The Alternative

"Mister Graves, my name is Marshall and this Miss Templeton. We will try and make our meeting as brief as possible."

"Why. I have all the time in the world. You don't have to rush on my account. Can I get a cold beer?" I noticed that Skye sort of snickered when I said that.

He opened the briefcase on the chair beside him and drew out several manila folders. I groaned a little when I saw them and he noticed.

"Sorry, Mister Graves. Just some minor formalities."

"I am afraid that I have to interrupt briefly." Miss Templeton announced. "Skye and I have some things to take care of. We will be back in about an hour. Have fun, have lunch. We'll see you shortly. Take your time." Marshall seemed a bit flustered by her frivolousness, but I found it refreshing.

Marshall covered a hell of a lot of crap in the next thirty minutes. New cell phones, special credit cards, and a nice little wad of cash. I balked a little when he presented the medical power of attorney forms. Since she was only going to be with me for a week or so I didn't see the necessity of it. He emphasized that it was just a precaution and nothing to worry about. This was getting pretty deep and I was starting to worry. With an exasperated sigh, I insisted on another beer and some lunch. He agreed. I found it very odd that I did not get any backstory or information about the situation other than what I already knew.

Skye was an unhappy newlywed who had an argument with her husband and decided to run away from home. In the process of doing it, she successfully destroyed a half-million-dollar boat and though nothing of it. Now her daddy wanted me to babysit her for what appears to be an indefinite period. I knew nothing about this girl, other than that she was a spoiled brat. Only a fool would even consider doing it.

Marshall and I had finished our lunch and a few more brews when the girls returned. They had armloads of what I assumed to be appropriate clothing and quickly started stowing them in the cabin. That was when things got serious. In addition to the unlimited credit cards, Marshall revealed the amount of money that her father was willing to pay for my services and even had a special bank account set up in my name. A deposit would be made monthly as long as I was with her.

What the hell happened to 'a week or so'? Overnight somebody, not me, decided that this arrangement would be long-range and did not even think that was important enough to discuss with me. Naturally, I was pissed off. Before I could properly vent my anger, Marshall showed me a copy of the first bank deposit. The amount was staggering, to say the least. As mad as I was I could not refuse.

"Mister Marshall, I don't want to sound unappreciative, but could you give me an idea of how long we are talking about?" He just shrugged his shoulders.

Marshall and Miss Templeton left shortly thereafter. I thought it was funny when Marshall stuck me with the lunch and bar bill. Hell, I had so much money now, I didn't care.

I got ready to cast off and looked over at my new ward. "Lucy! You got a lot of explaining to do." She giggled at my bad Desi Arnez accent.

ooo00ooo

We left the marina and headed South to the channel, found a nice quiet cove and settled in for the rest of the day. Neither of us was hungry so we just snacked and sipped beer.

Skye's family was filthy rich from real estate developments. Very old money and lots of it. Her husband, Daniel, came from new money, mostly Wall Street. She didn't know too much about what his family did, but she did know that his family was wealthier than her father. She didn't know him that well and it was almost an arranged marriage. I gave her a funny look when she said that and she gave me a groan in return.

Skye had only been married for six weeks when her husband decided that it would a nice gesture to share his wife with a few of his fraternity brothers. He decided that the Chris Craft would be a good venue for his party. Things didn't go as well as he planned. Her father was in the process of getting the marriage annulled.

She found out from Miss Templeton that Daniel was furious. Not only had she embarrassed him in front of his fraternity brothers, but the yacht was the pride of the family and he lost it. The family was mad at Daniel and his friends were laughing at him. He publicly swore revenge at all costs, and that was why her father was as concerned as he was. It was not known what type of revenge he envisioned, but her father did not want to chance anything.

Things had gotten a bit cramped on the tug. A new body and a whole bunch of new clothing made a dent in the available storage space. What was once a comfortable place to live, now became less so. Skye had some boating experience as she was growing up, so she was not completely useless. Together we figured out the easiest and best way to get things done. I was amazed at how well we worked together. She readily assumed the tasks related to keeping the tug clean and neat while I concentrated on the mechanical and operation problems. She enjoyed planning meals and cooking. We set up a regular schedule for shopping and having laundry done at our refueling stations. Normally I would not have spent the money on laundry service, this was no longer normal, so we splurged.

We were not covering many miles, but we were having a good time and enjoying the trip. I was living in the moment and enjoying it. All thoughts of my previous problems were rapidly fading. And then I made the mistake of deciding to call my son.

"Robert! It's dad. I just thought that I would let you know my status and see how things were going back home."

"About time. It's been almost three months. What the hell have you been doing?"

"Just cruzin and snoozin. Everything is perfect at my end. What is happening in Pennsylvania?"

"For starters, mom is pissed off. You cleaned things out and set her up pretty good before you left. She called here several times and finally stopped when I convinced her that we had no idea where you were. She does know about the boat, however. There were some documents and papers inadvertently mailed to the old address and she put two and two together pretty quickly."

"It was bound to come out sooner or later. What is she doing about it?"

"Don't know. She and the bank have been going at it though. It seems that between the mortgage and the home improvement loan there is no way that she can keep up the payments. Hell, she can't even afford to pay the utility bills."

"What is she going to do?"

"She got a job at Target, but it doesn't pay enough and it is not even forty hours. She has been selling off stuff to make ends meet. Of course, your stuff went first. I should have grabbed those SnapOn tools, but I was too late."

"I figured her new boyfriend would be helping her out."

"That's a joke. From what I can figure out, even with his pension he doesn't have enough to keep himself going, let alone her. Speaking about good old Calvin, he is really pissed off at you. If fact, I think he is trying to find you. Mom mentioned the word 'retribution'."

"Oh crap! I hadn't thought about that. He was supposed to be remorseful, not vengeful."

"If you are referring to the visit that Hector paid to him, I don't think it worked out as you guys had planned. Have you talked to Hector?"

"No. What the hell are you talking about? Hector was just going to rough him up a bit."

"Sorry dad, but it didn't end up that way. It seems that Calvin was a black belt is some type of martial arts technique. I assume that Hector didn't know that and Calvin ended up beating the shit out of him. Hector was lucky to get out of there with his skin."

"Well, I hadn't planned on that happening."

"Anyhow that is why Calvin is trying to find you. According to mom he is mad as hell and is going to make you pay dearly. I think he is trying to track your phone."

"I keep it turned off most of the time. Thanks for the update. I'll call you back in about two weeks. In the meantime, don't worry about me I am fine."

I terminated the call and saw that Skye was sitting and smiling at me. It was then, that I realized that I hadn't mentioned that I had a shipmate to my son.

"Gee Doug! It looks like we have two pissed off guys trying to track us down."

"Daniel too?"

"According to my dad, Daniel has taken an extended leave from work and is bound and determined to track me down and make me pay for my disrespect of him and his family."

"What the hell does his family have to do with it?"

"Daniel feels that by destroying the Cordell yacht, I have insulted both him and his family. He has to get some sort of vengeance to save face. My dad is trying to find out more, but Daniel has disappeared."

"Is Daniel prone to violence?"

"He has been arrested at least three times, that I know of for assault, but his dad had all of the complaints taken care of before they went to trial."

"I feel like somebody just hung a target on both of our necks."

"Doug, I would enjoy a cold beer and a hot pizza tonight. Are we close to anywhere?"

Ten minutes later we were underway. The pizza sounded good, but the beer sounded better.

000X000

After living together in close quarters for several months, Skye and I had gotten a lot closer. It was a platonic relationship, but we were both comfortable with it. A fifteen-year difference in ages has a way of calming down a lot of healthy sexual urges. Oddly, the problem was never discussed. We just took our day to day companionship to be normal. We enjoyed our evening beers but never overindulged. It was more like a father-daughter relationship. I don't think either one of us considered it to be more than that.

I was uncomfortable knowing that two men were trying to find us. Both of them seemed to have serious grievances or at least thought they did. I was at a loss as to what to do but felt that I had to do something.

I made the first call to Skye's ex-husband. The annulment went through a month ago.

"Daniel! How is it going? This is Doug. The guy who took your wife from you."

There was a quick string of expletives followed by a short question. "Where are you, you miserable son-of-a-bitch? I am going to find you sooner or later."

"Relax Danny. I decided that it was time for us to meet. How soon can you get to Savannah?"

"Tomorrow. Is that soon enough for you?"

"I was thinking Saturday morning. That will give you a couple of days to get ready. I'll call tomorrow and let you know the time and place."

"I'll be waiting."

I didn't bother to sign off; I just canceled the call.

"You're not going to meet him, are you? The man is mad and he is dangerous. He will probably bring a gun." Skye was seriously concerned and I was moved.

"I am working on it. Let me check on somethings and then make another call."

A quick internet search gave me the information that I needed. Now to finish my plan. It wasn't hard to get Calvin's cell number.

"Calvin, my friend. This is Doug Graves. I got a new pair of dancing shoes and I am dying to try them out. Are you interested?"

"You know damn well I am. Where the hell are you? You won't get away this time."

"I am not trying to getaway. We need to talk. It appears that you need an attitude adjustment and I am the man to do it."

"Your friend Hector tried that. How did that work out for him?"

"Can you be in Savannah by Saturday morning?"

"I am halfway there now."

"Alright. Meet me at 10:00 am in the food court at the Fairway Mall. Come alone and most importantly, wear a red MAGA cap."

"What is it with the stupid cap?"

"That's the deal. You wear the cap and I'll show up. No cap and you will never see me. If I am going to kick ass, I want to make sure it is the right one."

"You are a funny man. I will be there. You had better show."

Skye was giggling like crazy when I finished the call. "You silly old man. You don't know any Karate stuff, do you? You are going to get creamed."

I just laughed and shrugged my shoulders. We relaxed, looked at the sunset and shared a beer. Life was good. I made one more call before we hit the sack.

"Danny boy, It's Doug. I just thought I would give you a call to set up our meeting."

"It's Daniel, you ass wipe. Nobody calls me Danny. I am getting close to the Georgia line. Where are we meeting?"

"I will meet you Friday at 10;00 am in the food court of the Fairway Mall. I will be wearing a red MAGA cap and I will have my dancing shoes on."

"Why do I care about your shoes?"

"Because I will be kicking your puny little ass."

I didn't hear the rest because I turned the phone off. All I did hear was Skye giggling again. She sure did giggle a lot.

A few hours later we were safely berthed at the Freeport Marina. We took care of all of our normal maintenance stuff and had a great crab cake dinner. The skies were a bit ominous so I was glad that we had reached a safe harbor. By the time we made it back to the boat The squall line was almost upon us. We quickly double-checked all of our mooring lines and made sure everything was secured before we locked up for the night. I was still using the main berth and Skye had been using one of the galley cots. A few hours later, the storm hit with a fury. The mix of lightning, thunder, and wind were a bit much for my stowaway and I found her pushing her way into the bed with me. Neither of us said anything. The storm was gone by morning and Skye was still sleeping softly aside me. I quietly got up, leaving her there. A half-hour or so later, she came topside for some fresh coffee. Nothing was said about the evening sleeping arrangements.

Since it was Friday we decided to walk to 'The Breakfast Club' for brunch. There was a short wait, but we were able to get a nice seat close to the TV at the end of the counter. It was just about 1030 when the local news stations broke in with an announcement.

"There was a shooting this morning at the Fairway Mall. An unidentified man wearing a red MAGA hat was gunned down in the mall food court for no apparent reason. The shooter refused to drop his weapon and he was then shot by the mall security police. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities are attempting to identify them and determine the motive for the confrontation."

It was a serious newscast and I had to quickly pay our bill so we could get out of the restaurant. Skye had a hard time holding back.

"You devious dirty son-of-a-bitch. You planned that all along didn't you?" She was giggling again.

"Of course not? How could you think such a thing?"

We spent the rest of the day relaxing and finishing off all the beer that we had. We slept together again that night, but nothing happened between us. Early the next morning The tug was heading South while Skye was still sleeping.

That afternoon I decided to call Robert and check the status of things at home. After a few minutes of greeting chit-chat, I had to ask the important question: "How is your mother doing?"

"She is mad as hell. Nothing seems to be going right for her. She can't pay her bills and apparently, she hasn't seen her boyfriend in over a week. He told her he had some business to attend to, and just took off. She has finally made a deal with the bank; they are going to take the house back. On an up note; she signed and returned the divorce agreement. She seemed happy with that."

"What divorce agreement?"

"You didn't file for divorce?"

"Hell no! Where and when would I have been able to do that? I have no idea what you are talking about."

"All I know Is that a guy came to the house with all the papers and a check for twenty thousand dollars. She signed the papers, grabbed the check and scooted him out the door. She thought that you had filed."

Robert and I talked for a few more minutes about other things. He and his girlfriend were thinking about a Christmas wedding and wanted to know if I would be able to attend. I assured him that I would make every attempt and at the last moment ask him to make it a plus one. I didn't know how long I would be with Skye, but just in case I wanted to be covered. Of course, I refused to answer any other questions that that statement generated. I never did comment about my wife's missing boyfriend. I terminated the call just as Skye staggered topside. She needed coffee badly.

We spent two days in Jacksonville. Skye was able to find out that her father had arranged for my divorce. When I questioned her about why he would do such a thing, she said because she asked him to. I had a hell of a lot of questions about the legality of the whole thing but decided not to bring them up. I also had a lot of questions about why she would do what she did. There was never anything romantic between us. I had been extremely careful not to even cross that line in any fashion. Before I knew it she trapped me with that old cliché conversation. Did I think she was pretty? Did I think she was too young for me? Was I too old for her? Was I ashamed to be seen with her? It went on and on. It seems that in the past couple of months that she had grown fond of me. Of course, I was completely taken with her, but never even considered pursuing it any further because of the age difference.

For some reason, we had completely avoided any conversation of this nature before. Now I felt uncomfortable. That night I slept in the galley.

I had the coffee started when she came up in the morning. She did not look well-rested.

"Doug, I am sorry for making such a mess of everything. I thought that we were getting along pretty well and I was hoping that if I nudged things a bit that we could get a little closer. I guess I overstepped a bit."

"I need to talk to your Dad."

"Oh crap! You're going to dump me, aren't you? I tried Doug. I really tried. Isn't there some way we could figure out how I could stay?"

"That's not it Skye. I don't want you to go. I just don't know how I can continue living on board with you without getting too involved. I enjoy your company. I enjoy being with you."

"It's the age thing isn't it?"

I shrugged my shoulders and nodded in the affirmative.

"We already have gone further than I feel comfortable with. I am starting to feel like a dirty old man taking advantage of an innocent young girl. I don't want to feel that way and I don't want your father looking at me that way."

"Doug, why do you think my father agreed to hurry up your divorce?"

"I wanted to ask you about that. Why did he even do it at all."

"I sort of asked him if he could help in some way. I thought it would be important to you. I didn't know that he actually did anything until you mentioned it. I was hoping that you would feel less guilty about our relationship if the divorce went through. I think my father wants us to stay together."

"Why? I am way too old for you. You need a young, virile, healthy guy, not an old worn-out codger."

"I think he is looking for a way out. I have been an undisciplined brat my whole life. I did nothing but cause grief for my father. He feels responsible for me, but I think he would rather pass the baton, so to speak, to somebody else. He thought that Daniel would be able to tame me a bit, but he was wrong. By the way, Daniel was his choice, not mine."

"He has never even met me."

Skye pulled the English muffins out of the toaster oven. We sat for a few minutes while

we watched the peanut butter melt into the hot nooks and crannies. The sky was clear and it was going to be a beautiful day. Everything was at peace.

"I never tried to tame you."

000000

It only took ten minutes for Skye's father to eliminate all my concerns about our relationship. He was enthusiastically relieved that I would even consider wanting to stay with her. Things seemed to be falling in place that I had not even planned for.