Chapter 7

Rena said that if the road were re-built there was thousands of tons of stone there that could be had for the loading. The tailings from the mines were mostly small stone carried by hand out of the tunnels.

Robert instructed Rena to begin to have such a road built but that was a low priority project.

Maria and Cathy left for their offices.

Robert said " Rena I hope you are a discrete person and can keep much of what you know in confidence ".

Rena promised to do so and left.

The rainy season was in full session.

The river emptying into the bay was full and out of it's banks in places.

Water was running in every ditch.

Fierce rains would sweep in from the gulf and pour down for a short while then the sun would shine until the next rain cloud.

Robert began to worry about his landing strip becoming soft. The soil was mostly sand though and it remained firm.

The Friday morning he had set as the time to leave was clear of rain.

Robert and Cathy loaded their baggage in the plane and took off after a breakfast with Maria.

Robert landed at Tucson and cleared Customs. They flew in to Reno and took a cab to Robert's favorite casino hotel,

Robert left Cathy in the room and found a poker game. He played until seven in the evening. He had told Cathy they would dine at that time.

Cathy was dressed in a beautiful gown. As Robert dressed he marveled at her beauty. Cathy was approaching her sixteenth birthday. She had the poise and maturity of the twenty four year old woman her drivers license said she was.

Cathy was extremely intelligent. She had a quick mind.

She was a big girl, she had grown to five eleven in her bare feet. Wearing two inch heels she was six feet one inch tall.

She was still slender but her breast were large. When she wore a bra which was seldom, she wore a 36 d.

Cathy was the main attraction to the men in any place she went.

Her flawless complexion and glossy, healthy hair were perfect. She never wore colored polish on her finger or toe nails. She kept her nails coated with clear laquer. Cathy seldom wore any kind of make up. She did not need it.

Robert felt that he was the luckiest man in the world to have such a loving companion.

Cathy adored Robert and it showed.

At dinner that night she was addressed by several of the waiters as Mrs. Ward as if she were his wife.

After the plates were cleared they had "stingers" and danced.

A lady Cathy had met at the tables was dancing with her husband.

She introduced Cathy to her husband as Mrs. Ward.

As they danced away Robert said "Cathy would you like to be".

Cathy asked "Would I like to be what" ?

Robert replied " Mrs. Ward ".

Cathy said " With all my heart " !

Robert asked " Cathy will you marry me " ? Cathy breathlessly said " Yes ".

Cathy told him she had loved him since the night he had won her in that poker game. She had dreamed since that night of him loving her enough to marry her. Cathy asked if Robert would let her have his children.

Robert jokingly asked her how many children she would like to have.

Cathy grinned and told him she would like a dozen.

Robert laughed and said four would be enough.

The music finished and they returned to their table.

Cathy said she was so excited she had to go pee.

Robert told her he would sign the check while she was gone.

Robert was amused as he watched men's heads turn as she walked by on her way to the ladies room. He was thinking " Eat your hearts out bastards, she is mine ".

Robert met her as she came back and they went to the room.

Robert had no desire to gamble that night. He and Cathy had sweet loving sex for hours.

The next morning over breakfast in their room they made plans.

Robert asked Cathy if she wanted to have a large wedding in Mexico like Edna's.

Cathy said that they were going to cause talk there. Only a few knew that they were not married and most assumed that they were.

Robert asked if she would like a big wedding in the Cathedral in Mexico again.

Cathy replied that she would love that but she would not like having that crazy Bishop perform the ceremony.

Robert suggested they have a simple civil ceremony that day and then have a large wedding after the rainy season was over. He promised that she would not have to endure the kind of ceremony Edna had.

Robert and Cathy got through all the state of Nevada's requirements that day and had a nice wedding in a chapel.

Robert had shown a lot of affection for Cathy since soon after he took her home with him. He had always placed her first. Edna and then Maria both realized that they were second to Cathy in Robert's mind. Robert had said to Cathy "You are my woman" hundreds of times and she had replied "You are my man".

Now right after the wedding service Robert kissed her and said "You are my wife". Cathy had replied "You are my husband".

Robert noticed a big difference in Cathy after the wedding. She no longer feared loosing him so she was not unhappy when she was not with him.

There was a gratitude thing also.

Cathy could hardly believe the miracle that had caused a mistreated child living in a hog pen to be transformed into the wife of someone like Robert.

She lavished Robert with evidence of that gratitude.

Robert and Cathy stayed in Reno a full week.

After spending many hours playing poker, Robert was only ten thousand ahead. Cathy had won three thousand at Black Jack.

Robert wanted to go to their island for a few days. Cathy admitted that she longed to go to the place where she had been the most happy of all her life until now.

Robert checked them out and they flew home. Edna's old car had set so long the battery was dead. Robert had to call for a boost.

The dogs were ballistic when they went ashore, they ran in circles and jumped and barked.

The house was so peaceful.

Robert turned on his computer and read his Email.

Cathy checked her flowers.

There were eighteen goats now.

Robert asked her to pick six to save. He planed to sell twelve.

The next day Robert took the six she chose to keep across to one of the other islands.

He had called and had a livestock trailer waiting when he ferried the twelve across to the mainland.

That night he went up the lake to Bob's to play poker.

The cards would not come to him there either. He lost thirty four dollars.

When he got home at one a. m. Cathy was waiting up for him.

Cathy would have been happy staying on the island the rest of her life but Robert became restless.

The mail had been boxed when his postal box became full. Robert had gone to the post office and gotten two cartons and the things stuffed in his box.

Most of it was junk mail that got thrown away when he got it home.

There were a few business letters, some invitations, several bills and a weekly news letter announcing new bookings from a marine broker. Robert had called the firm during his last trip home. He thought he might possibly buy another boat for Cathy's charter business. She was turning away charters.

Apparently he was now on their mailing list.

Robert tended to paying bills and business letters first then began to read those marine news letters last.

He recognized several vessels he had discussed over the phone. They were on the front two pages of the oldest issue.

After the first announcement those listings later appeared in categories in the last five pages of the newer news letters.

Five small ships had interested him months ago. Three were in storage near New Orleans, one at Savanna and one at Mobile.

That night he told Cathy of the listings that might make her charter ships.

He wanted to know if she would like to go look at them.

Of course she did.

Robert called the broker representative in Savannah first and made an appointment to see that vessel.

He and Cathy flew to Savannah and were met at the airport by the salesman.

The ship would do but she needed a lot of work to make her seaworthy enough to sail for north west Mexico.

The brokers estimate was for one hundred twenty thousand dollars to just make her able to get a Coast Guard certification.

Cathy went over the cabin and galley arraignment.

She met Robert on deck and told him she did not think this one would do. She said that every thing was cramped down below by trying to get twelve staterooms into that hull.

The salesman immediately cut the asking price in half.

Robert told him they would think about it.

The salesman took them back to the airport.

Robert called the brokers office in Mobile and made an appointment for nine the next morning at the airport.

They were met by a lady. She was all business. The ship she showed had been a Gulf of Mexico tramp cargo vessel that carried passengers. It had been in service on a regular route to ports that were not deep enough for the large cargo ships. The ship was painted a light green with white topsides. She was clean as a pin.

The engine was nearly new and the bridge was well equipped.

The crews quarters were large and had every convience.

There were only four state rooms for passengers.

Cathy said that four parties on a cruse would barely pay expenses.

The ship was being offered for three hundred thousand.

Robert told the lady broker that they intended looking at three vessels near New Orleans but would keep this one in mind.

The broker said that the sister ship to this one was stored there and asked if that was one they planed to see.

Robert showed her the newsletter add he had circled.

The sales lady said that the other vessel was identical in every respect to this one.

She said that both of them and one other that had since been sold had been operated by a small steam ship line that had gone broke two years ago.

There were four vessels at first.

The ships had been built in England by the finest ship yard there.

They had been designed for the owners. They were launched twenty years ago and had made a good profit for years.

In recent years the cargo and passengers that they had hauled was going by air.

The owners had gone out of business because of that and the loss of one of the four vessels in a collision at sea.

One ship was struck by a Greek Freighter in a dense fog. She had sunk and the Greek line had no insurance.

As the broker drove them to the airport she made one last attempt to interest them in the ship. She cut the asking price from three hundred thousand to two hundred fifty thousand.

Robert thanked her and again said that they would keep her offer in mind.

It was a short hop to New Orleans.

Robert wanted to show Cathy the French Quarter.

They enjoyed the "Big Easy" for three nights. Cathy saw her first Female Impersonators. She saw her first Male Stripers. She rode her first street car and enjoyed all kinds of foods.

Robert called the local branch of the brokerage firm. They had an appointment the next morning.

The sales man showed them a boat even less desirable than the one they saw at Savannah. It was bad. It was dirty. It was an antique.

The sales man was bored and doubted that this couple could afford a boat larger than an outboard.

Robert told him that they were not interested in that one.

Robert asked to see the third one he had circled on his list.

The salesman made a bad error in judgement. The man informed Robert that there was no need. It was exactly like the one he had seen at Mobile.

The salesman said that he had a possible appointment for that afternoon and he needed to return to his office.

Robert gripped Cathy's arm to prevent her from making a reply to such rudeness.

At the sales office before leaving in their rental car, Robert asked the arrogant bastard where the other ship was located.

The salesman made the remark that they could see her at Larouch at the ship yard there. Robert left.

In the car Cathy said "I wanted to slap that smirk off that bastards face".

Robert told her he had been tempted to throw him overboard himself.

They bought a road map and set out to see the ship.

Robert drove into the storage docks of a small ship yard. At the dock office he gave the manager his business card. He said that he was there to see the Estraleta. He had talked to the broker's salesman earlier and been told the agent had an afternoon appointment. He had told Robert where she was.

Robert asked for keys so they could see her. The dock master said that there were full time guards here with K9 dogs and the vessels were never locked.

He directed Robert to the ship.

It was an exact copy of the one in Mobile.

She was painted the same light green hull and white topside as her sister ship in Mobile.

Both had 80 ton hydraulic cranes in their bow. The cranes were tucked down and covered in white canvas.

In the engine room the massive diesel engine was spotless, no sign of any oil leaks and the diesel generator was the same. There was welding equipment and a work bench with a multitude of tools.

Robert noticed an arrangement that would let the generator drive the ship's propeller in an emergency. Behind the engine room was the crew's quarters. There were six small staterooms. At the aft end a big bath with two of every thing.

Foreword toward the engine room was a lounge area with a galley and a table large enough to seat eight.

Above was a large after deck and foreword was a large lounge area for passengers the galley was in the fore part of that. There had been large port holes below but the topside ports were big.

There was a ships ladder up to the bridge deck and carpeted stairs down to the four large passenger staterooms. They were nicely furnished and clean.

The passenger area ended at a huge water tight bulkhead.

Robert opened the door in that and they were looking at the cargo hold.

It was open clear to the chain locker in the bow.

Robert said that he thought there was enough space there to add three staterooms down each side of a continuation of the hall behind them.

The large hatch way in the deck could be removed and ports could be installed in the ship's sides.

Robert asked Cathy if she could charter as many as ten couples for her cruises.

Cathy said that four would be about break even. Ten would bring a big profit.

They left and the next morning checked out of their room in the French Quarter. Robert turned in the rental car at the airport and did a preflight.

He filed a flight plan as he taxed to the runway.

They were home in Alabama early that afternoon.

Robert called his office in Mexico.

He talked to Maria for a long time.

She had no problems except the rains.

Robert asked for Antonia. Robert asked him if all was well. Antonia said that he had a roof over his head and they were working every day.

Robert told Antonia that he was thinking of purchasing two small ships to be converted to charter use like the Cathy Ward.

Both were identical and in fine shape.

Robert wanted to know first if the yard could handle a small ship of two hundred feet length. Antonia said "No Problem".

Robert asked if the yard could schedule the shipwork. Antonia explained that they could this year but that he was not certain next year. The business was growing.

Robert thanked Antonia and hung up the phone.

Later Cathy joined him in the office and Robert told her he was going to buy the two vessels for her to manage.

He made his wife proud and happy.

The next morning Robert called the sales lady in Mobile. He told her he was interested in the vessel she had shown him and gone on to New Orleans to see her sister ship. He stated that he might be interested in both.

Robert asked for a price for both ships but he insisted that the sales person in New Orleans not get a commission.

He would deal only with her.

She laughed and said "He is a bastard isn't he".

Robert said "He most certainly is".

Robert asked if she would submit a price for the ships delivered to Bahia Keno Mexico.

She promised to contact the executors of the bankrupt firm immediately.

Two hours later she called and told Robert the trustees of the court would offer him both vessels for two hundred thousand each. That would be with crews furnished and fuel and provisions.

Robert countered with an offer of one hundred fifty thousand dollars each for them delivered to Mexico.

She called him back in thirty minutes and told him that the ships would not sell for less than one hundred seventy five thousand each delivered to Mexico.

Robert agreed to that price.

Mrs... Horton ( The Sales Person) said that the full amount was expected in advance.

Robert countered with an offer of half now and the remainder upon delivery.

She said that was not customary.

Robert said he would not pay the full sum until delivery. He said that a full payment in advance would cause him the liability of the ships. He asked her the price of the ships "As is where is".

She called and said the savings would be forty thousand. Robert agreed to that.

Mrs. Horton suggested that she could arrange full insurance coverage.

She also said that she could find the previous captain of the ship in Mobile.

He was working at a shipyard in Mobile and trying to find job as a Ships Master.

His brother had been master of the ship in New Orleans. Both were in their mid forties and fine persons. They had been the sons of the owners.

Robert asked her to look them up and see if they were interested in permanent jobs as captain of their old ships.

Mrs. Horton asked a few questions and told him she would call him back.