The House Lost at Sea

by R. J. Blain

  Keeping a firm grip on my victim’s elbow with one hand, I closed the blade of his knife and pocketed it before retrieving my suitcase with the other. He didn’t fight me when I dragged him along, and all it took was a hissed warning to keep him in line while I hunted down a cabbie so I could set sail for the House Lost at Sea.

  There was bold, then there was ‘taking a hostage in a cab to the port’ crazy, but for some reason I couldn’t fathom, my victim played along, not saying a word the entire drive to the water. I had the driver drop us off several blocks away from the marina.

  “All right, kid. You speak English?”

  He nodded, and his Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed.

  Ricardo would’ve had a field day beating the boy into shape and teaching him how to be a proper man. As far as pirates went, Ricardo had more of a soft side, making sure his chosen targets actually learned in his rough care. Back in those days, he’d been the equivalent of a pacifist while still being capable of killing.

  Captain Maritza hadn’t wanted Ricardo for his capacity of violence; she’d needed his skills with maps, charts, and the stars.

  I regarded my new companion with a raised brow. He recoiled, as though my expression promised his death. Idiot kid. He’d learn soon enough he was useless to me dead. “Good. We’re going to go on a little cruise, and you’re going to talk. You tell me the truth, and I’ll drop you off somewhere comfortable with enough cash to find your way home, and you won’t even have many bruises to show for it. Since I’m nice, I’ll even give you your little toy back in case you need it. I get the feeling Brazil’s a rough place to wander around if you aren’t armed. Got a name?”

  “Abrahan.”

  “Abrahan? Not Abraham?”

  “Abrahan,” he confirmed.

  “Here’s how this is going to work, Abrahan. I’ve got a little ship waiting for me in the marina up ahead. We’re going on a cruise. I’m going to take you along the coast for the afternoon and drop you off. If they ask, I know your parents, and they thought you’d like a chance to see the water, since it’s not something you normally get a chance to do. Got it?”

  He mumbled something and nodded.

  “Make yourself useful and bring my bag.” I thrust my suitcase into his hands and marched him along the docks to the marina, keeping a close eye on the workers. Either they saw something in my expression warning them off, or word had spread to avoid messing with me, as all of them found something else to do whenever I looked their way.

  I spotted the Wanderer on the water, and she had a fresh coat of paint and her name was written in elegant lettering on her bow. I nudged my victim, gesturing towards my ship. “That’s your new home away from home until I decide I’m finished with you. Isn’t she pretty?”

  “If you say so.”

  I smirked and headed for the pier. “I do say so.”

  Within an hour, I’d be back on the water where I belonged, and as though sensing I meant to return to the sea, the winds favored me, ready to fill my sails and send me towards the House Lost at Sea.

  The marina staff took me and Abrahan on a tour of my ship, showing me the supplies they’d acquired, and I nodded my approval of their choices, most of which were practical, and the items that weren’t went into the refrigerator and freezer, both of which were powered by solar panels mounted on top of the ship’s cabin.

  They had stocked for three weeks, filling every inch of pantry space with fresh supplies. I took the time to check the expiration dates, nodding my satisfaction. Whether in an acknowledgement of the past or because limes were simply a part of the Brazilian way of life, there was an entire case of the citrus fruit in storage. Nothing would spoil within a month except for the perishables, and I’d use them up long before it became a problem.

  To make sure I wouldn’t be followed, I made the marina employees an offer: I’d give them ten thousand dollars each if they erased any mention of the Wanderer from their logs and swore they never saw me or Abrahan. I also gave them instructions that if they were asked about my credit card, it was used by a woman who did not match my description. I suggested they concoct some Brazilian woman, as my name sounded native enough.

  The three men on staff didn’t need to be asked twice.

  I lowered myself to using the motor to leave the harbor, respecting the other ships coming in and out of the busy port.

  I’d have plenty of time for indulgence once I was in deeper waters, and until I figured out what Abrahan and his friends had wanted, I wasn’t going to take chances with my brand new sails and rigging.

  The Wanderer’s motors purred, and she cut through the waves as eager as I to voyage into the open sea beyond the breakwaters.

  “Where are you taking me?”

  I looked over my ship and gestured to one of the leather-covered seats where he wouldn’t get in my way once I unfurled the sails and really went to work. “Wherever I feel like, kid. It’s nice having a second set of hands on board during a voyage, and I’ve provisions enough for the both of us for a while. Don’t worry. If I wanted to kill you, I would’ve left you to rot in the alley. This is how it’ll work. You’ll tell me why you and your friends followed me into an alley, and we’ll go from there.”

  “We were hired to get something from you.”

  I laughed. “Oh, this is going to be good. Let me guess. Was it a necklace by any chance? One with what looks like a broken key?”

  If the poor kid’s eyes widened any more, they’d pop out of his head. He nodded. “That’s what he said. Wanted the necklace. Said he’d wring our necks if you came out of it with more than a few bumps and bruises. Said you liked to talk big but were gentler than a mouse.” Abrahan’s expression soured. “You have him fooled.”

  “I do that. Act a certain way, and I just become big talk but gentle. Then I can do what I want without anyone thinking twice about me being the actual culprit. Paid you good for the work?”

  “A thousand each if we got that jewelry he wanted. American dollars.”

  I snorted. I assumed it was either Benny or Bensen behind it—or both. They knew I had the necklace, and Bensen knew I was in Brazil. I wouldn’t put it past him to figure out where I’d gone in some fashion or another. He had money and connections, especially within the banking sector and the FBI. Twisting rules wouldn’t bother him if it meant he got what he wanted.

  I had no trouble believing either one of them would use Brazil’s reputation to get the necklace back. It also made me wonder if they knew the value of what I had coerced out of my ex-friend.

  “What’s got you and your friends so desperate you’ll follow a woman into an alley?”

  Abrahan shrugged and slumped onto the seat. “Need the money.”

  “Figured it’d be a quick and easy buck, and you liked that no one would really get hurt, huh?”

  He grunted, which I interpreted as an agreement.

  Some problems I couldn’t fix, but if he needed money, I could buy his loyalties for a while and solve his immediate problems. “All right, kid. I got five thousand in cash for you, but you have to do one thing for me.”

  His eyes widened. “You want me to do one job for five thousand?”

  When opportunity knocked, I answered, and with a bit of quick thinking on my feet, maybe I’d make the situation work out in my favor. “You’ll come on this trip with me, run a few errands with me if needed, and do what I want. You’ll earn every dollar of it, and if you do a good job, you’ll earn extra. I’ll feed you, and I won’t even oppress you too terribly much during our little voyage. Your base pay’ll be five thousand American dollars.”

  He sat straighter and stared at me, his expression eager. “What do you need me to do?”

  I dug my cell from my purse. “You know the number of your contact?”

  “I know it. I’m the one who did the talking. My English is the best.”

  I chuckled and decided the friendly approach would serve me better with the kid than threats or bullying. “Your English i
s very good. I used to speak Spanish, but I’ve forgotten most of it.” Speaking my native tongue hurt too much, as I’d spoken with Ricardo in Spanish; our crews had used Italian, although both of our captains had spoken many languages. Anyway, the Spanish I knew wasn’t even spoken anymore, not really. Modern Spanish, like every other language on Earth, had evolved over time. “It turns out you really do forget if you don’t use it for a long time. You look pretty young. How old are you?”

  “Sixteen.”

  I nodded, understanding all too well the hardships of being on the cusp of childhood and wanting to be treated as an adult. By the time I had turned sixteen, I’d already served on a pirate ship for years, pretending to be a boy until I couldn’t anymore. My breasts had betrayed me, but my fists had served me well, and I’d beaten up half the crew before the captain declared I was neither man nor woman, and if they had a problem with it, they could take it up with him.

  No one had dared until we reached port, which was when he kicked me off the ship. At least he hadn’t marooned me on some deserted island.

  “So, you up for it? A little time at sea helping me out, a phone call, and maybe a few odd errands. You’ll walk away with plenty of cash. You’ll have to lie a little, though.”

  “That’s it?”

  “That’s it.”

  “I’m in. What do you want me to do?”

  Ah, I loved when my victims became allies. It made my life so much easier. Smiling, I handed him my phone. “You went to do the job, you cornered me, started a fight just like you were told, and another group edged in on your turf. You took the phone off my body after the gunfight, and the last you saw of your friends, they had scattered—and make sure they scattered before I was gunned down. Tell them you don’t know what happened to the necklace, but it wasn’t on my body.”

  “You want me to tell them you’re dead?”

  “I do. You can also inform them that my credit cards were taken out of my wallet, but my identification was left inside. Simple enough, right?”

  Abrahan nodded. “So, what should I call you?”

  Digging out my wallet, I handed over my driver’s license. “If he didn’t give you my name, just go by what’s on the card. That’ll cover you. If he asks about the sea sounds, just say you’re on a dingy off the shore lying low.”

  He looked over my license. “Not bad thinking, Corona.”

  I killed the Wanderer’s engine and set the ship to drifting, taking a seat near the wheel. I’d use the satellite navigation system to get my bearings before digging out the sea charts to see if they were any good. If they weren’t, I wouldn’t have any problems finding my way.

  Technology simplified so many elements of sailing.

  “Make it real good, and I’ll teach you how to actually use that knife of yours as part of your bonus, kid.”

  Abrahan flashed me a grin and tapped in the numbers of his contact, and when he sucked in a breath, I knew the number belonged to someone registered in my phone. He didn’t connect the call, instead looking up from the device to stare at me. “Someone you know did this to you.”

  “Shit happens, kid. I have it pegged as either Benny or Bensen—or both.”

  “Says Benny.”

  Shaking my head over Benny’s idiocy, I settled in and gestured for Abrahan to get to work. My friend should’ve known to hide his tracks better. It hurt, but the pain would fade in time.

  Most pain did.

  Abrahan frowned at my silence, but he tapped to connect the call, holding my phone to his ear. “Boss, I’m on the broad’s phone. Second gang came in and gunned the bitch down. What you wanted wasn’t on her when they cleared out. They messed her up pretty bad. Doubt she lasted long. Nothin’ we could do about it. We went in with those knives, just like you told us. They brought guns, and I ain’t talkin’ the little ones, sir.”

  I almost ruined the ruse with laugher, but I covered my mouth with my hand so no sound would betray my presence. The kid had enough nerve to shoot a glare in my direction, which earned him more of my approval than anything else he’d done so far.

  “They left her wallet, but if she had plastic, they took it. Yeah, I saw her identification. Her last name was Corona. Yeah, that’s her. Catalina. You want what? Fine. We waited outside that hotel you told us, just like you said. We followed her a few blocks away, and we got her into an alley. I don’t know where you got your info about her, sir, but she wasn’t no wilting flower, that’s for sure. She knew her way around a knife, and she had us scattered before we knew which end was up. Not even sure we could’ve gotten the necklace off her if she had it without having to mess her up ourselves. My gang left me with her, and that’s when the other group opened fire and took her down. I left. I had a knife. What’d you expect me to do? Suicide?”

  Maybe the kid made a bad mugger, but his acting skills impressed me enough I contemplated keeping him. Given the right opportunities and a little bit of help, I bet he could run a con with the best of them. The scorn he injected into his tone also carried the sharp edge of disgust.

  “Sir, with all due respect, who is gonna care about some American broad, even if she looks like some Spanish whore, and not even a pretty one at that? Just another day, just another mugging and murder. Nothin’ new around these parts. I’m sure someone’ll find her soon enough. She wasn’t that far from the main road. In boots that nice? Someone’ll stop, figure out she’s a tourist and report her. You wanted us to keep quiet, we did that.” Abrahan shook his head, rolled his eyes, and lifted his hand, making his fingers and thumb quack like a duck.

  Benny had a lot to say, and the kid waited him out with so much patience I got the feeling he had endured a lot over the years and learned the hard way to keep his mouth shut when needed. When he sighed, the resigned sound made me wonder what Benny had said. “I ain’t a doc, sir. I couldn’t tell you if there was any chance the broad lived. Looked like they turned her chest to swiss cheese despite not offing her right away. I got no way of knowing. I doubt it. Who was gonna do anything about it? Where was anyone gonna take her? Who was gonna pay for it? She didn’t have nobody to miss her. That’s all I know. You didn’t hire me to get shot, sir, and you didn’t hire me to go rescue some broad who got shot. I don’t know nothin’ about who might’ve wanted the necklace, either. What you want me to do with the phone?”

  Several moments later, Abrahan made a disbelieving noise. “No, I didn’t keep anything else, just the phone. Can do that, but not this moment. Laying low, sir. Don’t want whoever got her to get me, too.”

  The kid hung up, shook his head, and turned my phone off. “You got yourself some twisted friends, Corona.”

  “I don’t have friends, kid.”

  Abrahan shot me a glare, got up, and handed me my cell and license back. “I think he missed the memo. He went ape-shit on me, and guys just don’t do that without a good reason. From the sound of it, some other folks with him missed the memo, too.”

  “He hired you to rob me. I’m pretty sure that doesn’t fall under the ‘things friends do to friends’ column.”

  The kid shrugged. “Point. I’m just saying is all.”

  I accepted his words with a nod. “Point. So, what did he want you to do with my phone?”

  “Mail it to him. I’m gonna need some blood to make this look real, Corona.”

  “Blood’s something I got plenty of,” I replied, pulling out the kid’s knife. “I’ll swing near a port, and we’ll mail it off. He gave you his address?”

  “Said he’d send it to your phone. I don’t know why he wanted it, but he did. Guess he thought it had value for some reason.”

  Sentimental idiots. What good would giving them my phone do other than confirm I’d gone to South Africa and Brazil? “Good enough. Now, I’m going to teach you a very important lesson about fingerprints, kid. Benny’s smart sometimes, when he really wants to be. Gloves are your best friend, and after I wipe my phone for prints, I’ll take care of getting it messy. You’re to leave no prints o
r hair or anything when you ship him the device. Why give him someone to frame?”

  “You’re the boss, Corona.”

  Nineteen

  I had a mean streak at times.

  I gave the kid enough cash to mail my phone to the United States, and I found a pair of gloves on the Wanderer that would keep him from leaving his fingerprints everywhere while avoiding unwanted attention. I located a quiet little dock near a town, dropped him off, and took my ship out into deeper waters to wait for his return.

  After two hours, I suspected Abrahan wouldn’t be coming back, but almost three and a half hours after I sent him on his errand, he ran onto the dock, and I brought the ship in to pick him up.

  “That took longer than I thought it’d take.” I waited for him to scramble on board before easing the Wanderer back out to sea, her engine purring as I guided her out of the harbor to the safety of the open ocean.

  “Had to bribe someone to get the box sent without it getting checked through customs.”

  “You had enough for it?”

  “You owe me fifty.”

  I pulled the cash out of my wallet and handed it over. “Good job, kid.”

  “So, what’re you going to do with me now?”

  I left him waiting for thirty minutes, which I spent guiding the ship out to waters deep enough to drift safely while I looked over the navigation charts inside the cabin. Abrahan followed me, his eyes widening as I spread the papers out over the cabin’s single table, made to sit two comfortably, possibly three or four in a pinch.

  Fool that I was, I hoped to find that third or fourth body to fill the space, cramp the cabin, and drive me crazy—or force me to buy a new, larger ship. Or steal Lucretta O’Malley’s.

  Stealing her ship—and her Ricardo lookalike—would make up for a lot of my problems. Lighting it on fire would do the trick, too.

  I had a mean streak at times.

  While modern maps included most of Earth’s islands, the charts lacked any notation for my cluster of tiny islands, most of which weren’t fit for anything. The reefs surrounding them were flagged as a danger zone to be avoided, which likely justified their exclusion from the charts. Too small to be used for naval or aviation purposes, too barren for anyone to survive long without supplies, and lacking wildlife worth notice, they only existed on the most accurate maps, and even then, I doubted they had a name, and I doubted anyone cared enough about them to investigate their secrets.