by Harmon, AJ
“Let’s go kick some ass, shall we?” Derek grinned as the men headed for the court.
The men played well together and won their game. It wasn’t nearly as nasty as the previous game and Katy was relieved. She was incredibly proud of Mark who played extremely well. He was certainly the most skilled player on the court but maybe not the fastest.
“Well I am in my forties,” he chuckled when Katy congratulated him. “Those young pups can run circles around me now.”
“Are you kidding?” Derek cried. “You’re still awesome! Those three pointers won the game for us.”
Mark was happy they had won and looked forward to the upcoming challenge the following day. Round three for them would be against the team that had played prior to them; the team that Katy thought played rough.
“Maybe I’ll come out and practice tonight,” Ben said. “It’s been a while since I played to win,” he said. “Really win.”
“Good idea,” agreed Derek. “I’ll join you. What time?”
“Let’s try after dinner. There should be lights and probably nobody up here.”
“It’s just a game,” Mark said. “Win or lose, it’s still just a game.”
“But it’s against them,” Ben disagreed with his brother. “And I want to beat them.”
Me too, thought Mark. Game on.
10.
DAY 8 – AT SEA
Maureen had asked for the family to have breakfast together. The time was set for nine and everyone would meet in the dining room. As usual, Peter and Maureen arrived first and sat patiently at the table waiting for the rest of the family to arrive.
Two by two they trickled in and finally all were assembled and the waitress came to take their orders.
“And where are you from?” Maureen asked her.
“Vietnam,” she smiled.
“Oh,” Maureen frowned. “Such a long way from your family. Don’t you miss them?”
“Yes, very much. But I go home next month,” she smiled. “You have big family.”
“Yes, we do,” Maureen agreed. She worked her way around the table introducing them all to the waitress.
She got to Derek and said, “This would be my grandson, but his mother hasn’t married my son yet.”
Mark gasped and was just about to speak but Maureen continued.
“But I love him just like a grandson,” she smiled and moved on to Ben who was sitting next to Derek.
Katy dropped her head and took a deep breath. She knew that Maureen meant no malice but she also was getting really tired of all the little digs, innocent or not, it was getting old.
After breakfast, as they all went their separate ways, Derek caught up with Mark and his mom just outside the dining room.
“Mom!”
Katy turned and smiled at her son.
“Can I talk to you for a second?”
“Sure,” she smiled.
“Come get a coffee with me, please?”
Mark kissed her on the cheek and said he’d meet her back in their cabin and politely excused himself. Derek took his mom’s hand and led her to the coffee bar. After placing their order, they went and sat at a table.
“That was a little weird at breakfast,” he said.
“It quite often is,” said Katy. “But Maureen means nothing.”
“Yes she does,” Derek disagreed. “She does mean something by it. We all think it she’s just the only one that will say it.”
Katy was shocked by her sons’ words.
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“Oh, come on mom!” Derek sighed. “It’s been three years. Don’t you think it’s time already?”
Katy had no idea how to respond. Her son was calling her out. For a split second she was angry, really angry. She was the parent. But, he was an adult. He was twenty-four and a college graduate. He had a great job working at MEL Holdings with Mark and Matt. Actually, it wasn’t just a job. When Mark retired, Derek would take over, the heir apparent. No, he was her equal and he had earned the right to call her out if necessary. And apparently, he thought it was necessary.
“I know you’ve never had it easy,” he continued. “Dad was a real jerk and we were better off alone. And then…” he couldn’t say it. His head dropped and Katy knew what he was thinking.
“I’m okay,” she insisted, taking his hand in hers. “Really. That was four years ago and I am okay.”
“I know,” he said. “But still, you haven’t had an easy time of it. Well until Mark,” he smiled.
“Until Mark,” she grinned.
“Mom, he’s awesome. And I know you love him. And I know he adores you. He worships you. So why? What are you holding out for?”
“I’m not holding out for anything?” Katy was offended.
“Then why haven’t you married him?”
Katy didn’t have an answer.
“Do it!”
Katy headed back to her cabin, Derek’s words swirling through her head. Do it!
*****
That afternoon, as scheduled, was another round of three-on-three. Tyler, Adam and Tim’s game was scheduled first. They played hard and won by only two points.
“A win is a win,” grinned Adam, as they came off the court, sweaty and tired.
“Now it’s your turn to protect the family name,” laughed Tim as Ben congratulated them.
“Oh, you were magnificent,” gushed April, as she ran over to congratulate Tim. “Simply wonderful.”
“Thanks, April,” beamed Tim.
He headed off with the young woman draped all over him. Paul, sitting close by, shook his head as his eyes followed them. They walked over to a couple of chairs and there sat Nic. Paul’s eyes stopped as they reached her, watching her smile as she congratulated Tim on his teams’ win. Then she went right back to reading a book.
Paul studied her while she wasn’t looking. He thought he should go over and say hello, but something stopped him.
“You look lost in thought,” Matt said.
Paul’s head whipped around to see his brother studying him.
“Nah, just enjoying the win.”
“Hmmm.” Matt smirked.
“Okay, let’s do this, shall we?” Derek yelled, as he and Mark and Ben made their way to the court.
The family settled in to watch the game and Tim, April and Nic joined them, Nic not looking overly thrilled. Paul tried to catch her eye as she walked by but she didn’t glance his way.
Katy cheered as the game started and was clapping wildly when Mark scored the first bucket. By the end of the first five minutes, the Lathems were up by ten points.
“Woo hoo!” Katy yelled, clapping loudly.
David whistled and watched as Derek drove to the basket. One of the opponents elbowed him hard as his feet left the ground to score and he hit the deck with a thud.
“Foul!” yelled Mark and helped Derek up. “Two shots.”
The other team argued for a moment and then lined up for the free throws. Derek made the first and missed the second, Ben securing the rebound. He dribbled out of the key and threw the ball to Mark who didn’t have a clear shot. He passed to Derek who took a step to the basket and was dropped by the same defender with another elbow to the ribs.
Katy jumped off her chair and tried to run to her son but Matt grabbed her arm and held her.
“No man wants his mommy running to rescue him,” he whispered in her ear.
Katy stopped trying to pull free and sighed and Matt released his grip. Mark was yelling at the opposing team.
“What the fuck is wrong with you? This is a game you morons not the WWF!”
“Are you girls?” came the response. “Can’t take a foul?”
Ben stepped forward and stared at the man about six inches from his face.
“Look you asshole, we just wanna play a friendly game, no trouble. Just keep your elbows to yourself.”
“Bitches!” the man’s team mate said.
Ben turned his head to see which man had s
aid it and the man in front of him shoved him back. Mark caught him so he didn’t fall.
At that moment, Matt, David and Paul all jumped up and ran towards the three-on-three yelling match. As they arrived on the court, two men jumped up from the other side of the court and ran and stood behind the opponents.
“Oh shit!” whispered Katy.
“Ditto,” agreed Janie.
There was some more yelling and then Paul stepped in between the two groups and grabbed the throat of the last man to speak.
“I’ve slit men’s’ throats in the middle of the night without a second thought,” he said, teeth gritted, eyes like steel. “Don’t think a little punk like you scares me, even a little. Now stand down.”
He let the man go and he coughed and sputtered and grabbed at his neck and the five of them stepped back several feet. One of them threw their hands up as they continued backing away.
“No trouble here,” he said, shaking his head. “Just a stupid foul, k?”
At that moment one of the entertainment crew arrived and called the game. The Lathem team had won, as they were ahead when the ‘incident’ took place. He asked all the men to exit the court and they would take a ten minute break before they began the next game, giving the crowd a chance to disburse and tempers to cool.
The crowd all exhaled simultaneously and the Lathem men returned to their group. Katy grabbed Derek and asked him if he was okay. Mark chuckled and told her that Derek was a man and could take a foul. Derek grinned and agreed, but rubbed his ribs when she wasn’t looking, a slight grimace on his face.
The group started to break up and Paul walked to his chair to grab his sweatshirt. As he walked past Nic he saw the fear in her eyes.
Dammit! he thought.
“Sorry about that,” he grimaced.
“Was that true?” she asked.
Paul sat down next to her in the chair April had just vacated as she left with Tim.
“Yeah. Yeah it is.”
“Oh.” She looked horrified.
“I am a Navy Seal,” he said, matter-of-factly. “That’s what I do when I have orders. I follow them…to the letter…exactly…without question…without hesitation…without second guessing and without remorse.”
“Well, thanks for clarifying that for me,” she said as she stood and hurried away.
*****
That night as the family congregated for dinner, Tim retold the story of Paul’s involvement in the almost brawl. Paul had nothing to say.
Tim went on. “It was pretty cool the way you had him in that choke hold. Made him think twice before he said anymore,” he chuckled.
“I don’t think Paul wants to rehash it,” said Mark, knowing Paul the way he did.
“Well, I’m just glad you won,” smiled Katy. “On to the semifinals on the next sea day and then maybe the finals.”
“I hope we make it to the finals and then we can play you guys,” grinned Tyler. “That would be cool.”
“We have to win our next game first,” Adam chimed in.
“Well that’s four days away. We’ve got some different kind of playing to do first.” David, noticing Paul’s expression, tried to change the subject. “What’s everyone doing in St. Lucia tomorrow?”
11.
DAY 9 – ST. LUCIA
Once again, the Lathem family was headed in several different directions for their day in St. Lucia. Christopher had been rather fussy overnight and Janie decided to stay on the ship with him.
“Are you sure?” her mother had asked. “I can stay.”
“No, no,” Janie had replied. “You go have a good time. I’ll stay with the children today.”
So Patty had left with Maureen and Peter to go whale watching. Matt had gone with Tyler and Adam, Andrew and Rory, and Paul deep-sea fishing. Mark and Katy left with Derek to play on kayaks, and the rest of the brothers were hiking in the rain forest. They would all meet up for dinner that evening.
Matt loved spending time with his step-sons. And with Tyler now working at MEL Holdings, he was able to spend more time with him during the week. And they came to the apartment as often as their schedules allowed to see their mom and younger siblings. But Adam had just finished medical school and within a matter of days after they returned home from vacation his residency would begin. They would not get to see much of him once he began working at the hospital. He was the quieter of the two brothers and it had taken Matt a little longer to be accepted into his life. But now they were the best of friends, all three of them, and he was excited to spend the day with them.
The fishing boat was smaller than Rory expected it to be. It was his first time deep-sea fishing, as it was for Andrew, Adam and Tyler, but Rory was more nervous about the experience. He had been unsettled all morning and didn’t know why. But Andrew had convinced him that all would be well on their adventure, so here he was sitting on the boat, speeding out into the middle of the bluest water he had ever seen, hoping the butterflies he felt in his stomach was just sea sickness and nothing else.
*****
Janie rocked her baby boy until he finally fell asleep. His tummy was upset and it had taken a while to get him settled. Ella was perfectly content watching The Little Mermaid, cuddling her stuffed dolphin, with a cup of goldfish crackers on the floor beside her. Janie took the opportunity to jump in and have a quick shower.
As she stepped out of the bathroom just a few minutes later, the phone was ringing. It was Guest Services.
“We have tried their cabin several times and understand they have left the ship on a shore excursion?”
“Yes,” replied Janie. “They are with my husband deep-sea fishing. I can try their cell phones but I don’t know if they have them with them. Is there a message I can give them?”
Janie grabbed a piece of paper and wrote down a name and phone number, with the word ‘URGENT’ underneath. She was sure she recognized the name but couldn’t place it immediately.
“Thank you,” she said and replaced the telephone receiver.
Must be very important, she thought. Janie couldn’t remember where her cell phone was, but she would need to find it to get the phone numbers stored there. She would try to get them the message as soon as possible.
*****
It was Andrew’s turn in the ‘chair’. It was perched at the back of the deck of the boat and had a massive fishing pole attached to the back railing. He had caught a marlin, an impressive fish doing its best to wrestle free of the line hooked in its mouth. Andrew pulled and reeled him in slowly to the clapping and cheers of the others on board.
The fishing guide was genuinely impressed. It was a magnificent fish, one a beginner would rarely catch. With his help, Andrew was able to finally reel him in and vacate the chair to Adam, who had been waiting patiently for his turn to try. He was the last one before they headed back to the island.
Rory congratulated Andrew on his success and then stepped back abruptly when his pocket began to vibrate. He saw it was Janie and answered with a smile.
“Hello Janie. Having fun on the ship?”
Rory’s face instantly sobered as he listened to his sister-in-law.
“I’ve got the number,” he said. “Yes, I will try him now, although this reception is terrible.”
Andrew was concerned at the tone of Rory’s voice and waited for him to hang up.
“What is it?” he asked the second Rory pulled the phone from his ear.
“Our attorney has left a message on the ship. Apparently he has tried our cell phones repeatedly and couldn’t get through.”
“Well, call him!” Andrew replied.
Rory scrolled through the list on his phone and pushed ‘call’ when he found Jim’s name.
“No service,” he frowned. “I’ve only got one bar here.”
“What is it?” Matt had noticed the intense conversation between his brother and his husband.
“Our attorney has been trying to call us. He finally called the ship and the ship contacted Janie. It’
s lucky for us that she stayed aboard today. But I have no service here.”
Just at that moment Adam screamed. He had a tuna hooked on his line. They all ran to the back of the boat and helped reel the mighty fish in.
“Woo hoo!” screamed Adam. “I caught one!!”
“Well done,” Matt patted his back. “First try too!”
Matt turned to the guide as he unhooked the flapping fish and smacked it on the head. The fish immediately stilled.
“We need to get back to the dock right now,” Matt instructed.
The guide looked surprised. They still had a couple of hours left of their tour.
“Now,” Matt reiterated.
*****
As Mark and Derek pulled the kayaks back on shore, Katy took the life vests back to the rental shack.
“Did you have a good time?” she was asked.
“Oh yes,” she smiled. “It was wonderful. The water is so warm and clear. We could see the fish and the coral as we paddled.
“You have a handsome son, and husband.”
“Oh,” Katy began. She was going to say that Mark wasn’t her husband but she stopped. “Thank you,” she smiled instead.
Katy turned and walked in the direction of her men. My husband, she thought.
‘Do it!’ the words of her son came to her mind.
My husband, she thought again. Yes, he should be.
*****
As the fishing boat docked, Rory tried his cell phone again. He had three bars of service and dialed their attorney’s phone number. He got his secretary and was told Jim was unavailable. Rory explained who he was and why he was calling but the secretary was in the dark as to what Jim wanted.
“I will give him your message as soon as he is finished with his conference call,” she said.
Rory hung up still not knowing what he could possibly want.
“He knew we were going on vacation so if he’s trying to contact us it must be for something important,” Rory said to Andrew as they stood on the pier.
“Well, we just have to wait to see what he wants,” frowned Andrew, as they began the walk back to the ship.
*****
Adam couldn’t wait to tell his mom about the amazing tuna he caught. Janie was thrilled to hear about their adventure and sat in their suite enthralled with their news. Tyler didn’t catch anything. Neither did Matt, but they’d had a good time anyway.