Jay knocked on the door of Olivia’s stateroom. He double-checked to make sure his suit coat was wrinkle-free and that every strand of his thick, dark hair was in place. Olivia opened the door, and Jay’s jaw dropped open. Her tight-fitting black party dress accentuated every curve in the best possible way. She ironed her curly hair flat, and her make-up accentuated her dark eyes. Four-inch heels completed the package.
“What do you think, Mendes?” Olivia said as Jay stood in the door. “Are you ready to hit the town?”
“You look amazing,” Jay said. “What did you do with little Olivia?”
She slapped his arm. “Cut it out, Jay. You look like you’ve never seen a lady before.”
“Not one this beautiful. Now, are you ready to enjoy the nightlife? They say Salvador is the best party town in Brazil. You deserve a break.”
“I can’t wait to see if you still know how to dance,” Olivia said. “You were pretty good at your senior homecoming dance in high school.”
“I don’t remember going to a dance with you.”
“You didn’t know I was there. Jojo and I snuck in a back door.”
The ten days of open sea sailing had taken a toll on crew and scientists alike. Despite the pirate warnings, Captain Michaels stopped in Salvador de Bahia to refuel. He agreed to let the researchers go into port. Not because the city had the lowest crime rate of any of the ports in Brazil, but because Jay was providing security.
Jay agreed to chaperone the six female researchers. He knew they wanted to have a good time, and he would make sure they stayed safe. Williams joined him as a chaperone. Perry piloted the small boat.
The short ride to the downtown marina was uneventful, and the girls located the Zen, a wild dance club.
The club was loud and crowded. But the drinks were cheap, and the patrons were friendly. Jay’s Portuguese was rusty, but he remembered enough to have a few brief conversations. The researchers danced together in a group and managed to fend off the local males. As the night went on, a few girls staggered off with guys. Williams followed close behind.
Jay kept his distance from Olivia and her friends. His job was their safety, and he couldn’t let himself get distracted. He’d have plenty of time to nurture his romance with Olivia when they returned to Cape Cod.
He took a sip from his glass of Coca-Cola when he heard a familiar voice, “Hey Mendes, what brings you to this dive?”
An overweight, dark-haired man stood next to him. He wore a nondescript blue polo shirt and khaki slacks. He looked familiar, but Jay couldn’t place the face.
“Do I know you?” Jay said.
“It has been a few years, but yes, we met on a mission in northern Brazil. You were working with the U.S. DEA to hunt down a notorious drug lord.”
“Right, Ernesto. Ernesto Cabral,” Jay said. “Now I remember. You’re with the Federal Police. You coordinated the search through the Amazon basin. I’ll never forget the monster mosquitoes in that area.”
“There you go, my friend. What brings you to Salvador? I notice you’re not in uniform anymore.”
“You’re observant. I left the Navy a few weeks ago. I’m now working with a maritime security company aboard a research vessel. We stopped in port for supplies, and some of our researchers wanted to let their hair down for the evening.”
“You’re babysitting rich college kids.”
“Bingo. You were always observant. Why are you here? I thought you worked out of headquarters in Rio?”
“I’m investigating a rash of drug-related deaths in northern Brazil. Very sad because most of the victims are young adults between the ages of 18 and 25.”
“That’s awful. What kind of drugs?” Jay said.
“We call the shit Jungle Fury because some of the ingredients grow in jungle plants. Plus, a Brazilian drug cartel is doing most of the production. On the streets, it’s simply Fury.
“How are the people dying?”
“It seems to be causing instant strokes in some people. Others are dropping dead. There isn’t even a cure or antidote. Our government is funding research to try to find a way to treat strokes. It’s awful.”
“Are they smuggling it out of Brazil yet?”
“We think so, but we’re not sure. It’s one of the reasons I’m here at the port. Since it’s a liquid, the cartel can’t transport it by commercial airlines. The smugglers are using container ships. You don’t need a lot of liquid to make a lot of money. They’re using two-liter Coke bottles.”
Jay’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He saw the call was from Williams. “Jay, we have a situation. I’m outside the ladies’ room.”
“Hey, Ernesto, I gotta go. Let’s stay in touch.”
Ernesto handed Jay a business card then said,” My pleasure. It was great seeing you, Jay.”
Jay reached inside his jacket to check his gun, then pushed his way through the crowd.
Several drunk young men surrounded the researchers. One girl, a tall blonde named Stephanie, was screaming at one of the local guys. Jay could tell she was drunk, and the young man was trying to calm her down. He pushed his way through the crowd and stood between Stephanie and the man.
“That basshtard felt me up,” Stephanie said in a drunken slur. “We were making out, and he, you know…” she held her hands up and cupped her fingers.
There was no way Jay would referee this argument, so he looked at Stephanie and said, “Williams, time to go.”
Williams grabbed Stephanie’s arm and escorted her out of the club. Olivia and the rest of the researchers followed behind.
When they were outside, Jay turned to see if they were being followed. The coast was clear, so they headed back to the launch.
Someone grabbed Jay’s arm, and he turned, reaching for his gun inside his jacket. He relaxed when he realized Olivia had clamped onto him.
“I’m freezing,” she said. Jay wrapped his arm around her.
Once on the small boat, the crew members counted their researchers. Satisfied everyone was present, they left the dock.
Jay kept an eye out for anybody following them. Williams watched the bow.
Olivia curled up next to Jay and fell asleep with her head on his shoulder. It was one o’clock in the morning.
Jay’s phone buzzed. He saw Captain Michael’s name on the screen.
“Mendes, our radar is showing two small boats approaching your launch. One from the port side and the other from starboard. They’re moving fast. Assume they are not friendly.”
“Aye aye, sir,” Jay said and hung up. He pulled his gun from his holster. Perry noticed the look on his face and sped up.
Jay heard the small outboard motors before he saw them. They were half a mile from the ship—plenty of time for mayhem.
“Olivia, wake up,” Jay said. When her eyes opened, he yelled, “Everyone down on the deck. Don’t look up!”
A moment later, bullets whizzed inches over Jay’s head from the starboard side. The sound of the automatic fire followed a split second later.
“Hit the gas,” Jay said to Perry. We need to get back to our ship!”
Gunfire erupted from the port side boat. Jay and the researchers were being attacked from two sides. Jay held his fire. He only had a single ammo clip, and the boats were too far away to do any damage.
The boat on the starboard side was fast and closed in on the inflatable. Jay saw a driver and at least two passengers. Each was armed with AK-47s. Jay crawled to the center console of the boat. He opened a side panel and pulled out the two AR-15s, tossing one to Williams. He grabbed the shotgun and gave it to Perry.
“Nobody boards this boat!” Jay said. “That’s an order!”
Jay scrambled back to the starboard side. The outboard was only one hundred yards out, shooting without any effect.
He aimed at the pilot of the boat, released the safety, and squeezed the trigger twice. The driver’s head disappeared from view and veered off to the right.
Jay adjusted his aim on the second gunman and squeezed the trigger twice again. The man fell back into the water. Two more shots and the third gunman was down. Six shots. Three kills from a moving boat. Jay hadn’t lost his shooting skills.
“Did you hit anybody?” Olivia said from down on the deck.
“No,” Jay said, lying. “I scared them away.”
Jay looked towards the ship. Only three hundred yards to go.
A metallic clang caught his attention. A grappling hook pulled tight on the aft of their boat, which lurched to a stop.
Jay flew forward, missing the corner of the center console by inches. He reached down to stop his fall, dropping his rifle in the process. He landed on top of Stephanie, who didn’t say a word.
“Are you alright?” Jay said. “I hope I didn’t hurt you.”
Stephanie shivered in fear, “I’m scared I’m going to die. Please stop them.”
Several of the other girls screamed. A dark-skinned man with an AK-47 stood at the bow of the outboard.
“Perry,” Jay yelled. “Shoot him!”
She pointed the shotgun at the man but didn’t pull the trigger. She froze. Jay stared at her, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn’t risk wrestling the gun away from her.
The man pointed his rifle at Perry.
Olivia sprang up from the deck of the boat. She yanked the shotgun from Perry’s hand, racked the barrel, then pulled the trigger. The blast echoed across the water.
The bright muzzle flash blinded Jay. When his vision returned, he saw the attacker was gone.
“Jay, watch out!” Olivia yelled. He looked up to see a giant hand grab him by the collar and pull him out of the boat. He punched the man in the face with his right hand, then wrapped his left arm around the man’s neck and pulled down. They both fell into the water.
The attacker grabbed Jay around the neck as they sunk into the dark, murky water. Jay punched him in the head. The man punched back. Jay hit him again and again, but the man’s grip didn’t loosen.
Jay struggled to hold his breath, knowing that he would drown if he gave into the natural reflex to breathe.
As an underwater diver, he trained to deal with stressful situations. He learned how to fight underwater and survive. Jay knew his attacker didn’t have the same training.
Jay reached down into his right pant leg and pulled out his desert dagger. He punched the razor-sharp point into the back of the man’s neck and twisted. Jay pulled the knife out and then slammed it into the center of the man’s chest, slicing through the heart. The man’s body went limp, and Jay pushed him away.
With several powerful kicks, Jay was back on the surface. Looking behind him, he saw the pirate’s small boat was empty. He cut the rope to the grappling hook, then replaced the knife in its holster. Jay swam back to the inflatable.
“Olivia, use the shotgun to punch a few holes in the boat’s hull,” Jay said as he crawled back onto the boat.
She obeyed his orders and placed several shots under the waterline until the boat sank.
Williams and Perry helped him aboard. Jay collapsed on the deck, relieved to be alive. Olivia dropped the shotgun and scrambled over.
“Oh my God, Jay,” she said. “Are you alright? I can’t believe you saved our lives.”
“It’s the other way around,” Jay said with a big smile. “How did you learn to shoot like that?”
“Jojo and your Dad taught me how to skeet shoot when we were kids.”