Blood Cruise: A Deep Sea Thriller (6 page)

10.

“Holy son of a…” Maggie trailed off as she stared at the size of their cabin.

Ben wrapped his arms around her from behind and kissed her neck.

“I hope you’re talking about that bed,” Ben said. “Because we could do some serious damage in that bed. It’s like a super king or something.”

“It’s a normal king,” Maggie said, turning herself in his arms and giving him a long kiss. “But, Mr. Horny, I was talking about the whole room. Did you notice the wet bar?”

“I did,” Ben said. “Want me to fix you a drink?”

“Yes,” Maggie said as she started to slip out of her clothes. “Bring it to me in the bathroom. I’m going to shower, change, and get ready for dinner.”

“I like the sound of that,” Ben said.

“It’s just a shower,” Maggie said as she unhooked her bra and tossed it at him. “We’ll have plenty of time for fun later.”

“Want me to bring you your clothes?” Ben asked.

“No,” Maggie said quickly. Ben frowned. “What? Let a girl have her secrets. No peeking in my suitcase.”

“Okay, okay,” Ben said, hands up in defeat.

Maggie smiled at him then stepped into the bathroom. She started to close the door and stopped in mid-movement.

“Oh. My. GOD!” she cried out. “There’s a tub in here bigger than your minivan!”

“And that tub will get some use tonight too,” Ben said as he went to the wall and popped open one of the closet doors. He stared at what was inside and then shook his head over and over, faster and faster until his face was red with anger. “That son of a bitch. That stupid son of a bitch.”

He grabbed out a crimson silk shirt and stomped into the bathroom.

There was already steam filling the room as Maggie stepped into the shower stall and sighed.

“On second thought,” she said as she saw Ben come in. “Maybe you should join me.”

When Ben didn’t answer, she wiped the condensation from the shower glass and frowned.

“What are you holding” she asked “Benjamin? What is wrong?”

“It’s a crimson silk shirt,” Ben nearly snarled.

“Okay… Is that bad?” Maggie asked. “You like crimson, don’t you? I wear it all the time and you always compliment me on it.”

“Yes, I do like it,” Ben said. “But I don’t wear it. Not anymore.”

“Not anymore? What does that mean?” Maggie asked.

Ben stomped out of the bathroom as Maggie called after him. With the shirt clutched in his fist, he yanked open the cabin door and stormed out into the passageway. He turned to the right and blindly started rushing through the ship.

Upstairs, down stairs, around corner after corner. He found two media rooms, a small ballroom, a full bar done up to look like an Irish pub, a billiards room which confused the hell out of him, a formal dining room, a not-so-formal dining room, a solarium maybe (he wasn’t sure), and finally the steps that led up to the bridge.

“You!” Ben roared as he threw the shirt in Nick’s face. “You son of a bitch!”

“Dude, chill,” Nick said, tossing the shirt aside. “What is the problem? You like crimson. You love silk.”

“You know exactly what the problem is!” Ben shouted as he got up in Nick’s face.

A man in nautical dress standing by the wheel moved towards the two, but Nick held up a hand and he stopped.

“Ben, I’d like you to meet Captain Marcus Staggs,” Nick said, pushing Ben back a couple feet. “He’s the guy that keeps us from crashing into rocks and shit.”

“Not that there are many rocks out in international waters,” Captain Staggs replied. “It’s good to meet you, Mr. Clow.”

“International waters?” Ben asked. “Why would we possibly need to go out into international waters, Nick? Would it have to do with why my closet is filled with crimson silk shirts? Shirts you know I always wore at the table?”

“Yeah, I was going to break the news to him at dinner, Staggs,” Nick said to the captain. “But I probably should have told you that.” Nick reached out and took Ben by the elbow. “Let’s go have a drink, dude. We could both use one.”

Ben yanked his elbow free and pulled his arm back like he was going to hit Nick. Nick just stood there, ready to take the hit. After a couple of seconds, Ben calmed down and shook his head.

“Screw you, Nick,” Ben said as he turned and stormed off. He stomped down the stairs. “Turn this boat around! We are going home!”

Captain Staggs looked at Nick. Nick shook his head and rolled his eyes.

“We aren’t going home,” Nick said.

“Sir, I can’t keep a man here against his will,” Captain Staggs said. “That is kidnapping. I’d not only lose any chance of staying on this ship when you sell it, but I would probably go to jail.”

“No one is going to jail and I already promised you that part of any sales agreement is for you to stay on the ship,” Nick said. “It’s all good. Ben gets a little heated sometimes. We have a long history and it’s complicated.”

A door behind them on the opposite side was flung open and Ben stepped back onto the bridge.

“What? How the hell?” he glared at Nick. “Did MC Escher design this stupid boat?”

“Maybe. And it’s a yacht.” Nick smiled. “Come on, dude. Let’s have that drink and then I’ll show you how to get back to your cabin. You can tell everything to Maggie and see what she thinks. If she agrees that I’m a son of a bitch and that you two should go home then I’ll have Captain Staggs turn this baby around and that’s what will happen. You will go home. But just hear me out, alright?”

“Why, Nick?” Ben asked, some of his anger gone. He looked more exhausted than enraged. “From the second I saw you today this has all been wrong. I could feel it in my gut before I got out of the car.”

“Minivan,” Nick said and smirked. “And if you hear me out and decide to stay then you won’t be driving a minivan anymore. You’ll be driving any damn car you want. Maggie won’t have to work as a teacher and be treated like crap all day. Your kids will be set for life.”

“My kids already are set for life,” Ben said. “Thanks to Bobbi’s parents.”

“But what about yours and Maggie’s kids, man?” Nick asked. “She’s only thirty. You’re only thirty-five. Those are baby-making years nowadays. You think Maggie doesn’t want one of her own? Or a couple of her own? How the hell will you afford them on her salary and the crap money you make from your blog?”

“I don’t make crap money,” Ben said.

“Really?” Nick asked.

“Shut up,” Ben said. He looked at Captain Staggs. “What do you think?”

“Huh? What?” Captain Staggs asked. “No offense, Mr. Clow, but I don’t know you well enough to offer advice.”

“Yeah, but you’re a captain,” Ben said. “You make life-saving decisions all the time. I write a blog on professional poker. What the hell do I know?”

“The first step is admitting it, dude,” Nick said then held up his hands. “Sorry. Too soon.”

“The ship is worth approximately sixty-five million,” Captain Staggs said. “I will be getting five percent of that, as Mr. Sheeran has promised, and I believe he mentioned that you would be getting thirty percent. So you have to ask yourself if thirty percent of sixty-five million is worth the trouble, Mr. Clow.”

“But worth the trouble of what?” Ben asked, turning his attention back on Nick. “What are you up to?”

“Drinks,” Nick said, slowly, cautiously putting his arm around Ben’s shoulders. “Let’s calm your grrrr down then I explain the plan. Cool?”

“Not cool,” Ben said. “Way not cool. But I am going to let you explain. Then I’m going to let you explain to Maggie. You have to sell her, not me.”

“Benny Boy, dude, the only thing I hope that gets sold is this damn money pit,” Nick said. “Honestly. That is what this is all about. Now, come on, I’ll show you how to get to the bar. Or one of them. There are a few. That is important information to have. Trust me.”

11.

Dr. Glouster looked at the two men in front of him. He glanced past them at the vault door and nodded.

“Are you clear on the exact plans?” Dr. Glouster asked the men. “To deviate would mean great risk to yourselves and this ship. As soon as this vault opens, I will open the tank’s hatch and you will lure the creature out. It will suspect a trap which is why we will keep this vault door open. It cannot resist the urge to escape.”

“Seems like a stupid risk,” one of the men said. “What happens if the thing gets out?”

“The same thing that happened to your comrades,” Dr. Glouster said. “Only ship wide.” Dr. Glouster looked up and down the passageway at the dozens of men in each direction. “It is why these men are in place. If you fail at containing the creature then they will be forced to do your job for you.”

“If we fail then that means we’re dead,” the second man said. “I really don’t feel like getting killed by sushi.”

“Cute,” Dr. Glouster said, glaring. “But your joke tells me you do not take this seriously. Perhaps you need to be replaced?”

“No, no, we can handle this,” the first man replied, patting the long baton in his hand. “You’re sure it will stay back if we spark these up?”

“I am positive,” Dr. Glouster said. “It fears electricity, fire, extreme heat of any kind. Due to the creature’s nervous system not being centralized, and spread throughout its body, especially its appendages, its legs are extremely sensitive. It knows what electric shocks feel like. It will avoid them at all cost.”

“You got this thing pretty trained up, doctor,” the second man stated. “Why not tell it to sit and stay?”

“It is a wild creature, despite its time in captivity and its conditioning,” Dr. Glouster said. “It will no more obey my commands than a stray mutt you’d find in an alley.”

“Give a stray a hot dog and it’ll do whatever you tell it to do,” the first man laughed.

“Yes, but you would be the hot dog in this scenario,” Dr. Glouster said. “How do you feel about your analogy now?”

“I’m not getting paid to feel,” the first man replied.

“But getting paid triple like Wagner said won’t matter if we end up as fish food,” the second man said.

“It is not a fish,” Dr. Glouster snapped. “It is in the mollusk family.”

“Mollusk? That thing’s a giant clam?” the first man asked and lifted his shock baton. “Then what we need is a bucket of garlic butter and a flame thrower, not these joy buzzers.”

“Once the creature is out of its tank and focused on you then your teammates will drop down from above, enter the tank, and clean the filtration system,” Dr. Glouster said, ignoring the joke. “I have briefed them thoroughly, so it should only take about five minutes for them to complete their tasks. Once they are done, and clear of the vault, then you will drive the creature back with the shock batons and force it into the tank. You leave quickly, we lock it down, and then you will not have to deal with the creature again. It will all be automated from there. Understood?”

“I understood the plan the first six times, man,” the first man replied.

“Let’s get this over with,” the second man said.

“Yes,” Dr. Glouster said as he motioned to the vault door. “Let’s.”

12.

Bourbon in hand, Ben walked around the oval table, his eyes studying the felt surface. There were eight places to sit, all identical, with inlaid trays for chips on the table as well as a small platform next to each seat for food and drink. Ben took a sip of his bourbon and shook his head.

“Who are the marks?” Ben asked.

“No marks, Benny Boy,” Nick said. “I already told you that. This will be a straight game.”

“No scam, no hustle?” Ben laughed. “Nick, brother, I know you. You don’t play straight games. You’re a cheater and cheaters always cheat.”

“I didn’t cheat that much,” Nick said. “Only when I absolutely had to. We all can’t be poker savants like you, Benny Boy.”

“I savanted my way into almost getting killed,” Ben said. “Mostly because of my association with you.” Ben looked around the room. A bartender stood behind an ornate wooden bar and smiled at Ben. “All the crew in on the job?”

“There is no job,” Nick almost snapped. He took a deep breath. “No job, no scam, no con, no marks. Straight poker. This will be a clean game, trust me.”

Ben raised his eyebrows and Nick sighed.

“I know, I know, you have zero reason to trust me after Mazatlan,” Nick said. “But, come on, Benny! That shit was way out of hand before we walked in that room! What went down wasn’t my fault!”

Ben’s eyebrows remained raised.

“Mostly,” Nick admitted. “It mostly wasn’t my fault.”

“I wasn’t thinking of Mazatlan,” Ben said and the air between them dropped about twenty degrees.

Nick held up a finger. “Don’t go there. Just don’t.”

“Fine. I won’t.” Ben rubbed at his face and calmed down. “The only reason you are holding this game is because you want one of the players to buy this boat off you?” Ben asked. “That’s it. You’re throwing a poker party to do that? Why not just have a dinner party or bring in strippers?”

“First, some of the guests would not respond to strippers,” Nick said.

“Who doesn’t respond to strippers?” Ben asked.

“What’s this about strippers?” Maggie asked as she walked into the game room. “It just took me thirty minutes to look like this. There is no way I’m stripping it off for anyone. Except for Benjamin. Later.”

She was dressed in a sleeveless, black dress that fit her perfectly. The material had a shine to it when it caught the light just right. It hugged her hips nicely without being too provocative, allowing any admirers a chance to fill in the blanks with their own imaginations. Maggie smiled at the men, waited, then quickly frowned.

“No compliments? Really?” she asked.

“Sorry, sorry,” Ben responded as he crossed the room and kissed her. “You look stunning. Which is why I stood there like a slack-jawed moron.”

“You’re always a slack-jawed moron,” Maggie joked. “So next time make sure you use your words.” She looked at Nick. “What’s this about strippers?”

“No strippers,” Nick insisted. “And you do look stunning. My girl knows how to nail measurements. I knew she would. Been using her for years with my on again, off again lady friends. She hasn’t failed yet.”

“You buy dresses for a lot of women without them trying them on first?” Maggie asked. “Big risk. One wrong fit on the butt and you can kiss the romance goodbye.”

“I learned that mistake,” Nick said. “Like I said, my girl knows how to nail measurements.”

“Nick was filling me in on why we’re actually here,” Ben said. “It looks like I’m supposed to play some poker so he can sell this boat.”

“Dude, stop calling it a boat,” Nick said. “It’s a yacht. Boats don’t cost sixty-five million.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Maggie gasped. “Did you say this cost sixty-five million? As in dollars? Sixty-five million dollars?”

“Yeah,” Nick said, grinning. “Impressed?”

“Sickened, actually,” Maggie said. “Do you know how many teachers that could pay? How many teaching assistants? How many new books and furniture for needy schools that could buy?”

“Nope,” Nick said. “And why would that matter to you?”

“Why wouldn’t it matter?” Ben asked. “She’s a teacher.”

“Right, right,” Nick said. “Sorry. The whole public school morass isn’t exactly my thing. But if it’s totally your thing then you can buy all the books and new desks you want with your share. That’s up to you and Benny Boy here.”

“My share?” Maggie asked Ben.

“Our share,” Ben said. “We’re here to sell this boat.”

“Yacht,” Nick corrected. “Yacht. The people that will be arriving soon don’t buy boats. They buy yachts. Yachts, yachts, yachts.”

“I thought you said you were here to play poker?” Maggie asked, her eyes narrowing.

“May I fix you a drink, ma’am?” the bartender asked.

“Pimm’s Cup,” Maggie said. “Don’t skimp on the Pimm’s.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the bartender said and smiled as he got to work.

“Nick wants me to entertain his guest with a game of poker,” Ben said. “While he butters them up and tries to unload this yacht on one of them.”

“With any luck, there might be a bidding war and I’ll get full asking price,” Nick said.

“How’s your luck lately?” Maggie asked.

“It stuck me with this thing,” Nick said. “So, it sucks.”

“Why poker? Why Ben?” Maggie asked.

“Yes, Nick, why poker? Why me?” Ben asked, sipping his bourbon. Maggie took the glass from him and took a drink. She frowned and coughed. Ben laughed and took the glass back. “Bourbon, babe, you should have asked first.”

“I hate bourbon,” Maggie said when her coughing fit was over.

“This should help,” the bartender said as he brought her a highball glass of amber liquid over ice with a slice of cucumber floating on top. “Please let me know if that is to your liking.”

She took a sip and smiled. “It is to my liking. I didn’t catch your name. I’m Maggie.”

“Manny Ruiz,” the bartender replied.

“Reece?” Maggie asked.

“Ruiz,” Manny clarified. “But it is pronounced like Reece, yes. My family has been in Seattle for eight generations, so the pronunciation has become anglicized.”

“Haven’t we all,” Nick said. “I don’t know what that means. Thanks, Manny.”

There was a slight vibration and a far-off noise. Nick stiffened and shot a worried look at Ben.

“I need to know if you are in,” Nick said. “And I kind of need to know now. That’s the chopper.”

“Chopper?” Ben asked. “You can land a chopper on this thing?”

“For sixty-five million this yacht should transform into a chopper,” Maggie said. “And fly itself.”

“Benny Boy? Come on. Don’t leave me hanging here,” Nick said. “Thirty percent of sixty-five million is a sweet, sweet cut.”

Maggie choked on a swallow of her Pimm’s Cup. She grabbed Ben’s arm in an iron grip.

“Ow,” he said as he pulled her hand away.

“I’m sorry, did he say we get thirty percent of sixty-five million?” Maggie asked. “Is that what he meant by me buying all the desks and supplies I wanted for school?”

“That’s what he meant,” Ben said.

“Yeah, he’s in. I’m making the call for him,” Maggie said. “As long as nothing illegal is happening.”

“Nothing illegal,” Nick said. “I promise.”

“Then why are we out in international waters?” Ben asked.

There was a soft tone and Captain Staggs’s voice came out of a speaker set into the ceiling.

“Mr. Sheeran? The guests have arrived,” Captain Staggs said. “I will go greet them myself. Will you be joining me?”

“Yeah, Staggs, I’ll be right there,” Nick said. He looked at Ben. “Come on, man. Please?”

“Answer my question first,” Ben said.

“We’re in international waters because some of the guests may or may not be on certain lists that may or may not make US law enforcement nervous,” Nick said, holding up his hands before the protests could begin. “Not terrorists. Maybe a drug lord and possibly a multi-national crime boss. Or two. They do legit stuff, though, too. That I know of. I try not to pry. Also, if I make the sale here in international waters then I don’t get hit with US taxes.”

“You’ll still have to declare the money,” Maggie said.

“You have no idea the circles I run in,” Nick said and smiled. “I have an army of people that I can call in a moment’s notice that can make sixty-five million disappear. Like that.”

“It’s true,” Ben said. “And it’s legal. It’s why there’s no middle class in America anymore.”

“Boo hoo,” Nick said. “Benny Boy?”

“Nothing illegal,” Ben said.

“Nothing illegal,” Nick said. “I even made a no guns policy. There isn’t a firearm on this yacht, so things can’t get out of hand if the game gets heated.”

“Again, why me?” Ben asked. “You know plenty of pros that would play this game for less than thirty percent.”

“Would you believe me if I said the guests are fans of your blog?” Nick asked.

“No,” Ben said.

“Then you are selling yourself short, because they are,” Nick said. “You’d be surprised by the fan base you have in the underworld. Mazatlan was a cluster, but it also kind of made you a legend, dude. I’m just cashing in on that.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Ben sighed. “Okay, I’m in.”

“Thirty percent of sixty-five million is almost twenty million dollars,” Maggie said. “Twenty million! There is no way you are passing that up.”

“You know nothing about this world, Mags,” Ben said sharply. “Do not even assume you do. Assumptions are very dangerous.”

Maggie looked at Ben for a second then cocked a hip and smiled.

“Not a fan of the condescending tone, but this badass attitude is pretty sexy,” Maggie said as she took Ben’s hand. “Let’s go get you dressed so you can wow your new fans and we can get rich.”

“Thanks, Maggie,” Nick said. “And thank you, Ben.”

“Screw me on this and drug lords will be the least of your worries,” Ben said. “I still know how to use a knife.”

“I know, I know,” Nick said.

“You know how to use a knife?” Maggie asked. “Who is this man of mystery next to me?”

The two left and Nick looked over at Manny.

“You ready?” Nick asked.

“Everything is set, Sheeran,” Manny said. “We’ll make a great impression. Don’t you worry.”

“Mr. Sheeran?” Captain Staggs called over the intercom.

“I’m on my way!” Nick shouted. “I’m on my way!”