Terrors of the High Seas

Chapter

Twenty-six

AFTER A BRIEF instant of utter shock, Dar reacted. The muzzle of the rifle had just pointed its deadly bore at her when she moved, grabbing Kerry out of pure instinct and throwing her down to safety. The sound of the shot deafened Dar. She felt a hot scorching across her cheek, then she was diving for the deck herself as she scrambled for something, anything, to put between her and the gun.

Her hands hit the legs of a chair and she rolled over, pulling the chair up and over her head. Another explosion nearly ripped it out of her hands, and splinters of wood flew everywhere. She felt a sting along her neck and she turned, then arced her body up and whipped the remainder of the chair in the direction of the gunfire.

She heard the sound of it hit, then another shot blew through the roof of the cabin. Dar took the chance and got up, focusing her vision on the rest of the room. She spotted the guard brushing the chair fragments off his arms and searching for her, and knew she only had seconds to take advantage of his momentary distraction.

Dar leaped forward and jumped onto the table that was between them, launching herself off it as the guard yanked his gun around in her direction. As his finger curled around the trigger, she let out a yell and he jumped slightly, just enough to give her time to crash full into him.

When Dar had thrown her to the floor, Kerry hit the carpet and rolled, the breath knocked out of her. She heard the gun go off and her guts clenched, until she caught a flash of motion coming from where she’d last seen Dar. Kerry had fallen close to the side door and her eyes suddenly settled on DeSalliers’ face as he watched in puerile fascination, one hand on the door and the other readying his escape.

Anger erupted inside her. She scrambled up and headed for the doorway. He spotted her and turned to escape, but Kerry leaped at him and caught his leg as he almost vanished out the door. Despite his struggling, she got a grip on his calf and whipped her body around, getting her feet against the doorway and pulling him back Terrors of the High Seas 311

with all her strength. “Get back here, you bastard!”

He screamed something at her and kicked hard, but Kerry had her arm wrapped around his leg and she reached up with her other hand and grabbed his belt. She braced her legs and yanked, using her thigh muscles to push with.

With a curse, he stumbled over her and crashed back into the cabin. Kerry rolled over and pounced on him, her temper getting the better of her as she went wild, hitting at whatever bit of flesh she could get a fist on. All the anger that had been building up the last few days poured out, and she ignored his attempts at grabbing her as she struck at him again and again with both fists.

THE GUARD WAS a big man. Dar had her arms around his throat, and she hooked a leg around the arm with which Gregos was holding the gun. Arching her back, she pulled the gun around and released one hand to grab it, twisting sideways as he screamed and cursed at her. Panic drove her. She ripped the gun from his hand and slammed the butt of it against his head, evading the grip he was trying to get on her. He hit her hard in the stomach and she doubled over, but the gun came with her and she slammed it into his legs.

They were too close, and it was too chaotic to even consider using the weapon for its actual purpose. Dar staggered back and caught her balance, then saw Gregos coming at her, and pure instinct gave her the means to keep him away. She lashed out in a roundhouse kick and boxed him right on the side of the head. The jolt traveled all the way down her leg, but her momentum let her drive through the kick. He rocked and staggered back, and then he shoved off the wall and came back at her. Already balanced, Dar drew her knee up, then slammed her leg out straight, and got him in the nose with her full weight behind the kick.

Blood spattered everywhere. His hands clutching his face, Gregos went down. Dar whirled and her eyes frantically scanned the cabin, her ears already picking up more guards headed their way. She heard a commotion near the door and bolted for it, rounding the edge of the couch to find an enraged Kerry sitting on DeSalliers’ chest and beating him to within an inch of his life.

Kerry’s shirt was half ripped off, exposing most of her chest.

She was pinning DeSalliers down with her weight, her knees resting on his biceps as she slugged at him with both fists. After a second of frozen shock, Dar yelled at the top of her lungs, “Kerry!”

“Bastard!” Kerry smacked the man across the chops with her conjoined hands. “You’re an asshole!”

Dar got behind Kerry and slipped her hands under her lover’s arms, physically lifting her up off DeSalliers. “C’mon! Let’s get the 312 Melissa Good hell out of here!”

Kerry was breathing hard, her green eyes almost gray with anger. DeSalliers frantically rolled away from her and started crawling toward the center of the room, and Kerry’s entire body twitched as though she wanted to go after him. A growl erupted from her throat, surprising them both.

“C’mon,” Dar urged. “I hope to hell Dad’s gotten to Bud. We can’t stay here; hear them coming?” She dragged Kerry toward the small door DeSalliers had been attempting to use. A gunshot echoed through the boat again, and Dar could hear screaming. Her jaw tensed, knowing at a gut level it wasn’t her father doing the screaming but he might be causing it.

“Ker?” she murmured in a gentle tone. “C’mon, sweetheart.

Come back to me here,” she urged the still angry woman, whose hands were clenched in balled fists. “It’s over.”

Kerry’s furious eyes tracked to Dar and their gazes locked.

“Oh.” Kerry drew in a shaky breath and found herself abruptly, her entire body shaking in reaction. She clutched Dar’s arms and shivered, her heart beating so fast in her chest she couldn’t count the flutters. “D…” She had to stop and pant. “Shit.”

Dar half led, half carried her to the door and shouldered it open. The boat pitched wildly, and she paused as she figured out what to do next. She felt Kerry slump against her, and she rubbed her lover’s back. “You okay?”

Kerry sucked in a deep breath, and expelled it. “Yeah,” she whispered. “He just really pissed me off, I guess.” She took a moment to collect herself, then peered anxiously past Dar. “Where’s Dad?”

“There.” Dar edged out the door and held on to the railing as the rain pelted them. She spotted her father on the bow with Bud slung across his shoulders. “Dad!” she yelled, hoping he’d hear her above the storm.

His head turned her way and she saw the relief in his eyes.

“Go!” she hollered at him. “Get the hell out of here!”

Two guards were headed toward the bow, struggling against the rain just as they were. Andrew took a step toward them, then shook his head and ran for the edge of the bow, gathering himself and leaping over the railing to plunge feet first into the water. He immediately disappeared beneath the surging waves.

Dar spotted the men dashing for her and Kerry. “Can you swim?” she yelled. “Kerry!”

Kerry hesitated, judging the shakiness of her muscles. Her body seemed to have recovered during the brief rest and she took a cautious breath. “Yes,” she answered, knowing she had little choice at any rate. She grabbed the railing and held on, judging the distance to the water as the boat rolled. “I’m okay!”

Terrors of the High Seas 313

Dar held onto her. “Go on. I’ll jump after you when you’re clear.” She grabbed the back of Kerry’s shirt to keep her steady as the boat dipped toward the water, then gently shoved her just as she leaped, pushing her well clear of the boat. Anxiously, she watched the waves, her heart in her throat until she saw a faint, pale blur break the surface.

Just as she readied herself to follow, a hand grabbed her roughly from behind. Dar whirled and found a pistol barrel in her face. Her reflexes saved her life as she twisted and her hand snapped up, smacking the gun to the side just as it went off. The space was too close for fighting, but Dar managed to draw back her arm and punch the guard in the face, somehow evading his grasping hands. It didn’t really stun him, but he blinked and paused long enough for Dar to push free and slam the cabin door in his face.

She grabbed a fending pole clamped next to the door and jammed it sideways, blocking the door shut as the guard inside threw his body against it, trying to get out. Shaken, Dar glanced at the water, the ocean’s savage waves looking more and more friendly to her every single second.

Faintly, over the thunder and slap of the waves, she heard the sound of Andrew’s watercraft engine roar to life. A sweet sound.

She grabbed the railing and prepared to leap overboard, when motion on the bow caught her eye. Two guards were there, one shining a blazing, handheld spotlight into the water. The light pinned Andy’s small boat, and the second guard raised his rifle and aimed.

Dar heard the Dixie’s horn sound a warning. She released the rail and bolted forward toward the bow instead, heading straight for the two guards. With a growl, she dove headlong at the first, hitting him at the knees and taking him down. Together, they crashed into the second and he stumbled backward, falling down and rolling across the pitch of the deck. He slid under the railing and hung there, his light falling down into the water with an unheard splash. Dar found the rifle clattering by her and she kicked it, sending it spinning over the side.

The guard who had held it jumped on top of her, pinning her to the deck and slapping her hard across the side of the head. “You’re dead, bitch.”

Dar felt the truth of that. She gathered her flagging strength and fought him, ripping one hand loose from his grip. Her fingers brushed against something hard and she clutched at it, pulling hard when she recognized the outline of a diver’s knife strapped to his thigh. As he lifted a fist and aimed for her head, Dar pulled the knife free and drew her arm out sideways. Swinging it inward a hair’s breadth before his fist arced for her face, she buried the blade 314 Melissa Good in his side, feeling the harsh, ethereal sensation as the knife penetrated his clothing and entered flesh. His scream was a testament to her accuracy.

Dar arched her body, rolling to one side with all the effort she could muster. She managed to throw him off, and as he rolled one way, she rolled the other. The boat pitched as she was trying to squirm under the rail, she felt him grab her by the back of her jacket, and the next thing she felt was a sudden shock that rattled her whole body. Then it all went dark.

KERRY WATCHED ANXIOUSLY, her eyes widening. “Dad!”

She pointed to where she could see Dar struggling with the thug.

“Oh…oh, my God!” she screamed, seeing her partner go down as the man hit her in the back of the head. “Dar!”

Without the slightest hesitation, Andrew dove overboard, regulator already in his mouth, and mask already settled on his face. He paused to yell back at Kerry, “Take hold of that damn rudder!” before he ducked under the waves and disappeared.

Kerry scrambled back and did as he had ordered, hauling the boat around and heading it back toward DeSalliers’ yacht. “Son of a bitch. Son of a bitch. Son of a bitch!”

Behind her, the Dixie’s horn went off again, three short blasts that sounded urgent. Kerry kept her eyes glued on the yacht in front of her, her heart almost stopped as she heard the yacht’s engines fire. “No!” But as she watched, the big boat turned and started moving, heading away from them. Kerry felt like she was going insane. She gunned the engine of her watercraft, then abruptly slowed as she saw a head poke from the surface. “Dad!”

Andrew waved her on toward him, signaling urgently. “C’mon, girl. Move it!”

Her instincts in conflict, her hand shaking, Kerry directed the boat toward him, panic starting to overtake her. She slowed the raft, and Andrew reached for one of the grips and pulled himself over the gunwales and aboard with seemingly little effort.

He rolled over and came up next to Kerry, taking the tiller from her. “Bastards.” He watched the boat draw away from them. “Ain’t catching them in this thing,” he said, whipping the watercraft around in a tight, vicious circle that nearly swamped the boat in the following waves.

“Dad, they’ve got Dar!” Kerry gasped out. “We’ve got to get her!”

“Ah know that.” Andrew said, setting a course back to the Dixie. “Ah know that.” He looked behind him, tension written clearly etched across his scarred features. “Mah God.”

Kerry could only sit there, clenching and unclenching her Terrors of the High Seas 315

hands, her heart beating so quickly she could barely breathe. Every instinct was pushing her toward simply jumping overboard and swimming after DeSalliers’ yacht; only the fragile remnants of her sanity kept her where she was.

Dar was gone. Helplessly, she started crying, one hand holding on to the boat and the other gripping her hair, wanting nothing else but to scream, and scream, and just keep on screaming.

“GO! MOVE! HURRY!”

Dar heard the noises and felt the motion, alarm sending a shock wave through her as she realized what had happened. She was lying on a hard surface inside the cabin of the boat, and she could feel rug under her fingertips as she started to move.

“Fucking bitch!”

Instinct made Dar roll out of the way, just as something whisked by her head and crunched into the fiberglass wall. She got to her hands and knees, trying to keep her balance as the boat pitched in the waves.

“Ow!” Gregos, who’d missed her and kicked the wall instead, hopped backwards and fell down, unused to the motion of the boat.

“Fucking bitch! Fucking bitch! Bitch!”

Dar shook her head to clear it and looked dazedly around at the cabin. DeSalliers appeared from the steps, staggering up them with an ice pack held to his face. He spotted Dar and stared at her. She stared back.

He dropped the ice and reached for a pool cue, the fury in his eyes showing he was beyond reason. Spittle flying from his bruised mouth, he went after Dar with the stick, swinging it at her head.

Dar really didn’t process what happened next. She knew she was being attacked and her body reacted, ducking under the pool cue and spinning around to land a kick on DeSalliers’ side.

“Bitch!”

“Let me do that, boss.” Gregos, face swollen from her earlier kick to his head, got up and grabbed for Dar. “I’ll break her fucking neck.” The boat lurched and he fell again. “Fuck!”

Dar got to the side of the room and collected herself, a pounding headache causing flashes of light to obscure her vision.

She put her back to the wall and raised her hands in a defensive posture, as DeSalliers held on to a chair while the boat pitched wildly.

“They’re comin’ after us!” a voice crackled from the radio.

“Holy shit!’

Unable to move, DeSalliers stared across the room at Dar. “I’m going to kill you,” he managed to get out. “I don’t care what it takes, if I hafta gut you with a fucking harpoon.”

316 Melissa Good Dar somehow managed to gather her wits. “What does that get you?” she asked, wincing at the rasp in her throat.

“Satisfaction,” he spat.

“A prison sentence,” Dar corrected. “Because they all know I’m here.”

DeSalliers looked through the window. “We’ll lose ’em. Then I’ll dump your stinking body overboard. They’ll never find it.”

Dar straightened a little. “You’ll never lose them.”

DeSalliers laughed and spat out a mouthful of blood. “Your fucking girlfriend? Bet she’s crying her eyes out.”

Did she have a chance to talk her way out of this? Dar swallowed. Well, at least she was alive, and she had to do everything she could to stay that way. “What is it you want, money?”

“No.” The man stared at her in utter hatred. “There ain’t enough to keep me from killing you. I’d even take a rap for it.”

Oh crap. Dar started looking for a way out of the cabin. The boat was traveling at high speed, and jumping off would probably kill her, but— Above the sound of the storm, she suddenly heard a booming roar.

“Boss!” the radio screamed. “They’re fucking shooting at us!”

DeSalliers grabbed the radio. “What? Get away from them, jackass!”

“I can’t! One of the god damned engines is blown!”

Another booming roar and suddenly the window beside DeSalliers dissolved into a thousand shards of glass, which went flying across the cabin. Dar pressed her body against the wall and threw her arm up to protect her face.

“Shit!” DeSalliers shoved off from the bar and bounced into Gregos, grabbing the gun from his henchman’s belt and heading in Dar’s direction.

SOMEWHERE BETWEEN GETTING on the Dixie and finding a way not to collapse, Kerry managed to get herself under control and put a screeching halt to her runaway panic. She staggered across the pitching back deck as Andrew threw himself at the ladder, yelling to a very scared-looking Charlie up top.

Bud was lying on the deck, still out cold. Bob was clinging to the railing, his eyes as huge as baseballs. “Oh my God,” he was saying, over and over again. “Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God.”

“Please shut up.” Kerry went past him and into the cabin, her knees barely holding her as she made it to the bench seats and yanked them up. She grabbed the shotgun case and pulled it out, her hands shaking. Can I even load it? With impatient fingers, Kerry Terrors of the High Seas 317

shoved shells into place and worked the pump action. Then she stood up and headed for the door, grabbing the frame as the Dixie heeled over and picked up speed. She went outside, stopping short as she almost plowed into Andrew.

He looked at her, his eyes flicking to the shotgun. “Ya’ll wanna give me that there thing?”

“No,” Kerry answered hoarsely. “I know how to shoot it.”

The boat bounced over the waves, the spray drenching both of them. “Figured you did,” Andrew replied. “But Ah figure Ah got more practice at it.” He held out a hand. “And Ah know what part of that boat to hit.”

Kerry handed the rifle over without another word. She followed him as he went to the side rail and got up onto the edging, then moved around to the bow of the boat. The storm almost obscured the DeSalliers’ boat, but Kerry could see it crashing through the waves ahead of them, and she hung on to the side cleats with both hands as she squinted into the rain.

Andrew went to the front rail and knelt on the deck, curling one arm around the metal and propping up the shotgun with his other.

DeSalliers’ boat was much faster than theirs, Kerry suddenly remembered. “Dad! They can outrun us!” she yelled as loud as she could.

“Naw,” Andrew yelled back. “Ripped the fuel line out of one of them engines.” He glanced behind him with a tense, rakish expression. “Jest in case.”

Kerry crawled up behind him and held on to the rail, willing the Dixie to go faster. Her insides were tied in knots, and she realized then, just kneeling there, that she had no idea if Dar was even alive. A soft sound emerged from her throat and she gripped the rails with both hands. “Oh, God…please, please,” she begged in a whisper. “Please don’t take her from me.”

She wasn’t sure if Andrew heard her, but when she looked up again, he was looking back at her, those quiet, gentle blue eyes so very much like Dar’s visible in the light from the Dixie’s windows.

“S’gonna be all right, Kerry,” Andrew told her. “We’re gonna get them.”

Kerry felt tears welling up again. “I don’t want to lose her,” she managed to get out. “I can’t.”

The big man gazed back at her with compassion and understanding. “Me neither, sweetheart. Only kid Ah got.” He turned back around and threw the gun to his shoulder, sighting down the barrel and squeezing the trigger in a move just that fast.

The gun discharged, hitting DeSalliers’ yacht just above the waterline. It swerved, and in the light from the cabin he saw a silhouette, one he recognized. He pumped a shell into the chamber 318 Melissa Good and shot again, blowing out the window. “Step closer, you piece of meat,” he muttered under his breath. “Hope them fish are hungry.”

DAR WATCHED THE muzzle of the gun as DeSalliers pointed it directly at her. She was out of room to run, and the door was on the other side of the cabin. Trapped. Fuck.

“Take this.” DeSalliers threw the radio mic at her. “Tell them to fucking back off, or I’m going to blow your fucking head off.”

Dar caught the mic by reflex and held it, her finger brushing the button.

“Tell them!” DeSalliers screamed. He pointed the gun at her head, balancing himself against the wall with his other hand as the boat pitched in the waves. “Now!”

In that moment, Dar understood that she was likely to die. She didn’t believe for one second that DeSalliers would hesitate to shoot her if she called off the Dixie, and frankly, she didn’t believe for one second her father and her partner would stop, even if she asked them to. So. Dar wondered what it would feel like, and hoped it would be fast. Then she reserved the pain in her heart for missing Kerry, and how sorry she’d be to leave her. God, how much that hurt.

“Tell them!”

The pain echoed through her. Dar whipped the mic back at him. “Fuck you,” she yelled back. “I ain’t telling them shit! I hope they run right over this piece of crap, with you in it!”

DeSalliers ducked the mic and thrust the gun toward her, squeezing the trigger with a ghastly grimace.

Dar flinched reflexively, and brought her hand up in a futile attempt to protect her face, closing her eyes as she waited for the pistol to fire.

Click.

Dar stared past her hand at DeSalliers. He squeezed the trigger again.

Click.

Dar jumped forward and grabbed the gun, wrestling it from his grasp. “Stupid asshole.” She threw the gun from her with as much force as she could. “I’m gonna kick your stinking ass.”

He stumbled backwards but she was on him now, pouncing like a cat and grabbing him by the lapels. Kerry had done damage to his face, but Dar wasn’t interested in disfiguring him. She went for his throat, her hands closing on it as she let out a roar of anger and dug for his windpipe.

“Aough!” DeSalliers grabbed at her hands, kicking her in the knees as he tried to get away. “Help!”

Dar kept her grip as the boat pitched wildly and they fell Terrors of the High Seas 319

against the wall, her shoulder smashing against the window painfully. She saw Gregos trying to get to his feet, but she kept on squeezing DeSalliers, hearing the gagging noises her adversary was making.

“Hang on, boss!” The bodyguard grabbed a chair and threw it at Dar.

As she sensed the motion, Dar turned them both and the chair slammed into DeSalliers’ back. He screamed, best he could with his throat being compressed, and fell heavily against Dar.

She twisted and tried to keep her feet, but just then the boat leaned over radically, and she found herself, DeSalliers, and the guard all falling through the air and smashing against the huge window on the far side of the cabin. When it shattered, Dar felt the surface drop out from under them and then she smelled the sea and diesel, and thought she heard screaming.

Maybe it was her.

“THEY’RE SLOWING DOWN!” Charlie yelled from the bridge.

“Taking on water!”

“Bet your ass,” Andy yelled back. “Get this damn thing nose up to the back of that damn thing!” He put down the shotgun and pulled a large automatic from the pack at his belt, standing up and holding the railing as they closed in. “Teach them bastards to mess with mah kid.”

Kerry could see men running around over on the yacht, and two came up on deck, yelling in alarm as they spotted the Dixie.

She strained her eyes, searching for Dar’s figure among all the shadows and willing it to appear. Praying for it. Begging a God she’d lately wondered about for this one small favor. This one little thing, in the cosmic sense. This one life. “Please.”

The bow swung closer and Andrew got ready to jump from one ship to the other, his body coiled in waiting, the gun held in ready position as he prepared to attack.

As the two vessels converged, the bigger one suddenly heeled over, listing toward them as a muffled explosion sounded deep within. Just as Andrew was about to leap, the windows in the cabin shattered from the inside and bodies came flying out, hitting the water as the boat listed onto its side and came perilously close to capsizing.

Kerry bolted forward, and without thinking, leaped into the water from the bow, her eyes finding the outline she’d been searching for.

“Son of a…” Andrew scrambled to put the gun away and go after her. “Son of a… Ya damn kids!”

“Andy!” Charlie yelled. “What’s goin on! That damn boat’s sinkin’!”

320 Melissa Good

“Damned if I know!” Andy jumped overboard into the water.

Kerry found herself being swamped by the waves. She realized that without any gear, she was at the mercy of the sea, and she struggled, taking half a breath before a wave crashed over her head.

Then she started swimming toward where she’d seen the bodies enter the water, taking gasps of air whenever she could. The water was dark around her, and she could hear men screaming as DeSalliers’ boat slowly capsized, low booms still coming from the interior.

She heard a splash behind her, and then the surface of the water lit up as the Dixie’s searchlight came on. She coughed up a mouthful of water and kept swimming, searching the surface desperately as no sign of the fallen figures showed itself to her. A shudder ran through the water, and Kerry heard a cracking noise nearby. Part of the boat was breaking off, and furnishings were falling out through the broken window. She ducked as a chair plunged into the water next to her.

It was raining hard, and Kerry could feel her arms and legs growing heavy as they churned the water, moving her forward a little at a time as her eyes roved over the surface. The waves swamped over her and her head went under, making her swallow a mouthful of seawater. She broke the surface again, coughing.

Another wave swelled, but she ducked under it before it could knock her down. When her eyes opened, the dark roil of the sea was punctured briefly by the Dixie’s light, and she saw a figure beneath her, hanging limp in the water.

Kerry’s heart stopped. Then a hand gripped her ankle and she surged upward in shock, her head breaking the surface as her lungs inflated and a scream emerged.

Dar broke the surface next to her and grabbed hold of her arm.

“Ker!” She held her other hand up to block the light from the boat.

“Let’s get outta here!”

Kerry reached out and touched Dar’s face, ignoring everything else.

Dar gave a faint smile. “C’mon.” She started for the Dixie, fighting through the waves and rain, keeping hold of Kerry with one hand.

Buoyed by Dar’s presence, Kerry felt as if the waves now gently cradled her, ushering her toward safety in a world turned right way up and blessed, and full—for her—of God’s grace. Even the thunder sounded like laughter in her ears.

“CAREFUL.” ANDREW MANAGED to get a hand on the dive ladder as the Dixie wallowed in the waves. He got a foot on the bottom rung just as the stern of the boat lifted up out of the water, Terrors of the High Seas 321

taking him with it and nearly sending him flying off into the engine wash. “Jesus.”

Bud was on the other end of the wall, battered face swollen and still bleeding. He leaned over and extended a hand. “Grab on!”

Andy did so without hesitation, being pulled from the water and rolling up onto the deck as Bud hauled backwards, only to come back up onto his knees and immediately head back to the ladder. “Dar!”

“Holy shit.” Bud had tied a rope off to the deck railing and now he tossed it into the water, where two heads could be seen appearing and disappearing in the waves. “I left the Navy ’cause I didn’t want to do this shit no more.”

Andrew muffled a snort of laughter. “Tell me ’bout it.” He held on to the side of the boat and anxiously watched his daughters catch hold of the rescue rope. “Spent more tahm with mah ass in alligators after Ah signed them discharge papers than before.”

“Bud!” Charlie yelled down from the bridge. “We got waves coming in; we’re gonna swamp!” He gave the diesels a little gas, sliding the stern sideways.

“Get them engines in idle!” Andy roared back. “Hold it! They ain’t got no tow!”

Dar now had both hands on the rope, and Kerry had both arms around Dar, relying on the taller woman’s strength to pull them toward the boat.

“Help me pull ’em in.” Bud started hauling in the line.

“C’mere, useless! Get your hands on the rope!” he yelled at Bob, who had, to his credit, been anxiously hovering, unsure of what to do.

“I got it!” Bob took hold of the rope and pulled, almost losing his balance as the waves rolled the boat in a half circle. “Shit!”

The stern of the boat rose and fell, slamming the dive ladder into the water, nearly hitting Dar in the head. Stopping her forward progress just in time to miss being struck, she released the rope at the last second, then grabbed the ladder.

“Oh, she ain’t never gonna be able to… Jesus!” Andy scrambled for the ladder, lunging half off the back deck as the stern came up again, pulling both women with it. He grabbed for Dar’s shirt.

“Le—”

“I got it!” Dar yelled back, her biceps curled into stark muscularity as she held both of them up against the pressure. “Get out of the way!” she gasped, scrambling to get a foot on the lower rung as the bow rose and the stern plunged back down into the water.

Kerry just hung on as tightly as she could. She considered releasing her grip to grab the ladder, but the thought of falling backwards into the sea alone just… She couldn’t.

322 Melissa Good Dar got both feet on the ladder and waited, feeling the rear start to rise again. “Get ready, we’re coming in!” she screamed, lunging forward as the ladder lifted under them and pitched them almost right into the back of the boat.

Hands grabbed them and held them as Andy slammed back the hatch and hauled on the line. “Go! Go! Go!” he hollered. “Git, Charlie!”

The engines roared to full power in an instant, and the boat went from a wallowing helplessness into an almost painful arc.

“Hang on!” Charlie bellowed. “Going head in!”

Ahead of the boat, a monster wave rose, higher than the bridge as they plowed into it. Andy and Bud both dove for the deck, covering Dar and Kerry with their bodies and wrapping hands, arms, and legs around anything that might possibly hold.

“Holy Mother,” Bud grunted, as the wave crashed over the boat, drenching them in a freight-train carload of cold seawater. He looked up to see the cabin door slamming behind Bob’s retreating form. “Piss head.”

The back drains swirled, and then they were out of it, and the Dixie was plunging into the next wave, engines howling.

Kerry could feel the motion, but with Dar wrapped around her and the two ex-sailors covering them, she couldn’t see anything.

Maybe that was for the best. She pressed her cheek against Dar’s shoulder, breathing air full of salt and tasting it on the back of her tongue. Every inch of her hurt on the outside, but on the inside, all she felt was gratitude and a sense of relief as profound as death would have been. Another wave of seawater drenched her and she held her breath as it swirled around her body and Dar’s, before it drained out the back openings.

“Ker?”

Her throat hurt too much to talk, so she gave Dar a kiss on the neck to show she was listening.

“You okay?”

Kerry nodded, knowing Dar could feel the motion.

“Uuuggghhhhh!” Dar exhaled raggedly.

Kerry felt the boat shifting again, and she hugged Dar all the more tightly as cold water blasted over them and they pitched up so high in the front she felt herself being pressed against the rear wall of the deck.

“Shit!” Bud rasped, loudly enough for them to hear over the storm. “We’re goin’ over!”

Oh God. Kerry started to panic, trapped as she was under all of them and thinking of the tons of water about to roll over her as well as the huge yacht.

“No, we ain’t!” Andrew hollered back. “Git your hand back down on there and watch your mouth!”

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“Dar!” Kerry rasped, trying to squirm around and get a better grip on the boat’s hardware.

“Shh.” Dar got an arm around her just as the ship heeled over to the left and they all almost went flying to the other side of the deck. “Just hang on.”

The Dixie’s horn sounded, loud and brassy to counter the howl of the wind, and they felt the engines go to full power, the boat bucking the waves as it headed into the wind. Dar lifted her head and shook the hair from her eyes, squinting into the driving rain as lightning cracked overhead and etched a picture of what was happening deep into her awareness: high seas; the Dixie crawling up the front side of a wave easily fifty feet high; screams; DeSalliers’ boat cracking in half as the sea twisted it; darkness.

“Hang on!” Her father grabbed her by the back of the shirt and wrapped the fabric into his fist, tightening it across her chest.

“Jesus!”

Dar locked her legs around one of the deck supports and grabbed a cleat with one hand, wrapping her other arm around Kerry. The Dixie almost went to vertical, and she knew a stark moment of terror as she thought the boat was going to flip and bury them under it. They seemed to hang in the air for an eternity, before the bow turned slightly to one side and the engines gunned, and then they were cresting the wave instead, topping it and plummeting down the other side at a frightening speed.

“Son of a bitch,” Dar managed to croak.

Kerry spat a mouthful of water out and coughed. “Tell ya what,” she gasped right into Dar’s ear. “Next time, we go to PetsMart for our vacation.”

They rose up on another wave but it wasn’t as high, and the Dixie now was making reasonable headway against the seas. Still, water kept surging over the bow and sides, shoving them painfully against the fiberglass.

“Dad!” Dar turned her head. “We’re getting pounded!”

The weight lifted up off her and Dar was able to half sit up and look around. The roar of the engines was overtopping the sound of the storm, and she could see the angry white froth behind them as the boat rocked side to side in the wind. She looked over the stern, back the way they’d come, and saw nothing but churning sea, the darkness limiting her view. There was no sign of DeSalliers’ boat or any of its occupants. Her conscience poked her. Should they go back and look?

Kerry hauled herself up next to Dar and shoved her hair back off her forehead, her face tense. She licked her lips and grimaced, and then rested her head against one faintly shaking hand. “Wow.”

Dar transferred her attention instantly, unapologetically. “You okay?” She shifted around and got behind Kerry, giving her 324 Melissa Good something to lean against. “Ker?” She felt chilled and knew Kerry must be as well, since she could feel her shivering.

Kerry swallowed, glad enough to lean back against Dar’s body.

“I’d be a lying idiot if I said yes,” she replied. “Who in the hell could be okay after that?” She looked over at Andrew, who was now crouching nearby, both arms spread out across the back railing to keep steady. “Thanks, Dad.”

Andrew gave her a half grin, his gaze shifting as Bud rolled over and grabbed the back rail near him. “We ain’t done yet.”

“No shit,” Bud rasped, splaying his legs out over the deck. “I’m gonna move back to fucking Arizona. I goddamn swear it.”

Andy frowned at him. “Would you watch yer mouth?”

“Dad,” Dar interjected. “We both know what fucking is.”

Andrew turned and shot her a look. Bud snorted softly, but managed a lopsided grin anyway.

“Honest,” Dar assured him, as the boat rose up on another wave and crashed down, dousing them all again. She waited for the deck to steady, then turned to Kerry. “Let’s get inside.”

Amazing idea. Kerry felt motion around her, and hoped she had the strength to actually get up and walk. She reluctantly released Dar and they staggered to their feet, hanging on to the railing as Andy got the door to the cabin open.

“I’m going up with Charlie,” Bud yelled, grabbing the ladder.

“Be up in a minute,” Andy replied, grabbing Dar as she got across the back deck and steering her inside. “Let’s move it!”

“I’m moving.” Dar blinked against the light in the cabin, its glare painful. Things were tossed around, but the couch was there, and she fell onto it, Kerry collapsing next to her with their legs in a tangle.

Across the deck, in one of the bucket chairs, Bob was huddled, watching them nervously. His face was definitely green, and there was a plastic bag clutched in one hand. “I…is it over?” he croaked.

Dar glared at him “No.”

The boat pitched again. Bob clamped his jaw shut rather than continuing the discussion. After a brief moment, he got up and scrambled for the steps, crashing into the wall on his way to the head.

“Jerk.” Dar glanced up as the door opened and her father entered, his figure outlined in lightning from behind.

Andy knelt down next to the couch. “You kids all right?” he asked gently. “All that piss ass aside.”

“Ugh.” Kerry rubbed her eyes, stinging with salt water.

Dar looked at him. “Glad I went into computers, after all,” she said with a faint, wry quirk of her lips. “Thanks for coming after us.”

Her father put a hand on her knee and patted it. Then he got Terrors of the High Seas 325

up, fishing in one of his pouches with his other hand. “Ah’m glad, too, Dar, but you all did a fine job over in that there boat” He removed something and reached down, casually pinning it to Dar’s shirt. “You all sit tight. We got some rolling to do ’fore we get through this.” He ruffled Dar’s hair, then turned and made his way out the door and back into the chaos outside.

The door slammed behind him and latched, and above the storm, Dar could hear the sound of her father climbing up the ladder to the bridge. But inside, it was almost peaceful, and she blinked a little at the water dripping off her legs onto the teak floor and the creaking of the fiberglass hull around them.

She turned to look at Kerry, who was looking back at her with wide, utterly stunned eyes. A piece of seaweed was draped over her nose, and almost hypnotically, Dar reached over and removed it, her hand shaking so badly the bit of weed almost smacked Kerry in the face again. “Boy,” she whispered, “what a fucking night.”

Kerry blinked, nodding a little. “But we made it,” she rasped.

“For a while there I didn’t…” Her eyes filled and she stopped speaking, a blink sending a scattering of tears to mingle with the seawater still dampening her skin. “We made it,” she sniffled.

Dar exhaled slowly and let her head drop back against the cushion, exhaustion overtaking her. “We did,” she uttered in wonder, seeing again DeSalliers’ face as they hit the water. “Damn right we did.” She pulled Kerry closer and hugged her. “Damn right.” As an afterthought, she looked down at her shirt to where a glitter attracted her eye. She stared at the gold in numb bewilderment. Pinned to the sodden fabric was her father’s SEAL

insignia, winking calmly back at her in the cabin’s light.

Why? Dar found herself too tired to think about it. She put her hand over the pin, draped her other arm around Kerry’s shoulders, and just went blank for a while, hoping the sea woudn’t toss her any more surprises before they got to safety.

Kerry closed her eyes and let her head rest against Dar’s shoulder. It was enough for her, right now, to simply live the moment and forget about everything else, even the storm outside.

God had given her this much; it was enough.

DAR DIDN’T KNOW how long they sat there, feeling the boat surge and twist under them and the storm outside thunder against the hull. She just knew it was long enough for all her joints to stiffen up, and for the sore throat she’d barely felt as she came out of the water to turn into a fire that made even swallowing difficult.

She needed a drink. Dar glanced at Kerry, who was slumped against her with almost closed, bloodshot eyes, and grimaced.

“Ker?”

326 Melissa Good

“Uhng?”

“I gotta go get something to drink.”

Kerry produced a sound somewhere between a whine and a groan.

“You too?”

Kerry lifted her head and observed the pitching deck. She nodded, and eased back so Dar could get up from the couch, waiting until her partner had pulled herself up before she attempted to follow.

“No, stay here. I’ll bring you one,” Dar objected.

“Unh uh.” Kerry determinedly crawled after her. “Y’ need both hands.” She held on to the couch and pulled herself along, following Dar into the galley.

It was easier there, because there was so little room they could wedge themselves between the wall and the counter. Dar raked her fingers through her hair and opened the small refrigerator, grabbing hold of the counter as the boat pitched sideways. “Damn it.”

Kerry bumped her impatiently. “Moo.”

Dar handed over the milk jug and took a bottle of Yoohoo for herself. She closed the door and braced her foot up against the counter, freeing both hands to open the can and hold it.

Kerry did the same, and they drank in silence together for several moments. Then Kerry wiped the back of her hand across her lips and cleared her throat. “Paladar?”

Dar was caught in mid-gulp. “Mmph?”

“Next time, we call the police.”

“Mm?”

“Or the Coast Guard, or the Army, or the Navy, or the Secret Service, or whoever, whatever it takes,” Kerry rasped. “Because we’re not going to do that ever again.”

Dar put her Yoohoo down in the sink and leaned over, kissing Kerry on the lips for a long, sweet moment. Then she backed off a few inches and looked Kerry in the eye. “Deal.”

Kerry licked her lips. Then for good measure, she licked Dar’s, but her face grew serious. “I thought I’d lost you,” she whispered.

“I was going insane.”

From somewhere inside her, some echo, some inner core rarely tapped, Dar smiled. “Take more than that asshole and his entire crew put together to make me leave you,” she replied, resting her head against Kerry’s, the image of the gun, and the click, and the horror already fading. “Way more.”

Kerry studied Dar’s face. “Were you scared?’ she asked. “I was.”

Was I? “I think I was too freaked out to be scared,” Dar admitted, then fell silent, her brow creasing.

Terrors of the High Seas 327

Kerry took another swallow of milk, washing the taste of salt from her mouth with a sense of relief. “We should get dry,” she said. “I feel like warmed over puppy poo.” She held on as the boat rolled again. “But hey…you know we did it.”

“We did it,” Dar confirmed softly. “Bud’s okay. We’re all okay.” Slowly, she slid one arm around Kerry and hugged her carefully.

Kerry put down the milk jug and returned the hug, pressing her body up against Dar’s despite their mutual dampness. Then she pulled back a little and looked at Dar’s chest. “Oh.”

Dar looked down, at the pin. “Yeah. Don’t know why he did that.”

The blonde woman looked at it for a long moment, then tipped her head up to look at Dar. “Honey, you saved his life,” she said with a little frown. “Don’t you remember?” From the expression on Dar’s face, Kerry knew she didn’t. “You did. When we were in the little boat before you…before that bastard hit you.”

The pale blue eyes shifted and lost focus, then Dar gave her head a little shake. “I don’t remember. I remember getting out of the cabin…those guys were running around…”

“Dad was in the boat. They focused a light on us,” Kerry told her. “The guy on the yacht had a gun and he was going to shoot Dad. You tackled him.”

“I did?” Dar vaguely remembered being angry, and a lot of yelling, and... “Oh. Yeah.” The smell of hot blood came back to her.

“Now I remember,” she murmured. “Wow.”

Kerry put her arms around her partner and hugged her again, tightly.

“Let’s go change.” Dar rocked her back and forth. “Then see if they need any help up there.”

Kerry felt a faint laugh shake her body. “With three sailors driving?”

“Yeah.” Dar started to move toward the bedroom with Kerry stuck to her like a barnacle. “It’s my name on the captain’s license.”

“Little late to be worried about that.”

“Mm.”