"Right."
"And we've successfully dismantled everything—anchor, wheel, all navi devices, motors, sails, riggings?"
"All of the above."
"And the crew doesn't know?"
"We haven't moved five days. Why do you think they wanted to mutiny in the first place?"
"So we're ready. We've got one, and only one, life boat ready to take us back to shore."
"Right."
"Okay. And you're sure they mutiny tomorrow?"
"That's exactly what they told me."
"Okay, we'll start at 1700 hours."
"Leiah!"
Autumn didn't respond.
"Leiah!"
She still didn't turn around.
"Leiah! Or should I say Autumn?"
Autumn froze. "Bosun Kelly!"
"We need to talk."
Autumn shrunk in fear. Whatever was on that hankercheif was not going on her face—chloroform or anything else. But there wan't much resistance she could offer.
"Peter, you've got a note."
"Here, read it aloud."
"Cap'in:"Uh oh.""We have more than you know. Why don't you get this film developed when you get back to land? I think you'll find some interesting shots of your 'wench' tied to a chair. Did I mention that she might run a little late getting to the escape boat? Sorry if I overlooked that."
Autumn found herself in a dark room, taped to a chair. What a waste of tape! she thought. Her hands and arms were taped to the arms of the chair. Her ankles were taped together. Her legs were taped together in three places below her knees, and a few rounds of tape were wound around the chair and her shoulders. The most tape was covering her mouth.
In a manner of speaking, Autumn was stuck.
"Rachel, what do we do?"
"Normally, we'd continue with the mission, unless it was someone like Schwartz. Considering the fact that they will kill her if we leave, and the fact that we're breaking half the rules by having people on our team who we're involved with, we'd better get her. Postpone departure until further notice."
on to Goin' Down Part Four
back to Goin' Down Part Two