Apocalyptic Pirates 6, page 22
I whizzed the drone through the rest of the huts. Just outside the clearing was a long, compacted line of earth, and a small hut.
“That’s the landing strip,” I said. “This is the airport.”
“It’s better than the last one I stayed in,” Dia said with a sniff. “I fucking hate airports.”
“Can you go back to the plane?” Shannon asked. “Could we use it, do you think?”
“I don’t think so.” I zoomed the drone back to where Dia had spotted the plane through the trees.
It was a very small plane, and it looked like it would only be big enough for a pilot and about two passengers. But like everything else here, it had been completely trashed. The windows were broken, there was a huge hole in one of the wings, and it looked like the seat cushions had been ripped open and their stuffing pulled out. Faint wisps of white seat padding were still caught on the jagged edges of the broken windows.
“I guess not, then,” Shannon said with a sigh.
“Even the controls look like they’ve been chewed up and spat out again,” Dia noted.
“I mean, think about how much noise a plane makes,” I said. “If there were dragons nearby and they heard it, it wouldn’t take them long to demolish a small plane like this. It’s barely more than a glider.”
“That’s creepy,” Ally said with a shudder. “The whole place is like a scene from a horror movie.”
“Have you changed your mind about sunbathing, then?” I asked.
“Yes.” She nodded fervently. “I don’t think I could relax here. I’d be expecting zombies or Leatherface to come out of the trees and eat me.”
“Well, thankfully, you only have to worry about bloodthirsty, radioactive dragons coming out of the trees to eat you,” Dia said.
“Yay.” Ally rolled her eyes. “That’s super comforting, thanks, Dia.”
“Just telling it like it is,” Dia replied.
I flew the drone around the rest of the area, but apart from the resort and the landing strip, there wasn’t much more to see. The trees were too dense to pilot the drone through them at a lower level, and I didn’t want to take the drone too near the ground in case any curious predators took an interest in it, or I ended up crashing it into a tree.
There wasn’t much more I could look at, so I guided the drone back to the yacht and carefully landed it on the deck.
“If you’re comfortable with the idea,” Letty said. “I was thinking of going ashore and doing a little foraging. Eva showed me a lot of the good plants that are safe to eat, and we could do with some fresh greens.”
I hesitated. But I’d had as thorough a look around the area as I possibly could have, and there hadn’t been any immediate signs of danger.
“Okay,” I conceded. “But don’t go alone, and make sure you have your weapons with you.”
“We won’t go far,” Letty promised.
“I’ll go with you,” Dia said. “I feel kinda antsy, and it’ll be good to go for a walk and stretch my legs. Even if it is just to look for plants.”
“That’s a good idea.” Ally sighed. “I can feel my brain starting to go round and round with everything. This will be a good distraction.”
“Safety in numbers.” I nodded. “That’s good.”
I did feel better knowing that all three of them were going. Together they would be more than capable of keeping each other safe.
“Don’t worry,” Ally told me. “We’ll be safe. We’ve done this so many times now.”
“Is it that obvious?” I gave a rueful laugh. “I can’t help worrying, okay? I’m a dad, it comes with the territory.”
“Does being a parent automatically mean you worry about everything ten times more than other people?” Dia wrinkled her nose.
“I think it does, actually,” Letty said. “Haven’t you heard of that thing, how every friend group has the ‘mom friend’ who takes care of everyone else?”
“Oh, yeah, I do know that.” Dia laughed. “So what, is Drew the dad friend?”
“I think you’re all kind of the mom friend,” I said with a smile. “You all look out for each other and take care of each other.”
“We’re all moms,” Letty laughed.
“I like that idea.” Dia nodded with a slow smile spreading over her face. “We’re all moms. We’re all each other’s kids.”
“Okay, no, that bit is too weird,” Ally told her.
“Rejected by my second mother!” Dia declared dramatically and clutched at her chest. “Mama, why?”
“Oh, my god.” Ally rolled her eyes. “Why do you always have to make things weird?”
“I’m just your weird baby,” Dia said with a sorrowful shake of her head. “And you can’t handle it.”
“Okay, okay,” Letty laughed. “Let’s get you two looking for plants to calm you down.”
The three of them grabbed their guns and knives. Letty had a foraging bag that appeared to have been made out of a pillowcase from the linen closet, and I wondered if Ally knew and had given her permission for the bed sheets to be reappropriated in that way.
“Okay,” Letty said and looked at Ally and Dia for confirmation. “Are you guys ready to go?”
“Wait,” I said. “I’ve been thinking we should start carrying more supplies with us when we leave the yacht. Matches, rope, those kinds of things.”
“Like a survival kit.” Dia nodded.
“Yeah, exactly,” I agreed. “Maybe we can trade for some more bags at some point, but for now, Dia, do you mind if you guys use your rucksack?”
“Yeah, sure,” Dia said, and she came below with me so we could fill her bag with essentials.
“Hopefully we’ll never be in a position where we’re cut off from the yacht and can’t access our main supplies,” I said. “But it never hurts to be prepared.”
“I bet you were a Boy Scout, weren’t you?” Dia teased.
“I wasn’t, actually,” I countered. “I just like to be prepared.”
“Is that another dad thing?” she said.
“Yeah, it is,” I said with a smile. “Sue me, but parenting gets a whole lot easier once you have a plan in place.”
“I’m not complaining,” she assured me.
We filled the rucksack to a manageable weight, and Dia slung it over her shoulders again to test it.
“How’s that?” I asked. “Is that okay?”
“Yep.” Dia nodded. “Let me at those plants. I’m going to forage their asses off.”
“Okay,” I chuckled.
We went out on deck, and Dia, Ally, and Letty checked their weapons one last time before climbing down from the yacht and jumping onto the sandy shore.
“Don’t go too far,” I cautioned. “Keep in sight of the yacht.”
“Drew, we’ll be fine,” Letty said patiently. “We’re just going to go along this bit of the shoreline where the trees are. We’ve got our guns ready, and we’re all going to be looking out for each other.”
“Okay.” I held up my hands and stepped away from the yacht railing. “Well, have fun. Bring back something tasty.”
“We will.” Letty waved, and Ally blew me a kiss.
Dia was already bounding ahead across the sand like an excited Labrador Retriever.
I watched them briefly for a moment and then turned away.
“I know, I know,” I said in a defensive answer to Shannon’s pointed look. “They’ll be fine.”
“Hey, I’m not saying anything,” she chuckled.
“I’m not a lost cause.” I shook my head.
“I know. Here.” The Indian woman was sitting on the yacht deck in the shadow of the cockpit with her knife and the sharpening block from the kitchen by her side.
She patted the spot on the deck next to her, and I sat down with a sigh.
For a few moments, the only sounds were the rasp of the knife and the gentle rush of the waves against the shore.
I tipped my head back and watched the tops of the palm trees wave in the wind. Their leaves fluttered and spun in a way that reminded me of the suncatcher that had been on my parents’ porch in my childhood home. It all seemed very far away and a very long time ago now.
I wondered if that house was still standing. I didn’t know what had happened to it after my parents sold it and moved to Hawaii, and it could have fallen victim to urbanization just as easily as the dragons.
“What are you thinking?” Shannon’s voice broke softly into my thoughts.
“My parents,” I said. “Where they lived before Hawaii.”
“Why did they move to Niihau?” Shannon asked. “I mean, I know, it’s Hawaii, it’s goddamn gorgeous there, so who wouldn’t want to live there? But surely that was a big move, going so far away from you and Sammy?”
“It was just something they’d always wanted to do,” I replied. “I knew that they’d wanted to retire there, but they never thought they would be able to. It was actually my job that helped them realize their dream.”
“Really?” Shannon lifted her eyebrows in surprise. “How come?”
“Well, you know, I got to meet all sorts of people through my job,” I explained. “And on one job I managed to cut a really good deal for this guy who was involved in throwing a massive conservation fundraiser. It was to help preserve some kind of orchid that you can only find on Niihau. He was so passionate about it, and I don’t know, there was just something about his enthusiasm and excitement about preserving this orchid for future generations. So I pulled a few strings, and I guess I worked a lot of overtime on the contract, and I managed to get him all the alcohol he needed for the fundraiser at a fraction of the price.”
“What did your boss think about that?” Shannon queried.
“Well, he wasn’t very happy,” I admitted with a chuckle. “And, no, it didn’t make the best business sense. But you should have seen this guy talk about the orchids. It just felt like this was something special. Anyway, the gala was a huge success, and then a couple of days after, I get this phone call. And it’s from the guy who was the organizer of the gala.”
“He wanted to say thank you,” Shannon guessed.
“Yeah.” I nodded. “But the thing is, he actually owns the island of Niihau.”
“Really?” Shannon opened her eyes wide in surprise. “I had no idea. I thought it was just part of the rest of Hawaii.”
“Yeah, I didn’t know that, either,” I said. “But it’s a privately owned island, and they’re really strict about who can live there and stay there. They only allow tourists for a few months out of the year, and they’re even stricter with permanent residents. But he really wanted to do me a favor because of how well the gala had gone. So I thought, why not ask if he would bend the rules for my parents?”
“And he said yes.” Shannon smiled. “That’s so sweet.”
“It was so cool when I got to tell them.” I smiled too as I recalled the memory of that day. “I thought Mom might start crying, but it was actually Dad who got misty-eyed. They were both so excited. And, yeah, it was hard to see them move so far away. But it was their dream, you know?”
“And you made it happen.” Shannon tilted her head to the side and gave me a slow, warm smile. “Drew Peeltin, improving lives wherever he goes.”
“Hey, I’m just lucky that I was in the right place at the right time,” I chuckled.
“And that you respected the guy’s passion for his orchids,” Shannon said. “Not everyone would have done that. Some people would have tried to just make a quick buck. But you saw beyond that.”
“It was his dream,” I said simply. “He wanted to save the island’s biodiversity more than anything. That kind of passion, it’s inspiring.”
“Like the passion you have for the truth?” Shannon leaned closer to me and gazed into my face. “Your drive to keep us all safe and protected?”
I found my words suddenly faded away in my throat as Shannon’s deep dark eyes gazed into mine. Her lashes fluttered as delicately as a butterfly’s wings. Her lips were slightly parted, and I felt the faint brush of her warm breath as she leaned even closer toward me.
“Yeah,” I managed in a husky voice.
“Is that the kind of passion you’re talking about?” she breathed.
“Yeah.” My hand reached out and brushed a strand of her dark, silky hair behind her ear.
“Then I think I know what you mean,” she murmured. “Because I see that in you. And it’s hot as fuck.”
Chapter 14
I cupped Shannon’s cheek in my hand and tilted her face up to mine. Her mouth opened in anticipation, and I caught her lips with my own and kissed her until I couldn’t breathe.
“Mm, Drew,” Shannon murmured. “I love you, Drew.”
“I love you, Shannon,” I whispered. “I love everything about you.”
She knotted her fingers in my hair and pulled me back down to her. Our lips met, and Shannon kissed me fiercely as though she was starving. Her tongue gently parted my lips, and our mouths covered each other. When I drew back a millimeter, she gently bit down on my lower lip in a way that sent a delicious shiver running through my body and a jolt of desire straight to my cock.
“Shannon,” I groaned.
“I want your beautiful cock inside me,” she whispered.
“Out here? On the deck?” I asked.
“Why not?” A sly smile tugged at the corner of her gorgeous mouth. “You and Ally seemed to have a nice time out here the other day.”
“That was in the cockpit,” I informed her with a chuckle.
“Well…” Shannon’s smile only deepened. “Does that mean we get to christen this corner of the deck?”
“I guess it does.” I kissed her again, and I began to nudge her down onto her back, but Shannon pushed me back with a giggle.
“Oh, no,” she told me. “I want to be on top.”
“Really?” I lifted my eyebrow, but my protests vanished when Shannon reached behind her back and untied her black bikini top.
“What do you think, then, Drew?” Shannon purred. “Do you like the view?”
Shannon’s huge breasts bounced slightly as they were released from the bikini cups. Her smooth brown skin was absolutely flawless, and the tropical sunlight gleamed on the faint sheen of sweat highlighting her cleavage. She cupped her breasts in her hands and lifted them, toyed with them, and looked over at me with her lower lip caught between her teeth.
All of the blood in my head had rushed instantly to my dick.
“I like the view,” I managed to get out in a husky voice.
“Good,” Shannon purred, and she gently pushed me down onto my back on the deck.
She leaned over me with her knees spread. Her breasts just brushed my chest, and her hair fell around us and made a dark, silky curtain that cut off the outside world and shrank everything down to just me, Shannon’s smile, and the delicious, heavy weight of her body pressed against mine.
I gazed into her eyes. Her pupils were gaping wide open, and she drew in her breath sharply, and her eyes half-closed in pleasure as I reached up and squeezed her breasts.
They were so soft and heavy, and I stroked them gently, and then more purposefully. I ran my fingers over her nipples until they tightened into dark, aroused knots under my touch. Shannon sighed out a moan and arched her back over me.
“Mmm,” she breathed. “Oh, my god, Drew.”
“You like that, huh?” I growled.
“Mmm, yes,” she whispered. “Oh, yes I do like that.”
“Does it make you wet?” I breathed in her ear. “Is your pussy wet right now?”
“It’s so fucking wet,” Shannon moaned. “It’s fucking throbbing, I’m so turned on right now.”
“I want to see,” I growled. “I want you to show me just how wet you are for me.”
“Yes,” Shannon gasped.
Her hands went to her low-rise black denim cutoffs and fumbled with the silver button. I could see the smooth skin of her stomach and the hollow where the shorts hugged her hips, and my heart was hammering in my chest at the anticipation of what was underneath her shorts.
Shannon undid the button and slid her shorts down her thighs to reveal white panties that clung to her ass and shone against her brown skin. I cupped her pussy in my hand, and the hot wet arousal between her legs was overwhelming.
“Oh, fuck, Shannon,” I groaned.
“Do you like that?” she gasped. “Do you like feeling how wet I am? Fuck, I’m so fucking wet. This is what you do to me, Drew, just your touch is enough to make me cum right now.”
“I want you to cum when I make you cum,” I growled. “Take your panties off.”
Shannon slid her fingers under her underwear and eased them down her thighs.
Her pussy came on display, and I sighed in satisfaction at the sight of her glistening pussy lips between her thighs.
“Fuck, your pussy is so gorgeous,” I told her.
“Is it?” Shannon wasn’t always coy, but this time, my words seemed to catch her off guard.
Her cheeks flushed, and she smiled, and then she gasped and flung her head back as I slipped my fingers inside her dripping pussy.
“Yes,” I told her in a husky voice. “Your pussy is fucking beautiful.”
I found the throbbing, swollen button of her clit, and Shannon let out a moan as I grazed it with my finger.
“Mmm, yes,” she whimpered. “Oh, god, that feels amazing.”
I sat up and dragged her closer to me. Her chest was heaving with excitement, and I caught her nipple in my mouth and licked it as my fingers flashed in and out of her pussy.
Shannon moaned and gripped my shoulders as I sent pleasured waves through her.
“Oh, my goddddd,” she gasped. “Yes, yes, yes.”
I circled her nipple with my tongue and flicked the tight, hard bud until Shannon was shuddering with pleasure.
“Ahhh,” she gasped. “Ahhh, yes, Drew, just there, just there…”
I felt the walls of Shannon’s pussy tighten around my fingers. Her clit was engorged, and I worked my fingers and thumb inside her and drove her closer and closer to orgasm.
“Yessss,” Shannon cried. “That’s it, fuck, I’m cumming.”
She bucked her hips against my hand, and her pussy came alive as she climaxed.
