“Out of The Mist”
Chapter 155 of ? …
Ollie:
I was frozen in my tracks, trying to make some sense of what was confronting me. Why did Tino have his hands on his head, and who the fuck were these guys we had on board?
What could I do? What SHOULD I do? There was an obvious threat, but I didn't know what it was, or how to respond to it.
“Andy” piped up. “Relax, Ollie, this isn't what you might think. We don't mean any harm here. “Isaac”, how about you take Tino up top, and let him show you what this boat is equipped to really do. And, Ollie, would you please join me, and “Chuck” below decks for a chat?”
What choices did we really have?
“Catch's” proximity detector began chirping. We all saw the Coasties' patrol boat pulling up on us, then swerving away, tooting it's horn, the visible guys waving at us.
All of us waved back, me and Tino more reluctantly.
“Friends of yours?”, “Chuck” asked.
“Yeah! You could say that.”, I confirmed, hoping to make a point with our captors.
“Excellent!”, he replied. “They're our friends, too. Don't look so surprised.”
What the Hell was going on here?
As “Isaac” was herding Tino up top, and I was joining “Chuck” and “Andy” below, the two of us exchanged a glance of concern, yet had no choice but to go on.
“Ollie”, Andy spoke up. “Before we sit down at the galley table, here, I think all of us could use a beer. And, I do mean five. Chuck will deliver Isaac's, and Tino's, up top.”
Though the guns at their waists were evident, no one had reached for one. The apparent force was merely a suggestion.
I began to relax as I retrieved the cold ones, popping them open, setting three around the table, and handing Chuck the other two.
Andy was smiling. “Have a seat, Buddy! We'll wait 'til Chuck gets back, in a few moments.”
When Chuck returned he didn't take the seat that would hem me in between them. Instead, they left me outboard, right next to the steps up to the fantail. I got the impression I was free to flee, if I wished. However, something about them told me stay where I was. What the Hell was going on here?
“Thanks for the beer, and giving us a few moments to talk to you, Ollie”, Chuck began.
“I do apologize for our obvious intimidation, but it's been necessary. All we really want to do is talk to you, and this was the best way to do that, privately, out here beyond any other observance.”
He had my attention, and I relaxed my concern for Tino with Isaac.
The following conversation with Chuck and Andy was mind blowing.
They let me know, in no uncertain terms, that they knew everything about me, my family, my friends, my relation with Dave, who everyone was, including Tino, how we'd formed up together, and what we'd been up to.
They also inferred that they worked for a certain agency, that they called “The Company”.
My mind was spinning.
They knew I had one more year to go at Duke, in order to get my undergraduate degree in oceanography, and marine biology. And, they even suggested it might be better for me to consider transferring to a New Englnad area univeristy, B.U., Harvard, Yale, M.I.T., any of those I might choose. They had ways of helping me do that.
And, if I took them up on their offer, they were sure “The Company” would be interested in hiring me, even if I wanted to go into post-grad studies.
They said they were impressed with what my friends, and I, had managed to detect, and uncover, exposing Paddy Lafferty's criminal operations.
However, they also said that they had Paddy in a useful position, being able to use his operations to their advantage, but weren't going to say anything further about that.
They knew about Ryan, Paddy's apparent vendetta, and Rafe's unfortunately getting caught up in that. And, they assured me that while they were “chatting” with me, Paddy, and his brother-in-law, Ryan's dad, were having a “discussion” with some of their fellow agents … um … co-workers.
From here on out, Paddy would no longer be a threat. Period.
I was stunned!
Tino popped his head into the cabin, all smiles. “Ollie! Can I get two more beers for Isaac and me?”
I had NO idea what those two had been up to, or why they were good buddies all of a sudden.
“Let's all grab another brew, and get down to some serious fishing!”, Andy declared.
What an Awesome day this turned out to be!
I finally nosed “Catch” back into her slip. Tino expertly tied us off. The fish were filleted, wrapped, and portioned out among our three new amigos, who gave us hugs, and really big tips, before heading to their SUV.
“What just happened, and who were those guys?”, I asked Tino.
“I'm not sure, but I wouldn't mind seeing them again.”, Tino answered, as we were hosing “Catch” down, and getting ready for tomorrow.
Hmmm … I was thinking. Chuck, Isaac, and Andy?
