Ch. 30 I need a captain
The next day he drove back to Port Campbell. When he got out of the car that afternoon, he sniffed the air and looked around him.
When I left here a couple of weeks ago I never thought that I would come back as a co-owner of a shipping company!
Kate! I can't wait to see her again.
When he entered the 12 Rocks café, she noticed him immediately.
"Dylan!", she yelled, hurrying to embrace him passionately.
"Darling, don't do this to me again. I missed you!", she whispered her face against his chest.
"Honey, I missed you too", he said kissing the top of her head.
She looked around, "It's calm now. Let's have a drink".
As he sat down she walked to the bar and came back with a beer and a juice.
She sat down and her eyes were shining. "Since your phone call last night, I couldn't wait any longer!", she said.
"Neither do I", he admitted.
"How did it go with your father? And your sister? In fact, it's a scandal that we haven't met yet!", she fired one question after another at him.
He took a sip, "A funeral, as expected. But the unforeseen were the debts he had left and the capital we've found, but too late. I could have scraped Charlie off the ceiling. I couldn't talk to her for a couple of days. On the other hand, it's was a good thing, she's looking to buy a smaller farm now with her part and I, I started my adventure", he said.
Kate put her hand on his, "Darling, you'll tell me everything tonight, but now, there are customers, you see", she said.
"Yeah, sure. I'll see you tonight", he said.
"Another hour and then my duty will be over", Kate said winking at him.
One hour later she entered their house.
"Hey! It's great to enter a house where there's life!", she greeted him.
"Music, lights!", she said kissing him," Give me a sec!".
Twenty minutes later Kate returned to the living room. He noticed that she has had a shower and she had changed her T-shirt and jeans for a cotton dress with a wide skirt.
"You're looking good!", he complimented her.
"Thanks! But now tell me all about your adventure!", she said as she headed to the kitchen to prepare their supper.
Dylan avoided mentioning the company name. "I've set up a crew for a cargo vessel and in fact I need your assistance for it", he started.
"Me?", Kate replied rather surprised.
"Spaghetti with bacon?"
"Yep, 's great! and you can help me".
"Ah? How?", Kate asked as she put the cooking pan on the fire.
"I still need a captain", he said in an expressionless voice.
"Not that easy! Especially when you want a good one. Enough foreigners, but...", she replied raising her eyebrows to complete her sentence while she put the pasta in the water.
"I've already one in mind", he said observing her carefully.
"Ah? And why do you need me then?", Kate said looking questioningly at him.
"Well, that person is you", he said and he saw that she was looking at him open-mouthed.
"I want you to become my captain Kate", he said.
Kate forgot what she was busy with and shook her head, "No Dylan, no. Not me. I don't want to have the failure of your company on my conscience", she said.
"No I really need you", he said stepping forward, but Kate took a step back.
"No Dylan, I'm a loser! I screwed up everything I had seriously in my hands. An officer's career, a relationship, a serious job, a baby. What do you expect from me to do next?"
"No dear, you're wrong! That was all a confluence of events. It had nothing to do with you. Mike can only think rationally when he smells the sea air. The robbery was unpredictable and your job search failed because there were too many sailors at the same time on the labour market ", he said.
"And I was so dumb that I rushed blindly into my mother's trap!", she argued.
"No, you couldn't foresee that."
"Listen Dylan, if I were really good, then the Navy would have kept me employed, just like you. But that was not the case and I had to accept these facts!", she said bitterly turning around to grab a frying pan to cook the bacon.
"Honey no, they needed a fool who was keen on action. It was the only reason. I know you can do it! You did it on Hammersley, remember?", he said but Kate shot him a glare over her shoulder.
"Moreover you know the crew!", he said, knowing that her curiosity would force her to ask for more details.
She turned to him, "What do you mean by the fact that I know the crew?"
"The entire crew are former patrol boat crew members. The backbone comes from Hammersley and some from Kingston and Bundaberg", he said.
"Ah?", Kate replied, not interested, as she stood on tiptoe to try to grab a spaghetti sauce pot.
"Let me tell you, Swaino, Chis Blake is the second officer, Charge is the head of the engine room, officer, Harpie, Andrew Harper is the bosun, 2Dads, the electrician, RO, Robert Dixon the radio operator and I've found Rebecca, Bomber as our cook and medic. Then there's Bull and Synthia from the Kingston and Lance from the Bundaberg and some others", he said enthusiastically.
"You didn't mention the first officer", Kate replied stirring the sauce.
He smiled.
Clever girl, she automatically fills in the blanks.
"It's me", he said.
"Darling, what are you doing exactly in this new company? I hear a lot of things. You're looking for a crew, you're first officer, what else? You still have to tell me what your function is and for what company you're working for!", she said a bit irritated.
"Kate, the company is MGSL and I invested the money of my inheritance in this one. It's not much compared to my partner's share. But my share is the shipping knowledge. I had to set up a crew and I've to manage it. And I'll also sail", he said.
"What's the full name of MGSL?", Kate asked.
"Mark Gibson Shipping Lines", he lied convincingly.
Kate shook her head, "Hmm, and you really want to jeopardize all those good sailor's careers by appointing me captain?", Kate taunted.
"You're the only real officer and you've already had the command of the Hammesley several times. You can do it!", he said.
"Yeah, and with what result? Dismissal!", she replied bitterly.
"Darling, you'd better open a bottle of wine to accompany the spaghetti and celebrate your return because it's ready", she said mixing the pasta with the sauce.
"I believe in you!", he said.
"Darling you're so sweet, but forget it. It's just a dream", she said while putting the pan on the table.
Dylan mumbled something and put the bottle and a small bowl with Parmesan cheese on the table.
We'll see! I'm not the only one who believes in you. After supper I'll text to Arthur.
To be continued