“You’re younger than me. You’ve got plenty of time to figure things out.”
“Maybe you’ll want to settle with me one year, if the Mediterranean suits you.”
“I still like the idea.”
Jessie smiled. “Let’s just take things slow.”
“You don’t mean no more sex, do you?”
“Not that kind of slow, you goof.” Mido winked at her. She gave his strong arm a loving squeeze. She knew he’d been joking. “I may not even want to live in Paphos again. I really wish I could’ve introduced you to my parents. The would’ve loved you.”
He kissed her temple. “Well, if we decide on Paphos, we can visit their graves often. It’d be bittersweet, but it’d be something.”
“It would.”
They stopped walking and started kissing, which slowly grew into a full make out with wandering hands. And right before the need to get Mido out of his clothes became irresistible, Jessie pulled back, gasping for breath as her heart pounded away. “Okay, my turn to stay no more of that, or else we’re gonna miss our boat to Newport.”
After four weeks, my entire crew started trickling back to Newport and onto the Pertinacious, eager to get back to making money and trotting the globe. As much as my crew loved visiting family, it was hard for them to sit still. Sailors needed to flow like tides and currents. I greeted each of them at the stern when they climbed aboard the repaired deck.
There were several blood stains on the bow, but I’d scrubbed at them when I wasn’t helping rebuild my home, or just lying around and purposely doing nothing. The stains were almost gone, the hull had been repaired by professional welders, and the only thing left that needed replacing was the harpoon gun. While on our way to San Juan, we were gonna stop by Port Chesapeake for a new one. I didn’t expect to make any money off this very belated delivery, so what was a few more days? I didn’t care. Wasn’t gonna apologize for it, unless they complained—well Sauna, my suave salesman, would do the apologizing, if the occasion called for it.
When Ed and Ted boarded, they both stopped and did a double-take. Ed said, “Captain, you’ve got some grey hair coming in!”
I ran a hand through my hair, surprised by the news.
“Just above your ears,” Ted said. “Welcome to getting older the natural way.”
“I’ll take it.” It was both a breath of relief and depressing. Yeah, I wanted to grow old and die but, I think, deep down, I wanted to skip the getting old part, since I technically was beyond ancient by human standards. However, I didn’t feel quite ready for the dying part. I felt like there was still some business I needed to attend to.
“Don’t worry,” Ed said, “you’re sporting the rugged sexy look. You’ll still get the ladies.”
“Anyway.” I tried to say it dryly but was too busy smiling. “Go unpack, you two.”
“Aw, don’t wanna hear about our family visit?” Ed said.
“After you unpack, certainly.” I’d happily listened to all the others who’d arrived so far recant their vacation. I enjoyed listening about what brought joy to my crew, getting joy out of their joy. The stories weren’t all peaches and cream, though, especially Sauna’s. He’d returned after only a couple of weeks. He came from a broken home that had been anything but pleasant. He tried to make his parents happy but, after bending over backwards for nothing, he gave up, came back to Newport, and helped me with my house and my ship.
The Pertinacious got a new paint job along the top half of her hull, tackled some repairs on the interior, and cleaned out the lockdown container, which would stay there, in case I ever decided to use it as more cargo storage space for deliveries.
Sauna was a kind, gentle, intelligent kid, despite all the crap he’d endured back home. No wonder he’d escaped to my ship at age sixteen. It wasn’t until he was helping me build my home that I realized he’d taken to me like a surrogate father. My heart reached out to the kid. I’d make sure Rammus did a good job of taking over as Captain and surrogate father, and help Sauna become a real man.
By the time everyone returned to complete my crew of twelve, counting me, I realized I had no clue when I’d retire. I thought maybe in a few months, then maybe in a few years. Maybe never. What the heck would I do with all my free time? At the very least I’d make sure everyone was taken care of before passing the torch. Still, I had a feeling retirement would come sooner than later. My time on this screwed-up yet lovable world was drawing to a close. I could feel it. Wasn’t sure how to explain it. It’s just that whenever I found myself alone and it was quiet, this sense of peace and serenity would wash over me, and all I’d want to do was just stand, sit or lie there, and enjoy the feeling.
We spent a few days in Port Chesapeake getting a new Harpy, which we christened with a shot of liquor, dubbed it the “Harpy II”, and ruined a few buoys for kicks. The thing fired great. Maybe I’d get a whale flounder with the Harpy II someday. Wasn’t gonna hold my breath, though. Chances were, if I ever saw one again, Jessie’d be there to beg me not to shoot it.
We arrived in San Juan another week later and actually made money. Sauna talked about our speed bump in Newport without telling the whole truth, and our business associate admired our kindness and bravery. I gave Sauna a bonus for that, and he got us another shipment to Revivre, which I’d been hoping for. My heart was set on having one of Milud’s burgers to celebrate my pure human status.
Life settled back to normal on the Pertinacious as we crossed the Atlantic. We had a minor run-in with young and stupid black market mercenaries right out of San Juan. Scully sank their ship with one beautiful shot with the Harpy II. We yawned while their taunts turned to pleas. Since land was still in sight, I decided to let the mercs swim to safety and we began our charter to Revivre in earnest. The rest of the two-week trip saw no worse than stretches of rough seas.
My crew trained and whatnot during the day, Jacobi started being kind to Jessie, and sea life still flocked to her if she spent time on deck. I tried calling water to me only once. Nothing happened. It was only a minor disappointment. Magical powers were neat and all, but overrated when they came at the expense of one’s humanity. I’d worked so long to be pure human again. I wasn’t about to ruin the enjoyment of finally obtaining that.
We threw the lines in Revivre one hot afternoon, got all our business done, then dispersed all over the city. Sam, Cancer, and O’Toole stayed back while the rest of us got in a couple days of rest and relaxation. I headed straight for Milud’s burger joint, had my pick of seats available, and chose my favorite spot on the end. Milud was pleasantly surprised to see me again so soon, compared to my annual visits. He noticed my grey hairs coming in, but was more interested in my scars.
“How the heck did you get all those?”
“Long story.” I took a sip from my tall, frosty mug of beer.
“Well start talking. Your dinner is gonna be a few minutes.”
“We ran into trouble again.” Like he’d believe the truth. I had no intention of sounding like some lunatic who liked to make up fantastical stories. Wasn’t gonna lie either.
“You didn’t happen to be in Newport, Rhode Island when it got attacked, did you? A few of those look like bite marks.” He pointed at my jawline.
I sat up straighter. “You heard about that?”
“It made world news. Everyone has. Monsters razed the town and a tsunami wiped it away, and two great mythical beasts battled on the horizon.” He set a few newspaper clippings in front of me on the counter. All of them were pictures of the devastation left in the wake of everything that happened. My ship was in a couple of the shots. Oh, boy.