Episode 40 Caribbean Storm (Part 1/3) (Patreon)

Lucy Chen

“Are you still worried about that old statue?” John asked.

“No.” She glared at her patrol partner.  “And I told you, I didn’t break it. I’ll explain to Jack once they return from their vacation.”

The party at Jack and the Captain’s house lasted longer than she expected. They had fun, but all of them were serious about leaving the place clean and pristine once their impromptu party finished that night. No one wanted to piss off the captain.

However, in the process of cleaning, she found the broken old statue on top of the mantle. She was sure she didn’t touch it, but no one seemed to believe her. She had a suspicion that they were just teasing her, especially Tim.

“Then why do you look so worried?” John replied. “You’ve spent the last shift acting like something is still bothering you. The one that ran the red light didn’t even bother to argue once he noticed your expression.”

“It’s Tamara.” She revealed. “She’s not answering my messages, and my calls always reach her voicemail. She promised she would call me.”

“Lucy, Tamara’s eighteen.” John gave her a quick glance. “They reach that age where they assert their independence.  She’s not your guardian.”

“But she promised she’d check in.” She knew Tamara was a responsible, thoughtful girl and knew her priorities.

“Henry went to that same phase.” Her patrol partner shared. “A couple of times he promised he would be home by twelve, and I found out the next morning that he slept at a friend’s house since he was too drunk to drive.”

“Tamara’s been independent ever since she was sixteen.” She countered. “I’m her roommate, and I know she always keeps to her promises.”

“If you’re that worried, why don’t you call her hotel?” John suggested. “I bet she was too distracted hanging out with her friends and meeting boys her age.”

“That’s what I’m worried about.” She muttered under her breath. She had a dream last night of Tamara returning from her vacation, crying while holding up a pregnancy test kit. She woke up in a cold sweat that night. Was she being paranoid about all this?

No. Something in her gut told her something was off.

 John’s suggestion was a good one, and she was glad she had a copy of Tamara’s itinerary along with the name of the hotel she had booked. It should be easy to call their front office and have someone check on her roommate.

She didn’t even bother to head to the shower after her shift and headed to an empty desk. Thirty minutes later, her worst fears had been confirmed. The hotel had told her that Tamara and her roommate didn’t return to their room, and their other friends were getting worried and even filed a police report. Now it was a matter of just waiting, and she felt helpless at this stage.

The local police department in Miami, Florida, was accommodating when she called them as a courtesy to a fellow law enforcement officer, but their answer was the same one she gave whenever a civilian called to report a missing person. She hated being on the other side for once, but there was not much she could do, even if she flew over there.

She didn’t have the resources or powerful friends in the government, but he did have a friend. She knew he was on vacation with his wife, using up the remaining leave he had for the year, but she was confident he would answer her call despite the time difference.

She could literally hear her heart beating as she waited, and on the fifth ring, she gave a sigh of relief when she heard Jack’s voice.

“Hi Lucy.”

“Thank god you answered!” She breathed out. “This is an emergency. Tamara’s missing!”

“What happened?” Unlike the local cop in Florida, who gave her vague answers and told her to wait, her friend immediately wanted details.

“She flew to Florida with her friends from college for a vacation. She and her roommate didn’t return to their hotel. They’ve been gone for 48 hours, and her friends filed a police report.”

“So it could be anything.” Jack’s voice seemed somber. “They could have been kidnapped, lost, or worse. I’ll make some calls to the federal agents I know. They have better resources than we do.”

“Thanks, Jack.” She felt a bit better. At least now she knew someone was trying to find her roommate. “I’ll send you Tamara’s itinerary and more contact details.”

“And send a file about her roommate if you can, and the friends that came with her. Pictures, if you have any.”

“I’ll do that.” She was thankful Tamara posted everything from her very first trip on her instargram and even tagged the faces in the group photos. One by one, with a pen and paper, she wrote the names and took screenshots.

She looked up when a mug full of steaming hot coffee was placed beside her. Looking above her was Sergeant Grey.

“You look like you needed some help.” The veteran sergeant sat on a nearby chair. “I heard what happened from Nolan. Let me guess, you called Jack?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Smart choice.” Grey nodded in approval. “Now, how can I help you?”

She looked at the clock. Everyone knew that Sergeant Wade Grey always left on time after his shift, eager to get home to his family.

“Dominique is around Tamara’s age,” Grey answered her unasked question. “I’d be panicking like you if she suddenly went missing while on vacation with her friends. Now, I have a few friends in Miami who can help. What do you need?”

“Tamara’s last post shows she was at the marina.”

“I know the harbor master there.” Grey pulled out his phone. “He’s an old army buddy of mine. Let me give him a call.”

She was incredibly grateful to Grey, and she was pretty sure her eyes were glistening with tears since the sergeant’s face became blurry to her vision. Fortunately, Grey didn’t comment on it.

Tamara Collins

She underestimated the distance to the island on the horizon.

She was so tired, thirsty, and it felt like she was just fighting to keep that small shape on the horizon as the waves pushed her further back. This was getting ridiculous, and her skin was flushed red thanks to the glaring sun.

Every time she rested, it felt like she was being pushed further back, but she was exhausted. She stopped again, resting her cheek against the rough orange surface of the flotation device. She was close to giving up, but she knew she had to keep fighting.

She felt droplets of water falling down her cheek, and she looked up and realized it was raining and quickly pulled up the mug she stole and held it in front of her. She had tied it to the side of the life preserver’s rope, and now it looked like her foresight was paying off.

She even opened her mouth, desperate for the pure water to soothe her dried lips and mouth. Every drop felt like a moment of heaven to her senses. She didn’t know how long she stayed there, waiting for the mug to slowly fill. At the halfway point, her patience ran out, and she took a few mouthfuls of water and gave a sigh of relief. That was the best drink of water she ever had, and now she wanted more.

Sadly, the passing rain shower ended, and she made sure to swallow the remaining spoonful of water. Now energized, she started to paddle towards the distant island. She was going to make it.   

Willem-Alexander of the House of Orange-Nassau

He was grateful for the idea to charter a yacht before attending the G-7 summit. The time spent with his family was priceless, and it became even more special when he finally met his nephew and his wife.

The yacht would dock at Miami, and from there he would fly off to attend the G-7 cultural summit in New York City while his wife and daughters enjoyed the warmer weather in Florida. The girls were thrilled to spend time with their new uncle and even more excited when they learned they were going to be aunts at such a young age.

The meeting went well, Jack took the news that Cross and Shearing with stoicism common in the male line of his family. He truly was Claus’ son. The paperwork was processed quickly, with Jack now having citizenship and a Dutch passport, and his identity updated.

He was born Jaqcues-Henry of the house of Orange-Nassau, and legally changed his name to Jack Routh. That move would settle some concerns back home for the anti-royalist faction. The Republieks always rang alarm bells for every little thing the family did, since they argued that his powers were not just symbolic and that was against the European Human Rights convention.

They hated his growing influence, which only grew when he publicly announced the existence of his nephew, a man who was extremely popular in his own right thanks to his talent in music and friendship with Taylor Swift.

He stared out at the horizon at the bow of the yacht, enjoying the peace while his girls slept, when he spotted something ahead. The orange color stood out, and he leaned against the rail, trying to get a better view.

His eyes widened in surprise when he saw a person on top of it.

“Man overboard!” He yelled out.

His aides quickly rushed to his side as whoever was on the bridge slowed down the yacht.

“Over there!” He pointed at the figure, barely visible thanks to the choppy water.

The crew moved quickly, and a boat was deployed to the area he was pointing at. He waited by the deck, his hands gripping the rails tightly.

A few minutes later, one of the crew was tending to the young woman whom they had fished out of the ocean in the sick bay. It was clear she was dehydrated and spoke with an American accent.

“Easy now, drink slowly.” Their crew medic gently chided the girl, only a few years older than his eldest daughter. The girl coughed from swallowing too fast, but after she recovered, she resumed drinking the rest of the water inside the glass. He couldn’t imagine how long she was in the water before he saw her.

“She’s stable.” The medic reported once he entered the room.

“Thank you.” The girl looked grateful as she stared up at him. The rest of the crew clustered around the entrance, eager to hear more about the young woman. “I didn’t know how long I was out there.”

“What happened?” He asked.

“Before I could answer, can you please contact two people for me?” The teen looked worried. “One is my roommate, Lucy Chen,  a police officer in LA, and the other is another officer, Jack Routh. Please tell them I’m alive, and my friends need help.”

“You know Jack Routh?” He asked, looking at the girl in a new light.

“His foundation pays for my scholarship.” The teen replied. “I flew to Miami and joined my classmates for vacation. I’m Tamara. Tamara Collins.”

“You can call me Alex.” He told the girl. Telling her of his real identity wouldn’t help in this situation. “Now tell me about your friends needing help? Did your boat capsize?”

“No.” Tamara shook her head. “We got kidnapped when our boat broke down. I heard from the men that they planned to auction us.”

“Slavers.” He narrowed his eyes. A moment later, he turned to one of his aides. “Tell the captain to turn around and to contact the United States Coast Guard.”

“At once, your Majesty.”

 “And tell my wife what’s happening, and get me my phone. I need to call my nephew.” He told another aide.

“Your Majesty?” Tamara looked confused.

“That’s not important right now.” He told the girl. “Perhaps you can give me more details about what happened?”

Jack Routh

He watched as the helicopter he was in slowly landed on the deck of the large yacht that his uncle owned. Once he removed the headset, he opened the door and jumped off, not bothered by the whine of the engines and the sound of the rotors.

An aide beckoned to him to follow, and he moved quickly, eager to see Tamara. Time was of the essence, and there were other victims that needed help. Zoe was busy back in the villa, coordinating with the FBI and other law enforcement agencies. She even encouraged him to see Tamara right away, even before his uncle’s yacht reached Martinique.

Tamara looked fine, though a bit sunburned. Her face lit up once she saw him, and he was surprised when she rushed over and hugged him. As he returned the hug, he realized that the first recipient of his scholarship grant desperately needed comfort, and he was the first familiar face she saw.

“You’re fine now, Tamara.” He assured the girl. “What you did was very brave.”

It was a miracle, really, that his uncle was able to spot Lucy’s roommate. He knew several incidents of passengers falling overboard on cruises and not being found by the crew despite being alerted right away.

“We were unable to identify the ship she was taken on board.” His uncle stepped forward and gave him a quick greeting, which he returned.

“Thanks for flying me here.”

“It’s fine.” His uncle gave him a smile. “Miss Collins calmed down once she knew you were on your way, and was able to give us important details.”

“Jack,” Tamara spoke up, looking hopeful. “Before I jumped from the ship, I hid my phone inside one of the old rubber tires hanging outside. I remember when Camille installed a special software developed by one of your friends to help me locate it if it was stolen. Could it…”

“…help track your friends who are aboard? Yes.” He was amazed at Tamara’s resourcefulness. The app Howard developed utilized the phone’s location services and allowed it to be located anywhere in the world with greater accuracy. “You might have just saved their lives.”

The response from authorities was too slow for his tastes. They now had a location of the ship, and it was stationary near the British Virgin Islands.

A satellite map showed the ship was beside another, larger vessel. Zooming in, he realized it was a massive yacht, twice the size of the yacht his uncle owned. Its automatic identification signals were turned off, trying to hide its location.

“Your Majesty, a helicopter is approaching and is requesting that it land.” One of the crew members announced.

“Where did they come from?” His uncle asked.

“They said they are friends of Mister Routh. The man I spoke to on the radio said his name is Jangus. He said Mister Routh would know.”

He straightened up when he heard that name. The last time he saw the man was when he was delivering their state-of-the-art generator. What was a black ops operative doing here?

“I know them.” He replied and turned to his uncle. “They’re… acquaintances I met in L.A. I believe they’re here to offer some help.”

“Who are they?”

“Let’s just say they work in the shadows.” He answered. “They’re friendly, but you should still have your security remain on alert.”

“Let them land.” His uncle ordered and then gave a meaningful look to his security team.

Fortunately, the yacht could accommodate two helicopters, with one pad located on the bow and the other on the stern of the vessel. They headed to another room, this one more spacious for the upcoming meeting. Jangus arrived a few minutes later, escorted by a pair of his uncle’s security detail.

“Your Majesty, Mister Routh.” Jangus gave a nod of greeting to the room.

“What are you doing here?” He asked. He didn’t have time for mind games.

“I was in the area when I received a priority mission.” The large man shrugged. “It looks like you stumbled into something sensitive.”

“How sensitive?” He asked.

“You think Epstein is the only one here?” Jangus asked. “The auction will have people who are well-known public figures. The president wants to show the public that he’s serious about law enforcement.”

“Or he just wants to distract the public since his approval rating is at an all-time low.” He replied. He really didn’t care much about politics, having a low opinion of most politicians.

“That too.” Jangus chuckled. “So, wanna watch?”

“What do you mean?”

“We will swoop in first.” Jangus revealed. “Then, in a few hours from now, the FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team will land and do the clean up. My primary mission is to ensure these public figures don’t escape.”

“I’m in.” He hated waiting, and Tamara had asked him to help save her roommate.

“Wait.” His uncle held up a hand. “Are you sure about this, Jack?”

“He’ll just be an observer.” Jangus smiled. “Besides, Routh can take care of himself.”

A/N: Happy New Year!!!