Day 23

The party was not the nightmare I assumed it would be. We were anchored off the coast for the night and no one needed to sail or watch for icebergs. There was a bit of a moment as Izzy threatened me with makeup and I threatened her with walking the plank. Then she asked me if I’d ever made anyone walk the plank in real life. Full disclosure, it was Maui who put the cutlass to their backs and pushed them off as I kept a pistol trained on the rest. Only a few times had I pushed them off the end of the plank myself. In my defense, the VOC was bugging me and it was more efficient to drown them than waste my precious ammo. We were far out to sea. I’m sure they never made landfall again.

Before heading up on deck I needed to find my present for John Henry. Somewhere on the ship I had a little toy car stashed. I had to check five hidey-holes before I found it but the neon green dinosaur monster truck. The small toy still rolled smoothly across my palm. John Henry would neither know what a dinosaur nor a monster truck was but I hoped he might like it regardless. The kid who’d left it here would never be able to get it back now. This was a good use for it.

My crazy passengers had decorated my ship and put on music. The Try Your Luck looked pretty with all the ribbons flying around. I patted my ship and thought the old girl felt happy to be all dressed up and celebrated. The medicine still languished in my veins enough to keep me from my sharper thoughts and helped me agree to sing ‘California Girls’ when Izzy and her rum danced over and cajoled me into joining her. She’d pushed a glass on me but it stayed where I put it down. Rule number two: no drinking on duty.

As we sang, John Henry rolled his new toy across the deck. Catherine and Bessie liked watching the toy wheels and axel move. I tried to explain to them what a dinosaur was but it got to a point where Izzy was staring at me realizing I was speaking from experience and I chickened out. I’d only seen them in the portal. The portal collected all types of creatures from across the ages from plesiosaurs to…well, me.

The dishes kept coming and coming. How had she managed to produce all this from my galley? All that galley had ever made for me was cereal and ramen. When a full cake arrived, decorated and garnished, I was in love. I didn’t even pretend that I was going to share that shit.

Izzy didn’t make it much farther past the cakes. Her rum turned on her and she lay on the port bench making all of us uncomfortable describing sex with the young lieutenant.

“And we definitely should have been making the most of it. Because, you know...Lieutenant Commander Coventry is a very...intense man. Just really....focused.” She ran her hands down herself and I thought this was as good a cue as any to exit.

I bid them all goodnight and went back down to my cabin. The remainder of my medicine sat next to my bed. After getting into pajamas and brushing my teeth I pulled the covers up around me and sipped. I placed Izzy’s gift to me, a beautiful beaded bracelet, down next to the helmets. It was a nice piece. I’d be sure to wear it tomorrow.

My periphery softened as the medicine took hold. In a matter of days we’d be at the village and I’d need to put my helmet on. I picked the old things up and brought them into bed with me.

[That place is probably one of the one things we did right.]

I should have expected to hear his voice as I held his helmet and drank my medicine and thought about that village. “That was the last time before this that I ferried so many people on my ship.”

[We had nice parties then too.]

“Yeah, this was a nice party.”

[Goodnight, Heeny.]

“Night, Maui.”