Bahama Crisis

"Brown? Who's he?"

"The guy who chartered this boat back in Fort Lauderdale."

"When was this?"

"Just as soon as we entered this canal. He said he'd have a final spin and he'd meet us at the other end at the north shore."

"Christ, he's given us the slip." I looked at the Customs man.

"You must have been following him too closely and he took fright or an insurance policy. If you weren't going to stop Capistrano there'd be no harm done and he'd rejoin her on the north shore. But you did and his insurance has paid off."

"He won't get far. He'll run into the boat at the other end."

"I wouldn't bet on it," said Billy.

"This guy plays real cute." He gave an exasperated snort.

"Brown, for God's sake!"

The skipper said, "Will someone tell me what the hell's going on?"

I turned and stepped on to the Customs launch.

"Come on. Let's go after him." Billy followed me.

W e dropped down into the inflatable, and just before I started the engine I heard Deane bellow, "Mangan, come back!" I ignored him and drowned his voice in a staccato roar as I twisted the throttle. We shot under the bridge and I looked back to see Deane on the deck of Capistrano. He was waving frantically.

Billy chuckled.

"I guess he's wondering what will happen to Robinson if we get to him first." He suddenly had an automatic pistol in his hand.

"Put that damn thing away," I said.

"IfDeane knows you have it you're for the chop. And we don't want murder."

"Not murder," said Billy.

"Execution." But he put the gun back into its holster.

The Lucayan Waterway stretched ahead of us and there was nothing to be seen on its surface. On either side there were occasional inlets leading to the proposed residential estates on which no houses had yet been built the water maze. It all went by in a blur as I cranked up to top speed.

"Something ahead coming this way," said Billy.

It was a small dot in the middle of the Waterway which rapidly grew in size under the influence of our combined speeds.

"The dory!" I said.

"And something coming up behind it," said Billy.

"The other Customs launch?"

"I hope not," I said.

There was no time to explain why because I was busy trying to ram the approaching boat. I pulled on the tiller but the dory went the other way in an evading manoeuvre, and as it flashed past I saw the man at the wheel pointing at me. Something hit the side with a thwack and there was the hiss of escaping air.

"Goddamn!" said Billy.

I twisted the boat in the water and cut speed.

"This boat is compartmented. One hole won't make much difference." I looked around.

There was no sign of the dory.

"I didn't mean that," said Billy.

"But if I'm shot at I'm going to shoot back and to hell with Deane." The gun was in his hand again.

I could not argue with that.

"It was Robinson; I saw him Where did he go?"

Billy pointed to an inlet on the port side.

"He shot down that rabbit hole."

The boat that had chased Robinson from the north shore was almost upon us. I stood up and waved with both hands, and as it approached it slowed. A Customs officer leaned from the wheelhouse, and I yelled, "Get back to the north shore, you damn fool. Keep the cork in the bloody bottle. If he gets past he can lose you."

"Who are you to give orders?"

"If you want to argue do it wMi Commissioner Deane. Now, get the hell back and guard that bloody entrance."

The officer withdrew and the launch began to turn in the water. There was a metallic click as Billy put a round into the breech of his pistol.

"How to make friends and influence people." He snapped off the safety catch.

"What do we do now?"

T don't know. " I wished I had a map.

"Winkling him out of there won't be easy, but if we don't he can ditch the dory and make an escape overland. He could lose himself in the pine barrens to the east, and it would take a damned army to find him."

Billy pointed down the Waterway. '\ boat's coming. Your friend the Commissioner, no doubt. "

I slipped the clutch on the idling engine and we began to move slowly.

"We're going in but easy."

I took the boat into the inlet, the engine putt-putting quietly, and we immediately came to a cross canal.

"W^which way?" said Billy.

I tossed a mental coin.

"To starboard," I said.

"It doesn't really matter." We turned to the right and went on for about a hundred yards and came to another junction. Straight on or turn to the left? This was impossible worse than Hampton Court Maze and there were forty-five miles of it.

From behind came the noise of a rapidly accelerating engine, and Billy shouted, "We went the wrong way! Go back!"

I spun the throttle and slammed over the tiller, and I was in lime to see Robinson's dory shooting across the canal and into tUe main artery of the Waterway. As it went Billy popped off a shot and then was thrown back as the boat picked up speed and the bow rose into the air.