by S. E. Smith
“I’m from Florida,” Makayla said, adjusting her backpack on her right shoulder. “He looks it. How old is he?”
“He will be three next month,” Hsu replied before she turned to the Customs agent. “Thank you again for your help, Makayla. I hope you have a pleasant visit in Hong Kong.”
“You too, and good luck!” Makayla replied, watching as Hsu pushed the stroller up to the window.
A moment later, it was Makayla’s turn. She walked up and presented her passport. The agent behind the window briefly glanced up at her and then down at her passport.
“What is the purpose of your visit?” The agent asked in a cool, disinterested voice.
“Vacation,” Makayla replied with a polite smile.
“Are you traveling alone?” The man asked, suddenly more focused on her when he looked up from her photo to her face.
“No, I’m joining my grandfather who is already here,” she replied, keeping the smile on her face, even though the man’s sudden assessing gaze was making her uncomfortable.
“How long will you be staying?” The agent asked with a smile.
“A week,” Makayla answered.
She quietly answered several more questions before she breathed a sigh of relief when he stamped her passport and handed it back to her. She quickly passed through the gate and into the main section of the airport. She was relieved to get out of the crush of people. Fortunately, she was able to bypass the wait for baggage claim. Twenty minutes later, she was in a taxi heading for the marina where her grandfather was docked at the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club in Shelter Bay.
Sinking back into the seat, she stared at the tall buildings and crowded streets. She didn’t even want to think about how the taxi driver was able to navigate through the streets without hitting either a pedestrian or another car. All the sights, sounds, and colorful assortment of people were overwhelming for her exhausted brain.
“Is this your first visit to Hong Kong?” The driver asked, glancing up in the mirror before returning his gaze to the road in front of him.
“Yes,” Makayla answered, staring out the window.
“You have friends here? I can tell you the best places to go for young people,” he said, laying his hand on the horn when a car cut in front of him. “There are lots of young people here.”
Makayla shook her head. She knew he would think she was strange if she told him she preferred to be in places where there weren’t that many people, or buildings. That was one reason she had gone into the field of study that she had chosen in college. As a marine biologist, she could escape from the mad rush of urban life and spend most of her time either in a lab or on a research ship.
“No, thank you,” Makayla finally replied when she realized that the driver was waiting for her response. “I’m meeting up with someone.”
“Okay,” the driver replied.
He finally took the hint that she wasn’t a very talkative passenger and refocused his attention on the traffic instead of her. She knew she was attractive and was used to drawing men’s attention. It wasn’t that she was a beauty. She wasn’t delusional enough about her looks to think that. It wasn’t until she had overheard a couple of guys talking about her in one of her classes that she finally realized what it was about her that drew attention.
It wasn’t her looks, but her attitude and appearance of aloofness that was like a red flag to guys. They liked the challenge of trying to get her to open up for them. She had never been very social and really didn’t care to be around a lot of people. It had taken a while to finally figure out it was a defense mechanism – a wall between her and the world. Deep down, she knew it was probably because of the way she had been raised. Oh, she didn’t blame her mom. Her mom had enough baggage without Makayla adding to the load. Makayla had learned at an early age that life could suck, and she didn’t want to fall into the same dark hole that her mom had.
Her gaze softened when she thought of her mother. Her mom had been doing so much better since she married Arnie Hanover three years ago. Makayla liked Arnie. He had been there for her mom, supporting her, encouraging her, and calmly waiting until her mom was ready to take control of her own life. It was something that Makayla had secretly wished for through the years, but had doubted would ever happen.
Pushing the memories back into the box that she kept them in, she refocused on the landscape. It took her a moment to realize they were already traveling outside of the city. It would take almost an hour to get to the yacht club. Henry, her grandfather, had offered to pick her up, but Makayla had told him it didn’t make sense for both of them to spend the money to take a taxi to and from the airport. It would give her time to unwind as well.
Makayla leaned her head back and closed her eyes. At twenty-two, she was fortunate enough to be in a better position than most girls her age. Her father had died before she was born, but he had left a trust fund that she had inherited when she turned twenty-one. The fund had grown over the last twenty plus years, and while she wasn’t wealthy by most standards, she had a nice nest egg that had allowed her to focus on her education without having to worry about how she would pay for it. Between the trust fund income and the summer internships that she had worked, she had never had to touch the principal to live on. It also helped that she didn’t need much. When living in a small dorm room or on a research ship, there wasn’t a lot of room for material things.
Makayla opened her eyes when she felt the taxi slow down and turn. She blinked her eyes to clear the gritty tiredness from them. She sat forward when she realized that they were turning into the yacht club.
She quickly fumbled for the information her grandfather had sent her and her passport to show identification to the security guard at the gate. She pressed the button on the window when the guard leaned down to talk to the cab driver.
“I’m here to see Henry Summerlin,” she stated, holding out the documents showing Henry’s membership card and her ID. “He should have notified you that I was coming.”
“Good afternoon, Ms. Summerlin. Welcome to the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club,” the security guard greeted in a polite professional tone. He glanced at the documents before returning them to her. “Mr. Summerlin is located in E40. Please go down to the turning circle. It will be located on the third turn. Have a nice day.”
“Thank you,” Makayla murmured, impressed with the efficiency of the guard.
Her gaze swept over the man’s immaculate uniform of dark bluish-gray pressed slacks and white short-sleeved shirt with the emblem of the yacht club on the shoulders. The man’s black hair was cut close to his head, and his dark brown eyes were as warm as his greeting. A small, relaxed smile curved Makayla’s lips. The journey from the airport had been less stressful than she had feared.
Within minutes, the red and white taxi drew to a stop at the beginning of a long dock. She could see the numbers depicting the dock slips in several different languages. She quickly leaned forward and paid the driver before grabbing her carry-on and backpack. She drew in a deep breath, relieved to have finally arrived from Florida, pushed open the door, and stiffly slid out of the taxi.
Chapter 2
Makayla rolled onto her toes and stretched the soreness out of her muscles as the taxi pulled away. She glanced around and lifted her face to the fading sunlight. It felt good to be out of the cramped confines of the airplane and taxi, and to be out in the wide open spaces again.
She shielded her eyes and gazed around her. In the distance, she could see low mountains behind the tall high rises of the city overlooking the sapphire blue waters of the bay. Excitement filled her when she stared out at the variety of sailboats, powerboats, and multi-million dollar yachts either berthed or anchored in the surrounding waters. She couldn’t help but shake her head at the thought of how out of place Henry’s small sailboat must look there among the larger vessels.
Adjusting her backpack strap on her shoulder, Makayla bent and pulled up the handle of her carry-on and headed down the long dock.
She gazed across the long line of boats to the coastline, enjoying the gentle, cool breeze against her face. The temperature was a nice seventy degrees Fahrenheit, but she knew it was expected to drop after sunset.
Her steps slowed as she came closer to the slip where she could see the Defiance moored. A slight movement and a tuft of gray hair peeking out near the back of the sailboat told her that Henry was there and probably working on one of a probably endless list of repairs. A rueful smile curved Makayla’s lips. She had once heard that the acronym for the word ‘boat’ was ‘bring on another thousand’. She imagined that was true, especially if you owned a sailboat and were sailing it around the world.
“You know, old man, I heard tell that the two happiest days in a man’s life are the day he buys a boat and the day he sells it,” Makayla called out in greeting.
Henry turned in a quick circle, surprisingly fast for a man in his late sixties and grinned up at her. He wiped his hand across his cheek, leaving a dark smear of grease above the silver whiskers that coated the lower half of his face. The smile on her lips grew when he realized what he had done. He muttered a soft curse and pulled the rag out of the back of his pocket and scrubbed at his cheek while staring up at her.
“Well, seeing that I’m not of a mind to do either one at the moment, I guess you’ll have to wait to find out,” he replied with a huge grin. “You made it.”
Makayla nodded and looked over the deck of the sailboat. “Yeah, I made it. It’s good to see you, Henry,” she said, pushing the handle of her carry-on down and handing it to him when he reached up for it.
“You, too, girl,” Henry murmured, setting her bag down and reaching up to help her onto the sailboat. “I’m glad you’re here,” he added, pulling her into a tight bear-hug the moment she was on board.
Makayla finished stowing her clothes in the cabinet that Henry had emptied for her. It didn’t take long. She glanced up through the companionway and saw that the sun was about to set. Quickly pulling out some lunch meat, cheeses, and condiments, she prepared two turkey and cheese sandwiches on whole wheat with a side of potato chips. She grabbed two bottles of water out of the small refrigerator, carefully balanced them with the stacked plates, and slowly climbed the steps.
“Perfect timing,” Henry said with a grin. “I just finished cleaning up. Let me go wash my hands. Mm, that looks delicious. I haven’t eaten since this morning. I wanted to have the blasted engine maintenance done before you got here, but had to wait on a part.”
“No problem,” Makayla replied, placing the plates and bottled waters down on a teak table that Henry had cleared and uncovered. “Take your time. I’m going to enjoy this beautiful sunset.”
Henry chuckled and looked over at the mountains. “It is a beauty, isn’t it? I’ll be right back. I might take a quick shower as well,” he muttered with a wrinkle of his nose. “I stink.”
“I wasn’t going to say anything about that, old man, but since you brought it up, you smell like a diesel engine,” Makayla laughed, relaxing against the seat and laying her arm along the back of it.
She affectionately watched Henry head down the steps muttering about ungrateful passengers. She chuckled and tilted her head back to look up at the sky when he disappeared from sight. She took in a deep breath, and held it for a few seconds before releasing it. She gazed upward, staring at the faint dots of light beginning to appear. Against the darker backdrop, she could just make out the first few stars that were beginning to shine through the twilight hues.
Her mind drifted in a kaleidoscope of thoughts and images. She turned and tiredly rested her chin on her arm. The last six years of her life had been a blur of activity. It was hard to believe so much had happened in such a short span of time. Most of it had been good, but some of it had been sad as well, she thought.
“Why the sad face? You aren’t having second thoughts, are you?” Henry asked, emerging from the galley.
Makayla turned and smiled. It was a good thing Henry was practically bald on top, otherwise his hair would be sticking up everywhere from the way he was rubbing it dry. As it was, it looked like he could use a haircut for the sides. She’d have to see if he had any electric clippers on board.
“I’m sorry about Breaker,” she murmured, twisting back around. “He was a good dog.”
Henry grunted and hung the towel over the side of the opening to dry. He grabbed two beers out of the refrigerator while Makayla watched him in silence. He twisted the tops off and held one out for her.
“I think we can celebrate your arrival and Breaker’s long life with a beer instead of water,” he said, picking up one of the plates and sitting down. “He was a damn good dog. It’d be hard to find one like him again, so I didn’t bother trying.”
“Kind of like Grandma?” Makayla asked with a raised eyebrow.
Henry’s hand paused as he raised the bottle of beer to his lips and he shook his head. He took a long swig of it before he set it down on the table. Makayla could see the amused twitch to his lips and in his eyes.
“Anyone ever tell you that you are a lot like your Grandpa?” Henry asked, picking up his sandwich and taking a bite.
“Only everyone who knows you,” she retorted, picking up her own sandwich and biting into it. “So, tell me about your trip so far. How was the trip from Australia?”
They spent the next three hours eating, drinking, and talking. Makayla slowly felt her body relax from a combination of exhaustion and contentment. It felt good after the exhausting flight. Being back on the water aboard the Defiance soothed her soul. She raised her hand to smother a yawn. She should have stuck to the bottled water, she thought, lowering her second bottle of beer.
“So, are you seeing anyone?” Henry suddenly asked.
Makayla blinked and dropped her hand to her lap. Her lips pressed together and she rolled her eyes, a habit that she thought she had given up when she was sixteen. Leave it to Henry to bring up her love life on the first night.
“That is none of your business,” she replied, lifting the bottle of beer and finishing it. “You know most grandfathers wouldn’t give their grandkids a beer, don’t you?”
Henry shrugged and grinned. “You’re over twenty-one and won’t be driving. Plus, I hoped between the jet lag, exhaustion, and the slight buzz that you might let me know if you’ve found someone,” he said.
“Well, you’ve got those three things right, but I’m not talking,” Makayla retorted, pushing up off the seat and lifting a hand to her head. “I’m done for the day.”
“You get some sleep. You can have the front bunk and I’ll take the one in the galley. Don’t worry about this stuff, I’ll clean up,” Henry instructed, rising to his feet.
“Thanks. I’ll be more coherent tomorrow,” she replied, holding onto the side of the companionway to keep from stumbling.
“Makayla…,” Henry called quietly.
Makayla glanced over her shoulder, her foot on the first step leading down into the galley. She could see the love and concern in his eyes. A part of her wanted to look away, while another part wanted to reassure him that everything was fine. In the end, it was the need to reassure him that won.
“I’m okay, Henry. You don’t have to worry about me. I’m not broken. I’ve just been a little busy with school. I haven’t exactly been out of touch with the world, either,” she murmured. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Have a good night, sweetheart,” Henry said after searching her face to make sure she was telling him the truth. He seemed satisfied with what he saw there. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Makayla nodded and made her way down the steps. She passed through the galley, grabbed her small toiletry bag from off the shelf, and made her way to the head. It didn’t take her long to brush her teeth, hair, and wash her face. She didn’t bother with a shower. She was too exhausted and would probably fall asleep in it. Instead, she changed into a pair of pajama pants and an oversized T-shirt.
She barely made it to the b
ed before she collapsed. Rolling, she pulled the covers over her and wrapped her arms around the pillow. For a fleeting second, the image of a face from her past flashed through her mind before it was gone. Makayla didn’t even bother trying to hold onto it. The memory was gone before she knew it, lost in the fog of her exhaustion. She was too tired to think about anything but sleep at the moment.
Chapter 3
Two days later, Makayla sat back and gazed out over the water. She could already feel the itch to leave. She refocused on where she was polishing the safety railing. Henry had made some modifications to the Defiance over the last few years to make it more of an ocean-going vessel. She was still amazed that he had made it over halfway around the world already. This would be her fifth time joining him en route and the longest distance since he had started.
“What do you think?” Henry asked, standing near the mast.
Makayla glanced over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. “I try not to,” she joked, watching an expression of exasperation cross his face at her snarky response. She laughed and turned to face him. “I was just thinking how impressed I am that you have made it this far. It is an incredible feat. You know, Mom still thinks that you’ve totally lost your mind.”
Henry bent and sat down next to her. She could see the thoughtful expression on his face while he gazed out across the harbor. His fingers played with the wire he was holding, rolling it back and forth between them.
“I’ve been smart about it,” he commented, turning back to face her. “I watch the weather and stay in the major shipping lanes. I’ve made some of the longer legs along with other boats. I’ve been planning this trip my whole life and I have to admit – I don’t have a single regret. I’ve seen places and met people that otherwise would have been impossible.”
“You’ve also had a few close calls,” Makayla reminded him. “The Philippines….”
Henry waved his hand. “I know, but that’s life. There are never any guarantees. One thing your grandmother made sure I never forgot was that there are never any guarantees in life. Her death was a huge blow not only to your mom, but to me, Makayla. When Mary Rose was dying, she made me promise that I wouldn’t let fear stop me from living my dreams. She reminded me every day to grasp life with both hands and live it, because as she pointed out, you never knew when your last day might be. I raised your mom and uncle as best I could. I wasn’t perfect, but I can say I did my best. Having you back in my life made me realize just how fortunate I am.”
