Board the Boat

I spent several minutes searching for the boat that I had seen in Miguel's photo, while trying to not appear out of place. And, soon enough, I located what seemed like the correct boat.

I don't knowmuch about boats, but it seemed like a big sailboat. There was a large mast and a bunch of cables that I assumed were somehow related to the sails. Additionally, there were a pair of engines on the back that clearly indicated that the owner wouldn't be inconvenienced by a little thing like lack of wind. And, while I couldn't see inside, it appeared to have a spacious area below the deck.

Looking around, I couldn't see anything indicating who might own it, as I assumed it wasn't Miguel, based on the beat up old car he drove. The only clue I got from the outside was the apparent name of the boat, Paraíso Perdido.

Ensuring that nobody was around, I climbed aboard the sailboat.

My first stop was the wheelhouse, or whatever is called when it isn't enclosed, which was pretty simple, just the wheel, an electronic depth tracker, and a compass. I hope that the depth tracker has some sort of map showing yesterday's trip, but it wouldn't turn on and I assumed a key was needed to turn on the electricity. It took a second of wondering if I could somehow pick the lock, when I realized that I should check Miguel's key ring.

Fortune smiled on me, as I was able to use one of his keys to turn on the electricity, allowing me to start the depth tracker and find that it did, in fact, keep a log, but only of time and depth, not position. Maybe someone somewhere could follow the depth readings and figure out the boat's most likely course, but I could not, so I took some photos with my phone and turned it off.

Next, I headed to the door leading below the deck and uses the keys to unlock it.

I descended into a lounge area, with bench seats, a table folded up against the wall and a mini bar and fridge. Examining the contents showed a variety of **** and cocktail mix. Further in, I found a tiny bathroom and a bedroom that was, thankfully, clean and unused. A part of me knew what could, and probably would, happen to Mira and the other girls, but it seems that it didn't happen on this sailboat. My suspicions were confirmed when I used Miguel's keys to unlock the last area below deck. The area was used to store all manner of things, but the part that caught my attention was the cooler filled with an assignment of ****, including, to my furor, a mostly empty bottles labeled "rohypnol".

As I put the container back, I heard voices standing out on the dock. Peeking out a port hole, I recognized the two guys at the end of the dock as two of the ones in Miguel's photo yesterday.

While I wanted nothing more than to arrest these two and interview them, I had no gun, no backup, and no justification here in Cabo. Resigned to evading them instead, I looked around for an type to exfiltrate the boat and realized that I was trapped on the dock with no path to shore, save the one the men now occupied.

With no other choice, I sighed and moved to the back of the boat, where a platform extended just about the water, presumably to allow easy access to swimmers. Reluctantly, I slid off the platform and into the water, making relatively little sound.

Not daring to try swimming past the two men, I swam further out on the dock and hid behind someone's sport boat. After a moment, I peeled around the nose of the boat and spotted the two men boarding the sailboat that I had just escaped and I prayed that they wouldn't notice that the door below deck had been left unlocked in my flight.

Apparently they ignored it, as I saw the boat pull out from the dock a few moments later.

I skirted around the boat I was using as cover and, once I saw the sailboat leave the marina, I pulled myself up to the dock and, totally sodden through, walked back to where I parked the car.