Chapter 11 Bae flattened against the wall to allow the movers to maneuver another video arcade machine down the hall and into Rin’s room. Bae started to follow, but another mover carrying a box called out. “Hey, kid, do you know where these boxes go?” asked a man in a blue hat. The movers were obviously from off-island and didn’t know who he was. Bae checked the writing on the box. “These are marked Hanssons,” said Bae. “They go downstairs to the 2nd floor residence.” “Thanks, bud,” said the man in the blue hat. “Where you want these?” asked another man coming up the stairs, but this one was wearing a yellow hat. Bae looked back at the arcade machine they were now wrestling through the door into Rin’s room. He wanted to go see the arcade machine, not play traffic cop. Bae looked back to the man. The box he was holding had Lothan Security printed on the side of it. “Go to the end of the hall, there’s an open door and stairs going up,” said Bae. “But just set them down next to the door, someone else will take them up.” The yellow-hatted man nodded. “You got it.” “Coming through,” said a green-hatted man. Bae jumped aside to let another man carrying a box labeled, Rinathian – Play Clothes, get past. Geez, Rin had clothes just to play in? Bae stayed against the wall and gave up getting down to Rin’s room to see the arcade machine – the stack of boxes in the hall outside Rin’s room was getting ridiculous. Bae owned one toy, maybe two, if you could call them toys, which they weren’t. He had his metal detector, and his scuba gear. And the scuba gear he had bought himself. Bae’s eyes widened as another box went past labeled, Remote Control Gas Powered Airplane. The next box that went down the hall in the continuous parade of boxes made Bae’s jaw drop open - The box was labeled, Dirt Bike Protective Gear. Bae’s head whipped around the corner of the stairs half-expecting to see someone carrying up a dirt bike. There was a parade of men coming up the stairs, but no dirt bike. Of course, Mrs. Hansson wouldn’t allow a dirt bike up here, it must be outside. Bae slipped into the stairwell and waited until a clear spot opened, then rushed down to the next landing. He had to wait for more boxes to pass, most of them labeled, clothing, but one box labeled, Paint Ball Guns, caught his eye and he nearly fell over. What the heck, was there anything Rin didn’t have! A vision of him, Rin, and Massi running around the yard shooting paint balls at each other ran through his mind. There was no way Mrs. Hansson would let Rin keep paint ball guns – would she? Oh…of course she would. Rin had already wormed his way into her heart. Bae thought about all the hugs Rin had lavished on Mrs. Hansson. Rin never passed her without giving her a hug. Bae pressed his lips together in a frown, he hadn’t seen it coming. Oh, you clever little con-artist, you made sure you had her won over before all this stuff arrived. Rin was her new little boy. Bae had outgrown his cute little boy phase, but Rin still had the cute factor going for him. “Bae, what are you doing?” asked a small voice. Bae looked down at Mrs Hansson's daughter, Lilly, standing with a box of stuffed animals in her arms. He stomped down the stairs between the parades of boxes going up. “Hi, Lilly,” said Bae. “Are you mad, you look mad,” said Lilly. Bae reached the 2nd floor, stopped, and shoved his hands in his pockets. “No, I’m not mad.” Lilly reached into her box and lifted one of the stuffed animals up. “I think he’s mad,” said Lilly in a silly made-up voice as if the stuffed bunny were talking. Bae gave her a half-grin. “I’m not mad, Mr. Bunny.” Lilly lifted up a dolphin, and changed to a high squeaky voice. “Yeah, he’s mad.” “Oh really, and why am I mad, Mr. Dolphin?” asked Bae. Lilly made it look like the dolphin was swimming through the air. “Because Rin has more toys than you.” Bae shook his head. “I don’t care about toys.” Lilly dropped the dolphin and picked the bunny back up. “He’s jealous.” Bae clinched his jaw and his face turned red. Lilly picked the dolphin back up. “Oops, now you’ve really made him mad.” Bae’s eyes flashed with anger, but managed to keep his tongue. Lilly picked the bunny up. “If he was mad before, wait until he sees what’s coming up the stairs now.” Bae turned around and saw one of the movers carrying a long brightly colored box. The anger drained away and something more sinister took its place. He fought the urge to grab the box and smash it into a thousand pieces. The box still had the plastic wrapper around it, and the words, TH-3500, were emblazoned across an image of the newest state of the art metal detector. Bae only had an old TH-800 the Governor had given him for his birthday years ago. The TH-3500 had more treasure hunting modes, the best coil ever made, and could even detect gold down to almost 2 feet. Bae clinched his fists and stomped down the stairs to the sound of Lilly chanting, “Bae is jealous, Bae is jealous.” His ankle was throbbing by the time he reached the bottom floor. There were even more movers carrying boxes to the 1st floor residence where Captain Sal was moving into behind the main Governor’s office that was publicly accessible. Captain Sal was technically the Regent until Bae reached his 18th birthday, so it made sense for him to move here. Bae pushed the swinging door to the kitchen open and went in. The kitchen was full of Tath and Massi’s boxes. Tath and Massi were moving from their ridiculously small apartment over the harbor to the guard quarters off the kitchen; the guard quarters were at least three times the size of their old apartment. He found Tath and Massi wrestling a weight lifting bench through the backdoor. Bae rushed over and held the door for them, then slipped outside, and saw three dirt bikes parked next to the porch. What the heck, who needed three dirt bikes? Bae didn’t even stop to look at them. He walked between the moving trucks parked on the lawn. The groundskeeper was at the end of the drive leaning against a rake and glaring at the moving trucks that were destroying his grass. Bae barely nodded to the groundskeeper as he walked past and left the property. He wasn’t supposed to leave on his own, but he was angry and didn’t care. He thought he was going to be living in the Manor alone, but now the house was full, everyone was moving in. Rin’s security detail would be living in the furnished attic, the Hansson’s were going to be living in the 2nd floor residence, Tath and Massi in the guard quarters, and Captain Sal in the 1st floor residence. And of course he and Rin were on the 3rd floor. He followed the sidewalk, one of the few sidewalks on the island outside of the main harbor town. There were more people out and about then he had thought there would be, but of course the Marina was still operational, so they were probably mostly tourists come to see the Governor’s Manor. Bae hoped Mrs. Hansson was going to end the Manor tours, he didn’t really want strangers traipsing through his house. The sidewalk ended at a raised wooden walkway. Rented cars were parked out front, with a few of the license plates belonging to permanent residents. Bae walked past the benches and picnic tables used by tourists. All but one of the shops were open. The fresh fish shop was closed, which made sense, as there were no boats yet available to catch fresh fish. If he remembered right, he owned two of the shops here, but he couldn’t remember which two. He ran his hand over a rack of hats outside one of the shops. The girl behind the counter inside waved at him, and since his mood was marginally better, he waved back. He recognized her from school, Lindin…or maybe Linda, or something. Anyway, he was pretty sure she was in his class, or one of them. The girl motioned for him to come inside. He didn’t really want to, but he did want to find out which of the shops he owned, so he stepped inside. “Hi, Bae…umm… I mean Lord Governor,” said the girl behind the counter. “Hi, Limsey,” said Bae. “And you can just call me Bae.” The girl blushed and giggled. “Okay, Bae, in that case you can just call me Leilani.” Bae gave her his best charming grin. “Oops, sorry.” She flicked her hair and grinned. “You were close, after all, I only sit next to you in math class.” Bae ignored the quip. “Hey, I was wondering if you knew which shops here I own.” “You don’t know which stores you own?” Bae shrugged. “I’m still sorting through the Governor’s office, I’ll find out eventually, but I’m hoping it’s the ice cream shop because I want a root beer float, but I don’t have any money.” Leilani opened the register, counted out $2.32, and laid it on the counter. “You own the Bait and Tackle Store and the Feed Store.” She shrugged. “My treat for the ice cream.” Bae glanced at the money and shook his head. “I can’t take that, but thanks anyway. I’ll see you in school.” He was nearly at the door when Leilani shouted at him. “Seriously? You’re too stuck up to let me treat you.” Bae stopped as his temper rose again. He took a breath and pushed it back down and turned around. “It isn’t that at all. This winter is going to be hard, you’ll need every penny.” “You’re talking about the fishing fleet, aren’t you?” said Leilani. “Yes, the fleet is too damaged to go out this season,” said Bae. Leilani glared at him. “My great-grandma said that before the Baestars bought the fishing trawlers, we fished with nets from the beach. Are your nets broken too?” Bae’s anger faded back. The idea was brilliant, and it would put the fisherman back to work, but just catching fish wouldn’t be enough to weather the winter. “Do you have any ideas to deal with the Fish Processing Plant?” “The hanger at the airport is big enough,” said Leilani. Bae thought for a moment, it would work. “Are you doing anything later?” Leilani’s expression brightened. “Maybe?” “Would you come to the Manor and present your ideas to Captain Sal?” “Get out of my store, you jerk,” shouted Leilani. Bae shrugged and left the store. What had he done? He searched back through the conversation looking for some offense he might have caused, and finding none he filed it away as: all girls are crazy. The Bait and Tackle Shop was full of tourists inspecting fishing poles, lures, and other fishing necessities. He had never been in this store before, being that he owned a rescue tug and not a fishing trawler, but there were a few people he knew, mostly casual fisherman picking up a half-pint of worms from the cold storage refrigerator. The clerk behind the counter was too busy to notice him, so he left the store without announcing himself. The Feed Store wasn’t busy, but more than Leilani’s hat store, and looked boring, so he passed on visiting. His temper had mostly calmed by now, but he still wanted a root beer float. The Ice Cream Parlor was by far the busiest store on the walkway of shops. He took a place at the end of the line to wait his turn, and noticed a man with a little girl staring at him. The man was holding a book that Bae recognized as the official tour guide book of Altain Island and sold mostly at the Marina. Bae decided the man wasn’t a threat and stopped paying attention to him, until a minute later when the man approached. “Excuse me, are you Master Baestar?” The man had his tour book open and was looking at a picture of Bae from last year. “I’m Lord Governor Baestar now,” said Bae, not giving the man leave to call him Bae. He usually only gave that right to his own Altain citizens. This man was obviously from off-island and best the man used his proper title. “You’re the first Aristocrat we’ve met,” said the man sticking his hand out. “Tom Johns from the United Northern Republic, if you’re ever in need of a top quality commode, just call me.” The man winked. “I sell the very best.” Bae glanced at the man’s hand, then bowed his head slightly. “Welcome to Altain Island, Sir, I hope you are enjoying our hospitality.” The man didn’t drop his hand. “Don’t you shake hands here?” Bae smiled politely. “I apologize, Sir, but it is not permitted to come into physical contact with a member of the Nobility.” “Seems kind of rude.” The man still hadn’t dropped his hand and his face was starting to turn red. “I don’t think it’s so much to ask for a simple handshake.” A man standing in line in front of Bae turned around. Bae recognized him as the 1st Mate of the Night Star Fishing Trawler. “Hey, he’s fourteen, maybe you want to back off.” “What’s wrong with a handshake, has he been pampered so much he’s too delicate.” The man’s face was beet red now. Bae saw the 1st Mate’s hand curl into a fist, then a very big man came in from behind Bae and took the angry man’s hand and pumped it up and down. “Pleasure to meet you, John, I’m Chief Woods. Like Bae said, we hope you’re enjoying our hospitality.” Bae recognized Chief Woods immediately, he was the sniper on Trey’s team. The Chief kept pumping the man’s hand and Bae was pretty sure he’d just heard a bone snap. The man’s face drained of blood until he was pale as a ghost. “Look there,” continued Chief Woods. “A table just opened up, how about you and your daughter have a seat and enjoy some ice cream, on the house of course.” Chief looked down at the little girl. “What kind of ice cream would you like, sweetheart?” “A banana split,” said the girl. Chief still hadn’t let go of the man’s hand. The man looked like his legs were about to buckle under him, and Bae was certain he’d just heard another bone snap. Chief looked over at the teenager behind the counter serving the ice cream. “How about an extra-large banana split over here for the young lady, and can you expedite that?” “Umm…yes, Sir,” stuttered the teenager. Chief let go of the man’s hand and slapped him on the shoulder hard enough to turn him around. “There we go, famous Altain hospitality.” Chief led the man over to the table. The little girl climbed into the booth opposite her father. Chief bent down and whispered into the man’s ear. “The hospital is two miles east on Highway 1, I’ll call ahead and make arrangements to pay for your visit, then you get off this island and don’t ever come back. But first, you’re going to sit here until your little girl finishes every bite of her extra-large banana split.” Chief turned around and walked back towards Bae. The 1st Mate standing in line ahead of Bae put an arm up and stepped in front of Bae. “Bae, do you know this Master Chief?” asked the 1st Mate. “Yeah, thanks Dan, he’s one of Lord Lothan’s bodyguards,” said Bae. “Hey, Chief, were you following me?” “I was sitting against that wall when you came in,” said Chief. “I like ice cream the same as everyone else.” Chief turned his head to the teenager behind the counter making the banana split. “Young man, when you’re done with that, ice cream is on House Lothan for everyone. Bae, what do you want?” “Root beer float,” said Bae. “And bring a root beer float over to my table for Bae,” said Chief, then motioned Bae over to the far wall. Bae got the distinct feeling it wasn’t a request. Bae went and sat down with the Chief at his table. “That was a little brutal what you did.” “Your friend there was about to clock that guy, and then he could have been charged with assault, but I can’t, I have diplomatic immunity,” explained Chief. “So, why are you out of the Manor without your bodyguard?” Bae thought about making something up, but he did want to talk to someone, and not just about what happened today, but about everything. Chief Woods was a stranger, but maybe that’s what he needed, someone that wouldn’t judge. He told Chief about all the boxes of toys, and the arcade machine, and the dirt bikes, and then seeing the brand new metal detector, and the run-in with Lilly, and even Leilani at the hat shop. He went on to tell Chief about the hurricane, and rescuing Rin, and the pirates that had kidnapped him on the beach, and his treasure hunting, and now with the Governor gone and all the new responsibilities, he was overwhelmed. The root beer float arrived somewhere in the middle of Bae’s long release of all his pent up frustrations. Bae pushed the foam around with his straw, but the ice cream was mostly melted by the time he’d finished talking. Chief’s ice cream sundae had also mostly melted and he pushed it away. “You have a lot on your plate to deal with, is that it?” “Yeah, I’m drowning,” said Bae. You need eyes outside the forest to be able to see the forest,” said Chief. Bae gave Chief a confused grin. “Say what?” “You’re inside the forest surrounded by many trees, and that’s all you can see, you can’t see the forest because all the trees are in the way,” explained Chief. “I’m not inside the forest with you, I’m outside where I can see the big picture. So, let’s break down what you need to do.” Bae shrugged. “Okay.” “The girl at the hat shop, Lilly, and Rin will all resolve themselves naturally.” Chief brushed his hands together like that solved everything. “Seriously? That’s your solution, ignore the problem?” said Bae. “The girl in the hat shop thought you were going to ask her out,” said Chief with a mischievous grin. Bae’s eyes widened. “What! How did she get that idea?” Chief leaned back in this seat and shrugged. “You flashed your baby blues at her. She’ll either chase you, or forget about you when the next boy pays her any attention.” “That’s ridiculous, I didn’t do anything to give her that idea. Fine, whatever, what about Lilly?” “Lilly is very much like any little girl, she’ll stop tormenting you when you stop being fun to torment.” “Yeah, I get it, ignore her, I’m sure that won’t get me in any trouble,” said Bae sarcastically. “Alright, but what about Rin, who needs three dirt bikes?” said Bae. “Oh, I don’t know, maybe a boy with two friends he wants to take dirt bike riding,” offered Chief. Bae’s mouth dropped open, then smacked his forehead. “Oh my gosh, I’m so stupid.” Chief slapped his hand on the table. “There you go, slugger, once you can admit that, you’ll get along with anyone.” Bae shook his head. The man had an infectious grin, and for someone that doled out death from the shadows a mile away, he was likeable. “You’ve got the worst advice of anybody I’ve ever met.” Chief chuckled and jerked his thumb at the door. “Come on, let’s get back to the Manor before they think you’ve been kidnapped.” The man that had harassed Bae was getting into a rental car with his daughter. Bae nudged Chief and motioned with his head. Chief pulled a phone from his pocket and called the hospital. Bae waited until he was done promising payment from House Lothan for any medical services rendered to the man with a broken hand about to arrive. “You know, he could still sue us,” said Bae. “Does Rin still have that spear?” asked Chief. “Oh, you got jokes. Yeah, you and Massi should get along great.” Two of the moving vans were gone when they got back to the Manor. The groundskeeper was trying to rake out the damage done to the grass. Mrs. Hansson was waiting on the porch when Bae and Chief got there. “Where have you been, young man?” said Mrs. Hansson, then turned her glare at Chief. “Did you take him off the property without permission?” Chief held his hands up. “Woah there, I was at the ice cream parlor when he walked in. He said he was running away to sea to be a pirate. I brought him back.” Bae looked up at the man. “Way to have my back, thanks.” “Hey, no problem, kid,” said Chief. “Sorry I worried you, Mrs. Hansson,” said Bae. “You are not to leave this property without my express permission,” said Mrs. Hansson. Bae’s neck turned red and he shook his head. “I’m not going to live like that.” “That’s enough, Bae, even an adult let’s someone in the family know where they’re going,” said Captain Sal coming through the door from the kitchen. “I’m sorry,” said Bae. “But I’m not a little kid anymore.” “No, you’re not,” said Captain Sal. “You’re a teenager now and I’m going to give you the freedom you want, with one condition.” Bae narrowed his eyes. “What condition?” “The tug is in dry dock until September, so I’m giving you the entire summer to yourself. You can go wherever you like, whenever you like, but you have to take your little brother with you.” “What? You mean Rin?” “You’ll have no other responsibilities,” said Captain Sal. “I’m the Regent Governor until your 18th birthday, until then, I’ll take care of the island. I think you’re acting out because we’ve put too much on the shoulders of a 14 year old. I’m taking that load off you and going to let you be a teenager for a while, but, you took Rin on all by yourself, nobody made you do that and I’m not going to let you get out of that responsibility. If you go somewhere, Rin goes with you.” “Which means Rin’s bodyguard goes too, and Massi,” said Bae. “That’s the deal, take it or leave it,” said Captain Sal. “Can I pack the sailboat and go on a treasure hunt for the whole summer?” asked Bae. Captain Sal tipped his head. “As long as Rin is with you. You hurt his feelings today.” “What did I do? “You left the Manor without him,” said Mrs. Hansson. “He was planning a moving-in party for you today. He even helped me make a cake. He’s up in his room crying his eyes out.” The guilt wrapped around Bae like a blanket. He ran up the stairs and through the newly repaired screen door. Chief Woods was sitting at the table licking chocolate icing out of a bowl. Bae’s ankle throbbed as he sprinted up the stairs to the third floor. His ankle had felt fine this morning when he woke up, but he’d walked on it too much and it was swollen again. Rin’s door was open when he got there. He went in and saw a folding table set up in the middle of the room. A big chocolate cake sat on the table with a bowl of melted ice cream next to it. Bae heard sniffling and went over to Rin’s pirate ship bed. Bae softly rang the little ships bell on the front of the pirate ship. “I’m sorry,” said Bae. Rin was lying on his stomach with his face buried in his pillow. “Go away, you left me.” “Rin, I’m really sorry. I was having a bad day and went for a walk.” Rin sniffled. “I helped Mrs. Hansson make a cake.” “It looks great, how about we have a piece,” said Bae. “The ice cream is all melted, it’s no good now,” said Rin. “I’m so sorry,” said Bae. “I got you a present,” said Rin. “I don’t think that’s how a moving-in party works,” said Bae. “I’m supposed to get you a present.” “Did you?” asked Rin. Bae shook his head. “I didn’t know we were having a party.” Rin rolled over to the edge of the mid-deck and pulled the blankets back to reveal a long box with blue wrapping. Bae’s heart sank into his stomach and he felt like throwing up. Oh no, no, not that, anything but that. Rin lifted the box around and shoved it at Bae. “Happy moving-in day,” said Rin. Bae held the box in his hands. A honey dripping voice sang out from the doorway. “Oh, looky, you got a present, Bae,” said Lilly, skipping into the room. Bae’s face went hot. The timing was too perfect. She must have known the whole time and was here now to deliver the coup de grace. Bae’s knees felt weak and he sat down with the box across his lap. Rin followed him out of the pirate ship and stood, still sniffling slightly. “Go ahead, Bae, open it,” said Lilly. Bae slowly ripped the blue paper away to reveal the words, TH-3500 Metal Detector Pro. “Ohhhh…that’s so sweet, Rin,” said Lilly. “Isn’t that sweet, Bae.” “I was hoping maybe I could use your old metal detector and we can go treasure hunting together,” said Rin. Bae swallowed hard, he felt sick. After all his temper tantrum today, the metal detector had been for him. “Rin, if you want it, you can have my old metal detector,” said Bae. Rin’s sniffling stopped and his face lit up. “Really? It’s the perfect size for me. I know where it is, can I go get it?” Bae forced a smile and nodded. Rin ran out of the room. Lilly skipped to the door singing a nonsensical song about a bunny. Rin was back in less than 30 seconds with the old metal detector in its case. Rin flopped down on the floor next to Bae and unlatched the case. He pulled Bae’s old metal detector out and laid it on his lap. “I love it, it’s the most perfect moving-in day present ever,” said Rin, then added, “You’re the best friend anyone could ever have. Hurry, open yours so we can go outside and see if there’s any treasure in the yard.”