Chapter 1: Return

Atlantic Ocean
March 1985

Under a quarter-moon Kalliste whistled through the calm waters almost inaudibly. Spray-on soundproofing in the engine compartment had, along with other changes, dampened any vibration in the newly refit yacht. The fiberglass coating on the hull from the waterline down had done the same for water noises against the hull; it was an unplanned but not unpleasant surprise. At 18 knots the faint whine of the turbos on the new Caterpillar six cylinder engines was about all that could be heard in the night.

The yard had done a picture documentary of every phase of the refit. One picture showed her shored up in the huge work building, multiple hull planks (18 were replaced in all) missing and the roof of the salon removed to get to the engines with a lift. She had been literally taken apart and rebuilt, inside and out.

"What'cha thinkin about Cap'n Tony?" Tina asked, emerging into the cockpit from below and purposely hip-checking her brother.

"Just the differences," Tony replied. "She sounds different, she feels different, she handles different. All of it's good, it's just going to take me some time to get used to."

"Yeah, I can hear the difference and she seems to turn quicker when steering. I can't put my finger on what else it is that makes her just feel more solid somehow."

"It's the new strakes they put on the hull. You don't feel the waves near as much when they're coming from the side. She's pretty big to roll much, but even what she used to do is mostly gone now. You're right though, she just feels more solid out in the open water because of that. What do you think about the changes inside?"

"Magnificent. The galley is beautiful. All the new appliances are nice. If anyone needs a trash compactor, people who own boats need one. I know we had it good before, but a washer and dryer?" Tina chuckled.

"Yeah well you don't want to use them unless we're docked and even then not too much unless we can pump out or have a sewage hook-up. I wonder what it would cost to have something set up at home. Probably not something we really want to deal with, no matter."

"And this," she waved a hand towards the back of the boat, "is nice for the winter time." The entire rear deck of Kalliste was now covered in a custom made, windowed, canvas enclosure that turned the back of the main deck into a huge 30' X 15' enclosed space. It wasn't something Tony intended to use in good weather, but for running from Hampton to Savannah in March it made piloting Kalliste a much more enjoyable prospect than braving the elements.

"So are you satisfied with it all then?" Tina asked.

"Oh yeah, I gave Frank the check didn't I?" Tony replied. Frank was the supervisor at the shipyard. He had joined them on the trip from the yard in Hampton, Virginia and stayed until they reached Charleston, South Carolina in case any faults were found on the return cruise. The check, in the end, had been for slightly over two hundred thousand dollars. More, Tony mused, than Kalliste's initial 1957 purchase price.

"Is this a private party or can anyone join?" Gwen asked as she came up the stairs followed by Dewayne.

"The more the merrier. We're just talking about all the changes to Kalliste." Tony replied.

"You guys went all out that's for sure," Dewayne chimed in. "I didn't think there was much more you could do to her. But damn, she's even nicer than before."

"Yeah, we've decided we're pretty happy with her. I imagine granddaddy would approve. You guys about ready to get back home?"

"Yep," Gwen said. "I think I'd enjoy this whole cruising thing a lot more if it was warmer out. No offense but it's kind of boring being inside all the time."

"Yeah," said Tony. "I don't think I'm going to use this cover much in the summer. We should make the marina in about a half hour to top off. We should be home by ten o'clock or so."

Tina giggled. "Yeah, and I bet I know someone who is already sitting on the dock at the house waiting on you. I don't think you and Rebecca have been apart for more than 10 hours at a time in six months."

Tony let the slight exaggeration pass, mainly because it was only slight. "Well I won't say it won't be good to see her after eight days." Tony had flown up on Wednesday the 6^th after school to spend several days going over the various changes and repairs. Tina, Dewayne, and Gwen had come up Saturday afternoon to help sail the yacht home starting early Monday morning. It was now the evening of the 14^th and they had just passed Hilton Head heading towards the Savannah River inlet.

"I guess I should check and make sure there's someone at the marina, they should be expecting us." With that Tony picked up the VHF radio microphone and spoke into it.

"Tybee North this is Kalliste."

After a short pause the radio came to life. "Well welcome home Kalliste! We was told you were coming back today after closing time, that you Tony?"

"Hey Bubba! They make you stay late tonight just to wait on our little girl here?"

"Haha, yeah Tony and there ain't nothing little about that girl of yours."

"Well you won't hardly recognize her. We sent her up north for a few months to get prettied up a bit. We're about 20 minutes out, see you then."

"10-4 Kalliste, I'll be waiting on you."

"Woo-wee! You weren't kidding were you?" Bubba said as Tony stepped from the gangway to the dock. Bubba was probably not his real name, but if he had another no one knew it.

"What? It was just a little wash and wax is all," Tony joked.

"Yeah, and paint, and varnish, and a whole lot of other things as well. You didn't used to have a radar up top there either."

"OK, well maybe a few modifications were made along the way. Get the pump started and I'll show you what's new. I'll need a couple hundred gallons."

Tony gave Bubba the nickel tour of the new engine room, galley, and cockpit changes as well as the various other minor and not so minor changes. "So," he said as they were waiting on the fueling to finish, "I'm looking for a tender now that the davit is installed. I need something between 12 and 14 feet with a small outboard. And it has to look right. I know they used to make some pretty small runabouts out of mahogany years ago."

"Yeah, I know what you're talking about. Chris Craft used to sell them as kits. I'll put the word out and see what we can find for you."

"Thanks for waiting up on us Bubba. I really didn't want to stop in Beaufort for the night being so close to home."

Bubba laughed. "Just let us know when you need something like that. The way that big girl sucks diesel Art and Marie are more than happy to pay me to wait up on you!"

The addition of new forward facing lighting (installed for just this purpose) and a trainable spotlight made negotiating the smaller channels back to the house a breeze while it had been a fairly dicey situation at night in the past. Soon Kalliste was snuggling up to the dock in her familiar place.

There were a surprising number of people on the dock waiting for them. Rebecca and her parents were there, as were the Smiths. Jerry was already busy helping Tina and Dewayne secure the lines along with his brother Matt. A young light skinned black girl and a woman who appeared to be her mother were there also. It occurred to Tony that it must be Gwen's little sister and mother, neither of whom he'd ever met.

The gangway had no sooner hit the dock than Rebecca was up it and in Tony's lap a half second later. After a tight hug and a brief but passionate kiss she seemed to have settled down a little. "Well I should go away more often. That was some welcome home. Did you miss me?"

"Yes! Terribly! Do you realize that since we met we've never gone for even two full days without seeing each other?"

Tony chuckled. "Well, according to Tina it's more like 10 hours but I think you're a little closer to the truth. I missed you too."

"Tony! If you're done playing kissy-face in there we need to come back a little. I think we have a bit of a forward current and I can't get the line tight," Tina yelled.