"We'll drown!" Tony shrieked fearfully.
Chet was calmer for some reason. Perhaps it had been tedious being the fearful one all these years. He threw the throttle back to full and the bow raised considerably which decreased the flow of water into the craft. Chet took straight aim for the docks. He cut speed within one hundred foot and drifted in. He turned the craft and slid up against one of the docks. He and Tony removed the supplies and quickly hopped out.
"Nice work, Chet." Tony said thankful to be out of the leaking craft.
"We are in luck!" Chet said pointing to a sign: Dowd Marine Sales and Service. The pair left their goods by the Sleuth and walked up the dock and over to the small office that sat next to a set of docks that were loaded with new and used craft. They entered. A middle-aged man was on the phone. They judged him to be about fifty. Another man, taller and younger with a friendly looking face was standing next to the desk. The older man finished his call. He looked over to the taller man.
"They will be out tomorrow morning with those parts." the other nodded. The balding man turned to the newcomers. He looked at the pair of young men who had clear watermarks up to their knees. He did his best to stifle a laugh and nodded to them.
"Hello, boys. Might you be in need of a boat repair? Or were you just wading out in the river?" he asked. Chet looked a bit embarrassed as he glanced down at his and Tony's pants. He knew they were soaked, but had forgotten how they might have appeared to others. He stepped up.
"Uhm, yes. We have a boat out here. Has a small leak and some motor problems. Was wondering if you could give me an estimate on repairs." The man smiled.
"Why sure. Ray here," he said gesturing to the tall man, "he will help you right out." The tall man smiled and took a clip board off the desk and looked to them.
"Hey there, boys. Let's go see this...small leak." Chet and Tony led him outside and walked down the dock to where the Sleuth was moored. The boat had taken in considerable water and was now over half submerged. Ray looked at the boat and then to the boys.
"Well, that would explain your wet pants. Looks like you had a little trouble." Chet smiled.
"Yep. Someone came visiting our camp last night."
"Ya don't say." Ray mused "With visitors like that, you don't need enemies. Was a wonder you boys didn't sink out there." He looked the Sleuth and her engine over and started writing on the clipboard. A few minutes later he looked to the boys.
"Why don't you come step into the office. Your gonna need to be sittin' down when I give you these figures." Chet smiled.
"Oh, that's ok, we can take it." Ray scratched his head and then his whiskers thoughtfully.
"Well, that may be. But my calculator is in the office and I can't add up all these figures in my head." Chet gave a wry grin.
"Makes me feel good, Ray." he said and they followed him back to the office. He offered them a seat in front of his desk. He then went to work on looking up some parts in a catalog. He then started punching on the calculator then writing. A few moments later he took a deep breath and looked to them.
"Well, to repair her, it will set you back about $7,500 on the cheap. Maybe $12,000 to make her look as good as new." Ray said. Chet looked stunned.
"That bad?" he asked. Ray gave a slight chuckle.
"Well guys, you saw it yourself, that thing is almost sunk out there. You are going to need a new motor, the hull completely overhauled. Possible rudder work. Then the more superficial work of the interior. And quite possibly some new electrics. They soak in that water long enough they will be shot." Chet nodded knowing all this to be true.
"I'm not trying to tell you how to spend your money boys, but we have a great line of new speedboats out there. And you do have to wonder about how worth while it may be to fix yours. I mean that boat of yours looks like it has some years on it." Chet nodded.
"Could you by chance get our boat to Bayport about eight hours out just up the seaboard?" Ray nodded.
"Cost ya about seven hundred dollars to get it moved."
"Fine, we'll do that. Now please show us your new boats." he said. Ray got up and led the way outside. Tony shot Chet a look.
"Why a new boat? I know the Sleuth is old, but the cost to fix her is still a lot less than a new boat." Chet shook his head.
"It's not really the cost. The estimate stated the repairs would take two weeks." Tony nodded his understanding.
"Guess that's different." he said as Ray turned to them.
"Now then. Were you looking for something around the same size that you had or maybe something with a little more kick?" Chet smiled.
"Let's see what you have with more kick." Ray smiled and led them down to a boat. It was quite large, and very sleek. He smiled.
"This is our best. An eight-seater. Plenty of storage. Has computer, GPS, radar, depth, basically every toy known to man. She boasts duel two hundred horsepower inboard motors. Basically, this is the boat all sportsmen want. It is the ultimate water behemoth." Chet smiled. Almost drooling. Tony rolled his eyes as he realized where this was going.
"How much is it?" he asked eagerly. Ray smiled.
"Well you just went and sputtered that out, didn't you?" He laughed. "Come on in to the sales office." he said and they followed him back into the small office. Ray offered them seats. He took one himself in back of the desk and took out a price folder. He looked down at it for a moment and looked up.
"Now then, the Ultimate Behemoth and all of its glory can be yours for the unheard-of price of fifty-three thousand and change." Chet smiled back.
"I just happen to have the desire to spend $45,000." Ray curled his lips and sat back deep in thought. He knew that the boat had sat in their stock for over six months. And it could sit there several more months before another out of towner came by and offered money on it. He had been critical of his boss for ordering in a high-end boat in the first place. Treeport was not known for its affluent or overly prosperous population. He also knew that Chet's offer would still make them profit, though, of course, not as much as they optimally desired. He sat back up.
"Ok. You got yourself a deal." he smiled. Chet pulled out an Amex card.
"Do you take these?" he asked. Ray smiled. He knew he could lie and probably make Chet take out financing though a company they are commissioned by. This would result in the boat salesman making money on the back end of the deal. He also reasoned that if Chet had an American Express Platinum card, he probably liked to pay his balances off every month, thus avoiding interest payments. He knew that the finance company they had would ream even the best credit risk with high interest. He thought about it for a moment since he knew they would have to pay the bank card processing fee on the card transaction. Even then, they would still make a small profit. And more importantly, be done with having the high-end boat sitting on their books. He smiled to Chet.
"We sure do." he said taking the card. He picked up the phone and went about gaining approval for the purchase. He had it quickly and then took out the necessary forms to complete the transaction.
"Good to go Chester. Just fill out these forms and we will get you goin as soon as possible." Chet smiled taking the forms and a pen offered. Tony was still somewhat in shock seeing his friend basically put down fifty large on a new speedboat. Another fifteen minutes brought an end to the paperwork and Ray got up and escorted them outside. He went over many aspects of the boat to show them how many of the options operated. He gestured toward the dictionary like owner's manual for the boat that was sitting in a storage box.
"That will tell you everything and anything you need to know that I haven't explained. I appreciate your business gentlemen. And I will get your boat sent up to Bayport as soon as possible." Chet and Tony nodded. They all shook hands.
"Thanks a bunch, Ray!" Chet said. The pair hopped into the new boat. Chet keyed it up and the dual motors roared into life. Smiling in satisfaction Chet and Tony pulled out of the slip and waved as they departed. Chet went to the other end of the docks and pulled into a public slip. They retrieved their supplies from the nearby dock where the nearly sunk Sleuth was moored. Chet motioned up towards the small town.
"Let's get some supplies." Tony nodded and the pair started walking up the street towards the business area. Within an hour they had visited a sporting goods store and a grocery store. They walked back down toward the dock with loaded arms. After stowing their goods Chet turned the motors over and guided the craft out into the channel. He pushed up the throttle ever so slightly and the craft shot forward. Tony raised an eyebrow, visibly impressed with the power of the boat.
"Well, I would hate to see what this thing does at full power." Chet nodded.
"I don't think I will find out until I am back out on the ocean. Too many things can happen on a narrow river channel." Tony smiled.
"Just a few." He said. They traveled upriver with ease. Within a mere forty-five minutes they had returned to the area where Chet found it necessary to slow down and keep a lookout for their designated camp area. Chet thought it wise to return there since the others had chosen to go search an area that might not be any more accessible by boat than on foot. Five minutes later Tony pointed over the bow to the cove where they had been camping the night before. Chet nodded and cut the throttle and drifted in. A moment later they had the boat secured and were removing supplies from the boat. They had made a point to buy a couple small tents at the sporting goods store. In light of the way the larger tents brought unwanted attention, Chet reluctantly opted for smaller tents despite their lack of space. Within thirty minutes they had a camp established. Chet and Tony looked at the neatly organized, yet well hidden within the brush campsite. Chet went about making a small fire. Tony started rigging up some fishing poles that they had just purchased. Tony thought it wise to supplement their supplies with a little fishing to make them last longer. Within minutes Chet had brought down a couple cups of coffee. He handed Tony a cup. He then sat down in a folding chair next to Tony who handed him a rod. Chet checked it over and smiled.
"Stink bait? Guessing there are some catfish in here, huh?" he asked. Tony nodded.
"Dad and I used to pull some out of the rivers near Bixby. And that is about a hundred miles west of here. We have relatives there and used to go out there pretty often when I was younger." Chet smiled.
"I remember those carefree days of being a kid. Nothin to do but go down to the fishing hole and go swimming."
"Did Iola and Callie do that too?" Tony asked. Chet smiled.
"Yeah, those two were inseparable even then. Callie and Iola chasing me around... giving me a hard time. I know why Iola did it. That's what sisters are for. But Callie seemed to like to give me a hard time too. Course it was all in fun. Seems like so long ago." He had a faraway look in his eyes.
"And now you're a responsible adult." Tony inserted. Chet smiled.
"So it would seem. Respectable businessman. Maybe buy a house someday." He said quietly. Tony smiled.
"Sounds pretty good. And you have a beautiful woman to boot." He said referencing to a young lady by the name of Tiffany Blake. A girl who had pursued Chet for some time, though Chet never seemed to really want to date her all that much. Something Tony couldn't figure out. Chet shrugged.
"I wouldn't count on that, man. We do see other people. Or I have at least told her to do so. Anyway..." he said abruptly, obviously trying to change the subject. Tony shrugged.
"Well, sorry man. Your kind of secretive about your love life. I just figure since I saw you out with her that you guys were an item." Chet gave a half smile.
"That creates rumors, Tony. In actuality, we aren't an item that I know of. I have even gotten the impression that she may have taken my advice in recent time. Her personality seems a bit different. But if she is seeing someone else, I am not aware of who." Tony shrugged.
"Women. Can't live with em, can't find one to live without." he said softly. This was obviously an allusion to his recent breakup. Tony had been seeing a woman for some time, but a few months ago was shocked to find that his true love had been somewhat disingenuous with her feelings and was using Tony for monetary gain. Mainly accessing his family's construction company's bank accounts. Since Tony was the active president of the company, this was not hard. Tony had been crushed to find himself left a victim in the wake of manipulation and deceit. Chet gave a chuckle.
"Know what you mean to a degree, my friend. I obviously haven't been ripped off by Tiffany, but she sure can be a material woman at times." Tony nodded.
"She kind of seems like that type." he said. The two enjoyed a mellow afternoon of talking and fishing. They had both had good luck and by six the stringer was full of more fish than they could eat in a week. As the evening progressed they were wondering why Frank hadn't made radio contact. Frank had always been a stickler for such procedure. Tony sat back in his chair and took out a pack of Chesterfields and lit one. He took a drag and exhaled deeply. Chet looked to him with half a grin.
"Ya know those things can kill ya." he said. Tony shrugged.
"The world is full of risks. We almost got shot down yesterday by some madman. We are still here. Though I am going to consider killing you if you don't make some dinner soon." he laughed. Chet nodded with a grin.
"How about some fish?" he asked jokingly. That was obviously going to be their meal. Tony retrieved a couple fish from the stringer. He cleaned them and cut the filets. Chet prepared a fry pan and pulled out a small pack of seasoning.
"Ok man, I'm ready." he called over. Tony brought over a plate of fish ready for the pan. Soon, Chet had an appetizing aroma of frying fish filling the air. A few moments later the radio crackled. They had left the boat's short wave set on to hopefully receive word from Frank or the others. Chet jumped up. Tony who was closer to the radio scooped it up.
"This in Tony, over." Soon a voice came back.
"Hey Tony, Frank here. Did you guys get the boat business taken care of?" Tony smiled at this question.
"Oh, yeah Frank. Never better."
"Well, we are somewhere in the northwest corner of the hollow. Not that far off the river. We found a few clues. A broken flashlight. A rifle cartridge casing and what we think is a little blood. Aside from that, we just spotted a cabin. It seems to be built into the rock face of the wall of the hollow. We are going to investigate it." Tony looked down worriedly.
"Do you need any help?" he asked.
"Not at the present time. But here is what we are going to do. We will keep the two-way radio in the field near the cabin with the signal on so you can track us. You can use the boat signal tracker and the other handheld is in the black bag. You should be able to track us on that too when you're out of the water. But give us three hours. If you don't hear from us, then come on ahead." Tony gave a reluctant shrug.
"Ok then, Frank. We will wait to hear from you. Over and out." He replaced the microphone feeling a bit uneasy. Chet shrugged.
"At least we heard from them." Tony nodded slowly.
"I hope they aren't walking into a trap. Cabin hidden on the edge of the hollow didn't sound too inviting." Chet nodded but forced a smile.
"Well, they are armed. Anyway, I have some fish here that's ready. Let's dig in." he said dishing it up and handed Tony a plate and then reached into a cooler.
"Corona, Tony?" Chet asked. Tony looked skeptically at him.
"Did you remember the limes?" Chet took on a hurt expression.
"Well of course. What do you take me for? Corona without limes. Why, that's absolutely absurd." he said giving Tony a bottle and then pulling a lime out of the cooler and slicing it up with his pocket knife. He took a slice and shoved it into his own bottle and offered Tony one also. Tony took a long drink and sighed. He tore into the fish then looked up approvingly.
"Great fish, Chet. Wonderful flavor. How do you achieve it?" Chet smiled.
"Oh, a little bread crumbs, seasoning. I put the fish in some beer and egg first. Then bread it them and fry it in a mixture of olive oil and a little lime juice." Tony grinned.
"What is that called? Corona'd catfish?" he asked. Chet gave a chuckle.
"I'm not sure what my mom called it. But that was her recipe for as long as I can remember. Though she used Miller beer." Tony gave a chuckle.
"Nice way to remember the recipes mom handed down, huh? A bottle of beer followed by..." he laughed. Chet smiled and looked down.
"I doubt she used that much. Plus, what little alcohol gets burned into nonexistence anyway. All you get is the flavor." Tony finished his plate.
"Well, however you did it, that was very good. Thanks." he said wiping his hands and taking another drink of Corona. He stood up and lit another cigarette.
"Well, guess it's a waiting game now, huh?" he observed. He looked down at his watch. The time was just after seven. Chet nodded.
"Yep. Hopefully everything will turn out alright and they will get a lead on the captain."
The two sat back and watched the last traces of daylight that managed to break through the dense umbrella of trees fade into darkness. Two and a half hours later they still had heard nothing. Tony began to get nervous.
"I hope they didn't run into trouble." Chet sighed.
"Me neither, but they could be on a hot lead and unable to radio." Tony stood up.
"Either way, if we don't hear from them in the next fifteen minutes we have to go find them." He said. Chet nodded. The minutes passed by with the two becoming tenser. Fifteen minutes passed. Chet got up. He flipped on the GPS on the boat. After feeding in the correct frequency, they managed to get a ping on Frank's radio. According to the screen, it was up river. Chet turned the motors over. Tony hopped in next to him. Chet pulled out of the cove and proceeded up river. Chet looked down at the GPS screen and the area terrain map.
"Best I can make out, the signal comes about half a mile or so off the river. So, once we do get up there, we should be able to track them fairly easy." Tony nodded and Chet sped up river.
"How long until we get to the spot where we get out?" he asked. Chet looked down at the GPS again. He looked up.
"Thirty minutes, present speed." he relied. Tony nodded. He was nervous. After the attack the night before he was not taking anything for granted. After about twenty-five minutes Chet announced that it would be best to find a cove or cover for the boat in the immediate area. A few minutes later they came upon a cove that set back well out of the river channel. Chet shut the motors down and they got out. They covered the craft as much as they could with nearby brush and fallen tree limbs. The darkness helped them for once as it made the boat harder to see. Chet pulled the hand-held unit from the bag and turned it on. The indicator had them fairly close.
"Ok, let's head south for a bit." Chet said finally. He checked his handgun and made sure it was loaded. The pair walked quickly to the south. After several minutes the GPS indicator told them that they should be soon approaching their target.
"Look about for them... or the radio." Chet said softly. A few minutes later the indicator reported that they should be right on top of their friend's location. Tony looked about the ground. Using his flashlight sparingly. A moment later the light shone on Frank's handheld radio! Tony bent down and picked it up.
"Well, this is it. But where are they?" he asked with a sinking feeling. Chet took the infrared field glasses out of the bag. He held them up and scanned the area in front of him. There was a clearing nearby. Sure enough on the other side was a huge expanse of stone and rock.
"That must be the hollow wall." Chet observed. He scanned slowly to the right.
"I think I see the cabin! Yeah. That has to be it. Damn, that's hard to see even with these." he said putting the glasses down. "Come on, let's go." The pair walked slowly across the clearing. As they did the huge stone wall of the hollow became more visible. Chet kept his gun on the ready as they slowly walked across the clearing. The eerie shape of the cabin came into view. In the darkness it appeared to be built many years ago. Maybe over a hundred. The old squared hand-hewn logs gave away its significant age. There were no windows in the small cabin. Just a door with what appeared to be a lock on the front that didn't match the age. It was newer and looked to secure the door quite well at first glance. Chet drew his gun up and nodded to Tony.
"Open it up." he said. Tony took a swift kick and the door gave away. Chet with flashlight in one hand and pistol in the other flashed the beam into the darkness. The room appeared to be empty. To the left was a door and the right an open space that apparently led into a tiny kitchen. Chet gestured to the door. Tony turned the knob. It was not locked and he pushed the door inward.
Chet's flashlight beam caught a horrid sight! Tied in a chair and gagged was Joe Hardy!