Ch 4
Jack and Abby walked down the street holding hands. Wearing her straw hat and a light knee length summer dress, Abby was showing Jack the way to the Maple Inn. Coming to steps going up off the street, she pointed and sang, "This way." She then pulled him up the stairs.
"Abby, easy!" Jack complained. He swore she was trying to trip him by yanking him quickly up the stairs. Abby did slow some, allowing him to keep his footing.
"It's right up here," Abby said, pointing the way.
Jack got to the top of the stairs to see the sidewalk went flat and straight, bushes on one side and a wall on the other. A door in the wall slid open and a lighter purple haired girl poked her head out. The girl grew a smile and came out, arms wide open. "ABBY!"
"NANA!" Abby cried in return. The girls met in a big hug.
"Nana, this is Jack, remember I told you about Jack? We live on a boat when we're away from our island," Abby rattled off.
"Nana lives here now with Kouta, Yuka, Mayu and Nyu! Nana takes baths with Mayu, it feels really good to take a hot bath! Nana wants Abby to join us, Nana thinks Abby will really like it too! And we can eat ice cream, that is sooo good, but don't eat it too fast or you'll get a headache."
"That's great, Nana! Abby is happy Nana has a nice place to live."
Jack listened to them. To him, between the similarities in their faces and speech patterns, he had no doubt the were sisters. Nana led Abby in the gate, rattling on about her home, the Maple Inn.
Jack followed them and intended on introducing himself to the young man and the other girl that was there, but Nana drowned him out with, "Abby, Jack, this is Kouta, that's Mayu, she's my friend!"
"nyu?" the girl Jack knew as Lucy asked as she poked her head out, then ran out to hide behind Kouta and peek over his shoulder.
Studying her, Jack remembered what Abby said about their encounter. This wasn't the same girl, at least mentally.
"Hi," Kouta offered.
"Hi, Kouta," Jack replied. "What's wrong with Lucy there?"
Mayu piped up with, "That's not Lucy, that's Nyu. Lucy is her other personality."
"They did that to her, huh?" Jack asked unhappily.
"That's just how she is," Kouta said defensively.
"No, boy, someone did that to her. The same people who shot canon balls at Abby, and must likely Nana too," Jack told him.
"We're not suppose to talk about that!" Nana told him in a yell.
"Because Kurama doesn't want anyone to know he chains girls naked against a concrete wall then shoots canon at them," Jack replied in a hard tone.
Turning red in anger, Nana said, "Papa doesn't do that!"
"Then who does? Jack asked.
"Nana doesn't know! Papa comes in to stop them," Nana insisted.
"But Kurama never let you go, did he?" Abby asked. "That was, until he let you go to try to take Lucy back there."
"What?" Kouta asked weakly. "Nyu ... Nana?"
"They were chained naked to a wall and shot at with a canon, just as I was," Abby stated.
"Abby can't talk about that!" Nana said in a loud whine. "Papa said we can never talk about that!"
"Because your Papa doesn't want to go to jail," Jack said in a hard tone.
"ohhhh!" Nana whined and balled her fists in frustration.
"Nyuuu!" Lucy whined from behind Kouta and held onto him.
Jack pointed at Nyu and said, "Let me guess, she's had a bad head wound, hasn't she?"
Kouta nodded. "She did when we found her on the beach. She wasn't wearing anything."
"That is how those people keep these girls. Chained up and naked," Jack explained. "A hard hit in the head can also cause the dual personality that she seems to have also. Kouta, these girls have been treated worse than animals. They've all be whacked in the head with canon balls. Now the ones who did it don't want anyone to know, so they are trying to get these girls back. Alive or dead doesn't matter. I heard dead is preferable."
"We'll just keep Nana and Nyu inside ..." Kouta started.
Jack interrupted him with, "The bounty on that girl behind you is ten million US dollars. That's around a billion Yen. Keeping them inside won't be enough. Someone is going to come looking for them. These people are not going to ask nice, either."
"How do you know that?" Kouta asked, frowning at him.
"Because Jack was paid to find Lucy," Abby stated.
Kouta gaped at him.
"Yeah, boy. Lucky for you I have Abby, so I know what your girl there and Nana went through. The rest of the hunters coming won't know and won't care if they did know. Not to mention I'm sure the army, or some military force is looking for them too. They find you and it's over. They might let you and Mayu live, or since you know these girls, they may kill you to keep you quiet," Jack said in a heavy tone.
"Kouta?" came a weak voice. It was Yuka just outside the door, gripping her hands together and looking scared.
Kouta swallowed and asked, "Is there anything we can do?"
"Hide," Jack stated. "I got a plan I'm working on. One is to get you all where no one will find you. After that, see what it will take to expose the ones behind this cruelty. First things first. How about an island vacation."
"Yes, at Jack Land!" Abby cheered.
"I own half the island I live on," Jack explained to Kouta. "It's in the Okinawa prefecture, hardly any fishing boats ever pass there. it's far enough away and isolated enough where you should be safe there until we get more permanent arrangements."
"But ... Yuka and I have college," Kouta protested.
"Didn't say you had to go, just saying what would be best," Jack told him. "Go or not, I can't let Lucy or Nana get caught by any of the ones looking for them."
"Yes, take Nyu and Nana," Yuka said quickly.
Kouta eyed Yuka then Jack. He asked, "How do I know you won't turn them in and collect the reward?"
Jack pointed to Abby. "Do you really think Abby would let me do that? Nana is her sister."
Looking scared, Lucy/Nyu hugged Kouta. Mayu and Nana looked at each other, then looked at Kouta. "Kouta," Mayu asked meekly, "If Nana has to go, we should go with her."
"Kouta," Nyu whined and hugged him tighter.
Jack could see Lucy/Nyu, or whoever she was, was not going to anywhere without Kouta. To Kouta, he said, "You need to answer yourself a question. What's more important, your college or her life?"
"Just take Nyu with you!" Yuka cried, balling her fists.
"Look at her. She's not going anywhere without Kouta," Jack said. "Besides, it's Kouta's decision, not yours."
On a different track, Nana asked, "Abby, can Nana come see your boat?"
Jack noticed Abby looking at him hopefully. "Sure, don't forget to put a hat on," he told her. Jack then returned his attention to Kouta and said, "Abby is how I found you so quickly, but know that more are coming and like I said, they aren't going to be nice. I'll give you some time to think it over. Don't take too long though."
"Kouta, Nana and Mayu want to go see Abby's boat," Nana said excitedly.
"nyu?" Nyu asked, looking at the girls.
.
All the Maple Inn residents ended up going to the docks with Jack and Abby. Nana and Mayu wanted to see the boat, Nyu was curious, Kouta went also, having never seen a big boat close up, and Yuka went because everyone else was.
Abby was quick to show Nana and Mayu how she could steer and navigate the boat. She had a good time telling them about the compass and using that, maps and 'dead reckoning' to know where they were, even when they were out on the ocean surrounded by water with no land in sight. Nana sat holding the steering wheel called a 'helm'. Once Abby imparted her knowledge onto Nana, who now thought Abby was super-smart, they went below so Abby could show them the galley, washroom and bunk room.
While the girls all went down below, Jack stayed with Kouta topside and showed him the map. Pointing as he explained, Jack, said, "Down here, but north of the Okinawan main island, is my island. It's off the beaten track. Remote enough that no one has reason to come looking for you there. There are abandoned towns inland on Honshu, but they are also easily accessed. This island isn't. The reef that runs most of the way around the island helps protect against unwanted visitors also. Just so you know."
"We have to go to college, Kouta said nervously.
"Sure, kid," Jack said with a fake smile.
Defensively, Kouta said, "Besides, no one knows where we live, so it should be fine. We will be careful."
Jack knew the look in Kouta's eyes. He wasn't accepting they were on the edge of being in deep shit. He was pretending Jack was making things worse than they really were. He was blocking out the danger like an ostrich with it's head in the sand. If he didn't see it, it wasn't real.
"King to Rook." The radio said.
Jack frowned at it. Their timing was horrible.
"King to Rook, are pieces set up?" the radio asked.
"Who's that?" Kouta asked.
Jack shrugged. "Not sure. I hear him on once in a while and another guy. I think they are playing chess over the short wave. It gets irritating at times, I think there is real information coming on then I hear that," he said with a snort.
Kouta grinned at him briefly, then asked, "Can't you turn the radio off?"
"Wish I could," Jack told him. "As long as the boat's in the water, that radio has to stay on. Maritime rules," Jack explained.
Not knowing any better, Kouta only nodded in understanding.
Nana came running up the steps from below and happily said, "Kouta! There is a tiny house on this boat! Abby has a kitchen, bathroom and everything! There's even a closet that has skis, and fun stuff in it. The fishing poles they got are BIG!"
Appearing behind her, Abby said, "We live on this boat for days at a time. We have to watch how much water we use so Jack and I shower together."
Kouta and Yuka looked at Jack. He pretended not to see their stares. He focused on Abby and asked, "Speaking of water, how's the holding tank?"
Abby blinked and said, "Let me check," and disappeared below.
"You folks want to go for a cruise?" Jack asked.
"Nana does!" Nana said eagerly.
"Nyu!" Lucy cried.
"We won't have to take a shower, right?" Yuka asked and glanced at Kouta.
Jack laughed and said, "I was thinking about a run to Endoshima island and back. Takes about an hour or so."
"Yeah, OK," Kouta agreed.
Abby came up from below and said, "Jack, the water tank is seven eights full. We should be good for a while."
"Thanks, Abby. We're going to head out for a short run. Plot me a course for Endoshima island. Make it good, you're driving," he told her.
Abby beamed him a smile and said, "Abby will! Come on Nana, Abby will show you how to plot a course!" She ran back down, Nana and Mayu followed her.
"How long has Abby been with you?" Yuka asked.
Jack frowned and said, "A little short of five years. She is a little odd, but a nice girl. Smart too." Looking at Kouta, he said, "I had a job to check out that island they came from. I found Abby there and got her out. You do know, if these people find Nana or Lucy, they will be forced to go back there, or killed."
Kouta looked away. Yuka frowned deeply at him and asked, "Can't we call the police?"
"I don't trust the police," Kouta stated heavily.
"First smart thing you've said," Jack told him. "No one is to be trusted. That's why I want to get you away from the mainland. Too many people want their 10 million."
"And you don't?" Kouta asked.
Jack eyed him and said, "Son, if I wanted to take Lucy and Nana back, I would have done it by now. You seem to forget Nana is Abby's sister. Abby wants them taken to safety, so that's what's going to happen."
Kouta then thought about 'taking a short tour' out to Endoshima island. They would be helpless if he was really taking them to turn them in. He grabbed Nyu's hand and walked back onto the dock.
"Kouta?" Yuka asked.
"It's Ok, Yuka, go if you want. I'm taking Nyu home," Kouta told her.
"Kouta?" Yuka asked, looking stressed.
Jack let out a sigh. Yuka looked like she was being left behind. "Yuka, right?" he asked. "You can come or go. Either way, I think Nana and Abby want some time together. I'll watch them and Mayu for you."
Yuka looked at Kouta on the dock, walking away holding Nyu's hand. She then looked down where Nana and Mayu went, then back at Kouta and Nyu. She let out a whine, then ran onto the dock and caught up to Kouta and Nyu. Upon reaching them, she chided Kouta for holding Nyu's hand.
"Abby has a float plan ready," she announced coming up, holding a map.
"Great," Jack beamed. "So, Captain Abby, when do we set sail?"
Abby looked at Jack and said, "We don't have sails, we have engines."
.
Abby had a great time Showing Nana and Mayu how to drive a boat. She called the harbor Master and registered her float plan. She started the engines and watched the gauges for oil, temperature and fuel level, then announced "Cast off all lines!"
Jake pulled in the forward line, then the rear. "Lines cast off," he told her.
Nana eyed him with a finger on her lip. "But, Jack brought then on, Jack didn't throw them off."
"Cast off means to untie the boat," Abby explained.
"Then why didn't Abby say that?" Nana asked.
A finger in the air, Abby said, "We're on a boat, so we use boat-speak." She put the boat in reverse and slowly backed away from the dock.
Nana was impressed that Abby could drive this big boat. Leaving the harbor, Abby sped up. Leaving the land behind, Abby pulled her shirt off and wrapped it on her head.
Mayu's eyes went wide. "What are you doing?" she cried at Abby.
Abby looked at her and said, "I'm driving the boat. We're on course at 085 until we have traveled fifteen more minutes at 20 knots. Then Abby will turn to 176 and head straight for Endoshima Island."
"I mean, why did you take your shirt off!" Mayu cried at her.
"Abby uses it to keep sun and sweat out of Abby's eyes, plus the wind feels really good!" Abby said happily.
Flustered at Abby's lack of modesty, Mayu said, "But ... Jack will see your boobs!" she hissed.
Abby eyed her and asked, "So? What's wrong with that?"
"But ... but..." Mayu stuttered, red faced.
"Abby's right this feels good!" Nana announced.
Mayu looked back to see Nana also had tied her shirt on her head like a bandana and was holding her arms out to the side with a big smile on her face.
"NANA!" Mayu cried.
"Try it, Mayu, this does feel great!" Nana beamed at her.
Jack laughed as he monitored Abby's driving. "Abby do you remember the Mariner's motto?"
Abby bobbed her head and exclaimed, "Only at sea can we truly be free!"
Mayu blushed and folded her arms over her chest tight as if her top might come off.
Jack had yet to share GPS positioning with Abby. He watched the numbers tick down and said, "You're coming up on your turn, Abby."
"Abby sees," she replied, watching the clock. She turned in an easy arc and settled onto 176.
Nana stood beside Abby who was at the helm, Jack was on Abby's other side watching the GPS positioning and keeping a lookout for other boats. Mayu sat behind them, trying to ignore Abby and Nana's lack of modesty.
"What's that?" Nana asked, pointing ahead of them.
Abby looked at the thing sticking up in the distance, then looked at Jack. Jack pointed to the map and said, "Find it on the map. That should tell you what it is."
Abby did, scrutinizing the map then looked at the compass then the thing growing on the horizon. "That's Endoshima island! It's just ahead."
"How far?" Jack asked.
Abby figured where they should be, and walked calipers on the map. "Eight kilometers, and at 20 knots, we should be there in another fifteen minutes," she concluded.
"Roughly," Jack agreed, "but a knot is not the same as kilometer, is it?" he asked her.
"No, a knot is one and a half kilometers," Abby replied. "Ahh, Abby sees, Abby didn't change knots into kilometers an hour."
"You have to keep that in mind. Also, see the boats ahead, you're going to have to slow down and make sure you don't hit anything," Jack told her.
"There are knots in the water?" Nana asked, looking confused.
Abby proudly explained. "One knot is a nautical mile. It's longer than a regular mile, and much longer than a kilometer so if you're using knots to figure distance, you have to convert to figure kilometers an hour, if your map uses kilometers."
Nana looked at Abby in awe. "Abby is really smart!"
"Jack taught me," Abby beamed back.
"Girls! put your shirts on, we're coming towards land," Jack told them. Jack steered as Abby unfurled her shirt and donned it.
Jack watched closely as Abby moved into the boat traffic around the island. He pointed out the buoys warning of shallow water and instructed Abby more on the rules of the road. Abby did well. Abby took pictures of the island then had Jack take a picture of her, Nana and Mayu standing on the bow with the island in the background.
They motored around for a half hour and passed under the dual bridges to the island as they circled it, Abby getting pictures of everything. Jack noted a few men were paying attention to them. When they left, he had Abby head straight out to sea at 092.
"Jack, why don't we just go back the way we came?" Abby asked.
Jack grinned at her and asked, "Now what fun would that be? Head out on 092 at 20 knots for 25 minutes. Then you can plot a course for the harbor. Let's see how close you can get."
Pointing a finger in the air, Abby announced, "Abby will get us there!"
"And don't forget the 4 knot south to north ocean current," he added.
"Abby knows," she replied defensively.
Once again as they headed out to sea, shirts came off to form head bands. Mayu pretended not to see. Mayu was impressed though that Abby was able to drive a boat on open ocean with no land in sight and know where she was. When they came close to land again, they were all but pointed right at the harbor entrance.
.
Right after Abby left to walk Nana and Mayu home, Jack got on the radio.
"Rook to King, touching piece, deciding the most strategic move."
He waited a couple minutes, then a reply came back.
"King to Rook, go for checkmate."
Jack figured that might happen. Checkmate was elimination, no options. They wanted Lucy dead.
"Rook to King, will report when game ends in mate."
Jack wasn't going to kill Lucy. The poor girl wasn't currently lucid enough to know what she was doing. The thing was, the execution order was out. Whoever was out there looking for her, was now looking to kill, and Kouta didn't see a problem with staying where they were.
"Damn it!" Jack spat. He had two high priority things to do. Get those girls to safety, then find the one paying for the contract and eliminate them. From what he knew, they had to be on that island he got Abby from. He sat down to plan. Richardson wasn't going to be happy.
.
The next day, Nana was feeding Wanta with Mayu, talking about their boat ride when a helicopter flew overhead and Nana felt a strong, evil presence that was coming to kill her.
.
Abby and Jack were inland at a restaurant when Abby felt the presence. She looked out the window. She saw the buildings across the street, but that was all. "Jack, there's trouble," she said, staring off in the direction it came from.
"What kind of trouble?" he asked.
"Another of us. They want to kill Nana," Abby said scrunching her face up.
Jack raised his hand and said, "Check, please."
Abby was anxious, fidgeting nervously. Jack paid the check. They went outside and hailed a cab. Abby kept looking off in the direction she'd felt the presence.
"Do you know where?" Jack asked.
"No. Only that we're getting closer. Abby is not sure in the city we are. Abby will need a map."
Jack looked out at the street signs. He got the road and intersection coming up and asked, "Direction, relative."
Abby focused and said, "050 ... about."
Three intersections later, he asked, "Direction, relative."
"030, about, Abby can't be sure."
"Just remember what they are," Jack told her. At a major intersection, Jack waited until the turned and had the road name, then asked, "Direction, relative."
Abby frowned and said, "Just left of North, say 350 ... maybe?"
Jack had her mark two more places before they returned to the docks. He paid the cabby, then went into the store and got a street map of Kamakura and Yokohama.
Going back to the boat, Jack spread the map out and found the streets, and the intersections. He figured out the way they were headed in the cab, then asked Abby for the direction she'd sensed. He drew a line from the intersection to the edge of the map. He put all the points and lines down.
"They are all over the place," Abby said, looking at the map. "There is no point where all the lines meet.
"You were giving estimated directions," Jack reminder her. "Every single line may be off by five or even ten degrees. There won't be a single point, BUT there will be a place where all, or most of the lines come close together."
Jack and Abby studied the map. Abby frowned in frustration, "The lines are close only after they are over the water!" she said in a whine.
"True," Jack said, then noted a dual road left the bottom edge of the map. "Abby, do you know of any place where two bridges close together leave the mainland?" he asked and pointed at the spot.
Abby looked at it, then she cried, "She's on Endoshima island!"
"You got her," Jack stated. "Now, we get ready and see what we can do about her."
.
It was getting late afternoon by the time they figured out where to go, and slipped away from the dock. Before they left, Jack told the harbor Master they were leaving, and got two days of docking fees back. He had the feeling they were not going to be returning here.
Jack got his guns and the explosives out. setting them out on the table just before the stairs, he went up and sat by Abby who was driving with her shirt around her head. He put an arm around her and said, "Abby, this isn't going to be a joy ride. If you want to go find Nana and keep her safe, I'll pull in and drop you off."
Abby shook her head. "No, Jack. The girl Abby sensed is after Nana. She is very strong, Abby doesn't think Abby can beat her, let alone Nana. Jack needs to help Abby and Nana. Jack knows more about these things than Abby does. And if we ... live, Abby wants to cuddle tight with Jack."
Abby was scared. It was obvious by her stiffness and the tone of her voice. "I'm saying I will take care of it," Jack offered.
"No, Abby won't leave Jack to fight her alone," Abby said firmly.
"You're ready to fight?" Jack asked.
"Abby is," Abby stated firmly.
"Then turn out to sea. I'll show you how to shoot a gun and what to do to set off explosives."
.
Jack showed Abby how to load, aim and fire and reload each weapon. She handled the silenced pistol well and the M-16. The M-14 she had to use her invisible arms due to the weight and recoil of the weapon. Surprisingly, Abby could handle the M-16 the same way. She could even aim it pretty good.
Setting timers and detonators, Abby learned how to plant explosives. Jack had her set a small charge then throw it overboard. They waited as it timed it down, it went off underwater 30 seconds later just as it should, shooting up a column of water. By the time they were finished, they had drifted 25 knots north on the current and it was getting dark. This time Jack took the wheel and made Abby put her shirt on. There'd be no time for foolishness when they reached Endoshima island.
Another thing that was new to Abby was the radio head sets. They each had one with a boom mike on a discrete channel. Jack drove full throttle towards their goal making a large bow wake that splashed up water and made thr bow jump on every wave they hit. Abby was squatted on the mid ship deck near the bow. Hitting waves that bounced them up and down she held onto the rails with her arms as she held the fully loaded M-14 with her invisible arms.
Closing to see the lights of Endoshima Island, Abby searched. "Jack! Abby senses Lucy, but no evil girl."
"Where's Lucy?"
"Straight ahead ... about 005 relative. I think she's walking onto the bridge," Abby said.
Jack looked in his binoculars as he slowed some to get a stable view. "She is ... There's armed men behind barriers in front of her ... more men coming from behind. Abby, you're going to have to shoot at those men, are you OK with that?"
"Abby is! Just tell Abby what to do."
"I will, and Abby, keep in mind we have one chance at this."