We cruised about fifty miles an hour, which is fast in the water, in case you don’t know. Seventy is flying on the water. Everything is faster on the water. Anyway we were clipping along real good and I started to think everything was going to work out fine when BOOM. We heard a small explosion in the compartment holding the motor. The boat had a drastic loss of power.
“What was that?” Joe asked me.
“How the hell do I know?” I said. Here was that ominous feeling again except it was in no way unsure, now it was solid. It was an absolute surety in my mind that this was a bad idea. This mission was ill prepared. The boat was chugging along about five miles an hour.
“There’s no power.” Joe said, bewildered.
“You think you better take a look, or what? You are the Captain.” I said dripping with sarcasim. I was such a smart ass when I was younger.
“I guess.” Joe said and for the first time I saw a look of worry on his face, which scared the shit out of me. I figured I better take it easy on him. I jumped off my seat and started to take off the cover covering the motor.
“Come on big guy. You can fix it.” I said to Joe trying to boost his confidence. We took off the cover and looked at the motor. It was still light enough to see it. Joe took out a flashlight and started looking around.
“Look right there, that hose blew.” Joe pointed to a hose that had blown off the motor.
“Can you fix it?”
“I don’t know. We don’t really have any tools.”
“You are an idiot, not a Captain.” Joe looked like he was going to hit me but he knew what a bad idea that was. If he did when we got back my brothers would have whooped his ass, and he knew it. Looking back he could have easily have thrown me overboard and made up any story he wanted. That’s what I mean about the ocean, anything can happen and no one would know.
Joe was digging around in the hull and took out the flare gun kit. It had a used flare casing in it. Joe took that out and looked at it.
“I think I can fix it.”
“I doubt it.”
“Have some faith.” I gotta admit he was pretty positive. He took an empty flare gun casing and duct taped it to the broken tube, which gave the motor compression again. We started chugging along at twenty miles an hour, then thirty, then forty.
“I told you I could fix it.”
“Good. You fixed it. Now take us back.”
“We’re fine. We can make it.” He said full of pride.
“No we can’t. The boat is broken. At least we didn’t get the weed yet and we can go back and fix the boat.”
“It’s fixed.”
“Not enough to pick up a load you dumb redneck.” I had decided diplomacy was now out the window with this idiot. I knew for sure we don’t want to come in with a boatload of weed and have the boat break again. I knew I had to reason with this lunatic or I might be really screwed.
“Listen. It’s not your fault. The boat broke, that was an accident. Amazingly enough you fixed it, temporarily. It needs a correct fix before we risk our freedom trying to take a load of weed in.”
“Look, we’re almost there. Thirty miles to go and we should see JT. We’re already more that fifty miles off the coast. Might as well pick up the load.”
“You don’t get it. This is our freedom you are messing with.”
“That’s what you signed up for.”
“Not in a broken boat.”
“It’s not broken.” He said very matter of fact. He was an idiot. I thought I was gonna lose my mind talking to him. I was getting nowhere except further out to sea. There was nothing I could do. He was way bigger than me and there was nothing around us but the blackness of the ocean. There was probably a bunch of sharks just swimming around waiting for him to throw me overboard. I sat there steaming in my seat.
We rode that way for a little while cruising around fifty. The blackness of the ocean was in every direction. We didn’t even have a radar device. I knew he didn’t know where we were. All of a sudden he slowed the engine down.
“What?” I asked him.
“I think we’re here.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Cause we been cruising long enough at fifty we should be here. I’m gonna signal for J.T.”
He picked up the light and started swinging it around like an idiot. After a minute he stopped and we looked around for a signal. There was nothing but the black all around..
“Look around.”
“I am.” I was and I couldn’t see anything.
There was nothing in any direction.
“Call him on the radio.” I said.
He leaned down and picked up the handset from the CB.
“JT. This is Big Dog. Over“ He waited a second. “J.T. You out there?” Over?”
The radio made a crackling noise like it was trying to receive something. I knew we were fucked.
“We’re fucked.”
“Shut up. No we aint.” I could see Joe was starting to panic a little, which only compounded the fact that I was already feeling, which was that we were really fucked.
“Big Dog. You out there? Over?’ The radio made another crackling noise then it stopped again. Joe grabbed the receiver.
“J.T. Where you at? Over?” Nothing but silence. This is about the moment real panic sets in.
“Are you sure we’re in the right place?”
“It’s what the map says.”
“Then where is he?”
“I don’t know. He’s supposed to be here.”
“If we’re in the right place.” I’m sure he was sick of hearing my sarcassism, but I knew for damn sure this could now be considered a failed mission. The only thing I was concerned with was getting home alive and free. I no longer cared about the money we were supposed to make.
“Try the radio again.” I knew all my friends were listening to the radio also, Everyone waiting for the load to come in so they could unload it and make some money. I figured they might hear the mess we are in.
“Big Dog…….You out there?.... Over.” This time I could hear a little fear in Joe’s voice. Not good.
“Big Dog?......This is J.T. You out there?” Not a sound. The radio crackled a little like it was trying to receive a transmission, but then there was nothing. We both sat there in silence in the darkness of the ocean. I know my mind was spinning the worst possible scenario, even if I was trying to think positively. The ocean can be a scary place.
“Turn on the boat and lets cruise around a little. Maybe he will see or hear us.”
“Yeah. That might work.” The fact that Joe was no longer aggressive really scared the shit outta me. I just wanted to get home alive at this point.
Joe turned the boat on and we started cruising real slow, just looking in every direction for a light or a sound or something.
“What do you think?” Joe asked me.
“ I think you are the Captain.” Joe glared at me. I didn’t care. He was an idiot as far as I was concerned. My job was to load and unload bails, no more no less. It’s the Captain’s job to get us there and back.
“Maybe we are not in the right place. Maybe we didn’t go far enough” Joe said, his anxiety more obvious every minute. Which only increases my personal fears.
“I’m gonna cruise about twenty miles further East.” He said.
“Yeah. Good idea.” Better off to just agree with him. Having the Captain scared shitless aint no good.
Joe turned the key and the boat tried a couple of times then stopped.
“Great. Yeah you fixed it all right.” So much for agreeing with him.
“SHUT UP.”
Joe took off the cover and looked at the engine with a flashlight. He pulled the accelerator on the carb and primed the engine.
“That oughta work.”
I just sat there with my arms crossed pissed off and scared at the same time. Not good.
Joe turned the key and the engine turned over smoothly.
“See I told
you I fixed it.” I didn’t say anything. We started cruising real slow in the darkness of the ocean, maybe about fifteen knots, I think that’s like twenty miles an hour in sea talk.
“Look all around.”
“ I am looking around you dumb redneck. The smartest thing to do would be to just drive the boat back home and fix it.”
“The smartest thing to do is pick up the load and take it back and collect our dough. And maybe bang some of them Bahamian whores on the way.” Joe chuckled again at that thought. GOD I hated this guy.
We cruised that way for about an hour in the darkness looking for the other boat. We were probably going in circles for all we knew. Joe slowed the boat down.
“LOOK. Look over there. I see a light.” Joe said all excited. He thought he was going to save the day, dumb bastard.
I looked in the direction Joe was pointing. I didn’t see anything.
“I don’t see anything.”
“Over there.” Joe pointed all excited. I squinted trying to look into the darkness in the hopes that there was really a boat there. I couldn’t see anything. Joe picked up the handset on the C.B.
“Big Dog. You out there? Over.” Silence.
“Big Dog? Over.” Nothing. Joe was staring out into the darkness. Me also. I couldn’t see a thing.
“OVER THERE.” Joe pointed. “There it is again.” I looked into the direction Joe was pointing but couldn’t se anything.
“I didn’t see anything.”
“It was there I’m telling you.” Joe said all excited. “I’m gonna head that way. It’s gotta be him.”
Joe turned the boat back on and we started cruising about twenty miles an hour. I was totally at a loss on how I felt. In the one hand I was definitely hoping this was Big Dog and we were going to pick up our load, get home safe and get our cash. On the other hand I knew just how difficult that can be even with a boat that works perfectly. Sometimes we have to out run the cops. To say the least I was more than a little worried.
“Take it easy. You don’t want the boat to break again.”
“I told you I fixed it.” Joe said with a smug grin on his stupid face. Then just to be an asshole he increased the speed. First 30 MPH then 40 MPH then 50 MPH then BOOM, the empty flare cartridge that Joe taped on the broken hose shot off the hose and out into sea. The boat immediately slowed to about one mile an hour.
“Yeah you fixed it all right. Fixed it real good.”
“SHUT UP.”
Joe cut the motor and took out his flashlight to look at the motor. The hose was now blown in two spots, one near the motor and the original hole was twice as big.
“Now what, Mr. Captain.”
“Keep talking and I will be the only one on this boat trying to figure it out.”
“You come back without me and I think you know what will happen. My brothers will kill you.”
Joe didn’t say anything at that. He knew I was right. I also knew he had fifteen years on me and out weighed me by about a hundred pounds. It was a tense dismal situation. We were now drifting quietly deeper into the open sea.
“What are we gonna do?” I really wanted to know.
“You are gonna get on that radio and start doing a mayday distress call. Do it over and over. Our guys are listening someone will hear us. We gotta wait till morning to have enough light to fix the boat.”
“With what tools? And what food? I told we should bring provisions. We always bring provisions. You are an idiot.”
“Just shut up. I gotta think.”
I knew we were in a world of trouble so I shut up. No sense in aggravating the situation. We were drifting who knows where. The boat had no compression at all, the sea was too deep to put down and anchor and wait so all we could do is drift. I fell asleep in my chair.
I woke up the next day with the sun beating on my face as hot as can be. We were no longer drifting. We were now tied up to a little atoll. An atoll is like a real small island in a chain of Islands. Its like a circle shaped like a ring, with not too much on it. The tallest plant on this atoll was knee high crocus plant, so there was no shade at all. The whole thing was about as big as a football field. I looked around in every direction, nothing but water. There was another atoll next to us with just as much nothing on it. I could see Joe walking towards the boat from across the atoll. I was definitely hating him with every fiber of my being, but I knew for sure I need this idiot to get out of here. As he reached the boat I could see this was taking a toll on him. Just a beer drinking redneck he was starting to turn red already from the scorching sun. He was probably gonna go into the heebie jeebies when all the beer starts sweating out of him.
“Aint nothing on this whole island taller than two feet. No shade anywhere. We gotta stay inside the hull to keep out of the sun till help arrives.”
“Yeah? And when is help going to arrive smart guy.”
“Just as soon as you get on that radio and start doing a mayday distress call.”
“What are you gonna do?”
“Gonna have a look at the motor, see if I can fix it.”
“Like you fixed it last time.”
“Better shut your trap or else I’m gonna shut it for you.”
I don’t know why I did what I did, but at that moment I just had this terrible feeling I was never getting out of there so I stood up and socked Joe in the face as hard as I could. I figured if I was gonna die, I might as well blast the guy at least one time who got me there. Joe took that hit and I jumped out of the boat and started running. I ran for a minute across the atoll. I could hear Joe chasing me so I started zig sagging left and right. He chased me for about ten minutes but he couldn’t catch me. Fear is a great motivator. He got tired before I did and collapsed on the sand. I walked over and looked down on him. He was huffing and puffing and so out of breath I thought he was gonna die.
“You shouldn’t have hit me.” He said. I could tell he felt bad.
“Fuck you. We’re probably gonna die out here cause you are so damn greedy. I figured I better blast you one first.” He held his hand up.
“No one’s gonna die out here. Help me up.”
I grabbed his hand and he faked like he was gonna blast me so I ducked.
“I should knock your block off. Listen, we gotta keep our cool or we ARE gonna die out here.” He said it real serious.
We started walking back to the boat. Things looked pretty bleak from where I sat. Broken boat, no weed means no money coming my way. Might not even get off this island alive.
We walked back to the boat in silence. The sun was beating down like the Sahara desert. The ocean is like a huge reflecting frying pan and the boat, the island and us are like eggs and bacon on a hot skillet. No breeze, way humid, and Joe was really starting to stink. Had to be the alcohol pouring out of him.
We climbed back into the boat.
“Get on that radio.”
“What do I say?”
“Mayday. Say that over and over. Also boat in distress. Those guys are all listening. Someone is bound to hear us. I’m sure they are looking for us. We were supposed to be back hours ago.”
“Where are we?”
“I don’t know.” Joe said and the way he said it I could tell he was almost defeated. I am sure he was feeling the pressure more than me. Not only was he the Captain, but he was a beer drinking, Coke snorting Cigarette smoking, pothead. And we had no pot. Me on the other hand had been a vegetarian for years, no alcohol, no meat or dairy. I was used to fasting every now and then. I’m not saying I didn’t feel the pressure cvause I did for sure, just not as much as Joe. Not only was he responsible for the boat, the load and my safety, he had a family at home, a wife and daughters, that I am certain did not know what he did in the smuggling world.
I picked up the handset.
“Mayday mayday mayday…..This is Corsa in distress. Can anyone hear my mayday? Over.” We both listened intently. Nothing. Then a big crackle. Then nothing.
“Mayday mayday mayday this is Corsa in
distress. Is anybody out there?” Another crackle then nothing.
“We’re fucked.”
“Don’t say that.” Joe was messing around with the motor. “Just stay on that radio.”
What an idiot. My depression was compounding deeper every second. I clicked on the handset.
“Mayday mayday mayday. This is Corsa in distress. I am stuck out in the ocean with a big dumb redneck. Can anyone hear me.” Joe through an empty beer can at me.
“Quit screwing around.”
“I’m not screwing around. You are a big dumb redneck and we are stuck out in the ocean.” Joe threw a wrench at me. I ducked.
“Stay on that radio. Someone will hear you.” I picked up the receiver. Before I could say anything I heard something. It was the sound of a boat. I came racing out of the hull. Joe was standing up watching the boat cruising our way.
“Hand me that flare gun.”
“Why? We should flag those guys down. They can help us.” Joe looked at me like I was insane.
“The only thing those guys will help themselves to is cutting our throats and taking this hundred thousand dollar boat. Now give me that flare gun quick. We gotta make them think we are just waiting for a drop off.”
I handed Joe the flare gun and he stood on the deck holding the gun up. A twentyfoot boat with one outboard motor and six Bahamians in it went cruising by real slow about a quarter of a mile away. They were for sure scoping us out.
“Great. That’s all we need.” I said.
“Just relax. They don’t want to get killed. They don’t know this boat is broken. They don’t know we don’t have guns.”
“Or food. Or money.”
“Exactly. Just relax yourself hippie and stay on that radio. You know those guys at home are looking for us.”
I got back on the radio and continued my distress call. Over and over and over. This went on for days. Every day the Bahamians would cruise by slowly. We always heard them coming, so Joe was always on the deck holding out the flare gun. By the third day with no food and water my energy was completely drained. Joe’s also. We would spend the day inside the hull, out of the sun, until we heard the Bahamians, then Joe would jump on deck with the flare gun and look as tough as can be. Beer bellied redneck with a flare gun must have looked tough to those Bahamians, because they never got too close to the boat. Probably didn’t want to get shot.
Becoming A Son Page 11