Chapter 53 - REVERSALS

Nicky's runabout got pounded by the same cloudburst as BALI, but at least the cousins had seen it coming. Marianne and Jesse were huddled under the runabout's foredeck, while Sidearm and Nicky were old hands at this game. Nicky reduced speed and put her boat dead to windward for the worst of the squall, marking time, while Marianne filled them in on what she knew of the last 24 hours. They responded in kind, shouting to be heard.

As the rain slackened, Nicky put them on a course taking the waves on their port quarter. BALI had been on a course for the Eastern Bay when their courses intersected, but if she'd sailed out of the Hole headed to sea, she must have followed the windshift around. That meant the islands weren't so far off, and Nicky decided to cut the angle.

When the northwesterly blew off the last tatters of fog, they saw she'd been right. Little Spruce was dead ahead, about half a mile off, and they had their choice of closest entrance. If they still wanted to follow trouble into the Hole.

"Don't make much sense to take these two back into it," Nicky pointed out.

Marianne was torn. She was scared Dunk had been hurt, or worse, and wanted to be with him. But she had Jesse to think about. It wouldn't be right to put him at risk again.

"We could make for the side door," Sidearm proposed, "and see saw the sights, Sweety." They agreed on that compromise option.

The runabout rolled and wallowed as Nicky dodged the breaking crests and cut across the run of the seas. "These old Corson's sure are kindly," she thought. Not for the first time.

It was turning into a glorious day. The humidity had been wiped clear, and the world sparkled with the passing rain. Approaching the outside of Little Spruce all the colors were vibrant. The encrusted orange lichens on sparkling pink and white granite, The bone white of dead trees among the blackgreen spruce. The bursts of white spray against the iron-tinged ledges. Marianne and Jesse came out from their shelter and the wind lifted their hair.. and their spirits.

Nicky had turned off the CB while the lightening was striking. Now she switched it back on, handing Sidearm the mike.

"SIDEUP this is FIVE CENTS, how copy, ovah?" He transmitted. There was no response. Either Sonny hadn't turned his radio back on, it had been fried by the electrical storm, or...?

As they coasted Little Spruce, more and more of Irishman's Bay opened to view, and the sky above the mainland beyond was dotted with fair weather cumulus. Even in the wind the sun was warm. A perfect summer day in Maine. To Marianne it somehow felt disloyal to be basking in this physical beauty when Dunk might be dead or dying just the other side of this island.

"Yo," Nicky said, looking ahead. Another boat was just coming out beyond the ledges ahead, about where the side door should be.

"Gotta be Summy," Sidearm observed. "Nobdy else'd wayah that hat." Sure enough, whoever was running the whaler had a go-to-hell hat on with a big eagle feather raked out behind. If it was Sumner, he was too busy getting the feel of the exposed seas to notice the runabout, and Nicky reached down to fish out her aerosol foghorn.

"BLAAAT," it said, and both heads in the whaler snapped around when the sound reached them. Marianne and Jesse giggled.

"Maybe it's all going to be OK," Marianne hoped.

The two boats were soon running side-by-side, pitching with their bows into the waves.

"Yea Papa! Hi Momma!" Jesse shouted. "Sidearm's gonna teach me a new pitch." His parents laughed at the boy's priorities.

"Sonny and them have Chinetti on SUZY," Sumner relayed nodding toward the Hole. "Gonna try make a deal. I was takin Liz home.. just in case," he went on, a little abashed.

"You bet he was," Liz put in, and Nicky chuckled.

"Why doane you take Sluggo heyah, an the lil lady," Sidearm suggested. "An we'll go stick a nose in."

"I think I want to go too," Marianne said firmly, catching Liz's eye.

Liz started to say something, then stopped. "I guess it's for real with Dunk," she thought, and she nodding her understanding.

Sumner didn't understand, but when he started to object, Liz touched his arm, and he sputtered into silence. He wasn't about to cross Liz today.

Marianne passed Jesse to his mother as the boats tossed together. Liz hugged the child unmercifully while Sumner ruffled his hair. "You be careful," Liz said to Marianne and her companions.

"Nevah feah," Sidearm responded, "Nicky'll proteck us."

Nicky put the runabout back into gear and made a tight circle, straightening out for the side door. Just inside the passage the wind and seas dropped dramatically and it was suddenly quite warm.The rich scents of balsam and spruce and rockweed filled their heads. They could see all of Bunker's Hole quite clearly, and it was empty, but as they got deeper in, and could look down the channel toward the great beach they caught sight of SUZY-Q close to the Rogue Island shore. There looked to be a smaller white boat up on the rocks there, but it was mostly obscured from view by Sonny's boat. Nicky steered into the channel.

Sidearm took the revolver out of his pocket and checked it, then held it loosely at his side. "Mebbe you should put your head down, Miss Oystah-shell," he suggested to Marianne.

She ducked down, kneeling on the pallet between Sidearm and Nicky, but keeping her head up so she could see whatever was happening through the windshield. Nicky slowed down about 40 yards out, and keyed the CB again.

"SIDEUP this is FIVE CENTS," she said. "You copy?" There was no answer.

Nicky made a wide circle around SUZY-Q keeping their distance, until they could see into the the deckhouse from astern. The figures aboard made a frozen tableau. There was a man standing next to a 55-gallon drum which lying on the ledge beside the fishboat. In the boat Sidearm recognized the big bulk of Bobo standing on the work deck, and the equally large figure of Jumbo huddled on the side rail with a tall blond woman doing something beside him. It was difficult to sort out who else was aboard in the cluster of people. Sidearm saw Bobo reach over and pull the woman. She then turned toward the runabout and waved her arms for them to come in.

"I don't like it," Nicky said

Just then there was a flash of movement up on the ledges. A figure was waving something, a shirt, maybe.

"It's Dunk," Marianne gasped. She jumped up and waved her arms excitedly. Dunk stopped jumping up and down, and made a wide circular gesture with both arms, starting at his knees, swinging overhead, and ending with both arms pointing toward the Hole. He repeated the signal.

"He wants us to sheer off," Sidearm said. There was a flurry of motion on SUZY-Q, and Dunk dove for cover. The report of a shot carried across toward them. Nicky hit the throttle and the runabout jumped. She spun it back toward the Hole, as a popping of shots broke out on the fishboat. Bullets splashed and ricocheted around them as Nicky slalomed out of range.

"Looks like the tables turned, agin." Sidearm remarked.

Once well out of pistol shot, Nicky cut round again and idled in the channel. They could see Dunk making his way swiftly along the island shore, keeping out of sight of SUZY-Q, and Nicky made a converging course for the backside of a ledge.

It only took Dunk a few minutes to dash across the intervening rocks, and he leaped aboard the runabout breathlessly. As Nicky backed out quickly, Dunk and Marianne wrapped themselves around one another, kissing passionately, their hands running up and down.

Sidearm and Nicky looked at each other, and the little trucker grabbed at Nicky's ass. "Why doane we try that?" he asked. Nicky humphed, but she was smiling.

The lovers came down to earth suddenly, as Nicky hit the throttle, and they stumbled to keep their balance.

"Dunky-boy," Sidearm said, "could you stop squeezin that huggah long enough to tellus what the fuck's goin on?"

Dunk was still staring, half in disbelief, at the beautiful woman in his arms, and he laughed. Then his smile faded.

"I'm not real sure," he began. "I was hidin in the woods aftah I got away from the gangstahs. They was bout useless, with all that dope an a grounded boat, and the squall goin through. But it hadn't been ovah long afore we heard Sonny comin, and when he could see Sum's boat, he come right ovah. There was some palaverin tween Monk and Sonny, an it sounded like Sonny was tellinum what's what. But then they was a shot, and the next thing Bobo is aboard SUZY, an he's doin the tellin. So I guess the gangstahs ah in charge."

"Yeh," Sonny said dryly.

"Dunk was still holding Marianne tightly as he spoke over her head. She had the side of her face pressed against his chest and didn't ever want to let go.

"You saved me. He was going to rape me, Dunk," she said. Tears were starting. Dunk just held her tight.

They could hear SUZY-Q revving up, backing out of the slot between the ledges where she'd been riding.

"We bettah beat feet," Sidearm observed, but Nicky had already punched the throttle, and was running full tilt for the Hole. The four of them held on tight.

But there wasn't a real good place to run to. Their only hope was to get into shoaler water than SUZY could float in, and out of gunshot. But the nearest place like that headed west out of the Hole was either near the mainland, or out in the Eastern Bay. There were lots of good spots to play hide and seek over there, but the fishboat could easily outrun them across the passage, unless Sonny could pull some stunt.

They didn't have much choice. Nicky aimed for the passage to seaward, the one BALI had escaped through. They'd try and run for the Eastern Bay.