Frontier - 22. FR Chapter 22

“Here is, this month’s wages, and a one-month bonus for you both, with my thanks for everything that you have done for us,” I said to the lads as I handed over the envelopes.

“Thanks, Boss. It has been awesome to get to know you and the family,” Leon replied with a half-smile.

Turning to Simon and speaking in a soft voice I said, “Remind me to empty out the safe, and grab the sat phone, before I head over to the catamaran tonight.”

He nodded his head in understanding. I suggested that we all go onto the island for a walk and swim, and the boys were pleased to hear this.

“But we don’t have our swimmers with us,” Neale said to us.

“Well, maybe you can strip down to your undies, and us oldies will just be ankle or knee deep,” I replied with a smile, and I followed the boys to the back of the yacht, and onto the swim platform, where the boys jumped in and splashed around.

Mum appeared soon after with some towels, and we watched the boys together, while the rest of the crew went for a look around the island. An hour later when they returned to the yacht, we called the boys to come out of the water, and while Mum was getting them dried off, I went up to the fly bridge, and the lads pulled up the anchor, so we could return to the marina.

When we arrived Mum, Gramps and the boys headed over to the catamaran, and I said I would be over there shortly. I made my way back to the office with Simon heading to the fly bridge to retrieve the satellite phone, before coming to the office. I retrieved what was left of the cash, plus Jasper’s passport, and a few other bits and pieces, and I left the yacht’s ownership documents in there.

Heading out of the office I made my way over to the catamaran, where I found Mum sitting in the saloon.

“Hi, Mum. Where are the boys?” I asked.

“Taking a nap. Neale was feeling a little tired with helping with the move, and Jedd wanted to stay close to his brother,” mum replied, as I gave her a smile and announced that I was heading to bridge.

Once there I opened up my laptop computer and had a look at what real estate was available to buy in town. It wasn’t long before I found a number of suitable homes. The one that I liked the best was a two level, four-bedroom house with double garage, lots of open living spaces on both levels, and a good size back landscaped garden. I called the number for the real estate agent, and she was happy to be available for a viewing later that afternoon. I did the same for the other properties, setting a viewing time of 45 minutes between each viewing.

When the family went over to the trimaran for lunch, Simon asked Mum if she could cook dinner for that night on the catamaran, and Mum happily agreed to do that, but the lads had to go and do a major shopping trip straight after lunch, which they agreed to do. I noticed that the last of Simon and Jasper’s luggage was sitting just inside the saloon door, as we entered and sat down at the dining table, where the lads served us our last meal together on the trimaran.

While Simon, Kirk and Leon were off shopping, Jasper and I cleaned up, and got the galley into a good order, ready for the transfer, and when done, we headed over to the catamaran, where Mum, Gramps and the boys were relaxing in the saloon.

“Hi, can everyone climb into Gramps car? I have a couple of things to show you,” I said to the family, who looked a little surprised at my request. Once in the vehicle, I gave Gramps the address, and less than five minutes later we arrived at the first property that I saw online. “I thought it would be best if we bought a home instead of another yacht, so I have chosen the three best ones,” I announced, as we arrived at the first address, which was fairly close to the marina. Everyone climbed out of the car.

The two boys were very excited to see the house, and I introduced myself and the family to the waiting real estate agent. “Are you the family that owns those two yachts in the marina?” the agent asked, when she heard our surname.

“Yes, we are, but the bigger trimaran has just been sold, so that is why we need to find a new home for the family,” I replied with a smile.

Once we had seen the 4-bedroom property on Villaret Way, we thanked the agent, and said we were also viewing the property on Bettong Avenue. We all climbed back into the vehicle and headed towards the centre of town to see the second property, which had 4 bedrooms and a study.

By the time, we had finished seeing the last property on Cambewarra Drive, which is further away from the marina, I had already decided that I liked the last property the best. The house was one level, built about 3.5 metres higher than the main road. It had a verandah all around. With five bedrooms and an office, two bathrooms and an extra toilet, there was plenty of room for the family. It was on a large 8 acres of land, a 7 ½ kilometre drive from the marina, and about the same distance to the school. When I looked at Mum and Gramps they too were all smiles.

“It appears that the family likes this house the best, so we will buy this one please,” I said to the real estate agent, who was a little shocked at my announcement. The house was already vacant, and included a pool table and an outdoor spa, so the agent said that settlement could be as early as two-week’s time, which we were happy about.

When we were all in the vehicle again, I turned to Gramps. “I think you can have the guest bedroom, that has its own ensuite bathroom, Mum can have the master bedroom, also with its own en suite bathroom, the boys can have a bedroom each, and I will have the last one, with the boys and I sharing the family bathroom. Jasper and Simon can remain living on the yacht, and we can give them lunch and dinner at the house,” I announced, and everyone seemed pleased with this decision, as we made our way back to the marina.

When we arrived back at the catamaran, Kirk and Leon had just finished putting the food away, and were now starting to prepare dinner, while Simon was relaxing in the saloon, where the family joined him.

“So, Boss, can you tell me why all of your family is so happy?” Jasper asked me when he saw that everyone was smiling.

“Oh, that might have something to do with our little excursion just now. We have been looking at homes around town, and we are buying a four-bedroom house, on 8 acres, just out of town,” I replied.

“Wow, that is awesome. So what happens with Jasper and I?” Simon asked.

“I was hoping that you would be ok to remain on board here, and you can both have lunch and dinner with us at the house each day when not on charter. You can have the crew double cabin, and Jasper can have the forward guest cabin,” I replied.

“Yes, that is definitely fine by me,” Simon replied with a smile.

Once dinner was over, Kirk and Leon said goodnight and headed over to the trimaran. They looked very sad as they left the catamaran, knowing that in the morning, they would have a new boss, and would soon be heading south to Fremantle, and then eastwards.

The following morning I woke up to the sound of Mum calling the boys to get up and get dressed ready for school, and once I had showered and dressed, I made my way to the galley to get some breakfast. I was a little surprised to see that Jasper was back, and Simon, Kirk and Leon were there eating breakfast.

“Good morning, Guys. Nice to see you home again, Jasper,” I said with a smile, trying to keep the mood happy for everyone.

“Morning, Boss. Marcus let me inside. I texted him when I had arrived in town,” Jaspers responded, as I sat down.

Once I had eaten, I stood up and walking over to the lads, I gave each of them a hug, and told them to keep in touch, and to contact me if they had any concerns. I saw tears in both of the lad’s eyes, and they nodded their heads acknowledging my statement. Before I started to show signs of tearing also, I headed to the office nearby to grab a text book that I need for school. I took the chance to wipe my face, before heading back out to the saloon.

“Ok, we are off to school, Mum. See you this afternoon,” I said, as I shoved the text book into my backpack. Neale, Jedd and Simon were ready, and followed me off yacht, before grabbing our bikes and riding to school, for the start of another school week.

When we arrived at the school, the senior leadership team – Mike, Sam, Toby and Finn were waiting for us. I introduced them to my other brother Neale. I lead my brothers to the junior school, and once I had done that I returned to the senior school, and prepared for my first class for the day, which was English, followed by Physics.

By the time that lunch time arrived, I was glad for the break, and letting Simon know, I headed over to the junior school, to have lunch with my brothers. Both boys were happy to see me arrive, and I asked Neale how his first day back at school was going. Neal informed me that he had made a few friends, and that he liked all of his teachers so far, which I was pleased to hear, as we sat down to eat.

Just as I was about to head off back to the senior school, my mobile sounded with a message, and I saw that it was from Jasper. “I have reactivated the yacht charter website this morning, and we have already received a number of enquiries. Mr Kingsley is waiting till you return after school, before they set off for Fremantle,” I read, and I smiled as I put my mobile away. Letting the boys know I would see them at the end of the school day, I headed back to the senior school, to get ready for the last two classes for the day.

When Simon, my brothers and I arrived back at the marina after school, we saw a lot of activity happening on the decks, and recognised Kirk and Leon preparing to set off on their new adventure. I just hoped that it all worked out well for them. As I reached the end of the jetty I saw Mr Kingsley barking orders to the lads and two other crew members. I didn’t like the sound it, but I could do nothing about it.

I said hello to Mr Kingsley as I stopped near the trimaran. He looked down from the fly bridge and smiled at me. “Hello, Anton. How was your day at school? All good I hope. Thanks for having the trimaran in good order, when I came on board this morning. I look forward to the coming months of sailing back home,” Mr Kingsley said to me, and he made his way down to the main deck, where he handed me a bank cheque as the second payment.

“I wish you, and you crew a safe and uneventful journey,” I said to him with a smile, as I handed over the ownership papers, while he signed the Sale agreement document, which I counter signed.

Kirk and Leon came up to near where I was standing. “We wish we hadn’t agreed to stay with the yacht now. We will miss you heaps, Boss,” the lads said to me quietly, so that only I could hear them.

“I will miss you guys too. Take care and remember I am just a phone call away. So, you remember the URL for our website? Just email me via there, if you can’t call,” I replied to Kirk and Leon, who were both now visibly crying.

“Let’s get going. Release the mooring ropes, fore and aft,” Mr Kingsley announced loudly, and I stepped back away from the edge of the jetty, as I watched the trimaran slowly move away, and head towards the Indian Ocean. Moments later I raised my hand and waved to them and saw the lads wave back, as they left the marina.

Once the trimaran was out of sight, I went on board the catamaran, and I sat down in the saloon, dumping my backpack at my feet. I had a terrible feeling in my stomach, and I wished that I had not gone ahead with the sale of the trimaran. I estimated that the yacht would arrive in Fremantle in about nine and a half hours. I wanted to try and contact the lads to see how they were after the trip to Fremantle, but I knew that I would have to wait till the morning to text them. I needed to get plenty of sleep since I still had school to concentrate on.

I headed to my cabin, where I listened to some music, while I did some homework, and remained there until it was time for dinner. I was pleased to see that Simon and Mum were working together. Over dinner I just listened to the conversations around the table, as I did not want to talk about how I was feeling right then. I offered to help with the clean-up, and Simon said he would help me to do the dishes. Once, we had started, Simon sighed loudly.

“So, I guess you are thinking about the lads and how they are going with their new boss,” Simon said to me. I just nodded my head and kept going with the dishes. “Are you going to give them a call or text in the morning?” Simon asked me after a long period of silence.

“That’s my plan, yes,” I responded.

“Don’t stress about it too much. I am sure once they have settled into a new routine, they will be fine,” Simon said to me.

“I hope so. I just got this really bad feeling that’s all,” I added.

Once the clean-up was finished, I headed to my cabin, to finish my homework, and once done I had a shower and went to bed, not feeling up to socialising with the family and the crew, but just as I climbed into bed there was a knock on my cabin door.

“Come in, Boys,” I said, knowing that I had not said goodnight to Neale and Jedd, who had frowns on their faces as they opened the door. “Hey, Guys, sorry. I’m not very happy today. I didn’t mean to take it out on you. Go and grab a book and I will read you a story,” I said to them. They smiled and disappeared, returning moments later with a book in hand. Half an hour later, with the story finished, I gave the boys a hug each and said goodnight, and they headed to their cabin to go to bed.

The next morning, as soon as I woke up, I picked up my phone and sent a text message to Kirk and Leon, “Hey guys, I am just checking in to see how the trip is going for you so far. Let me know as soon as you can, Regards Anton.” Moments later my phone beeped to say that the message had not been sent. I stared at the phone for a few moments wondering why the message had not been sent, and I kept thinking about it as I dressed and got ready for school. I was still looking at my phone when I arrived at the dining room for breakfast.

“Hey, did you manage to get a message to Kirk and Leon?” Simon said as he arrived moments later.

“I tried, but it says – message not sent. What would cause it to do that?” I replied.

“Well the only two things that I can think of are, either they are out of range, or the battery is out of their phone. Do you think they are alright?” Simon responded.

“I do hope so,” I replied.

Each morning and afternoon for the remainder of the week, I tried calling Kirk and Leon, and each time I received a recorded message that the number that I was calling was out of range or disconnected, and as each day passed, the more worried I became. When Jasper had secured a two-day charter for 6 guests on the weekend, I was too worried about everything, so I booked a motel room for Friday and Saturday nights, and Mum and the boys chose to spend the weekend in Geraldton, leaving Jasper, Simon and Gramps to manage the charter.

Mum said she needed to travel to Geraldton to organise furniture and household goods for our new house, so borrowing the car they set off straight after the boys were home from school, for the two-hour journey north. Mum had already booked a motel in Geraldton for them to stay in, so she could spend most of Saturday shopping. Having my laptop with me, I looked at Google maps at I ate my takeaway dinner that Friday night, wondering where they could possibly be. The more I studied the map, the more I was afraid that they were not going to go around the south of Australia, but instead head north west towards the Arabian Gulf.

While online, a message came up to say that I had a new email, When I opened it, I was not happy with the email from my bank, informing me that the 2nd bank cheque from Mr Kingsley had bounced. When I woke up on Saturday morning, I once again, dialled Kirk and Leon’s mobile number, and this time it was ringing, which I was relieved to hear.

“Hello. Why are you calling my crew members?” came an unexpected voice.

“Is that you, Mr Kingsley?” I asked a little surprised.

“Yes, it is. Kirk and Leon are busy working. Don’t call them again, as they have too much work to do,” came a reply before the phone went dead.

I stared at the phone for a few minutes, before I put it down and dressed. Walking into town, I found a café that was open and ordered some breakfast, and while waiting my phone rang. Looking at the caller ID it said Kirk and Leon.

“Hello,” I said cautiously, not sure who was calling me.

“Oh, thank goodness you are answering. I can’t stay on the phone too long as Mr Kingsley has threatened to throw our phone in the ocean,” Kirk said.

“Guys, where on earth are you, and what is going on?” I asked them, pleased to be able to speak to them at last.

“We arrived in the Cocos Keeling Islands late last night. Mr Kingsley says our next stop is the Maldives Islands, then onto the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea.”