Chapter 21

The bar has the very soundful name "The Sailor's Hideout", a very approbiate name for a bar in a town that is full with sailors. Parking his white ute outside on the back parking lot of the bar, Mike grabs his bag and makes his way inside through the delivery door. Inside he is greeted by his friend Al and his two mates Billy and Craig. They too have brought their instruments with them, well at least their guitars. The drums and all the amplifiers are already on the stage, so all they have to do is a sound check. Together they go through to the stage and inspect it. Then they start unpacking their guitars and put them on their stands.

As they connect their guitars with the amplifiers and play the first few notes to make sure their guitars are sounding alright, the bar manager comes up to them and introduces himself to them. He is very happy to have a local band perform in his establishment. When they tell him what this is all about, the bar owner Rudy, an old navy veteran himself, is more then glad to be a part of this scheme. He tells his staff to not say anyone about who will be on stage tonight. It will be a surprise for the whole town. Then Mike sends a SMS to all his crew, just telling them to be at the "Sailor's Hideout" bar at 21:00 hrs. With a smirk adorning his face, he adds "That's an order. CO."

This is a list of the songs they are performing this night. They are all love songs. Some rocky, some a bit more romantic:

Please forgive me-Bryan Adams Lead voice, lead guitar

Right Here Waiting-Richard Marx Lead voice, accustic guitar

Words-F.R. David Lead voice, bass guitar

Makin' Your Mind Up-Buck Fizz Vocals, lead guitar

It's All coming back to me now-Meat Loaf Lead voice, e-guitar

Everything I do- Bryan Adams Lead voice

A good heart-Feargal Sharkey Lead voice, lead guitar

Everything's Coming Up Roses-Black Lead voice, lead guitar

Can't Fight This Feeling-Reo Speedw. Lead voice, bass guitar

Have you ever really loved a woman-Bryan Adams Lead voice, accustic guitar

Mike had chosen the songs with a special lady in his mind. He wants to use those songs to tell Kate once and for all and in front of an audience, which will include the whole Hammersley crew, that he loves her. His band mates are happy for him and wish him luck with his plan. They continue their soundcheck and Mike even tries his voice out. To his own surprise and that of his mates, his voice is as great as ever. It sounds like he never stopped singing. His clear, but strong, smooth baritone reverberates throughout the bar. Al, Billy and Craig applaud him and clap him friendly on the shoulder. Al says "You'll be doing great mate. You will rock the stage tonight. Mark my words Mike."

Mike smiles shyly at hearing those words from his mate. He is not so sure about it himself, but he is determined to make it through to the end. And when all goes to plan, he'll leave the bar with Kate in his arms, after she has accepted his proposal. One more time he pats his pants pocket, making sure that the ring is still there. As he wishes to impress Kate tonight, he had chosen to wear a pair of tight dark blue jeans and a white button-down shirt with the first few buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up. Craig studies his tall frame and means "I'll bet that every women in the audience will swoon for you mate. You look very handsome, if I may say so."

Mike shakes his head, blushing a little "Now you're exaggerating mate. There are hotter guys out there than me. And I have eyes for only one woman in the audience tonight." Turning around he says over his shoulder "If you'll excuse me, I need some down time before the gig. See ya." With those words being said, Mike leaves his two mates behind and goes out the back, making his way to the beach. Lucky for him, the beach is quite deserted at this time of day and he can put his twirling thoughts into perspective. He sits down in the still warm sand, puts his hands over his knees and just watches the incoming waves as they break on the beach, not too far from his position.

He is so engrossed in his thoughts that he doesn't register as a woman arrives with two children and a dog in tow. It's Sarah with her son Zac and a schoolfriend of his, Laurie and their dog Chico. They halt not too far from him and start unpacking their things. As soon as the towels are out, the little girl starts to run to the water. Sarah shouts after her "Don't get in too far! Stay close!" Laurie just nods and hops into the waves, squeeling in delight. A few minutes everything is alright and Sarah watches together with her son, how the girl has fun. But suddenly her cries of delight turn into cries of horror and pain. Sarah jumps up, but as she can't leave Zac unsupervised, she shouts for help. Chico starts barking loudly.

Mike has heard how the cries of the girl changed and he immediately sprang to his feet. Not hesitating he sheds his shirt and boots and battles the waves to get to the girl. After what seemed like an eternity he reaches her und pulls his arm around her to keep her afloat. He asks the panicked girl in a soft calming voice "What happened young lady?" The girl looks up and answers "Something bit me. It hurts." Guessing what could have stung the girl, Mike tells her "I'll just check you out to be sure that the stinger is gone, alright?" The girls nods. Quickly he feels along her arms and legs, but feeling nothing anymore, he comes back up and smiles. "The squid is gone. So, let's get you out of the water. Just put your arms around my neck and hold on, okay?"

Again the girl nods and does as she is told by this nice man. She clings to him, still whimpering softly. As he reaches the beach, Mike carries the girl far away from the incoming waves and sets her down in the sand. Sarah comes running up to them together with Zac. She recognizes Mike instantly and thanks him for saving Laurie. Mike looks up surprised. He too recognizes Sarah. He says "Nice seeing you again." Sarah smiles and pulls him in for a quick hug. "Hm, very nice. Only the circumstances could be better". Now its Mike's turn to smile, but remembering the girl, he gets serious again "She is not out of the woods yet, Sarah." Turning to the girl he asks her "Where were you stung?" She answers "My right leg."

As he sees nothing on the frontside, Mike gently turns the girl around. Sarah shrieks in horror at seeing the clear marks left by a marine stinger. Mike stays calm and tells her in a calm voice "Sarah, get over to the first-aid station and bring me that bottle of vinegar and please hurry! And don't worry, I'll keep an eye on Zac." With a last look at the kids and Mike, Sarah runs over to the first-aid station. She grabs the bottle of vinegar and runs back to where she came from. Mike takes the bottle out of her hand and opens it. Before he upends the bottle, he tells Laurie "Sorry Laurie, but this will hurt. But it can't be helped. I'll be quick, I promise." With those words he pours the contants of the bottle right over her leg, where the marks are visible. Laurie cries out in pain and tries to get away, but Mike keeps a firm hold on her leg. He hates himself for having to do this to the little girl, but if he doesn't do this, the girl could die from the stinger poison.

As he is sure that he poured enough vinegar over the stinger marks, he puts the bottle aside and takes the still frightend Laurie into his arms, rubbing soothingly up and down her back. Then he pulls out his mobile and calls 000, seeing that Sarah is still in shock. He tells the responder his name, what happened and where he is at. He ends the call and turns his attention to Zac. The boy was watching him the whole time, seemingly interested in what he was doing. As Mike sees the fear in the boys eyes, he assures him "She is going to be alright Zac. Maybe a day or two in the hospital and she is allowed to go home again. No worries, I know what I'm talking about."