Chapter 13

It worked just about like that too. It wasn’t Wells Fargo, it was a well-known, and well insured, gold broker who arranged for the gold transport via helicopter. Or helicopters, plural.

The Coast Guard, Navy, Marines, Army all came down to conduct training exercises in and around the Florida Keys, specifically Key West. The US Air Force, not wanting to be left out, even sent their high-speed, low-drag para-rescue guys to play too!

The funny thing was, only four people on the Coast Guard base even knew why. The rest assumed it was a cover for something, but that could have been anything from a high-level defection from Cuba to the recovery of a soviet era sub. It could have been anything, and they didn’t care. They had their orders to follow and if that meant hiding a UFO that crashed into the ocean? That is what they would do.

I did hear that the locals had a betting pool, and that UFOs were in second place right behind a lost Chinese nuclear sub.

The four Coast Guard personnel who were in the know were the chief, two coasties and the captain. The chief and two coasties were treated to an all-expenses paid two weeks to anywhere in the world they wanted to go in exchange for keeping their lips sealed for a year. The captain refused but said if I offered him a weekend on that boat some time, he and his wife might accept.

The funniest part of this was the chief. He came to me, hat in hand, telling me there was another problem.

“See, it’s like this, Mister McCoy.”

“Damn it, it’s Jack. Jack, Chief.”

“Okay, Jack then. That hull was redesigned around that gold. If you leave it out, the keel is weak along the spine. You need to fill that area with something or you are going to have problems. Lead would duplicate the weight that was there, but we don’t want that, it ruined the handling and made those oversized engines really suck down fuel. There are a couple of newer, really tough epoxies that can be poured and cured quickly. The boat will be so light, it will fly!”

“Okay, makes sense. So, what is the problem?”

“That new stuff is expensive and you need about eighty or eighty-five gallons, if I calculate correctly. I got, maybe, five gallons on the entire base, Jack!”

“Okay, so tell me, Chief, what do I do? Where can I go to buy this?”

“You can’t. Right now, it is military only. The Navy developed it and hasn’t licensed the patent to anyone. I can order it but since this is not on our TOE I have to have a purchase order or a check.” I knew from past discussions with Dean and Dave that the TOE was the Table of Organization and Equipment. It was a list of everything a unit was supposed to have and that exotic epoxy was not going to be on the list.

“Chief, can you have a civilian check? Can I call and give them a credit card?”

He looked relieved and handed me a slip of paper. “Just give them this order number, Jack. We already got the special fans and heating units set up for the test pour with what I have. You are supposed to be able to fully cure an inch-thick patch in six hours with the right heat level. I can have your boat fixed in two weeks tops!” he told me with a happy smile, wandering off and muttering to himself.

Just ... wow.

The Coast Guard did end up billing me for the ‘tow’ and it was for a pretty big tow. The bill, when it came, caused poor Terry out in San Antonio to have a near heart attack, or so he said.

“Jack! What the hell? Why is the US Coast Guard billing you for more than seven million, eight hundred thousand dollars? Recovery fee? What the fuck is that? Tell me it is a mistake!”

“Hello to you too, Terry. The bill is good, pay it quickly, please. The official story, if this should ever come to light, is the Coast Guard helped me to recover some sunken gold I discovered. That fee was what it cost for them to help us. You have no idea where the gold was found, how much was found or where it went.” I told him, laughing at his sputtering.

“This better be legal and you will tell me the whole story someday, right?”

“Sure thing, Terry, and yes, all legal and above board. Oh, on that subject, you got the tax notice, right?”

“Oh, hell yeah! How you managed to pull that off, I have no idea, but that could be worth a couple million a year!” Terry said happily.

“Oh, I think it will be worth more than that. You should be getting a call today some time. A gold broker will call. I set up an account with the McCoy Investments tax numbers and he will be looking for that tax info you have and all the rest. Work with him, please.”

“You know I will, Jack! I’ll look forward to his call.”

I had missed an entire week of school while that was going on but had managed to get back into school the following Monday. Other than having to spend half of lunch dealing with the side issues each day, things were about back to normal by Friday. That was the last bit, hooking the gold guys up with the trust guys so the accountants would be happy.

I wandered back inside and sat down at the usual table with a sigh and a smile.

“Are you all done being mysterious with your private lunchtime calls or what?”

Ellen Bale was sticking her tongue out at me.

“Mysterious? Me? Bah ... silly insurance issues.” I lied. Well, I prevaricated. I bluffed. I was ensuring that my gold broker and my trust lawyer hooked up, that is ... yeah, okay, I lied.

“So, they are doing the Junior Prom different this year. They are having it in February to spread things out since the Senior Prom is in January.” Ellen said, drawing little shapes on the table top with the condensation from her soda can.

“Oh? Is that, I don’t know, a big deal? I honestly never thought about it. I know girls get all gaga around prom time, but it seems like guys only go to get ... er ... um...” I stuttered, aware that I had just about really, really screwed up. But I pulled it out, right? Stopped in time?

“Guys just want to get laid, is that what you were going to say?” Ellen asked, not looking up. “Is that what you want too, Jack? I thought you were different from the rest.”

“I ... but ... Damn it. Ellen, look at me. Look. At. Me.” I growled through gritted teeth. She looked up, obviously frightened.

“Aw shit, Ellen. I am sorry. Look, yes, I was going to say that because it is what I see and hear around me. No, I am not like that. If I was like that, I would have been trying to date and get laid since I got here the beginning of sophomore year and you know me better than that. Or I hope you do.”

She looked embarrassed for a minute, then she set her jaw. “Well, I am saving it for marriage, unlike my slutty sister” she said, sticking her tongue out at Nancy who laughed.

“Try it sis, you will wonder why you waited so long!” She was sitting next to her long-time boyfriend, a senior that year, Paul Gibbons. He just looked partly embarrassed, partly proud.

“Shut it, slut!” Ellen said to her sister, but you could tell she was teasing and it wasn’t meant hurtfully. “What I was trying to say, Jack, was that if you don’t want sex, you can take me to the Junior Prom and not get sex.”

The rest of the table busted up laughing and Ellen looked confused for a moment, replaying what she had said in her mind, then she too started giggling.

“Oh Ellen, of all the girls in all the world,” I mugged, holding both hands over my heart and looking up at the stars ... or, you know, the lunchroom ceiling. “I have waited for this day, for you to tell me that you wouldn’t give me that pearl of great price, that ultimate gift. Please, tell me that you won’t sleep with me again!”

The rest of the table was going nuts and even some people at other tables were laughing now.

I spun around and pointed my finger at one table, then another and making a mock angry face.

“Laugh, jackals! It is not YOU that is not sleeping with! She reserves that for me! Wait ... wait, that did not come out right.”

“JACK!” Ellen screamed to the roars of the rest.

“I meant ... um ... it is not YOU that she told the world she would not sleep with today! Ha! Oh ... wait ... damn. It is not ... Oh forget about it.” I sat down, acting dejected and half the lunchroom was laughing.

Ellen was smiling at me and came around, plopping herself in my lap.

“Cheer up, champ! If I had to pick anyone in the world to not sleep with right this very moment, you would be first on my list.”

I perked up for a second, then tilted my head as if considering it. “Hey ... wait a minute!”

The laughter seemed to get even louder and, when Ellen kissed me on the cheek, applause broke out.

When things calmed down a bit, Ellen wiggled a bit on my lap and then whispered in my ear, “That was the nicest rejection I have ever heard of. Thanks, Jack. For the record, if I was to give it up, you would be at the top of my list.”

My phone vibrated in Trig class, but I put it off until the bell rang. As I walked out to my car, I saw it was Terry and called him back.

“Yo, Terry, Jack. You called?”

“You are an asshole. I just wanted you to know.”

I started laughing and he just got madder.

“I wanted you to have a surprise, Terry! Now, that tax exemption is looking pretty good huh?”

“Jack, you ... You pick up a cow pie and find diamonds. Look, you are good this year and next, but you really need to start thinking about investing and in charitable giving. The taxes will absolutely eat you alive. They credited you with three hundred and fifty-eight million, seven hundred and thirteen thousand, six hundred and forty-three dollars. And twelve cents.”

“That much?”

“A touch over nine tons of gold. Nine tons.”

“Okay, cool.”

“Cool? Cool? If you just stuffed everything in mutual funds, Jack, you would be making thirty-eight hundred dollars an hour in interest. ninety-two thousand a day, thirty-three million a year. In interest. The taxes will eat you alive. Invest, give money to charity, do something. I am just your lawyer, you need an investment counselor. Call Mister Reilly, please?”

“Sure thing, Terry. Oh, while I have you on the phone, put a million five in Dean’s account, then do a second deposit for exactly nine hundred, ninety-six thousand and eighty dollars. The first is three bonuses for getting shot at, the second is a reward. Then get a hold of Jake Reilly, get the wiring instructions for the account Dave Foster’s pay gets put into, and send him nine hundred, ninety-six thousand and eighty dollars. If you can put a memo on it, just put 1ounce times eight hundred. Got all that?”

When he said he did, I hung up the phone and laughed. That would show them. I’d have to do something nice for him too.

At home. Cam seemed to be more relaxed. She was in the kitchen with a cookbook open and was stirring something that smelled tasty!

“Honey, I’m home! How were the children?” I called out as I came in.

She spun around and glared at me, surprising me. I thought she would laugh.

I watched as she very visibly took a deep breath and held it, then let it out slowly and smiled at me.

“Salut, Jacques. Did you have a good day at school?” she asked pleasantly, coming to give me a kiss on the cheek.

She had been slowly ramping up the familiarity, but I think that she thought she was being sneaky. I know though, I watch!

First it was sitting with me, our hips touching. Then it was constantly holding hands, then it was hugs and now, little kisses. Just the cheek, but still. At night, she insisted on sleeping with me, but I put my foot down. She would wear clothes and so would I. Still, it was har ... er ... difficult.

It seemed like every couple of days she would wear shorter or tighter shorts, a t-shirt morphed into a crop top. She first lay next to me with her head on my shoulder, then it was an arm over my waist and a foot on my shin, now it was a leg tossed around me and a hand I had to keep removing from under my t-shirt.

The thing was, I knew what she was doing, and it was working. This slow, gradual familiarity was uncomfortable to me, but it was not causing me to freak out. I was not immediately remembering things that made me mental.

I was scared to death about where this was going to lead, but I was kind of excited about it too.

When Cam had kissed my cheek and was turning to go back to the stove. I didn’t let go of her hand. Instead, I pulled her back to me and, to her great surprise, leaned down and kissed her softly on the forehead.

“How was your day?” I asked, holding her lightly against me.

She smiled so brightly I knew I had done the right thing. “My day was okay, but now? Now it is magical because you are home!” she said brightly, standing on her tip toes to steal a kiss, this time on my lips, before she danced away.

It tingled a little.

As the three of us ate dinner, I filled them in on what I found out about the gold and watched Dean’s eyes get wide while Cam just shook her head. I didn’t tell Dean about his bonus, that would be a surprise.

When I asked Cam about what she had done today, she handed me a slip of paper while she talked about the local school opportunities. She said that Florida Keys Community College would allow her to take classes as a foreign exchange student. She would have to take an adult, continuing education class to get her GED, but then could take classes like anyone else!

I let that flow over me, storing it for later because my attention was on the paper. It was from Key West Associates Medical Services clinic and, if I was reading it right, said that the patient, Camille Diana Raimond came in for an STD screening and that all tests were negative. I had health class, I knew what an STD was.

Okay. Okay. Oh fuck. What did ... was she, I mean, should I...

She must have seen the panic on my face because she took my hand. “Jacques, that is just for my piece of mind. That animal, he was ... I was afraid. But I am healthy, you see? Now I am not afraid and you should not be afraid either.”

Dean was nodding his head. “Sorry, Cam. I really should have thought of that sooner. I can’t believe it took me two weeks to think about getting you to the doctor!”

“You did this?” I asked Dean, not sure why I was angry.

“Of course, I knew that you would want her to be checked out and to be sure she was healthy. I just wish I had thought to get the other girls checked before they went home.”

Of course, he did that. He is a good man. He was looking out for Cam. I should have, right? I should have taken her. Sexually transmitted diseases.

“Look at me.” Cam grabbed my hand. “Look at me.”

She had the most calming eyes. Something about the color, or the shape, or the way they showed how she felt ... they soothed something in me.

“Take a deep breath, Jacques. Good, now out ... Bon! Take a sip of your tea and tell me that you are okay. That you are not angry with me.”

“Angry with you? Of course not! I wouldn’t be mad at you, I would kill that bastard again if I could.” I closed my eyes and took another breath. It was so fucking frustrating. This fucking shit would come up and just overwhelm me without warning. One minute, la-di-da and the next minute it was a raging storm. But I could feel Cam’s hand in mine and it was ... nice. Breathe.

“Good, Jacques. Very good, eh, Dean?”

“Amazing, actually. You are a good influence, Cam.” Dean’s voice was missing the humor I expected. He was serious.

Since I was not, apparently, going to flip the table or run from the room, we changed the subject and, by the time dinner was done, the tension was all gone.

I did call Jake, but he was out or occupied or my time zones were out of whack with his, so I had to leave a message. He’d get back to me when he had time, I was sure.

It took almost a week before Dean found the money in his account. I only knew because he threw a bank statement at my head while I was eating breakfast.

“What the hell is this?”

I picked up the paper and looked it over. He had a very nice balance. Not quite ‘Fuck it’ money but getting there.

I sipped my orange juice and smirked at him. “It’s a bank statement. You should invest some of that or taxes will kill you this year.”

“You little ... Listen smart-ass, why is there a one million, five hundred-thousand-dollar deposit from the McCoy Investments, Inc.? I called Terry and he said I had to talk to you.”

“Well, that last encounter was all Coast Guard and US Navy, you didn’t really do much so ... this is just for the penthouse, the first pirate boat and the Ukrainians.”

He stared at me like I had two heads. “What? WHAT? What the fuck are you talking about?”

Cam was watching the two of us, her head pinging back and forth between us and her eyebrows knit. I think she could tell that Dean was not really angry, just surprised.

“Bonuses, Dean. Didn’t Terry go over the bonus schedule with you? Thankfully we didn’t have to pay out on the injury indemnity.” I said, pretending to mop the sweat from my brow.

“Indem ... Jack, what are you doing? You can’t give someone a million and a half.”

“I didn’t. I gave you three bonuses of five hundred thousand each. This was just the first time I had talked to Terry since we were back and could authorize the payments. Did he put them in a lump sum?” I asked, picking up the statement again. “No wonder you were confused!”

By this time Cam had figured out that I was teasing Dean and she was giggling.

Dean, on the other hand, grabbed the statement and checked it for himself before realizing that I was full of it. But that is when he saw the second deposit.

“Wait ... wait ... what ... Jack, if those were bonuses for getting shot at, what is this? What is this?” he was asking, stabbing his finger at the paper where the second deposit was listed.

“Oh, that is the value of one of those boxes of coins. You were right, making you deal with the coins was bad. Yeah, heavy, hard to handle, airports hate you. So, I gave you the cash value and kept them for myself.”

He stood there for a moment, glaring at me. Then, making me nervous, he just smiled. He turned to leave and then stopped, his back to me. Spinning back around, he leaned towards me and said, “Tomorrow is full contact, Boss.”

I was still parsing that, the realization that I might have miscalculated percolating through my brain, when I realized he was gone and I was oh, so screwed.

I was considering running after him when my cell phone rang.

“Jack, It’s Burt Dowdy. Luckily, Dean remembered our deal to keep each other up to date on what was happening with the Ukrainians, unlike you. What, were you too busy counting your money?”

“Whoa, Burt, you are right, I should have called and I am sorry. I was busy trying to get it out of there without the Coast Guard guys getting it in the neck for helping me. They might not have fared as well against a second hit team, you know? Coast Guard: great sailors, lousy infantry.”

“Yeah, I guess I can give you a pass on that. Loved the war games scenario though ... and that gave me the extra I needed. I let it out that the government seized the boat and that the activity down there was to protect the gold they were scraping from the hull. The story is that the gold is all in Fort Knox and there is some infighting over who gets control of it. You are stuck with a torn-apart boat you are going to have to pay to fix. Poor kid.”

“Think they are going to buy it?”

“They already have. Or, at least, we ran a quick convoy to Ft. Knox to sell the story and the local news got it, saying there was a ‘Planned Drill’ out there. We picked up a Ukrainian mob guy for driving past too many times and acting suspicious, and they have pulled back. I think you are clear but for god ‘s sake, keep your head down for a while, okay?”

“Thanks Burt. If there is ever anything I can do for you, let me know.”

“Yeah sure kid. All part of the service.”

I was about to hang up and I heard, “Hey, Jack?”

“Yeah, Burt?”

“You were talking about doing good, giving something back, helping kids. Were you serious or were you just blowing smoke?”

“I was serious, Burt. What’s up?”

There was silence on the line for a moment, but I could hear him.

“My boy died eleven years ago, just two weeks before his ninth birthday. Leukemia.” There was another pause and he came back, his voice a little rough.

“A man shouldn’t outlive his children, Jack. If you want to help folks, that wouldn’t be a bad place to start. Save some other fathers’ sons.”

“What was his name?”

“Tim. Timothy, actually. Timothy Burton Dowdy.”

“Okay, Burt, you got it buddy.”

“Later, Jack.”

It took an additional two weeks to get the E² back again. The CG chief had laid down a whole new keel guard plate and warned me, when he dropped it off, to go easy on the throttle until I got used to it.

“Oh? Why is that?”

“Besides the eight, almost nine tons of gold we got out of here? Remember I told you that the motors had been replaced? Think how powerful they are if they were pushing this boat, plus nine tons, to twenty plus knots indicated.”

Holy shit.

“How fast will she go, Chief?”

“I don’t rightly know, Mister McCoy, but I would like to know if you find out ... professional courtesy and all that,” he said with a wink. “realistically, you should be able to push forty, but you will quickly get to the point where the harder you push it, the smaller the return. At anything close to that speed, you will just be beating the superstructure against increasingly solid waves. Might not be safe that fast, I doubt the designers planned for this hull configuration going forty knots. Still ... might be fun to find out. Be safe out there, Mister McCoy!”

Hot damn! I knew what I was going to be doing that weekend! For now, though, a nice sedate ride over to the yacht club. I really needed a bigger place where I can have this nearby! That reminded me, I needed to get a couple more of those Rucki, as Dean loved to call them. Keep some on the E-Key and some on the E² too!

Dean came to pick Cam and me up at the yacht club and we stopped on the way back. Had to order what we wanted though, they only had one in stock. I wanted three more in addition to the one they had, and Dean said he would order the kits to make them the same as the two we already had. Nice!

What happened next to disrupt our home was bound to happen. Inevitable, really, and if I was a good guy, I would have pushed for it to happen sooner. Cam was living in the Keys now with two guys, no friends other than us and no female companionship. I had hooked her up with Stacy via FaceTime and email and they became besties, but even that was not the same as having local friends to hang out with.

Alan and Debbie showed up on my doorstep one morning in late February. They didn’t even know Cammie existed! Ugh.

“Hey Jack! Ride? Please? Mom and Dad are out of town and someone ... someone who is not me, wrecked the car.”

“Shut up! It is not wrecked, and I got rear ended, douche-nozzle, I didn’t wreck it.” Debbie said, smacking her brother. She turned back to me, “Jack, they won’t give us a loaner since we are not eighteen, and Mom and Dad won’t be back until tonight so ... can we have a ride?”

Oh crap!

“Yeah, sure, let me grab my...”

“No worries, we got time.” Alan said, ducking around me and heading towards the kitchen calling out, “Hey Dean!”

Debbie shrugged, smiled, and followed.

I turned around to go back inside and had barely shut the door when I heard a gasp.

Alan was standing there looking awe-struck while Debbie was standing with her arms crossed, one toe tapping. They were both staring at Cam.

Remember how I told you that she had been slowly increasing intimacy between us? We had reached the stage where she was wearing less around the house. Not enough to scandalize, but definitely leaving little to the imagination.

She was dressed today in a pair of silk boy-shorts that hugged her hips and outlined her butt like a second skin. Over that was a loose top with spaghetti straps and nothing else but loosely draped silk. I found myself sneaking peeks, despite my resolve, and hoping to see what was tantalizingly hidden.

I felt guilty, and a whole lot nervous but ... she was so ... something. I was really enjoying her slow, deliberate pace and wanting to know what was next, even as I feared it.

Debbie turned around, her arms still folded under her smallish breasts, and glared at me.

“And who is this?” she asked, her tone brooking no denials or refusals.

I sighed and grinned at Cam, who was examining Alan. Poor Alan didn’t know what to do. When Cam saw me watching her, she wrinkled her nose and came over, tucking herself under my arm, her head on my chest and her eyes on Debbie.

“Cam, this is Debbie and her brother Alan. They are friends of mine. They live near here and go to school with me. Deb, Alan, this is Camille Diana Raimond, she is from Lyon, France and has moved here to live with me. She is an orphan like me. We ran in to each other in the Bahamas and we have been inseparable since.”

“Wow. Um, hi, Cam. Why has Jack been hiding you? We thought he was just weird but now I see he just had incredibly high standards.” Alan said, making a production of bowing over her fingers.

Debbie wacked him on the back of the head. “Pam, remember?” she reminded her brother.

“Hi, Cam, I am Deb and we are so very glad to meet you. Do you know that a lot of folks thought Jack was gay because he didn’t date any of the girls at school? My brother was right though, it must be because he was waiting for you. You are gorgeous!”

It was Alan’s turn to smack Debbie. “Amy, remember?”

Debbie just smirked. “Amy would totally share,” she said smugly and Alan got a faraway look on his face that earned him another smack. Cam just giggled at the two of them.

“Your friends are charming, Jacques. You are a bad boy for not introducing me sooner. I could use a girlfriend here, who could show me where to shop and where to get my hair done. So many things!” Cam said, her tone teasing. I just gave her a little growl and she giggled.

“Hush, mon loup.”

“You should be careful with Debbie. If she and her girlfriend get you alone, I would fear for your safety.”

“Nothing to fear, Jacques. Maybe I would bring them home to share with you?”

The calculating look in Debbie’s eye made me flinch and Cam picked up on my sudden unease.

“Non, Jacques, I am not yet willing to share. Maybe, one day, when the time is right, I will bring you another mate, but not soon ... we have much to discover yet, you and I.”

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Debbie shiver and her nipples were poking through her t-shirt like it was freezing in here or something. I actually recognized it for what it was now though, Cam had educated me more than I had thought.

Okay, so I blushed, and it made me uncomfortable, but I recognized it!

Baby steps.

All the way to school and all the way into the building and all the way to my locker, Debbie pestered me with questions.

“STOP!”

Debbie looked shocked for a moment, then blushed.

“Deb, please. You know that I am private about some things. There are things I just do not talk about, and my relationships or lack of relationships or new relationships ... so you know, relationships? I don’t talk about them. Ever. How long have you known me? You should know this.”

“But Cam is ... she is so ... damn, Jack! And she calls you Jacques. How sexy is that? I have to go and change my panties before class.” she said with a smile.

“EW EW EW! Too much, Debbie. Jeez. Go away now. I’ll see you at lunch. If you behave.” I told her, backing away and turning to run for my first class.

At lunch, everyone knew. Great.

“What do you mean, you don’t have any pictures of her?”

“It never occurred to me to take pictures of her, okay? She lives with me. I don’t need pictures when I can look at her.”

“And oh my god, she is worth looking at.” Debbie said with a groan, then blushed when I glared at her.

“Text her.” Ellen Bale said.

“Yeah, text her!” Pam, Alan’s girl broke in.

“Why?”

“To get a picture, you Luddite!” That was from Amy, the best-behaved girl in the group!

I pulled out my phone and texted Cam.

Me: Hey, what are you doing?
Cam: Jacques! <3 <3 WRU doing? Problem? U never txt me!

Me: Debbie. She is a gossip. She told everyone. I don’t have a picture of you and they want to see you.

Cam: Of course!

Bam! Right there on the screen. HOLY SHIT WHAT DID SHE DO!??? Not only was that illegal, I was under eighteen, but there is no way anyone but me would ever see that if I had a say in the matter!

Me: NO! I can’t show them that!

Cam: Hehehehe That was for U <3 Show them this.

Okay, much better. Wow. She about gave me a heart attack. Why would she do that? Someone might have seen!