5 Encounter at sea
Cairns, the Monday after the maiden trip
They agreed that Rebecca would come to Kate's house to help load all the supplies for the boats.
As she arrived at Kate's house, Kate was leaving with Stephanie, her daughter's hand in hers.
"Hi Kate, sorry I'm a bit early."
"Hey, don't worry. I'm sorry too; I'm running late! Stephanie got chocolate down her, and I had to put a new dress on her. Now you have the chance to meet her." Kate kneeled next to Stephanie. "Stephanie, this is Becca. I know her from the time I was on the war ship. We used to call her Bomber, but now it's Becca."
Rebecca caressed Stephanie's cheek. "You are really cute. Just like your mum, aren't you?"
"Becca, go on inside and make yourself at home. Give me 30 minutes. I have to take her to school, then I'll be back."
"Ok, will do. "
Later on, they drove to the port to prepare both boats for the upcoming tours with beverages, toiletries, snacks, blankets and other essentials when a message came through on Rebecca's cell phone.
"Kate?"
"Yeah?"
"I just got a text from Nikki - about Mike."
Kate looked at her with a glance like 'why-does-he-keep-on-following-me'.
"Interested?"
"The way you say that, I have no choice, I assume?" She said indifferently.
"She figured out that he was fired a couple of months ago. That was in Darwin. Maybe they have an address over there?"
Kate shrugged.
"But why? I don't understand you anymore."
"Sorry Becca, I'm not interested anymore. He has hurt me too much!" She said firmly.
"Come on Kate, there must be a way to make it better again between you. You loved each other and you both have a daughter. You could become a real family, yes? Give it a chance."
"No, I don't think so. I cannot imagine how it can become good again with a person who once called me a hooker!"
"A hooker?" Rebecca sounded surprised.
"Yes, a hooker. He thinks I slept my way up. I was so upset I slapped him in the face and he sla…" Kate swallowed. "And now, I want to talk about something else before I'm a mess again. I've cried too much already these last few days." Kate said irritated.
Rebecca bit her lip.
I'd better hold my tongue. There will be a day that it blows up in my face if I continue like this.
Darwin
A couple of days later when containers were loaded on board of the Coral Sea, a car stopped at the quay. Ronald got out and went on board to see Mike.
"Hey Mike, I've got something for you. Let a couple of your crew load the boxes in my car."
The crew took the boxes and stored them in the cargo hold of the vessel.
"Listen Mike, nowadays these waters are crowded with pirates. We think it would be unfair that you guys have nothing to defend yourselves against this scum and any other idiots who want to hamper our business."
"Indeed, it's scary that you have nothing other than a knife to defend yourself."
He opened the boxes. "As ex-Navy, I assume you can handle these, yes?" He give a AK47 to Mike. "There are also some Browning pistols, something that you can hide better on your body than an AK47." He said with a grin.
"And these to remove any unwanted evidence." He was holding a box of grenades. "By the way, you're going to receive another parcel in Port Moresby."
"No prob, I'll come good."
"Good lad. See you."
Mike brought more parcels from Port Moresby to Darwin and he received his bonus.
At one of the calls at Port Moresby, Mike got a visit from the same runner, this time in another sweaty shirt, handing over the classic sports bag. A hunch told Mike to store the bag deep inside the vessel. He was right because on his way back he had visitors.
The Hammersley
A week before. On the Hammersley, in the Arafura Sea, on the bridge.
"Ma'am, Navcom, Commander White for you," RO announced.
"Lieutenant-Commander Caetano speaking." Nikki took over the phone.
"Nikki, it's Commander White. The Feds are tracking a possible drug trafficking syndicate. They are saying that the stuff comes into the country via Papua. The tricky part is that it comes in small quantities, but on a regular basis. They don't know how many runners there are, but they already have one suspect. It's a small cargo vessel, the Coral Sea. It sails a regular traffic route between Port Moresby and Darwin. They have asked us to intercept and inspect."
"What do we expect to find Ma'am?" Nikki asked.
"Honestly I don't know. As usual, the Feds don't tell us everything. One thing is for sure, you will not find the stuff just lying around. Make a general inspection and film as much as you can," Maxine replied.
"Okay, where is the vessel now?"
"On its way to Port Moresby. Board it on its way back. Afterwards, report back to me."
"Roger that ma'am." Nikki ended the conversation and hung up the phone.
"X! Prepare a course that intercepts the route between Port Moresby and Darwin. We have to watch out for a cargo vessel, the Coral Sea, it's a possible drug runner."
"Aye boss." Wilkinson replied.
Meanwhile Dutchy appeared on the bridge with some lists in his hands. "Sir, do you have a second?"
"Yes, what can I do for you?"
"These lists have to be verified by you sir."
"Uhm, yes, I know, I still have to do that," Wilkinson said a bit annoyed.
"Uh, sir, I asked for these the day before yesterday too."
"Dutchy, what's up? Are you trying to say that I'm not doing my job?" He said, feeling rebuked by Dutchy.
"No sir, not at all. You see, it's just the fact that I can't proceed either, sir," Dutchy said as plainly as possible.
"Yes, yes, put them on my desk, I'll do it this afternoon." He hissed in a hurry throwing a glance at the CO, hoping that she hadn't heard the conversation.
Dutchy left the bridge heading towards the XO's cabin, frowning and tapping the papers in his hand.
Damn Wilkinson, every time it's the same story. When it comes to paperwork he lets it linger, and Dutchy has to fix it. And if there's one missing, then it's my fault. Why, for God's sake, did they send Kate away? With her, the paperwork was paradise. And Nikki, she just lets everything carry on and doesn't do anything about it until it's due. Then she gets mad because it's not done. That's not the way to do things. And me? I'm stuck in the middle of it. It's always me who has to pick up the pieces!
The Coral Sea
A couple of days later at the Coral Sea, a call sounded from the microphone. "Coral Sea, this is Australian warship Hammersley, stop all engines, we intend to board you."
Mike grabbed the microphone. "Coral Sea to Hammersley, we are an Australian vessel and you're not allowed to board me."
At the Hammersley.
"X, did you hear that voice? I would say it's Mike." Nikki asked Wilkinson astonished.
"Sorry boss, I don't know Mike."
"Dutchy, RO, what do you think? Coral Sea, I know, but consider it as an exercise for my men," she said.
"Ok, then, be my guest, but hurry up. I have a tight schedule."
"Yes, it's him," Dutchy said. RO nodded. Both had a surprised glance on their face.
"Yes ma'am, and if there's something on board, you will not find it. Mike is an old fox. He knows all the tricks," RO added.
Nikki threw him a glance of 'do-you-always-want-to-screw-up-something'. "Ok, go for it X," she said.
"Hands to boarding stations, hands to boarding stations." Wilkinson and Dutchy left the bridge to prepare .
On board the Coral Sea.
"Who's the master of this vessel?" Wilkinson asked.
"Me." Mike answered.
"Hey Mike?" Dutchy said with a questioned glance.
"Dutchy, hi," Mike answered cool.
Not exactly the same as before anymore. Somewhat reluctant, Dutchy thought.
"I'm the executive officer of the HMAS Hammersley. Thank you for your cooperation for this exercise. It's a training exercise for my men. Can I see the manifest? And what's in the boxes?" asked Wilkinson. "Harpie, 2Dads, go downstairs and check it out. Don't forget to film it," the X ordered the two sailors.
"Aye sir." They started their task.
"Sure, go ahead," Mike answered. He turned and walked to the bridge while Wilkinson followed him.
He looked into the manifest which was perfect and the containers contained the contents as stated on the manifest.
"X-ray 82 to Charlie 82. Everything is ok here. We are returning, over," Wilkinson said. "Sir, everything's okay, thank you for your time."
They went back to the Hammersley and headed to the bridge.
"X, Dutchy, what's your impression?" Nikki asked while she was looking at the Coral Sea with the binoculars.
"Everything was ok boss. But if there's something, it could be hidden anywhere," said the X.
"It's Mike, boss. He wasn't behaving like the old Mike we know. I sensed a certain reluctance, a kind of loathing. It's odd, I know, but I have a gut feeling he's hiding something," Dutchy added.
"What did I tell you?" RO sneered.
"Thank you RO!" Nikki said irritated.
"But RO has a point. If he's in that business, it will be damn hard to catch him. He was one of us and he knows better than anyone where to hide anything dodgy . We can have a look at that video later on to see if we can detect something."
"The only thing we can do is catch him in the act," Swain said from his seat at the wheel.
"The X has the ship. I have to go to my cabin and report to Navcom," Nikki said.
"The X has the ship," Wilkinson replied.
Nikki went down the staircases.
What's going on? Kate is not together with Mike? She has a daughter. I know all along she had a daughter, but never by who. From Mike? She has always ignored my questions about it. And now Mike is involved in a dodgy case. Strange.
At her cabin Nikki called Commander White at Navcom.
"Commander White speaking."
"Ma'am, it's Lieutenant-Commander Ceatano. We've just boarded the Coral Sea. I'm afraid I have some unpleasant news," she said.
"What's up?" Maxine sounded a bit irritated. She never liked playing guessing games.
"The master of that vessel is Mike Flynn."
"WHAT?"
"Yes, Mike Flynn."
"DAMN! And?"
"Everything was ok, nothing dodgy. The containers contained everything that was on the manifests."
"Doesn't surprise me. If Mike is involved in it, we will never find something until we take that vessel apart, piece by piece."
"Moreover, my buffer, says that he didn't seem the same anymore. He feels like he's hiding something."
"Ok, thanks for investigating. Keep track of that vessel. With a bit of luck they'll make a transfer at sea and then you can catch them. I'll pass that info onto the Feds; they will check Mike out. So, that's all, fair winds Nikki."
"Thank you and bye ma'am."
Maxine put down the phone but kept her hand on it. She stared blankly at her desk.
"Mike? What the hell are you doing there?" she said softly to herself. I know you were fired because you wouldn't obey your orders and fulfil your role as Leading Seaman. But this? Was your financial situation that bad? Or are you just so pissed off at everything you had to do something reckless?
I'm not going to tell Kate about this. She's finally starting to get over everything in the last few weeks, and this news will do her no good. It will bring the past to the surface again, and she will get mad and extremely upset, all over again.
She stood up, turned and looked at the scale model of the frigate. She took a small brush, bent and started to remove some dust from the small canons. She was completely preoccupied by the Mike and Kate situation.
How did it all start? When did I first discover they were having a relationship?
In fact, it was bit by bit. Of course, they kept quiet about it, but there were signs. I thought there was something going on.
I see all the commanders and their executive officers in my division, and there are many women amongst them, but they all keep a certain distance, literally as well as figuratively.
For example, if I hand over a file to a commander, he reads the papers, and when he finishes one, he passes the page to his XO.
But not Mike and Kate. They lean over each other to read the papers together.
The way they make eye contact with each other is also different. They hold each other's glances longer than anyone else does.
And when I see them in the mess on shore, they are always together
One day, I got my proof.
That was back when she collapsed on the bridge during a patrol.
She suffered from Gastroenteritis
The fact that she couldn't keep her food down, along with low blood pressure, a fever and the heat of the tropics caused her to become weak and lose consciousness. She was airlifted to the hospital in Cairns after her condition took a swift down turn.
When I entered her room a couple of days later to see how she was doing, I noticed Mike was sitting next to her, on the bed, and holding her hand. No other commander would do that. He saw me and immediately released her hand. He tried to pretend nothing was going on, but Kate didn't. She was still too weak to play any kind of game. She kept looking at him with tears in her eyes. I turned a blind eye.
Later on, I got more proof, a second incident.
A week later, she had recovered enough that she was released from the hospital.
I went to her house to see how she was doing, and when I rang the bell, it was Mike who opened the door. He wasn't there for a courtesy visit. Judging from the way he was dressed, it was a personal visit, not a professional one. It was obvious he had already been at her house for a while. His shirt was half open, his chest exposed, and he was wondering around in his socks. Kate was lying on an easy chair in the garden, recovering in the sun.
When I left, I took him aside and asked him what was going on. He admitted they were having a relationship, because he couldn't deny the situation I had just witnessed. I said to him to be careful, and that I would ignore it this time. They had a right to be happy, and a good functioning CO and XO are as important to a ship as the engine.
Mike must have told Kate about our little conversation, because I noticed a more relaxed Kate the next time I saw her, and that made our further conversations a little more light-hearted…
She was interrupted by her assistant who needed her to sign the latest orders. She didn't expect him so she jumped with fright, rose quickly and hurt her back on her chair. "YES, put it down, I'll have a look at it in a minute," she snapped at him, grimacing and rubbing her back.