Pears and Perils by Drew Hayes

Author:Drew Hayes [Hayes, Drew]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi, azw3
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Genre Fiction, Action & Adventure, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fantasy, Contemporary, Paranormal & Urban
Amazon: B00D9UQO3K
Published: 2014-01-04T05:00:00+00:00

13.

Lawrence stood on the bow of the ship and watched the crystal waters flow by. His journey was quite pleasant; the fierce winds blistering Alendola were nowhere to be seen in this vicinity. Unlike the others, he had taken the time to plan his journey a bit more, so rather than bartering or borrowing a fishing boat, Lawrence had booked private passage on a charter vessel that ran between the islands. There was excellent food, flowing champagne, and an air-conditioned cabin that functioned as a lounge. It was a far more pleasant experience, but it wasn’t why he’d spent so much money to board it. The charter option offered something none of the others did: reliability. In the islands, a busted engine and rescheduling were easily written off as bad luck. Lawrence needed something that he could put more confidence in; he was running a tight timetable, after all.

A man with less experience might have patted his pocket or nudge the bag by his feet to make sure the essential equipment he’d spent the morning gathering was still there. Lawrence had no such need. He could feel the weight in his breast pocket and the pressure on his ankle where the respective loads rested. No nimble pickpocket had slipped away with his goods and soured his plans. Everything was going as expected.

As he watched a dolphin begin leaping alongside the boat, Lawrence noted that traditionally this was where most people’s plots began to unravel. The others on the boat, wealthy enough to be here but still simple enough to care about a jumping mammal, rushed to the side and pointed at it. Some commenced with snapping a flurry of pictures that would be blurry at best yet would still wind up as the centerpiece on a miserable mantelpiece.

Lawrence stepped away from the crowd and headed into the cabin. He might treat himself to a crab cake or two. No champagne, of course. Lawrence might be confident in the events he’d set in place; however, he was not one to tempt fate. A moment’s lapse in judgment could bring the world tumbling down. That was why Lawrence’s plans didn’t unravel: he never took success for granted. Lawrence was alert to the possibility that he would need to do damage control every minute. Though, in this circumstance, he felt the odds were relatively low.

The air conditioning struck Lawrence in the face as he stepped through the doors. A tall man in a white shirt held out a tray for him. On it appeared to be meatballs with a gooey sauce. There was certainly some fancy culinary term for them; just as certainly as they would still taste like meatballs with gooey sauce.

“Thank you.” Lawrence took a toothpick and speared a few. Might as well enjoy himself. He ambled over to a leather couch and settled down. He wondered if he would still enjoy little pleasures like this once everything was over. He expected he would, or he’d find new ones to take their place.

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