Had our time run out? Were they shooting at the fifth dolphin? And they figured they were bugging out anyway, get me out of their hair?
“I need to get you back to the marina.” I had to get that audio device, no matter what. It was now or never.
“Well, yeah—wait. You’re not gonna—we didn’t get the speaker thing, so you’re gonna—oh, no. You’re not going back out there?”
“I have to. It’s the only way those dolphins will have a chance to escape.”
“Poppy, they were shooting at us. With guns. Real ones.” He pointed at the engine cover, barely still attached to the front end of the WaveRunner. “See.”
“Yeah, but—”
“But nothing!”
“They shot a few warning shots at us.” It might’ve been true.
“Warning shots! That one parted my hair.”
“That’s why I’ll go alone this time.”
“You’re certifiable. It’s official. You’ve lost your mind. I’m hosting an intervention. Seriously.”
“Don’t worry, they won’t really shoot me.” I hope.
“Are you kidding me right now? Because sometimes you kid and I can’t tell.”
“The attention a murder would bring would end their stay here in The Bahamas in a big way. They can’t be that stupid.”
“Sure they can! Or that ruthless. They’re Russians.”
“They were trying to scare us. That was all.”
“Poppy, you—”
I gave him the look.
He held his hands up. “Okay. I know that look. When you get those crazy eyes. I’ll be at the Hilton. Emptying my drawers.”
Chapter Nineteen
I had to get that device.
My plan—go straight at the boat. They wouldn’t expect me to do that again. All I had to do was grab a hold of the cord, wrap it around the handle bar on the WaveRunner, and drive away. One pass. That was it.
At least then the dolphins would have a fighting chance.
The clouds had gone completely and the warm sun turned the water a turquoise blue, but the waves still rolled in from the southwest.
I headed right back in the direction where the boat had been, but as I approached, it was gone. Gone.
I looked around. They couldn’t have gone far. But which way?
To the north, I thought I saw a boat. But then it disappeared again.
There it was again.
I clamped down on the throttle and headed toward it.
I wasn’t stopping until I had that cord in my hands.
With every wave, water splashed over the front of the WaveRunner. I kept it up. Maybe they wouldn’t hear me coming and I wouldn’t have to dodge bullets at all.
Maybe this was crazy. Maybe I was losing my mind. Who does this, anyway? Ride straight toward a loaded gun? Not someone with responsibility. Not someone who has someone counting on them. Like Alison. She’d never do something like this. And Rod, he shouldn’t either. Not with a baby on the way.
No. It was people like me. Crazy, irresponsible nut jobs.
Well, whatever. It was who I was and I was doing it. I was going to get that damn speaker from those Russians, no matter what I had to do.
The boat came into view. The starboard side. I needed to get along the starboard side.
The boat was moving. Someone was at the helm. Good. That meant only one of them was free to shoot at me.
But was the speaker still in the water? Damn. If they were under way, they’d have pulled it up.
As I got closer, I could see it flopping in the water on the side of the boat. They’d forgotten it. Yes!
Unless…? The dolphins were following them.
Did that mean…? Was the fifth dolphin with them? Or had they killed her? Or maybe they’d decided to leave without her after I’d gone after them and caused trouble?
I couldn’t think about that now. Concentrate. My hands gripped the handles tighter.
I’d have to bring the WaveRunner up alongside the boat, match their speed, and grab the cord. But in these waves, that would be a feat.
And that was only if whomever was at the helm held a steady course for me. And I didn’t get shot.
I needed another plan.
But what?
Kaboom! A gunshot.
I zigged left, then right.
Yep, I was crazy. Who could possibly want to have a relationship with a risk-taking, adrenaline junkie like me?
Dalton would kill me if he knew what I was up to.
I kept my hand on the throttle as I ducked low, full speed ahead.
Just get the speaker.
The boat was no more than a hundred and fifty yards away. Another shot ricocheted across the water. This guy wasn’t kidding.
A hundred yards.
I aimed for the starboard side.
Fifty yards.
The man was shouting. Angry words. What was he saying? I had no idea. I speak five languages, but Russian wasn’t one of them.
Twenty yards. The cord was hanging there. Almost in reach.
Full throttle. Within inches, I threw my weight to the side and rammed the WaveRunner into the hull of the boat. Fiberglass connected with the steel hull in a shattering crunch.
The boat slowed. More angry Russian words came at me.
My WaveRunner righted itself. I reached for the cord, grabbed hold, wrapped it around the handle, and squeezed the throttle.
Nothing happened.
The WaveRunner had stalled.
Dammit!
I glanced back. A weapon was aimed at me.
“Hands up!” The man shouted. My stalker.
“What? Are you gonna arrest me?” I shouted back.
With a flick of my wrist, I turned the key off, then on again, flipped the switch, and… nothing. Shit. The stalker still had his gun trained on me but didn’t shoot. Before I could sort out why, I felt his hands at the top of my head, grabbing me by the hair.
“What the hell, man!” It hurt like a bitch.
“You stupid girl,” he said in a thick Russian accent.
Girl?!
He was leaning over the rail, clamping down harder on my hair, shaking my head.
I stood up on the WaveRunner, reached up and clamped my right hand onto his wrist to relieve the pain at my scalp.
Nausea brewed in my stomach and I struggled to keep from vomiting. It was the stench from my own stink bomb. Irony.
You’re an activist, Poppy, a spoiled, little, impulsive activist.
“You monster!” I yelled, startling him. “You’re harassing these dolphins when they just want to live in peace and play and be happy and you’re destroying their lives!” I let my knees go slack and racked my body with fake sobs.
He held onto my hair, but seemed unsure what to do next. Men… They get unreasonably uncomfortable when a woman starts crying.
“Who sent you?” he finally said, his voice stern.
“Let me go,” I wailed.
“Enough,” he said, yanking my head back so I was facing him. “Now you calm down.”
Damn, that hurt.
He shoved the pistol in my face. “You tell me truth.”
I stared back at him.
“You have five seconds.”
Something in his eyes told me he wasn’t bluffing. He could shoot me right here, right now. No one would see him. They’d be back in Cuba before anyone even missed me. I had to act fast.
I grabbed his elbow with my other hand and let me knees collapse, pulling him over the side with me. On the way down, I rammed the heel of my hand into the side of his head. He hit the dash of the WaveRunner with a thud, then slumped over and slid into the water.
“Now start you son of a bitch,” I said to the WaveRunner. I turned the key on and flipped the switch. It rumbled to life. “Houston we have lift-off!”
The cord was still wrapped around the handle. I clamped down on the throttle and the WaveRunner shot up a wave and away from the boat, the speaker flopping behind me.
I reached out behind me and flipped my middle finger in the air. Call me a girl one more time! Immature, I know, but it felt like the thing a pissed off activist would do.
Who was I kidding? I’d royally messed this one up. No doubt I’d blown my cover. I closed my eyes and took a couple deep breaths to calm myself and catch my bearings. I probably should have done more yoga on the trip. Maybe I would have been able to better control my impulses—with this mission, with Dalton.
I headed for shore, but I didn’t get far from the boat when the engine started to sputter and died.
Crap!
Turning the key again didn’t help. Nothing.
I looked back. The Russians hadn’t bothered to follow me. If they knew I had the sound amplifier, they didn’t care and after my little escape moves, they probably decided I was more trouble than I was worth.
The back end of the WaveRunner started to dip. It was sinking. I leaned to the side to take a look. Swiss cheese. Oops.
It tilted backward even more and the entire back end sunk under water.
Shore was at least two miles away. I’d have to swim. Thankfully, I had a life jacket on. But the waves weren’t rolling in that direction.
The nose of the WaveRunner was the only part above water now. It’d be on the bottom within minutes. Hyland wasn’t going to be happy when she got the bill.
I abandoned it, oriented myself toward shore, and started kicking my feet. This was going to be a long afternoon.
At least the sun was out to keep me warm.
I didn’t have to kick for long. A boat came alongside me. Gaspar’s Revenge.
I hated to admit it, but I was glad to see him. Deuce was at the helm. He put her in neutral. Jesse leaned over the side. “Hey, you need a lift?” He started to reach down, then hesitated. “This is my last dry shirt,” he said with a grin.
I rolled my eyes. “Really?”
The next wave lifted me, breaking over my head. Jesse grabbed hold of my arm, wrist to wrist, and lifted me right out of the water and onto the gunwale.I swung my legs over and sat down on the floor with my legs crossed, exhausted.
Finn greeted me with wet kisses and a wagging tail. He had on a doggie life vest.
“Where’s Dalton?” Jesse asked.
“So much for small talk,” I said. I nuzzled Finn with my nose. “Is he always like this?”
“He’s your partner, right?”
“Yeah, but—I dunno,” I said. Why was it his business anyway? I hollered up to Deuce, “Is he gone?”
Deuce nodded. “Hightailing it out of here.”
Good. To Jesse, I said, “I was just working a lead. On my own.”
“Uh-huh.” Jesse eyed me, not believing a word I said. “You’ve gone rogue.”
“Well, that depends on your definition of—”
“We watched you out there,” he said, pointing aft. “Throwing whatever it was at their boat. What the hell are you up to?”
I looked at Finn and he stared back at me with his big, amber eyes. Damn.
“Stink bombs,” I said. “We hit them with stink bombs, okay.”
“Stink bombs,” he repeated.
“Dalton and I don’t agree on the course of action, exactly. So, I was doing my own thing.”
“Uh-huh.” Jesse stared at me. He wasn’t going to let up. “And?”
“And, I admit, I’m a little unorthodox. But hey, I’ve got a pretty good track record.” I pursed my lips. “Mostly.”
“Uh-huh.” This time he eased back, leaned against the gunwale, crossed his arms, and sized me up, as though trying to carefully plan his next words. Opening the mini-fridge, he took out two water bottles and handed me one. “And what exactly was the purpose of this unorthodox stink bomb attack? If you don’t mind me asking, of course.”
“It was cover,” I said as I tipped the bottle and chugged down a couple swallows. “Thanks.” I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. “I needed to get close to the boat to disable their”—what had Rod called it?—“diver recall transducer.”
“Why?” he said, staring at my lips.
“Because I learned that’s how they communicate with the dolphins. They can summon them anytime they want, from great distances.”
“Wish you’d’ve mentioned it. We have one on board. We could’ve blasted a signal to cancel theirs.”
I stared up at him. Of course he could’ve done that. “But for how long?”
He gave me a half shrug.
“I had to destroy it.”
“Uh-huh.” He took a swig of his own water, eyed me. “I’m going to take a stab in the dark and guess that Dalton didn’t think this was a good idea.”
Men. I drew in a breath. Exhaled. “You know, a ride back to the dock would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.”
“Sure thing, little lady.”
He didn’t say anything more. Finished his water and climbed the ladder to the bridge.
I stayed where I sat, with my arm around Finn. He seemed to enjoy my company and I needed a friend right now. I’d accomplished my goal—I got the sound amplifier—but I still needed to get the tracker off the fifth dolphin and I had no idea how I was going to do it.
“Maybe you could help,” I said to the dog. “Lure her in with your puppy-dawg eyes, then bite it right off of her fin. Hey, you’d earn your name.”
He licked my cheek.
“It’s all right, boy. I’ll take care of it,” I said, giving Finn a squeeze. “I’ll figure it out.”
I had to.
Once the boat started bouncing through the waves, Finn found a more stable spot to curl up and snooze.
I sat back and closed my eyes, letting the sun warm me. One more tracker off, and they’d be free. From the Russians and the Americans.
Around the north side of the island, Jesse brought the boat to a slow idle and tucked close to some deep-water mangroves.
I got to my feet. There’d been no mention of a stop. “What’s up? Where’re we going?” I asked.
He brought the boat to a halt in a shallow, sandy spot.
“Finn’s gotta take a whiz,” he said.
I looked down at the dog, curled up in a ball, sound asleep.
Jesse hit a button on the dash and the anchor chain creaked to life—kak, kak, kak.
Finn sprang to all fours.
“See?” Jesse grinned.
Finn paced, his tail wagging.
Once Jesse had the anchor set, he killed the engine, climbed down from the cockpit, and opened the transom door.
He removed Finn’s life vest. “Find us something to snack on while you’re out there,” he told him, rubbing his ears.
The dog gave him an affirmative bark and jumped into the water, completely submerging for a second before popping up, his front legs dog-paddling to keep him afloat.
Looking around, he spotted the shoreline and struck out toward it at a fast swim, using his thick tail as a rudder.
Jesse said. “So, how long have you and Dalton been working together?”
“About a year and a half,” I said, watching Finn.
“Yeah? How’s it going?”
Did this guy ever let up? “Right now? Well…”
“Uh-huh.”
Finn reached the beach and trotted out onto the sand, his nose to the ground.
“What was that about the snack?” I asked.
“You like clams?”
“No.”
“That’s right. Deuce mentioned you pitched the conch I bought you.”
“He had eyes on me, huh?”
Jesse nodded.
“Yeah, well, sorry about that. I’m a vegetarian. I was so caught up in—doesn’t matter.”
Finn disappeared into the mangroves.
“Right now, I think he’s just looking to relieve himself,” Jesse said, as though it were a momentary delay and he’d soon be on snack patrol.
A moment later, Finn returned to the water’s edge. He paced back and forth on the wet sand, stoppi
ng to sniff at it here and there, before he waded back into the water and began pawing around at the bottom with his big front paws. The water around him quickly silted over. I swear he drew in a big breath before shoving his head under water. When he came up, he had a clam in his mouth. He started swimming back toward the boat.
“I’ve never seen anything like that,” I said.
“Yeah, he’s something to behold.” Jesse crossed his arms and turned to face me. “You were saying, about you and Dalton?”
Why was he so interested? “You know how it is. Sometimes you don’t see eye to eye.”
He held my gaze. “Looks more like a lover’s quarrel to me.”
Dammit. I shook my head. “Oh, we aren’t—”
His hands shot up in front of him and he looked at me with soft, knowing eyes. “Not my circus, not my monkeys.” He leaned forward for emphasis. “It’s obvious the man cares about you. A lot. In case you didn’t know.”
Why was everyone feeling compelled to tell me this?
He just looked down at me, his eyes moving back and forth to each of mine, waiting.
I crossed my arms in front of my chest.
“And I can see you are one stubborn woman.” He feigned a wince. “I’ve known a few like you over the years. Fierce. Lord almighty.” His gaze turned inward for a brief moment, then he was back. “Anyway, I can’t stand by and watch you get yourself killed. Those men out there are Russian military. This ain’t a game.”
Heat rose up my neck. “Thanks for the advice.”
He frowned. “What I’m saying is—”
“Yeah, I got the picture.”
He stared at me. Frowned again.
Finn reached the swim platform and deposited his clam, then turned and swam in circles for a moment, then dove under. Down to the bottom he went, and pawed at the sand a moment. He must have been six feet down to the bottom. When he came back up, he had another clam in his mouth.
“Good boy,” Jesse shouted, as he dropped it on the platform with the other one.
He turned and dove again.
“Your dog’s cute. But I’d really like that ride back to the dock now, please.”
Jesse sighed. “Sure thing. C’mon, Finn.”
Finn climbed up onto the swim platform, and Jesse headed back up to the helm. He looked down and waited till Finn clumsily moved his clams into the bucket.
Operation Dolphin Spirit Page 17