* * *
My cell phone rings. I don’t recognize the number but it’s the Cleveland area code. And it’s too late to be a robocall.
“Hello?”
“This is Saif.”
I say nothing. Kate looks at me questioningly. I just look back at her.
“Captain. Are you there?”
I think Kate can hear enough. She looks horrified. “I am. What do you want? Why are you calling? You are done with us.”
“No, we are not. You must go again to Leamington. You are to be in Leamington late this coming Saturday afternoon.”
“I can’t. I am cruising. I…”
“We know that you are now at Put-in-Bay. You will go to Leamington on Saturday. And you will travel from there to Put-in-Bay on Sunday.”
“But that’s too soon. It will look suspicious. It…”
“You will do this. You will take my compatriots from Leamington to Put-in-Bay. You will dock at Miller’s Docks on Sunday night.”
“No. It’s impossible. It…”
“You will do this. Remember the pictures on my telephone.”
And he hangs up.
I’m numb. Kate hasn’t moved. She hasn’t spoken. “Oh God, Cap’n. I hate this question. Now what?”
CHAPTER 19
Another sleepless night. As the sun comes up, we’re drinking coffee in the cockpit. I wish we could enjoy the beauty of the sunrise. Not as long as Saif is in our lives.
But we have come up with a plan. At least a little bit of a plan.
We’re resolved to fight this. As soon as the water taxi starts running, I will go ashore and buy a burner phone. I don’t trust ours. Saif knew that we’re in Put-in-Bay. They obviously have us under some sort of surveillance. They may be monitoring our phones. They may have hacked into our email accounts.
As soon as I get a safe phone, I’ll call Mike and tell him I need his help. I’ll tell him that I need him to come to Ohio as soon as he can. That it has to do with “his job.” I’ll tell him that I think my phone is tapped, and that his may be as well. When he gets to Lorain, we’ll figure out what to do. He’ll know. Or he’ll know people who do. He is a U.S. Marshal.
* * *
I’m on the water taxi at nine am. Put-in-Bay is just waking up. It is a party town. It starts slow.
The driver doesn’t know anyplace on the island that sells cell phones. He says he goes to a dealer in Sandusky.
I get off at The Boardwalk dock, and walk to a small general store sort of place nearby. They don’t open until ten. There is a grocery store a block away. I walk up. They are open, but they don’t sell phones. And the clerk doesn’t know of any place that does. “Hey, I live here. This is not the place to go shopping. You need to go to Port Clinton.”
“Thanks.”
I head back toward the dock. The little general store is open. The only employee wears a very artsy nametag that says, “Susieee.”
“Hi Susieee. I need to buy a prepaid cell phone.”
“Not in Put-in-Bay. I live here during the summer, and I love it. But you can’t buy anything here. Except clothes. And booze.”
* * *
I don’t want to wait – or go to the mainland. I’ve got another idea. I go back to The Boardwalk and board the water taxi. When he shoves off, I ask the driver to take me to Morning Star; I point to our dark blue hulled forty-eight-foot Saber. He nods, and we’re off. I’m his third drop off, and Kate sees us coming. She helps hold the water taxi alongside of our boat as I climb from one to the other. As soon as the water taxi leaves, she says, “I don’t see any packages.”
“There are no cell phones for sale on the island. Everybody said I have to go to the mainland.”
“So now what?”
“I have another idea. Have you seen any signs of life on Bella Fortuna?”
“Actually, Katya was up on their flybridge a little while ago. We waved at each other.”
“Let’s go visit.”
“What?”
“Let’s go visit. I’ll tell Barron that our charger died and both of our cell phones crapped out. I’ll tell him that I have to make a very important, and very private, business call. He’s in business; he’ll understand that.”
“But…”
“I’ll call Mike and tell him that I need him to come to Ohio. That I can’t use our phones, and that I’ll call him as soon as I buy a burner phone.”
“I don’t want to involve Katya and Barron. I’m afraid I’ll break down and blab.”
“You’re strong. You won’t.”
“Do we have to do this?”
“Yes. We need Mike. We need him here.”
CHAPTER 20
I drop our dinghy into the water. In less than five minutes, we’re motoring the twenty-five yards to Bella Fortuna, Barron’s forty-five-foot Azimut. Katya sees us coming. “Coffee’s ready.”
I pull up to their swim platform. Barron is there to take a line and tie us up. “Good morning. To what do we owe this unexpected pleasure?”
“Good morning. Sorry to bother you. Our cell phone charger died and both of our cell phones have run down.”
“Not good. We only have one charger on board. There’s a lesson here for both of us. We need a spare charger on board.”
“Yeah. I’ve come to the same conclusion. But I have to make a very important business call this morning. May I borrow your phone?”
“Sure. No problem. Let me go get it.” He heads below.
Katya looks at Kate. “Looks like you’ve had a rough night. Let’s go get some coffee. Peter?”
“Yes. Please.”
* * *
Barron comes back up topsides. He holds out his phone.
I reach out to take it. I stumble over the words. “Thanks, Barron. I… need…some…pri…”
“Pete. I’ve known you for a long time. Are you okay?”
I take his phone. “It’s okay, Barron. It’s just been a bad night.”
“I’ll go get us some coffee. Come down to the galley when you’re finished.”
“This won’t take long.”
I’ve copied both of Mike’s numbers onto a post-it. I call his work phone. After six rings, it rolls over to voice mail. I hear his message. It’s brief, official sounding, and vague. He can’t come to the phone. He’s occupied. Leave a message. I leave my message. “Mike, it’s your dad. I can’t explain why on this phone, but I need you to come to Ohio as soon as possible. It has to do with your job. Don’t call this phone. Don’t call my cell phone. I’ll call you as soon as I can get a burner phone. Probably later today. Bye.”
I call his personal cell phone. It immediately rolls over to voice mail. This message is less formal, but just as vague. He can’t come to the phone right now. Leave a message. My guess is that he’s out of the country. I leave the same message.
And I go below.
Kate, Katya, and Barron are sitting in their galley. They have a small table for four. I join them. I set Barron’s phone on the table. My hand shakes just a little. I think Barron noticed. “Thanks. I’m glad that’s done.”
Barron looks at me. “Pete, what’s up?”
“Family troubles. I can’t go into details. We ran our phones down talking to the kids last night.”
Katya takes Kate’s hand. “Kids. Sometimes I wish we had had kids. And sometimes I’m glad we didn’t.”
She looks at me. “Whatever we can do, you know we will.”
“I know. You guys are always there for us. We love you for it.”
Kate smiles wanly. “It’ll work out. We just need a little time.”
I take a drink of coffee. I think I’ve had a gallon of this, but it tastes good.”
Kate looks at me. I know the question. “Now what?”
“We finish our coffee. And then we head home.”
We do just that.
We say goodbye to Barron and Katya, and dinghy back to Morning Star.
We secure the dinghy on its davits, drop the mooring ball,
and shove off. It takes fifteen minutes.
The lake is flat, and it’s an easy hour-long trip to Vermilion.
CHAPTER 21
We’re back in Vermilion in the early afternoon. On our way home, I stop at Harbortown Marine. Tony will either have prepaid phones, or know where I can get one. Kate waits in the car.
“Hi, Tony.”
“Hello, Captain. What do we need today? More toys for the new boat?”
“No. Actually, something non-nautical. I’m selling some stuff on-line and a friend suggested that I buy a ‘burner phone’ rather than use my regular phone number.”
“Your friend is very wise. And boy do I have a deal for you. Remember flip-phones?”
He goes to a display case and pulls out what looks like an antique cell phone. “$19.99, and you can buy additional minutes if you need them.”
“Wow. I didn’t know they still made these.”
“They don’t. That’s why they’re so cheap. This company buys trade-ins and re-purposes them. It’ll work perfectly for what you need.”
I buy the phone, thank Tony, and I’m back in the car in less than ten minutes. I hand Kate the bag as I get in. “Got it. I’ll call Mike as soon as we get home.”
* * *
I call his work phone first. He answers on the second ring. “Hi, Mike. Where are you?”
“In Europe. The exact location is not important.” I know from past experience that that’s his way of saying that his whereabouts are classified.
“Dad, what’s going on? Why do you need me in Ohio?”
“How secure is this line?”
“As secure as any phone line can be. It’s safe to tell me what’s going on. Why are you using a burner?”
“Because I’m afraid that my phone may be monitored. And I’m worried about yours, too.”
“This one is okay. Talk to me.”
‘Okay. Here goes. Kate and I are being forced to ferry terrorists from Canada into the U.S.”
“What?”
“It first happened a month ago. We were in Leamington, Ontario. When we got back to the boat that evening, we were confronted by a guy named Saif with an assault rifle. An AK-47, Kalashnikov, I think. He made us wait until five other guys showed up, and then he made us take them to Vermilion.”
“You’re shitting me... No, you aren’t, are you?”
“I wish I was. Kate and I are both wrecks… Anyway, at first, I thought it was a one-time deal. I chose not to tell anyone. I thought it would become a bad memory. A very bad memory.”
“You’re using past tense. What has happened?’
“I got a phone call from Saif last night. They want me to do it again. Saturday. Except this time from Leamington to Put-in-Bay. I don’t know what to do.”
There is a long pause. Then, “Do exactly as they say. These guys are serious threats. But you know that; you were in the Middle East. I will start making calls as soon as we hang up. I’ll be in Lorain this week. I don’t know exactly when; it depends on available transport; I’ll keep you informed.”
“Mike, we’re scared.”
“That’s good. You should be. Dad, do what they tell you to do. We – my organization -- can fight this, but you can’t. I’ll have people on this before the day is over.”
“What should I do?”
“I’ll be in touch as soon as I know something.”
“Mike. There’s something else you should know.”
“Talk to me.”
“Saif had pictures on his phone. Pictures of Darlene and Devin. That was his bargaining chip.”
“Shit.”
“But he did not have a picture of you. I don’t know if they don’t know about you, or if they’re afraid to get close enough to you to take a picture, or what…”
“They know. I’ll assume that you’re under surveillance. I’ll act accordingly. I know how, Dad.”
“Should we tell the other kids?”
“No! Absolutely not. Don’t tell anyone. Don’t do anything until you hear from me. Just do what they tell you – exactly what they tell you.”
“Okay. But what about…”
“The next trip? When is it supposed to happen?”
“I’m supposed to go to Leamington this Saturday, and take a group of them to Put-in-Bay on Sunday.”
“You have to do it. By then we’ll have assets in place – here and in Canada.”
“But…”
“No. No buts. Do what they say for now. We’ll be there. You won’t see us, but we will be. Trust me. We’re good at this. Better than you know. Better than anyone knows. I’m sorry they picked on you. They will regret it, Dad. I promise.”
“If I hear more from them?”
“Call me. Use your burner phone. But use your regular phone for everything else. You don’t want them to suspect that you have a burner.”
“Okay…”
“Tell Kate everything we have said. Tell her it stops with her. She is to tell nobody. Tell her that I’m taking over. And give her a hug from me.”
“I will.”
“I’ll be in touch, Dad. Let me get to work on this. I love you.”
“I love you, too, son.”
* * *
Kate heard most of the conversation. I fill her in on a couple of details that she missed. “Do you remember when we lost Gabriel? How Mike turned into Super Sergeant and took over?”
“Yeah...”
“Super Sergeant is back. Mike is firmly in control.”
“When will he be here?”
“I don’t know exactly. And I don’t know where he is. He said it depends on available transport.”
“We’ll see him soon, then. I’m glad.”
We move out on the deck to watch the evening boaters.
CHAPTER 22
Saif calls again Wednesday night. He says we are to go to Middle Bass Island Friday, Leamington Saturday, Put-in-Bay Sunday, and back to VYC Monday. We are to dock at the Miller’s Ferry Docks in Put-in-Bay. We will pick up six passengers in Leamington and deliver them to Put-in-Bay.
I tell him I don’t know if I can get in to Middle Bass Island; that Morning Star may be too big. He says then go to Pelee Island -- just be in Leamington on Saturday night. He reminds me of the photos on his phone. I tell him I don’t need to be reminded; that I’ll be there.
“Very good. Qasim will meet you in Leamington.”
That’s a shock. “But he came to Vermilion. And he got seasick on the trip.”
“He will meet you in Leamington.”
“Okay. Okay. Where are you? Back in Canada, too?”
“No. Our travels do not concern you. Only your travels.”
“Okay. I get it.”
“Be in Leamington Saturday night.”
“I will be there.” And I hang up.
* * *
I was in the library when Saif called. Yes, we have a library. An actual library with floor to ceiling book shelves and a rolling ladder. The room was originally a guest room, but we have lots of other rooms for guests, and I always wanted a library.
Anyway, Kate is watching TV in our family room downstairs. I go downstairs to tell her about the call, but she heard my phone ring. As I enter the family room, she mutes the TV. “Who called at this hour?”
As soon as she sees my face, she knows. But I sit in my chair and confirm her fears. “Saif. He gave me our itinerary. It’s pretty much as we expected. Middle Bass or Pelee Friday night, Leamington Saturday, Put-in-Bay Sunday, and home Monday.”
“You know the question. ‘Now what?’”
“First, I call Mike. Tonight. Then I make reservations. Tomorrow. Then we do the trip. I don’t think we have any choice.”
I get up, and move to the couch. I sit next to Kate and take her hand. “I wish I could reassure you. But I don’t know when or how this is going to end. It’s completely out of my control. All I can do is take the next step. And pray. Pray that God protects us and sees us through this. All I can ask of you is that you wa
lk through this by my side. I can’t do it alone. I need you to be with me.”
Her eyes sparkle with unshed tears. “I am with you, Cap’n. Always. We will get through this. I love you.”
“I’m going upstairs to call Mike on the burner phone. Signal strength down here is terrible.”
“I don’t need to be there. I’ll be here watching a Hallmark movie when you’re done.”
A tear runs down her cheek. I kiss her and get up.
* * *
Mike always answers his phone on the second ring. If it rings three times, it’s going ring three more times and then roll over to voicemail. One ring. Two rings. “Hey, Dad. I’m in transit, but talk to me.”
“Saif called. He gave me my itinerary.”
“Talk to me.”
“We’re to go to the State Park Marina on Middle Bass Island or Scudder’s Marina on Pelee Island Friday night. Depends on where I can get in. Then Leamington Municipal Marina Saturday night. We pick up six terrorists there. We dock at the Miller’s Ferry Docks in Put-in-Bay Sunday night. The terrorists will leave our boat there. Then we are to go back to VYC Monday.”
“Got it. Anything else?”
“I’ll make reservations tomorrow. I’ll let you know where we’ll be on Friday night.”
“Okay. Dad, this is a very big deal. Both American and Canadian agencies are very concerned, and are working on this. You and Kate, and your boat, and VYC are being watched. Other teams are watching Darlene and Devin, and their families. We’re also watching my kids. You will all be protected.”
“What about this weekend?”
“I don’t know that we’ll be able to have the assets in place to move on the terrorists this weekend. We may have to let this weekend play out. My guess is that we’ll make our move on your next trip.”
“So, you’re just going to let them into the country?”
“We want more than just the guys on your boat. We want the leaders. We want Saif. And also, we want you to not look complicit. You need to be seen as innocent victims.”
“We are!”
“I know that; our agencies know that. This will hit the media when it all comes down. We want the media to know that.”
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