Chapter 37

You gods know everything, I thought.

<As we’ve mentioned before ... We’re not gods. We’re... >

“Scientists!” I said. Yeah yeah yeah. Like a certain candy bar there’s a sneer in every Yeah.

“What’s the matter with scientists?” asked the girl at the next table.

I turned ... wow ... cute, “They think they know everything,” I said.

“We do not,” she said.

For some damned reason, that pissed me off. We were at Tokashiki Island in the Sound Beach Cafe and bar. We were at the bar because the cat was at Tokashiki harbor having the port engine looked at.

We were having the engine looked at because of problems that commenced 20 miles out of Naha, Okinawa. We had the weather window to go west southwest to Miyakojima and going BACK to Naha was considerably more difficult than going forward. Besides, Naha was a drag ... and Cyn ... being Cyn ... had worn out our welcome ... and now she had recently finished a “medical condition” necessitating several weeks of “remedial shots.”

Cyn had recovered from the clap. Several officers were mentioned during the interview taken after she tested positive and there were a few officers wives who weren’t happy. Like ... an even dozen.

The 661nm five day sail from Osaka to Okinawa had left Cyn with an itch she needed scratched ... and scratch it she did. That resulted in the shots. But ... Cyn being Cyn ... didn’t start worrying for quite awhile.

“Girls always have drips,” she told the doctor, “I didn’t think anything of it.”

We were in Tokashiki because it wasn’t politic to stay in Okinawa ... and the weather window. And that’s my story.

We were seated at a table in the Sound Beach Cafe because the looking at had devolved to looking after and the looking after was going to take awhile ... an indeterminate time probably relieving my pocketbook of much cash.

If we were going to be inconvenienced, Cyn wanted to be inconvenienced where she could see and be seen and that meant Resort.

Another reason we were at the bar on South Beach was because there was no room at the Harbor Inn and South Beach was the Only resort that had both beach and room. Besides having no room, Tokashiki Harbor doesn’t have a beach.

Having been persona non grata for my familial affiliation with one Cyn Flintkote for several weeks and unable to get away from her for more than fifteen minutes ... no matter how long I was on a mission ... I was slightly short tempered.

We are not from a girl who couldn’t have been 19 pissed me off ... blame it on my sister, I do ... and I said, quite angrily, “How would you know?”

She got this look ... not the Mom look ... the lost kitten look. Anyway she had it perfected. “I’ll have you know I have a Ph.D in Physics.”

“You don’t look old enough to be out of high school.”

“That’s because I’m not ... old enough...”

Cyn said, “At least you managed to stay the course and got your degree.” She looked down her nose at me. “We didn’t. Get our doctorate ... Masters? Yes. Doctorate? No. New Zealand wanted us to be in Age appropriate classes. For socialization.” She gave me another look, “Mr. Know it all here wanted to be a Ninja.” Cyn snorted, “We’ve been in Japan for nearly four years.” And another look, “Mr. Smart Ass broke our boat!”

“Aw, come on, Cyn. It wasn’t my fault. Things happen.”

“On your watch ... shit doesn’t happen on mine,” she said.

The cute professor said, “Let me guess ... brother and sister?”

That got a nod.

“You have to be the Flintkote,” she said. “Where is Surprise?”

“Now, that’s funny. I was just asking the gods that very same thing. Where is Surprise?”

<Looking for you.>

Why didn’t you say so?

<Because you wind up so easily.>

“Aaarrrggghhh!”

This next happened concurrently.

Cyn said, “It’s Aaarrr. Generally followed by Me Hearties.”

Miss Physics asked, “Hurt yourself?”

<You could call.> (End of concurrence.)

“I can’t call ... the boat has the radio.”

“Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters?” asked Miss Physics.