Apocalyptic pirates 4, p.2
Apocalyptic Pirates 4, page 2
Letty stepped close to me and wrapped her arms around my waist.
“You’re a real good guy, Drew, you know that?” she told me as she gazed up into my face.
“Why thank you,” I chuckled. “I try.”
I bent down and stole a kiss from her soft lips.
Letty gave a little moan under my mouth, and the desire to seize her around the waist and make a mess on the table I’d just cleaned was overwhelming.
Focus, Drew.
“So,” I murmured. “What’s the story with the supplies?”
“Oh, yeah.” Letty pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket. “I made some notes about the most important things we need. We’re doing okay for canned goods, but we are going to need to pick up some fresh fruit and vegetables soon. Otherwise we’ll die of scurvy like the pirates of old.”
“Not a good look for us.” I shook my head. “Okay, fresh stuff. What else?”
“Soap,” Letty said. “Toilet paper. And, um…”
“What?” I pushed.
“Well.” Letty’s cheeks flushed, and she swallowed. “We, uh, we’re going to need some more tampons pretty soon.”
“Oh, shit, yeah, we’re probably almost out of those.” I ran my hand through my hair as I thought. “These kinds of things are going to be harder to find than just food.”
“I’m sorry,” Letty said in a rush. “I know it’s an inconvenience, and it’s probably not what you want to hear about, but–”
“Letty.” I stopped her. “You don’t have to apologize for needing tampons.”
“I know, but…” Letty looked away.
“Hey,” I insisted. “I mean it. We’re going to need to stock up on soap and other toiletries soon as well, so needing tampons or sanitary pads is just another essential supply we need to keep in mind.”
Letty still looked embarrassed.
“It’s a part of having women on board,” I told her with a smile. “And it’s not like you guys can help it. It’s a part of having a uterus.”
“Well, yeah.” Letty half-laughed. “Most of the time I wish it wasn’t.”
“But it is, so don’t worry about it,” I told her. “We’ll add it to the list.”
Letty smiled and reached up on her tiptoes to find my lips again. I kissed her deeply, and she sighed and pressed her full breasts against my chest.
My hands found her waist and then went lower and cupped her ass. Her cheeks filled my hands, and I dug my fingers in, which made Letty give a little moan of pleasure.
“I hope we’re not interrupting anything,” Shannon called from the doorway.
Letty and I sprang away from each other as the other women came into the kitchen.
Letty’s cheeks were an alluringly deep red, but she tucked a curl behind her ear with a dignified air.
“Having a good time there?” Dia inquired with a grin.
“Yes, thank you,” Letty replied with a ladylike sniff. “I was just thanking Drew for all his hard work in the kitchen.”
“It looks very nice, Drew,” Ally told me with a twinkle in her eye.
“Thank you,” I replied. “And of course if anyone else would like to thank me…”
“Don’t push your luck, mister,” Ally responded, and she gave me a playful swat on the arm.
“Anyway.” I chuckled and cleared my throat. “What’s the news on everything?”
“The yacht’s engine is ticking over just fine.” Ally smiled at Dia. “Dia had a look at the filters and gave them a clean out, which was great because I wouldn’t have the first idea where to start with that.”
“It’s not that hard,” Dia said with a shrug, but I could tell she was secretly pleased by Ally’s praise. “And now we shouldn’t have to worry about the engine overheating any time soon.”
“Great.” I flashed her a quick grin.
“Weapons are all good,” Shannon informed us. “We’re lower on ammunition than we were, of course, but it looks like we’ve got enough to get by on. Hopefully we’ll be able to trade for some ammo when we next meet friendly humans.”
“And the meds?” I asked.
“They’re good, too,” she affirmed. “We’re running low on some basics. We traded a lot of Benadryl and aspirin with the islanders on Boca Grande, so that’s something to keep in mind.”
“That sounds pretty good.” I nodded. “It looks like it’s just food and some other essentials we need.”
“Haven’t we got a lot of cans?” Dia frowned.
“We do,” Letty told her. “But we need some fresh food, too.”
“Oh, right, yeah.” Dia grinned and rolled her eyes. “I always forget about that kind of thing.”
“Didn’t you live for a week on food from the vending machines in that airport?” Ally raised an eyebrow. “I would have thought you’d be sick of processed food.”
“Well…” Dia lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “At the time I was, yeah. After your fiftieth Twinkie, it does get to be a bit much. But what can I say? Your girl loves some junk food.”
“Fifty Twinkies?” Ally pulled a face. “I think I would rather die.”
“I’ll tell you what’s good.” Dia’s eyes gleamed. “There was this little bodega near one of my schools when I was a kid, and they used to sell deep fried Twinkies.”
“Oh, my god.” Ally closed her eyes in anguish.
“Qué nota,” Dia sighed. “I could eat a fried Twinkie right now.”
“Well, Dia’s questionable taste in desserts aside,” Letty said, and she grinned when Dia stuck her tongue out at her. “We need to pick up some fresh food soon. Cans of beans and vegetables are great, but I’d feel much better if we could pick up something that doesn’t have an expiration date stamped on the side.”
“Plus we need things like soap,” I added. “Toiletries and stuff like that, which is going to be a bit harder to source.”
“Yeah,” Shannon agreed. “I don’t think any random boats we meet would be interested in handing over their supply of toilet paper.”
“If they’re even friendly toward us,” Letty added.
“Yeah.” I looked at Ally. “Can you bring the map in here, Ally?”
“Sure,” Ally replied, and she went out to the cockpit and was back in a few moments with the map.
She spread it out on the table for us to see, and we all crowded around.
“So we’re here, right?” Shannon tapped the curve of Nicaragua on the map.
“Yeah.” Ally’s neatly manicured nail traced our path through the Caribbean Sea. “So we’ve just passed by this island here, Miskito Cay, and we’re on track to carry on south and follow the Nicaraguan coastline down toward Costa Rica.”
“What’s this?” I pointed toward another small island on the map. It was some way out in the ocean, and there was another smaller island a little way below it.
“That’s Providencia Island,” Ally explained.
“It’s inhabited, right?” I questioned. “I bet there was a lot of tourist traffic.”
“From what I’ve read about it, yeah,” Ally agreed.
I pulled out my phone to look up some details, but the connection was so laggy that it wasn’t worth the time.
“Well, there’s bound to be a resort or hotel there that we could raid,” I said. “And if the tourists there left in a hurry, who knows what they might have left behind?”
“It’ll be a goldmine of supplies,” Shannon breathed. “That’s a great idea, Drew. We have to check it out.”
“Even if their fresh food has gone bad by now, there’s bound to be toiletries we can take,” I said. “And there might be more medicine or some other useful supplies we might find.”
“I just hope they might have some clothes I can steal,” Dia grumbled. “It’d be real nice to wear a top that fits me.”
“I don’t know,” I told her with a slow smile. “I think you look pretty good.”
“Oh.” Dia’s cheeks flushed pink. She crossed her arms over her chest.
“Sorry,” I said quickly. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”
“No, no.” She shook her head, and the corner of her mouth lifted in a smile. “It’s nice to hear. I just don’t feel it, I guess, when I’m not in control of what I look like.”
“I’m sure you’ll be able to find some clothes there,” Shannon assured her. “And then maybe you can stop stretching out my tank tops.”
“I am not stretching them out!” Dia scoffed. “It’s not my fault I have God-given assets.”
I chuckled. “What do we think, then? Shall we change course for Providencia?”
There was emphatic nodding all around.
“Alright!” Ally jumped up. “I’ll go and change course. I reckon with this wind behind us, we should get there tomorrow morning.”
“Thanks,” I called after her, and I went back to the sink to retrieve the rubber gloves.
“Are you going back to chores?” Dia asked incredulously.
“I want to finish cleaning the stove,” I told her.
“Wow.” She chuckled and shook her head. “I can’t believe you’re actually volunteering for housework. Well, yachtwork.”
“I like my living space to be tidy,” I said with a shrug. “Besides, Letty works so hard on cooking for us in here, it feels fair to contribute by cleaning.”
“Mhmm,” Letty hummed. “My aunty always says it’s good manners that whoever didn’t do the cooking helps with the cleaning.”
“That’s fair,” Dia conceded. “Is there anything I can help with?”
“Sure.” I grinned and tossed her a microfiber cloth. “You can dust the windows and surfaces.”
“And I am going to sit down here and enjoy the sight of the two of you at work,” Letty announced.
“And I’ll join you.” Shannon sat down next to Letty at the table, and she folded her hands under her chin as she watched us completing our chores.
The rest of that day passed by in simple ways.
Dia and I ended up giving the whole yacht a thorough cleaning, and Letty made a batch of biscuits, which were perfect for when we needed a quick breakfast or lunch. Ally sunbathed on the deck and chatted to Shannon, who was busily occupied in stripping and cleaning the weapons we had in our stash.
All in all, it was a good day, and although I kept a close eye on the horizon, we didn’t see any other boats, planes, helicopters, or signs of life from other humans.
It felt good to have a day that was just about maintenance, and I was glad for the women’s sake that we were able to have some time where we weren’t running for our lives or engaged in shootouts with violent cartel members.
I tried a couple more times to check for any information we could find on Google about the island, and while individual webpages wouldn’t load, the list of results assured me we definitely could find nice resorts on the island.
It was a promising endeavor, to say the least.
The next morning dawned bright and clear and just as beautiful as the day before, and it wasn’t long after breakfast that we spotted the island of Providencia on the horizon.
It was an extremely pretty sight with sapphire-blue waters and lush vegetation growing everywhere. As we got closer to the island and saw the white sandy beaches sparkling underneath the bright sun, we spotted a simple dock that must have been used for boats by the guests at the resorts. It was little more than a simple wooden pier that led to a rough pathway that wound its way through the tall palm trees, but there were none of the ripped-up trees or clawed gouges in the earth that we were beginning to recognize as signs of dragon activity.
Still, just to be safe, we sent the drone ahead. We did a sweep of the area around where we were planning on docking, and even headed inland to the nearest resort. It was like an island paradise everywhere we looked, even with the general destruction we were used to seeing by now. We didn’t see signs of life anywhere along the way, though, so once we got the drone back on deck, Ally brought the yacht close to the dock and weighed anchor.
I went below deck where the women were loading themselves up with empty bags ready to carry back any treasure that we found.
“Ready, jefe?” Dia sang out as she slung a bag over each shoulder.
“I’m ready,” I replied. “We’re all moored and ready to go.”
“Sweet.” Dia bounced out of the galley and through the hatch.
Letty followed her, and Shannon was about to head on deck as well when I called her back.
“Shannon,” I said quietly. “Can you stay here with Ally?”
“But Drew,” Shannon protested. “You know I’m the best shot. What if there’s trouble on land?”
“Then I’ll have Letty and Dia to help me,” I assured her. “Between the three of us, we’re not a bad team. But Ally is our least strong shooter. She needs you.”
“Good point,” she acknowledged a little reluctantly.
“I know you’re not a fan of staying where it’s safe, but I can’t leave Ally by herself on the yacht,” I explained. “And I’d feel so much better if I knew that you were here with her. I know that she would, too.”
Shannon’s expression softened.
“Okay.” She sighed. “I don’t like the idea of you guys out there without me, but I for damn sure hate the idea of Ally being alone. I’ll stay here.”
“Thank you.” I planted a light kiss on her forehead before leaving the room to go back on deck.
“Just make sure you bring me back some fancy soap,” Shannon called after me.
“I will,” I called back.
Dia and Letty were already waiting impatiently at the side of the boat.
“Right,” I said, and double-checked everything. “Everyone armed? Got their bags?”
“Yessssss.” Dia was almost jumping up and down with impatience. “Let’s go already!”
“Alright,” I chuckled. “It pays to be prepared, you know.”
“Oh, come on, let’s do it!” Dia grabbed the guard rail and climbed down the side of the yacht.
“Just wait a second,” I began, but the Latina woman was too impatient to stop and listen.
Dia’s sneaker touched the dock.
And there came the sudden boom of a gunshot.
Chapter 2
“Dia!” I yelled.
I swung my rifle up and around as I tried to pinpoint where the shot had come from.
Dia scrambled back up the side of the yacht and almost fell onto the deck.
“Oops,” she panted. “All safe and sound.”
“And this is why it pays to be prepared,” I gritted out. “Get back out of the range of fire so you’re not an easy target.”
“When will you start listening to Drew?” Letty scolded Dia as we backed away toward the cockpit. “He usually knows what he’s talking about!”
Dia glowered at her, but for once she didn’t have a retort ready.
Another shot boomed out, and this time it was clear that the shooter wasn’t nearby.
I strained my ears to listen for any more sounds of gunfire, but after those two initial shots, it seemed like the shooter had fallen silent.
Shannon had rushed out of the cockpit, and now she hurried to stand by my side.
“Who is it?” the Indian woman asked in a low voice. “Can you see them?”
“They’re not nearby,” I replied. “Those shots came from further inland.”
“So there’s definitely someone here on this island,” she noted. “And they have a gun.”
“Yeah.” I scanned the horizon through my sights, but there was nothing but gently waving palm trees in the foreground.
“What do you think?” Shannon asked. “Should we get out of here?”
“I think it’s worth the risk to stay,” I replied. “You said it yourself, the hotel has supplies that we really need. And as far as we know, whoever’s shooting doesn’t know that we’re here.”
“Plus, if there are survivors on this island, they might need our help,” Letty added.
“Well, I was thinking more about how they won’t realize where we’re headed,” I said. “We might be able to raid the hotel and get back here without anyone realizing that we were even on this island.”
“We need to help survivors if we can, though,” Letty protested.
“I know you want to help people,” I said in a gentle voice. “But I have to think about our safety as well. I can’t risk you guys getting hurt for the sake of some strangers.”
“I guess you’re right,” Letty sighed.
I couldn’t help but love the women for their huge hearts and seemingly endless supply for sympathy for every person we encountered. I smiled and patted Letty’s arm, and she gave me a soft smile in return.
“Keep your eyes open,” Shannon insisted. “Now that we know there’s a shooter on the island, you guys have to be even more careful.”
“We’ll wait a while to make sure it’s safe before we leave the yacht,” I reassured her.
“Okay.” She nodded and adjusted her grip on her rifle.
We waited, but after ten minutes there were no more shots, and I judged that the coast was clear.
I went over to where Letty and Dia were standing with their weapons ready.
“Are you guys ready to go?” I asked them.
“Are you still going?” Letty asked me and raised her chin when I nodded in affirmation. “Then we’re going, too.”
“Yep,” Dia confirmed.
“Okay.” I headed to the cockpit with Shannon on my tail, and I leaned in the doorway to fill Ally in. “We’re heading out. Stay sharp, and normal rules apply: shoot anyone who so much as looks at this yacht wrong, and if things really go sideways, sail out a ways and wait for us to return. Then come pick us up.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Ally agreed.
I went to the edge of the guard rail and quickly climbed over the side of the yacht. I gestured to Letty and Dia to climb down and join me, and then I waved to Shannon, who leaned over the edge of the boat to see us leave.
“Alright?” I called to her.
“Yep.” She gave me a salute. “Be safe out there.”
