Jack Beale 00 - Dangerous Shoals

was in the small boat. When he wrapped the body in it and pushed it into the water, it quickly sank out of sight. He smiled with content, but his contentment was short lived as he thought about the other part of his mission. He needed to recover what Daniel had taken, and he was no closer to that goal than he had been before.

CHAPTER 44
    DESPITE THE FACT that it was early afternoon, the dense fog made it feel like dusk. The roar of surf breaking on rocks could be heard but not seen. Everything was wet. Droplets of fog fell like rain as they dripped off every surface, and by the time they reached Donnell’s, both Max and Jack were wet.
    “Rock, paper, scissors to see who bails,” said Jack as they looked down on the dinghy.
    “I don’t think so. I saw a sign back by the house that said lobster rolls. You bail, and I’ll go see if Mrs. Donnell has any,” said Max as she looked back at the large white house.
    “Deal.”
    The dinghy was empty, but not dry, by the time Max returned carrying a large brown paper bag. “I got two rolls, some chips, and a couple of sodas. She even had Dr. Pepper, so I got one for you.”
    “Then we’re off.”
    “But the seats are wet.”
    “You can change when we get back to the boat.”
    * * *
    Twenty minutes later, they were back on Irrepressible . The dinghy was tied securely to the stern, the cabin heater was on, and they were enjoying their lobster rolls in the cozy warmth of the main cabin when they heard a knock on the side of the hull.
    They both froze and looked at each other. “Daniel?”
    Jack moved first. He stood and looked out, but saw only fog. His heart was pounding as he opened the companionway hatch and peered out into the cockpit. A man he didn’t recognize was holding onto Irrepressible ’s rail while standing in a skiff.
    “Aftanoon.”
    As soon as she heard the voice, Max peeked out from behind Jack.
    “Name’s John White. I’m the harbormaster.”
    Jack climbed out into the cockpit. “Jack Beale,” he said as he reached out to shake John’s hand. Then he looked back at Max and said, “That’s my friend Max.”
    John looked over in Max’s direction and gave a slight nod of his head. “Ma’am.” Then he turned back to Jack, “I hear you folks been here for a few days.”
    “We have. Between the rain and the fog we haven’t been able to move. I tried calling you to see if this spot was okay, but I had no luck. Some guy over at the boat yard said it should be okay.”
    “It was, but, the fella’ who owns this mooring has been out. He’ll be back tomorrow. You’ll hafta’ move.”
    “Sure, No problem. Where?”
    “Over there. The big orange buoy,” he said, pointing to a spot several hundred yards away. “I’ll guide you over.”
    Jack turned toward Max, who was still standing in the companionway. “Could you get me the key?”
    She turned and disappeared below.
    A moment later she climbed out into the cockpit. She had put on her jacket and grabbed the yellow bobber with the engine key tied to it. “Here.”
    “Thanks.”
    “I’ll get ready to cast off.” She moved toward the bow. Jack moved aft to start the engine. John let go of Irrepressible , and pushed off, bending over to start his outboard as he did. Both engines started at the same time. Jack checked to make sure that water was spitting out with the exhaust. Satisfied, he called out to Max, “You ready?”
    She waved back. Then turning toward the harbormaster, he said, “Ready.”
    A nod was his response.
    “Max?” Jack called out to the bow. “Any time.”
    He adjusted the idle, pushed the shift lever forward for just a moment, and then returned it to neutral. Irrepressible moved ahead slowly, giving Max some slack on the mooring pennant. He saw her bend down and untie the pennant from the cleat then she leaned over the lifelines and dropped the line into the water. As soon as she dropped it, Jack turned the wheel and shifted into reverse, causing the bow to swing away from the line, which was now floating in the water. When Irrepressible ’s bow was clear, he moved the shift lever first into neutral, then he pushed it forward again, while increasing the engine’s speed. This, with a quick turn of the wheel, stopped her backwards motion and kept her bow swinging away. That’s when it happened. The engine stopped abruptly with a clunking sound.
    “What the … ?” Jack quickly glanced at the engine gauges, looking for any hint as to why the engine had