Chapter 4
"You have my full attention, Mr. Steele."
"I met Xenos in Greece. I was wandering by the docks one afternoon when a man who was cleaning some fish on a boat deck asked me if I was interested in earning a few Drachmas'. I answered him that I was interested, but depending on the job. My last occupation hadn't turned out as expected, and I was traveling light if you know what I mean."
"You were running away from the law, like a fugitive?"
"Perhaps that sounds a little exaggerated, Laura. It was not the law; just one or two uniformed guys that didn't get along with some of my abilities."
"Go ahead."
"After the man explained to me what the job was about, I agreed to take it immediately. The next day we were leaving the dock. I was supposed to be helping him with any task he needed help. We were carrying a huge Koroneiki olive's load from the Peloponnesus to Italy. The load's owner had made a deal with Xenos, Andromeda's owner. It was a small load to be shipped in a huge boat, and it was faster and cheaper if the boat doing the transport was a small one. The seaport where the load was supposed to be delivered wasn't a commercial one. Doing the delivery in a huge ship would mean the following transport by train to its final destination. If the freight transport were made it in less time than the offered by one of the hugest maritime cargo transporters of the Mediterranean, one of the Onassis' companies, the boat Captain would keep ten percent of the merchandise for himself. It goes without saying that it was a tempting offer difficult to refuse for a Greek sailor. They value olives and all its derivatives as nectar from the Gods, as well as some extra Drachmas."
"You were a sailor in an Onassis' rival boat?"
"Yes. Have you heard from Onassis? The man was a legend."
"A very controversial man," added Laura.
"Indeed. Everybody seemed to love him, but at the same time, hate him. It's a usual situation with business genius. And Onassis certainly was one of them. You know, one of his famous phrases was that if you want to succeed, you have to keep looking tanned, live in an elegant building, even in the basement, let you be seen in the trendy restaurants, although having only a drink, and if you have to borrow some money, then ask a lot."
"Sounds particularly familiar…"
""A reporter once asked him once:" What would you do if you suddenly lose all your money?" He answered that he'd get a job that would allow him to save at least $ 300. Then he'd buy an expensive suit and would go where the rich people used to be."
Laura straightened herself and looking at him she said, "That sounds extremely familiar…"
He snorted, "Perhaps there's more Onassis' in me than I would expect. He said that "the secret of business is to know something nobody else knows." And when he was asked about the secret of his success, he had the greatest answer."
"Which was…?"
"Do you see that chair there?"
She looked at him, waiting for the following part.
"Well, I saw it first."
"He was certainly a smart guy. But don't get lost in details, Mr. Steele. This interesting conversation about Onassis and his ways to operate can wait. We were into your story getting a job as a crew member at Xenos' boat."
"Let's see. We left the docks the next day and started our voyage. The first days were hard, because I didn't get along very well with the rocking, and barely talked with the rest of the crew. They saw me as an intruder. I even got a nickname that I decidedly will not confess. It got less bad later as the trip went on. I was on duty on deck one night, when we were about two days away from our destination, when I spotted a lifeboat, a big one. It was full of people."
"Oh my, what did you do?"
"I went inside the cabin and woke Xenos. I told him about what I saw. Some members of the crew got awaken during our conversation. It wasn't easy, you know. One of the last words that a sailor wants to learn in different languages is a shipwreck if you know what I mean. Once the others understood what we were talking about, they started to shout all around. They didn't want to rescue the people. I didn't know why they were getting totally upset. And then Xenos told me. We were not allowed to put any more weight on board. Adding a boat full of people to us would mean a sunken ship."
"It was a hard decision to make…"
"Yes, it was. He was going to share a part of his ten percent with the crew. So, it wasn't only his money that it was on risk; it was everybody's money. But he decided to take the risk. He ordered the sailors to throw away half of the olives to the sea, to be able to let those men get on board."
"Didn't they kill him?"
"No. The crew respected the Captain's command. He was the Captain, and they were the sailors. Those are the rules when you are on a boat."
"So, you did rescue them?"
"Yes. We rescued them. They had been adrift for two days, with no water or food. We offered tem water, and some food and dry clothes. We saved their lives. Once we arrived at Positano, they gave Xenos one of the boat paddles with all the rescued men's names written on it, as a keepsake. Xenos hang it like a trophy on the prow, in front of the dining table, so it was a permanent reminder that there was a lot of people still alive thanks to Andromeda's crew."
"I guess he was a nice man after all."
"I guess so. Xenos was a nice man to me, and that I'll never forget."
"That was a lovely story." She said. She turned back and kissed him on his cheek." Thank you for sharing it with me."
He looked back at her, "My pleasure."
