Well, here's Chapter Fourteen. I've noticed this story now has more chapters than the number of TUGS episodes there are. I just don't know how many chapters this story will end up with.

For a moment, the scene of the disaster was silent and the damage went unnoticed. Then eventually, Zebedee approached it, towing a barge of pipes. He stopped when he saw the damaged bridge. "Ooh! What happened here?"

Then Ten Cents and O.J. appeared on the other side of the wreckage, on their way to pick up their barges. Top Hat was with them, with Eddie and Frank on each side of his hull. They all stopped and looked at the damage.

"Bless my paddle wheels," exclaimed O.J. in surprise. "What's all this mess."

Top Hat noticed Zebedee on the other side, and frowned. "Oh, you've gone and destroyed yet another railway bridge, have you, Zebedee?"

"'Ey, this is nothing to do with me!" Zebedee frowned in defense. "I just came here and found the bridge like this!"

Just then, Ten Cents spotted Puffa's funnel sticking out above the surface. He couldn't tell it was Puffa, but was alerted. "A train has fallen! I'd better go and get help!" And he turned around and headed back to the port.

Ten Cents returned shortly with Mighty Moe. The big floating crane lifted Puffa out of the water, surprising the four tugs, and placed him onto Eddie. While Mighty Moe lifted Puffa's waggons out of the water, Puffa told Ten Cents about how he fell in. "But I don't understand how the bridge collapsed."

"I still suspect you," Top Hat said suspiciously to Zebedee.

"I told you, this was nothing to do with me! Maybe the bridge collapsed because it was very old - like you, O.J."

Just then, Ten Cents spotted something floating nearby. "Hey! What's that?"

O.J. looked towards where Ten Cents was looking and saw it; the burnt out remains of a fuel barge. "Looks like that barge exploded, which caused the bridge to collapse."

"Ooh, that reminds me," remarked Puffa, suddenly remembering. "A short while ago, I saw a bunch of tugs I'd never seen before trying to steal a fuel barge."

At these words, Ten Cents, O.J. and Top Hat gasped in unison. Zebedee frowned, wondering what was up.

"What?" Puffa asked, puzzled by their expressions.

"You saw some tugs trying to steal a barge," remarked O.J., "and then this bridge collapses from an explosion?"

"Yeah," said Puffa, still curious. "So?"

"Coincidence?" Ten Cents pondered, frowning. "I don't think so."

Meanwhile, Zorran was going through the harbour on his way back to the estuary to look for any vessels in need of a tow. He was also keeping a look-out for Zip and Zug, who had not been seen since the night before. "I dunno. You take your eyes of them to go to sleep. You wake up next morning to find they've gone. Huh! Who knows where they are and what they're doing by themselves?"

He passed a warehouse, and spotted Hercules by the entrance. Zorran, having always been afraid of the ocean-going member of the Star Fleet, hurried a little, not wanted to be seen by him. But Hercules spot him and called him. "Zorran, old boy, come here!"

Zorran didn't want to, but slowly, with much fear, made his way to the warehouse, facing Hercules. "Er, hiya, Hercules. What can I do for ya!"

"You can tell me what your cronies are doing in this warehouse."

Zorran looked through the entrance of the warehouse, which was blocked by barges, and was ery surprised to see Zip and Zug trapped inside, looking very frightened. "Zorran! Get us out of here!" Zug cried.

"What are you two idiots doing in there?!" Zorran scowled.

"I take it they were trying to steal something," Hercules sniffed stiffly.

"N-no we weren't," Zip whimpered miserably. "But someone is! We'll tell you, but please let us out."

So Zorran and Hercules managed to pull the stuck barges away and Zip and Zug steamed out, glad to be free. Then they told Zorran and Hercules about how they had overheard the Fuel Drivers planning to illegally sell the Tugging Fuel barges before they were discovered and ended up trapped in the warehouse.

"So they are up to something!" Zorran bellowed. "Well if they're gonna be selling those fuel barges - then they'd better give me some of the money earned, because they still owe me for the one they took."

"They're not gonna be selling any fuel barges, Zorran," Hercules declared. "We're gonna make sure of that."

Ten Cents, O.J. and Top Hat arrived at Lucky's Yard with Mighty Moe, Eddie and Frank, who were carrying Puffa and his waggons.

"We'll leave you here, Puffa," said Ten Cents. "They'll repair you shortly."

As they were about to turn around to leave, they spotted Sunshine pulled into the yard. To their surprise, he had Billy Shoepack in tow.

"Hi, Billy," said Ten Cents smiling. "We don't see you often here in Bigg City Port."

"I think it'd be better if he didn't stop," O.J. frowned. "We don't want your dynamite going off."

"Oh no, O.J.," Billy gasped. "I don't have no dynamite - although I did."

"What are you doing here?" Top Hat asked suspicously.

"Well, I was steaming along the river, towing me biggest barge of dynamite ever. But then, some tug came up to me, and suggested I'd give it to him, saying smoke from me stack would set it off. But that's ridiculous! I've been delievering dynamite for years, and smoke from me stack doesn't set it off! It only goes off when I set it off!"

"Get to the point, Shoepack," said O.J. crossly.

"Well, I refused to give to to him, but then he rammed me into some rocks and made off with me barge down to Bigg City."

"I found Billy stuck on the rocks on my was back," added Sunshine. "He was badly damaged, so I took him into port for repairs."

"Sorry to hear that, Billy," apoligised Ten Cents.

"Hey, I'm not sad about it. I'm more annoed about me dynamite being stolen. I would have loved to have set it off. It would make a lovely big bang!"

"What did this tug look like?" asked Sunshine.

"Well, he was big and black - oh, he had no stack!"

The four Star Tugs all gasped in unison. They all knew who that discription matched.

"He had no stack?" gasped Ten Cents.

"And he's in Bigg City Port - with your big load of dynamite?" Sunshine cried in terror.

"Yeah," replied Billy.

O.J. sighed. "As if just having you in Bigg City Port wasn't bad enough, Shoepack."

So Gangster has stolen Billy's dynamite. Is he gonna use it and create a massive explosion? Only I know - but you'll find out in a few chapters.