That night
Saturday
The 'Salty Swallow' was moored at dock J19, in the Belmont Harbor for the night and everybody settled down to steaks, cooked on the flying bridge. The night was clear and the harbour busy. The view of Chicago was interesting and could have been better from offshore, but this was our first day out so we wanted to be alongside and secure for our first night.
"I'm looking forward to tonight, gorgeous!" Dave said, as he brought two steaks over to the table.
"I think those two are too!" I commented, looking over at the other table where Josh and Chloe were whispering to each other while eating their own steaks.
It wasn't too obvious what Josh was saying, but Chloe kept giggling, as she had been most of the afternoon! The two of them finished eating quite quickly and vanished to their cabin, leaving Dave and Mindy together.
Dave flipped off the lights and we moved onto the sun pad for some sensual, open air fun.
The next morning
Sunday
The following morning dawned bright and clear and promised to be another perfect day.
Dave and Mindy were up first – they looked in on Josh and Chloe and they were both still fast asleep, so the two kids were left cuddling! While Dave got the coffee going, Mindy sat down and turned on the TC to get the morning news. No more deaths – that was good!
"Still thinking about the assassin?" Dave asked, placing a cup of steaming coffee down in front of Mindy.
"Yeah – whoever it is, they're good; very good and that worries me!"
"They'll come to grief – they usually do and they'll make a mistake; then you can come down on them like a tonne of bricks!"
"I suppose so!"
..._...
After breakfast, Dave and Mindy started the engines and got the 'Salty Swallow' underway and heading out into Lake Michigan. The throb of the powerful diesel engines must have woken the love bugs, as they both appeared, looking very tired and dishevelled.
"Why are we moving?" Chloe asked, slumping down into a seat.
"It's called a boat – it moves!" Mindy chuckled, amused by Chloe's confusion.
"Had the time of your life, did you?" Dave asked Josh.
"It was different – first time on a boat!" Josh replied, grabbing a coffee.
"Yeah, it was fun!" Chloe admitted without a hint of embarrassment.
That afternoon, about twenty nautical miles due east of Chicago, a radio call was received from a US Coastguard forty-five-foot response boat, requesting to come alongside on US Navy business.
Mindy responded to acknowledge the call and just as she hung up the radio handset she heard a scream and looked down from the flying bridge, onto the bow, where Josh was busy trying to strip Chloe, who was struggling in vain to keep her bikini top in place. As expected, her bikini top ended up wrapped around one of the window wipers for the lower helm and Josh was now working on her bikini bottoms!
"Josh, no!" Chloe screamed and giggled at the same time.
Mindy considered leaving Chloe cavorting almost naked, with the Coastguard popping in for a visit. Mindy's mind thought that it would be amusing to watch, but decided to warn her!
"Chloe!" I called down from the flying bridge.
"What?" Chloe laughed, her bikini bottoms around her knees.
"We've got company, a few minutes out!" I warned and then laughed as she scrambled for the discarded parts of her bikini and Josh looked rather dejected after all his hard work.
"What do they want?" Chloe asked, as she appeared on the flying bridge fighting to tie her bikini top back into place and she was looking worried, with Josh coming up behind her with his own confused look on his face.
"I have no idea," Mindy replied, purposefully not looking at her. "Probably a safety inspection and I suggest that you, err get some clothes on!"
..._...
Twenty minutes later, the Coastguard craft came up to the stern of the 'Salty Swallow' and a tall Officer in the white uniform of a US Navy Commander called over.
"Permission to come aboard!"
"Permission granted!" Mindy called back.
Two people jumped aboard – the Officer and a lady. The Officer turned and waved off the Coastguard boat, which headed north, up Lake Michigan.
"Who did we pick up –?" Chloe started, coming out of the main deck salon with shorts and a t-shirt on. "– Daddy!"
Chloe ran forward and jumped into her father's arms. Josh looked questioningly at the lady who had come aboard, Cathy and then Dave and Mindy, before it clicked in his mind.
"You both knew!" He accused, scowling.
Dave and Mindy just shrugged in response.
"I really hope that this slimy stuff on you is sun lotion, Chloe – nothing else, eh, Joshua!" Commander Ryan Bennett said with an evil smirk. Josh looked a little worried.
"Daddy!" Chloe growled, wriggling out of her father's arms and then glaring at him.
"Just kidding!" The Commander apologised. "Sorry, Josh!"
"When did you get back?" Chloe asked, bouncing up and down with excitement.
"This morning. Thought it would be good to surprise you – an old pal ran me out in the response boat; they were on their way past here anyway!" Commander Bennett explained.
"You're lucky – Chloe actually has her top on at the moment!" Mindy said with an evil grin.
"Bitch!" Chloe muttered.
"Time to get out of this uniform!"
"Chloe, show your parents to the forward VIP stateroom," I suggested.
Chloe was grinning fit to burst.
"Nice surprise?" Mindy asked her.
"Yeah!" Chloe replied, still grinning. "Thanks!"
..._...
Twenty minutes later Commander Bennett and Cathy reappeared in the main salon. The Commander was no longer wearing his white uniform, but was in shorts and t-shirt. Cathy wore shorts and a bikini-top with a thin, open shirt on top.
"Can I offer you anything, Commander?" Dave asked.
"Hey, when I'm out of uniform call me Ryan, guys!"
"No problem, Ryan!" Dave replied.
"Cool!" Josh said.
"To you, it'll be Commander or Sir!" Ryan said, smiling at Josh.
"Daddy!"
"Well he is screwing my fourteen year-old daughter!"
"I'm almost fifteen!"
"Almost..." Ryan replied and Chloe scowled.
The weather was gorgeous as the yacht cruised towards Michigan City where she would anchor for the night.
Ryan was providing Dave and Mindy with some intensive training in operating a large vessel like the 'Salty Swallow'. Both Dave and Mindy had passed a basic navigation and boat handling course, so they had a reasonable idea what they were up to. Dave, Ryan and Mindy were on the flying bridge, while the kids were with Cathy in the galley, preparing dinner.
"So Mindy – you bought this row-boat didn't you?" Ryan asked conversationally.
"Yes," Mindy replied cautiously.
"So, where are the torpedoes and anti-ship missiles?" Ryan laughed, half-jokingly.
Dave looked at Mindy's expression, then groaned, a sinking feeling in his stomach.
"You actually looked into it – didn't you?" He asked, with an exasperated tone.
Mindy looked a little embarrassed.
"I kinda looked into it for a minute or two..."
"Mindy!"
"Maybe a week or two!" Mindy finally admitted looking slightly embarrassed.
"Well, there would be no way that she could get her hands on that kind of stuff!" Ryan said with a grin.
Mindy looked distinctly uncomfortable and was squirming in her seat.
"You have got to be kidding!" Ryan exclaimed. "You can get that shit?"
"Well, I found a guy that could get me some stuff..." Mindy started, looking shy. "He offered me a pair of Stingray torpedoes and maybe some surface-launched Sea Skua missiles..."
"Anything else?" Ryan asked, more than a little concerned.
"He also offered me an older model Phalanx CIWS and some older model RGM-84 Harpoon missiles..." Mindy admitted, quietly. "The British MoD is getting rid of a lot of old kit!"
"Well, she is Hit Girl!" Dave said to Ryan.
"I guess so!" Ryan said with a laugh at Mindy's expression. "Cathy mentioned that you had started adding naval assaults to your repertoire!"
"The 'Vigilante'!" Dave said.
"Is that what she's called? Nice name!"
"She's a Sunseeker Predator 53 – sleek and fast!" Mindy said, having regained her composure.
"Nice choice – I'm impressed; the British build some good kit!" Ryan said with an approving nod. "So what weapons does the 'Salty Swallow' carry?"
Mindy groaned, before reeling off the contents of the hidden armoury.
"Six assault rifles, eight pistols, some grenades and a shitload of ammunition! The engine compartment is protected with multiple layers of Kevlar, as is the lazarette under the cockpit and both of the control stations!"
"Now that sounds more like Hit Girl!" Ryan said with a chuckle.
..._...
Once the yacht was securely and safely anchored, everybody settled down to dinner. Cathy had done really well and had kept Chloe and Josh very busy in the galley, which seemed to have annoyed Chloe as Mindy had a distinct feeling that Chloe thought she was losing out on her 'quality time' with Josh!
"Now this was fun – the six of us sitting around the table in the cockpit," Mindy thought. The evening was warm and comfortable. The six of them spent the next couple of hours chatting together, with a good portion of time spent with Ryan humiliating Chloe with some stories from her childhood.
"– and I thought that my childhood was troubled!" Mindy commented.
..._...
By the time everybody had finished, it was dark, so we retreated inside the main salon and shut the glass doors. It was very warm, but the air-conditioning soon took hold and we were able to sit comfortably.
"Right, you two – time for you to leave the adults in peace!" Cathy suggested to Josh and Chloe.
"What about Mindy – she's not an adult!" Chloe stated.
"Chloe!" Ryan said sternly, then grinned. "Surprised you need a nudge to go to bed!"
"Alright!" Chloe growled. "Night Mom, night Dad!"
Once Chloe and Josh had gone below, Ryan stood up.
"Damn, she's growing up fast!" He lamented.
"That she is, Ryan! We owe her a hell of a lot – she's a wonderful girl; I really mean that!"
"Thanks – that means a lot coming from Hit Girl!" Ryan said. "Now, Cathy told me that you are trying to track down a serial killer, in Chicago; tell me what you know."
The next morning
Monday
"God that was a night of hell!" Chloe groaned, sitting down at the table.
"What?" Dave asked innocently from the galley.
"It was in fucking stereo – all fucking night; it was horrible – disgusting even!"
"What was?" Dave responded, trying to keep a straight face.
"You and Mindy, on one side and Mom and Dad, on the other! Ewww!" Chloe explained, sounding horrified.
Dave tried not to laugh as he threw more bacon into the pan.
"Morning!" Ryan announced.
"Good morning!" Cathy said, following her husband up the steps from the deck below.
Chloe never said a word, but just sat and glared at them both.
"Problem, oh daughter of mine?" Ryan asked without a hint of shame.
"Must have made too much noise last night!" Cathy said, smirking at Chloe who just glared harder.
"Made up for the past six months, I can tell you!" Ryan said happily. "Ah, bacon!"
"You two – it was – disgusting!" Chloe stammered. "It went on for hours!"
Mindy, who had just come in from the cockpit and had caught Chloe's comments collapsed onto the couch, laughing! Chloe was not amused.
"Ryan, did you know that your daughter was a screamer?" Cathy asked conversationally – enjoying the growing look of horror on her daughter's face.
"No, I did not!"
"You could have heard her fifty miles away, the night the cherry was popped!"
"MOM!" Chloe yelled, blushing badly.
"I think she might be just a little bit embarrassed!" Ryan teased.
"No. That shade isn't 'embarrassed' – it's more, err 'mortified'!" Cathy replied calmly.
Chloe looked like she was about to kill, Mindy looked like she was going to piss herself with laughter and then Josh appeared.
"What? Did I miss something?"
"You little fucker!" Chloe yelled. "You should have been here defending me!"
"What?" Josh asked, innocently.
"Don't worry, you're just in the wrong place, at the wrong time, Josh!" Dave commented. "As usual! Bacon anyone?"