The House on Mermaid Point

Chapter Twenty-nine

Their departure from the beach at Lazy Days was far noisier and wetter than their arrival.

“Okay, MaryAnn and Ginger!” Maddie pointed to Avery and Nicole. “You, too, Mrs. Howell!” she called to Deirdre. “Now we have to weigh anchor and push off and get in the boat.”

Maddie sloshed through the shallow water. On her third attempt to hike her butt up to a sitting position so that she could swing her legs over the side of the boat, she teetered precariously for a couple of seconds before collapsing butt first into the bottom of the boat.

Nicole had removed her shoes and half dove, half leapt onto the bow of the boat, flashing a good bit of thigh in the process. Deirdre scooted onto the bow behind her, pivoted on her rear, and threw her legs into the boat, flinging wet sand as she came. The boat scraped against the bottom.

“Boy, we must have eaten more than we thought!” On the beach Avery spent a few inelegant moments trying to wrest the anchor out of the sand. “I’ll unstick you!” she promised as she set it in the boat. Then, without any apparent concern for how wet she might get, she grabbed the bow of the boat and pushed it back toward deeper water, then splashed in after it. Leaping onto the side, she kicked her feet in an effort to continue her forward momentum. Deirdre and Nicole grabbed her by the waist and hauled her the rest of the way in.

Gasping from exertion they contemplated each other. Only Avery seemed to find their soaked and bedraggled state amusing.

“Well, it wasn’t pretty. But we didn’t lose anybody,” Maddie said.

“Tha’s right, Skipper! All present an’ accounted for.” Avery saluted sloppily and squished her shoes together, which struck all of them as far funnier than it should have.

“Okay.” Maddie stood and turned to lower the motor. “Here we go.” She set the choke. The deck was wet and on her first try she pulled so hard that her feet slipped out from under her. Slowly, she straightened and brushed at her sodden clothing. “I didn’t even have two full drinks! And that last one was mostly fruit.” She turned to see Nicole and Deirdre watching her speculatively. Avery still had a loopy grin on her face.

“It’s all right.” Maddie wasn’t sure whether it was herself or them she most needed to reassure. “I just have to get a better grip.” She put one hand on the motor to brace herself more firmly, set the choke, closed her eyes, and yanked. This time the motor sprang to life.

Her crew applauded. Avery pumped her fist and added a “Woot! Woot!”

“Now all we have to do is get into the channel and head east until the place where it doglegs back toward Mermaid Point.” Maddie sat down on the bench next to the motor and grasped the tiller firmly.

“We’re not going back the way we came?” Deirdre asked.

“No. We just came the other way so we could enjoy the sunset.” Maddie backed up slowly, turned the boat so that they were heading out into the ocean, and gave the boat some gas. “This is supposed to be more direct.”

“Iss so bea-u-ti-ful out here.” Avery’s head had dropped back and she was peering up into the sky.

“It is.” Maddie nodded her agreement.

There was virtually no wind. The moon’s bright light glimmered on the still ocean. The only sounds were the whir of the small motor, the light slap of the water against the hull, the occasional splash of a fish, and the odd car over on U.S. 1.

The salty air was warm, the ocean vast. Alligator Reef Lighthouse shimmered out in the distance. William Hightower’s deck light shimmered off to the right. Idly Maddie tried to remember which was port and which was starboard. And why they couldn’t just call them left and right.

“It’s so peaceful and quiet.” Nicole leaned back and sighed, crossing bare, wet feet.

“Tha’s prob’ly what the people on the Titanic thought right before they slammed into that iceberg.” Avery pulled her still-wet top away from her chest, giggling at the sucking sound it made.

“I can pretty much promise you there are no icebergs lying in wait out here.” Deirdre’s raised eyebrow crooked slightly as she contemplated her inebriated daughter. “I don’t think an ice cube would make it more than a second or two.”

Nicole began to hum the theme song from Titanic. Avery chimed in with the vocals, which were decidedly off-key and bore no resemblance to Celine Dion’s version.

“Well, I’d rather hear ‘My Heart Will Go On’ right now than the theme song from Jaws,” Deirdre said. “We know for a fact there are sharks out here.”

Avery mimed a horror-stricken look over her shoulder then switched to the more ominous “Da-dum, da-dum, da-dum” that had signaled the great white shark’s arrival on the scene.

“I believe that’s enough.” Deirdre aimed a bemused look at her daughter. “If you accidentally conjure up a fin I don’t think I’ll be the only one trying to figure out how to walk on water.”

“Da-dum, da-dum . . .”

Maddie tried to empty her head of everything except the channel markers as they turned and ran parallel to Mermaid Point. Her eyes strayed to the lone light that shone from the second story. Was it inside William’s bedroom or the one out on his deck? “All we have to do is go past Mermaid Point, find the markers, then jog back into the relief channel.”

There was a splash in the distance. A horn honked on U.S. 1. A stray bit of music reached them from one of the nightspots on the water.

“Wow, sound really travels out here, doesn’t it?” Avery had finally given up her da-dums. Her eyes turned to the island. “I wonder if they could hear us on Mermaid Point from out here.”

“I’m not even sure anyone but Kyra and Dustin are there to hear us.” Deirdre yawned. “And you know how noisy the houseboat air-conditioning is.”

“Well, I’m whipped.” Nicole’s declaration was delivered on a yawn. “I never thought I’d look forward to the bed on that houseboat, but it would feel like the Ritz right about now.”

“Yoo-hoo!” Without warning Avery stood abruptly in the bow and waved her arms over her head, rocking the boat. “Hey, William! William Hightower!”

“What are you doing?” Maddie hissed. Her eyes went to the light on the second floor of the house. She squinted, trying to see if there was movement.

“Do you want me to ask him if he sleeps in those boxer briefs of his or au naturel, Mad?”

“Shhh!” Maddie tried to shush her. “And sit down. You’re rocking the boat!”

“Hey!” A huge smile lit Avery’s face. “Have you guys ever mooned anybody?” Avery plucked at the waistband of her capris. “We’ve even got an almost full moon. It’s perfect!”

“Oh, God. Somebody stop her!” Maddie flushed with irritation. Worse, she couldn’t see where she was headed through Avery, who was busy fumbling with her waistband.

“Avery,” Deirdre scolded lightly.

“Is that really the best you can do?” Maddie’s slight buzz had evaporated. “After all those mothering lessons I gave you? You have to talk like you mean it!”

“Avery!” Deirdre said. “Sit down and—”

“Whadda ya think, Nikki?” Avery’s feet were planted in the bow. She seemed to have given up on her zipper and was trying to pull the capris down without undoing them.

“I don’t think there’s an audience there to appreciate it. Not that I think your shiny white butt would faze Will or Roberto. Although it might melt Fred Strahlendorf’s pocket protector.”

Everyone but Maddie laughed. Avery still seemed undecided.

“Avery! Take your hands off your pants and sit down! I can’t see the . . .” Something metallic glinted on the island and her eyes shot up to the second story. Seconds later any thought of what William Hightower or anyone else might or might not be able to see or hear vanished.

The boat slowed of its own volition. Something, or rather several somethings, bumped beneath the hull. The boat ground to a halt.

Avery shrieked. Her arms windmilled. If Nicole hadn’t grabbed on to her shirt she might have gone overboard. Not that drowning was much of a risk. Several birds squawked and took flight. Those that remained blinked sleepily at them from where they stood. In water that barely covered their feet.

“Holy shit!” Nicole released Avery’s shirt from between her fingers. “What happened?”

Maddie looked around them, still trying to absorb where they were as opposed to where they should have been. “Given the fact that we’re not moving, we’re facing straight on to the beach at Mermaid Point, and the channel’s way over there”—Maddie pointed south—“I think we can safely deduce that we have run aground.”

“What do we do now?” Nicole pulled Avery down next to her.

Maddie turned off the motor and plopped back down on the bench seat. It was even quieter now with the motor off. Her head swam with the bits and pieces of information she’d gleaned on her one brief visit to the safe boating website Hudson had given her. “The only things I can remember are that we shouldn’t try to power off the flat because it’ll just dig us in deeper and that if a police boat sees us we could be fined thousands of dollars.” She commanded herself to remain calm.

“Well, at least we can see land.” Nicole peered around Avery, who was looking increasingly sober. “That should mean people on land can see us, too, right?”

Maddie looked around again, hoping to see running lights out in the channel or some sign of activity on Mermaid Point. “I don’t know. We have a good bit of moonlight, but I’m not sure anyone on land could pick us out from our surroundings. What time is it?”

Nicole looked down at her phone. “It’s almost one A.M. Why?”

“I remember Hudson saying that sometimes you just have to wait for high tide to help you float off the flat.”

“How long are we talking?” Deirdre asked.

Maddie thought for a minute. “I think there’s a site that has tide information on it. Salt . . . Salt Tides or something like that.”

Nicole applied her thumbs to her phone. “I’m Googling.”

Avery stared stupidly at her own phone. “Do we have any flares we can shoot in the air?”

Maddie opened the storage compartment beneath their seats, looked in the side storage wells, pawed through the life vests, and lifted all the cushions. “I don’t know!”

The only boat traffic was way out beyond Alligator Reef. “I feel like I’m on some deserted rural road with a flat tire.”

Avery began to hum “Dueling Banjos.” Maddie shot her a look.

“Sorry.” Avery’s thumbs moved on her phone. A strong pinpoint of light appeared. “My flashlight app.” She waved the beam of light back and forth, aiming it toward the island.

Maddie thought she saw a glint of something from the beach on Mermaid Point, but it was so brief she couldn’t be sure.

Avery added her voice. “S.O.S.! Stranded women! Help!” Her shouts hung in the night sky, skimmed over the dark water. No one and nothing responded.

“Can you do Morse code with that app?” Deirdre nodded to the pinprick of light coming from Avery’s phone.

“I’ll check.” Avery shut off the flashlight while she searched for the directions for sending a distress signal. “Does anybody have anything to write on?”

“None of us brought a purse,” Deirdre reminded her. “Just an ID and a credit card in our pocket.”

“That’s a relief,” Avery quipped. “At least when they find our bodies washed out to sea they’ll be able to identify us.”

“Very funny.” Deirdre’s voice was tight.

“I’ve got Saltwatertides.com.” Nicole stared down at her screen. “Let me just put in Islamorada.” Her thumbs moved again. Maddie watched her scroll down. “Here it is . . . damn.” She slumped in her seat. “High tide is at four twenty-two A.M.”

“Oh, good.” Deirdre’s tone was far drier than their surroundings. “Only a little over three hours from now.”

“And that’s assuming all we need is a higher tide. I think something might have happened to the motor.” Maddie wrapped her arms around the motor and tried once again to lift it. “It’s definitely stuck. I can’t even get it to budge.”

Avery had apparently given up on Morse code and was once again waving the pinpoint of light at the island. “Hey! Help! Over here!”

Nicole rolled her eyes. “Maybe someone should try to unstick the motor. Can’t we just get out and try to push the boat to deeper water?”

“We can try.” Maddie caught herself following Avery’s flashlight beam. Surely if anyone on Mermaid Point could see them they’d do something to help.

“I nominate Avery for chief pusher since her ridiculous desire to flash her butt got us in this mess,” Nicole said.

“But it’s dark and we don’t know what’s down there.” Deirdre looked from the ocean to Avery.

“Well, whatever it is can’t be very big. There’s not even a foot of water here.” Avery stood.

“I don’t want you to go in there alone,” Deirdre said. “You’ve been drinking and there could be some big drop-off or something.”

“Isn’t that what we’re hoping for?” Nicole caught Deirdre looking at her. “I’m not going in there without shoes and these are vintage Valentino.” She held up the bright red heels. A clump of sand fell out of one of them.

“I’m fine and I don’t need company. Here, hold the flashlight over the side so I can see.” Avery placed her phone in Deirdre’s hand and swung both legs over the side of the boat. For several seconds she stood taller than the boat. Then she appeared to slip. “I’m sinking!” She grabbed for the side of the boat, her arms flailing as she tried to get her balance. “It’s all mucky down here!” She bent as if feeling around for something. “Damn, one of my shoes came off. I can’t . . .” Head bent, Avery felt around some more. “It’s gone!”

Deirdre aimed the phone flashlight just behind Avery to try to illuminate the water. “Oh, my God! There’s a fin!” Deirdre dropped the phone and lunged forward to grab Avery’s hands.

“No, don’t . . . I’m . . .” Avery began.

Before she could finish or anyone else could move, Deirdre had yanked Avery halfway into the boat, where she teetered before landing in a heap at Deirdre’s feet. She lay in a pool of water she’d brought with her.

“I’m sure it’s just a nurse shark or a stingray I accidentally disturbed,” she finished.

“Does anyone have Will or Roberto’s phone number?” Nicole asked.

They all shook their heads. Avery sat up but remained in the bottom of the boat. Maddie had Hudson’s number but she wasn’t calling anyone. Fin sightings aside, they were in such shallow water and so close to Mermaid Point that she felt far more embarrassed than frightened.

“Maybe we should call the Coast Guard,” Nicole said.

Maddie demurred. “We’re not in serious danger. And I’m still hoping we can float off with the tide. I don’t think any of us have a spare couple of thousand to pay a fine.”

They all looked haggard, but no one disagreed.

“Maybe there’s a private towing service.” Nicole glanced down at her phone screen. “You know, like a nautical AAA.”

“Probably.” Avery removed the one shoe that remained on her foot. “But we don’t know if they’re twenty-four-hour. And chances are, middle-of-the-night calls are a lot more expensive than regular business hours.”

Maddie checked the time on her phone. “It’s after two A.M.”

Avery groaned. “The outdoor kitchen people will be there between six and seven because they wanted to finish installing in time to shoot the video. They’re bringing their own film crew with them. We have to be back before then.”

Maddie pulled the life vests out of the storage hold and began to distribute them.

“Are you worried that we’re going to capsize or end up in the ocean?” Deirdre asked as she took hers.

“No.” At the moment Maddie thought being swallowed up by the sea might be preferable to having to admit that she’d run aground the very first time she’d captained even so small a boat by herself. “We have enough of these for everyone to have one for a pillow.” She plumped the bright orange vest, which was way drier than her clothing. “If we’re going to be alert enough to take advantage of the tide when it comes back in, we should try to get at least an hour or two of shut-eye.”

With that Maddie curled up in the spot where she’d been sitting and determinedly closed her eyes. “And anyone who says, ‘Good night, John-Boy,’ or tries to flash anything or anyone is going to be sleeping with the fishes.”