This is the twenty-seventh episode of the novel Two Tamas in Paradise. It is the fourth novel in the Trace Troy South Pacific Adventure series. It will be posted in episodes. The plan is for two or three a week. There are fifty episodes. It has not been published yet. The reader is given a sneak preview.
It suffices to say that because this is one novel in a series, there may be things not understood unless one knows what has taken place in previous novels from this series. Here is a link to the first novel in the series: The Big Gamble in Paradise, paperback or Kindle.
Change
Sage had pilothouse duty until midnight. That’s when Adam came up from below to take over. He placed a thermos of coffee on the chart desk.
“How’s it going, Sage?” Adam said. “Anything I should know before taking over. Traffic is backed up on the FDR, and there’s a jam around The Garden. Lincoln Tunnel is full, but traffic is moving steady.”
“What!” Adam said,
“Ah,” Sage said, “I picked up a traffic report on the shortwave. The wind moved in on us an hour ago. Coming from due west now.”
“Weather?” Adam asked.
“It’s dark and will be that way until half past five,” Sage said.
“Good night, Sage,” Adam said, “you’re starting to sound punchy.”
“Good night, Adam,” Sage said and slowly descended the companionway.
Adam sat in the captain’s chair. He poured a coffee and relaxed. The sea was good and the wind steady. The stars overhead decorated the night.
“A good night for thinking,” Adam mumbled.
Shortly after four, Trace came from below.
“How’s it going, Dad?” Trace said.
“What a night,” Adam said.
“How’s that?” Trace said.
“Oh, about an hour into my shift, I relaxed,” Adam said. “I haven’t relaxed since we left Suva.”
“I didn’t know that,” Trace said.
“That’s what I came here for,” Adam said. “Everything was going good back home. I started to worry about you. Now that I’m here, there are no worries, and I never needed to worry anyway.”
“Well,” Trace said, “I worried about you and Grandpa, too. I know Grandpa has settled into his role, but you know ranching is like a herd of beavers; one dam problem after another, but you take it in stride. You always have. I thought about coming home, but I don’t think either one of us is ready for that, right?” Trace grinned.
“The ranch is running on its own right now,” Adam said. “I got a good foreman, a lawyer, accountant, and banker. Geez, grandpa said at one time, all you needed to run a ranch was a trusty rifle and a good horse.”
“You’re not thinking you’re useless, do you?” Trace said.
“Oh no,” Adam said, “not at all. “My foreman has a good bark but no bite. About the time I get home, he’ll probably give me some stuff that needs chewing on.”
“So,” Trace said, “ what have you been chewing on?”
“Well,” Adam said, “I told you that about an hour after I took over up here, I felt really relaxed. That’s when I stopped chewing. Son, did you feel any different at about that time?”
“I was fast asleep,” Trace said. “Was there something I should have felt?”
“Yeah,” Adam grinned.
“What?” Trace grinned.
“A weight came back on your shoulders,” Adam said.
“What do you mean?” Trace said.
“That’s when you became captain,” Adam said. “I had a few good days. It was a good run. It’s all yours now. This is your ship.”
“Are you sure?” Trace said.
“As sure as I know, the day will come when I hand the ranch over to you,” Adam said. “And don’t get too anxious about it. It’s a long way off.”
Adam stood and walked toward the companionway.
“Where are you going?” Trace said.
“Below,” Adam said.
“Get back here and finish your shift,” Trace said.
Adam snapped his finger and grinned. “Of course, Captain. I don’t know what got into me.”
Adam returned to the captain’s chair. “Can I still wear the hat?”
“Yeah,” Trace grinned, “just don’t give any orders.”
When the crew and passengers awoke and came to breakfast, Trace announced the change in captains.
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