C James

Without proof, they can't move against property. They can file a tax lien at the touch of a button, but unless they can then prove their case, it's voided. (it does, however, remain on the record forever). Could they force an inspection, etc, yes. We do not know exactly what Bridget gave the IRS. Would they have done some checking before contacting the accountant? I think you are likely right. You are, however, assuming that Rachel had employees on the illegal charters. You're also assuming that the Jones Act forbids any sort of charters. It does not. It forbids carrying of passengers in the case of waiver-less foreign built boat, which includes the kind of charters we saw Trevor do. What it does not preclude is bare-bones charters, which is basically someone renting the boat (the owner would not be going along, nor any crew). That would be a legal business use, and would be income Rachel could report on a schedule C for Ocean Star Charters. I'm not saying she did or didn't (you'll need to wait for the conversation between Rachel and Gonzalez for that and some other info) but she surely could have. I honestly can't recall whether or not Trevor referred to docking fees at his home marina as part of his expenses. He may very well not know who actually owns the dock (and his father was obviously keeping quiet on anything financial), and also we don't know if that dock was one owned by Dirk; there are a lot in that marina, and the regular boat slip docks could not take Atlantis; she's far too wide to fit in a slip. She was tied up on a straight dock. Also, ownership does not mean you're the one collecting rents. The land-based equivalent is an apartment building; it is likely to be run by a management agency, instead of the owner directly.

I'll post the table here; BTW, What I do to post images is display them in the gallery (follow your link, the click once) then right click on the image, select "copy image to clipboard", then return to the post, click on the image button, and past in the link. My point was that the IRS investigation into Rachel and Dirk commenced, even by your own reckoning, in Dec 1994. That's based on Dirk's statement of ABOUT 12 years ago. My own notes say he was rounding up and it was just a few months later (summer, 2005) and I one of the reasons I had him say "about" was because I didn't think he'd remember exactly off the top of his head, but, I didn't say that in the story, so let's use your own date, Dec 1994. She set sail from Florida for Australia in May, 1997. I count that as being approximately two and a half years. You said several years and cited that as one of the things you found implausible. The definition (I believe it to be a common and accurate one) I use for "several" is "Three or more". Your log of events is superb work, and I truly wish I had been so meticulous in my outline, which lacked dates in many places. That lead me to spending lots of time looking for references, as well as making some glaring errors, such as 8 day weeks and the like. I have learned from this, and will absolutely do so for my next novel, instead of trying to keep so much of it in my head. Yes, she operated Ocean Star Charters, sort of. It was an entity she set up while trying to make the charters legal (including while petitioning for a Jones Act waiver) but many of her charters were, perforce, under the table and off the books. After there were two boats, were they being operated? Yes, but there is no mention of how. Dirk mentions hiring a couple to run Atlantis, but that's after Rachel left. For anything more on this, you'll have to wait until the conversation between Rachel and Gonzalez. However, you raise an interesting point, so even if we hypothetically assume the existence of crew for one of the boats prior to Rachel's departure, you seem to be assuming that they would be honest in any interview. It also requires the assumption that the IRS knew of them and could find them. If they were being paid under the table, they could not be honest (even if the IRS found them) without implicating themselves for concealing income.

There's more to learn about Bridget's operations... Trevor faces a very formidable foe, one he's not yet aware of.

Thanks! The Florida side is fast changing, and this much delayed move by Gonzalez to get Lisa and Joel out of their love shack should keep Trevor a bit safer -were it not for the tracker on Kookaburra. :-) Joel is a favorite of mine as well.

Ahh, but all I'm really saying there is that the definition of "up" varies from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere, so therefor, one is inverted relative to the other. And, am I not doing Australia a favor by publicizing the existence of Australian math? Left hanging? But but but... there are no cliffhangers in Circumnavigation!! And LoL, yeah, Joel sure was shocked by that particular "punishment". Nah, I'll stick to Australian math... gotta keep it real. Very true! I have often said that goats cannot count, and that's one thing I've yet to be argued with about. I never saw the last (or any other, save for a few miniutes here and there) Sienfeld episode, so I can't comment there, but I did looked it up just now, so here's Wikipedia's page. Umm, they were prosecuted for failing a duty to rescue? There isn't one under US law outside of special circumstances, so they can't be. And a requirement for bystanders to aid the victim during an armed carjacking? But... the design of the characters in Circumnavigation to be, shall we say, morally mixed to varying degrees, was intentional, and has many reasons, some of which we've not yet seen.

I think you have it wrong on a couple of details. Rachel did not know she was under investigation and keep up the illegal activities. It's mentioned that the first warning they had was when the IRS paid a visit to their accountant. I don't recall exactly what Dirk said, but it was within a year or two of Rachel leaving Florida. So, it's not as if they knew all along (Rachel's illegal activities began with the first charter on Ares, well before Trevor was born). The IRS investigation began with Bridget's tip-off to the IRS, so did not run for the length of time you indicate. Also, all we know that Rachel did illegally during the time she knew of the investigation was that final charter, and then the stuff involving her leaving Florida. Legally, Dirk did not need to justify the existence of the funds used to pay off the loan. He already had proof that he had a potential source of funds: the inheritance mentioned. Remember, in that era especially, though to a large degree even now, you were only obligated to report taxable income, not the amount of your holdings. It was then, as it is now, quite legal to keep private the amount of your holdings (excluding recently some things, such as IRA accounts, where you have to disclose the amount). A bank account will have the amount often disclosed to the IRS, but not always even now, and it's totally legal to keep, say, a huge pile of cash in a safe and not report the amlount. The IRS need not know that Dirk's inheritance was gone. Also, even if he could not prove the providence of the funds, it is up to the IRS to show that the source is illegally untaxed. In the case against Capone, they had witnesses and other evidence. Here's a link to the original IRS case summary. The investigation into Rachel basically ended with her "death", because they had no irrefutable proof of the tax crimes plus the tip had named Rachel, not Dirk. They also were motivated by the fact that Dirk was now the subject of a murder investigation (for Rachel's death). It was Rachel they were after, and they thought she was dead. Could they have gone after Dirk alone? Sure, but only for the original matter of filing false loan applications as a co-signator, which is a rather hollow charge after the loan has been paid off in full. It's also not something the IRS would normally do except to put pressure on a tax suspect (as they were doing to Rachel). As for Dirk, they could not prove that he knew what Rachel was doing, let alone that he was involved. The thrust of their case "died" with Rachel. Where do they have a prosecutable case against Dirk once Rachel is "dead"? Conspiricy between husband and wife is darn hard to prove in most cases (due to the inability to compel testimony) but with one 'dead' and no witnesses to any conspiricy, where is their provable case? They can't actually do much without a provable case. I think it's highly likley they kept a close eye on Dirk, looking for any further evidence, but the suspected operations perforce ended with Rachel's "death". And, as a hypothetical; could Dirk justify the existance of the funds used? Sure he could; he owns two buisnesses; the chandlery, plus some income property (nearby stores and the docks) which would need to be on seperate Schedule C's. All he'd have to do was inflate the profit figures, pay a bit of income tax, and bingo, the money is then seen as profit and leitimate and can then be used to pay off the loan. This would not actually be illegal asside from the illegal source (which would make it money laundering, if they could prove the source); there's no law against overstating your profits by failing to list deductions and thus paying more in tax. Lisa and Joel leaving early (assumign they do) should have some interesting ramifications for all concerned. Plus, Lisa and Joel now know that Dirk and Jim are a couple... and Lisa wants to tell Trevor that little detail in person.

Back in Chapter 2 of Circumnavigation, we met Ben, who was in just the one chapter. I received many inquiries about him, and it gave me an idea; write a short story about him, and then distribute it via PM and E-mail as a private "thank-you" to those who were active in the forum or e-mail or PM, etc, regarding feedback or comments. I'd been looking for a way to express my thanks, so this looked like a good fit. The story is a spin-off of Circumnavigation, but I've been told it can be read alone. It's now on my GA site, but I still get an occasional request for it, so I thought I'd post a link here in a thread for it. Ben CJ

I don't recall Dirk ever saying he was innocent of anything except murder? (and as we've seen, he clearly did not murder Bridget's husband or his own wife, so he was, in fact, innocent of those charges). Oh, he also said he was innocent of trying to kill Trevor. And Dirk was indeed framed. And as he admitted, he did the framing for Rachel's murder, and then Bridget and George framed him for Arnold Bellevue and the attempted killing of Trevor.. I'm not saying he's committed no crimes (quite clearly, he has) but I don't recall him saying he's innocent of them (except the ones he clearly is innocent of, above). Even Frank, who would say anything at all, true or not, hasn't, as I recall, claimed innocence for Dirk except for what he's clearly actually innocent of. And as Dirk as said several times over the course of this story, regarding Trevor, "When he learns the truth, he'll hate me, and he'll have every right". That doesn't sound like a man claiming he's absolutely innocent to me.

Author’s Note: Due to substantial portions of this story occurring in Australia, many adaptations have had to be made, including use of the inverted Australian seasonal calendar, the reversed rotation of storms, etc. Therefore, as an accommodation to Australians’ firm and unflappable dedication to upsidedownedness in all things, Circumnavigation will adopt, in addition to the ongoing usage of some Australian language, Australian Maths for the chapter numbering. We will signify this via the AUD symbol, as we do for Australian Dollars. Therefore, we have now reached (with the prior chapter) chapter 66 (99, upside down) and will resume the chapter count at that point. So, without further ado, I now present Circumnavigation Chapter (Australian maths) AUD67. (Or, for our Australian readers: L9pnɐ(sɥʇɐɯ uɐıןɐɹʇsnɐ) ɹǝʇdɐɥɔ uoıʇɐƃıʌɐuɯnɔɹıɔ) Let it never be said that I did not keep my promise to conclude this story before reaching chapter 100. I would also like to thank Australia’s dedicated commitment to being upside down, which has allowed me to evade admitting that I am a long-winded blabbermouth who cannot count. Circumnavigation (Australian Maths) AUD67 Death & Taxes

Chapter 100: Death & Taxes Twice, they nearly came to blows. Frank Tittle, in an obnoxious, self-righteous tone, was presumptuously lecturing the State Attorney on points of law. The State Attorney, for his part, was furious on many levels. Mike Gonzalez and Henry Wesson mainly sat by the side, letting the two attorneys verbally duke it out. Gonzalez was furious; he’d been sandbagged by Frank Tittle and he knew it. Frank, in high dudgeon, pointed out yet another legal citation: “I refe

Trevor, via Joel, he the solution to his money problems suddenly show up on his doorstep. He was in dire need of money, so what did he decide to do? Work for it. Now, as for Greek law, I'll mention that the Greek government was, at the time, in flagrant and fraudulent violation of said Greek laws. I'll explain in my reply lower down. And for Martin, the issues you raised are moot; he was not involved with Rachel's arrival or the immediate coverup. So, he did nothing illegal. It doesn't matter if he later knew; he was under no legal onus to report any crimes. Were crimes committed (such as a forged registration)? Yes, but not by Martin. It doesn't matter if he knows; he's not breaking the law by not reporting it. For the australian mathematics issue... Forgive me, MArty, but ti sounds to me as if you just don't understand Australian Math. I'll be posting more about that subject in the thread for the coming chapter, Death & Taxes, in a few miniutes. Marty, early in the thread, said he was laooking for lawbreakers, not just dishonesty, so that makes this even easier. Lisa asked permission, and was refused, regarding the chandlery. That's not illegal. Twain is one of my favorites. And the national government of Greece was also, at that time, in massive violation of the laws of Greece and the EU, and attempting to cover it up by fraud. They are treaty bound (a condition of EU entry) to have deficits no higher than 3% of GDP, and total debet no greater than 60% of GDP. They have never even come close to abiding by the law, and went further by attempting to hide their financial condition through massive accounting fraud. So, it's hard to blame Trevor for breaking the laws of a government that is itself a criminal on a massive scale. Well, from my point of view, the #1 goal for me in writing is to keep it 100% cliffhanger free, but a close second is to try to keep my characters realistic. That means that sometimes, just like any other person, they'll do things that are controversial. No one is 100% good or bad, because the world in which we live is one of shades of grey, not absolutes. Trevor is his mother's son. She liked to push the limits, sometimes too far. So in some ways does Trevor, and this is one of them. He's also hinted, early on, at Rachel's infleunce, such as quoting her "it's not illegal if you don't get caught". Trevor is showing some traits from his mother, as he does from his father. Good or bad traits they may be, but in my experiance, children usually do pick up some traits from their parents. What they do with them in the long run is up to them.

But... you DID say that I don't say it often enough, and should say it more.... And I agree with you!! Who? Me? But... I am innocent!!

Interestingly, putting a tracker on someone else's vehicle has become a legal gray area. The justice department has taken to arguing that it does not require a warrant or even probable cause for the police to do it, because the information gathered is the same as if a car had followed them, and being out in public they have no right to privacy from what could be observed via non-electronic means. This issue has reached the supreme court, and has yet to be decided. However, for Henry, it means that what he did (placing a tracker, not the trespass) may have been legal, because the same logic applies. Why would it be legal for the police to do it and not him, based on the same legal theory? No law allows the police and not others to do this. BAck in 2006, though, Henry may well have been breaking the law, but the justice department has cleverly opened up the means to take legal stalking to a whole new level, because if they get the ruling they want, it will apply to everyone, due to the legal theory involved (no expectation of privacy on a public road). Totally agreed!! I'll argue over Frank Tittle being liberal (or any other political persuasion - we just don't have any info on that). He's a criminal lawyer, and his job is to say what is needed to help his clients. whether its true or not. What he says has no bearing whatsoever on his own beliefs. And okay, okay, Shane did indeed try to superglue Ned's toolbox shut. Concealing tip money? Remember, he split that 50-50 with Julie, so he's only concealing his half. We don't know what she did with hers. And he did far better than usual on the first charter we saw; he probably nets far less than that, on average. Marty, have you ever found a dollar... maybe some loose change, like a quarter in a parking lot a few times in a year... and then not reported it? Legally, it's the same. And you did say that not reporting taxes wasn't evil. As for the charter in Greece, that broke no US laws, and won't unless he doesn't report it. And, even then, that'd make the voyage largely tax deductible, so the net taxable income would likely be zero. And you're saying you think Gonzalez should have busted Henry for victimizing poor Bridget? Or do you mean George? As I recall, Gonzalez has tried to keep Henry from breaking laws in most cases. Greg is Craig's superior officer, so Craig is obligated to defer to him. Now, speaking of memories (I won't defend mine, I freely admit it's bad) yours seems a tad off for MArtin Blake. Nowhere does it say that RAchel was in contact with him during her arrival or while Ares was being recreated as Ares. Indeed, Rachel said, "Later, when I fell in love with my childhood sweetheart, Martin, someone helped me with the paperwork to change my last name from Smith to Blake." So it looks to me like MArtin wasn't involved in Rachel's arrival or the doctoring of Ares into Kookoburra at all. And, she's registerted, as Kookoburra, in Western Australia, but I don't know of any Australian law that violates, and Martin didn't do it anyway. Now, as for me saying two but listing three, you are forgetting; Martin Blake and Craig Grundig (two of the three) are Australian! Therefore, we need to count them with Australian maths. 1+1+1=3, which is half of 6, but in Australia 6 is upside down so it's a 9, so you subtract one (for Gonzalez, who isn't in Australia) to give you 8, then subreact the 3 (which is half of the six from whence came the 9) to get 5, and then subtract the 3 we started with, and you've got two: Gonzalez, Grundig, and Martin Blake. It's quite simple so long as you bear in mind that, relative to the northern hemisphere, Australia is upside down.

I was hoping someone would notice this aspect. Well done, Marty. Yes. Though to vastly varying degrees, we have almost all major characters, with two possible exceptions, breaking laws. Shane? He stole mainly food, out of dire necessity. Granted, he put himself in that mess partially by his own doing (staking everything on the surf lifesavers competition) but he was coming out of a very bad situation. Trevor? It was illegal for him to leave Florida (he was a minor) against his father's wishes. However, I think it is very understandable that he did, under the circumstances (which included suspecting his father of killing his mother). Did he break gun laws in a few countries by keeping his gun hidden? Yep... and so would I. I would not wish to sail in some of the waters he did unarmed. Here are my two nominees for characters who have not broken the law: Craig Grundig, Martin Blake, and Mike Gonzalez. Me! How fascinating! I'd not heard of that concept before: “Mala in Se, Mala Prohibita.” That makes perfect sense, as a way of understanding legal theory. Thanks for bringing this up!!!!!! And I absolutely agree with your statement: "I personally classify the offense of creating a, “Cliffhanger,” as, “Mala in se.” Cliffhangers are indeed evil, which is why I so steadfastly and forthrightly, with virtious vigor, strive to ensure that none ever occur in my stories.

Lol, that is indeed a cruel thing to do to a kid, but I've seen far worse. Just ask Moon-unit Zappa or Dweezil Zappa, for two that come right to mind (the kids of musician Frank Zappa).

But but but... I never use cliffhangers!! To be honest, there was no such thought in my mind. My original outline called for four chapters, total, between Trevor's first day in Carnarvon and the events in 98. I soon realized it would stretch out a bit, and went with it for character development for Shane, plus setups for what happened in 98 and 99. Looking back, I think I went too far, and before I knew it I had way too many chapters between Trevor's arrival and 98. Part of the problem was I was writing chapter-by-chapter, instead of my preferred method of writing large blocks of text (several chapter's worth) because I was running behind on my posting schedule. I didn't realize it then, but this added to my penchant for verbosity. I resumed my usual method at about chapter 95, but by then I was pretty much locked in to the lead up to 98.

This is an excellent point! Dirk mentions this himself in 99; "Frank is wrong in that regard; there was one victim in all this, and that's my son" Also, he's said several times in past chapters "When Trevor finds out, he'll hate me, and he'll have every right!" The loss of a parent would have happened no matter what (Rachel was facing prison time, not just financial loss)caused by her own actions. I tend to agree with Dirk; Trevor was the victim here.

Thanks!!!

Thanks!!! Arnold Bellevue is mentioned as dead in the narration, so he has to be dead. I had to tread very carefully regarding Rachel on that issue; the narrator could not say she was dead.

Thanks!! The plot hasn't changed in any significant way since the story began posting, but I never, ever thoguht it could end up being this many chapters! At one point, after thrice adjusting my esimated number of chapters upwards, I told Graeme, "If I go over 75 chapters, just shoot me!" Fortunatly for me, he hasn't - yet. Now, as for the undead one's siggy, it's just a coincidence, because I really am innocent!!! ../..//public/style_emoticons/default/innocent.gif Thanks for bringing up that comment! I was hoping that someone would. As Dirk himself said in 99; "Frank is wrong in that regard; there is one victim in all this, and that’s my son." And, the title of the chapter is Revelation. Kind of ties in to the biblical quote that was at the end of the last chapter; “The sea gave up its dead, and death and the grave gave up their dead. And all were judged according to their deeds.” Revelation 20:13, New Living Translation. I'm not trying to give hints here, only pointing to stuff in posted chapters, plus mentioning that Dirk is well aware of what they did to Trevor. As he said several times throughout this story, "When he finds out, he'll hate me, and he'll have every right." I remember that movie! It was a very good one. Here's a link to it at IMDB for anyone wondering about it. I'll also mention that the only reason the Pope family could survive on the run in that movie was due to help from a network of like-minded people, which Dirk and Rachel would not have had. BTW, it's a day early, but I'll mention that the next chapter title is "Death & Taxes".

Benji, do you remember FTL, and the hero riding off into the sunset? So, hrmm, well, if Trevor calls Lisa and Joel to tell them the news, and Bridget gets wind of it (that Ares is still afloat, and is Kookoburra,) things could get... intertesting. Blood and gore? But but but... nothing bad ever happens in one of my stories. And special effects? It could be shot without them, it'd just be a bit risky. Just get a Lagoon 55 and head on out, cameras rolling, to circumnavigate. For the storm scenes in the southern ocean, just go there, you'll find one. That is a very good point; if Bridget got what she wanted off Ares, she'd no longer have a reason to want Trevor, Lisa, and Joel dead. Sanchez, on the other hand, whould be a bit different; he would lose face if the contract isn't fulfilled. There is one way I could wrap it up in one chapter... the only way I can think of, actually.... It's jump to next christmass, showing Bridget, George, and Sanchez, raising a toast to the mantlepeice, on which resides the mumified severed heads of Shane, Joel,, Lisa, and Trevor. They'd be shipped east, thus completing the circumnavigation. ../..//public/style_emoticons/default/innocent.gif I couldn't split it into book one and book 2 (and it's way too late now). So, it'll be one book. Hrmmm, Trevor isn't worried too much about being hunted; he doesn't know about Basingstoke, so he's not worried. It is indeed called Circumnavigation, so IMHO, there has to be a circumnavigation. But... it could be completed in many ways. One way is if Basingstoke takes Trevor's head and ships it back to Sanchez in the Bahamas; that'd complete the circumnavigation. True, there are. But, I also promised to keep this story under 100 chapters, and I will! The next chapter should be posting on time, BTW. Thanks!!!! And yep, the endgame is coming., And of course, no cliffhangers! There never are any in my stories.

Thanks! Hiding what Ares had become wasn't easy. I could not have done it without expert advice from RedA, who is an expert on boats. I picked the Lagoon 55 for Atlantis and Ares so that this could occur; I couldn't find any other big catamaran series where the change between models was almost entirely confined to the bows, as it is for the 55s to the 57's/. I then had to be certain that the change could be made. I chose catamarans over monohulls, because Trevor needed a catamaran's abilities and hull form to survie the Indian Ocean. You couldn't jury rig a monohull that way and make those kinds of speeds, plus he needed somewhere to hide after swimming back to Atlantis after the pirates tried to make him one with the sea. Thanks!! The next chapter should post on schedule (unless I get knocked off the internet for two days again, like I was last week due to an internet outage). Where is Kookoburra going? As Rachel said, she's not hers to sell. Will Trevor wait for Atlanits? I can't say, but I think we all know how he feels about Atlantis. Yep!! Rachel was letting Shane know that he had an option, and wasn't going to just toss him out even if he wasn't going. And Shane had indeed already commited to Trevor, but now he's also letting Rachel know that he's going with Trevor. Ah, but we don't know for sure that Trevor no longer will be searching for Ares... it's just that now his search is vastly easier, and far more localized. Thanks!!! The story does have a few more chapters left. As Trevor said a while back, he loves being in Australia, because the locals have treated him like family. Researching the law took a lot of doing. MartyS pointed out a goof I'd made which allowed me to fill one glaring hole; originally, I was unaware that when you go on the run for any offence, it stops the clock on the statute of limitations for all offences, even unrelated ones. That's why there had to be the agreement for Dirk and Jim that was signed a few weeks back. But, um, cliffhangers? What cliffhangers? There are no cliffhangers in Circumnavigation! (Low flyer told me that I don't say that often enough in the forum, a shortcoming I ain to correct!!). Thanks!!! After Circumnavigation wraps, there should be a new story by me underway. It might be a few weeks after the end of Circumnavigation (I have another novel for GA's premium section I need to get finished up first) but it won't be long after. I'll miss Circumnavigation too; it's been a huge part of my life for these last two years. And, um, cliffhangers? But but but... I never, ever use cliffhangers....

"Revelation" is up. I hope it answers all the questions regarding the true backstory of what really happened when Ares vanished. This is what I've been aiming for ever since the prologue, and the prologue had to be the map to the backplot without giving it away. It's been a long road (far longer than I'd ever imagined) to get to this point. CJ

Chapter 99: Revelation Gonzalez looked again at the name glaring at him from the witness list, staring at it in profound disbelief. Frank chuckled. “I think having her as a witness for the defense might just put a wee bit of a hole in the prosecution’s murder case.” And that, Frank thought wryly, was likely the biggest understatement in legal history. “But Rachel Carlson is dead – isn’t she?” Gonzalez mumbled, staring at Rachel’s name on the paper in his hand. Gonzalez recovered quickly fr

The next chapter, Revelations, has even more surprises.