CL Hart -From A Distance Read online

  Manny swept the light over the black seas. "It is a body," he said suddenly. "All stop! All stop!" he yelled toward the wheelhouse as he held the searchlight on the body. As an arm rose from the dark depths, he widened the beam, fixing the light on the bobbing body in the water. "Ramon, grab some blankets from down below. Francisco, pull out the life preserver. Al, shut down the motor." Everyone scurried to follow their captain's orders, as he focused the light on the waving arm.

  As the big diesel engine began to wind down, Manny leaned over the railing to get a better view. He was surprised to see it was a woman, and she was not alone. He squinted into the night. "Idios mio! It's two women!" he said in surprise. "But where did they come from?" He scanned the area but saw no sign of any wreckage. All he saw was a haze of smoke left behind by the long departed Pichilingue. Had they fallen off the ferry during the fire?

  The fishing boat drifted toward the two women in the water. Within minutes, Manny and his crew of four had them safely on board. The seasoned captain looked the two women over as he draped a blanket around each of them. They had both suffered scrapes and scratches, most of which appeared to be new, but they also had injuries to their faces that were older. With a suspicious eye, he looked at the row of stitches on Kenzie's cheek.

  He crouched down in front of them. "How did you two end up floating in the ocean in the middle of the night? Did it have anything to do with that fire aboard the ferry?" The blonde's teeth were chattering and she hunkered down further into her blanket. Silently, she shifted her gaze to her companion. "Well, how about it? You don't look like you've been out on a cruise."

  Manny's eyes traveled down Kenzie's torn shirt and the fresh blood staining it. "And what do we have here?" He reached forward to pull aside her blanket for a better view. He wasn't expecting to see Kenzie's 9mm pistol pointing directly at him.

  "Suppose you don't ask us any more questions and we won't ask you why you're out here fishing in the dark." Kenzie's voice was low, her words slow and deliberate.

  Manny looked from the gun to the hardened eyes of the woman holding it. The two stared at each other in silence as everyone else on board watched and waited.

  Cori slowly reached over and placed a hand on the barrel of the gun, pushing the weapon down and away from their interrogator. "He just saved our lives. How about a truce?" Everyone waited, unsure of what to do. "Please," she whispered.

  It was a moment longer before the gun was lowered. Kenzie kept her eyes on Manny as she tried to return it to her waistband. The movement caused a slight grimace of pain and Cori saw it. She gently touched Kenzie's forearm. The tender touch was enough to make Kenzie take her eyes off the apparent captain as she turned to look at Cori. No one had ever touched her like that before, not mentally or physically.

  "She's injured," Cori said without taking her eyes off Kenzie.

  The captain looked from one woman to the other. He didn't like having women on his boat, especially women with a gun. He was unsure of what he should do, and that was something he wasn't used to.

  Cori turned to face him. "Can you help us? My friend is hurt. She's bleeding."

  "Let's get you down below." Manny gestured toward the door below the wheelhouse.

  The women helped each other to their feet. On unsteady legs, they followed the captain toward the door that led to the living quarters below.

  "Fire up the diesels," Manny said to his brother before he stepped through the door. "Let's get out of here. Al, take the wheel and head due north."

  Kenzie scanned their surroundings as they cautiously made their way down the steep steps. Alert and observant she was, but her mind was on something Cori had said. Friend; she called me her friend. The smell of fish, diesel, and hardworking bodies was overwhelming. The captain obviously took a lot of pride in his boat, but it was a working fishing trawler and it smelled like it. Taking one step at a time, Kenzie kept her right arm pinned against her side, using only her left to keep her balance. She was doing her best to ignore the pain that was ripping through her right ribcage and shoulder. At the bottom of the stairs, Kenzie found herself standing next to Cori and the captain in the middle of the galley.

  The captain sat down on the bench that wrapped around the galley table. "Let's see what we got here." Manny motioned the taller woman over to where he sat. Kenzie dropped her blanket, exposing the tattered, bloodstained shirt. "Holy Patron Saint of Travel, you're lucky you weren't shark bait." Without hesitating, he pushed back the shredded material of Kenzie's shirt with his finger and peered at the torn flesh. "Pretty nasty wound you got there. I'm not going to ask how you got it. You were lucky the tides were with you tonight. If they had been going out, well..." He let go of her shirt and sized up the two fortunate women. Whatever they were up to was not his concern, but not many law-abiding people were plucked from the ocean in the middle of the night. "The name is Manny, and we can leave it at that."

  Cori laid her blanket on the bench on the other side of the table. "I'm Cori, and the silent shark bait here is..."

  "Kenzie." Her voice was just above a murmur as she held out her left hand to the man who had saved them. "Thanks for the lift. I think we have an understanding."

  Manny looked at the offered hand and hesitated for a moment. "Those are pretty mangled up, too," he said, noting the cuts and scrapes on both of her hands. He glanced at Cori's hands, but they were nowhere near as injured as Kenzie's.

  Kenzie reviewed the damage her hands had sustained while trying to escape the cattle trailer and was surprised she hadn't felt them earlier. At the moment, they were the least of her concerns. She offered her hand again and the captain took it. "This your boat?"

  "Si." Manny was impressed. The woman with the dark curls was not a big woman but even with her injuries, her handshake was solid. It told him a lot, especially when he saw her grimace.

  "Okay, enough of this. Excuse me," Cori said as she moved in front of Kenzie, blocking the captain's view. "I need to take a look at your side and, apparently, your hands. Just how bad is it?" Lifting the bottom of Kenzie's shirt, Cori grabbed both edges of the material and tore it apart. The t-shirt ripped all the way up the side.

  Kenzie frowned at the action. "I could have just taken it off. It's not like I have another one."

  "I can't imagine how it would have hurt to get out of that shirt," Cori said as she examined the area. Blood was again starting to ooze from the large gash, and there were several smaller scrapes made by the splintered wood. Squinting in the dim light, Cori could see there were also slivers in the skin covering her ribcage.

  "What do you have for medical supplies?" Cori directed her question to Manny, not taking her eyes off Kenzie's side. "I'm gonna need something sharp, like a needle, something I can use for stitches, and some kind of dressing." Manny mumbled something and left in search of the requested materials. "And alcohol," she yelled after him.

  "For cleaning or drinking?" his voice bellowed from beyond the small galley.

  "Both."

  Kenzie liked the feel of the gentle hands that were moving along her side. It felt good, and it gave her a chance to study Cori's face. Her eyes were so focused, her brow fixed in a stern look of concentration as she examined the injuries. Kenzie's eyes kept going back to the dark bruises she had left on Cori's face, twisting the guilt in her stomach.

  The boat swayed heavily in the waves and Cori grasped Kenzie's waist for support. Kenzie clasped Cori's shoulder with one hand and reached out for the table with the other. A hiss escaped her clenched teeth as pain speared through her shoulder.

  Cori stood up and looked at Kenzie with deep concern. "What else hurts?"

  "Nothing," Kenzie lied as the two women locked eyes. "Just fix up my side...please."

  You're not as tough as you think you are. Cori looked up into the eyes of her would-be killer. Their gazes held for a few moments as Cori bit at her lip in contemplation. It was only then that she realized her hands were still holding Kenzie's waist. She could feel the warmth o
f the firm, toned skin radiating beneath her hands.

  Kenzie felt the change in the pressure of Cori's touch as she tilted her head back in challenge.

  "What...else...hurts," Cori asked. When Kenzie did not reply, Cori moved her hands along her ribcage and gave each rib a forceful push. The woman's stoic expression never changed, but her eyes sparkled with gold. She's enjoying this, Cori thought, and that spurred her on. Slowly sliding her hands down Kenzie's firm flesh, she stopped on her hips and pressed hard, looking for any sign that something else was giving Kenzie pain.

  "I said, 'nothing'."

  Cori's eyebrows furrowed in frustration. That hiss came from somewhere. Thinking back to their plunge into the water, she recalled Kenzie's death-defying grab. With her eyes focused on Kenzie's face, Cori reached up and pressed on her right shoulder.

  "Son of a bitch!"

  The sudden intake of breath and the color draining from Kenzie's face gave Cori the information she was searching for.

  "Don't tell me 'nothing'," Cori commented, deliberately poking her shoulder again.

  Kenzie's eyes rolled in pain as she reached out and grabbed Cori's arm. "What the hell was that for?" she said in anger.

  "That was for the back of your hand when we were in my car - and for your fist in my face in my apartment. We need to get the rest of your shirt off."

  Kenzie licked at her lips, certain that she saw a twinkle of satisfied revenge in Cori's eyes.

  Manny came back into the galley with his makeshift medical supplies. "I got wha..." He stopped short at the sight of the half-naked woman. He was a tough old seaman, but a young, good looking woman in a bra still made him blush. He cleared his throat and made the sign of the cross over himself. "I got what you asked for... Hope fishing line will ah...work. I threw everything into somc.um boiling water, so it's as sterile as you're gonna get on a fishing boat." Kenzie showed no sign of modesty or embarrassment as Manny did his best not to gawk at the sight of her bare skin above her skimpy bra.

  Cori was concentrating on her examination of Kenzie's shoulder, and paid little attention to his discomfort. "I'm gonna need a hand here Manny, assuming you're up to it." Cori stepped back from her patient. "She's dislocated her shoulder and I won't have the strength to perform the reduction."

  Manny took his eyes off Kenzie's cleavage and looked at the unnatural bulge at the front of her shoulder. He carefully placed the items on the table and reached into his back pocket, pulling out a silver flask. "You're gonna need this," he said, offering the alcohol to Kenzie.

  "What is it?"

  "Tequila."

  She accepted it, but hesitated before taking a drink. "Before we carry on with this, I think we need to talk."

  "I think we need to do this first-"

  Kenzie cut Cori off. "No, we need to deal with this first." She turned to the captain. "As uninvited guests aboard your boat...how long will you let us stay on board, and how far will you take us?"

  "Depends. How far you want to go, and," he eyed her suspiciously, "who you're running from?"

  They were fair questions. Kenzie answered, though it made her feel uncomfortable. "I'm not really sure who's after us, but I can tell you, they aren't amateurs." She looked at Cori before continuing. "I don't have the money now, but I'm good for it.

  Unfortunately you'll have to take my word for it, but I'll pay you handsomely...if you're willing to take us north...at least as far as you can?"

  The captain didn't answer right away, so Kenzie took a long drink of the tequila. A shudder went through her body as the alcohol burned down her throat. She had to swallow several times before the fumes left her mouth.

  "You want mainland or Baja?" the captain asked as she took several smaller sips from the silver flask.

  "Baja." Kenzie wiped tequila from her lips. Keeping one eye on the captain, she watched Cori prepare what few medical supplies there were. She knew her pain was going to get worse before it got better.

  Manny removed his hat to scratch his head. Taking his unexpected passengers across the Gulf to the Baja of California was a risk, a big risk, but if the financial reward they were offering was real... He looked the two women over and considered his options. The blonde was a bossy little piece of dynamite, but he knew the one with the gun was in charge.

  "I can take you as far as San Felipe, but it will be dangerous...and costly," he added.

  "Fine." The boat pitched wildly to starboard and without thinking, Kenzie reached out to steady herself. A flash of searing pain exploded through her unstable shoulder. This time she couldn't conceal her pain, letting out a loud hiss from between clenched teeth.

  "Okay, enough of this talk, we need to fix this shoulder," Cori said.

  Kenzie's face grew pale and Cori was certain she was going to faint, so she slid her hands around Kenzie's bare midriff. "Trust me," Cori whispered into her ear as her hands tightened their hold.

  Kenzie studied the upraised eyes. Didn't Cori understand that she was not really the trusting kind? She hadn't relied on anyone since she had been teamed with John Mifflin. Still, this was different. She had little choice. Not only was her body in need, but something stirring inside made her want to believe Cori.

  Manny took in the situation and made a decision. "I think we should do this in my quarters. There's not nearly enough room around that table."

  "Okay," Cori said, while the silent Kenzie only nodded.

  Surprisingly the tequila was already affecting Kenzie, so Cori slid her hands around her waist and guided her down the narrow hallway to the captain's quarters. It was a small room, but there was more than enough space to work on Kenzie's injuries.

  Cori carefully deposited Kenzie on the bed. "You need to drink more," she said as she handed over the flask.

  Kenzie was going to protest, but the look in Cori's eyes told her she didn't have the strength or will for that much of a fight. Putting the tequila to her lips, she took several large gulps and then placed it on the night table next to the bed. The alcohol shook her body sending another sharp slice of pain through her shoulder. "Errrggg!" she grunted through clenched teeth.

  "Okay, let's get this shoulder back into place. Hope you're ready." Cori sat down on the bed next to Kenzie. Bringing her legs up, she carefully maneuvered around Kenzie's waist and locked her ankles together. As she brought one arm around Kenzie's chest and the other around her back, she noted how warm Kenzie was. Carefully, she wiggled tightly against Kenzie's side, trying not to think about her forearms pressing into Kenzie's breasts. She looked at Manny and nodded. "Alright." The captain moved to Kenzie's side and took her hand. "Have you done this before?" Cori quickly interjected.

  "Si. Working on a fishing trawler, you have to be ready to do just about anything, but I ain't sticking around while you sew her up. I've got a boat I've got to get back to."

  "Fair enough. Okay, Kenzie, lean over into me." Cori tightened her hold.

  Kenzie started to relax into Cori's care, but something sharp and hard, forced her forward. "Hang on." Pulling her 9mm from her waistband, she leaned past Cori to place it next to the tequila. As an afterthought, she took one more long pull on the nearly empty flask. "Okay." Closing her eyes, she leaned over into Cori's damp shirt as Manny's calloused hands circled her arm.

  Cori felt Kenzie shiver in her grasp. She squeezed a little tighter, pulling Kenzie's uninjured shoulder against her chest. Cori could feel her tense just as Manny pulled her arm. A gut wrenching thunk filled the small room as Kenzie did her best to muffle a cry. Cori whispered a shushing sound into her ear, but she was unsure if Kenzie heard it as her head flopped over onto Cori's shoulder.

  "She's out," Manny said as he laid her arm against her side. "I suggest you sew her back together before she wakes up. You can stay here in my room, just don't make a mess." Manny laid Kenzie's limp body out on his rumpled bed as Cori looked around the cramped quarters. How on earth could we possibly leave it any messier than it already is?

  "You two are in real troubl
e, aren't ya?" he asked, watching Cori as she laid a towel over Kenzie's chest. She was awfully young to be in this much trouble, but it didn't matter. He had already decided to help them, more for this little one than for the sullen woman on his bed.

  Cori nodded slightly to Manny's question as she turned to face him. He looked to be in his sixties. His dark skin weathered from the elements, his eyes dark from years of struggle, but he appeared to be streetwise, and, in Cori's opinion, friendly.

  "We didn't do anything wrong," she said, her voice strong, "but we seem to have attracted the attention of some bad people."

  "You were on that ferry weren't you?"

  Cori nodded reluctantly.

  "But they didn't stop when you went over the side?"

  Cori was quiet for a moment, pondering how and what to say. "Can we say that they didn't even know we were there, never mind that we went overboard, and leave it at that?"

  He accepted what little she offered with a dip of his head. "Where exactly are you headed?"

  Where? Good question. Cori was not sure, but as far north as they could get in Mexico. "Assuming you take us to San Felipe, we'll make our way to Tijuana, then San Diego. Beyond that, I'm not really sure."

  Manny nodded. "I'll do what I can, but I won't promise." With that, he left the young woman to care for her friend.

  The door shut with a soft click and Cori turned back to tend to Kenzie's wounds. The light in the room was not very good, so she pulled the overhead lamp closer to see what she was doing. Pre-med had been a long time ago. She hoped she could remember what little she'd been taught. Kneeling down beside the half-naked woman, she removed the towel from Kenzie's chest, uncovering her wounds. After a quick examination to determine the full extent of Kenzie's injuries, Cori decided it would be better just to cut off her soiled bra. Once that was done, she used a clean, damp towel to begin wiping away the blood. The view in front of her was far more pleasant than she could have imagined as she ran a needle and fishing line through the jagged edges of flesh.