The Double Cross In Paradise; Episode 43, Preparing To Repel All Boarders

This is episode forty-three in the sixth novel of The Troy Adventure Series. It is titled The Double-Cross in Paradise. Here are the links to  The Double-Cross In Paradise: paperback, Kindle. 

Preparing To Repel All Boarders

Trace and Kelsey began constructing a plausible story. They informed Sage, Makani, and Tom. Franks and Paul were kept in the dark. They were certain that Franks would contradict portions of Trace’s and Kelsey’s story, but they had alibis and explanations that would prove otherwise.

Shortly after sunset, and only a faint purple glow of the day remained on the western horizon, Tom cupped his hands around his mouth and called to the pilothouse. “There’s a flickering light starboard!”

Trace lunged to the starboard side of the pilothouse. He squinted, peering through the window. He reached back and grabbed the binoculars from a hook on the chart desk. He brought them to his eyes.

He grabbed the mic and stretched it to the starboard side. He pressed the button on the mic as he looked through the binoculars. “There’s a vessel starboard. It’s a trawler. It’s moving parallel to us. If they’re looking for us, they haven’t seen us yet.”

Trace returned to the wheel and flipped off the deck light. 

He put the mic to his mouth again. “Pull the shades and curtains on all portholes and only a night light.’

He hung the mic and turned to Kelsey. “Take Sage’s place and send him up. And have Makani bring me a coffee.”

Kelsey went below.

Sage climbed up the companionway. “What’s up, Trace?”

“I sent Kelsey below because I don’t think he could come up with an idea,” Trace said.

“What do you mean?”

“He’s law enforcement,” Trace said. “I’ve been trained the same way he has when it comes to conflicts at sea; you give in. It’s not worth the risk. I don’t like being beat, bested, or boarded. You, my friend, will come up with something.”

“For what?”

“I almost forgot, if that boat is some of Franks’ associates, I’d like to keep them and the boat away from us. We can’t outmaneuver or outrun them.”

“So you need an unconventional approach,” Sage said. “Ain’t that usually your department?”

“If that boat is one of Frank’s cohorts,” Trace said, “if they spot us, we may not have much time.”

“They’ll want Franks and his kid, right? If we give them over, would that be a bad thing?” Sage reasoned. “It’s temporary. They’ll eventually get caught.”

“That all sounds possible,” Trace replied, “but what if they want retribution. The drug business thrives on making examples of those who oppose it. I think if we turn over Franks and Paul, that won’t be the end of it. They’ll want to send a strong message.”

“Okay,” Sage said, “I can buy that. And I think you’re more right than wrong. Yep, we have to prepare for that because that’s who they are.”

“In whatever scenario, Franks and Paul are a bargaining chip, a delay tactic,” Trace said. 

“What are we delaying for?” Sage asked.

“The Australian Navy will be here in the morning.”

Makani brought a thermos of coffee.

“Thanks, Makani,” Trace said. 

“No problem,” Makani said. “What’s up?”

“I spotted a Trawler a few miles away,” Sage said. “We’re preparing for it to be somebody who’s looking for us. We’re trying to come up with a plan.”

“We hope to have a plane,” Sage said and clicked his cheek. He rubbed his chin. “I hate to tell you this, but I held on to a couple of grenades from the Flint Island escapade. I was going to hold on to them until I got back home. I had a project in  mind.”

“Well,” Trace said, “that’s a start. But I’m not into blowing people apart.”

“As am I,” Sage said.

“Can we use them to dissuade or disable them?” Trace said.

“That will be tricky,” Sage said. “We may have to prepare ourselves for the worst-case scenario.”

“An extreme resolution may be the only thing that can save our own lives and those of our friends,” Trace said.

“I guess that says it all,” Sage said. “And on that happy note, I have an idea.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“You can scuba dive, and you have the gear, right?” Sage asked.

“It’s stored forward,” Trace said. “The last time I used it was six months ago. It was in good working order then.”

“When my dad was in Korea, during the war, he learned a nifty little trick with a grenade,” Sage raised his eyebrows.”

“Watch the wheel for me,” Trace said. “I’m going forward to check out the scuba gear.”

Trace went forward and checked out the scuba gear. It was in good condition. He returned to the pilothouse.

“The gear is fine,” Trace said.

Sage gave up the captain’s chair to Trace.

“I’m going into the engine room,” Sage said. “I have to rig something up. I’ll grab a can of beer. My dad said they are perfect.”

“I’ll get it,” Makani said.

“I’ll get it,” Sage said. “There’s one on the counter inside the galley.”

Makani dashed for the companionway. “No problem. I get.”

Near

Near 

“How much I wanted to become someone else,” Todd said. “Something better than what I am. It’s just that every now and then I look in the mirror. It just never changes.”

“It does,” Martha said.

“No,” Todd said. “I’m the same person I was the first time I looked in the mirror and didn’t like what I saw. There was deceit, selfishness, scheming, and ugliness.”

“I don’t see how you could feel that way about yourself,” Martha said.

“If you have been with me as long as I have been with me, you’d know,” Todd said.

“Many artists see only the flaws in their own work,” Martha said. “Yet they see the beauty in the work and talent of others, and those others see only the flaws in their own work. Could it not be the same with you?”

“I would just like to be somebody else,” Todd said, exasperated. 

“Then what would I do?” Martha said. 

“What do you mean?” Todd said.

“It is you that I have grown to love,” Martha said. “Yes, when we first met, you were deceitful, selfish, and you schemed, but you were never ugly.”

“Were you that desperate that you had to go for someone of little character?” Todd said.

“I would have never loved that man,” Martha said. “I saw you make changes, and when I saw a complete transformation, I swooped in and snatched you away before someone else did.”

Todd patted Martha on the hand. “Thank you, dear. What can I do for you?”

“Nothing,” Martha said. “But when the time comes, I know you’ll be there for me. Above all, Todd, that is the best of you; you are always near.”

The Double-Cross In Paradise; Episode 42, What's Next?

This is episode forty-two in the sixth novel of The Troy Adventure Series. It is titled The Double-Cross in Paradise. Here are the links to  The Double-Cross In Paradise: paperback, Kindle.

What's Next? 

Kelsey would tap for a few minutes and rest. He kept the headsets on and lifted one off when talking with Trace. Sage kept watch over Franks and Paul. Patterson stood on deck watching for airplanes or fast-moving boats coming in their direction. 

Hours passed. The sea and the winds were normal. Makani prepared sandwiches for everyone so they would not have to leave their posts. 

Trace turned The Tramp Islander southwest. 

Kelsey raised his eyebrows, waiting for an explanation.

“I’m taking a direct heading toward Brisbane,” Trace said.

Trace watched the horizon and looked at Kelsey. Kelsey’s face was dull, and his eyes blinked slowly.

“Grab the wheel for a while,” Trace said. 

“Are you sure?” Kelsey said.

“Just keep the heading where it's at,” Trace said. “I’m going to take over the key for a while. I’m not as good as you are, but you need a break.”

Trace sat at the chart desk, and Kelsey sat at the wheel.

Trace snapped on the headsets and tested the key. Then he started sending. “Wow,” Trace said. “Let’s switch back. I’m getting something. You should handle this.”

They switched positions. Kelsey began writing down code and sending.

“Who is it?” Trace asked.

Kelsey ignored him and continued sending and receiving.

After a few minutes, Kelsey slid one earpiece behind his ear. “I’ve reached a RAN vessel,” he said.

“RAN?” Trace questioned.

“Royal Australian Navy,” Kelsey said. “I’ve given them information so they can verify me as an officer of the law. I informed them of our situation. That gives priority to verify us.”

“Can they help us?” Trace asked. 

“Things like this can work incredibly slow,” Kelsey said. “We could be in Brisbane drinking beer before there’s an answer.”

“I didn’t know Aussie could be so formal,” Trace said.

“The whole country ‘as gone to hell in a hand basket if you ask me,” Kelsey said. “They’ve gone soft. They forgot what made them a good country: sweat, grit, and straight whiskey.”

“Sounds deep,” Trace said.

“My younger brother,” Kelsey said. “A real sissy, drinks lattes and cappuccinos.”

“They’re not bad,” Trace said.

“It’s the way he drinks them, and the way he describes the experience. It’s not an experience. The experience is what you’re doing and who you’re with. Only fruitcakes sound like that. He’s not a fruitcake. I guess you’d call him cultured and refined.”

Trace appeared puzzled, and Kelsey noticed it.

“Why am I telling you this?” Kelsey said. “It represents everything that’s going on in society. Two brothers takin’ two different forks in the road. What about you, you have a brother?”

“No,” Trace said, “I’m an only child. My mom was killed in a car accident when I was young, and Dad never remarried. Sagre is the closest thing I’ll ever have in a brother, maybe closer.”

Kelsey jerked and snapped on the earphones. “I’ve got something.”

Fifteen minutes of tapping and jotting on paper followed.

Kelsey stopped sending and pulled off the headphones.

“What’s up?” Trace asked.

“I gave them our course and heading,” Kelsey said. “They expect we can rendezvous sometime after sunup tomorrow.”

“What will happen then?” Trace asked.

“They will take Franks, the kid, and me off your hands.”

“That’s great for you, Franks, and the kid,” Trace said, “but we’re still going to be hunted. A score has to be settled.”

“Without Franks and the kid, they have no interest in you,” Kelsey said. 

“And how will they know Franks and his kid are on an Australian naval vessel, six o’clock news?” Trace said, sarcastically.

“It’s the best we can do?” Kelsey offered a pathetic smile.

“It’s not the best,” Trace said sharply.

“What would you have us do?” Kelsey said.

“A small deployment, two or three men—armed,” Trace said. “That’s what it’s going to take. I should have left you in Suva; you’d still be parked in front of the hotel waiting for me.”

“I’ve got only so much authority,” Kelsey said. “In fact, the only authority I have is the arrest someone.”

“Arrest me,” Trace said matter-of-factly and proceeded logically. “Arrest me and the crew on suspicion of transporting drugs. Confiscate The Tramp Islander as evidence.”

“That can’t be done in international waters,” Kelsey said.

“There are several circumstances where that isn’t the case,” Trace said. “Most countries won’t bother with international waters. We were pretty sure Vanuatu would not come after us. It can be an international mess. And their corrupt politicians and police may have been drug into it. So they left it up to the crooks to take care of us. However, if a government really wants you, let’s say, like Australia, they can get you; they can get anybody.”

“How, legally?” Kelsey asked.

“You could claim we are pirates,” Trace said, “Nah, that would never work: I got both of my eyes, both of my legs, and no parrot.”

Kelsey chuckled. “Two of them I can fix, but I don’t have a parrot.”

“I like the way you think,” Trace chuckled.

“Years ago, many years ago,” Trace said, “my dad owned this boat. Then it was called the Tiki. He bought it in Hawaii. He has told me this story several times. He had a heck of a time getting all the ownership papers squared away. It seems it was flagged in Australia. Rather than take months to change it to an American-flagged vessel, he thought, what the heck, let’s just leave it flagged Australian. And that it has always been. Interestingly, the last fellow who owned this boat was an Aussie named Spence. What that means is that you and your navy have jurisdiction over this boat, no matter where it floats.”

“But you’re not smuggling drugs,” Sage said.

“Franks himself let loose the rumor I was smuggling drugs,” Trace said. “With those rumors flying around, that’s enough to confiscate The Tramp Islander for a while. Under the protection of the Australian Navy, that will give time for this whole thing to blow over or time to swoop in and pick up the usual suspects.” 

Kelsey tapped his finger on the desk. 

“I know,” Trace said. “This is a tough decision with a lot of moving pieces. But here’s something that just might push you over the edge.”

“What’s that?” Kelsey stopped the tapping.

“I see a commendation in this for you,” Kelsey said. “Extraordinary work and dedication.”

“There are a lot of loose ends and inconsistencies,” Kelsey said.

“How long do you think it will take your police to get here?” Trace asked.

“Two or three days at the best,” Kelsey said.

“I think between you and me, we can concoct a story that is plausible,” Trace said. “It will make you look as if you used me to set this whole thing in motion.”

“I’m not one for stealing another man’s thunder,” Kelsey said.

“It’s not stealing when it’s offered freely,” Trace countered. “And how many times has one of your loyal police comrades stolen your thunder?”

“It’s not like me to want commendation. It never has been,” Kelsey said.

“Here we are two sorry cowboys or stockmen,” Trace said, “who want nothing more, at the end of the day, than what’s owed us, a plate of beans, a cup of coffee, and a clear sky overhead. Here’s the thing about those clear skies: every now and then, a comet streaks across the sky. Some folks say that’s a good thing, something good is about to happen. You can’t ignore it.”

Kelsey gave a twisted smile. “It’s a logic I can’t put aside. Let’s get to work on a story. I can’t let a fellow stockman ride herd alone on a stormy night.”

The Double-Cross In Paradise; Episode 41, Changing Course

This is episode forty-one in the sixth novel of The Troy Adventure Series. It is titled The Double-Cross in Paradise. Here are the links to  The Double-Cross In Paradise: paperback, Kindle. 

Changing Course

“Where are you taking us?” Franks yelled from below. 

Trace sat at the wheel, ignoring Franks.

“You know, I’ll have people coming after this boat,” Franks called out. “I gave instructions if things don’t go as planned to be ready.”

Trace continued to ignore him.

Kelsey was sitting behind the mess table. A pistol was tucked in his waist. 

“You have no plan,” Franks smirked.

Kelsey smirked back.

“How’d you like to earn a lot of money?” Kelsey said.

“Hey, Trace!” Kelsey called out. “He’s resorted to trying to bribe me.”

Franks cursed at Kelsey. 

Trace waved for Sage to come into the pilothouse.

“Take your gun and replace Kelsey,” Trace said. “Send him up.”

Kelsey came up to the pilothouse. “You want me to call now?”

“Have a seat,” Trace said. “Have you ever operated a ham set before?”

“Yeah,” Kelsey said, “my dad had one. I’ve had a license since I was sixteen.”

Trace pointed with his thumb to the has radio on the chart desk. “There ya go.”

Kelsey tried for an hour. No one could be reached. 

“Do you have a Morse code key?” Kelsey asked.

“Lower drawer on the left,” Trace said. “I’ve never used it.”

“I’ll connect it,” Kelsey said. “We’re bound to reach somebody with it.”

Kelsey removed the key from the drawer, unwrapped the cords, and connected it to the transmitter. He did the same with the headset. He slipped on the headset and began tapping a series of dits and dots.

He stopped after a couple of minutes. “I’m a little rusty at this. It’s been a while.”

“When and where was the last time you used Morse code?” Trace asked.“

Kelsey chuckled. “If I told you, I’d have to kill you.”

“Somehow, I believe you,” Trace said.

“Where did you learn Morse code?” Kelsey asked and added. “Wait, if you tell me, you’d have to kill me?”

Trace relied, “I went to a school for merchant marines, not the US academy, but sort of a vocational school, they offered the course and so I took it. It’s a requirement for a HAM license, too.”

“Aw,” Kelsey said, “I learned it as a kid at home. I’d watch all those television shows where the hero always knew it. Funny thing, once I could read it, I found out that all those messages in the shows were only random letters or gibberish. As I recall, one of them was downright manky. I had to hide it from me mum, but it got a glimmer from me dad.”

Kelsey snapped the headset over his ears and began tapping code.

Trace stared out over the bow with his eyes dropping occasionally to read the heading. 

“By the way,” Trace said, and Kelsey removed one of his headsets from his ear, “I’m heading toward New Caledonia. “Will that be a problem?”

“I don’t know,” Kelsey said.

“What I’m afraid of,” Trace grimaced, “is that an official comes on board and they want some sort of asylum. You know how those small countries like to poke a finger in the eye of larger ones. It all goes back to an English/French thing and what side of the bed they get up on.”

“Geez,” Trace said, “I’d hate to take those guys all the way to Australia.”

“How many days would that be?” Kelsey said.

“Seven to ten days,” Trace said. “And I have no idea what those two are capable of.”

Trace turned quickly at seeing Tom run alongside the pilothouse. 

He opened the aft door and leaned in. “There’s a plane. I’d say six thousand feet. It circled once.”

“This is too far out; it wouldn’t be government,” Kelsey said. “It has to be someone associated with Franks. Look for them to come in closer.”

“Once they know our location, we can expect a visit from a boat,” Trace said. “One thing I’ve learned about these islands is that the crooks have faster and better-armed boats than the navies.”

Trace leaned out the window. “Here it comes again. A couple of hundred feet above the water.”

A single-engine plane hummed no more than two hundred yards away on the port side. 

“A man was looking at us with binoculars,” Trace said. 

“Any ideas?” Kelsey asked.

“I’d like to see if they make another fly by,” Trace said. “They may go up a few thousand feet and perch there. They may be running low on fuel and have to go back to refuel. We’ll have to wait.”

A few minutes passed. Kelsey continued to tap on the Morse code key. 

Confident the plane was not returning, Trace spun the wheel and headed due west.

Kelsey raised his head from the key and looked curiously at Trace. “Changing course?” He asked.

“Due west,” Trace said. “I’m sure they think we’re heading for New Caledonia. Second choice is Fiji. We’re heading to Australia.”