Jack Beale 00 - Dangerous Shoals

watched him disappear below. She felt helpless, and tears began to well up in her eyes. There was no doubt in her mind that he would fulfill his threats without any hesitation.

CHAPTER 99
    TOM’S HEART WAS pounding and his hands felt sweaty while he accelerated toward Ben’s with blues flashing and siren screaming. As he crossed the bridge, he didn’t see Irrepressible in her usual spot tied to the end of the floats. He made no effort at discretion as he wheeled into the parking lot and skidded to a stop at the end of the pier. Leaving the lights flashing, he ran the length of the pier, all the while looking out at the mouth of the harbor for any sign of the boat. “Shit!” he cursed. Irrepressible was already past the breakwaters. He kicked one of the railing posts and walked in several tight circles as he gulped in lungfuls of air before walking rapidly back to his car.
    “Tom! What the hell is going on?” Courtney’s voice rang out as he reached the cruiser. A small crowd was beginning to form. There was lots of pointing and gesturing going on.
    “Did you see Jack leave?”
    “Well, yes and no. Max was down on the boat when he came in looking for some ice. Patti talked to him. As they sailed out of the harbor, we could see them on the boat and they waved at us. Why?”
    “Did you see anyone else?”
    “No. Tom, what’s going on?” He could hear the panic in her voice.
    A second cruiser pulled in right then and Tom walked away from Courtney, leaving her sputtering under her breath. As Tom walked off, Patti came running out and joined the crowd.
    “Courtney, what’s going on?”
    “I don’t know, but something has happened.”
    “What?”
    “He’s looking for Jack.”
    “Jack?”
    As they watched, Tom had a short conversation with the driver of the other cruiser. Then it sped off and turned down the road to the commercial pier. Tom walked back, brushed past Courtney without a word, climbed into his car, slammed the door, and picked up his radio. Courtney and Patti stood in stunned silence.

CHAPTER 100
    KURT TOOK ONE last look back at her through the companionway before disappearing below, and he smiled when he thought he saw tears. He knew that she would do as he wished. But first, he had some preparations to see to. Jack was still unconscious on the cabin floor. Kurt gave him another kick, just for being there.
    He grabbed his messenger bag. He put the disc in and removed both the plastic hose and the can he had stolen from the chemistry lab. A quick search of the cabinets under the sink turned up what he wanted next: a bucket. He took the bucket and the hose and climbed back out into the cockpit. Max silently watched. He opened the starboard cockpit seat locker and peered inside. Not seeing what he was looking for, he began pulling the contents out, tossing everything into the cockpit. After it was empty, he stood, cursed, and tossed everything back inside. Then he slammed the locker shut.
    Turning toward the second locker on the port side, he repeated the process. Only this time, after emptying the locker, he didn’t start throwing the contents back in. He paused, and as he looked down into the empty locker, Max thought she detected a slight grin on his face. He picked up the bucket and the hose and then climbed into the locker. When he bent over, Max could see only the curve of his back, not what he was doing. When she began to smell the distinct odor of diesel fuel, her stomach knotted up and she felt sick. “He wouldn’t,” she thought, but something told her he would.
    It wasn’t long before he stood. He was still inside the locker, and she could only see him from the waist up. He lifted the bucket and placed it on the seat in front of the companionway. Max could see that it was full of diesel fuel. “No!” she wanted to scream, but fear kept her silent as she watched him climb out of the locker. Leaving the contents scattered about the cockpit, he closed the lid and turned toward her. In a slow, measured growl he said, “Remember, quiet and steady or your boyfriend will begin to die piece by piece.” Then he lifted the bucket of diesel and climbed through the companionway, disappearing down into the cabin.
    * * *
    Below, Jack’s limp form was in the way, so Kurt wrestled it up onto one of the berths. Then he grabbed a pillow from the forward cabin and some towels from the head. He stuffed these into the bucket of diesel until most of the fuel was absorbed. The towel he