Rating:  PG

Disclaimer:  This story is intended solely for the purpose of entertaining the readership.  No infringement is intended.

Everlasting Love - 2

Captain Lewis was sitting in his chair thinking about all the presents he had been asked to bring back from this trip to Jamaica.  There were bottles of rum, trinkets, and real jewelry to be sought out.  The helmsman was steady on course to run between Cuba and Hispaniola through the Windward Passage.  Last night they had driven by the Biminis; presently they were passing by Andros Island.   The seas were calm and warm.  In three days time, they were scheduled to make port in Port Antonio on the northern coast.  The tourists had excursions available to Kingston and Blue Mountain.  There was also a longer option for a Montego Bay side trip.  The sound of gunfire broke through his reverie.

Lewis bolted for the Bridge Wings to see what was going on.

"XO, find out what is going on!" he demanded of Mr. Parker.

He race to the other side, still seeing nothing.  Parker launched himself down the ladder to the Security Office.  Behind himself, he ordered the messenger of the watch to bolt the door and allow no one entry.  New rules had been implemented to protect the control center of the ship since the war on terrorism.  Nobody in the cruise industry had ever forgotten the Achille Lauro incident.  Even before the attack that dragged America back into the free-for-all that was Middle Eastern politics, the cruise lines knew what terrorism was all about.

Horatio and Calleigh had reacted much the same.  Both reached for sidearms that were conspicuously absent.  Each offered a simultaneous sheepish grin at their identical reactions.

Horatio muttered, "We're on our Honeymoon; we're on our Honeymoon."

They headed aft from whence came the sound of the shot.  Horatio took Calleigh's hand and kept her just behind himself as he crept around the corner to see what was going on.  The action was taking place on the main deck below them.  Calleigh noticed the small boats off their port bow first.

"Horatio, we're in deep trouble," she announced.

Horatio turned around and faced her with a question mark across his features.  Calleigh pointed at the flotilla of rubber boats heading their way.  He scowled.

"Security Office, let's go!" he told his wife.

They jogged down the other side of the mezzanine toward the down ladder on the starboard side.  Mr. Parker met them coming from the other side.

Calleigh was the first to detail what they had seen, "We're about to be hijacked.  Small boats, heading our way, other side," she panted.

Horatio finished it, "We're with the Miami-Dade PD.  How can we help?"

Parker nodded, "Then follow me."

The threesome continued to the Security Office and stopped short.  Parker pulled them all back into a passageway.  Two armed men stood outside the offices.

"We have already been hijacked.  Those men outside the Radio Shack and Security are not crewmen," the British accent intoned.  "Let's get below so I can tell the Captain what's going on."

Parker headed for the Engineering Room with Horatio and Calleigh in tow.

Above, two terrorists commandeered the Security Office and the main radio shack.  The crewmen who were inside were all sacrificed for the terror.  The rubber boats were fast approaching as well.

"We're in control of the Security Office and Radio," reported one terrorist into his walkie-talkie.

The second rubber boat commander acknowledged the message, "Well done.  Proceed to receive us.  Together we will take the Bridge."

Captain Lewis was now aware that things were going very wrong.  He reached for the ship-to-shore radio.  However, static was all he got back.  The terrorists had cut communications coming from the other parts of the ship.

Below decks, Parker led Horatio and Calleigh to the Chief Engineer's office.

"Sven," Parker began, "Terrorists are taking the ship.  They are all over Security and Radio."

Paul Swensen looked at Horatio and Calleigh but addressed Parker, "Who are these people, Jamie?"

"Sorry, old chap," he regrouped, "They are bobbies from Miami."

Calleigh interjected, "Do you have any weapons down here?"

"Or communications equipment, "added Horatio.  "We are going to need lots of help, and we're going to need it soon."

Sven looked at them a moment as he considered his options. 

He reached in the top desk drawer, "We have weapons."

He pointed a Beretta at Parker.

"Sorry old chap, but the money was just too good," he menaced.  "And my ex-wife thinks she's going to take me to the cleaners.  Not in this life!"

"Oh go to hell," uttered Parker.

With one vicious punch, Swensen knocked Parker to the deck.  Calleigh and Horatio bent over him.

"Are you okay?" Calleigh mumbled.

Parker shook his head and fumbled for his handkerchief, "I think the bloke broke a tooth."

"Was that really necessary?" standing, Horatio stayed out of the larger man's range.

"Uh-yeah, it was.  I've had enough of this limey.  I've sailed with him now four times," Swensen began.

"Okay that explains a few things:  why you hit him and why you are participating in the hijacking of this vessel.  But what I still don't understand is what this is all about," Horatio tried to draw him out.

Calleigh listened carefully to Horatio's interrogation of the hijacker, as her eyes remained focused on Parker's bloody facial wound.

"Ever a cop, huh!" exclaimed the engineer.

He paused a moment and sized up the three people before him.

"Why not?  It's not like you're going to tell or anything," he began.  "My new boss is going to break the detainees out of Gitmo.  Then we're taking them to Cuba and seek asylum."

Horatio picked up the theme, "And because Castro speaks so well of America, he'll grant you asylum, no questions asked.  It's a poke in the eye of the administration."

"That's right.  You're a pretty bright guy, aren't you," Swensen remarked casually.

Parker started to stand and say something, but Calleigh held him in place, making eye contact and whispering, "Now is not the time."

Swensen's turn, "So what are two of Miami's finest doing on my ship?"

"It's our Honeymoon," Horatio spoke in a low tone.

"Kinda wrecked that didn't we?" Swensen snorted.  "No matter.  You behave, and you may live to have kids," the pointing the weapon at Horatio then at Calleigh, "Misbehave, and you don't."

Swensen flicked the gun in an upward motion, "Now, we've got things to do.  Up!"

Topside, the terrorist boats came alongside and began the boarding process. The passengers had all scattered, seeking the cover of their staterooms.  A few were held spellbound by the swiftness of the unfolding events.

The leader of the terrorists commanded, "Get those people, up there!"

Members of his forces captured the stragglers and returned them to the fantail.

"Aziz," asked one, "What do you want us to do with these?"

He looked at the dozen or so and spit in their faces.

"This is what I think of your country," he began, "Throw them overboard.  Let the sharks eat today."

Without mercy, the men and women, screaming and pleading, were indeed cast over the side.