Bikini And A Badge Ch. 17

“Maybe everyone was too drunk to do any socializing.” Brittany commented. “Or just getting tired of each other’s company.”

“Thought about how we’re gonna get rid of these boats we captured?” Todd inquired.

“I’ll call Rick Cranor in Miami and see if he’ll come down and get them.” Brittany replied. “They’ll need some cleaning up before he can sell them for us. Langley‘s supposed to handle the legal documents and titles for us.”

“Sell what?” Amanda asked joining them.

“The powerboats.” Todd answered. “We were talking about selling them.”

“What do you think they’ll bring?” Amanda questioned, sitting down next to Brittany

“The Baja might bring eighty-thousand.” Brittany guessed. “The Skater might bring a hundred and sixty.”

“Split eight ways, that’s thirty-thousand apiece.” She added, grinning. “We’ll make alot more off the boats than we will the drug percentage.”

“Then we should concentrate on the boats, the hell with the planes!” Amanda exclaimed.

“Planes are the drug runners preferred mode of transportation.” Brittany responded. “They’re quicker and much more likely to make it to South Florida. And they can carry a bulkier payload.”

“Those guys using boats are more likely to shoot back at us too.” Frank stated. “They’re damn sure not going to give up without a fight.”

Brittany turned around to look over her shoulder. She hadn’t realized Frank Caposi had been standing there, eavesdropping on the conversation.

“I like the ambush setup myself.” Frank continued talking. “We’ve got cover and the element of surprise on our side.”

“Course Brittany here thinks we should let the drug runners fire the first shot!” He remarked. “So she can call it self-defense.”

“It has nothing to do with self-defense and you know that.” Brittany retorted. “We need to give them the chance to surrender. Let the court system deal with them.”

“I say we gun em all down and be done with it.” Frank retorted. “It’ll save the taxpayers alot of time and money.”

“You’re just looking to provoke a shootout.” Brittany argued back. “Just like you’re trying to provoke an argument now.”

“You sure as hell didn’t mind gunning down those sex slavers!” Frank exclaimed. “As I recall, you didn’t let them get off the first shot on any of the rescues. You gunned them down.”

Brittany bit her lower lip to keep from saying anything. She didn’t want to argue, knowing Frank would never see things her way. It would be futile to continue the conversation.

Later in the afternoon, Brittany decided to take a walk to get away from everyone. Climbing up the hill, she walked past the Piper Seneca parked to the side of the dirt road. Rob was going over one of the planes engines, checking connections and fluid levels.

“Hey! Where ya headin’?” Rob shouted.

“No place. Just goin’ for a walk is all.” Brittany responded as she kept on walking.

“Hang on! I’ll go with you.” He yelled, wiping his hands on a shop towel.

Brittany kept on walking, if anything picking up her pace a little.

“Hey! I said wait up.” Rob said, running up to Brittany. “What’s the big hurry?”

“I heard you.” She retorted.

“Still pissed about the argument with Frank this morning I see.” Rob muttered.

“He’s gonna get someone killed if he doesn’t change his attitude.” Brittany stated. “I can just feel it coming.”

“Get rid of him!” Rob exclaimed. “Get rid of him and Ray if you have to! I‘ll personally fly their butts back to Miami!”

“I need three shooters besides me.” Brittany responded. “Amanda and I can’t do it alone.”

“Get two more guys to take their place.” Rob suggested. “How about those guys up in Key West?”

“Richard and Jake! No way!” She replied. “I’m not going to get them involved. Forget it!”

“How about me?” He inquired. “I’m willing.”

“That’s a good idea!” Brittany quipped. “Then we both get killed and our son ends up in foster care.”

“OUR son?” Rob said, grinning.

“I meant your son. It just slipped out. That‘s all.” Brittany corrected herself.

“I liked it better the way you said it the first time.” Rob said. “Kinda has a nice ring to it.”

“Well, don‘t get ……………..” Brittany started to say.

“Britt! Britt!” Kimmie shouted, standing at the top of the hill by the airplane. “We got a boat! We got a boat!”

Rob and Brittany sprinted back towards the young girl.

“How far away is it?” Brittany asked, almost out of breath.

“Vince says forty miles, maybe forty-five.” Kimmie replied excitedly. “But it’s running almost seventy miles an hour.”

“How far offshore?” Brittany shouted as the trio made their way down the hillside.

“Two miles!” Kimmie answered. “They oughta go right past the base camp.”

Frank and his brother, Ray were already on the powerboat, anxious to get going. Standing in the livingroom, Amanda was busy putting on her bulletproof vest. Brittany grabbed her assault rifle and Glock .45 caliber handgun. Grabbing her vest and I.D., she ran back to the livingroom.

“Twenty-five miles and closing in on us!” Todd shouted. “Better get going!”

“Keep the tracking going.” Brittany ordered. “Kimmie, get the DEA online with us.”

Firing up the twin engines on the Nor-Tech catamaran, she revved the engines slightly to warm them up quicker. Rob cast off the mooring lines, shoving the powerboat away from the stern of the houseboat. Brittany put on her communications headset just as she was informed of the latest news.

“You’re may have to deal with a cruise ship bearing due south.” Vince shouted into his microphone. “It’s about thirty-five miles to the north.”

Brittany pulled out of the cove with Amanda sitting in the passenger seat alongside her. Frank and Ray were strapped into the rear seat, their hands tightly grasping the grab devices. Heading in a northwesterly direction, Brittany hoped to intercept the drug runners with the boat up to speed.

“They’re less than ten miles off your port side.” Vince reported, excitedly. “The cruise ship’s about twenty-five miles to your north. You’re closing in on it.”

“Be careful if we have to start shooting.” Brittany screamed at the team.

“You should be able to see them coming up behind you!” Todd shouted into his mike.

Looking over her left shoulder Brittany could make out the rooster tail of the approaching drug boat. Handing Amana the bullhorn, she gave her brief instructions on what to say.

As the powerboat approached the team, Brittany throttled the Nor-Tech to match its speed. Pulling alongside within twenty yards of the powerboat, they could clearly see it was a young couple at the helm. They appeared to be in their late twenties at most.

“DEA agents! Stop you boat immediately!” Amanda shouted into the bullhorn.

Amanda repeated the command twice more but the driver pushed his powerboat to its limits. The female onboard the boat reached down below her seat and took out a handgun. She started firing wildly at Brittany and her team.

“Fire back over their heads!” Brittany commanded.

Both Frank and Ray returned fire with their automatic assault rifles but the chase continued north for several more miles.

“Watch out for that cruise ship!” Came the warning over the headset.

“Hold your fire!” Brittany ordered as the two powerboats approached the huge cruise ship.

Brittany veered the Nor-Tech to the portside of the ship, while the two drug runners took to its starboard side. Passing by the lengthy ship, Brittany and Amanda briefly looked up to see the railings lined with people watching them pass by and waving at them.

Brittany steered to the right knowing the wake of the ship would leave a deep cut in the water behind it.

“Hang on! Brittany yelled, as the stern of the cruise ship loomed ahead.

The chase boat crested the wake, tossing it high into the air. For a brief moment, the twin Mercruiser engines revved to their limits, unrestricted by the water. As the boat smacked down hard on top of the water, it came close to tossing Amanda overboard. Dropping the bullhorn, it rolled down into the lower cabin area of the powerboat.

The young couple in the other powerboat were close enough to be shot, less than twenty yards to Brittany‘s portside. The ship’s wake had disoriented both of them when their boat nose-dived into the water. Frank and Ray emptied fresh magazines through their assault rifles aimed just over the couple’s heads. The driver quickly pulled the throttle levers back, shutting down both of his engines. Brittany turned hard to port to cut in front of them in case they tried to get away. The catamaran made the turn lifting its left side slightly out of the water.

With two assault rifles and a Glock automatic handgun pointed at them, the young couple raised their hands.

“Shut off the engines!” Brittany shouted. “Put your hands on top of the windshield! NOW!”

The young couple immediately complied with Brittany’s command. Pulling alongside their boat, Ray grabbed hold of it. Brittany flashed her I.D. before boarding the sleek powerboat.

“Don’t make a move.” She commanded, regaining her composure. “Is there anyone else on board?”

“Just our baby.” The young woman answered nervously. “She’s down below.”

“You’ve got a baby onboard!” Brittany exclaimed, shocked at their disclosure.

Amanda boarded the couple’s boat, immediately retrieving the handgun. Handing it to Frank, she patted down both the guy and the girl. Brittany carefully stepped down into the lower cabin. Turning on the overhead light, her eyes quickly spotted the young infant wrapped in a pink blanket laying amongst bundles of cocaine that had been tossed about the cabin. It awoke as she gently picked it up.

Carrying the baby up to the deck, she rocked the little girl peacefully in her arms.

“Oh my God!” Amanda exclaimed, holding her Glock handgun on the couple. “It is a baby!”

“It’s a little girl.” Brittany murmured. “It’s a little girl.”

“Give her to me.” Frank requested holding out his arms. “I’ve got a way with women.”

Brittany handed the infant to Frank. He cradled the infant in his arms, rocking it gently.

Two DEA airplanes flew directly overhead, bobbing their wings at the team. For an extended time, everyone stood motionless, their attentions focused on the baby.

“Kimmie wants to talk to you.” Ray stated. “Put your headset back on.”

“What the hell’s going on?” Kimmie inquired. “Why’d you take off your headset?”

Brittany explained what had gone down and about finding the baby in the cabin area of the powerboat.

“The DEA’s sending a patrol boat your way.” Kimmie stated, startled by the news. “You want them to send a helicopter?”

“Yeah. Tell them to send a helicopter too.” Brittany replied, her voice trembling. “We’ll meet them at Yellow Cay. They should be able to land there.”

With Amanda at the helm of the captured powerboat, Ray kept the young couple at gunpoint. Frank sat in the passenger seat of the chase boat, his arms still cradling the infant. Close to an hour later, Brittany approached Yellow Cay, along the western coastline of Andros Island. A DEA helicopter was just making a landing south of the village, its rotors kicking up dust.

Pulling up to the docks, they were met by three uniformed DEA agents, two men and one woman.

“That was a helluva catch!” One of the men stated, beaming a big smile.

“Yeah. I guess.” Brittany responded, suddenly feeling depressed about the baby being taken from them.

“Don’t worry.” The female officer said. “We’ll get the baby to child services in Miami. She’ll be well taken care of.”

“One of our boats will be here shortly to take the coke off your hands.” The other male officer stated. “We’ll take the couple back with us.”

With the couple’s hands secured in handcuffs, they were led away towards the waiting helicopter. No one said anything as they watched the Bell Textron helicopter lift off. Brittany sat down on the edge of the dock, her feet dangling near the water. It was all she could do to keep from breaking down. Frank knelt down beside her, putting his arm around her.

“I know how you feel.” He murmured. “It’s tough seeing this kind of crap actually happening.”

Tears began streaming down her face, falling onto her blouse. Frank handed her his handkerchief to wipe her eyes.

“Kimmie wants to know what’s going on.” Ray shouted. “You wanna talk to her?”

Brittany just shook her head “no“.

“We’ll be back sometime later this evening.” Ray spoke into his headset. “We’re all ok. We’re just waiting to get rid of the cocaine.”

It was early evening before the DEA’s boat finally showed up at the coastal village. Frank and Ray assisted the agents in transferring the narcotics to their boat while Brittany took a short nap in the cabin area of the Nor-Tech catamaran. She was more emotionally drained than physically tired. Amanda awoke her later as the bright red sun set along the western horizon.

With the powerboats running side by side, the team made it back to the houseboat shortly after dark. Everyone was standing on the upper level of the houseboat, anxiously awaiting their safe return. They scurried down the interior stairway as soon as they heard the two boats easing into the cove. Rob and Kimmie tied off the Nor-Tech while Vince and Todd secured the captured powerboat.

Everyone gathered in the livingroom, eager to hear every detail, but no one on the assault team felt like talking. The high-speed chase on the open sea along with the intervention with the cruise ship and finally the arrest and discovery of the infant in the lower cabin area of the powerboat had taken its toll on everyone.

“I need a good, stiff drink.” Amanda muttered, proceeding towards the galley. “Anyone else?”

“I’ll take a Scotch, straight up.” Brittany replied, getting up from her chair.

While Amanda poured two Scotches, Brittany opened up beers for Frank and Ray. It was eerily quiet as the four of them gathered close together in the galley.

Later, Brittany sauntered down the hallway to her stateroom. Rob followed her, entering the bedroom behind her.

“I need to take a shower but I’m almost too tired.” She mumbled, sitting down on the bed.

“I’ll help you.” Rob offered, helping her unbutton her blouse.

In the shower, Brittany held onto the grab bars while Rob soaped her body. After rinsing her off, he helped her towel dry. Although the shower had refreshed her, she still felt extremely tired. Stretching out on her tummy across the bed, Rob sat next to her, resting his hand on her back.

Waking sometime during the night, Brittany found herself in Rob’s warm embrace beneath the covers. Pulling his hand to her bare breasts, she covered it with her own.

Early the following morning, she awoke to the sounds of shouting coming from the livingroom. Listening closely while she wiped the sleep from her eyes, Brittany realized the shouting wasn’t in anger. Slipping on some underwear, she pulled a short robe around her before exiting the stateroom. Everyone was gathered around the big screen tv in the livingroom watching a newscast from Miami.

As several of the team members made comments, Brittany watched a replay of the boat chase and capture they’d been involved in the previous afternoon. With many of the passengers standing along the railing, several of them had digital video cameras photographing the scenery. As the drug interception started unfolding, they’d begun focusing on the chase. One of the passengers, standing near the stern of the cruise ship had turned her material over to the news media.

The replay showed everything in vivid detail from the fast approach of the two powerboats with assault rifles firing over the heads of the couple in the other boat to the Nor-Tech catamaran passing close to the ship to both boats leaping out of the water as they crested the ship’s deep wake. The photographer had zoomed in on Brittany’s team as they headed off the couple and made the successful capture. The news station ran the replay several times before switching back to the two news anchors.

“The couple were taken into custody by the raiders, then transported to a small village along the western coastline of Andros Island where they were turned over to DEA authorities.” The female anchor reported. “They were immediately identified as Doctor and Mrs. Phillip Madsen. Doctor Madsen, a prominent Miami dentist declined making a statement as he and his wife were taken by federal authorities to an undisclosed location for interrogation.”

“A doctor! Can you believe it!” Kimmie exclaimed. “And they didn’t mention anything about the baby being onboard.”

“The DEA’s probably trying to make a deal with them.” Amanda suggested. “They probably didn’t mention the baby because it was taken to child services. I’m betting they‘ll use the kid for bargaining purposes to get them to divulge their drug supplier.”

“That’s terrible!” Ray exclaimed. “That’s like holding the kid for ransom!”

“Terrible or not, that’s probably they way they’re gonna work the couple.” Amanda responded. “Talk and get your kid back with a stiff slap on the wrist and a lengthy probation.”

“I’d go for it.” Frank spoke up. “I’d spill my guts if it meant getting my daughter back and not having to go to prison.”

“Yeah, me too.” Vince chimed in. “I’d make a deal with the DEA in a heartbeat.”

“Where’d they get the term raiders?” Todd asked. “It sounds like we’re the bad guys!”

Everyone focused back on the news commentators as they announced an update to the news story. It was a live press conference with Brad Langley in Washington, D.C. at DEA headquarters. After reading off a well-prepared formal statement, he answered numerous questions from the news media. Brad used the term “Caribbean Raiders” several times in his answers. The term caught on immediately as the media began exploiting it in their continued questioning. The press conference finally ended and the news station returned to reporting other local news.

“At least he didn’t give away our base camp’s location.” Brittany stated. “But just the same. It wouldn’t be a bad idea if we stayed on our toes more. They do have television in South America ya know.”

“You think we should keep someone standing guard?” Rob inquired.

“As long as we’ve got someone monitoring the radar screens round the clock, I don’t think we need to go that far.” Brittany replied. “But, it might not be a bad idea if we trained the rest of you in how to handle a gun.”

Everyone agreed to Brittany’s suggestion. With everyone properly trained, it would give them a better chance of surviving an ambush should one occur in the future. After eating a light breakfast, everyone got dressed and prepared for their first gun lesson. Todd remained on the houseboat, sitting in front of the radar system monitors.

Rob and Vince quickly picked up on the use of a handgun as well as the automatic assault rifles. Kimmie was apprehensive about shooting the assault rifle but she quickly adapted, getting over her nervousness. While Brittany stressed the safety factors, Frank and Ray showed them how to sight and squeeze off each shot. Although Rob and Vince’s marksmanship needed improving, they at least knew the fundamentals and safety concerns.

Returning to the powerboat later in the afternoon, Brittany received a call from her close friend, Evelyn in California. After discussing her husband, Jared’s successful win in the primary elections, Evelyn brought up the subject about the televised news conference and the video of the drug raid. Brittany could sense the concern over her safety. Trying to breeze through Evelyn’s questions and make light of the issues didn’t seem to help much.

The next morning, several service technicians from the Cranor’s marine dealership arrived by small plane to take the captured boats back to Miami. Along with the Baja and Skater, they took the Hustler powerboat confiscated in the previous day’s drug interception. Brittany guessed its value at a little over two-hundred thousand dollars.