Chapter 3

Begin Again:3.

"Andie," Connie asked.

"You scared me half to death," Andie said. It was an explanation for the big swerve the Penny took just then.

"Sorry," Connie said.

"Girl, you are skin and bones ... go eat. Nyoman will feed you," the Admiral of the Nevis and Saint Kitts Navy said.

Just then, Chief Sanchez, the professional seaman came on deck, "What?"

"What what?" asked Andie.

"The swerve?"

"Her fault," Andrea pointed at Miss McDavid.

"I scared her," Connie confessed.

The Chief said, "Scared me too. Thought we swerved to miss that shipping container."

"Shipping container?" Andrea asked. "What shipping container?"

Looking forward, because the helmsman wasn't, the Chief stuck a fist with the thumb out pointing over the stern. Sure enough ... shipping container ... orange with barely readable NIKE letters ... bobbing in the wake.

"That one," he said. " ... Admiral? Don't tell me you didn't see it."

"Ok."

"Ok?"

"I won't tell you," Andrea said.

David came bounding out on deck, "What?" He was wort from head to toe.

"Spilled a little?" Andie asked.

"Sacrilege!" exclaimed the Chief. Beer is fussy and it's not nice to mess with it.

After the vocalized reason of why he was covered in not yet fermenting beer was given. He said, "So ... it's a shipping container ... and it's not sinking ... deck shoes? Trainers? Shipment for the NFL?" asked David.

"Let's go see," suggested Connie.

And that's what they did.

The Chief said, "We're about 20 miles from Lighthouse Reef and the Great Blue Hole. There's a couple of uninhabited islands on the Reef."

So, Connie swam over to the container and hooked a Wye towrope to the pair of bollards on the hatch end and they towed the orange box to the Caye west of the Lighthouse. There, in a small cove on the south end of the Caye is an ancient pirates careenage. They used the Gar Wood rum runner to push the box onto the beach and a hammer and chisel to beat off the seals.

Before they swung the doors open, Andrea said, "Connie. What ever is in there is yours."

"Why me?"

"This is your idea ... and if you hadn't scared the poop outta me we'd be sunk and swimming. Thank you ... even if I didn't think so at the time.

"Ok ... swing them doors daddy-o," she said to David.

It was Nike boxes halfway back ... with real Nike products ... leather topped deck shoes, leather topped runners, $250.00 a pair ... really top of the line shoes ... the kind they don't sell at WalMart ... good ones. If Nike made it ... it was in the front half of the container.

Nyoman immediately filled a 85 quart Aladdin cooler with pure water and correctly sized shoes for the entire crew.

"Gets the salt out," she said. "We'll change the water three or four times, wear them dry and they'll be fine." She picked up a pair, "These are really good shoes ... made in Japan."

The rest of the boxes of Nike shoes were just piled on the island.

"What else is in there?" Andrea asked.

"Bigger wood boxes ... nailed shut," Connie said. "We need some muscle in here ... hammer and pry bars, please. Label says Levi's."

And that got the whole crew in the container. Prybars were applied and lids removed and the shock took over.

Not Jeans!

Nope.

Used Hundred dollar bills.

Used £Fifty pound notes.

Swiss Payable in Gold paper Franks.

Bearer Bonds for Germany, France, Brazil, Japan.

Millions and millions and more millions in cash.

"Drug Money," said Nyoman. It was a curse.

"Untraceable," said the Chief. That was a blessing.

"What am I going to do with it all?" asked Connie, and she started to cry.