve shoot both of you.” As the pirates raise their guns Chinyere nails both of them holding Ken and Tawny aims hers at the captain who grabbed Ken as a shield and is holding a knife at his throat. They stare at one another not knowing who is going to act first. As time passes the remaining pirates gather around Tawny and she is trapped. If Chinyer
e fires the pirates will surely kill Ken and Tawny. They will find Billy and kill him and her baby sister. She has to hold her fire.
Realizing her dilemma, Tawny has no ideas and as her arm drops to let go of the gun Nwankwo and his men appear from nowhere and attack. Tawny grabs Ken and rushes him toward Billy but Billy is already in the skiff with Chioma. These pirates can kill one another but he is getting his crew to safety if there is any hope.
Tawny is bleeding badly now and her leg is shaking from the pain. Billy helps her into the skiff and begins to untie.
“Wait, we don’t have Chinyere,” Tawny reminds him.
“We can’t. You’re hurt and we have the little one. Nwankwo will have to rescue his sister.” Billy starts the motor and the skiff quickly leaves the mothership.
“Where are you going?” Ken asks Billy.
“I have no idea but we couldn’t sit around and wait for them. We’ll have to try to find the shore. I think it’s this way.” Billy is as unclear about his direction as he could possibly be.
“We can’t run out of fuel and be stranded. Maybe we should hover out here and wait for Nwankwo to return,” Ken suggests.
“Because a pirate captain is going to be so thrilled that we stole his skiff and left him to fight,” Billy snaps sarcastically.
“He left us first,” Ken counters.
“He broke a rule. He’s attacking another pirate ship and we’re the reason he did it. We need to aim for the shore and hope we find it. Maybe we’ll run into an American or European cargo ship that will help us out. Hang in there, Tawny.” Billy is back in charge.
Nwankwo faces his three deserters. They have two of his pirates in their control and they want Nwankwo. He killed their pirate captain before but he will not harm this one. Nwankwo broke a pirate rule and now he will suffer the consequences. He lowers his arm to drop his gun and motions for his young cohort to do the same. In doing so, his deserters relax their grip on the other two pirates they are holding.
Limiting Liabilities: Book Two - The Martinique Files Page 37
