Chapter 26
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Friday. Lace was sad to be missing Inez, but happy it was no longer infusion day.
Lace was relaxing into paperwork, when—
“Change of plan,” the captain barked. “We’re heading to Tillie’s Bank.”
Lace huffed. Their destination had been Jeffrey’s Ledge. What was the man thinking? The last time they’d gone to Tillie’s, it had been a huge bust.
What made Captain Asswipe believe that today would be any different?
The Bank was a tuna feeding ground, for sure, but nearly all the fish they’d hooked there a few days earlier— at least nine-tenths of their catch—had been undersized and had to be thrown back. To further cement the futility, no other fleets had been fishing in the vicinity.
“Why is he taking us back there?” Lace questioned Zach and Ryan, standing with them as they baited the thousands of hooks that made up the lay-line they’d be sending out.
Neither young man would look at her, but Lace wasn’t having any of that bullshit.
“Hey. What’s going on?” she asked.
Ryan looked around like he was making sure no one was listening.
“You need to keep your head down and your mouth shut,” he warned in an undertone. “Just work on your computer today, Lace. Please. Don’t pay attention to anything else.”
“What the fuck?” Lace wasn’t above cursing when the need arose. Hell, everyone else onboard did it. “Don’t pay attention to what?” she demanded.
“Lace. Please.” Zach added his muted voice to Ryan’s. “Just don’t…”
He sighed roughly. “Be chill. Fridays are different,” he told her. “If you can just look the other way, everything will be fine.”
“Look the other way…”
Lace was beginning to draw a picture in her head, and it wasn’t pretty.
“Tell me, gentlemen, why did we go to Tillie’s Bank on Wednesday, and why are we headed back there today when we know there are no legal fish there to be caught?”
“Because it’s Friday,” Zach whispered, his hands still baiting hooks; using muscle memory as he spoke. He seemed…distracted.
Lace waited for him to continue.
When he didn’t, she tried again.
“And?” she prompted.
“And you’re never here on Fridays,” Ryan hissed.
The pieces of the puzzle settled into place. Lace’s eyes narrowed
“You’ve been going to Tillie’s every Friday that I’ve been out; catching undersized tuna,” she conjectured. “And that’s why we made the ridiculous trip the other day, to make me complacent with today’s change,” she speculated angrily.
Both young men shifted uncomfortably, refusing to validate her supposition.
“And then what?” she continued probing. “You have a buyer who meets you there, where there’s no one else around to see the transaction, to sell undersized catch?”
When neither Zach nor Ryan spoke, Lace knew she’d guessed correctly, and continued probing.
“So, the buyer was either unwilling or unable to change their scheduled pick-up to Tuesdays? My new day off? So Captain Shithead had to stick to Fridays. Am I right?”
Zach gave a short dip of his chin, acknowledging her suspicions.
“Well, that’s just crap,” she fumed, ready to go rip the captain a new asshole.
She turned to stalk away, and Ryan grabbed her arm.
“Don’t,” he warned.
“Oh, really?” Lace scoffed. “And just how does Captain Dickhead think I’m going to go along with this today?” Her voice rose.
Both her companions looked around, shushing her.
“Quiet,” Zach growled. “He’s… Here’s what’s he’s got planned. We’re supposed to lay our lines, then before we haul in or make contact with our buyer, Cap’s got something he’s going to put in your late lunch that will knock you out so you won’t remember anything that happens after you eat.”
“Seriously?” Lace bit out sharply. “And you two are just going to go along with that?”
“He threatened everyone,” Ryan admitted sheepishly. “And it’s either that, or something worse that could happen to you.”
Lace felt sick at heart that these two were poised to betray her. For…
“It’s money, isn’t it,” she stated in a flat voice.
Zach nodded. “What we get today?” he confirmed, his head hanging. “It’s equal to what we make our other six days, combined. And they pay us in cash.”
Lace tried to see it from their standpoint.
Part of her understood. These kids worked their tails off, and the rewards were few. But they had to know that breaking the law would eventually come back and burn their asses.
“Sorry guys,” she said regretfully. “I need to contact my bosses with what’s been going on.” Lace became resolute. “This is highly illegal, and once NOAA gets wind of what’s been happening here on aboard the Water Wrestler, they’ll be shutting this whole operation down.”
She wagged her finger in their faces. “You two will most likely be fined, and…” she shook her head. “…I doubt any other captains working hereabouts will want to hire you on once they find out what you’ve been up to.”
Lace had never, personally, met a dishonest commercial captain in her years at sea. It was a rarity. And she knew that every honest fisherman up and down the coast would ostracize this entire crew.
“Lace. Please don’t turn us in.” Zach spoke more loudly this time, becoming agitated. “You know I need the money for my mother.”
“And my girlfriend will fucking leave me if I stop bringing in that cash,” Ryan whined.
Lace felt bad about Zach’s mother, but Ryan’s girlfriend?
“She’s not worth your time,” Lace spat at him, but her stoicism slowly deflated. She really liked these two, and didn’t want to ruin their lives.
“Listen. I’ll do what I can for you both,” she offered with a long, pained exhale, “but you have to promise that after this, no more dishonesty. And you seriously need to rethink your lives; where you’re both headed for the future.”
“We will.” Zach’s answer was immediate, but Ryan…
He was shaking his head. “I can’t let you stop us. It will ruin everything.”
“Continuing this way will ruin everything,” Lace laid out baldly. “Cheating and lying is a slippery slope, and only leads to worse crimes later on. You have to take a stand on this, right now.”
Ryan shot her an undefinable grimace, and walked away grumbling.
“Talk to him,” Lace told Zach. “You know this isn’t good for either of you.”
“Yeah,” Zach lamented. “We got sucked into it. But we didn’t understand what was happening at first. Then once the captain had us doing what he wanted, he threatened that we’d go down with him if we ever told anybody.”
“And the money is good,” Lace interjected sadly.
“Yeah. The money is good.” Zach looked repentant. “You know what though? I’m kind of glad you’re pulling the plug. I knew it would only be a matter of time before my mother found out, and… Damn. She’s going to be so disappointed in me.”
“I’ll talk to her,” Lace promised, because she sensed that Zach really was a good kid. “But right now, I need to get my laptop and let my office know what’s been going on.”
“What should I do?” Zach asked despondently.
Lace laid a hand on his arm. “Just keep baiting hooks. That way the captain can’t blame you for anything.”
Zach nodded as Lace turned and walked away.
Fucker, she swore at the captain in her head.
The asshole didn’t give two shits if he ruined lives. He was all about the money. Well, where he’d be going, he wouldn’t have to worry about much of anything but pocket change for cigarettes and phone calls.
“Hey! Heiger!”
Captain Crooked’s irate voice hit her like a blow.
Oh, Ryan. You didn’t.
Lace felt disappointment in the pit of her gut.
It was clear the young man had squealed on her, and Lace wasn’t dumb enough to think there wouldn’t be consequences.
For her.
“Yes, Captain?” she replied over her shoulder as she hustled back to the spot where she’d left her computer. If she could just get it open…
He strode rapidly across the deck after her, his feet easily chewing up the distance between them.
“I hear you have a problem with where we’re going today?” he hissed angrily
Lace knew she wasn’t going to reach her laptop before the man got to her, so she spun around to confront him. “What I have a problem with, is you selling black-market, undersized tuna,” she snapped right back.
“And you think you’re going to turn me in,” he glowered.
Lace didn’t flinch. “It’s my job.”
“Well, your job and mine don’t jibe,” he retorted, his face growing red.
Lace couldn’t believe they were even having this conversation. She tried to remain calm. “What you’re doing is against the law, and I’m obligated to report it.”
“Not if you’re dead.” His eyes took on an evil cast as he closed the remaining few feet between them.
Dead? What is he…?
The captain grabbed her upper arm and wrestled her aft. Toward the transom where large fish were sometimes dragged aboard. And it…
Oh my god, it’s wide open.
He was going to fucking throw her overboard.
Lace screamed as he dragged her across the deck, but it was fruitless. He had at least a hundred pounds and a good foot in height on her, so she was no match for his strength.
She glanced behind the irate captain, and saw the rest of the crew simply standing there. Doing nothing to help.
“You’re all going to let this happen?” she cried out. “This is murder, you know. You’ll all be found complicit.”
Zach alone must have finally reached the limit of his perfidy, because he pulled away from the pack and ran toward the captain, grabbing his arm.
“You have to stop,” Zach yelled.
“Boy, I’m warning you,” the captain snarled. “You interfere now and you’ll be joining her.”
“It’s wrong,” Zach shouted, pale but undeterred. “Let her go.”
The captain loosened his grip on Lace for one second, elbowing Zach hard in the ribs and sending him to the deck.
The captain bellowed at him. “I’ll deal with you, later.”
Lace had managed to take a few steps away, but the captain was able to latch back onto her.
Zach wasn’t giving up, though. He grabbed the captain’s leg, trying to hold him in place, but the evil skipper merely dragged them all aft.
Lace struggled. Zach scrabbled at a brass hatch closure and held on to slow them down..