A Child's Courage.

Full Circle.

Minutes later, the barge slowly maneuvered into the hidden harbor of the large bayou island. Grim was below deck, planning out the final details of his plan to cover his tracks and did not see or suspect the surprise that was waiting for him. His men, standing on deck, however, did notice that something was amiss but they too did not suspect what was waiting for them. On the far end of the harbor, Michael spotted them approaching through his small pair of binoculars and lit one old lantern, resting beside him on his high tree perch. On the dock, at the inner most end of the harbor, Rick saw the lantern come to life through his own pair of binoculars.

“They are coming.” Firmly, he said.

“How many lanterns are lit?” Nervous, Kelly asked.

Rick lowered his binoculars. “There is only one for now.” Calmly, he replied. “But the barge is still a good distance out.”

“Do you think we can really pull this off?” shivering, Kim asked. She had just been rescued minutes earlier and was still scared.

“It’s the only chance we have, sis.” Serious, Kelly said. “If we fail here, we may all end up disappearing for good.”

She gulped, turning to Rick. “Do you think Michael will be okay out there?”

Rick gulped as well. “Michael knew the risks when he insisted to be the look out.” Softly, he said.

Michael peered through his binoculars again as the barge came closer and cursed under his breath as he spotted Tim and Emily tied to the rails in the front of the barge. Knowing what was a stake, he lit the second lantern. As he climbed down to aid the others, he prayed the pirates would not see it and suspect something was amiss. On the dock, Rick looked through his binoculars and cursed as well as he watched the second lantern come to life. Only as he lowered his binoculars, he knew that there was no time for anger or sorrow. The pirates had to be stopped, at any cost. “There are two lanterns lit!” Sternly, he announced to the others. “You know what must be done!”

“They are using Tim and Emily as shields!” Angrily, Tom said. “Those monsters! They just won’t quit!”

“Don’t worry, guys, we planned for this.” Serious, Race said. “This is it, those modern day pirates are in for a surprise.”

“I just hope this works.” Concerned, Kelly said. “We are going to be cutting it close, the next high tide is only minutes away.”

Rick placed a firm, reassuring hand on Kelly’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Kelly.” Firmly, he said. “Max and his group already has a solid plan to rescue Tim and Emily, if needed.”

“First, we need to deal with those pirates out there.” Serious, Michael said approaching. “We cannot let the death of those enslaved children on the Young Misery be in vain. The legacy of Grim the pirate must end, once and for all.”

Kim shuddered off the same type of coldness then turned to Rick. “Let’s give it to them then!”

“I- I’m ready to set off the explosives.” Nervously, Amy said.

Hannah gently took Amy’s hand into her own as she held the two button remote control. “Just relax and press the buttons when we say.” Calmly, she said. “Unlike the young Misery, those pirates are going to live to pay for their crimes.”

Amy Moss, who was discovered to really be Anna Eve, was the youngest of the group, only eleven years old. She had suffered the most out of any of the other children. She was held captive on board the A- List for six months before she was sold as an orphan to a woman who turned out to be her real mother’s sister. In Rick’s mind, if any one among them deserved the honor of burying the A- List, she did.

“We are going to have to blow them both, Amy.” Serious, Rick said. “Both of the lanterns are lit, you know what that means.”

Their plan was simple, the explosives Max and his men had secured to the ceiling of the sink hole beneath the old dock, would blow away the rotting trees holding up the old riverboat and its dock, sending both the A- List and the barge crashing down to the jagged floor of the ancient sink hole. What Max and his survivalists had in mind to free Tim and Emily was a mystery to him but he trusted him.

“Do not push the first button until I tell you to, Amy!” Firmly, Michael ordered. “You know what the signal is.”

Amy shared a nod with Hannah before saying, “We’ll be ready.”

“The rest of you know what to do!” Serious, Rick ordered. “Grim and his pirates have hurt a lot of people, we cannot hold back, not for anything!”

Two long, ancient, wooden piers stretched out from the dock at a forty five degree angle to about ten yards into the harbor. On them, spaced out by about fifty feet, were old, rusty, iron loaded cannons, placed there to give the ship cover in case the pirates needed to leave the harbor in a hurry. The barge pulled in between the two piers and slowly moved towards the A-List. As they passed, unknown to the crew on deck, a number of the survivalists, led by Maxine, emerged from below the water with a dart gun in hand. Maxine took careful aim and fired a dart into the ropes holding Tom to the rail. The dart easily sliced the ropes as it flew passed, freeing Tim. Startled, he turned and spotted Maxine in the water. She signaled him to remain still, which he did, keeping his hands behind his back to make it look as if he was still tied up. Another dart was fired, freeing Emily who was given the same signal before Maxine and her fellow survivalists vanished under the water as soundlessly as they had come. One of the thugs, hearing something, turned, only to find the two kids, seemingly still tied to the rail. The three glared at him with a certain coldness that made him feel nervous. “There’s something amiss here, man.” Suspicious, he said to another. “I don’t like it.”

“Get off it!” Scoffing, the second man said. “What could those kids out there possibly cook up in their tiny little minds?”

“You’d be surprised.” Darkly, Grim said walking onto deck. “Keep your eyes open, these kids are far more resourceful than you might think.”

“Here they come…” Softly, Rick announced. “Everyone get ready.”

Rick and the others quickly hid themselves and waited for the barge to come. The moment it bumped with the back of the A- List, Rick signaled Luke through his radio. “Now…”

On the far side of the dock, Luke and Bob madly turned two wheels, causing two huge, heavy, steel gates to slowly swing closed behind the small barge. Both the thugs and their child captors jumped, startled, as the locks of the gates slammed into place with a loud, haunting clang. Upon hearing it, Race and Joe feverishly worked a number of manual pumps, quickly leaving the barge resting on the rotting trees similar to those holding up the A-List on the floor of the harbor. Rick and the others could only guess why the gates and pumps were there. Still, with minor repairs, they still worked and made it impossible for the barge to escape. The thugs, sensing a trap, made a dash for their guns but froze dead in their tracks upon seeing a small army of survivalists already training their guns upon them.

“Don’t even think about it!” Coming into view, Rick challenged. “Every last one of these survivalists are a crack shot; they will take you down with surgical precision!”

Grim looked about at the survivalists standing firm on the dock with their weapons drawn and pointed in his direction. “So, this is a trap, is it?” Darkly, he demanded. “Do you people seriously think you are going to shut down my operation?” He scoffed. “My family has kept the business going for generations, despite all of the efforts made to stop us.” he sneered at the children and the men. “You cannot win.”

Rick slowly shook his head. “We’re not here to shut you down, Grim.” Coldly, he said. “We’re here to bury you…”

Amy, sensing her que, rose the remote for the pirates to see then called out, “For everyone you ever hurt!” She then angrily pushed the first button on the remote.

Instantly after, the explosives Max and his men had set up under the A-List exploded. The rotting trees and soil, which were barely strong enough to support the weight of the barge and the A- List, gave way and the two ships fell into the depths of the cavern like sink hole. Amy cringed, holding back tears, hearing Tim and Emily scream but she managed stand firm. As the barge fell, however, Max and Maxine tossed down a rope, fashioned into a lasso, knowing they only had one shot.

The ropes snagged the two children around the waist in the next breath and they were saved from the coming crash onto the sink hole cavern floor. With the help of other survivalists, Tim and Emily were pulled to safety. “We heard your cries for help as well, little ones.” Smiling, Max said. “Your nightmare is over.”
Out in the bayou, less than a mile away, Joey looked up, hearing the explosion and gasped as he spotted the riverboat in the distance. “There it is!” Urgently, he screamed. “That’s the riverboat I had escaped from!”

Captain Ron, who had also heard the explosion, looked out at the riverboat. “It sounds like there is some action going on over there.” He turned to the pilot. “Full steam ahead!”

“I just hope we are not too late.” Fearful, Joey thought.

Inside the sinkhole cavern, wooden planks flew out from the A-List as the bottom of the hull literally exploded upon impact, throwing Grim and his thugs off of the deck, into the water as well as spilling the treasure back onto the sandbar. Morgana and her men, tied to the rails of the barge, were spared from being thrown. They were, however, shook loose from the jolt of the ship striking the sand bar and were eventually able to free themselves from their bonds.

“You got the pirate’s vault!’ angrily, Bronx yelled. “Now how do you propose to get it out of here?!”

Morgana, looked around and shivered as a chill ran through her. “They set a trap…” Shuddering, she whispered. “Apparently, the very same trap that had buried that pirate ship.”

Gruesome looked around and gave a cold shiver of his own. “It looks like the only way out is through that hole in the ceiling.” He gulped. “Where the A- List used to be.”

Outside, on the sand bar, where the three wrecked ships were now resting, one of the thugs turned to Grim. “Do you know of any other way out of this cavern?”

Grim shook his head. “According to my grandfather’s journal, there’s only one other way out.” Gravely, he said. “The narrow underwater tunnels, dug out by the young slaves who originally set this trap ages ago.”

On the dock, Kelly, hearing Grim’s voice echoing from the sink hole, let out a gasp. “So that’s what had happened to those poor souls, whose remains we found.”

Rick nodded. “They had run into the captain of the pirate ship, the only one to have escaped.”

“He had escaped the trap and killed anyone in his way!” Angrily, Race added. “That means that Maximillian Grim is the great, great grandson of that infamous pirate!”

Amy, her hand shaking in fury, stepped forward. “Well, unlike the pirate of the Young Misery, he is not getting away!” She yelled into the depths of the sinkhole cavern. “Do you hear me?! You’re not getting away!”

With that, she pressed the second button on the remote control. Less than a second later, the ancient powder keg the enslaved children had left years before, exploded. The sinkhole quickly collapsed upon itself, sealing the blow hole and burying the remains of the two long dead brave children. Moments later, as the high tide began to rush in, all of the water flowed directly into the sinkhole cavern below the harbor, slowly filling it.

“They are trying to drown us!” Panicked, Gruesome yelled.

“Get a hold of yourself!” Darkly, Jerk snapped. “They’re just keeping us from getting away.”

“You can’t hold us in here for long!” Defiantly, Grim called. “We will all be able to swim out eventually!”

Rick was about to respond but, hearing the sounds of approaching sirens, he turned, looking out with his binoculars. In the near distance, he found a riverboat swiftly approaching with a large number of police boats ahead with their sirens blaring. As the riverboat came closer, Rick spotted Joey standing on the deck with a band of police officers standing behind him.

“We don’t have to, Grim!” Firmly, he called back. “The police are on their way!” He turned to Tim and Emily, offering them his binoculars. “Joey made it through, just as he promised.”

Emily opened her mouth as if to gasp then took the binoculars from Rick’s hand and looked out at the riverboat. Upon seeing Joey, standing on the deck, she broke down into joyful tears. “Thank goodness!”

“Do you hear that, Morgana!?!” yelled Tim, into the sink hole. “Joey made it through! It’s all over!”

It was indeed all over. The Louisiana police arrived on the scene and the pirates, including Maximilian Grim, Morgana, Jerk and the two body guards were fished out of the flooding sinkhole before taken into custody. Tim and Emily were escorted onto captain Ron’s riverboat first where they shared a tearful reunion with Joey. As Rick watched them embracing each other upon the deck of the riverboat, he could not help smile as the sun began to rise over the trees of the bayou. Their nightmare was finally over.

THE END