Walt signed.

“Let me go over a few things about the boat. Nothing major, but there are a few mechanical issues that will need attending to. Nothing structural. She’s a beast, that’s for sure.”

“Good to hear,” Walt said, as if he had any idea about what made a sailboat a beast or a burden.

For twenty minutes he followed the captain around the boat and nodded as the man inspected the sails, the winches, and the topside equipment. Walt followed him into the engine room and pretended to comprehend the things that were mentioned about the fuel pumps, the propellers, and the drive system. There was a glitch in the electronics, Walt was told. He made a show of making a mental note of it.

“We made a list as we traveled,” the captain said. “I know I’m cruising through a lot of things, but our flight leaves in three hours.”

Walt waved his hand. “As long as you made a list, I can go over everything after I get you guys to the airport.”

Two hours later, Walt dropped the four men at the airport in Montego Bay. As soon as they disappeared into the terminal, he shifted the Land Cruiser into drive and headed toward Negril.

CHAPTER 75 - Negril, Jamaica Friday, October 22, 2021

CHAPTER 75

Negril, Jamaica Friday, October 22, 2021

AVERY FELT THE THICK HUMIDITY OF THE CARIBBEAN AS SOON AS SHE stepped onto the tarmac. Her flight was six hours, direct from Los Angeles into Montego Bay. She made it through customs and wheeled her suitcase outside. The airport was busy with tourists waiting in long lines to pour onto buses and vans that would deliver them to the island’s beaches, where they would drink rum and try hard to bronze their pale skin.

Avery walked out of the terminal and heard a horn beep twice. She made her way through the crowd and saw Walt standing in the crook of the open driver’s side door and waving to her over the roof of the Land Cruiser. It was the same vehicle, Avery knew, that her brother drove three months earlier when he first arrived in Jamaica. Avery hustled over and climbed into the passenger’s seat while Walt threw her bag in the trunk.

“How was your flight?” he asked as he pulled out of the terminal.

“Long. How is he?”

“Settled and enjoying island life. I may or may not have turned him on to single batch Jamaican rum.”

Avery smiled.

“He’s really anxious to see you.”

“Did the boat get here?”

“Yesterday, right on schedule. Christopher wanted to inspect it, but I told him we had to wait for you.”

“How did it look?”

“The boat? Great, but I don’t know anything about boats.”