Jack Beale 00 - Dangerous Shoals

climbed on board Irrepressible and while Jack opened the lock and removed the hatch boards from the companionway and disappeared below, Max looked around, amazed at how busy the harbor was this early in the day. Above the chugga-chugga of just started diesels, the click and whirr of the electric winch lowering bait barrels onto waiting boats, and the thump and crash of empty fish boxes being tossed about, shouts and good-natured taunts could be heard as the fishermen greeted each other and prepared for another long day out on the water.
    The steadier sound of a boat, already underway, drew her gaze away from the pier. Turning toward the harbor’s mouth and the ever-brightening sky, her eyes followed the string of still moored boats as each began rocking, one after another, as if touched by an invisible hand. Just after the last boat began rocking she finally saw a lone boat loaded with lobster traps just as it disappeared out of the harbor, its wake the culprit.
    “Hey, Max, the water is on for coffee. Let’s get out of here,” said Jack as he climbed back out into the cockpit and started Irrepressible ’s engine.
    “I had no idea things were so busy down here this early in the morning.”
    “Yeah. Today’s a little busier than normal, but dawn’s a busy time.”
    “What do you want me to do?” she asked as he started the engine.
    “Let’s get the spring lines off first. Then you stand by the bow and I’ll get the stern.”
    Max released the two spring lines and dropped them onto the floats. Newcomers to Irrepressible were always surprised to find that the dock lines were attached to the floats and remained there, rather than the traditional arrangement of staying with the boat.
    Satisfied that all was ready, Jack signaled her to release the bow line. As the bow swung out from the float, he deftly flipped the stern line onto the float and they were free. As they made the turn past the commercial pier, several fishermen waved to them and shouted hellos. Max returned to the cockpit, stood next to Jack, and wrapped her arm around him. He felt her shiver slightly, so he suggested that she go below where it was warmer and she could check on the water he had put on for coffee.
    “Not yet. I’m fine. I’ll go down as soon as we’re out of the harbor.”
    “Suit yourself.”
    The harbor was like glass as they slid toward the ocean. Max looked back and noticed that their wake hardly disturbed the moored boats, unlike the lobster boat she had watched leave earlier. As they cleared the breakwaters the sun broke the horizon, rapidly growing into a huge orange ball. Outside of the harbor, the motion of the boat changed. The gentle rise and fall of the swells were like the deep breaths of an immense sleeping giant. Tiny wavelets began to form on the surface of the water as the faintest breeze could be felt, turning the surface into a million diamonds sparkling in celebration of the new day. Jack smiled as he squinted into the glare, while watching for lobster pots. It would not bode well for the day if he were to catch one with the prop so early. Max disappeared below and returned with two cups of coffee.
    “Thanks.” They were on their way.

CHAPTER 29
    IT HAD BEEN ANOTHER LONG , fruitless night. He was tired and getting ever more impatient. He knew that this was how most jobs were, but it didn’t mean that he liked it, and this one seemed worse than most. He felt like a caged animal. His freedom was so close and yet he was trapped, unable to escape.
    As he drove along the ocean on his way to get coffee, he brooded over his predicament. He grinned as he remembered his last job. It was in the city, and if you knew where to look―which he did―you could readily satisfy your most intimate cravings no matter how depraved. That had made the job more tolerable. Not so today. This place offered little promise of release.
    As the road wound around the harbor, he glanced across the water at Ben’s. It wouldn’t be open for several more hours and so appeared deserted. That’s when he saw what wasn’t there. The boat was gone. He hit the brakes and immediately a loud blast from an air horn shook his car. Startled, he glanced into his mirror and saw only the grill of a very large truck that seemed about to hit him. He hit the gas. His car shot forward, quickly opening up a gap between his car and the truck but also taking him beyond the point where he could see Ben’s and the empty dock. Another look back in the