David stood tall at the mast, scanning the sea ahead of them. He was her biggest comfort in the whole mess of this trip. He had not had the easiest life, but he was a strong and loyal friend. She marveled that he wasn’t full of anger and bitterness. After his father had left for the final time, his mom had struggled with depression herself. He had stepped up and looked after himself and his little sister, Emma. Even after his mom found her feet and moved on from the loss, he had taken so many responsibilities on himself. They had scaled down their farm quite a bit, but there was still so much work that he took care of himself after his mom had to get a job in town. Emily knew that David harboured a lot of anger and disappointment towards his dad but he never let it affect his attitude towards others or life in general. She was just so thankful that he had come with her when she had split from the rest of their friends.
Emily looked out at the ocean and wished for land. She knew how much harder it would have been to walk the huge distance that they had traveled by boat but she was sick of the water and wanted to be on land. She had to laugh at the irony of that. Her biggest passion was swimming through the water and here she wanted to get away from it. Shaking her head at the way life could change, she stood up and headed towards the cabin steps. Making food and cleaning up at least helped to pass the time. She was almost to the stairs when David called out for the binoculars. Grabbing them quickly she returned to David and handed them to him.
After looking through them for a few minutes he handed them back to her. “Take a look. There’s a boat ahead of us. It looks like a cabin cruiser and I can see at least two people on board. It’s still too far away to see clearly who they are. Keep an eye on it. I’m going to talk to Mason and we should decide what we want to do.”
“What do you mean what we should do? These are the first people we have seen alive since we set sail. Aren’t we going to stop and talk to them? They might be stuck out here. We need to help them!” Emily exclaimed.
“I know, Em, but they might not be friendly. We have to be careful. If we stop and they try and take the boat from us, we could be in a huge amount of trouble. We need to be smart about this so keep watching and let us know what you see, okay?”
Nodding her head in understanding, Emily brought the glasses up to her eyes and tried to focus on the boat that was ahead of them. She could see it but the details weren’t clear. There was definitely movement on its deck but they weren’t close enough to see who it was. She looked away when she heard Mason, Lisa, and David arguing.
“I’m just saying that we are so close to land that it would be stupid to take such a chance!” Mason argued.
“That is so selfish! What if those people have been stranded out here the whole time? Don’t you remember the lifeboats with all those dead people? We have to help them. It’s the right thing to do!” Lisa said forcefully.
“Whoa, cool it down, guys! You are both right. We need to be careful and find out who is on that boat and help them if they are in trouble. So, we go in slow and keep our distance until we know the situation. Then, if it looks safe, we will do what we can to help them,” David intervened.
“No way, man, this is a bad idea! We only have so much food and water for ourselves. We can’t just be giving it away,” Mason protested.
Before David and Lisa could start in, Emily pushed past them and got into Mason’s face.
“How dare you? A good man took us in and helped us when he could have just left us to die in that city. We repaid him by killing him. Mark might have pulled the trigger but we were the ones that brought him onto the boat. We owe Tim and we need to repay his kindness. We will help these people if it looks safe because it’s the right thing to do and because that’s what Tim did for us. If you can’t understand that then you really are an asshole and I don’t want anything to do with you!” Emily’s chest was heaving with anger and Mason took a step back with shock from her words.
“Emily…I…I’m sorry. I know it’s the right thing to do, it’s just…I’m scared!” he said softly and with shame.
Emily’s face relaxed slightly. “Yeah, well, so am I. I’m scared every minute of every day but that doesn’t change the fact that helping those people is the right thing to do.” She heaved out a breath. “Slow us down and switch to the engine or whatever it is that you have to do but get it done. We are getting closer and we need to be able to manoeuvre closer or away depending on what we find,” she ordered and walked away.
Lisa followed her down into the cabin and they gathered water bottles and power bars together. They felt the speed of the boat drop as Mason and David adjusted the sails. As Emily added the first aid kit to the bag they were going to take on deck, she felt the vibrations of the engine as Mason fired it up. The girls were about to go back on deck when she heard David call out. As they rushed up the stairs to see what was going on, Emily came to a dead stop and spun around, almost knocking Lisa back down. She thrust the bag of supplies at her.
“Here, take this up. I forgot something. Be right up!” she said as she pushed past her and ran back down into the cabin. Making her way quickly into the main bedroom she ran to the dresser and reached out to yank one of the drawers open. She paused for a minute as her head whirled with possible scenarios of what they might find on the other boat. She shook her head abruptly at her indecision and pulled the drawer out. Reaching under the folded clothing, she grasped the cold metal of the gun and pulled it out. It was a simple revolver and she could see that there were five bullets in the chambers. She kicked herself for not searching through Mark’s things to see if he had any more bullets hidden. Emily studied the gun for a few minutes. She had fired many rifles and shotguns in her young life on a farm but she had never fired a handgun. She closed her eyes briefly and prayed that today wouldn’t be the day that she would. She quickly stuffed it into her pocket and pulled her shirt out so it would hang down and cover the bulge and then flew back out into the cabin and up the stairs.
Mason was at the wheel and he locked eyes with her the minute she stepped on deck.
“Emily, I’m sorry, you were right.” he said seriously.
“I know, Mason, but we need to be stronger and make better decisions,” she said distractedly, trying to adjust her shirt to cover her front pocket.
“I know but that’s not what I meant. That boat has little kids on it. We do have to help them,” he explained.
“What? Oh no! I hope they are okay.”
Emily whirled around to get a look at the boat they were slowly approaching with concern on her face. She couldn’t imagine how scary being stranded at sea would be for little kids. She almost went back into the cabin to return the gun to the drawer but decided she could do that after. She moved towards the bow of the boat where Lisa and David were standing. Lisa was waving at the two kids who were watching them come closer with scared little faces. She scanned the rest of the boat looking for their parents but the deck was empty.
Emily turned to David who had a frown on his face and asked, “Their parents?”
He shook his head. “I haven’t seen any adults so far, just the two kids but we don’t know if anyone is in the cabin.”
“Why wouldn’t they come up with the kids?”
“I don’t know. Maybe they’re hurt or sick. We’ll have to wait and see. But Emily, this feels wrong.”
Emily frowned and turned back to look at the children. They were close enough to see that it was a little girl who looked about eight or nine and a smaller boy who might have been six. They both looked scared which confused Emily even more. If the kids were stuck out here alone then why would they be scared of other people? Why wouldn’t they be happy or excited or even relieved that there were people here that could help them? She was about to say as much to David when she felt the engine stop and Mason came forward with the long handled paddle. As they drifted closer he leaned out and used the paddle to hook onto the other boat so they were closer and quickly dropped it and tied the two boats together.
&nb
sp; Lisa was trying to talk soothingly to the kids but they just stepped back away from the rail and said nothing.
“It’s okay, we can help you. Do you need help? We have food and water. Are your parents on board? Is anyone hurt? We can help you.” Lisa tried to get a response but the kids just backed away further. She turned to look at the others. “They are terrified but I don’t know why. They’re dirty but they don’t seem hurt. Maybe you should try talking to them, Emily.”
Emily nodded and reached down to brace herself on the rail so she could swing across to the other boat when David grabbed her arm. She looked up at him in confusion but he wasn’t looking at her. He was staring hard at something on the other boat. She turned her head and found herself looking down the barrel of a shotgun.
Chapter Seventeen
“Don’t even move!” said a harsh voice from behind the gun.
Emily straightened up despite the order and saw a scruffy man who hadn’t showered in days. His eyes were fierce and they held depths of desperation.
She looked at the kids now standing behind him and they still looked scared. The little boy was quietly crying into the girl’s side. The girl met Emily’s look and she could see a hint of steel in her eyes. Looking back at the man, she tried to reason with him.
“Mister, do you guys need any help? We saw the kids on deck and came to offer food and water if you need it. If you are stranded we could take you to shore. You don’t need to point that gun at us.”
The gun never wavered as he let out a bitter laugh. “Oh yeah, that’s what the last people who stopped to ‘help’ said before they took all of our supplies and my wife. So yeah, I’ll accept your help. I’ll accept that boat you’re on and everything in it as well.”
Emily glanced at the others and saw Lisa frozen in shock. Mason was scowling and David was shaking his head. He tried talking to the man.
“Sir, you don’t have to do that. We will share everything we have and help you and your kids get to land. We stopped to help you guys!”
The man nodded his head determinedly. “A week ago I would have taken you up on that but now it’s too late. I’m all my kids have left and I will do anything to keep them safe. So I want all of you to back up and stand together near the mast. Don’t try anything or I’ll shoot!” He gestured with the gun barrel further back on the boat.
David put his hand on Emily’s shoulder from behind and pulled her gently back away from the edge of the boat. Once they had all moved back, David stepped in front of her so he was between her and the gun.
The man kept his gun on them as he quickly manoeuvred over the rail and onto the Lawless. Once he was braced on their deck, he scanned it from side to side. Lisa was clutching the bag to her chest and he nodded at her.
“What’s in the bag?”
Lisa looked down at it with a blank look until she realized he was talking to her and then her expression turned into an angry scowl.
“This is the food and water we gathered to help your family. Guess you want that too!” she spat at him.
The man almost looked ashamed for a second before his face hardened again.
“No, you hold on to that for now.” He looked the others over and addressed David. “Who else is on board?”
David shook his head. “There isn’t anyone else. We all came up to help you guys.”
The man frowned again and Emily was getting the feeling that he wasn’t as hard as he was pretending to be. He glanced back at his kids and waved the girl forward.
“Sarah, come over here and go around the other side of the cabin. Take a quick look down there and make sure no one else is onboard with us. Ben, stay there for a minute until Sarah comes back,” he told the crying boy when he tried to follow his sister over the rail.
Sarah scampered over the rail easily and ran around the opposite side of the boat to reach the stairs. No one said anything while she was out of sight. When she popped back up on deck, she gave her Dad a nod and ran back around to stand by him. He took a deep breath and told them what to do.
“You guys are going to cross over onto my boat and stay there. You can take that bag of food and water with you. I’m sure someone will come along and find you. I’ve set up rainwater traps so you should be okay for water. I would ration the food, though. There’s none on board. There are two fishing rods so you can try and fish.” He turned to his kids and instructed them. “Sarah, Ben, get down to our cabin and get some of your clothes and anything else you want. Sarah, grab some of my stuff too. Be fast.”
The girl still hadn’t spoken and she just nodded and jumped back onto her boat and dragged her brother down below.
Emily looked at the man and decided to try and reason with him again. She slid around David and gave the man her most sincere expression.
“Sir, I’m sorry about what happened to your family but we aren’t a threat to you. We’re just a bunch of teenagers trying to get home. We were in Disneyland when everything stopped and we found a boat to try and get home. We live in Alberta, Canada and if you leave us out here we will never see our parents again. Please don’t do this. We are only a day or two from land. Just tie us up and take us with you. We won’t cause you any problems. I promise!” she begged with tears in her eyes.
The man closed his eyes in sadness but slowly shook his head. In a soft voice, he told her, “I’m sorry. I just can’t take that chance. I’m not a bad man and I don’t want to hurt you kids but I have to make sure my kids are safe. I’m really sorry. I wish there was a different way.” His eyes pleaded with Emily to understand.
David spoke from behind her. “Sir, we can see that you are trying to protect your family and that’s the right thing to do but if you leave us on that boat we will probably die. That would make you a murderer. There is a different way that would give us a chance. Let us take our life boat. We could try rowing it to land. It would take us a long time but at least we would be moving. Your boat is dead in the water, we wouldn’t get anywhere in it. Let us take the life boat and you can keep both boats. Please, sir. Give us a chance to make it to land,” he pleaded.
While the man contemplated this, Emily was trying not to freak out. What was David doing?! She couldn’t get the image of the lifeboats filled with sunbaked dead people out of her head. She couldn’t believe he had suggested that! She looked to Lisa whose mouth was hanging open in shock at David. Mason caught her eye and he gave her a brief nod. She was completely confused. Why did the boys think that getting into the lifeboat was a good idea?
The man was staring at David with a thoughtful expression. “Do you really think that you can row to shore?”
David shrugged. “It’s better to try than to sit and slowly go crazy waiting for someone to maybe find us.”
The man nodded and gave David a grim smile. “I admire that. You’re a strong boy. I hope you make it and I’m sorry.”
David just nodded. “My friend and I are going to go get the lifeboat in the water. The girls can stay here while we do it. As soon as we get it launched, I’ll come back here while my friends get onboard and then I will follow them.”
The man raised his eyebrows at David’s instructions. “You’re awfully confident for a boy with a gun pointed at him.”
David stared him down before replying. “You’re not going to shoot an unarmed teenager, in front of your children, who’s done nothing to you but offer help. Like you said, you’re not a bad man…just a thief.” He turned around without giving the man a chance to respond and tapped Mason to follow him. He looked at Emily and Lisa and said, “Sit tight,” before going to the lifeboat case.
David and Mason bent over and started to undo the clasps that held the case to the boat. Without looking at Mason, David said in a low voice, “Try and block his view of the bags. I don’t know if he’ll try and stop us from taking them but let’s not bring them to his attention.”
Mason nodded and shuffled around so his body was between the attached garbage bags filled with their backpacks and the front
of the boat where the man was standing. Once the case was freed from its clamps, they piled the bags on top of it and carried it to the rail. David made sure he had a tight grip on the release cord before they heaved it over the side. They watched anxiously as the case went under the water and popped back up before splitting open and inflating. Both boys let out the breaths that they had been holding. If the lifeboat hadn’t inflated they would have been stuck on the man’s boat with no chance of getting to shore. David was happy to see the lifeboat was slightly pulled down on one side meaning that the bags of supplies were still attached.
David stood up and handed the rope to Mason. “Pull it in close and help the girls get in. I’ll be back in a minute,” he said before heading back to where the girls were waiting nervously.
Mason nodded and started to pull the boat closer.
David joined Emily and Lisa and moved around them so that he was once again between them and the man with the gun. He gave him a cool nod before talking to the girls. Lisa had a fiercely defiant look on her face and Emily looked slightly panicked.
“It’s okay, guys. Go over to Mason and he’ll help you down.”
Emily shot the man a nervous look over David’s shoulder and then leaned in towards him and whispered, “I have the gun. We have to stop him.” Her eyes held a frantic look.
David froze and stared hard at her for a second. His mind flashed to all the outcomes of using the gun to defend the boat. He shook the images of screaming children and a deck covered in blood out of his head.
“No. Just go to Mason and get in the lifeboat,” he said firmly.
Emily shook her head. “David, you saw what happened to those men in the lifeboats! We will die if we go out there!” she pleaded in fear.
He took a hold of her shoulders and gave them a squeeze. “Those men weren’t prepared. We prepared for this, remember? We will have everything that we will need. Please, Emily, trust me,” he told her quietly while staring hard into her eyes.
Stranded Box Set Page 33