Terrors of the High Seas

Chapter

Six

DAR LET HER eyes drift open as the sunlight poked its way inside the hatch, dusting the bed with a square of buttery warmth.

She remained still for a while, watching Kerry sleep curled up against her, the blonde woman's arm wrapped around Dar's waist.

Kerry has always been that way, Dar reflected idly. Even when they'd barely known each other, she'd noticed Kerry's almost unconscious instinct for close contact—a hand on the back or the shoulder, making a connection with her that seemed as natural to her as breathing.

Dar had at first been bemused at that. She never could stand anyone putting their paws on her. Then she'd suddenly realized one day, after Kerry had put both hands on her shoulders as she'd stepped around behind her in a meeting, that far from objecting to it, her body was craving the touch.

Dar gazed wryly at the roof of the cabin. Shoulda been your first clue, bucket head.

Kerry shifted, rolling onto her other side and releasing Dar for the moment. Since she was awake anyway, Dar decided to get up and shake out the cobwebs, and maybe surprise her lover with breakfast. She carefully slid out of bed and tucked the covers in around the blonde's sleeping body, then ambled into the corridor and down to the head.

A quick scrub of her face with cold water and an experiment with Kerry’s new sparkly toothpaste later, Dar emerged from the bathroom in her swimsuit, pulling her hair back and fastening it with a bit of elastic as she walked.

The boat was moving gently and she rocked with it, making her way out onto the back deck and into the sun. It was very quiet on the dock, and they were still the only boat there. The beach was empty of everything except for a few gulls, and the water around her was still, with only a few ripples and pops to indicate the presence of the marine life below the surface.

Beautiful morning. Dar hitched herself up on the stern railing and hooked her feet under the bottom rung. She leaned back and 50 Melissa Good stretched her body out over the water, holding the position until she felt her spine pop gently into place. Then she extended her arms out and did a few slow rotations, giving her entire body a good warm up.

Satisfied, she pulled herself upright, then just for fun did a couple of sets of sit ups before she unhooked her legs and hopped off the railing. Cautiously, she extended her arms and checked her range of motion, pleased when her injured shoulder responded with only a mild grumpiness, allowing her to swing her arm in almost a complete circle.

Ah. Dar chuckled happily to herself. The diving and relaxing seemed to be doing the trick. With a contented grunt, she checked the boat’s lines and rigging, then went back inside and made her way to the galley. She filled the water pot and put it on the burner, then examined her choices for breakfast. Ah. She plucked a box from the cabinet and set it down, then turned to get a bowl.

Halfway around, she stopped, feeling a sudden prickle up her spine. A hoarse cry sent her bolting for the bedroom. She shouldered the door open to find Kerry thrashing, apparently caught in a nightmare, her hands clenching into fists in the sheets.

“Ker!” Dar quickly caught hold of her and shook her gently.

“Kerry!”

“N…no! No! No!” Kerry woke up abruptly with a gasp, her eyes snapping open wide. She looked around wildly, stopping when her eyes met Dar’s. “Oh,” she exhaled, still breathing hard. “Dar.”

Dar rubbed her shoulder. “Easy.”

Kerry lifted a shaking hand to her head. “Shit.”

“You okay?” Dar asked quietly.

“Yeah. I’m fine,” Kerry replied, trying to collect herself. “I’m okay.”

Kerry was, Dar had long ago decided, really good at a lot of things. Lying wasn’t one of them. She slid under the covers and folded Kerry into her arms, pulling her close in an attempt to comfort her. For a moment, she thought the effort was going to fail, then Kerry’s body relaxed and slumped against hers as Kerry buried her face in Dar’s shoulder. “Shh.” Dar stroked her disordered hair. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.”

“I hate nightmares,” Kerry whispered.

“I don’t think anyone likes them, sweetheart,” Dar said. “I know I don’t.” She rocked Kerry a little, unsettled by the spate of bad dreams her partner had suffered from ever since they’d gotten back from Michigan. The worst of the recurrent nightmares was of Kerry watching her father die in the hospital, and Dar found herself wondering how long it would take for that horror to fade. “Was it the same dream?”

“Yeah.” Kerry lifted her head and rested her cheek against Terrors of the High Seas 51

Dar’s arm. “Bah.” Her voice had lost its hoarseness, though, and seemed more normal in tone. “What a way to wake up.”

Dar stroked her cheek. She could see the sparkling remains of tears caught in Kerry’s lashes, but her expression had relaxed and she appeared much calmer. “And here I thought I’d let you get a little extra sleep. Shoulda woke you up and made you go do calisthenics with me.”

“Mm. Yeah,” Kerry agreed with a wry smile. “Or at least let me watch.” She poked Dar in the belly, a reassuringly playful action.

“I don’t wake up like this when we wake up together.”

No, Dar realized. That’s true. “I’ll keep it in mind next time.”

She gave Kerry a hug. “Interest you in some breakfast?”

A green eyeball peeked up at her. “You cooking?”

“Yep,” Dar said. “Unless you think that might seem like too much of another nightmare.”

Kerry smiled wanly. “As long as it comes with some aspirin.

I’ve got a headache that would knock down an AS400 at a hundred paces.”

Dar slid her hands up to clasp the back of Kerry’s neck, kneading it gently. Kerry slumped against her again and her eyes closed as Dar carefully probed the tense muscles she found under her fingertips. “Hang on.” She eased a knot at the base of her lover’s skull and felt her vertebra shift. “Hm.”

“What’s the verdict, Dr. Dar?” Kerry asked.

Dar kissed her on the head. “Dr. Dar says you get to spend the entire day lazing around with me and relaxing.”

“Ooh.” Kerry exhaled. “That sounds like great medicine.”

Dar gave her a last rub and then got up from the bed. “I’ve got some water on. C’mon.”

Kerry willingly scrambled out from under the covers and followed her like a puppy, one finger hooked in the back of Dar’s swimsuit. She released her partner as they came even with the bathroom. “Let me just put something on, and wash the sleep out of my eyes.”

Dar kept going, ducking behind the counter and reaching for the rattling water pot. “Hush.” She scowled at it as she picked it up and poured the boiling water into the cups she had ready. She left the grounds to steep while she got out two bowls, then filled one from the box she’d gotten down earlier. She then removed some strawberries from the small refrigerator and set to work cutting them into slices, which she let fall on top of the cereal. She had finished several when Kerry appeared, her hair damp and her body clad in a T-shirt.

Kerry went over and leaned on the counter, resting her cheek against Dar’s upper arm. “Thank you for cooking my Wheaties, honey.”

52 Melissa Good Dar laughed silently.

“You made them just the way I like them.” Kerry plucked a flake from the bowl and put it into her mouth, chewing it. “Just right.”

“You’re welcome,” Dar drawled. “Want to go outside?”

“Sure.” Kerry turned and opened the refrigerator, removing a yogurt and adding it to the tray Dar had sitting on the counter. She put the two cups of coffee and some milk on it as well, then stepped back as Dar finished pouring her own breakfast into a bowl and picked up the tray.

She followed Dar onto the back deck, smiling a bit as the cool sea air blew against her. She waited for Dar to put the tray down on the little table, then she took her usual left hand seat and reached for her coffee. A few sips of the brew seemed to ease her headache, and she leaned back, propping one bare foot up against the footrest and gazing off toward the horizon.

The nightmare had shaken her. Kerry put down her cup and picked up her bowl, pouring some milk over the flakes and patting them down with her spoon. She took a mouthful and chewed, one ear cocked to catch the louder crunching as Dar munched on her favorite Frosted Flakes.

Watching her father die had been bad enough. But in her dream, after she relived that again, and again, and again, her father’s stiffened figure would be replaced with Dar’s, and the feeling of utter helplessness and the shock of loss drove her to wake screaming every time.

Kerry forced herself to swallow past the sudden lump in her throat.

“Ker?”

How does she know? Kerry glanced to her right. “Hm?”

Dar was watching her with an expression of concern. “You okay?”

C’mon, Kerrison, get yourself together and let it go. It’s just a damn dream. “Yeah.” She smiled at Dar, trying to convey her gratitude without saying it.

Apparently receiving the message, Dar’s face relaxed and her eyes gentled.

“So.” Kerry firmly shifted her focus. “Tell me more about Charlie and Bud.” She dug into her cereal again. “And Dad.”

“Mmph.” Dar swallowed a mouthful of flakes. “Long story.”

“My favorite kind,” Kerry said.

“They were in a special training class together,” Dar said between bites. “Dad says from the very start, Bud was always confronting him, challenging him, while Charlie was just the opposite.”

“Uh huh.”

Terrors of the High Seas 53

“So, after they graduated, the three of them plus about six other guys were assigned to a special ops unit, and they shipped out for six months,” Dar went on. “Dad said Charlie was a great guy, real friendly, all right to hang out with, but Bud was your typical antisocial, military hardass.”

“I see.”

“They were…somewhere…and ended up under fire,” Dar said.

“I don’t really know what happened, and I’m not sure I want to ask Dad, but they walked into a mine, I guess. They lost two guys and Dad ended up carrying Charlie out.”

“Oh.”

“After that, Charlie got discharged, and a month later, Bud didn’t re-up. They hung out around the guys at the base, though, and it came out that they were lovers.”

“Ah.” Kerry finished her cereal and started on her yogurt.

“So then, Bud accused my Dad of chasing after his partner. He somehow was convinced that the only reason Dad got Charlie out of that firefight was because he wanted to impress him and get between the two of them.” She shook her head. “Bud’s a couple chips short of a motherboard, if you ask me.”

“No.” Kerry disagreed mildly. “He’s just not facing the real picture.” She swallowed a mouthful of the plain dairy and pointed the spoon at her partner. “He doesn’t want to think about the fact that the guy he’s in love with is head over heels in love with your father.”

Dar stopped eating, the spoon still in her mouth. She turned round, almost comical eyes on her partner.

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know that,” Kerry spluttered.

“C’mon, Dar!”

Dar removed the spoon. “Kerry, it took a medical exam for me to figure out I had a crush on you. Gimme a break, okay?”

Suppressing a smile, Kerry went back to her cereal as she watched Dar process out of the corner of her eye.

“Son of a biscuit.”

“You realize what a can of worms we just opened, right?”

“Son of a biscuit.”

KERRY SIPPED FROM the straw in her glass of iced tea, her eyes scanning over the book in her lap. She and Dar had just finished lunch, and true to her word, Dar was sprawled in the chair next to her, doing nothing more than beautifully taking up space, her body splashed with sunlight.

Her mystery novel was interesting, but from time to time Kerry found herself sneaking looks at her companion. Dar’s bathing suit clung to her body and outlined its sculpted lines, which held a hint 54 Melissa Good of dynamic motion despite the light doze Dar was in.

She was glad to see the bruising had faded around Dar’s shoulder, leaving only a faint discoloration that was hardly visible against her tan. Kerry had also noticed that despite her stubborn refusal to go to her prescribed therapy sessions, Dar had mostly stopped favoring the injured arm. Lucky thing.

Her own dislocated shoulder had taken weeks of physical therapy to ease, and she was still being careful of it when she attacked the climbing wall at the gym. Kerry shook her head in wry bemusement and returned her attention to her medieval mystery. She stretched out her bare legs and crossed them at the ankles, then looked up from her book as the sound of a boat engine broke the peaceful silence.

A small tender was coming around the corner of the island.

Kerry tipped her sunglasses down and squinted, wondering if it was the same boat that had passed them by the day before. It was about the same size, but as yet it was too far away for her to tell for certain. It was coming closer, though, and by its arc Kerry suspected its destination was the dock. She set her book down and reached over to close her fingers around Dar’s wrist.

“Hm?” Dar stirred, turning her head towards Kerry. “What’s up?”

Kerry pointed. “Company.”

Dar pulled off her sunglasses, revealing sharp blue eyes that scanned the newcomer intently, all trace of sleep gone. “Ah,” she murmured. “Our curious friends.”

“It is them? You can tell?”

Dar nodded. “Same ID numbers on the bow.”

Kerry squinted, then turned and looked at Dar in amazement.

“You can read those?”

Her partner gave another nod and a shrug. “Yeah. It’s…” Dar made a vague motion near her face, “close up stuff I have a problem with.” She paused. “Sometimes.”

Kerry wasn’t sure if she should be more shocked by the boat, or by Dar’s frank admission of her vision problems. She finally decided to deal with the boat first. “They’re coming here.”

“Looks like it.”

“It could just be coincidence,” Kerry reasoned. “Maybe they heard about the food.”

“Could be,” Dar agreed, settling her glasses back onto her nose and resuming her relaxed posture. “Guess we’ll find out.”

Kerry felt a prickle of apprehension, unsure of what they might be getting into. She watched the boat come nearer and nearer, then slow as it prepared to dock several slips away from them. It occurred to her that both she and Dar were far out of their usual world, and if real trouble found them, it might not be as easy to Terrors of the High Seas 55

deal with as their usual day-to-day crises were. Dar, however, seemed to be completely at ease, so Kerry leaned back in her chair and opened her book, found her spot and continued to read.

The small boat docked and four people got off, three men and a woman. Two of the men continued up the docks toward the buildings, but the third man and the woman headed toward the Dixieland Yankee. Kerry kept her head down, but watched them from behind her sunglasses as they approached, evaluating them.

They were dressed in sharply pressed shirts and Docker shorts, with conspicuous gold at their throats and wrists, and Kerry got an immediate impression of sophistication and money. The woman had blonde hair a few shades darker than her own, pulled back in a neat tail that exposed an elegantly made up face with high cheekbones. Carrying herself with a sense of aggressive self-possession, she was the one who was leading the way toward the boat.The man behind her was tall, dark haired, and skinny to the point of emaciation. He had a high forehead, and he was carrying an over-the-shoulder briefcase with a satellite cell phone clipped to it.

Maybe they just want to say hello, Kerry reasoned. Maybe they just like the boat. Maybe—

“Ahoy, there,” the woman addressed them. “Excuse me.”

Sounds about as friendly as an auditor with hemorrhoids. Kerry closed her book and looked over, aware of Dar’s watchful alertness next to her. “Hi,” she replied. “Something we can do for you?”

The woman put her hands on her slim hips and regarded Kerry.

“We’re looking for some information. Maybe you could help us?”

Hm. “Sure, if we can. Would you like to come aboard?” Kerry politely replied.

They stepped onto the railing, then down onto the deck and approached the two of them. Kerry watched their eyes flick to Dar, who was to all appearances blissfully asleep. The woman returned her attention to Kerry.

“My name is Christen Mayberry,” the woman stated. “This is my associate, Juan Carlos.” She paused, giving Kerry an inquiring look.

“Kerry.” A sudden impulse toward reticence took hold.

“Roberts.” Her ears heard the faint snort of surprise from Dar, and she smiled. “Nice to meet you.”

Christen cleared her throat. “I represent a salvage consortium.

We’ve contracted to do some research and location work in this area.

We saw you out by the straits yesterday, and I was wondering what your interest here is.”

Kerry sorted through that and felt a sense of relief. “Nothing, actually.” She gave the woman a reassuring smile. “We’re just on vacation.”

56 Melissa Good

“And you picked that spot at random?” the man interjected.

“No.” Dar’s low voice broke in. “I picked the spot because it’s got a great view and nice fish.” She lifted a hand and tipped her glasses down, exposing her eyes, which studied their visitors.

“No offense.” Juan Carlos smiled at her. “See anything good?”

“Moray eel as tall as I am,” Dar drawled softly. “And a lot of clowns.”

“Well, that’s great then.” Christen’s attitude suddenly shifted.

“You going to be around long? Maybe we can do dinner. We’re new around here and we don’t know many people.” She leaned against the back railing. “The locals are pretty tough nuts to crack.”

Kerry and Dar exchanged quick glances. “We’ll be around for a few days, yes,” Kerry replied. “I’m sure we can get together.”

“Great.” Christen smiled. “Nice to meet you, Kerry.” Her eyes shifted to Dar questioningly.

“This is my partner, Dar,” Kerry supplied. “Nice to meet you, too.” “We will be seeing you around, I’m sure,” Juan said. “This is a lovely boat you have.”

“Thanks,” Dar replied. “What’s your consortium salvaging? I didn’t think there was anything around here worth going after.”

Juan looked at Christen. “It’s a private commission,” Christen said. “We can’t really discuss it.” She took Juan’s elbow. “We’ll drop by later to set a date for dinner. Let’s go, Juan.” Christen and Juan turned and jumped off the boat, then strolled down the dock together.

Dar and Kerry watched them go, and then looked at each other.

“What the heck was that all about?” Kerry asked.

“I don’t know.” Dar sat up and rested her elbows on her knees, studying Kerry. She gave a half grin. “What was that name change all about?”

Kerry nibbled her lower lip.

“I’m not objecting,” Dar said. “Just a little surprised.”

Kerry crossed one ankle over her knee and rubbed a bit of sand off her skin. “You know,” she finally said, “I’m not really sure why I did that.” Her head tilted to one side, and she peered at Dar with sheepish honesty. “Let me think about it for a while.”

“Sure.” Dar nodded. “As for our visitors... I don’t know what their game is, but now I’m wishing we’d brought the laptops with us.”

“To find out who they are?”

“Yeah.”

Kerry drummed her fingers on arm of the chair. “Well, I guess we’ll just have to ferret that out the old fashioned way,” she said.

“You don’t think they’re going to be a problem, do you?”

“Nah.” Dar shook her head. “Just some gold diggers. We might Terrors of the High Seas 57

not hear from them again, now that they know we’re not after whatever they’re looking for.” Dar put her glasses back on and resumed her comfortable position.

“That’s true.” Kerry tucked her knees up under her chin and wrapped her arms around them, gazing out at the sea thoughtfully.

“They were a little weird, though.”

“Mm.”

“Preppy,” Kerry added. “I don’t know, Dar. They just didn’t seem like sea types. You know what I mean.”

Dar opened one eye. “Maybe they’re the business end,” she suggested. “The money people.”

Kerry pursed her lips. “I just didn’t like them.”

“Well,” Dar captured her hand and squeezed it, “I’ve always trusted your people judgment,” she said. “Why don’t we—”

“Hey, Dar!”

Dar sat up as they heard footsteps approaching rapidly. Rufus was running down the docks toward them. “Hey,” Dar greeted.

He stopped short of the boat. “C’n I come on board?”

Dar waved him over. “Sure.”

The boy grinned and scrambled onto the boat, looking around wide-eyed as he walked across the stern deck. “Wow.”

“Nice, huh?” Dar stood up. “Want to see inside?”

“Sure!” Rufus followed her eagerly as she opened the door, looking up at her in awe as he walked under her arm. “Boy, Dar, you got a lot of muscles!”

Kerry muffled a giggle as she caught the look of bemused consternation on her partner’s face.

“Yeah, I sure do,” Dar replied. “That’s kinda weird for a girl, huh?”

“Yeah.” Rufus nodded solemnly. “But it’s really cool. Can you wrassle a gator?”

Dar chuckled. “C’mon.”

They disappeared inside, leaving Kerry to resume her quiet pondering. She leaned back in her chair and exhaled. “What the hell is going on with you, Kerrison?” She rested her head against her fist and looked inside herself for an answer.

Finally, she lifted her eyes and exhaled, nodding a few times.

Had her family had so enraged and disgusted her, Kerry mused, that a part of her wanted to just leave them behind? Maybe that same part thought that using Dar’s last name instead of her own would rid her of the nightmares.

Is that good or bad? Kerry wasn’t sure. It hadn’t seemed to bother Dar, though. In fact, Kerry suspected Dar kinda liked the theft of her surname. With a thoughtful frown, she picked up the strong golden chain on her neck and regarded the ring through which it was threaded. She and Dar both wore their commitment 58 Melissa Good rings the same way, and now she studied the inscription on hers carefully.

Forever.

Kerry smiled and pushed herself to her feet, shaking her head as she walked toward the cabin. A motion caught her eye and she turned to watch a much smaller boat, just a motored skiff, pull up to the dock and tie on.

The motor died, and a tall, grizzle-haired man with a husky build got out. He was dressed in faded, patched fatigues and a black tank top, and he adjusted a blue cap as he paused on the dock.

His eyes fell on their boat, and he turned and examined it carefully from bow to stern. Then he pivoted on his heel and headed up toward the buildings, walking with a determined, powerful stride.

“You know,” Kerry leaned on the edge of the cabin door, “if I were the gambling type, I’d bet that guy’s name is Bud.” She watched as the man passed Christen and Juan coming back the other way, brushing by them without a word. The two continued back to their boat, but not without a look in Kerry’s direction. “This is starting to look squicky.”

“Did you say something, Ker?” Dar appeared at her elbow.

“I’m just going to kick the engines on and give Rufus the ride I promised him.”

“Sounds like a great idea.” Kerry patted her on the side. “I’ll untie us.” She jumped onto the dock and set them free, aware of being watched from across the way.

Something is definitely going on. Kerry suspected that sooner or later they’d be finding out what it was.