Wind, Water and Wilderness

Anthology of Sailing - Story 2: Wind, Water and Wilderness

(If this is your first story in this anthology - that's okay, they are all independent and can be read in any order. However, if you are new to sailing, the series introduction contains simple definitions of some of the sailing terms used in these stories. I would suggest you go there first and read through the definitions part. I hope you enjoy the story!)

My favorite sail is from Chicago to the tip of Lake Michigan to the north, right up the center of the lake. I was about 3/4 through the grueling trip because you have to constantly be on the lookout for boats and other things. Although I have radar and AIS, I sail alone and at night I have to get up every 30 minutes and look for boats, hoping they at least have a light so they can be easily spotted.

It was morning, however, and I had just finished breakfast and was taking another look on the horizon for boats and anything else that might be a problem. I sighted something curious. It looked like a sailboard that someone had abandoned - a surfboard with something on top of it that had to be a sail or something.

I decided it didn't need to be floating around in the lake, so I changed course and headed toward it. I decided if it was an abandoned sailboard, I would grab it and donate it to the nearest marina. I started the engine, let out the sails and started moving slowly to where it was. I wasn't sure if there were ropes or other things hiding in the water that could foul my propeller so I proceeded with caution.

As I got closer I quickly realized it was not a sailboard but a surfboard with someone lying on it and they were not moving. I went into emergency mode and realized this was a life or death recovery. I grabbed the boat hook, 2-50 foot lines, several flotation devices and lowered the swim deck.

I grabbed a lightweight line and clipped one end to the ring on my life jacket and the other I tied onto a cleat. If I had to go into the water, I didn't want to be another tragedy on top of the one I was about to try to rescue.

I also realized if I grabbed the surfboard suddenly, I ran the risk of jerking the person off the board and into the water. I needed to be careful and go slowly. This was going to be one of the few times I wish I had a second person on board.

As I got closer I realized it was a woman on the board, she was face down and wearing a bikini swimsuit. Thankfully the winds were light and when I knew the boat had enough momentum to reach the board I flipped the engine into neutral, went to the swim deck and grabbed the boat hook.

When the board was about 3 feet away I realized I could hook the back of her bikini and she would stay with me, so if she came off the board it wouldn't matter.

I reached out with the boat hook and snagged her swimsuit and pulled her along side of the boat. The board had a small rope attached to it so I quickly secured it with one of the lines I had brought down.

I looked at the woman lying on the board and decided I should get a line on her first before I tried to pull her on board. I grabbed the second line with the intention I was going to tie it around her waist. I quickly realized that was going to be more work and more hazardous than originally planned. I thought for a second and then said, "forgive me for what I'm about to do." I ran the end of the line through the top of her bikini and then through the bottom of her bikini and then tied it back to the rope forming a giant loop through her bikini.

I dangled my feet into the water and maneuvered the board so her head was at my ankles. I reached down and pulled her arms toward me so she slid up my legs and on top of me. When I did, the back of her bikini strap broke, sending her top down one arm. I rolled her over and quickly felt for a pulse.

It wasn't very strong but it definitely was there. I breathed a sigh of relief. The first order of business was to get her in the shade, get her at the right temperature and make sure she was hydrated. I wasn't sure if she had been drinking lake water but hopefully she had.

I lifted her up and carried her into the cockpit where it was covered with the Bimini and laid her on the cushions. I felt her and she felt hot so I thought the best plan was to get some cool towels and try to get her temperature down.

I got the towels and soaked them in lake water and placed one on her forehead and the other I draped over her. I then got my first aid kit and decided I should take her temperature. 97 degrees F. Perfect, it couldn't have been a better reading. Unless there was something else I couldn't see, severe sun exposure seemed to be the only immediate problem.

I adjusted her towels and for the first time looked at the woman I had rescued. She was beautiful despite the flaming red blotchy skin. She had a beautiful face, long blond hair, she was about 5 foot 9 and thin. Despite her thinness she had amazing tits. The cool towel had stiffened her nipples and they stood up about 3/4 inch. I also noticed some curious bruises on her side, legs and cheek.

I untied the rope on her bikini bottom and stowed the rope away. No need for her to know about that. I then covered her back up with the towel. I pulled in the surfboard and found a large locker to put it in and also coiled up that line and stowed it away.

All this time the engine was idling and sails were flapping in the wind, we were going nowhere. I turned off the engine, pulled in the sheets and set the autopilot to my previous course. I was looking out at the horizon when I heard a groan coming from the cushions.

"Hey, how are you?" I asked as I walked over and knelt beside her. "What can I get you? Water? Food? Anything you want."

"Food," she softly said.

"I just happen to have some chicken soup, how does that sound?" I asked.

She just nodded her head so I warmed a mug of chicken soup and brought it to her. I grabbed a couple of cushions and propped them up behind her and handed her the mug. I also adjusted the towel and pulled it up, which had slipped off her and was exposing her tits. She was shaking and very weak, so I helped her tip it to her lips and sip from the mug. After a couple of sips she nodded at me and took the mug and began feeding herself.

I slid over to the other side and watched my patient gain her strength back. "My name is Tom, Tom Simmons and you are on board the sailboat Gneiss." (Pronounced: Nice.)

She acknowledged my name and handed me the now empty mug.

"Would you like a sandwich? I have turkey, ham, chicken and maybe pastrami," I asked.

"Turkey," was her only reply.

"Mayo or mustard?"

"Mayo."

"Sure, I can do that. We are the best 24 hour dinner in this part of Lake Michigan," I said as I got up to go below and make her a sandwich. "So, what's your name?" I asked from below in the galley.

"Heidi."

"Heidi, what?" I asked.

"Are you going to tell anyone about me?" she asked.

I returned a few minutes later. "Well it is nice to meet you Heidi AreYouGoingToTellAnyone. Try as you will, you will not find a better turkey sandwich on this part of Lake Michigan," I said as I handed her the sandwich which also included some chips and a sports drink.

She was ravenous but ate in silence.

"Is there some reason why I shouldn't tell anyone you are on my boat?" I asked.

"Is there some reason why my top strap is broken and I'm sitting here half naked?" she replied.

"Your top was damaged when I pulled you out of the water." I responded. "You still didn't answer my question. Is there some reason why I shouldn't tell anyone you are on my boat?" I asked.

There was silence as she continued to eat.

"So...you're a bank robber? A CIA operative? An international art thief? A rapist? Oh my god, I let a rapist onto my boat."

Heidi paused for a second, looked up from the plate, flipped me the finger and then continued eating her food.

"At least we are communicating. Okay, I'll make a deal, I won't tell anyone you are on my boat and you tell me your last name?"

Heidi looked over at me thinking about her options.

"Okay," noticing her plate was completely empty. "I'll throw in a Popsicle but that is my last offer."

"Okay, but Popsicle first," she gave me a wary look.

I went down below and got a Popsicle from the freezer and started to hand it to Heidi. I looked into her blue eyes to see if I thought she would keep her end of our deal. However, Heidi snatched it from my hand before I could make my decision.

"Schultz. Heidi Schultz," she said, ripping open the paper that was holding her desert.

She ate in silence and when finished placed the stick on her plate.

"Would you like another one? A name like Heidi Schultz deserves 2 Popsicles," I suggested.

She nodded her head and I went down below and got her another one.

"So this is a 55 foot boat that I bought new 2 years ago. I think I mentioned that its name is Gneiss." Just trying to start some idle chit-chat between us.

"You a geologist?" she asked.

"Okay, you're a science nerd." I was stunned she knew about gneiss and without looking at the back of the boat for the spelling.

"I was, until I dropped out of college and married my idiot husband. No guy would ever name his boat "nice" so I knew it had to be named after the metamorphic rock," she said, now getting more and more of her strength back.

"So does your idiot husband have anything to do with why you don't want anyone to know where you are?" I asked.

"Wow, you are a college graduate. Where did you get your degree?" she said.

"Nice try, but questions will cost you something," I smiled at her.

"Got nothing to trade, unless you want a slightly damaged bikini?" she smiled back.

"No, no. I want information." I replied.

"What? Don't like naked women?" she asked.

"I like women just fine and you are drop dead gorgeous but you're a little red for me right now," I replied.

She sat silent for a moment. "I'm in trouble. My husband is trying to kill me. He came home and found I hadn't washed the dishes and went berserk. I was in the back yard laying in a chair just relaxing. I had actually fallen asleep. He grabbed me and started hitting, punching and kicking me. I locked myself in the bathroom but he broke down the door and grabbed me again. I kicked him in the nuts and then hid in the downstairs closet. When he was upstairs looking for me, I snuck outside, grabbed the board and paddled with all my might. It was dark enough that he never did see me. The last thing I heard was him screaming 'when I find you, I'm going to fucking kill you bitch.'" She now had tears streaming down her face.

"So how long have you been out here on the water?" I asked.

"I don't know maybe 3 or 4 days. It was Tuesday night when all hell broke loose," Heidi tried to calm herself.

"It's Monday morning," I stated incredulously. "You've been on the water almost a week and drifted almost 50 miles. You are in really good shape considering."

"Was that a comment about my red skin or my big tits?" she gave me an interesting look.

"I... er... well... I..." I stammered not really having an answer to her question.

"Okay, so we have now established that you do like women and a little titty talk makes you a babbling idiot," She was now smiling.

"I have a gallon of Aloe Vera gel," I said hoping to change the subject. "I think you should put it on as quickly as you can."

I went down below and quickly returned with the bottle of Aloe Vera. I almost tripped and dropped it when I saw her. She had stripped off the bikini and was sitting there with nothing on.

"What? Never seen a naked woman before?" she continued to smile at me.

"Oh, ah, sure. Of course I have. I just haven't ever seen one so stunningly... ah... er... red. Ya, that's it. I've never seen one so red before," I stammered.

"Way to convince yourself," taking the bottle and shaking her head.

"Oh, wow. This is actually worse than I thought," she said as she rubbed it on her arms, legs and torso. "I'm going to be in some pain for the next few days aren't I?"

"Yes, I think so and I'm sorry but all I have is Ibuprofen and acetaminophen."

I went back below and brought her something for the pain and also brought her another sports drink to wash it down with. She was doing her legs and moved to her inside thighs. She turned my direction and opened her legs wide.

"So what do you think? Do you like shaved or not shaved?" she asked as she slowly rubbed the inside of her leg.

"Shaved," I said rubbing my hand around my clean shaven face. "I had a beard for a couple of years but never liked it in the hot Texas summers."

She looked devastated. "You might not be so fun to torture after all."

"Maybe or maybe I'm just a good actor and can play any part I want," I said as I looked directly at her shaved pussy and gave her a creepy look and licked my lips.

"Oh shit. Maybe I'm the one that got on a boat with a rapist," she gave me a stare.

I got up and went below to get her some clothes. "Here, you can put this on when you are finished."

"Okay, I guess I'm safe. I've never heard of a rapist bringing their victim clothes to put on," she gave me a mock sigh.

"Here do my back," she said, laying down face first on the cushion.

When I was done, she put on the white baggy t-shirt and the gray shorts with the drawstring. Those 2 articles of clothing never looked so good.

"So, how about we call and let the police know where you are and that you are safe?" I asked.

All the witty banter and fun talk came to a crashing halt.

"No! Fucking no! What did I tell you?" she screamed at me.

"Wait. What don't I know, that you should have told me?" I was perplexed by the reaction.

"My husband is chief of police and his brother is the fucking mayor. It is one giant good-ol-boys club with one of them covering for the other. Every officer in town is part of the club. If I tell them where I am, they will drag me back and the last place I want to go is back in that town and back in my house. My husband should be behind bars for domestic abuse but no one will do anything because everyone covers for him," Heidi was starting to calm down just a bit.

I paused for a second letting her story sink in. "Who is the district attorney and is he part of the club?"

"No. Actually he is not. He hates my husband and is always criticizing the sloppy work of the police department," she contemplated.

"Would you be okay talking to him?" I asked.

"Yes. Yes, I think so," she smiled at me.

I went to the internet and did a couple of queries. I changed the heading of the sailboat and then heard a beep on the computer. I checked my e-mail.

"I have one more thing to do and that is take pictures of your body," I casually said.

"You are a pervert," Heidi looked at me with great disdain.

"Pictures of your bruises," I reassured her.

"Oh, okay. Anything that will put that bastard away."

I took the pictures and announced that we had a meeting tomorrow afternoon with the district attorney to talk about possible zoning problems with my property and I would fill him in on the details when I arrived.

I also learned from the internet, the neighbors called the police when they heard the screaming and Heidi's husband had convinced them they had an intruder and the intruder had abducted her and was holding her hostage.

It was a long night on the boat with Heidi in a lot of pain. She finally decided sleeping out in the cockpit in the cool air would provide some relief. She finally did get a few hours of sleep.

We arrived at the marina about an hour before our meeting. Heidi tucked her hair under a baseball cap and wore an over-sized t-shirt and a pair of bibbed-overhauls that were many sizes too large. I ordered an Uber and we arrived at the DA's office with a minute to spare.

I took Heidi's picture in front of the DA's emblem at the front of the office. A few seconds later someone came out and escorted us into his office.

He gave Heidi a strange look when she first walked in but his jaw dropped when she removed her cap and let her hair fall down past her shoulders.

"Holly shit," he exclaimed and turned to me. "Are you the kidnapper?" he asked very confused.

Heidi dove into her story. We showed him pictures of her bruises. I showed him the track from the GPS on the boat and where I found Heidi and what time, to help corroborate her story. As the story came out the DA became more and more intrigued. Occasionally exclaiming, "oh, that part makes sense now."

He stopped us and then made a phone call to a judge. He filled out some paperwork, signed and stamped it, then he called in his clerk.

"Take this to the officer out front and tell him to issue this arrest warrant right away. There is no bail and the arraignment will be tomorrow at 9:00. If there is bale, it will be arranged tomorrow."

The clerk looked at the paper, then looked around the room and recognized Heidi and smiled. "My pleasure, sir."

About a half hour later, the phone rang and the DA answered it. When finished the DA looked at Heidi. "Your husband has been arrested and is currently in custody."

When we were finished, the DA gave us some options for securing Heidi's safety.

"I would feel a lot safer on the boat with Tom, if that works for you?" she asked.

The DA picked up the phone and in a few minutes a state police officer arrived in the office.

"Your job for the next 18 hours is to protect these two people with your life starting this very moment." The officer looked up and clearly recognized Heidi from the news. "You are to take them to their boat and bring them back here tomorrow morning at 8:45 to judge Harrison's courtroom. Do not talk to anyone about this assignment. If someone asks, refer them to this office." The officer acknowledged and left.

A few minutes later we heard commotion outside the DA's door.

"I'm sorry sir, I can not let you in this office," we heard from the officer that just left.

"I'm so sorry but I have to deal with this." The DA looked at us, shook his head, left and closed the door behind him.

There was a lot more shouting than before. I looked over at Heidi.

"My brother-in-law, the mayor," she whispered.

"If I find out you knew about this and didn't notify this office, I'll bring charges against you as an accessory. Do I make myself clear?" we heard the DA say as he reentered the room.

He sat back at his desk and shook his head. "So is there anything else we need to discuss?"

"Yes," I said, "is there any chance we can get a restraining order to keep Heidi's husband away from her and also I suspect Heidi will want a legal separation order so bank accounts and other things don't get plundered."

"Oh, good point. We can definitely take care of that also. I'm not sure if judge Harrison will take care of that or if we need to find someone else."

We were driven to the boat and at 8:45 the next morning the officer delivered us to the courtroom.

The DA was amazing. He laid out the case logically and methodically, introducing evidence as he went along. Although this was not a criminal hearing, it was clear that Heidi's husband had lied and was going to be held over for trial.

Then a weird thing happened. The defense attorney said, "your honor, I would like to call Tom Simmons to the stand as a hostile witness for the defense."

I was sworn in and then asked, "please state your name and occupation for the record."

"Tom Simmons. Geologist - semi-retired."

"Mr. Simmons, you are the person that allegedly pulled Mrs. Schultz from the lake?"

"Nothing alleged about it. I rescued Mrs. Schultz from the middle of Lake Michigan."

"Is it true you are in love with Mrs. Schultz?"

"No. I just met her."

"Have you touched Mrs. Schultz in a sexual manner?"

"No! Of course not. Mrs. Schultz is suffering from severe sunburn over most of her body. Just brushing against her causes her great pain."