Slaughter Cove: Part 2
The world had gone black, but there were muffled sounds still reaching Chloe's ears. She heard screams. Words that phased in and out. Her eyes were heavy, but they began to open. The sky was still spinning above as Chloe tried to sit up. She slipped and struggled, and then felt a hand grip her arm. The vertigo of the moment subsided; Harry's face fell into Chloe's view.
"Hey, you alright? That was quite a spill." Chloe could not focus on him, however. Her eyes had fallen to the sight at the back of the boat. Rich had the outboard motor out of the water. The propeller was buried into the side of a dolphin that was still jammed on the motor. The dolphin bore the deep wounds of blades, its lifeless body dangling in the air. Chloe's eyes filled with tears as she worked herself up from a sitting position. Harry tried to help once again, but Chloe brushed him off. Her world had come back to a standstill marked with tragedy.
Rich then came into view. He looked at Chloe and reached out to her.
"Are you good?" He asked. Chloe offered no reply. Anger replaced her tears. Rich nodded as if Chloe had replied, and then turned to the dolphin still impaled on the motor.
Rich lifted his foot and delivered a solid stomp onto the dolphin’s corpse. Chloe's mouth dropped. Rich lifted his foot once more.
Chloe shook as he stomped again and again, trying to jostle the dolphin free of the propeller. The dolphin's body registered each tremor with sickening results. The dolphin was slowly wrenched free, with each kick from Rich tearing away at it more. He delivered one forceful stomp that sent the dolphin splashing into the water in tragic desecration. The other dolphins were circling the boat, their heads breaching the water, their eyes taking in what was unfolding.
Rich smacked his hands together and turned around in victory. Chloe's open palm connected with his face, forcing Rich to stumble back and lose his balance. She stood over him, blocking out the sun. Rich looked up into the vengeful shadow that loomed above and grabbed at his stinging face.
"You fucking bastard! What the hell is wrong with you?" Chloe shouted. Rich fumbled to regain his balance and get back up.
"You killed it, and then you just kick it like it was nothing? Are you even a human at all, have you no feelings!?" Chloe raged. Rich got his footing and stood back up, getting close to Chloe. She did not back down.
"It was an accident! I have to get it off so we can get to shore! I was worried you were hurt!" Rich retorted.
"Bullshit, you were worried you were going to look bad. It's always about you, Rich. Always has been. Never been more clear." Chloe said, her eyes fierce and unwavering. Rich furrowed his brow, clearly hurt by her words. He channeled that hurt into his next words.
"If not for me, you'd still be working a dead-end job, living off scraps." Rich spat. Chloe felt the sting of truth, but this was her moment now.
"Fuck you, Rich." Chloe said softly. She went back to the front of the boat and slumped down. Harry and Mel sat in silence as Rich got the motor running, and drove the boat towards the tiny dock on the shoreline.
The boat slowed as it approached, and before it even came to a stop, Chloe stepped off. She scurried off the tiny dock and headed towards the jungle foliage inland.
"Hey! Hey! Where the hell are you going? Dammit!" Rich shouted as he tried to get the boat to a stop. Rich jumped off the boat onto the dock, turning to Harry as he ran in Chloe's direction.
"Hey, Harry, can you tie this down, I got to go after her." Rich didn't wait for a response. Harry shook his head then looked for ropes on the boat. He helped Mel off the boat and the two worked to get the boat poorly tied to the rotting dock.
The dolphin pod remained near the shore, constantly surfacing and spouting. Harry ignored them as he then went to inspect the motor. He didn't want to get stuck here, without any real amenities to speak of. Mel would become a nightmare if that was the case.
The dolphins stayed close to the shore. They did not want to miss what was to come.
***
Chloe stormed off, pushing into the brush heading towards the only building in the cove. It had looked bleak from their first sight of it, but Chloe was hoping for a miracle. A phone. A radio. Even someone there, anything that would get her out of this place and on the way back home. She had reached her limit, and it was time for her to break free. First step was getting away.
Branches and vines thwarted her as she went, but she continued on at a determined pace. Maybe at least the building had locking doors. The last thing she wanted to do was to talk to Rich. Chloe had lived this moment out in her head so many times, the moment she told Rich it was over.
Never had it been on a secluded cove after killing a dolphin.
She let those thoughts go, and brought herself back into the moment. She had reached a small clearing, and the weathered shack stood before her.
The light blue coloring was fading and the wood was showing signs of age and rot. It stood on a stilted foundation, clearly there in case of storms or rising tides. The back end of the building was being consumed by nature, as vines and tree growth had taken root and claimed that section as their own.
With an abundance of caution, Chloe walked up the steps at the front entrance. Each step offered a creak, a snap, or a wobble. She gripped the railing that was also leaning at an angle from internal decay. It was not looking like a promising place at all.
Chloe pushed open the white door, the hinges hanging on by rotting threads. The inside of the building was dirty and had the looks of a place abandoned for some time. The interior was different than Chloe had imagined. She had thought it to be a bait shop of sorts, but it looked more like an office. Desks were scattered in the main room with several tattered maps tacked onto the walls. Chloe continued in with very slow, careful steps.
"Hello? Is anyone here?" She called out. Only the crashing waves and the offshore wind answered. The next room looked like a small makeshift kitchen. A small rusted stove, empty cabinets, and lonely table occupied the spot.
This place was just an old relic from a lost time. Chloe shook her head, but continued on regardless.
***
Rich had been following the way he thought Chloe would go. He was sure he would catch up to her in no time. He trotted through the brush, leaping over large roots and punching any branches out of his way.
"This fucking bitch." He muttered to himself as he continued his pursuit.
"Take her in, take her to meet the parents, take her to an island paradise, and this is what I get? She cares more about a fucking dolphin. Fuck that fish." Rich said, the last part with a shout. He picked up the pace, now in nearly a full sprint. He careened through some ferns and then went to swing around a tree. He reached out, grabbing a low branch and leveraged himself to shoot forward. As he did, he saw movement come from around the tree, and his momentum came to a sudden halt.
Rich's mouth was agape, his feet were hovering just off the ground. Blood began to fill his throat and he coughed out a gruesome crimson spray.
An old whaling harpoon was lodged in Rich's torso. The bloodied tip had burst out his back, and the splintering wood shaft now pressed into his chest. A man stood before Rich, holding the harpoon that was wedged into a small nook in the tree roots below. He had a thick graying beard and scraggly unkempt hair. His eyes were concealed by a pair of vintage sunglasses. He wore cargo pants and an off-white Hawaiian style shirt covered in dolphin print. Rich's body shook with painful tremors, each one sliding him slowly down the harpoon shaft. The man leaned in, his grimy teeth showing as he spoke in a harsh whisper.
"Not a fish." The man said. Rich tried to speak, but could only sputter in grim scarlet as his life gave way.
STAY TUNED FOR PART THREE TOMORROW!
