Page 38 of Pierre
“It won’t help you, but it will give you some perspective. Unless Sister Josephina is somehow related to Mama Irene, she’s dead. Her birthday would have been last Thursday, and she would have been one hundred and eighty-three years old.”
“What the hell?” muttered Ham.
“There was a Sister Josephina in Haiti and surrounding countries for many, many years. She died, or at least they think she died, as she stopped all communication about ninety years ago. Back then, it was letters and telegrams. She chose this church because of its proximity to the mountain, wanting to prove that it wasn’t the devil, but just nature. Suspicion is that the volcano erupted, and she died in the lava flow.
“No one was sent to take her place because of the unrest here. There are no pictures of Sister Josephina, other than a very grainy photo from a hundred years ago. The woman who was at the first church was legit. She was there just as she said. Whoever this person is, she’s not with the church. But again, I don’t think you’re surprised by that at all.”
“No. Not at all,” frowned Pierre. “Where do you think we should look for her? The docks make sense to me, but she wouldn’t be anywhere near the mercy ship. They won’t allow transports near those vessels.”
“Port Au Prince has a massive port with less than stringent docking rules. That place is a hotbed of illegal activity, and if I had to guess, that’s where she would be taking those kids.”
“Could you do a little drone magic for us?” asked Pierre, crossing his fingers.
“I can do better than that. I’m maneuvering satellites as we speak to get some clearer images. I’ll send drones as well, but the satellites will be the most reliable.”
“Have I ever told you how much I love you, AJ?” smirked Frank.
“No. But I love you guys too. Be safe.”
“The satellites should give us clear images of the docks,” said Ham. Tucker and the others stared at him.
“Satellites? You guys have your own satellite system?”
“Well, I’m not sure we’d call it our own, although we do have a small one,” smirked Pierre. “Let’s just say our boys have become very good at borrowing things when they need them.”
“Unbelievable,” smirked Butch. “Listen, I don’t care what we have to do. I just want to get back to the ship, hug Marjorie, and make plans for the future.”
“Wow, that was fast,” said Tucker. “Going for number five?”
“Maybe. Or maybe we’ll just take it slow. She’s different, and if Ambry likes her, she has to be a good person.”
“I’m happy for you, brother,” said Pierre. “My folks have been married more than thirty years now. My grandparents have been married more than fifty, and my great-grandparents, well, that’s another story, but a very, very long time.”
“You guys are the real deal, man,” said Tucker. “We always hear of you, of the legends. The Robicheaux Rangers. The famous SEALs. We hear the stories and think it’s all bullshit, but having been around you guys for a few days, it’s no bullshit.”
“I used to think the same thing,” smirked Ham. “When my teammate, Jak, was here, I knew who he was but didn’t call it out. He was very secretive about it. It’s hard to do that when your last name is Robicheaux. Then I met Frank and the others and thought to myself, holy shit – they’re for real.”
The men all laughed, nodding as they walked back down the path. The sun was coming up high in the sky, but in the distance, there were storms coming. Nothing cooled this place off. It only made it muddy and more humid. But it might be a break for them.
“How did you meet your wife, Frank?” asked Butch.
“We grew up together. She was a bit of a problem child,” he smirked. “Her father was in the Army and married the sister of a legendary MARSOC.”
“No,” laughed Butch.
“Yep. Rory Baine.” Their eyes went wide, and Pierre laughed, shaking his head.
“Your wife’s uncle is Rory Baine.” He said the words in a flat, disbelieving tone, and Frank just laughed.
“Yep. He’s the absolute best and a beast. I wouldn’t cross him for all the money in the world,” grinned Frank.
As thunder boomed above them, lightning off in the distance above the ocean, the men nodded at one another, picking up speed. Pierre took the lead.
“Let’s see if we can beat this storm without getting our asses struck by lightning.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
When Pierre saw Ambry, he took off toward her on the deck, lifting her in his arms and kissing her. Butch did the same with Marjorie.
