8. Little Things That Matter

November, 1999

When Rick joined the others on the bridge, he found some concerned looks.

"What's going on?"

Anapa looked up at him, gave him a tight grin.

"It's gonna get interesting, Hopo. That cyclone is moving the wrong way."

Last Rick had seen of the course, it had been well south and east of where they were headed. Now it appeared to be headed further north, which could eventually impact them. The outer bands would definitely stir things up.

"The way to Tupua'i is still clear. It will be the approach to Raivavae that might be difficult. But we're definitely going to get some bigger waves and rain bands. We'll need to make sure everything is tightened down tomorrow when we get closer to the storm."

Rick nodded. Nothing would happen tonight; they were still too far away. But they would double check everything. You could never be too careful on a ship.

"Ok, Hopo. You're on, and then Arenui will take over. Call if you hear about any major shifts in the storm."

Anapa and Hina took their leave, while Ari'i remade the schedule for tomorrow. They would all take shorter shifts the next day, due to needing to check over the ship.

Ari'i left ten minutes later, after talking to Rick for a while about how things would run if the storm got closer. Rick settled down on the bridge. He loved taking night shifts. Everyone else was below him: either asleep or hanging out in the saloon. He was alone, just the dim glow of the instrument lights to keep him company among the innumerable shimmering stars strewn across the black sky. It was a good time to reflect on his day: think about things he might want to include in his writing, or figure out a plot point that he had been struggling over.

Tonight, all he thought about the coming storm. The South Pacific doesn't have as many cyclones as there are hurricanes in the North Atlantic, but they can be just as dangerous and just as destructive. He'd been in rough weather with the ship, but nothing like a cyclone.

His shift would last until 2 am; one of the other guys would bring him some coffee before they went to bed. He'd be off until eight am as another took the last shift. Then the next day would be spent weather proofing everything as best they could. He sighed; they'd have to go back in the hold with the chickens. With heavy weather moving in, the simple net over the hold wouldn't suffice. The way Henri Grollet had made them stack them today wouldn't allow a rigid cover, so they would be forced to restack them for the third time.

By the time his relief arrived, just shy of two, nothing much had changed with the weather. He hadn't noticed any difference in the character of the waves, and radio reports were indicating they wouldn't hit rain until the mid-afternoon. He discussed his shift with Arenui and left the other man to take over. He went straight to his bunk and collapsed, knowing he would need his sleep for the long day due in the morning.

Kate awoke early, per habit. She could hear voices in the background, but they were too indistinct for her to understand any words. Not one to lie around, she got up after a few minutes and was happy to find the shower empty. After finishing her morning routine, she headed down to the saloon and found it completely empty except for coffee, bottled water, and some breakfast foods on the counter.

It was obvious that others had already eaten, though it was only seven in the morning. She grabbed a plate and ate quickly. Just as she was finishing up, Rick walked in.

"Morning." He glanced over at her before moving to the sideboard and grabbing a plate and coffee for himself.

"Good morning."

She wondered where he would sit: at the table with her, or the other where he'd sat the night before. She then wondered why she cared, before deciding that she still felt some guilt over the rude words Henri had directed at Rick the night before. She reassured herself that was why she felt so on edge around him this morning. Hyperaware of him. He was dressed in what she now knew was a typical style for the ship: shorts and a t-shirt. A very nicely fitting t-shirt. Not that she noticed in particular.

It really showed off his impressive upper body. His shoulders in particular were well developed…

"How is your sea sickness?" He put his plate down opposite of her. Ok, so same table then. And he was talking to her.

"All gone. The leaves that Hina gave me worked perfectly."

"Well, you might want to stock up." He wasn't even looking at her, directing all of his attention to his plate.

"Why?" She felt fine. Surely it wouldn't come and go on a whim?

He looked up after another bite. "We're gonna be hitting the outer bands of the cyclone to the south later today. Heavy weather means heavy waves. Make sure everything is locked down in your cabin, and once we start hitting big ones stick to the superstructure. The bow becomes really dangerous."

She nodded; she'd heard them discussing the cyclone a bit the night before, when everyone was hanging in the saloon after dinner. No one seemed too concerned, especially Henri. He felt the cyclone was too far to the south to really bother them, but perhaps they would catch a little of the weather.

"Thanks for the advice."

He shrugged. "No problem. Whole crew will be battening down the hatches today. Hina may need your help getting the workshop squared away, if you don't mind."

"No, it's not a problem. I spent the afternoon with her yesterday just learning. It's really interesting."

"Yes, she and Anapa are living treasures, at least in my opinion."

"I agree." There was a small silence. It's probably the most agreeable conversation they've ever had. She hated to ruin the moment, but she felt like she needed to apologize to him. A feeling that she hated. "I'm sorry about last night."

He looked up at her sharply. "Why are you sorry? You weren't the one talking out of turn."

True. Still, she'd sat there. Listened. "No, you're right. I just felt that it was inappropriate and I should have said something."

He looked at her with careful appraisal. "I can take care of myself. Nothing that ill-mannered, egotistical fool of a man could say bothers me."

No, except that he was upset enough to call him an ill-mannered egotistical fool. Clearly it had bothered him, at least a bit. The question was did it bother him because of the nature of the inquiries? Or because of the way they were asked?

"Well, either way I'm sorry I didn't say something. I didn't mean to imply you couldn't take care of yourself."

"Yeah, well I'm a big boy. I've run in to a few Henris in my time." He stood, draining the last of his coffee in a gulp. "Well, I have to go check in with Ari'i. See you later."

He walked out the door, leaving her to ponder if she felt better after apologizing to him or not. She hadn't decided by the time she left the saloon to seek out Hina.

Kate spent the rest of the morning with Hina. The seas were still calm, so they talked for a while about plants and preparations. Henri found them in the workshop after she had been there about two hours.

"Bonjour, Mesdames. How are you this fine morning?"

Kate simply glanced at him, still bothered by the way he had treated Rick the prior evening.

"We are well so far, M. Grollet. I trust you slept well?" Hina was, as usual, courteous and polite.

"Très bien, merci. I had hoped to join you for breakfast Mlle. Kate. Alas, how great was my pain when I discovered you had eaten well before I was up. You must alleviate my misery and agree to lunch with me today."

Kate had to laugh a bit at his foolish antics. He was so ridiculous, batting his eyes in an exaggerated manner and pretending he was truly hurt.

"If Hina has finished with me for lunch then I'm sure I'll see you in the saloon along with everyone else."

"Ah, then I must implore our wonderful hostess that she be sure to allow you some sustenance and not work you to death today."

"No fear of that M. Grollet. We are almost finished with lessons and then simply have to put everything up before the weather worsens this afternoon."

"Ahh, the cyclone I've been hearing so much about? I thought it was well south of our location. There is nothing to be alarmed about, assurément."

"Well, storms do change course. My husband tells me we should be fine, but what's the harm in being prepared?"

Henri bowed to her at that point and took his leave. Kate stayed with Hina until nearly noon. Most of the workshop was already squared away, but Hina wanted to secure some of the heavier stones and mortars she used to make some of her concoctions. Once they were finished, Kate excused herself to freshen up.

She could more acutely feel the roll of the ship. It wasn't completely unpleasant, but there was a change from the flatter sea of the day before. After she washed up, she made her way carefully down the stairs and stood on the narrow rear deck that ran around the superstructure. She could see the waves were deeper and more chaotic. It was invigorating in some ways, though she couldn't imagine what it might be like if they were even doubled in size.

When she walked into the saloon, only Henri was present. He stood upon catching sight of her and bowed.

"Ah, Katherine. I am humbled to be graced by your presence."

She shook her head. He was so full of false modesty, but it was mildly amusing.

"Well, since this is where we have lunch, it shouldn't be a surprise that my presence would be found in the saloon during lunchtime."

"Beautiful and witty. A rare combination. Please, allow me." He took her hand and led her to a seat, next to his. Glancing at the sideboard she saw that Tane was not quite ready with the meal yet.

As soon as they were seated he started regaling her with a series of humorous, though slightly ridiculous, stories about his life and that of his cousin who lived on Raivavae. Though born in France, it seemed he had lived in Tahiti for the majority of his life. He recounted tale after tale of some of the escapades that he and his cousin had gotten into. She couldn't help but laugh at most of them; many were so improbable that she was sure he was dramatizing to try and impress her. He paid close attention to her, even as the saloon slowly filled up with the crewmen of the ship.

Even though she wasn't looking at the door, she knew the minute he walked in. It was ludicrous; he hadn't shown much interest in her as a woman besides leering at her boobs. She didn't think it could be guilt, after having apologized to him. Perhaps because he was the only other American? When she had a chance, she snuck a look at him. He was staring at her; as soon as he saw she was looking in his direction, he deliberately turned his back and walked to the small table. She tamped down a frisson of anger. The man could be rude. She had no idea why she also felt disappointed.

Rick spent the morning working hard to secure everything below decks. He was paired with Tamahere, who was pleasant company in general. The younger man was quick with a joke and was a hard worker. He was the crewman Rick was closest to. However, Rick liked all of his shipmates. Their companionship had made it easy for him to keep working on the ship long after he had enough knowledge to make Derrick Storm a very formidable man.

They saved the chickens for last, neither looking forward to restacking the damn birds yet again. In hindsight, that had been a mistake. As the morning passed, the waves started picking up and reordering the cages was more challenging than it would have been without the extra swell. It seemed that the chickens remembered them from the day before, or else they too were not happy about the rolling of the ship. It was, all in all, a very unpleasant experience.

Finishing up before lunch was fortunate. He was due for his shift at the helm at five today; he would have a few hours to rest before his shift. The increasing roll to the ship promised that his normally easy, undemanding helm shift would instead require him to be on his toes to keep the ship safe.

He raced Tamahere to the shower off their bunkroom. And lost. Thus, he was about the last person to the saloon for lunch. When he finally walked in, his eyes were immediately drawn to her. She was sitting next to the greasy Grollet, laughing at some stupid joke the other had told her.

She was so beautiful. It was impossible to deny. She had a quality to her that he just couldn't identify. She was intelligent, beautiful, but also brittle in some way. Almost as if she had suffered some major hurt or trauma. He could see it in her eyes sometimes, though she masked it well. It drew him to her, there was no doubt. As a story teller, he loved delving into a character's background. It gave voice to their motivation, even if he never ended up writing about it. He was sure Kate had a fascinating story to tell. He just didn't know if she would ever deign to tell him.

He realized he was staring when she looked at him. Embarrassed, and a little frustrated that she had chosen to sit with Henri yet again, he abruptly turned and walked to the small table. Tamahere was already seated and soon they were joined by Ari'i, who had been pouring himself a drink.

"Monsieur Rodgers, I see you are no worse for the wear after all the work I hear the crew has been doing today," Grollet's condescending voice filled a brief silence in the busy saloon.

Rick stifled a groan. The one person he'd wanted to avoid, of course, had to address him by name. It would be rude not to answer, though Rick seriously considered simply getting up and walking out. However, he was hungry and whatever Tane was doing in the galley smelled heavenly.

"Fortunately I had time to shower prior to lunch. I am afraid my state after we finished our labors would not have been pleasant in the enclosed room here in the saloon."

"Ah, I understand. And just what was it you were doing this morning?"

"We had to re-secure the cargo to make sure it won't shift with the heavy seas we'll be encountering soon. Then we had to rearrange the chickens in order to put a heavy cover over their hatch."

"Oui, my poor poulets. I certainly hope you have stacked them carefully. You have no idea the trouble I had to go to, in order to get them placed properly." The last sentence he directed at Kate, who did not respond in any way. "If you want something done correctly, mon ami, you must do it yourself."

"Strange, I don't remember him being down in the hold with us, Hopo," whispered Tamahere. Rick snorted, trying not to laugh. Unfortunately, his snort brought M. Grollet's attention even more firmly upon him. The other man had just opened his mouth to retort when Kate distracted him by asking a question that Rick couldn't hear. The odious man glared a moment longer at him, then physically turned his back to him and gave Kate his undivided attention. The meaning was clear, even without any words.

Rick was inordinately relieved when Tane finally brought out the rest of the meal. He didn't think he'd ever eaten so quickly. He finished before anyone else and excused himself. Despite his exertions from the morning, today when he lay down in his bunk sleep was a long time coming.

Kate went back to her cabin, intending to grab her well-worn book and return to the saloon. She didn't think reading in the tiny confines of her cabin would be a good idea; the pitch and roll of the ship was definitely having an effect on her rebellious stomach, though Hina's remedy gave her confidence she could handle the motion.

She had just turned around with book in hand when a small knock sounded on the frame of the door to her cabin and Henri Grollet let himself in. He closed the thick, wooden door to her cabin firmly. Too surprised to say anything, Kate simply gaped at him. The man was bold, that was apparent.

"Ah, Mlle. Katherine, please forgive the intrusion. I was hoping you would join me this afternoon. I find that I am quite at a loss as to what to spend my time doing. With the exception of yourself, and you are indeed exceptional, there is very little to offer a man of my intellect and rare tastes. Not surprising, but of course. It is a simple cargo ship after all, and I find myself realizing that I had somehow expected more from a ship with such an exalted capitaine. Nonetheless, they are sailors, are they not? They must live on and with the sea. Interests in other matters would not be necessary."

Kate was not happy about the man's temerity, but she found herself answering anyway. "I think Anapa and Hina are quite lovely. Hina has already taught me several things about useful plants and medicines. Perhaps it is not that they are too simple for you, but that you do not open yourself up to what they have to say, Monsieur Grollet."

"Please, Katherine, it is Henri. We are now friends, are we not? Perhaps you are right. However, the fact remains that most of the crew are now either on duty or sleeping before their duty. We are left to entertain each other, oui?"

Kate noticed he was now ogling her, openly looking her up and down. Clearly, his idea of entertainment would involve private accommodations. Such as her extremely small cabin, that barely had room for the two of them. She was fairly confident that she could fend him off; she just didn't want to have to resort to a physical altercation. Thinking furiously, she decided the priority was escaping the close quarters.

"Well, Henri, that is an interesting suggestion," she said in a low, husky voice. "However, before we discuss it further, I must beg that you excuse me. I must visit the heads before we decide just how to keep each other entertained for the afternoon."

Henri acquiesced immediately. He was too self-absorbed to notice that she took her book with her. Kate had nothing of value with her, so she didn't think twice about leaving the unctuous man in her cabin alone. As soon as the door had closed behind her, she descended the stairs as rapidly as she could and sought sanctuary in the saloon. There, she was able to relax after regaining control of her heart rate. It had been an unpleasant situation. She spent the rest of the afternoon reading, with crew passing through periodically, and Tane typically right next door in the kitchen. Henri did not reappear until dinner time and she was able to avoid sitting next to him by grabbing a seat next to Hina and Ari'i.

She planned to spend the hours after dinner in Hina's company. Lack of opportunity should soon set her presumptive fellow passenger to another amusement. She hoped.

She wouldn't notice until it was too late that the key that locked the door to her cabin was missing. It was an oversight that would alter the course of her entire life.

Rick reported to the bridge as expected, just before five. Due to their shorter shifts, he was taking over right before dinner. Normally, he hated the dinner shift: he wouldn't eat until after everyone else and had to wait for one of the other crew or Tane himself to bring him his meal. However, tonight, he felt it was a blessing. He didn't want to sit through another meal with Henri Grollet if he could help it.

Arenui was the current helmsman. He showed Rick that the cyclone had veered a bit east again; their path to Tupua'i looked pretty good. There were some impressive bands spinning off from it, however. Since they were in the Southern Hemisphere the cyclone spun in a clockwise rotation.

Anapa himself brought him his meal. The old man had wanted to check the storm and to reassure himself that Rick was dealing with everything properly. All of the crew, save for Rick, had been in worse weather together; he knew how they reacted. Rick was still green, even with ten months under his belt. Fortunately, he was a quick study, and wasn't afraid to ask questions.

They sat in companionable silence for a while after Rick finished his meal.

"Hopo, there's something about the look of this storm that I just don't like."

"It seems to be moving away. I think we'll be ok for Tupua'i."

"That's just the thing. I get the feeling it wants us to think it's moving away. Storms are like some women. Fickle and unpredictable."

Rick laughed. "Better not let that little nugget slip to Hina."

"Bah, she'd say the same thing about some women." The older man stood, stretching his wiry frame before turning to go. "Call me if you need something."

"I will, Anapa. Go rest."

Soon Rick was left alone again. The waves were subtly getting larger, but so far nothing had happened that made him nervous. Keeping an eye on the weather reports, he settled down and simply enjoyed the feeling of taking Mother Nature on, in a small way, and doing everything he needed to keep them safe.

Two hours later, around eight in the evening, the waves were starting to slam them around a bit. It had also been raining off and on. The Iriata still felt quite responsive to his touch, so he wasn't worried. When he heard feet pounding up the stairs in a rush, he was confused; there was at least an hour before Tamahere was due to relieve him at nine.

Yet, it was Tamahere that burst onto the bridge. The younger man had a panicked look on his face and eyes that were wild with fear.

"What is going on?" Rick demanded. Very little had ever excited Tamahere; his clear frenzy now must mean a catastrophe had occurred. The words that tumbled from him confirmed Rick's foreboding.

"Hopo, Hina needs you. Vitiviti, quickly! It's Anapa."