First, a very friendly obstacle

Brenan was deep in thought as he reached the gate to Davy’s house after having left the tavern where he had had his meeting with Ambrose, with his thoughts being focused on coming up with a way in which he could ensure that Red and Cindy wouldn’t miss his maiden voyage as a captain.

Convincing himself that the reason why he was so unwilling to carry out the journey without Red was that the purely practical one of him wanting her to be there from the start to help him mould the various members of his crew into an efficient whole, Brenan pulled open the gate and stepped onto the neat path which led up through Davy’s equally neat front-garden to the front door of his modestly luxurious home.
The best idea that he could come up with, Brenan realized, was to have either Kyle or Tyler ride up to Red’s cottage in the morning and tell her what the plan was, after which he could either ride back, though that would entail that the brother conducting the journey would have to spend pretty much the whole day in the saddle with little rest and an impressive average speed, a hard task even for an experienced horseman, or stay with them and help them steer the skiff down towards where Brenan and his ship would meet up with them. But if he were to order one of the brothers to do so, that meant that Brenan would most likely have to buy a horse and resign himself to never get any money back on his investment, since the horse could hardly be transported aboard first the skiff and then the schooner, not unless Brenan was peckish for some fresh meat for dinner during their journey.

No matter which of those alternatives that Brenan would eventually settle on, there were plenty of landmarks spread out along the coast which could serve as a point for Brenan to meet up with Red. With a little luck, such a rendezvous would ensure that he wouldn’t lose more than at most a day by meeting up with Red.

Putting those concerns aside for now, Brenan knocked on the front door and did his best to get the image of Red walking across the beach in that simple dress of hers while the sun shone down upon her out of his head.

The door was eventually opened by Joanna, Davy’s wife and a truly formidable woman, whose sturdy frame and friendly demeanour made it seem as though she’d been put on Pandora to bear and raise his children while simultaneously attending to all the practical concerns that two decades aboard a ship had left him ill-prepared to deal with.

“Brenan!” Despite only having met her a few times and her being just a few years older than him, Joanna always made Brenan feel as though he was visiting a beloved but slightly challenging aunt.

“Hello Joanna…” Brenan blurted out before Joanna gave him a warm hug. It always appeared to Brenan as though she had decided upon first seeing him that he was a sweet and loveable man, no matter what people might say about him, and she stuck to that conviction no matter what.

“I’m here to see Davy,” Brenan explained once the hug was over and done with.
“Oh yes,” Joanna said as she took Brenan by the arm and led him into the hallway of the house in which she was undeniably the mistress, “he’s just put our boys to bed and are now entertaining our two guests in the dining room.”

“Right,” Brenan nodded his head as Joanna firmly led him towards the closed dining room door, with a servant-girl scurrying out of her mistress’ way, “I think it’s them that I’m here to see.”

“Julien and James?” Joanna cocked her head to look at Brenan even as she steered him closer to the door, “Yes, Davy did mention something about them having asked him to find them a captain. Oh, I almost forgot! You’re a captain now, aren’t you?”

“Well yes,” while not a great beauty, Joanna had won Davy’s heart while nursing him back to health after the wound that had left him crippled and scarred, and Brenan could see why. Even if she wasn’t the most beautiful woman in the world, her face was friendly and open rather than alluring and her body plump and stocky rather than voluptuous or graceful, Joanna was equipped with such a strong personality and presence that she was more like a **** of nature than a person, and Brenan suspected that she could waltz into a high-end whorehouse and quickly become the centre of attention by merely standing in its foyer talking about the weather.

“I always knew you’d amount to something,” Joanna confided in Brenan with a glowing smile, “And you simply must hire Julien and Jimmy, they’re such good boys you see, strong and smart and eager, just the sort of men an up-and-coming captain might require.”

“Well, that’s settled then,” Brenan joked as Joanna yanked down the door-handle.