*****
The small fishing boat skimmed lightly across the dark waters of the Savannah River.
Mercedes clung to the bench seat, her eyes darting back and forth as they sped away from Pete’s pirate ship toward the Mystic Dream.
Pete slowed the engine and they drifted closer, until they were close enough for Mercedes to reach out and touch the side of the boat.
“We’ll have to row forward from here.” Pete grabbed an oar and maneuvered the small boat along the side of the looming riverboat.
Mercedes spied a small rope ladder dangling from the front quadrant. “We’re close,” she whispered. “Only a couple more feet.”
She leaned to the side, careful to keep her feet evenly planted on the bench seat. Her first attempt to grasp the rope failed. She tried again, delicately lunging forward, mindful of maintaining her balance. Her second try was the charm and her hands tightened around the thick coarse rope.
“I’ve got it.” Holding onto the rope with one hand, Mercedes adjusted her backpack.
Autumn, who was seated on the bench behind Mercedes, tiptoed forward. “You go first.”
Mercedes nodded. She sucked in a breath and stuck her foot on the bottom rung.
“We can’t be wastin’ no time. A freighter could come by anytime and drive us into the side of the boat,” Pete warned.
That was all the motivation Mercedes needed. She scrambled up the ladder, and didn’t stop until she reached the top. She vaulted over the side, taking a soft roll before springing to her feet.
Mercedes peered down, motioning for Autumn to join her.
Autumn teetered back and forth as she attempted to grab the rope. Her foot slipped on the first try and she flailed wildly, causing the small boat to rock back and forth.
“Hold ‘er steady,” Pete said.
It was too late. Autumn’s left leg went over the side and into the water while the rest of her remained on the boat. “I’m okay! I’m okay.”
She quickly pulled herself back into the small boat and crawled to the rope ladder. “I got this.” Autumn used both hands to grab the ladder. She darted up the side and didn’t look back until she reached the top. “All clear.”
Pete fired up the boat’s engine. “You remember the signal when you want me to come back to pick you up?”
Mercedes gave him a thumbs up. The women watched as Pete and the small boat slipped out of sight and into the dark night.
“Are you okay?” Mercedes turned to her friend.
“Yeah, just a little wounded pride. My left shoe is a little soggy. I’m fine,” Autumn said. “Now what?”
“I studied a diagram of the riverboat’s layout. If my calculations are correct, we take these side stairs down one deck and make a left at the bottom. The first door on the left should be Lawson’s office.”
Mercedes inched forward, her ears tuned to any noises. Although Pete told them that, according to the employees, there was no one on board the boat, the last thing they needed was to be ambushed by a gun-wielding employee who was guarding the vessel.
Squish…squish.
Mercedes abruptly stopped. “Are you making noises?”
“It’s my wet shoe.” Autumn took a step. “Sorry.”
“Let’s keep moving.”
The stairs creaked loudly with each step they took. Mercedes shifted her feet to the outer edges of the stair treads to quiet the sound.
Autumn, oblivious to the racket they were making, tromped loudly down the stairs.
Mercedes turned back, giving her a warning look.
“What? We’re the only ones on board.”
“We hope we’re the only ones on board.” There was no time to argue. It was time for action…get in, get out.
Mercedes ran her hand along the wall and let out a sigh of relief when she grasped the handle to what she hoped was Lawson’s office door.
She turned the knob, but the door was locked. Mercedes shifted to the side. “Work your magic.”
Autumn slid a thin metal pick from her pocket and leaned forward. “It’s too dark. I can’t see.”
“I have a flashlight.” Mercedes unclipped a flashlight from the side of her backpack and turned it on.
“Thanks.” Autumn grew quiet as she wiggled the lock pick back and forth. Seconds later, there was a faint pop.
“Way to go,” Mercedes said.
“We’re not in yet.” Autumn slipped the tool back into her pocket and opened the door.
A blast of stale cigarette smoke greeted them.
“This has to be it.” Mercedes waited for Autumn follow her in and then quietly closed the door behind them.
“Now what?”
“We use flashlights to start searching.” Mercedes unzipped her backpack and handed Autumn a flashlight. “I want to be out of here in ten minutes tops.”
“Me, too.” Autumn eased past Mercedes before coming to an abrupt halt. “Was that you?”
“Was what me?”
“Making a thumping noise.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Thump.
Mercedes stopped dead in her tracks. “I do now!”
Chapter 12
Mercedes slowly lifted her eyes, gazing fearfully at the wooden beams overhead. The seconds ticked by, but she didn’t hear the thumping noise again. “I think we’re paranoid. Let’s get moving.”
“I’ll take a look inside the desk drawers.” Autumn opened the top desk drawer and began sifting through the contents while Mercedes crept over to the filing cabinet in the corner.
She opened the cabinet and shined her flashlight inside. “Who puts boxes of snack crackers in their filing cabinet?”
“Me. I keep snacks in my office desk all of the time,” Autumn said. “But I keep the drawer locked. You’d be surprised at how many people think it’s perfectly fine to help themselves.”
The second drawer down was filled with an assortment of tools and hardware. The third was more
