Hitch Hikers by Ian Dolby - HTML preview

Leaving the girls snoozing and hopefully slowly recovering in the cockpit, they took Corrine's phone and went for'rard to the bow, confident that James, although just unde r their feet, was too far out of it to hear anything short of a nuclear explosion.

‘Xavier.’

‘This is Miss Corrine, Mr Xavier, with a further report.’

‘Excellent, Miss Corrine. Go ahead.’

‘The social discussion we had with the two female civilians was fruitless, so I felt it necessary to use my medical kit.’

‘There was no other way, I presume?’

‘Correct, Mr Xavier. No information was forthcoming in normal conversation and I didn't feel force was a prudent way to achieve the results we needed. ’

‘I concur, Miss Corrine. Go ahead.’

‘The civilians responded well to the treatment and revealed the information needed. It appears Mr James had heard about the open reward and decided to set up a freelance operation, using the two civilians as operatives. He intended to supply them the latest intelligence on the search progress, then delay us sufficiently by misdirection, so his crew could acquire the targets first.’

‘That is very distressing news, Miss Corrine and I commend you and Mr David most highly. Mr James has behaved extremely badly and I shall deal with him in an appropriate manner. What are your recommendations for further progress? ’

Corrine took a deep breath, unused to having her opinion asked for by the boss. ‘Mr Robert should proceed here as planned to collect Mr James. Once he has, Mr David and I will depart to commence the search of the Lakes. We are confident the targets are hiding there. It’s a vast area with thousands of hiding places.’

‘Is it possible they have returned to the islands in the Bass Strait?’

‘Very unlikely, sir. They have apparently been to several of those islands already, and it is logical for them to seek a different hiding place. Since it is school holiday time, there are a great number of boats using the Lakes, so it will be easier for them to hide in plain sight.’

‘Very well. Your reasoning is sound.’

‘Thank you, sir. We further recommend the two civilians should accompany us, as they will still remember the deal with Mr James, and cannot be allowed to roam freely without control. Given the public nature of their contact with Mr James, and the attention this search has already gained from the police, we don't believe a terminal 306

sanction would be wise. They are basically greedy innocents and we believe that after I tell them a suitably modified story, they will willingly accompany us, and will actively assist our search.’

‘That would seem to be a risky move, Miss Corrine.’

‘With respect, sir, we believe the risk to be quite low. The chemical analysis revealed both civilians have already developed an emotional attachment to Mr David, which is why we believe they will be happy passengers.’

‘I see. I must confess, Miss Corrine, my understanding of this subject is very limited and I shall bow to your superior judgement. But I do urge extreme caution. It is not Company Policy to involve civilians in the middle of an active investigation –

particularly one that may be entering its end phase.’

‘I understand and thank you for your confidence, Mr Xavier. We will continue to ensure it is not misplaced. As a fallback, I am quite prepared to apply a terminal solution should our judgement prove incorrect. Being on the Lakes will make the job very easy, if it becomes necessary.’

‘Excellent, Miss Corrine. I am well-pleased and believe you are indeed the correct person for the job. You are now the lead operative in this operation, and Mr Robert will deliver additional information to you tomorrow. Please proceed using your best judgment and keep me informed.’

‘Congratulations on your promotion,’ Dave offered.

Corrine snorted, ‘Yeah, thanks. But it just means as long as we make the right calls, we’re sweet. But just one fuck-up and we're toast. I told you things were tough climbing the rank structure. You should have stayed being the boat driver, Dave, it's much safer.’

‘Thanks for the tip,’ Dave grinned. ‘What do we do now, Boss?’

She kicked him gently in the shin. ‘Okay. First, check James to see he's still alive.

Second, we need to park the girls somewhere safe for the night where they won't get into trouble. Third, we need to get some rest ourselves.’

‘I'll check James,’ Dave offered, ‘but if the girls are still zonked out, can't you tell them to go to bed and stay put?’

‘That's probably true. I've never needed to try that before, but do we want them aboard or ashore?’

‘Much safer aboard.’ Dave suggested. ‘They can have the twin cabin, and if you tell them we’re all going cruising, I can get their gear tonight or tomorrow, whatever works.’

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Corrine scowled at herself, ‘You're right. I’m not thinking clearly. We can't leave them alone for a minute – especially now. How about I get their room key from Jackie’s purse and you get their stuff? Pack their gear quietly, then leave the key in the room.

The housekeeper will find it in the morning.’

Dave nodded, ‘Yeah, righto. Can you get them down below alright?’

‘Yeah. I'll do it shortly. I'll wake ‘em and say they’re allowed to stay aboard, then go cruising tomorrow. They’ll be rapt. It's all they've been talking about.’

Dave fetched the room key and went ashore. Being holiday time, there were still lots of people around, so he was just one more dude going to his room. The girls were a tidy pair, but his packing was quick and rough, thinking they’d sort out whose gear was in what bag tomorrow.

He found their car keys and decided to move it from the hotel to the street. After he carried their bags down to the car, he wiped everything he might have touched in the room and left the key on the table.

He parked their Falcon XR6 outside the pub’s bottle shop, then carted their bags to the dinghy. Less than thirty minutes after leaving, he was back on board, humping the suitcases into the saloon.

‘Any problems?’ Corrine asked.

‘Nah. Sweet as. I moved their car into the street, and found their mobile phones in the room. I turned them off and left them in the car. That'll keep ‘em out of contact.’

She gave him an admiring look. ‘Bloody good thinking, dude! If you keep this up, I'll have to promote you.’

‘No way!’ he laughed. ‘I'm just the boat driver, backing up the pretty lady. But how are our guests settling in?’

‘Pretty good, considering. They wanted to know when their bed mate was coming back, so I had to tell a slight porky by saying I was already your bed mate, and you didn't have either the time or energy for two more for the moment. I suggested they should sleep on it tonight and we'd see what tomorrow brings. They seemed to like the thought of that, so expect some interesting attention from them for a few days. Otherwise, they're happy to be aboard and going for their 'cruise'.’

‘Bed mate, huh! Good thinking! I didn't know how to get out of it their offer. Two uninhibited females at once might be too much of a drought-breaker for this little black duck!’

Corrine gave him a look. ‘So that bit earlier today about it being a long time between drinks was for real?’

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He gave a wry grin. ‘Yep! Living on the flashiest boat on the marina doesn't always guarantee a bedmate. And of the few offers I did get, most aren’t worth even looking at.

But anyway, you just scored the job of carting their suitcases down below. I'm not going near them for a week!’

Corrine laughed at the big, tough ex-surfer, ex-lifesaver, being scared of two lustful females.

‘Anyway, where are they now?’ Dave asked.

‘In their beds, of course, and should be pretty much asleep. You'd be safe going in there, but don't worry, I'll play porter and drag their baggage around. Don't worry about me! I'll be all right!’

After poking out his tongue to her, Dave checked on James in his comfortable little cell, but he was still curled up in the tiny shower recess, semi-comatose. After stowing the dinghy in its under-cockpit garage, he locked up, figured Corrine must have gone to bed. He showered and went to bed, sleeping the deep, restful sleep of a truly innocent spirit.

CHAPTER 59... Seeker... David & Corrine...Lakes Entrance...Tuesday Dave woke early as was his habit, and after a slash and a quick rake of his unruly blonde hair, wandered out to the galley to make a cuppa. He'd only just boiled the kettle, when Allie wandered out of their cabin, half-asleep, but looking very alluring in just a T-shirt which must have shrunk in the last wash. It did absolutely wonderful things for her chest and the lower edge of it remained decent by at least a centimetre.

That was, of course, provided she didn't stretch up to touch the deck head, which she immediately did.

As a typical male, Dave catalogued the information automatically: didn't sh ave – didn't need to shave.

She un-stretched and caught the direction of his look, or felt its intensity, and giggled.

‘Hello, Dave. Good to see you too. Can I have a mug of coffee, please?’

‘No problem. I'll just brew up a pot. Does Jackie have coffee as well?’

‘Oh, my goodness yes. Kick-starter, and all that.’

While he messed around, setting up the expensive Italian coffee machine to do its hissing, bubbling, gurgling thing, she stepped close and said in her disturbingly husky voice, ‘Thanks for getting our gear from the motel. Corrine told us and I'm sorry we got 309

so pissed we passed out. I don’t know what came over us. It was good of you to let us stay aboard and to come cruising.’

When he turned around, she was so close he dragged his upper belly across her firm, thinly clad boobs, her tousled blonde head coming up to about his chin level.

‘No problem. But I’ve moved your car into the side street beside the hotel, almost outside the bottle shop. I hope you paid for your room in advance?’

‘Hell yeah!’ she replied. ‘This time of year we had to book and pay six months in advance, but the chance to go cruising the Lakes in this beautiful boat is worth the lost room time. The hotel won't be concerned.’

‘That's good,’ Dave replied, trying desperately to keep his eyes on hers. ‘Anyway, you're both here now and we'll see how things pan out.’

‘I'm sure we will,’ Allie purred, eyeing him off as she took her large mug of steaming coffee. ‘Wow! That smells fantastic! So do you really live aboard and cook f or yourself?

I mean all those recipes we talked about last night wasn’t bullshit? This is a terrific kitchen.’

‘Galley,’ Dave corrected her automatically.

‘What's that?’

‘It's called a galley on a boat. Kitchen on land, galley on a boat.’

‘Oh... there's a lot to learn about boats?’

‘Yep. If you want to, that is. Most visitors couldn't be bothered. They come for five minutes, ponce around playing the big shot, then go again.’

‘You take this boating thing very seriously, don't you,’ she observed, backing off a bit and leaning back against the dining table opposite the galley, making the T-shirt drag up to an eye-catching level again.

‘Yes, I do. It's a way of life that's clean, rewarding and totally unforgiving of fools at the same time. On land, there are so many safety nets to protect people from themselves, few realise they aren't in control of their lives any longer. But on the water, messing around in boats, it's just you and nature. Nature isn't a thinking being like some bang on about. It can be either benign or devastating, but you get what comes. It is utterly impersonal, and doesn’t protect fools and their stupidity.’

He paused for a sip of tea. ‘And that's the lure of boating – you have to cope with whatever is dished up at the time. It's about you always being prepared for something that can wipe you out in the blink of an eye if you don't pay attention to detail, or stun 310

your senses with the raw beauty of a moment. It's also called living on the edge and nothing compares to that!’

Dave looked down for a long pause, ‘Sorry. I climbed on my soapbox for a moment there. My bad!’

Allie stepped forward and gently pressed herself against him. ‘Don't be sorry for feeling strongly about something. It's an emotion many of us seem to have lost. And it's very sad to think we may never regain that ability.’

Dave looked up and a flash of genuine understanding passed between them.

‘Thanks Allie. Most people don't get it.’

She laughed. ‘It must have been the booze last night. I don't normally do philosophy very well.’

Dave grinned back at her, ‘Well. You've done all right in my book.’

Jackie chose that moment to wander out dressed the same way as Allie and disturbingly, did the stretch thing the same as Allie. It had the same effect on the hem of her T-shirt as it did with Allie, and he was delighted to see how her interesting bits matched Allie's.

Without being asked, Dave presented her with a steaming mug, white and two.

She grinned with delight. ‘Thanks Dave. I see my business partner has been telling tales.’

‘Only minor good ones,’ Dave smiled.

Jackie took a sip of her coffee and said, ‘Look. We know James was shooting off his mouth yesterday, trying to get into our collective panties, but you really didn't have to take us with you. Not that we're complaining, mind. It's just we feel a bit guilty about intruding.’

Dave shook his head, ‘No, that's alright. If Corrine and I weren't happy with the plan, we'd have dropped you back at the hotel last night. Still, there are jobs you can do to help, and it won't hurt our image to have two more attractive ladies running around in skimpy bikinis. We’ll fit in with the other boaties.’

Jackie gave a cheeky grin, ‘How do you know they're skimpy?’

‘Who do you think packed your gear last night?’

They both laughed, then Allie asked, ‘What's the plan for today?’

‘Well, as we said last night, we’re actually on a rather strange job, looking for some guys. We had a tip-off they were spending a few weeks on a boat on the Lakes, but there's an awful lot of area to cover. We’ll just have to keep cruising around, hoping to trip over them. We do have what we think is the name of the boat so that should help. ’

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‘What's the name?’ Jackie asked, ‘We can help you look, at least. That's not confidential, is it?’

Dave thought a moment, ‘No. That should be okay seeing as you're here with us. The name we've been given is the Firebrand or something like that. The information source was a bit vague. Our first job before we can leave today is to get rid of James, so the boss is sending a colleague to collect him. He won't be here until around midday, which means we have to stay here, although we might go refuel while we wait. We did a fast run from Melbourne yesterday and this thing's a bit thirsty.’

‘That sounds good. We’re happy to cook and clean, or any other boat stuff you care to teach us.’

‘Doing the cooking and cleaning sounds good; that'll free up Corrine and me to run the boat and look around for our guys. But outside of that, you two are free to lounge around all you like. Provided you wear the skimpy bikinis, that is,’ he added with a chuckle.

‘And speaking of cooking, I'd better make Corrine’s coffee. It's time she was up.’

Remembering that Corrine was supposed to be in his bed, Dave waited until th e girls headed back to their cabin to change, Allie cheekily flipping up her T-shirt to show off her bare bum.

‘Careful you don't catch cold down there,’ Dave laughed, pleased how they’d settled in and offered to help.

She flashed a grin, ‘Never happen. It's way too hot!’

Corrine appreciated her coffee and promised to be up and dressed in five minutes. On the way out, with Corrine’s approval, Dave grabbed some of her clothes to scatter over his bed.

After breakfast and a phone call to make sure the refueller was in residence, they up-anchored and under the admiring scrutiny of most of the boaties, rumbled sedately down to the Fisherman's Co-op, where the capacious fuel tanks took just under 3600

litres.

‘Going to be around long?’ the refueller asked. ‘Just askin’ cause I'll give you a decent discount if you have a few more fills like that.’

‘We might be drifting around the Lakes for a week or so, but if you make it worthwhile I'll definitely come back.’ At 10%, it was a reasonable discount and Dave was pleased as he handed over Xavier's Platinum Visa card.

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At 11:45, Robert called Corrine on her mobile to say he'd arrived, by which time they had tied up at the ferry wharf in a short-term berth, now Jackie and Allie were aboard voluntarily. Robert was a large, brutal-looking man with three knife scars crossing his face, little piggy eyes set too close together and an abrasive manner. He was rude to Corrine, ignored Dave, but nearly tripped over his dick when he saw the girls in their bikinis which remained decent by about two millimetres. No wonder they shaved.

Corrine brushed aside his questions about their presence, but got the extra briefing notes before he dragged a sick and sorry James from the crew cabin. No one listen ed to his pathetic bleating as Robert roughly frog-marched him down the wharf without any pleasantries.

‘I'll leave the fore-hatch open to air a while, before you clean it out,’ he told Jackie, while Corrine reported to Xavier that James was on his way back and she had the additional briefing notes.

'But in the meantime,’ Dave told Allie, ‘let's shove off before something else goes wrong.’

‘Have you worked out where to start looking for your guys?’ she asked.

Dave looked thoughtful, ‘It’s a bit hit and miss, but we might as well work our way around the system methodically, so we can go clockwise or anticlockwise. Let's flip a coin.’

He found a 20c piece in the fruit bowl and flipped it, letting it drop to the carpeted floor.

Allie bent to look.

‘Heads – that's clockwise.’

CHAPTER 60... Firebird... Bunga Arm...Sunday Based on the theory that boaties would cluster in protected anchorages, we headed a long way west, before finding a narrow arm paralleling the 90-mile beach. Because of the school holidays, the anchorages in the Bunga Arm were crowded. The first had the biggest collection. The seclusion, excellent weather protection and being just a 150m walk to the ocean beaches was much of the attraction and suited me very well. Since the progressive, bustling town of Paynesville was only ten minutes away by fast dinghy, it seemed an ideal place to hang out.

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We cheekily sailed in on the dying breath of the northerly breeze, dropping the pick well clear of the main concentration of boats. There were a few small sailing monohulls, what looked like an Antares 44 catamaran flying a French flag, and a bunch of hire cruisers, all tucked in amongst several of the ubiquitous, privately-owned, top-heavy gin palaces. True to form, their cockpits and flying bridges were fully wrapped in clear plastic, like they hadn't been used yet. It made sure that not the slightest trace of nasty fresh sea-air could sneak inside to taint the owner's martinis or hair-dos.

Most boats were anchored in clusters off a small, sandy beach where apparently to reduce congestion aboard, a lot of tents had sprung up ashore. We were a bit further along from them, just off the mouth of a small creek. Beyond us to the east, there were a few boats anchored off any little sandy spots which allowed an easy landing. Due to the lateness of the season, the mozzies were hardly noticeable.

As the evening gently settled its soft, grey mantle over the anchorage, lights came on like scattered fireflies, accompanied by the sounds of happy boaties indulging in the traditional ritual of getting pissed at sundown. It was a remarkably similar to the ritual they'd indulged in at lunchtime, but needed repeating because at least six hours had passed since then. Despite Bunga Arm being over 12 km long, there wasn't much tide flow, and being a minimal-draft cat, we were parked in shallow water. At less than a tinnie throw off the beach, we were close enough to talk to various people who wandered past on their evening walk. They all offered a cheery wave as we hoisted our drinks to them, doing our bit to maintain the time-honoured tradition.

Everyone was tired after the exhilarating, but long sail from Snake Island and the drama of getting rid of Teri. During the fast sail, Angie had taken advantage of the smooth water and managed a roast on the Weber BBQ, which she proudly produced as a beautiful leg of lamb complete with roast vegies and greens. As chief cook, she was in her element!

Although we’d shopped in Lakes Entrance, I hoped we’d avoided attention by keeping Firebird out of sight. Next supply run, I intended visiting Paynesville, as being less likely to have a surveillance team in place.

Now Steel Associates were down two operatives in unknown circumstances, I hoped they remained ignorant of our boat, our location and our enhanced defensive ability.

Spending a few days hiding in plain sight amongst a bunch of permanently half-cut holiday boaties, might give us a chance of staying under their annoyingly vigilant radar.

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The twins were also happy there were so many boats around, as they came up with the idea to go prowling for boys immediately. We stopped that by suggesting they’d see more teenagers in daylight.

Firebird... Monday

I was up at dawn next morning after a great sleep. Even Sandy had stayed in her own bed for once, making lots of room to stretch out. I treated the decks and fittings to a freshwater hose down to get rid of salt accumulation, and was joined by Jasper who made his usual noises about going ashore for a romp, despite extensive shore leave on Erith Island. So I dutifully unpacked the RIB and rowed him the short distance ashore where he had a lovely time chasing seagulls and leaving a few carefully buried landmines well above the tide line. He only managed to frighten one older couple, then quickly charmed them with his corny, ‘ I’m just an overgrown kitten’ routine by rolling on his back, paws curled cutely. Despite this performance, they took some convincing he wasn't a juvenile black panther. By the time he’d worn himself out and I’d had a run and workout on the sand as well, I could see movement in the galley.

‘Can we take the dinghy and have a look around?’ Angie asked, when brekkie was finished and washing up done. ‘We won’t be very long.’

I’d already discussed the security risk with Sandy and Janice, so I nodded. ‘Yep. That’s okay. But still be careful and please keep an eye on the time. We’d like to walk over to the ocean beach later so I can try out my surf rod. The fresh fish stocks are getting low.’

They beamed in unison. ‘No worries. We’ll watch it. But if we meet some nice teens can we invite them back here? I mean; if we get invited on board their boat, we ’ve got to repay them. Shouldn't we?’

I shrugged, ‘Yep. No problem. However, best if you didn’t openly invite the parents if possible. The less we have to explain the better. However, our general story is that your mother, Sandy and I are old friends and I invited you all on an extended cruise as your Mum has just gone through a divorce and needed a break. You’re getting your Uni assignments by internet to keep up with lectures and workload. That’s close enough to the truth so you don’t have to remember a bunch of porky pies.’

They nodded solemnly. ‘Good story. Got it.’

Soon, they were off, wearing their most effective boy-attracting gear of tight, slashed shorts and brief bikini tops, while ponytails and ball caps completed the setup. With 315

their sun-bleached almost white hair and dark tans, they looked nothing like the girls who’d joined me in Eden. Still, as a matched pair of pretty girls, they were still distinctive as they purred off in the RIB – Zoe driving as usual.

Janice went to wash her hair, paint nails and do other female stuff, while Sandy changed down to one of her bikinis and sat around in the sun, chatting and looking quite delectable. I replaced the washers in the outdoor shower and cleaned the spray head. Sandy was such a distraction, I was on the verge of taking her below for a round or three of hide-the-sausage, but I restrained myself, not knowing how long the girls would be.

My relationship with both ladies had changed dramatically since they’d had their D & M

chat. Although I had little say in the bedtime arrangements, I just went with the flow.

Janice and I still shared the forward cabin, where Sandy frequently joined us. We discussed the longer-term situation and had come to the practical and amicable decision, that while Janice and the girls would have to return to a more normal life ashore sooner rather than later, we could enjoy the relationship we’d started for now.

However, Sandy and I perhaps had a more long-lasting relationship in mind. I didn't ask how the ladies worked everything out, just being happy there was harmony.

After about an hour, the girls returned, chattering excitedly as they came to tell all.

‘What did you discover?’ Janice asked.

‘Well,’ Zoe started, ‘as you said, there are lots of teens among the various boats and even camping ashore, but most are younger. Some of the older ones didn't seem v ery sociable, so that cut the choices.’

‘There is a sister and her brother who are really neat,’ Angie chipped in. ‘They’re French, and sailed over from New Caledonia with their parents for an extended holiday.

They’re on that white cat with the blue trim and the black mast on the far side of the anchorage. Their parents are very nice, speak good English and invited us to visit anytime. The brother is very yummy! I really fancy him! ’

I chuckled and Janice gave me a motherly glare before she held up her hand . ‘Whoa.

Settle down you two. You’re acting like sex-starved sailors just into port!’

Zoe wailed, ‘Mum! But that’s exactly what we are! You guys get to have all the nook ie you want, wherever you want, while we’re stuck with some toys! We’re old enough to join the real world!’

Sandy burst into semi-stifled giggles, I laughed outright and Janice didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but luckily chose laughter.

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‘Alright. I suppose we deserved that. Maybe it does seem a bit unfair, but you can’t just go up to the first good-looking boy you find and drag him off to bed!’

Angie poked a face at her. ‘Why not? That's what all our friends do. Maybe things were different for you, but times change and perhaps you need to change the way you think .’

She sat back after delivering that little speech, while Zoe gave a little fist pump and

'Yay!' of agreement.

Janice smiled, ‘Okay. Of course, you’re capable of deciding whom you want to go to bed with, but try to be a bit selective. Particularly the safe sex issue! ’

‘Mum! C’mon. We’re aware of all that! But it’s not as though there’s much choice of partners, now is there? But the French guy, Dominic, really is cute and a nice person as well. So is his sister, Helene. She has a good sense of humour and their parents are very friendly and liberal-minded, but they are a bit odd in a nice sort of way!’ She stopped to giggle, then added, ‘They even serve Dom and Helene wine with their meals each day. I’m sure you’d like them, so maybe you should invite them over. I mean, they've got the only other cat here and are from New Caledonia, so I’m sure you’d have lot’s to talk about.’

Janice held up her hands in surrender. ‘Okay. You can ask them over if they want to come. But surely those two weren’t the only two acceptable teens you saw?’

‘Oh, no. There are two brothers who look a bit older and are good-looking. They seem interested in us too. They did say they take a girl with them most days going fishing, swimming or something just up from here, so we may see them go past. ’

‘I guess it’ll be nice to have people to talk to who aren’t trying to kidnap you.’ Janice said with a grin to defuse her words.

‘Yeah. We’ll be fine, Mom. We’ll work out who we can invite back here without having to call the police. After all, Sandy did train us rather well if something goes tit’s up!’

Janice obviously didn’t think they could, but wisely left it alone as we split up to do various jobs or just lie about in the sun like Sandy had resumed doing. I still felt like whizzing her off down below, but decorum prevailed, so with the plumbing repair attended to, I played with chart updates I’d been putting off. I was doing this boring job when the twins went for’rard to sunbake topless on the trampoline, while Janice was out back chatting quietly with Sandy.

After a while, the sound of a small outboard close by interrupted my work, followed by a hail. I looked forward to see the girls standing by the starboard rail, happy grins on their faces, waving and chattering to the occupants of the dinghy idling close beside us. I got 317

up to listen and saw that there were two good-looking guys in the dinghy, with a pretty, dark-haired girl in a bikini sitting on the middle seat. The guys were very keenly checking out the twins, although the girl with them didn’t seem to be too put out by having some competition for their attention. I didn’t take to the guys, though. They both had a heap of trashy tats and looked a lot older than the twins.

‘Where are you guys going?’ I heard Angie ask, puffing her chest out in a vain attempt to match the girl in the dinghy who had a very substantial and well-shaped chest.

‘Just up the arm a bit,’ replied the guy in the bow, fending off from our topsides. ‘We found a small beach no one else uses, and it’s great for swimming and just messing around. Fishing’s good too, if you’re into that.’

‘Sounds great,’ Zoe chipped in. ‘We might buzz up there tomorrow.’

‘That’d be cool,’ replied the bowman with a chuckle. ‘You look dressed for a bit of fun in the water.’

Zoe blushed a bit. ‘Yeah, we always get around like this. It’s more comfortable.’

‘Love the way you think,’ the guy at the outboard spoke for the first time. ‘Maybe we’ll see you up there tomorrow. It’s the first little beach beyond this next scrubby stretch. ’

‘Okay,’ said Angie, looking a little put out he didn't insist they go with them now. ‘Later.’

With another long, appraising look at the girls, the two guys and their girlfriend roared off to up the Arm, leaving the twins looking longingly after them. As the dingh y receded in the distance, Zoe came back to the saloon and asked for the binoculars. I handed them over, and she returned to the trampoline, joining Angie in muttering excuses to each other for not handling the situation well enough.

‘That would’ve been fun!’ I heard Zoe exclaim. ‘Two lovely guys and three girls. She’s a lucky bitch having them to herself. I’ll bet they do a lot of messing around and bugger-all swimming!’

Angie grimaced, ‘Yeah. I reckon you’re right. She’ll be wearing one of them within five minutes, lucky bitch! Did you see the bulges in their shorts?’

Zoe giggled, ‘Yeah. They nearly fell out of the dinghy trying to get a better look at us, even though the bitch’s got bigger tits. Let's hope she's a dud root.’

‘Maybe. But at least she gets to practice a lot!’

‘Yeah, bugger it!’

As they subsided, still muttering at lost opportunities and swapping the binoculars as they peered after the dinghy, I returned to the chart table, but something about the two guys still didn’t sit right with me.

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Janice wandered in to see what I was up to and saw the girls still peering up the beach with the binoculars. ‘What are they looking at?’

‘Those sleazy guys and their girlfriend fooling around from what I can gather. They seem jealous she's getting served by both guys!’

Janice laughed, ‘They would. But I must say, I didn't like the look of them. Too many tats and too many years since they were eighteen!’

‘Just what I was thinking,’ I chuckled, as Zoe came back with the binoculars and replaced them carefully in their case.

‘Checking on the boy supply?’ Janice asked.

‘Yeah, we were. But after what we saw, we reckon those two guys are sleazebags and the girl’s a slack tart, so we won’t bother seeing them again.’

‘Well, I’m glad to hear it,’ Janice smiled, putting the kettle on for morning tea.

‘But we might run over and visit Dominic and Helene. Or can we bring them back here if they want?’

Janice glanced at me so I nodded. ‘Yeah, sure. Whatever you want to do is fine. Just take care.’

‘We will, Mum. Thanks.’ And they went below to change, although the result didn’t look much different.

Things must have been quiet on the French cat, as the twins were back on board within fifteen minutes, with Dominic and Helene in tow. Dominic was a cheerful, good-looking lad of medium height, with dark hair and a strong, stocky build. Helene, in contrast, was tall, slim and pretty, very much like the twins, but with long, dark hair. They spoke perfect English with just a slight accent, and both attended University in Melbourne.

They were dressed more conservatively than the twins – Dominic in neat shorts and a polo shirt, while Helene wore baggy shorts and a floppy shirt that revealed little.

We went through the usual introductions to Jasper, with Helene breaking into giggles when he nuzzled her crotch. ‘That tickles, you naughty big pussy cat!’

‘Yeah. That gets us too,’ Zoe said, ‘and when he gets to know you better, the furry deviate will nuzzle you there all the time.’

They politely thanked us for inviting them aboard, as Angie and Zoe bustled around making tea and coffee, and some basic information was traded. The youngsters were intelligent and held a conversation easily. We learned that Dominic was eighteen and Helene nineteen. I noticed Dominic enjoyed looking at all the ladies, both older and younger, but he seemed to particularly admire the twins, so there wasn’t much wrong with his basic inclinations.

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As they chatted about their home life, it seemed they had developed a typically laid-back continental attitude to sex and nudity from their parents – much like the way the twins viewed things. Then, after tea and coffee was served and the twins sat down with us, Janice asked. ‘Did your parents mind you coming over to visit?’

Helene traded an amused look with Dominic, then giggled, ‘Oh, no. They’re happy to have any quiet time alone they can.’

Dominic explained with rather startling candour, ‘Dad’s a psychiatrist specialising in sex therapy and has just started experimenting with a new type of a powerful synthetic testosterone which a biochemist friend in France invented. The tests were going well until he doubled the dose!’

Janice raised her eyebrows, surprised by the very personal revelation about people we hadn’t met, and wanting to know what the weird effects were.

‘Why would he want to try doubling the dose?’ she asked.

Helene giggled at the look on her face, ‘It was because some of his male patients he prescribed testosterone for, had overdosed with some weird effects. Dad wanted to try this new, synthetic version to see if it would eliminate the side effects of overdosing, but it hasn’t.’

She giggled again, ‘He had to take time away from his normal work schedule, since he’s turned into a male nympho! He’s got an erection most of the time and needs sex four times a day, every day! Mum loved it for a while, and says she still does, but she admitted she’s getting tired and sore. But Dad needs the trial to run its full course so he can document it properly, which means we have to put up with another ten days of them having sex every time he needs to, which can be in odd places at odd times.’

It was such a bizarre story, we all had a good laugh at their parent’s expense.

Dominic finished the tale with a chuckle, ‘And a 13-metre cat is a bit small for us to dodge them every time, so although it's been an interesting learning experience, we get off the boat when we can to save tripping over our parents. Anyway, they can still laugh about it, since we all got over the embarrassment stage after the first couple of days.’

I couldn’t help chuckling, ‘It sounds to me like an interesting problem, but I guess some things can be overdone!’

Both Janice and Sandy leant over and smacked me on the arm, grinning as they did.

‘Bloody chauvinist pig,’ Sandy said.

But then to our embarrassment, Angie candidly explained, ‘Harry sleeps with both Mum and Sandy most nights.’

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Both our visitors looked impressed with that. ‘Really?’ Dominic asked with greatly renewed interest, eyeing Sandy and Janice off afresh. ‘Awesome. My father must talk to you.’

I quickly stalled that line of discussion by asking about their boat and the trip over from New Caledonia.

‘Easy,’ Helene summarised. ‘It's an Antares 44 and Dad says it's really well designed, so we have plenty of room and it sails quite well. We mostly had light winds and slight seas, so it was much the same as sailing around the islands back home. There was a bit of a blow north of New Zealand, but it didn't last very long and the boat stayed dry and warm. Coming in through the bar here was probably the most exciting thing, since the wind was against the tide and that made the waves stand up, then just flop over.

We took a few on board, but it wasn’t a problem. And as you know, cats run straight on waves, so it was all so beaucoup fun.’

I could see the girls were getting keen to go talk teenage stuff, so I said, ‘Well, after that, you’re welcome to come and go here whenever you please.’

The girls enthusiastically supported the invitation, while Dominic and Helene smiled and thanked us before they all went for’rard to the trampoline to chat about young adult stuff. I went back to updating charts, and checked on them occasionally, but they seemed to get on extremely well. The girls obviously had the hots for Dominic, or just Dom as he preferred to be called, and Helene seemed happy to sit back, obviously used to the effect her good-looking brother had on other girls.

It was pleasantly warm outside in the sun, and wasn’t long before the girls stripped down a bit, conservatively for them, just to basic bikinis. Helene happily followed suit, removing the baggy shorts and shirt to reveal a beautiful, tanned body in a tiny bikini, the top of which struggled gamely to hold her bigger breasts. Dom removed his shirt to reveal a good tan and an impressive set of muscles that the twins openly admired and promptly stroked. He didn’t seem to mind in the slightest.

Tiring of playing with charts, I was glad to be interrupted by the buzz of an outboard approaching at high-speed. It slowed as it got close and I saw the twins sit up with a marked lack of enthusiasm and wave without bothering to get up. I couldn’t hear what was said, but the girls weren't encouraging, so the motor soon revved up again and they were gone.

The four teens huddled together and there was much laughter and arm waving. Soon, Angie came aft and reported, ‘Those boys wanted to know if we were going to go with 321

them tomorrow, but when they saw Dom and Helene, they changed their minds and pissed off.’

‘Excellent. Good riddance.’

‘Yeah. After what we saw this morning through the binoculars, we're not missing much. ’

She went back up for'rard and chatter resumed.

Our visitors stayed the morning, the four teens talking and laying on the trampoline in the sun, and it wasn't long before the three girls had shed their tops and Dom was down to a small, tight-fitting bikini thong-thing that attracted a lot of openly hungry glances from our girls. When they got too hot, they went swimming off the stern, with Jasper enthusiastically joining in. After they got out, we chuckled at the antics of the twins who were taking turns trying to hose Dom’s thong off, although I didn't bother telling them to save the water, since Jasper was getting washed down as well.

Finished playing with the shower, they traipsed for'rard, not bothering to dry off, all three girls flushed and excited and Dom happy to be the centre of female attention.

Late in the morning, Angie came aft to ask if Dom and Helene could stay for lunch a nd we all sat around the cockpit enjoying Angie's tasty smoked-salmon, cream cheese and capers sandwiches on fresh-baked bread. The after-lunch clean up had just been completed, when a small dinghy puttered up to us with a man and woman aboard.

‘Oh, regarde!’ said Helene, hastening aft. ‘Voici Maman et Papa. May they come aboard?’

‘Of course,’ I replied, moving down to take their mooring rope. They were a striking couple – Yvette was tall, dark and slender, while Anton was short, dark and stocky.

Yvette wore a wrap-around piece of gauze material as a brief skirt and a brief bikini top; Anton was wearing an oversize shirt with an eye-watering display of many colours and designs. He seemed to be wearing little else under that, although to my relief, I did catch a glimpse of what appeared to be a very brief pair of bikini pants, trying vainly to contain a part-erection.

I tried not to stare as I welcomed them aboard, but it was difficult, as apart from Anton's bizarre attire, Yvette was very attractive and hadn’t bothered to put panties on before she came to visit. Regardless of their attire, they turned out to be totally charming people and we spent the rest of the afternoon happily swapping tales of cat sailing, storms and funny moments. We had to be careful when talking about our last few weeks of island and port hopping, in case they accidently talked to the wrong people, but I think we successfully avoided saying the wrong thing.

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Although Yvette was very pretty, Anton spent a lot of time looking at Janice and Sandy and didn't mind checking out the twins either, since they hadn't bothered to put their tops back on. Yvette didn’t mind Anton's wandering eye, regarding him fondly despite him getting very friendly with both Janice and Sandy and whispering sweet somethings in their ears, making them giggle.

The four teens had quickly returned to the bow once Yvette and Anton were settled with wines in hand, and looked like they were going to stay for a while.

‘You are a very fortunate man to have such beautiful and sexy companions, M. ‘arry,’

Anton commented.

‘Thank you, Anton. I am indeed lucky. But, as you can imagine, it does take a lot to keep up with them.’

That earned me a look from both ladies to see if I was being facetious, but I controlled my facial muscles and avoided a whack or two.

‘Ah, yes. Of course, but if you ‘ad this treatment zat I am currently testing, you would

‘ave ze stamina of five mens and they would be ze ones trying to keep up with you.’

The ladies giggled and Yvette leant over and patted Anton on the leg. ‘Oui, my darling, but maybe ‘arry doesn't want to walk around with the erection for most of the day. He does, I believe, wish to behave correctly in front of the young ladies. ’

Anton nodded, ‘But of course. I forget myself. Our own young adults are familiar with our sexual behaviour, but perhaps yours are not?’

Janice answered that one, ‘In some ways the twins are, Anton, but not to that extent.’

‘Ah. The moderating voice of the Mother and I cannot argue with that. What works for us, may not be to your taste. Zat is no problem.’

The Bernard family were happy to continue the afternoon drinks session, and the talk quickly veered toward setting up a group session as time passed and Anton obviously became more in need of his fix. His erection was now in full, quite splendid glory, drawing fascinated looks from Janice and Sandy who seemed quite amenable to whatever Anton was whispering. To preserve some decorum, Yvette made him remain seated, but when they declined the offer of dinner, Yvette giggled and pointed at Anton’s crotch as the reason. When they stood to leave, I was amused to see Anton give both Janice and Sandy lengthy full-body hugs which came very close to being a sexual experience. When Yvette laughingly managed to separate Anton from each lady, they left, taking Dom and Helene with them.

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With a gleam in her eye, Angie asked if Dom and Helene could come back in the morning and Janice gave approval. We'd all had an interesting day and the evening was filled with little stories about our new friends. Discussion about Anton took up a lot of the time and it was obvious he’d made a big impression, particularly on the senior ladies. We had a giggle or two about Yvette's lack of underwear, which everyone had noticed, but in favourable terms, since her personality and sense of humour had been a real delight.

Later that evening, away from the girls, Anton’s suggestion of a group session was discussed with the ladies sounding quite keen to see what would happen. I was in no position to argue, and left it to them to decide whether to take it further.

CHAPTER 61... Firebird...Bunga Arm...Tuesday Since I'd missed out on yesterday's planned trip through to the surf beach to try some fishing, I told the crew at breakfast that we’d go this morning.

‘Can we drop you guys ashore and then get Dom and Helene?’ Angie asked after breakfast.

‘No problem for me,’ I answered, while Janice agreed and added, ‘you all seem to be getting on very well.’

‘Oh, yes. We are. They're really fun and interesting to talk to.’

‘Are you going to join us over on the ocean beach, or go do your own thing?’

She gave a funny little grin, ‘If you don't mind, we might go and explore along the arm.

It seems to go a long way back toward Lakes Entrance.’

I smiled, ‘Okay, but fill the outboard tank before you go. If we come back early, we can almost wade out to Firebird, but otherwise, if you’re back by midday, that'll be fine. Just keep an eye out for those tattooed characters. I reckon they'd cause troubl e if they find you alone.’

She nodded seriously, ‘Good thinking. We'll be careful and thanks, Harry.’

The girls dropped us off, and puttered away happily. We walked the short distance along a well-defined track through the coastal sand dunes to the vast open and un-spoiled stretches of Ninety Mile Beach. To our surprise, there were more people on the surf side than at the anchorage. Some were swimming, some surfing, some fishing and others in large family groups setting up BBQs or just lying around. There were even a few campers with their tents set up amongst the dunes.

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The ladies had packed a small hamper for morning tea along with a blanket, so we set up on the edge of the dunes, away from the crowd. I told Jasper he had to behave and stay away from people so he didn't scare them. I guess he understood because he huffed loudly at me, before bounding off to chase an errant seagull who had dared to land on the sand nearby. With those domestic chores out of the way, I set about rigging my 15 ft surf rod.

There was a nicely defined gutter beyond the shore break which looked like it might be worth a try, so I started casting a slice lure. It took about ten minutes for the first couple of hits, but then I picked up a nice jewfish that weighed about 4kg. Two smaller ones followed, one of which Jasper pinched off the hook, and sat chewing on just out of reach, growling and moving away every time I tried to take it off him. The ladies thought it highly amusing and wandered along the beach a way before going for a swim. In their bikinis, they attracted a lot of admirers, although most stayed away from the cranky old fisherman and his big, black dog with the very long tail.

Morning tea on the beach was very civilised with my two lovely ladies and my beautiful big, black cat who had got over his earlier hissy fit with the fish once he’d eaten all of it.

Sandy cleared her throat and casually suggested, ‘How about we go have the 5 o’clock drinks with Yvette and Anton this evening?’

I eyed her innocent look, copied by Janice. ‘What are you two planning? Is this Anton’s idea from yesterday?’

She gave a cheeky grin, ‘Not necessarily. But they did invite us for drinks as they were leaving. You must have missed that bit.’

‘It must have while I was watching where Anton’s erection was poking when he was hugging you both. But that’s fine. We definitely should go – they were a very funny couple.’

She patted my arm. ‘Good dog! We’re just being friendly. ‘

I was spared having to sort out possible motives, by two young kids who wandered over to pat the 'dog' and were innocent enough to be utterly delighted to find he was a cat. They stayed for quite a while playing with Jasper, who was excited to have little people to play with. He even let them sit on his back, one at a time, to have a ride, until their mother came over, expressing horror and outrage that I dared to bring a vicious, wild animal onto a public beach.

I gave her my best smart-arse smile. ‘Yes, madam, I can see your point about the danger of having a vicious wild animal in a public area, but perhaps you should ask 325

your daughter’s opinion about the vicious, dangerous creature who's presently letting her ride around on his back. Or perhaps get your son's opinion once he's finished getting dragged around the beach hanging onto that same vicious animal’s tail. It's a shame you weren't here earlier when your daughter was pulling on Jasper's tongue, amongst all those razor-sharp teeth.’

She was a taken aback by my sarcastic response, but thankfully had the sense to think about what I said. Fortunately, Jasper backed me up by walking past with the little girl on his back, squealing with delight as her son pulled his tail. Jasper looked up at the mother with a dopey grin on his face, then continued on, moving carefully so as not to spill the little girl off, even though she was bouncing up and down with excitement.

‘Ah, yes. I do see your point, but what sort of cat is he to be as big as that, if he's not the cub of one of the big jungle cats?’

I launched into my set speech about Jasper's origins and slightly obscure bloodline and managed to turn her indignation into interest, then finally delight when Jasper came over, sans children, to be patted and scratched.

‘I must admit he certainly behaves like a normal domestic cat. We have two cats at home so we're used to feline habits.’

‘Well, that’s the whole point,’ I replied with a placating smile. ‘Apart from his size, he‘s just a normal cat.’ I left out the part about him mauling, then partly eating a man in defence of his family.

I left Jasper playing with the kids and their mother, and went back to fishing. With a large and a small jewie in the bag already, another few somethings would be g reat for a couple of fresh fish meals. Since we'd left Erith Island, the girls had been a bit slack in the fishing department, so we needed to re-stock. Another half hour and I had three more fish, a 3kg salmon and another two jewfish. Figuring that was en ough, and because there would obviously be no problem getting more, I packed up the rod and helped the ladies with the rest of the gear.

Jasper said goodbye to his new playmates and we trekked back over the dunes to the inner beach where Zoe was waiting with the dinghy.

‘Did you catch anything?’ she asked, then ooh’ed and aahh’ed over the bucket full of big fish.

‘Did you guys have fun?’ Janice asked in turn.

‘Oh, yes. We picked up Helene and Dom and went quite a long way up Bunga Arm.

There's good water almost right to the end – certainly plenty for Firebird, if you wanted 326

to go there, and there are lots of little beaches and coves. There seem to be several camping grounds on the ocean side and clusters of people with boats, but not as busy as here.’

By the time she'd told us all that, we were tied up at the stern platform and unloading our gear. Angie was very appreciative of the fish, and started to plan a menu around them. I noticed all four teens were happy, but Angie looked particularly pleased with herself.

Dom and Helene stayed for lunch, and afterwards, asked if we were going to have drinks with Yvette and Anton that afternoon.

‘Yes, we are,’ Sandy answered. ‘Do you know when they’d like us?’

Dom and Helene exchanged a look. ‘They said any time after 3 o’clock will be fine, so will it be alright if we stay here? Our boat doesn’t have as much room as this.’

‘No problem,’ I shrugged, ‘the girls can run you home when we get back.’

All four young ones looked delighted with that plan and after cleaning up the lunch debris, retreated to the trampolines, happily chattering flat-out. Jasper was staying and went with them.

Since there wasn’t much time left before 15:00, the ladies went below to shower and change for our first social outing since Wynyard. I showered at the stern, then went below to change my shorts and shirt.

The ladies were tarted up as though going to a major party and looked and smelled great.

By the time they’d finished, it was 15:30. As we puttered slowly through the moored boats, we waved to those already into early happy hour, until we found the Antares 44.

Yvette and Anton were dressed much the same as yesterday, and were most effusive in their welcome.

Yvette had been busy making lovely little snacks and bottles of wine were at the ready.

With our hosts in fine conversational form, it developed into a boozy and funny afternoon. Anton insisted on telling stories about his patients and the problems which had prompted his own research. Those stories became more hilarious as the wine and rum flowed freely. Just like yesterday afternoon, Anton’s erection grew as the hours passed, with the result that he was even more over Janice and Sandy, while Yvette not only didn’t mind, she hardly noticed, busy regaling me with her own stories of the funny side of living with an insatiable sexual monster.

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At some point, I distractedly noticed Anton taking Sandy on a lengthy boat tour and when they returned, Sandy looked flushed with a silly grin on her face which could have just been the wine. Or perhaps not, as Anton’s erection was considerably deflated.

Sometime later, however, he took Janice on a similar lengthy tour, although Yvette kept the conversation going until their return, with Anton looking happy and Janice as flushed as Sandy had been, except she had a sheepish expression.

Yvette had become quite pissy and moved herself close beside me to better explain some of the finer points of Anton’s condition.

Her explanations were so highly detailed, they managed to make my shorts bulge uncomfortably, a fact she delighted in feeling for herself.

‘Ahh. I see you are in need of some relief yourself, my dear ‘arry. I hope your lovely ladies will provide it when you return to your boat. I fear I am a bad hostess at the moment, as normally, I would be delighted to ‘elp you correct the problem. But I am so grateful your ladies were able to assist me with my darling Anton’s condition.’

All this took some sorting out in my boozy state, and it was a happy trio who weaved our way back to Firebird, after passionate goodbyes from our hosts. The girls were highly amused by our condition, and gave their mum and Sandy inquisitive looks, before running Dom and Helene home.

On their return, the girls made toasted sandwiches, before we all hit the sack early.

But before they went, Angie announced that she’d had sex with Dom and enjoyed it immensely. Giggling at the expression on Janice’s face, she and Zoe then went to bed, leaving Janice to sort out her thoughts.

As she didn't know whether to look concerned or cool, I jumped in early.

‘Now before you become Mrs Righteous Mum, just remember what they told you a few days ago. They're old enough to make up their own minds, and Dom and Helene are too. I suggest you kick-back and let your daughters and nature take its course. As, apparently, things did this afternoon.’

Janice blushed a little, shared a laugh with Sandy and then composed herself. ‘You're right, of course. They’re not little girls anymore, so everything will be fine.’

‘Well said,’ Sandy offered.

Sandy came to bed with Janice and me, and soon after, I heard a subdued, very deep rumbling that sounded like a big boat had just arrived, but as Sandy was wanting me to do things which demanded my attention, I pushed the episode aside to concentrate on the matters in hand. So to speak.

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CHAPTER 62... Seeker...David & Corrine...Bunga Arm...Wednesday They had arrived after dark – the large spotlight on the coachouse roof helping to avoid running over any anchored boats, although some had anchor lights showing. Dave allowed the big boat to idle slowly through the crowded little anchorage, then decided to drop anchor well out from the rest. Cheerful, drunken voices echoed across the water as dinghies buzzed back and forth, transferring one drunken party to yet more booze and another drunken party.

‘This looks like our scene,’ commented Jackie happily, standing up on a cockpit seat to better see the festivities, while Dave picked a clear spot to anchor.

‘It usually is when a bunch of boaties get together. That's part of the attraction of boating – everyone just wants to have fun. Therefore, few arguments, no fights, and no dramas.’

‘Can we go meet some of these people and maybe join in?’ she asked.

‘Sure, we can and will, but not tonight. We need to check who’s who first. Tonight, we'll have a few drinks and a feed on-board.’

‘Oh, okay. We'd better go organise dinner then.’

‘That'd be great, thanks. I'll be down shortly to ply the chefs with strong liquor and lots of encouragement.’

‘Lovely man. We'll be waiting.’

Corrine poked him in the ribs. ‘Much more of that soppy bullshit and you'll be sharing your bed with two randy girls tonight.’

‘Oh, really?’

‘Yes, really! Of course, you could always invite your immediate boss to join you in that oversized bed and that might be enough to keep the desperate maidens at bay.’

‘Oh? he said, eyeing her off speculatively. ‘Is that so?’

She smiled smugly, ‘That's so. Unless you want it to be the nympho twins who break your drought.’

‘Hmmm, perhaps not. You’re on.’

‘Excellent choice,’ she purred. ‘Now, let's get this thing bedded down and join the cooks for a drink or three. We can't do any work tonight.’

Dave climbed onto the coach house roof, peering around trying to see what boats were there, but it was too dark and crowded, so he reluctantly gave up and went below to help Corrine and the girls put a dent in Xavier's booze supply. Allie and Jackie whipped 329

up a lovely meal of rib-eye fillet steak in a red wine sauce, peas, corn and baby potatoes. They found an apple pie in the freezer and served it hot for dessert with ice cream melting over the top. Dave kept them well supplied with wine and they quickly became pissed. Some of that would be an after-effect of the drugs from the night before, so he kept their glasses topped, hoping they'd crash early.

After they all helped with the clean up, Allie and Jackie almost fell asleep over coffees and disappeared to bed straight after.

Dave eyed Corrine as they finished off their coffees. ‘Now they've crashed, you don't have to protect me. I don't think they'll stir until morning. ’

She glared back, ‘Are you rejecting me?’

‘Ahh... no. But I thought you might have been just being nice before, so you don't have to go through with it.’

She patted him on the arm, kissed his cheek and said, ‘Silly man. Come on. I feel like lots of loving tonight.’

Firebird - Bunga Arm, Gippsland Lakes...Wednesday AM

I took my time getting up, as both the bed and the company were way too inviting for any foolishness like pre-dawn deck washing. Consequently, it was Zoe who arrived bearing steaming mugs of tea, after loudly announcing herself in case she was interrupting something.

‘Come on, sleepy heads,’ she chanted. ‘It's a lovely day, the sun's shining and the warm ‘north wind doth blow’!’

Her mother poked her head up from the doona, ‘You're in disgustingly high spirits this morning, but thanks for the tea,’

‘No problem. Brekkie will be on in fifteen minutes if you can drag your sorry slack bodies out of bed!’

‘Okay. We'll be there.’

We went aft one at a time to pee and wash, then joined the girls in the cockpit where they'd laid out a full cooked breakfast of bacon, sausages, scrambled eggs and tomatoes. I wasn't too sleepy to quickly spot the source of the rumbling I'd heard last night.

‘That's a great boat,’ I enthused. ‘It looks like an Italian AB68. It's a very rare beast in Australia.’

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‘Looks fast,’ Sandy mumbled around a mouthful of bacon.

‘They are. At least it's a proper boat, not another top-heavy gin palace,’ I grumbled, sitting down to eat.

‘Get off your soapbox dear and eat up. You need to get your strength back,’ suggested Janice.

‘Ha, ha,’ I poked my tongue out at her. ‘Look who’s talking!’

That kept both ladies quiet, so I asked the girls what they were doing for the day.

Zoe busied herself clearing plates away, leaving Angie to answer, ‘We'll go and pickup Helene and Dom soon and head up the Arm again, if you don't need the dinghy.’

I nodded, ‘No. That’s fine. I’ll do an oil change on the starboard engine – that'll keep me busy.’

‘I'm in the middle of a great book,’ said Janice.

‘And I'll swim ashore and go for a run on the ocean beach,’ Sandy said, ‘so no problem for us.’

‘Great, thanks guys.’

With almost indecent haste, they cleaned up, packed their gear and buzzed off in the dinghy. I was still in the cockpit a few minutes later, when I spotted them heading east up the arm, but taking a detour out around the anchored mass of slowly stirring boats, presumably to check out the sleek new arrival dominating the anchorage with its slightly menacing presence.

I grinned at the ladies, ‘More young love and all that soppy sort of stuff.’

Janice looked sad, ‘I shouldn't be sad, but I can't help feeling our lives over the last few weeks have been in so much in turmoil, the girls have had to grow up too quickly. I mean the mental thing, not the physical. I'm not worried about that anymore. ’

Sandy nodded agreement, ‘You’re right, but looking in from outside, they're coping just fine. It’s all one big adventure to them.’

Janice thought, then finally agreed, letting her misgivings float away with the falling tide.

We all got on with our activities, or inactivity in Janice's case. The oil change went easily and I was finished in forty minutes, joining Janice in the cockpit in time to line up for a fresh mug of tea. Sandy was still ashore, although I thought I saw her trotting back up from the beach. I'd barely finished that thought and my tea, when Sandy hau led herself up onto the stern platform, attracting everyone's attention when she unconcernedly stripped down completely to wash off.

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I also saw the AB68 up-anchor and slowly rumble its way east up the Arm, although the tinted windows were too dark to see how many were on board. It gave me a slightly funny feeling watching the long, low red boat rumbling quietly along in the same direction the teens had gone, and I decided to have a chat with our Security Chief.

Seeker... Bunga Arm, Gippsland Lakes...Wednesday The Seeker crew all slept in for one reason or another and the sun was well up before Dave reluctantly dragged himself out of Corrine's sleepy embrace. He was feeling very pleased with himself, happy he'd met Corrine and that they got along so well.

Unless she was a very good actress, she had genuinely enjoyed last night and this morning just as much as he did. He was still curious about the long, ugly scar he'd felt, then seen, along her right side, but she wouldn't discuss it.

Therefore, he surveyed the new day in solitude from the cockpit as he sipped his tea.

The anchorage was just starting to stir, with a few dinghies shuttling sleepy crew back and forth. One dinghy caught his eye since it was really zipping through the cluster of boats. There were two girls in it so he tracked them to a pretty, forty-odd foot cat on the western side of the anchorage. They picked up two young people then accelerated in an arc to pass close by Seeker. He stood to get a clear view and almost spilled his coffee when he saw who was in the dinghy.

Of the four aboard, two of the girls looked like their targets! Despite their dark tans and sun-bleached hair, he saw their faces clearly as they whizzed past just metres away, giving a cheery wave as they went.

A well-built young fella and another pretty, dark-haired girl were with them.

'Holy shit!' Dave muttered to himself, 'How about that? Jagged them on the first try!'

He hadn't noticed where the dinghy came from, but it didn't matter for now as he went to wake his new bedmate with the news. That was when he learned Corrine wasn't a morning person, and it would take more than a pat on her lovely little bum to stir her into action. Stripping the bedclothes off just provoked threats of extreme violence.

Finally, she sat up after he restored the bedclothes, the jiggling of her small breasts holding his attention while lust stirred his loins into life yet again.

‘What the fuck's wrong with you, waking me up in the middle of the night?’ she snarled,

‘and you can put that thing away until I’ve woken up properly!’

‘It's not the middle of the night, dear girl, it's 09:30 in the morning and I've just spotted the targets.’

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She stared in disbelief, then flung the covers aside and swung out of bed.

‘Why the hell didn't you say so instead of fart-arseing around?’ she asked, dragging on shorts and a T-shirt without bothering about underwear.

Dave shrugged, enjoying the view until it was covered up, then walked out, saying over his shoulder, ‘I've got a hot mug of coffee ready for you.’

‘Bloody hell, man. You could've told me that a bit earlier too!’ She followed him out of the main stateroom and then kissed him tenderly as he handed over the fragrant, steaming mug.

‘Thanks for last night. I've not enjoyed myself so much in a long time. And in case you're wondering, I want to do it again tonight.’

Slightly taken aback by her shift of moods, Dave was nevertheless very pleased to hear that. With mugs in hand, and Corrine revived by the caffeine, they finally started planning.

‘Where did they go?’ Corrine asked.

‘I didn't see exactly. After they picked up the other two, they swung past us and went up the Arm, but they can't go too far since it's a dead end. They must be at one of the little beaches along the shore.’

‘There were just the four of them?’

‘Yep. The two girls plus the guy and girl from the cat on the west side.’

Corrine thought a moment. ‘I reckon we grab them now. If there’s just the other two as witnesses, we can bring them back here.’

It was Dave's turn to think. ‘Nope. Won’t work. Too many people will see us and we’ll have to tow the other dinghy. If we take Seeker, we can put them straight on board without other eyes on us.’

Corrine smiled approvingly, ‘Great idea. Will it take long to get this barge moving?’

‘Nah! Just a few minutes since we'll only be idling up there.’

‘Let’s do it!’

Five minutes later, the anchor clunked into the stowed position and Seeker slowly eased away, the engine’s note not changing from their deep, rumbling idle as the jet drive buckets hissed hydraulically into the full-up position. Dave steered well clear of the other boats, although he looked over at two boats he thought were where the girls had come from. There was a naked woman towelling herself dry in the cockpit of a big catamaran which was distracting, except that Corrine grabbed his nuts in one slim little hand and squeezed gently.

‘Focus, big fella! These are mine now. Save it for tonight.’

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The noise of the engines starting and the rattle of the anchor chain had finally roused their two passengers, who emerged full of questions, so Corrine filled them in.

The news galvanised them into immediate action and a few minutes later, they were back in the wheelhouse, dressed about as well as Corrine.

Once clear of the other boats, Dave edged over to the right side of the Arm, sure the kids had gone to a beach on the opposite side, away from the frequent campsites spread along the ocean-side shore. They had to go nearly 5km before he spotted a lone dinghy pulled up on a sandy beach tucked away behind a small sand spit. It was the first really secluded spot they'd come across.

‘I bet that's them,’ Dave announced confidently. ‘How close do you want Seeker?’

‘How about right on the outside of that little point,’ Corrine replied, looking carefully at the figures laying out on the sand, heads raised at the intrusion.

‘In fact, can you nose up to the sand spit? We could drop over the bow and go grab them.’

‘Yeah, I can do that. I’ve got a ladder I can lower over the bow for us to get back up.

‘How are you going to get them to come with you?’ Jackie asked seriously.

By way of answer, Corrine lifted the hem of her shirt and showed the intimidating black shape of a PMR-30 pistol shoved into her waistband.

‘Yep,’ said Jackie, ‘that'll do it every time. I guess we’ll stay here?’

‘Yes please. Although you might like to open the crew-cabin hatch. We'll put them straight down there for now.’

Jackie nodded as Dave reversed briefly, then cut the engines as the bow grounded gently on the sand. Corrine dropped over fast, while Dave dug the boarding ladder out of a locker. As they approached, the four teens sat up and Dave noted that all were naked and didn't bother getting dressed.

The boy, who Corrine noted with interest was very well built, challenged them.

‘Surely you can find your own beach, without crowding onto ours?’

Smiling disarmingly at him, Corrine replied, ‘Normally yes, and I do apologise for the intrusion, but I'm afraid you have something we need.’

‘And what might that be?’ the boy asked, a note of alarm sounding in his voice.

‘We know!’ one of the pretty blonde girls said in a disgusted voice. ‘These arseholes want Zoe and me. There's a contract been put out on us by our dear, paedophile father , 334

and these mercenary scumbags, who don't give a shit about us, are here to collect their reward.’

By now they had all scrambled to their feet, but the action of Corrine drawing her gun out of her waistband abruptly halted any thought of resistance.

‘That's better,’ she said. ‘Dave will check your clothes for phones and weapons, then get dressed and come with us. I don't want to hurt anyone, but I will if I have to. ’

She looked at the dark-haired girl and the boy, ‘You're not part of the deal and we're sorry you're involved, but you'll have to come along for now. We'll get you safely back to your parents as soon as we can.’

Dave could see that although shock was setting in, Corrine's reasonable tone kept them calm as they dressed. He found a phone, but that was all they had on them.

‘Dave will move your dinghy. You’ll walk to our boat ahead of me.’

‘You won't shoot,’ one of the twins said, ‘you need us in one piece!’

‘That's correct. But your two friends are a little more expendable. Nothing fatal, but a nasty little leg or arm wound is extremely unpleasant, I can assure you. So please behave.’

Although all four looked sullen, it seemed all resistance had been quashed for the moment, as they shuffled to where Seeker’s bow overhung the narrow sand spit. At Corrine’s urging, they climbed up to where Jackie silently pointed down the open hatch of the bow cabin.

Corrine looked down at them. ‘You have water and a toilet, but this hatch is the only way out and will be secured. If you try to scream, we'll come and hurt someone, so please don't do anything stupid.’

‘You really don't know what's going on,’ one of the twins said. ‘If you heard our story, you’d realise this whole kidnap thing is a waste of time and effort.’

‘For now, little girl, I need you to be quiet. Maybe you’ll have your say later, or maybe not. But for now, please behave or it's hurt time. However, I do have one question and you should answer it truthfully. Which boat did you come off?’

The twins looked at each other until one nodded slightly. ‘The big cat, Firebird. ’

Corrine nodded, ‘Thank you. I presume your mother is on board?’

‘Yes.’

‘Good. In that case we’ll tell her directly what’s happening. Now, behave or else.’

With that threat left hanging, the hatch was secured from outside.

Dave looked carefully around and couldn't see anybody watching them, so they moved aft. ‘What now?' he asked Corrine.

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‘Before we do anything else, we’ll send those other two kids back to their parents.’

‘Fair enough, but won’t they raise the alarm?’

‘Sure, they will. But once we tell the mother, can we head straight for Melbourne?’

‘No problem. The tanks are full, so we just have to drop Jackie and Allie off. It’ll be a flat-out run all the way, then they’re Xavier’s problem.’

He looked at them, ‘Sorry about the shortened Lakes cruise, girls, but our work here is almost done.’

Jackie shrugged, ‘We can't complain. You didn't have to bring us in the first place, so we can go back into the hotel. It won't be as exciting as kidnapping young people at gunpoint, but we'll manage.’

Dave gave her a strained look then went to back Seeker off the sand.

CHAPTER 63... Firebird... Bunga Arm...Wednesday I told Sandy and Janice about the curious sight of the AB68 idling up the Arm, including my feelings of unease. The teens weren’t due back for hours, so there was no need to worry. That was until I saw the long, lean red shape coming back down the Arm, two dinghies towing astern and aiming straight for us.

‘Sandy. We’ve got trouble – load up please. Quickly.’

As she dropped the towel and dashed below, I released the hidden latch I'd recently installed on the helm seat base, lifted the cushion and fished out the little Mini -Uzi we'd acquired two attacks ago. Slipping in a magazine, I held it down beside my leg, as Sandy reappeared in the cockpit in just a pair of shorts, her Glock 22 in her hand. By then, the AB68 was curving slowly around, the driver aiming for our stern. They even had a fender already hung over their bow. What looked like a small girl was standing in the bow of the AB, a pistol in her hand, so Sandy and I stepped to the top of the stern steps, lifting our weapons. As the big boat came to rest with it's pointed bow gently kissing our stern, the small girl who dropped lightly onto our deck, turned out to be a short, adult female whom I instantly recognised.

‘Corrine? What the bloody hell are you doing here?’

She stared, then cried, ‘Harry? Fucking hell, Harry! I can't believe it. Is it really you?’

She hurriedly stuffed the PMR-30 into her waistband, before rushing forward to jump into my arms, wrapping her legs firmly around my waist and held me in a tight embrace.

‘Oh, Harry, you darling man. It's so good to see you again!’

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I must admit that I was very happy to see her again too, but my pleasure was tempered by puzzlement as to the how and why of her appearance.

Sandy had raised her Glock, ready to repel an attack, but backed off when she saw Corrine with tears of happiness streaming down her cheeks, still hugging me.

‘Ahh... I guess you two know each other?’ she asked dryly.

I nodded over Corrine's head, which was still jammed against my chest, while prying her off me was more like getting a limpet off a rock. ‘Yes, we do know each other, but let’s secure that overgrown speedboat to a stern cleat and get the driver to shut the engines down before he does something stupid. There appear s to be some explaining to do.’

Corrine finally let me go, scrambled back aboard and talked to the driver who shut down the engines but remained out of sight. When she re-appeared, she was unarmed, but I presumed the driver was. After seeing that, Sandy laid her Glock on the table and threw a shirt on. After we sat, Sandy kicked the ball into play.

‘Okay, Harry. First up, you'd better explain how you know this lady who boards us, gun in hand. Regardless of it being the 21st Century, it's still called piracy.’

I made the basic introductions.

‘Corrine was in one of my squads in Afghanistan when we got into a bit of a mess.’

Corrine butted in, ‘I'll tell this bit, because Harry always leaves stuff out. But it's just the short version. I was part of a squad tracking down some Taliban top-level bad guys, we got some bad intel, then were ambushed and their bodyguards opened up with a heavy machine gun which quickly chewed away our really crappy cover of a dry-stone wall.

So dear Harry, who'd arrived with another small squad to bail us out, came in from the side and he ran back and forth in the open, firing at them. That drew their fire so most of the guys could fall back to better cover and could return fire. The bad guys were mostly rotten shots, but Harry still got hit.’

‘I couldn't move since I'd already copped a bullet through my side, so while bullets were whizzing past his head, Harry came by, casual as you like, and asked me if I wanted to stay there, or would I like to re-join my squad mates. When I said I couldn’t really move, he slung me over his shoulder and managed to get clear with the help of covering fire from our guys. It turned out the couple of hits Harry took meant he wasn't as healthy as he pretended to be, but our guys were able to call in air support and they neutralised the bad guys before we copped any more aggro.

We also found out later that while he was prancing around drawing enemy fire, Harry had topped the two top-level bad guys, so our 'brass' were rather impressed.

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I was too, after the medics told me I’d nearly bled-out and wouldn't have lasted much longer, so I reckon Harry saved my life. I sort of owe him for that.’

Sandy looked knowingly, while Janice looked a bit wide-eyed. ‘Is that how it went down?’ she asked.

I shrugged, ‘Yeah. I guess so. Pretty much,’ feeling rather uncomfortable about being made out to be a hero, ‘but I'm not sure about the 'prancing around' bit!’

That was good for a chuckle to lighten the mood slightly, but it would take more than that to sort out this clusterfuck.

‘Okay,’ Sandy said, assuming the role of moderator, ‘that covers the who's who with you two. Now we need to know what you guys are doing running around with guns, and maybe you can explain where our four young people are, seeing as you're towing our RIB behind that red Italian phallic symbol.’

Corrine grimaced, ‘Without anybody getting excited, and remember that my driver is armed, we have the four teens aboard and they are safe and well.’

Janice shot to her feet, eyes blazing and would have attacked Corrine across the table if I hadn't held her back. Her fit of coughing made me belatedly realise that I was still holding the Mini-Uzi and the barrel tip was in her throat.

‘Oops, sorry about that. But please sit down and let's hear the whole story first.’ I still kept a hold of the Uzi, despite my words.

Corrine resumed, ‘As I was saying, they are safe and well, but I need to hear a lot more from you guys, before I tell our story. All I have so far is that one of the twins said something about us 'not knowing the full story' and 'paedophile father'. ’

Janice sat, but still glared a torrent of pure venom across the table at Corrine as she growled, ‘If you've harmed just one hair on their heads, I'll track you down and kill you if it's the last thing I ever do!’

‘Oh, cut the melodramatic threats, for Christ's sake,’ Corrine said wearily. ‘I've already said they're in perfect health, so please, can we move on?’

Janice muttered a few more very rude things before sitting back, her mouth tightly clamped into full-on chook's bum mode.

My quick assessment of the situation was that Corrine would be amenable to reason, as long as she got the truth, so without consulting the others, I told the condensed version of the story, but made sure she got all the information on Luke, the paedophile ring, the Melbourne mansion and the involvement by the top levels of ACP, various police, politicians and celebrities. I explained about the non-virgin thing with certificates 338

of proof, and included a brief account of each of the three attacks leading up to today, as well as the demise of the two Steel Associates operatives.

She laughed at the virgin explanation.

‘I understand how that would screw the whole deal. As in – there is no deal! Stupid fuckin’ Luke and Xavier. If it weren’t for the paedophile ring stuff, I could call the whole kidnapping thing off immediately with a phone call.’

She noted the concerned look on Sandy and my faces.

‘Don’t worry, I’m not going to stuff up that operation. They deserve everything they get.

I hate those mongrels!’

I smiled at her, ‘So you're full-time Steel Associates. I always wondered where you'd ended up.’

She sighed, ‘You know how it is, Harry. In the Service, the guys treated me as an equal and respected my skills – not just because I had the standard female fit-out of tits and pussy. Out of uniform, I've got a set of skills which aren't highly regarded on any normal CV. Sniper and Wet Work Specialist doesn't fit your average office environment.

Therefore, I’m regarded as a freak. I'm also supposed to lie down for every swinging dick who thinks he's a tough guy, so I've got to be better than the best, and even then, I'm at the bottom of the pecking order, so where do I go?’

‘Yeah, yeah. I know where you're coming from, but kidnapping is a bit of a stretch. ’

She looked a bit uncomfortable, ‘I know. Up to now, I’ve just been finding people and escorting female clients around, but this one raised red flags from the start. Dave's a good guy boat driver who hasn't been on operations before, and we were hoping not to find any trace of you, although that usually sends Xavier into fits. ’

‘How did you get on our trail?’ I asked.

‘One of Xavier's clowns spotted you and Janice in the Lakes supermarket and followed you back to the dinghy. Xavier got excited and sent Dave and me out here in his personal Italian pussy-catcher.’

I looked at Janice and Sandy and shrugged. ‘Sorry guys. My bad. I thought we could duck in and out and not pick up a tail, but Xavier seems to be on the ball. ’

‘Oh yeah, he is. He might be a Pommy thug, but he's a smart little prick, so don't underestimate him.’

‘Yeah, I'm starting to appreciate that. But what's your position now you've heard what's really going on?’

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Corrine looked pensive. ‘Simple. Naturally I believe you and this incredible story, so our position is – we haven't found you. We'll just cruise around the Lakes for a week or so, enjoying the sun and Xavier's food and booze, then return to base.’

Sandy made a noise that could have been a stifled cough, but sounded more like,

'Bullshit!'

‘Do you really trust her word, Harry? She’ll just call down the whole Steel mob on us as soon as we let her go.’

I looked at Corrine, then at Sandy. ‘Sorry guys, but I do trust her. Implicitly! If Corrine says she's on our side, that's it.’

Sandy sat back, clearly not happy, but prepared to see how things shook d own.

‘Okay Corrine. I’ve backed you, but Janice and Sandy aren't so sure. What can you do to convince them?’

‘Will you give me a few minutes to explain things to the others? Then I'll clear the air. ’

‘Righto.’

‘Are you seriously going to let her get back on that boat without producing the girls?’

Janice demanded, glaring with renewed intensity at Corrine, ‘There's nothing to stop her from taking off!’

‘Actually, there is, my dear lady. Corrine gave her word,’ I replied mildly, then turned to Corrine.

‘Perhaps it would be better if you called your crew forward, without weapons, so they can hear you tell them what we've told you.’

Corrine nodded, ‘No problem. That works for me.’

She walked to the stern and called out, ‘Dave. Will you all come forward, please? No weapons, no tricks. Everything is fine and there's a good way out of this mess if we’re all sensible.’

Moments later, three people appeared – a tall, well-built, blonde-haired guy, a blonde woman and a dark-haired woman, both pretty and shapely. When they stopped near the tip of the bow, Sandy stepped forward and flashed her police badge. ‘I'm Sergeant Thomson. Please behave, as I'd prefer not to have to arrest you, since it'd t ake me half an hour to read out the list of charges, but for now, please lift your shirts so I can see there are no weapons tucked away.’

As a weapon search, it was well short of a proper frisk, but better than nothing, and in the circumstances, probably quite sufficient. The guy complied, happily pulling his shirt up to show a superb six-pack, and did a 360º turn. The ladies looked rather intimidated by the Uzi I still waved around, and somewhat over-enthusiastically pulled their shirts 340

up to show a lot of tanned skin, nice boobs, but no guns or knives. They didn't look like Steel Associates people to me and I was keen to hear the 'who and how'.

‘Okay,’ Sandy said, ‘that's enough. Now Corrine has a few things to say to you. It’s very much in your interest to listen carefully, since we don't want any misunderstandings. ’

She nodded at the Mini-Uzi to make the point.

Corrine stepped up and gave a brief rundown on what I'd told her about the situation with the girls and the paedophile ring. The other three didn't say anything until she finished.

‘You obviously believe what you've heard, and trust Harry, so what's your suggestion?’

Dave asked.

‘We haven't found them,’ she simply replied. ‘I suggest we bum around this lovely area for a while, enjoying the food and booze, then go home when Xavier gets sick of the lack of action and paying the fuel bills.’

Dave grimaced, ‘Suits me. This kidnapping of girls isn't right – especially now we've heard the full story. I'd prefer not to lose my perfect job, but I won't go along with Xavier's orders any longer.’

Jackie spoke for Allie as well. ‘We're just along for the ride and a bit of fun, so now we know, we're all in favour of doing the right thing. We can see things aren’t right, so we'll help in any way we can, or you can just dump us ashore if you want.’

‘Good,’ I took over again. ‘I'm glad we have agreement on that. Ladies, we would appreciate you sticking around a little longer, since there are bigger plans in motion which mustn't be interrupted. However, there still remains the vital question of, 'where are the teens'?’

Corrine looked a bit ashamed, ‘Oh shit. I'm sorry. With all the standoff and gun-waving stuff, I forgot. They're right here,’ pointing at the bow of Seeker. ‘Dave, would you do the honours please?’

Janice jumped to her feet as Dave unlatched the crew hatch and called the teens out.

Angie and Zoe were first up the ladder, followed by Helene and Dom. They jumped down onto Firebird's stern and the girls embraced their mother, tears flowing. Dom shook hands with me and I scored a big hug and double kisses from Helene. I invited the crew from Seeker to come aboard as well and had Dave let out some line so that Seeker lay back a bit from our stern. Dave sheepishly handed over the folded blanket and the phone.

I called the group to order and had them sit down where they could around the cockpit.

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‘We have a final piece of business to sort out and it’s vital if our agreement is to hold up.’ I looked at Helene and Dom. ‘You guys are totally innocent bystanders in this mess, and I think you're owed a very big apology by the four Seeker crew. However, more to the point, do you want to make a formal complaint? You have, after all, been kidnapped at gunpoint and held against your will.’

They had a quick conversation in very rapid French that nobody was able to follow, before Helene said, ‘We were able to hear everything being said and it explained a great deal. We understand why you couldn't tell us the full story earlier, but we have become very fond of you all for your hospitality and kindness. As there has been no harm done and we can see the consequences for the twins would be considerable, we think it best if we say nothing and regard the incident as part of our Great Australian Adventure.’

‘That's very gracious, Helene,’ I said gravely. ‘Thank you very much. Now we should hear from Corrine and Dave.’

They stammered their way through a series of awkward, but seemingly heart -felt apologies to the four teens, who heard them out, then accepted graciously.

At that point, Helene said, ‘I think that we should return to our parents for now, please Harry. We will abide by our agreement not to say anything, but you have much to discuss and need to settle in with your new friends. However, we would like to visit again tomorrow if we may?’

‘Of course, Helene. Forgive me for not thinking of you sooner, but you are very welcome anytime and tomorrow is fine.’

They said their goodbyes and Angie elected to run them back.

Corrine looked at me, ‘Okay Harry. That's one more step, so where do we go from here?’

I looked around the group, but mainly addressed the Seeker crew, ‘Under the circumstances, the only way this can work is if we all forgive and forget. I’m happy to if everyone else will.’ There were a thoughtful series of nods all around, even a slightly reluctant one from Janice, so I continued. ‘Excellent. In that case you’re welcome to stay in company with us and enjoy the delights of the marvellous Lakes. We usually move every few days to keep the scenery fresh.

You can head off on your own if you want, we can’t stop you. But given the massive shitstorm that’s about to descend on every bad guy tied up with this mess, including Xavier, it might be safest if you stayed close to us and kept your heads down. We also 342

may need your help if any other Steel Associates' people or bounty hunters come this way. If we all accept that this morning's events didn’t happen, then you guys are blameless with nothing to fear from being swept up in the net.’

I figured it wouldn't hurt to remind them they were potentially looking at a capital crime charge that could only be averted by playing the game our way, but fortunately, Corrine said it for the rest. ‘No problem from us Harry, now we understand how things really are.

We're very grateful charges won't be pressed and we have the chance to make things right. We'll stick around and help anyway we can.’

The others nodded, even Jackie and Allie. ‘Wouldn't miss this for the world,’ added Allie. ‘Bugger the shop for now. Mum and Dad can look after it for a while longer.’

‘Thanks Corrine. We've been looking over our shoulders for too long. I thought we were done with it.’

She smiled, ‘You and I need to have a chat. There's a lot you're not saying.’

I just grinned back and left it for now. ‘You must make contact with Xavier sometime soon, I presume?’

‘Yes, but not for another day or two. We spoke yesterday afternoon when we handed over the dickhead who'd spotted you and Janice, and got the latest set of updates on your position. Which reminds me, I'll just go get them so you know what Xavier knows. ’

She went to pull Seeker back up to our stern, but I said the Dave, ‘How about you fire up that thing and run it forward enough to drop the anchor, then lay back so we can raft up. It'll make transfer between boats a lot easier.’

He happily agreed and I went along to help, getting a tour of Seeker at the same time.

It was a beautiful boat, built for a totally different purpose than Firebird, but still a serious sea boat. I was just glad I didn't have to pay the fuel bills or overhaul one of those huge V12 diesels. It didn't take long to set the rafting up and with plenty of fenders out, we were soon secure. I felt better having them physically attached to us, because with the alliance in its infancy, I intended to keep them close until I was sure everybody was firmly on the same page.

Dave stayed aboard to check a few things and Allie and Jackie took advantage of the new arrangement to go pee or something, while Corrine handed over the briefing notes from Xavier. I had just sat down to read them with Sandy and Janice, when Zoe came up and said quietly, ‘Jasper's getting a bit worried about what's happening. Can I bring him out?’

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I laughed, ‘Oh shit! I clean forgot about him in all the fuss. Yes, please do. I'll have to apologise for leaving him out of things.’ I turned to Corrine and said, ‘Please don't be alarmed, but it's time you met the boat cat.’

She raised one eyebrow, a neat trick of hers I'd always admired, and said, ‘Oh, that's good. I like kitties.’ Then she saw the long, black shape slinking out behind Zoe, his bright green eyes fixed unwaveringly on hers.

‘Holy shit, Harry. What the hell's that?’ she whispered.

‘That is my kitty. His name is Jasper. Jasper, this is Corrine; she's a very good friend.’

For once, my big cat didn’t take my introduction very well as he slowly paced up to her and sniffed cautiously. He then sat back and huffed loudly. Zoe and I laughed as Corrine asked, ‘What just happened?’

‘Don't be offended, but there are apparently some things about you he doesn't like.

He's very sensitive.’

‘I'm not sure I like the idea of a cat that big not liking me! ’ she retorted. ‘That could be unhealthy.’

I looked at her seriously, ‘Yes it could be and it was very unhealthy for that bloke with the seaplane who called himself Mr Peter. I didn't tell you earlier since I didn't want to alarm everybody, but when Peter and the pilot tried to take the girls at gunpoint, Jasper helped defend us. He attacked him and pretty well tore him apart – literally. It made a fearsome mess all over the port landing platform.’

Despite her training in close-quarters killing, Corrine turned a bit white at the thought of a person being ripped to pieces by this big, black cat staring intently at her from two paces away. ‘He really did that?’

‘Yep! Chewed his gun arm off first, tore his throat out then ripped open his belly. Spilled his guts everywhere. Like I said, it made a fearsome mess and he didn't die quickly either. Particularly nasty way to go.’ I leaned over and scratched Jasper's ears, so he immediately closed his eyes and started purring loudly.

Corrine didn't know whether to freeze or try to get away, so I said, ‘Try scratching him under the chin. He likes that.’

So she did, very tentatively, but with growing confidence when she realised Jasper wasn't going to chew her hand off and that he really did like it. Finally, he shuffled forward until he could rest his head on her knees so she could scratch his ears and neck properly. She looked up with a strange expression on her face, ‘He really likes it!

He's just like a normal cat.’

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‘He is just a normal cat,’ I replied, ‘but a lot bigger and with very strong protective instincts for those in his family. Sandy, Janice and the girls are included in his family,’ I added pointedly.

She didn't miss it. ‘Got it! So where was he when I came aboard waving my gun around?’

‘Just inside the saloon door, about one leap away,’ I said with a straight face.

Corrine went quiet for a moment. ‘Oh! So, it was nearly a repeat of the Peter incident?’

I nodded, straight-faced, ‘Yep, could’ve been. He's like that, best guard cat I've ever had. Oh, and be careful what you say around him, because he seems to understand what people say!’

Corrine laughed weakly, but looked oddly at the sleek, purring head she was scratching.

CHAPTER 64... Firebird & Seeker... Bunga Arm...Thursday We’d spent the rest of Wednesday traipsing back and forth between the two boats, had several discussions and sorted out who was to do what and when. After Corrine explained in private what she'd learned from Jackie and Allie while they were drugged with her cocktail, I endorsed her idea to keep them close until everything was wrapped up. I also explained to Corrine, in detail, about the raid against the paedophiles, to reinforce the point that it wouldn't be in her best interest to say anything to anybody.

‘In fact, it could be best if you just pretended that you’ve never heard of Xavier.’

There would be one exception, I'd called Hillary to let her know, as promised, that we were within range again if she and Debbie wanted to visit. As brief as my phone call had been, it was like I'd poked her with a cattle-prod since I received a call back early this morning to say that they would be at the public boat ramp on the Esplanade at Paynesville at 11:00 looking for a pick-up.

Accordingly, I'd asked Dave if he fancied a quick run over to Paynesville to collect a couple of very interesting ladies.

‘No problem,’ he replied. ‘How far is it?’

‘About 5 nautical,’ I said.

He grinned, ‘At 60 knots, that'll take all of five minutes. The engines will hardly get warm.’

‘That'll be fun, then. You'll enjoy talking to these ladies. They're great people.’

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Wednesday night, Dave had invited us all to dinner aboard Seeker, and ably assisted by Jackie and Allie, served a beautiful Beef Wellington with all the trimmings. Angie, all previous animosity forgotten, had pounced on him and was busy getting recipes and cooking ideas. The girls' natural charm quickly won over the whole Seeker crew and it went a long way toward melding us into one big, happy family united against Xavier and the paedophile ring. Perhaps having Jasper prowl over both boats throughout the night helped the mood swing toward peace and harmony.

Thursday breakfast was served on Firebird with Angie and Zoe trying to outdo Dave's beautiful feed of the night before by serving a superb eggs benedict with smoked salmon and Palma ham. Dave and I talked about the run to Paynesville, but as there was no shopping either boat desperately needed, it was only the ladies to be picked up.

Naturally, Sandy, Janice and the girls would stay behind, with Jackie and Allie opting to join them. Surprisingly, Jasper made noises about wanting to join the quick run across Lake Victoria so we included him.

We separated from the raft, hauled anchor and fenders and due to the shallow -draft jet drives, Dave took the overgrown speedboat up to near full speed straight away. I'd been on fast boats before, but not on one nearly 70 feet long doing 115 km/h in knee -

deep water. Dave cut corners with reckless abandon, but he obviously knew the boat very well and it was an eye-opening experience to be travelling at that speed only a couple of metres from dry land. Jasper pretended to be a dog and sat up for'rard, his ears flattened and mouth open with the wind puffing out his cheeks. Every so often, he'd turn and grin stupidly back at us, even staying there when we hit some choppy water halfway across.

As predicted, five minutes after Dave opened the throttles in Bunga Arm, he throttled back to a sedate six knots as we approached the two jetties beside the public boat ramp. Both were crowded, so Dave showed off the shallow-water capability of the big boat again, by nosing up almost to the beach at the end of one jetty where I could tie up to a bollard. We hadn't been there long before the familiar figures of Hillary and Debbie strode briskly across the car park and up to our parking spot. They didn't recognise the boat, of course, but the sight of Jasper bounding down the jetty to greet them, to the alarm of several locals, brought cries of recognition.

Debbie, the frustrated boatie, cast a critical eye over Seeker's lines and said severely,

‘I do hope, Harry, that you haven't swapped your beautiful catamaran for this... thing!’

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I chuckled, ‘Hello, dear Debbie. No, I haven't done anything silly like that. We're going to take you to Firebird right now, but there's a long story behind the presence of this boat, and we'll tell you later.’

Mollified, she gave me a big hug then passed me on to Hillary who gave me a kiss and a harder hug then stood back and patted my cheek. ‘Dear boy! What have you been up to this time?’

‘Oh, just the usual, Hillary – boats, bad guys, bullets and old friends. You're going to love this one!’

‘I do already, but please introduce me to that lovely, handsome young man and those darling girls.’

‘What? Aren’t I good enough for you any more?’ I demanded with a grin.

‘Always, Harry, always! But he's younger, they're prettier, and I have to keep all my options open in case Debbie kicks me out.’

Debbie rolled her eyes and smiled indulgently. I made the introductions to Dave, Corrine, Jackie and Allie, then we loaded our visitors aboard for the brief run back to Bunga Arm, where we rafted up again and the girls, Janice and Sandy, greeted Hillary and Debbie warmly.

I let Janice and Corrine tell the latest story to Hillary and Debbie, while Sandy updated her boss, Bob Casey, and I made contact first with Rob and then Annette to fill them in on the latest situation and its quite astonishing outcome. Both were a little sceptical about the turnaround of attitude by the Seeker crew, but finally conceded it sounded all right, especially with Hillary's investigative nose firmly buried in the case. Rob was appalled yet again we’d been assaulted, but was amazed we had escaped with the kidnappers defecting to our side.

It was Annette who dropped the big bombshell . ‘Things are finally progressing with a co-ordinated move planned to seize their headquarters, which is the mansion in Melbourne, then everyone who has been identified in photos and videos will be arrested simultaneously.’

‘That's great news!’ I said. ‘When should this happen?’

‘Probably on Saturday evening, which we think is best for the mansion raid, but there's still a lot of work being done to trace the movements of all the other identified persons so they can all be grabbed at the same time wherever they are. We expect they will have an emergency communication system set up, so it's essential to act simultaneously to stop a warning getting out.’

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I sagged against the chart table with relief, ‘Oh, Annette! That's fantastic! So, by Sunday morning, the heat should be off us?’

‘Basically, you should be in the clear by then. That Xavier character who's been giving you grief is on the pick-up list as well, even though he's not actually a suspect in the paedophile side of things. But he's done so many dodgy jobs for various members of the Ring, the task force has included him on the shit-list. There’s good evidence against him from that Tasmanian mess, so he and his key operatives will be scooped up, Steel Associates will be shut down, and all company records and assets seized.’

‘May I tell the two very ex-employees, who have now aligned with us, that they should go very low profile for a while, or are they on the list as well?’

She chuckled, ‘They're not on the seize list, but they are on our database. However, based on your information, you could probably go ahead and warn them off. But tell them from me, they'd better seek a different line of work immediately or some very large feet will descend on them from a great height. We will be keeping an eye on them.’

‘Thanks Annette, one other question. Is it only the company assets being seized, or is Xavier’s personal stuff being grabbed as well?’

‘At this stage, it’s only the Steel Associates stuff being seized. Is there something I should know?’

I couldn’t be evasive after all she’d done to help, so I said, ’There’s a boat our two ex-Steel employees are currently on, which is the personal property of one Terry Johnson.

If that could be left off the possible asset list, it might be helpful in allowing our defectors to get into that different line of work you mentioned.’

She chuckled, ‘There’s no boat on any asset list which I’ve seen. Low profile and good behaviour would seem to be the best advice I could give them.’

I gave a sigh of relief. ‘Brilliant! Thanks Annette. There'll be some very relieved people here shortly, but especially after Saturday night.’

‘Good work, Harry. You need to stay frosty for another couple of days, so don't pop any champagne corks yet. Make sure you get the Sunday papers however ! I'll be in touch.’

‘Thanks Annette, for everything.... ‘

I called a round table conference which we had to hold in Seeker's much larger main saloon, as we had eleven people to seat. When all were comfortable, I told them of the simultaneous raids scheduled for Saturday night, which caused an immediate outbreak of chatter and questioning. Holding my hand up, I said, ‘Hold on and back up the bus.

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It's almost over, but not finished yet! We need to avoid any Steel Associates' operatives or bounty hunters until Sunday, which means security as usual, but at least we have a closing date and can relax a little.’

After the fresh outbreak chatter had died down, I looked at Jackie and Allie. ‘You ladies can resume your normal lives from Sunday, so we’ll run you back to Lakes Entrance where you can re-start your holiday. However, I have to say that should you feel the desire to talk about this afterwards, please remember that there are people in high places who know your involvement hasn't been entirely innocent.’

‘Ahh. What do you mean?’ Jackie asked, a tremble in her voice.

‘To put it bluntly, we know all about the arrangement you made with James to track down the girls yourselves for Luke's reward. That makes you bounty hunters, the same as the rotten mongrels who tried to bust us on Erith Island. I’d like to remind you what happened to them – one dead and one in Police lock-up.’

They looked utterly stricken. ‘But how do you know? We didn't say anything.’

‘Let's just say we got the information from the horse's mouth, in fine detail and it's all recorded. Court admissible, if necessary.’

Allie burst into tears, while Jackie shut up and appeared to find the carpet pa ttern fascinating.

I looked at Corrine and Dave. ‘Your boss is being scooped up too. Not because he's a paedophile, but because of the very dodgy work he’s done for members of the Ring over the years. With strong evidence tying him to the Tasmanian debacle, the ACP

want to take him out permanently. Steel Associates will be shut down, senior staff charged, and all company assets seized.’

Corrine looked worried, ‘So where does that leave us?’

‘I'm authorised to tell you that although you are known Xavier associates, because of your assistance and change of heart yesterday, you won't be prosecuted with the rest.

Provided you keep your heads down and don't get involved in anything like this again.

Unquote! That's the official word from the ACP.’

They both looked very relieved, but naturally Dave asked, ‘What about the boat? Is it going to be seized along with everything else?’

‘Is it company property or Xavier's private toy?’

Dave thought a moment, ‘I'm not sure.’

Corrine chipped in, ‘I know. When Xavier called me to come on this trip, he said that he normally wouldn't use the boat on a job, because it's his personal toy, not company 349

property. But as time was pressing, he approved its use. So, it shouldn't be included in any company asset seizure.’

I looked at both of them, ‘I guess you're trying to say you'd like to hang onto Seeker for yourselves?’

They nodded in unison. ‘Okay then. In that case, I’ll say that you can do what you want with it, but make sure it’s something very legitimate, like executive charter or something.’

They looked at each other, ‘Great idea! Thanks.’

‘For the rest of us, we'll have to wait to see what happens after the arrests, but we should know how that's going within a few weeks, although I imagine it’ll be a long time before everyone is brought to trial.’

As there were no more questions it seemed as good a reason as any to break out Xavier's booze. Animated conversations erupted all around the table, but all I could see of my future was resuming my travels on my boat, with my beautiful, mystical cat.