Rock and Benson made it out to where the boat exploded and looked around. Rock had decided he would just pretend to pick up body parts, rather than toss them into the water and then pick them up. This way they will not lose any, which could be a problem if someone else came along and found some. But as they looked around, both of them gasped at what they saw.

Benson scooped up the shirt that Crystal was wearing, torn to shreds and stained with blood. Then Rock noticed my jeans floating nearby, or what was left of them anyway. Then Benson noticed a piece of my wallet sitting on a piece of wood and scooped it up. This was not good, and definitely not part of the plan! I would have told them about any changes so they would not worry.

Meanwhile, back at the hotel. There was a knock at the door. Galyna answered since it was the right knock that we use to tell each other it is one of us. She opened the door. “You!” she said. “May I come in?” he asked, “I need to see Sky. She is here, right?” “Yes, she is,” said Galyna, “hey Sky, toss on your robe and come out here, we have a visitor.” Sigurbjorn also stared when he came in and said, “You!”

Then Sky came out of the bathroom and stared. “You!” she said. “Is that all you girls can say?” he asked. “But you are supposed to be dead,” said Sky. “And so are you, I might add,” he replied. She giggled. “You have me on that one,” she answered. “The boat should be exploding in just a few seconds,” said Sigurbjorn. “Um, you missed it,” he said, “it exploded 2 minutes ago. I was supposed to tell all of you, but I was tired and fell asleep, and, well, I am a bit late.”

“How do you know all of this John?” asked Sky. “Because I changed the timer myself last night,” he said, “so it would go off 2 minutes early. It was a change in plans. Major thought it might be a good idea.” Sky bent over a bit and picked up her gun and pointed it right at John. “You told Steve though, right?” she asked, “because if you did not, you will not be walking out of here alive.”

“Wait!” he exclaimed, “Steve knew all about it, I would not let him go out without telling him. But there was no time for him to tell everyone else, that was my job, and, well, like I said, I fell asleep and just woke up. Take it easy Sky, that thing could accidentally go off.” “If it goes off, it will be no accident,” she said. But she could not contain herself any long and began to laugh. “Um, what is so funny Sky?” asked John.

“The look on your face!” she said, “Steve called me and filled me in. He figured you might fall asleep after a long trip and being awake all night.” “You all knew about this?” he asked? “Sorry John, we did,” said Galyna. “Do Rock and Benson know too?” he asked. “Yes, I told everyone in plenty of time,” she said, “we just wanted to have some fun with you.” Poor John just collapsed into a big chair. “That was not nice,” he said, shaking his head.

Meanwhile, down at the front desk. The manager came running inside to the phone. “What is the problem?” asked Pete. “A boat, it exploded,” he said, somewhat out of breath, “I must call the police.” “No police,” said Pete, “you are getting paid plenty to do what we want, now, forget the police.” “No, that is murder,” he said, “I want no part of murder.” He then picked up the phone. Pete had a silencer on his gun and pulled the trigger.

The manager fell to the floor behind the counter. Pete then carried him into the freezer beside the kitchen. He came back out and another man came running in. “Did the manager call for the police?” he asked. “Yes, he did,” said Pete, “they will be here soon.” “Good,” said the man and ran back outside. Setting the timer 2 minutes early was not such a good idea, thought Pete, if they had stayed with the original 10 minutes, then the explosion would not have been visible from the island.

This could cause them some problems. Or would it? Maybe this could be a good thing. Major could not try anything if the police are around, so that would make it easier for them to get away tonight. Yeah, this could be a good thing indeed, he thought to himself. Meanwhile… Pop. Floop. A few minutes later. Pop. Floop. Another little bit and, pop. Floop. “Hey Rich, something strange out there,” said Sam…

To Be Continued.

©2023 Steve McLeod.