Chapter 5: Back to Bridgetown

At lunch the disposition of the Meredith family was decided. While they could be bunked onboard the cutter until they could be put ashore by helicopter, this might take several days. Malcolm and Caroline volunteered to run them back to Bridgetown, in Barbados, where they could decide what they wanted to do. Captain Potter agreed, with a warning to stay away from Maggie’s ex.

Once back on the Bottoms Up, Captain Jimmy set course back to Bridgetown and Phoebe served drinks to the Jensons, Mary, and Maggie in the main cabin. Mary decided to lie down on Phoebe’s bunk, but Jason went up to the bridge to see what the skipper and Robby were doing. He was fascinated by the whole sea-going adventure. With the children out of the way, still unaware of the suspicion their father was under, Malcolm asked what the Merediths were planning on doing.

Maggie and Babs shrugged at each other, and Babs admitted, “I don’t know. Go home, I guess. This vacation is sure blown all to hell, isn’t it?”

“Maybe yes, maybe no,” replied Malcolm obliquely. “Listen, if it was Maggie’s ex and you go home now, you might all still be in danger. He doesn’t even need to touch the children; he could knock off you and Maggie and then get control of the money as a trustee. The kids are still minors. It might not be a bad idea to stay as far from the man as you can for a while. If he’s the one that did this, one of two things might happen. First, the FBI will probably find enough evidence to nab him for something. Second, well, if he pulled a stunt like this, he’s probably pretty desperate for cash. He might just have to answer to whomever he owes the money to. Either way, if you stay out of sight for a while, the problem may just solve itself.”

“How?” asked Maggie.

“Stay with us,” invited Caroline. “We’d love to have you stay, and the boat is big enough.”

Both Babs and Maggie immediately protested that that would be taking the Jensons generosity too far, but the Jensons weren’t dissuaded.

“Oh, please, we have no fixed schedule. We’re what you might call the ‘idle rich’. We’re both idle and rich. You’d be a lot safer with us, and you wouldn’t have to call off your vacation. We can get you to an airport whenever you want,” argued Malcolm. Both Merediths began to consider the possibilities. “At the minimum, stay with us the rest of the week you had planned. There’s no reason to go back to Chicago after visiting the Caribbean without a tan!”

“Hell, stay with us till the end of summer!” exclaimed Caroline. “I’m really getting to like you guys and we could have a lot of fun. Maggie, you and the kids are off until school starts, right? Babs, you don’t have to be anywhere, right?” Caroline kept to herself the fact that she really wanted to get it on with both bosomy blondes, and she’d love to initiate Jason. She simply knew her husband wanted the women, all of them.

Babs made up their minds for them. “Okay, we’ll stay till the end of the week. After that, we’ll just have to see.”

Malcolm clapped his hands in delight. “Excellent! We’ll stay ashore tonight. The skipper can replenish the boat, and we can get you folks some decent clothing and have dinner. Tomorrow we’ll put out to sea again and head up to Guadeloupe. Let me make a phone call and set things up.”

It was early afternoon when the Bottoms Up pulled into the marina. Waiting at the slip was a large man, a few years older than Malcolm and as bald as a billiard ball. He was dressed in Bermuda shorts and a half-buttoned, wildly printed shirt, with a duffel bag at his feet. “Welcome back to Bridgetown, Doctor Jenson!” he called out. He snagged a line out of the air that had been thrown him by Robby and wrapped the end around a stanchion.

“Good to see you, too, Reeves. Planning on joining us?” said Malcolm, pointing at the duffel bag.

Reeves shrugged and smiled. “If it’s okay with you. The weather is supposed to be good, and maybe these patches will work.” Turning business-like, he helped the Jensons and the Merediths onto the pier. “A couple of cabs are waiting at the end of the dock to take you back to the hotel. I’ve arranged another suite, the largest they had on the rooftop. The rooms are all stocked, and I’ve also arranged to reprovision the Bottoms Up.” The last part he directed at the skipper. The captain nodded in appreciation and directed Robby to stow Reeves’ bag below.