by AJ Newman
“Yes mate, but only if you kill the entire crew and remove all Russian markings before taking her to Maracaibo. I don’t want the bloody Russian Navy showing up and blasting my ass. Now, do we?”
***
“Captain, Captain,” the stern lookout yelled as he reported into the helm.
“Speak up lad.”
There are two small boats watching us from about a mile behind us. I can see them with the binoculars.”
The Captain sent for Manuel and me to join him at the stern while he broke out his more powerful binoculars. He could see the two RIBs with machine guns mounted on the front and two more boats were about a half mile further back. He could only faintly see the boats but thought they were larger gunboats.
The Captain told the engine room to speed up to full ahead and said, “They expect us to try to run for it. We’ll do that until they flag us down or fire a shot across our bow. Then we’ll show them a good time.”
The Captain handed the binoculars to me, and I saw the boats and then passed them on to Manuel.
Manuel grinned and said, “We get a live test of flamethrowers. Let them approach in range, and we burn them.”
I looked at the Captain and said, “I think he is right. We will have four men with RPGs backing the flamethrowers and the rest of the crew will have AKs trained on the boats.”
The Captain replied, “Per our plan, Manny will lead the flamethrowers, Matt you have the small arms, and I’ll lead the RPG team. They are watching us also and making sure that we don’t have any large weapons so keep a low profile and prepare for action.”
“When we slow down I need everyone to act like they can board us without any issues.”
“Yes, or they will set off a ways and pound us with machine gun fire. If we stop or slow down, we can get them close enough to destroy them with the RPGs and fire. Be ready for one or more to hold back until they know it’s safe. If that happens, we destroy the close up boats and run for our lives.”
An hour later, all of the boats had closed the distance, and both RIBs were running alongside about 100 yards out on either side, with the gunboats about 500 yards back. The RIBs closed the distance to 50 yards. The one on the starboard side fired a burst of bullets into the water about a hundred feet in front of the ship, into the water.
I saw a man raise a microphone and we heard a voice say, “This is the Cuban Navy. Stop and prepare to be boarded. If you don’t stop, we will sink your ship.”
The Captain waved a white flag at them and ordered the engine room to bring the vessel down to slow speed and then full stop. Then he used the walkie-talkie to tell Manuel to have his team ready to flame the RIBS.
“Wait until we stop and their boats are ready to board. Flame the bastards before any of them get on board our ship. I want to suck the patrol boats in close enough to rain fire down on them also.”
I told the others to be prepared to take fire from the patrol boats and to return fire. The damn patrol boats had .50 Cal BMGs and could stand off out of our range and pound us. I was betting that ammo was scarce and they would stop shooting when we ran and kept shooting back.
We came to a stop, and the two RIBs came along side while one patrol boat stayed 100 feet away while the second patrol boat stayed over a hundred yards away.
I called the team over the radio and told our snipers to all select targets on the patrol boat the farthest away from us. The Captain also had two of our team get two RPGs ready to try to hit the most distant patrol boat. It was iffy at that range with both boats moving up and down with the waves. I hoped that when we burned the RIBs that the combination gunfire and RPG rockets flying past their ears would scare them off even if we couldn’t sink the SOBs.
The Captain had the crew throw over two rope ladders to the RIBs and watched as men started climbing the ladders. There were six men in each Rib and only four from each boat started up the ladder while the other two manned their machine guns and the boat. I could see the men’s faces, and they climbed the ladder. The bastards were laughing and joking.
Suddenly the Captain yelled into the walkie-talkie, “Fire!”
Four of the teams with the portable flamethrowers shot their fiery hell down on the men trying to board as well as the crews manning the RIBs.
Several of the men were covered in fire, as were their boats. They screamed as they suffered pain and agony. The assholes weren’t laughing and joking now, as they burned alive. Two men jumped into the water to seek safety, but two of our ladies shot them as they tread water.
The closest stationary flamethrower sprayed the jellied gas towards the patrol boat, and the stream didn’t catch on fire at first. Just before it hit the boat, the stream caught fire close to our ship and the flames traveled to the patrol boat like a burning freight train.
All three boats were engulfed in flames with the men screaming as their flesh melted from their bodies. I watched as the men burned alive and died. I remember thinking burning alive is a terrible thing to watch and I never want to die that way.
“Burn the Bastards,” The Captain yelled.
“Kill everyone on the last boat. Shoot until there is no one on their deck,” I yelled as the snipers opened fire.
The remaining patrol boat had been struck by deadly small arms fire from our snipers and five of the women, who joined in with AK47s. The gunfire raked the patrol boat from bow to stern. Suddenly the front mounted .50 Cal machine gun opened up on us and bullets struck the side of the boat doing no damage. Then the gunner raised his aim and strafed the pilothouse and decks.
At the same instant, our team fired the first RPGs and missed; however, the patrol boat began to zig zag to make sure we couldn’t hit them.
Manuel yelled, “Take cover. Incoming!”
Before he died, the patrol boat gunner killed one of our men and two of the women volunteers. Every window and most of the instruments were shot to pieces before the machine gun became silent and the patrol boat turned to escape. The Captain and I were covered in glass and small cuts, but otherwise unharmed.
“That was a damn close call. Anyone hit?”
Our RPG teams fired two more RPGs, and the boat took off at high speed. The patrol boat was quickly out of sight so the Captain ordered full speed and we continued on our way while we licked our wounds and checked the damage.
“Yes. Several of our crew was shot, and a couple dead.”
The two RIBs were blazing as they sank below the waves as the patrol boat was totally engulfed in flames. There was a loud explosion, and the boat broke into pieces and sank with no survivors.
We found that we had two more wounded and Maria took them to our makeshift hospital and treated their wounds.
The stench of burnt flesh and gun power hung heavy in the air even with the boat clipping through the waves. I looked over the side and saw two burnt bodies tangled in the rope ladders. I cut the ropes and let them fall into the sea.
I looked over at the Captain and said, “Perhaps Davey Jones needs a couple of crispy pirates. This kinda’ reminds me of that war movie when the lead character said something like there is nothing like the smell of burning napalm in the morning.”
The Captain laughed and said, “Add in burnt gun powder, and I agree. Burnt flesh, not so much. After we handle the dead and wounded, we need to change our flag, name of the ship and add some color to the boat. I want the ship to be a different ship if they find us again. I’m going to run full speed to put as much distance between us and that patrol boat’s mothership as possible. I’m heading straight to Brazil to avoid that shit again.”
“I agree on changing the boat…err…ship’s appearance and speeding away from here, but there will be more pirates anywhere we go until some country’s military gets strong enough to fight them off.”
“That’s why I’m heading to Brazil. The USA took it over and has its fleet patrolling the waterways. They will eventually control the Atlantic and Pacific. They will get the Canal open again and probably take control of P
anama again. It will be safer down there.”
We didn’t know it at that time, but the USA had already taken over Panama and was quickly working to get the canal back in operation. They also annexed Peru later, which helped both countries. Peru became a state within the new USA. This gave the USA ports for its Navy in the Pacific and Peru a major economic shot in the arm. They were ten years from recovering until the deal with the USA. It only took three years to have them totally recovered.
“Captain, I don’t plan to head on down to Brazil. I have to search for my friends Mary and Patty. I think they are heading to Quito.”
Before the Captain could answer, I slumped over with a headache. I realized that I had remembered more about my friends and their plans. Mary was helping Brett and his wife take the Nuns and kids to Quito, Ecuador. My brain was processing these new memories as I tried to regain my composure.
“Matt, are you okay?”
“Yes, sir. I just had a flood of memories come back to me, and my brain was overwhelmed. I’ll be okay in a minute.”
“Take your time and come see me when you sort things out.”
“I’m going to my room to lie down for a short time to process my memories.”
“I’ll be inspecting the boat and checking on the wounded.”
I lay down on my cot, closed my eyes, and played back my memories. My first thoughts were about how much my life sucked in Tennessee. I hated being a teacher. Then I walked through my memories about buying the house in Wyoming and the beautiful woman who sold it to me. My memories of the fights and killing up there were sketchy at best, but I remembered most of the drive down with Mary.
The Nuns and children joined us along the way, and I remembered promising them that we would get them to the top of South America and then Mary and I would move on south. I tried to remember more about Patty without success and thought that we must not have been close.
At least I knew why I had the urge to head to Colombia or Panama. I had to get back to Mary, the Nuns, and kids.
Meanwhile, the world was still a pile of steaming crap for us survivors. My plans and the Captain’s didn’t match up. I wanted to head over to Colombia to search for my friends. To get to Quito and the orphanage they would have to land somewhere between Panama and Colombia.
***
“Captain, I won’t be going to Brazil with you. I am very grateful for your help and hope you aren’t mad, but I have to find my friends.”
“Matt, I’m not mad. I am disappointed that you aren’t going with me, but you have free will and need to find your friends. Go with my blessing, and I will help you by providing a boat, guns, and provisions. You are my frien….”
We were interrupted by the bow lookout yelling, “There is an overturned boat up ahead. We must stop and help them.”
“Engine room, slow speed! Matt, please see what we have out there. Take some armed men with you in case they are pirates.”
Aye Aye sir!”
I radioed for three of Manuel’s men to meet me on the starboard side and prepare to repel boarders. I ran down the steps and to the bow where I saw a group of our people watching an overturned sailboat with people on top of it and a woman looking out a large hole cut in the bottom. There were also numerous smaller holes that appeared to be bullet holes. I saw one man, a woman, and two children. They were waving an American flag and yelling at us. The man and one of the children barely had enough strength to wave.
The sea was calm, the water was a deep blue, and the sun blazed above. The overturned sailboat was a large one that looked vaguely familiar. The woman was now holding onto a child while waving a handkerchief at us.
“Lower a boat,” I yelled to the crew as I headed to one of our powerboats that hung from a small hoist.
I took two armed men and a couple of canteens with us as the crew lowered the boat into the water. We motored the 50 yards to the sailboat; I saw the woman and man’s faces and more memories flooded back. It was Brett and Meg. These were the two who took Mary, the Nuns and kids to South America.
Oh, shit! I remembered the attack at Brett’s house as we were trying to escape. They thought I was dead and left me in Texas. I had to find out if they knew where Mary was.”
“Matt, is that you?”
“Yes Meg, it’s me. What happened? How did your boat sink?”
“We were attacked by pirates eight days ago. They wanted…”
“Meg, there will be time for telling what happened later. Let’s get you on our ship and get medical attention for all of you. Here all of you take a small drink of water. There is plenty on board, and you need to take small gulps for a while.”
“Thanks, we ran out of water days ago. I’ve been catching rain and dew with pieces of cloth and trying to get enough water to keep us alive. Brett was wounded in the attack and has been unable to help.”
I felt Brett’s head, and he was hot. He was now unconscious but mumbling unintelligible words.
“Guys, help me load Brett and the kid on the boat.”
Mary and the girl climbed over to the boat, and we cruised over to the ship. It took some effort to get Brett safely on the ship and to sickbay. Maria took charge of Brett and the boy while some other women fed and helped Meg and the girl to a room to be cleaned up and put on some dry clothes.
Manuel sent a crew over to search the boat for anything of value and found two SAWs, rifles, pistols and plenty of ammunition. The rest of their supplies and equipment had been shot to pieces by machine gun fire.
It was several days before Brett woke up and was able to talk.
✼
Chapter 8
Brett Starnes’ Story
Brett was still weak but wanted to fill me in on what had happened to them since I last saw them. He looked up at me and noticed that I was intensely staring at him.
“Matt you are looking at me like it was the first time you ever saw me and you’re not sure if I’m friend or foe.”
“Brett, I woke up floating in a small sailboat on the ocean by eastern Cuba with a horrible headache and no memory. I’m just now beginning to get some of my memory back. I’m staring because I’m trying to remember you and Meg and what happened on the dock as you left for South America.”
“I’m so sorry that we left you, but we thought you were dead.
“Don’t worry about that. Give me the short story now, and we’ll dig into the details when you recover.”
“You, Mary, the Nuns, and the children found us in Corpus Christi while you were looking for a sailboat. I had two, and we banded together to head to South America. The thugs attacked on the morning we prepared to leave, and we were certain they killed you. I had to fight Mary to keep her from swimming back to shore during a continuous hail of gunfire. She yelled back to you about how much she loved you.
We got away from there as quickly as the wind would blow. We were soon out of range and set out for South America. A storm damaged the boat a few days out, and we limped over to the Grand Caymans and found a sailmaker who repaired our sails. Sister Nan and Billy were killed when pirates attacked us the first time. Then we headed over to Colombia to drop the Nuns, Mary, and the children off.
We dropped them off in Arboletes Colombia and bid them adieu. We had become attached to Sally and Rob so they stayed with us.”
“Where is Mary? I remember her but only bits and pieces.”
“Why Mary stayed in Colombia to help the Nun and children find their friends.”
“I’m kinda’ remembering bits and pieces now.”
“What was my relationship with Mary?”
“You two were very close. It’s none of my business, but she was in love with you. You appeared to be close to her; however, you didn’t show much affection. You and Mary were keen on finding your friend Patty.”
“I remember the name Patty, but can’t remember her.”
“That should all come back to you very soon. A brain is a mysterious machine, and it will heal itself in time.”
“Brett, now to the immediate situation; what happened to your sailboat? Another storm?”
“No, the damned pirates attacked us again. This time they approached during the early morning hours with no lights and were firing before we knew they were out there. We fought back for a few minutes and then knowing we were out gunned I raised a white flag. The bastards shot a small cannon at us and hit the boat twice. One shot hit below the waterline, and the boat rolled over as it took on water and flipped.”
I was a miracle that none of us were hit or severely wounded.”
“Thanks for filling me in. This helped me a lot. Now rest and take care of yourself.
***
I left the Starnes and went to my cabin to mull over the information Brett and given me. I closed my eyes and thought about Mary. I could see her in my mind smiling and joking with me. She was a beautiful dark haired petite woman with a great figure. I remembered that she was very outgoing and flirted with me very often.
My first reaction was thinking I missed her so much and wanted her next to me in bed. I remembered that night when we were laying on the sleeping bag with her snuggled up to me. I wondered why we didn’t make love that night.
I remembered more and more about Mary, the Nuns, and the children but very little about Patty. I fell asleep thinking about Mary and missing her very much.
***
I stayed busy the next morning helping Manuel work out some bugs in the flamethrowers. We added about fifty feet to the stream of fire by increasing the air pressure and drilling out the holes in the nozzle. We could shoot fiery death over 150 feet.
“Manny, I think the Starnes were attacked by the same pirates. They now have a small cannon or recoilless rifle on one or more of their boats. They can pound us from a mile away. What can we do to attack them before they tear us to pieces from a safe distance?”