Sycamore Tales Read online

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  Sycamore Tales

  The Voyage of Death

  Across the gulf, the moon set abreast upon the night horizon and awakened to a new dawn. As the water of the gulf waltzed in the night, it was enhanced by a sparkling light show created by the moonlight. Harper’s Lighthouse stood about a mile off the coast on Flat Rock Island near Jacob’s cove.

  It was 1973 in the little coastal town of Summer Shade located along the Florida coastline in Hamilton County at the Junction of US Highway 259 and Cooks Road. Summer Shade is a small fishing port on the gulf side of the Florida coastline. People from everywhere go there for vacations, boating outings, fishing trips and water sports. Its sandy white beaches, piers and docks enhance the shoreline. At night the beach is dressed with all kinds of lights, parks, shops, restaurants and hotels. There are beach parties, volleyball games, cookouts and snorkeling among the reefs. Some of the restaurants are San’s, Oak’s and Dick’s Drive-In along with many other seafood restaurants, bars and grills.

  About fifty miles north of Summer Shade Kelvin and Susan are getting ready to celebrate their second honeymoon. They are headed to Summer Shade to renew their wedding vows, along with his son, Clint, who they call Boo. Kelvin married Susan after his first wife died about seven years ago from terminal cancer. They have been married for six years now. Boo was nine when his mother died; Kelvin and Susan never had any children of their own. Boo took the loss of his mother very hard at the age of sixteen he still hasn’t gotten over it. Boo feels like Susan is trying to take his mothers place so they do not get along very well. He has a lot of anger and resentment towards her. Kelvin has to be the referee between them, but it is hard since he loves them both. After they renew their wedding vows, Kelvin has arranged for them all to take a gulf cruise.

  Dewayne and Cynthia is an older couple from Summer Shade. They have also signed up for the gulf cruise, just to get out of the house for a change. They have been married thirty three years and are both retired; he is a retired business man. Cynthia has a drinking problem and Dewayne has an eye for the women and likes to gamble.

  Marcus and Sheila is an engaged couple from Tennessee. They are in Florida for spring break and are living it up with all the fun and partying. Marcus won a gulf cruise for two so since they are already in Florida soaking up the sun and enjoying beach life, they are going to take advantage of the cruise while they are there. Right before they left for the beach that day, the phone rang as Shelia was headed out of the hotel room. Marcus was already in the car and blowing the horn to hurry her along. She started to leave without answering it but she thought it might be important.

  “Hello,” she said.

  “It’s me,” replied the voice on the other end.

  As soon as she heard the voice, she knew exactly who it was.

  “How did you know where to find me?” she asked.

  “I have my ways,” he replied.

  She slammed the phone down and tried to regain her composure before she went to the car. She knew who it was, but she wasn’t going to tell Marcus. Shelia had an affair, about six months ago, with the man who called while dating Marcus. The man had become too possessive with her and he wouldn’t take no for an answer. He just kept on calling, teasing and stalking her. She finally broke it off with him to save her engagement to Marcus. The man had threatened to kill her and Marcus. The vacation was not only a getaway, but they were trying to rekindle the flame in their relationship. After spending the day shopping and sightseeing they decided to attend the luau on the beach. The beach was covered with people. The luau party was in full force. People were dancing to the music, playing volleyball, roasting hotdogs and marshmallows around the bonfire, drinking and smoking. It was wild! Some of the women took off their bikini tops, ran out into the water and played tug of war. The food was out of this world.

  When someone in the crowd yelled out limbo time, everyone lined up behind each other to do the limbo. As they waited in line, they danced to the Limbo Rock. It was crazy, but fun. By two in the morning the only ones left on the beach were the ones that had passed out and couldn’t make it back home. But, the police helped make sure the beach was vacated. By daybreak the wild party of the night was a thing of the past. It was a new day and time for a new adventure.

  Everyone headed for the cruise was excited. They looked forward to cruising three days around the gulf with plenty of sun and relaxation. Kelvin, Susan, and Boo were the first to reach Pier 8 at Salty Dog Boat Dock. The dock was overrun with all kinds and sizes of boats. As they made their way around the dock looking for their boat, they ran into Marcus and Sheila. Just so happened they were looking for the same boat, Hook, Line and Sinker. Finally, they found it and its captain, Anthony Lewis.

  “Welcome aboard,” he said to them as they made their way onto the boat. “This is Dewayne and Cynthia,” he introduced. “And you must be Kelvin, Susan, Marcus and Sheila. I hope I got everyone’s name right.”

  “Almost,” they replied.

  “I’m Kelvin and he is Marcus.”

  “And who might this young man be?” questioned Captain Anthony.

  Kelvin spoke up, “This is my son, Clint, but we call him Boo.”

  “Glad to have you aboard,” welcomed Captain Anthony.

  As he welcomed them all again, he yelled for his first mate. Out from the cabin below the deck appeared his first mate and right hand man, Benny.

  “This is Benny; he will show you around.”

  “You have a beautiful boat,” said Sheila.

  “Why, thank you,” the Captain said with appreciation. “It’s my baby. It’s a Schooner 125 foot sailboat yacht with three masts, Catalina 352 Sea Rider. Benny, go ahead and show the good folk around. They may want to get comfortable because we’ll be heading out for the open gulf shortly.”

  “What about the weather?” inquired Marcus.

  “The last I heard it is supposed to be clear. But, there is always a chance that we might run into a small storm once we’re out there. You never really know; it’s a chance you take out on the water. Out there on the water, things can change in an instant. But, I have checked with the weather bureau, my shipping charts and logs; it should be smooth sailing. Is everyone about ready to set sail?”

  “Yeah,” exclaimed the others. “Let’s go for it.”

  “Benny, let’s do it,” instructed Captain Anthony.

  Within minutes, the boat left the pier and moved out into the gulf. It was a beautiful day; a great day for sailing. As the boat rode abreast of the water, everyone sat back, enjoyed the ride and the scenery. As Benny worked the sails and the captain steered the wheel of the boat, it seemed to ballet across the water like a ballerina. The air, along with a little mist of water spray from the gulf, was refreshing as it hit across their faces. It was a beautiful day; everyone was having fun. They were drinking and enjoying the food. The atmosphere was so romantic.

  “Life is good,” stated the captain.

  Boo was crazy about his dad. But, ever since his dad remarried it seemed, to Boo, like his dad didn’t have much time for him anymore. Boo was jealous of his new mother. She was not his biological mother and that was a major turn off to him. He blamed God for taking his mother away and had a huge chip and the weight of the world on his shoulder. He had a lot of resentment, bitterness and anger built up in him. He was like a bomb ready to explode. At times, he wished she was dead. Kelvin was a good dad. Boo didn’t understand why his dad was all caught up in the marriage. But, Susan helped fill the void in Kelvin’s life. His wife had only been dead a year when he remarried. It may have been too soon for him to remarry; it may have cheated not only his son but him and Susan as well. However, in life things happen unexpectedly sometimes. Kelvin was a worker; he was a good provider, planner, go-getter and loved to see accomplishments, whether his own or those of someone else. Boo claimed his dad worked too much and he had heard his mother sa
y the same thing.

  Cynthia was a drinker and talker; she loved to drink and gossip. Dewayne was a lady’s man, or so he thought, and it didn’t take long for him to set his eyes on Sheila. As time passed on the first day, Cynthia got drunk and started sharing some info that should have been left unsaid. Marcus and Kelvin were doing a little fishing and Dewayne was below deck. As she socialized with the others, she let it slip that her husband was an informant for the FBI and had supplied them with information pertaining to the mob. She also told them that Dewayne had worn a wire for an FBI sting that ended up getting several of the kingpins arrested. After that happened, the FBI changed his name and gave him a new identity for his protection. They were intrigued with her every word when unexpectedly she grabbed her mouth, rushed over to the side of the boat, bent over the railing and threw up. She was sick; I mean really sick. As Dewayne came back up to the deck, he saw her and knew exactly what had happened. He apologized to the others as he took her back down below deck to sleep it off. Susan and the others didn’t know what to make of it.

  “Do you believe she is telling the truth about Dewayne?” asked Susan.

  “He doesn’t seem to be that type,” said Sheila.

  “He looks like a used car salesman to me. You know, they all look alike. In my line of work, I meet all kinds of people,” replied Captain Anthony.

  About that time, Kelvin and Marcus came over and wanted to know what they were talking about. Susan told them nothing and they each started telling stories about themselves. As the orange, yellow sun began to set against the watery horizon, the night air of the gulf presented a slightly cooler breeze. The boats lights dominated the blackened sky as the moon appeared with a golden haze. Everyone decided to go down below to get a bite to eat and kick back to relax for the evening. Benny fixed him a tall glass of cold buttermilk with a little salt which was one of his favorite drinks. As they were enjoying their meal, Shelia suddenly spoke up.

  “What on earth is that smell? Marcus did you fart?”

  “Why no,” he quickly replied as everyone looked around and started laughing.

  Captain Anthony spoke up, “It’s probably Benny’s damn stinking feet. I’ve told him time and time again that he needs to keep them washed.”

  “That is a sickening smell,” replied Shelia.

  “It sure is,” Cynthia and Dewayne agreed.

  Benny just dropped his head and headed back up on deck with a slight grin on his face. He didn’t have much to say, but he was sort of distant, quiet and stayed to himself most of the time.

  As silence fell across the boat, the excitement of the first day finally came to rest upon the water. While the others slept, Kelvin got up to check on Boo. However, he was not in his bunk. Kelvin searched the boat, frantically looking for him. He found Boo sitting up on deck staring out into the gulf. Kelvin went over to him and asked him if he was alright and that he had him worried.

  “I miss Mama,” he said.

  “I do to,” replied Kelvin. “There’s not a day that goes by that I don’t think about her.”

  “Why, Dad?” he questioned. “Why did she have to leave us?”

  “No one knows that except the Lord,” answered Kelvin.

  “But why did he take her?” Boo cried. “If he is such a good God why does he let bad things happen to good people?”

  “Well, we’re not supposed to question the Lord,” replied Kelvin. “It was her time to go, son. I wish you would give Shelia a chance though. She means well and I believe deep down in your heart you know that.”

  “Dad,” he said, “what am I going to do? I don’t want to go around the rest of my life with a chip on my shoulder and hating others for no reason.”

  “I know son, you’re not like that. All I want is for you to be happy.”

  “Dad it’s hard,” he replied, “to let go.”

  “I know,” said Kelvin, “but there comes a time when you have to.”

  “What do you think I should do?” he asked.

  “I think you already know the answer to that question, son; it’s in your heart. Son, talk to the Lord.”

  “Do you think he’ll listen?” questioned Boo.

  “He always listens and he understands,” responded Kelvin.

  “Thanks Dad,” Boo said as his dad held him in his arms.

  “Well, I’m going to go below,” said Kelvin. “You want to join me?”

  “I’ll be down in a few minutes,” replied Boo.

  “Okay,” said Kelvin.

  “Oh, Dad,” said Boo. “Thanks for listening; I love you.”

  “I love you too,” replied Kelvin.

  At the breaking of another dawn, the second day into their voyage began. The warm breeze from off the gulf began to stir and fill the sails, putting the boat into motion. As far as the eye could see there was only water. They were somewhere out in the bottom part of the gulf, not too far from Mexico. They had put a lot of distance between Summer Shade and where they were now. But, the voyage had been successful and enjoyable, which was what they all needed. Boo seemed to be better, at least he was trying and that was a start. Kelvin seemed to be proud of him, but he knew Boo still had a long way to go and so did he. Time heals all wounds through the Lord, he thought to himself. Cynthia was back as spry as a chicken and with no signs of a hangover. She started her morning with a drink while Dewayne flirted with Shelia. Susan and Kelvin seemed as if they had grown closer together during the night. Marcus was up early to try his luck at fishing. And Benny, he finally washed his feet. As the morning passed, Captain Anthony began to feel the wind from the gulf starting to pick up. He looked ahead and noticed the sky was turning black and the clouds were swirling together. This caused him to become concerned and alarmed. He kept his eye on the swirling clouds and knew rough waters were up ahead. Kelvin and Marcus also noticed the ominous looking clouds and they too became worried.

  “It doesn’t look good,” said the captain.

  “What are we going to do?” asked Dewayne.

  “Can we make it around the storm?” questioned Marcus.

  “I don’t think so,” replied the captain. “It’s moving in too fast. It appears it’s going to be rough. Can ya’ll take care of everything down below?”

  “Sure,” they responded.

  “Lock everything down,” he instructed, “and hold on for the ride. Benny, let’s get the boat ready for the storm,” commanded the captain. “We’ll prepare for the worst case scenario.”

  “Yes, sir,” replied Benny.

  The captain looked up again at the huge mass of clouds moving toward them. In the distance he could see lightning flashing inside the dark heavy clouds and he could feel the cool wind coming in off the water.

  “Have you about got it ready?” he yelled to Benny.

  “Almost,” he replied.

  The wind began to pick up and started driving the boat up and down on the water, tossing it from side to side. Captain Anthony held on to the helm as tight as he could. He had to yell for Benny to come and help him. Benny had to fight the driving wind and rain as he struggled to get to Captain Anthony. It took both of them to hold the helm and maintain the boat in the storm. The rocky waters were paying a toll upon the boat. Suddenly, one of the masts broke loose and swung around freely. Benny tried to reach for it but it just knocked him down. Finally, it lodged itself in the rigging of the other mast. The bow of the ship would rise with the force of the water and the wind would slam it back down on the breast of the troubled water. The thunder roared as the fiery lightning raped the sky with no mercy. While the waves and driving rain continued to bombard the boat, they wondered if they would be able to stay afloat. In the haunting of the blackest time of the storm, they struggled with all their might as the lightning struck at them on every side. A loud thunder burst sent a chilling and haunting cry across the gulf. The angry waves crushed against the boat. The rain pounded the boat, rocking it about on the a
ngry waters; everyone held on for their life. The ship popped and snapped; it seemed to bow and bend. In minutes, which seemed like hours, they saw a glimmer of light breaking through the darkness. Captain Anthony turned the boat over to Benny and told him to guide it toward the light while he went to check on the passengers down below.

  “I can see the light of day,” yelled Benny.

  As the storm moved out deeper into the gulf, the ship broke through the opening of the light of day. As they moved into the light, the waters became still and the boat became steady. The fierce and angry storm had ceased. There was only a slight stir of the wind; it blew just enough to comfort them in the heat. But when the captain returned back up on deck, he told Benny that the storm had caused the engine to stall and the radio had also been knocked out. All they had left to depend on was the wind and the sails. The instrument panel had also gone out which caused them to wander helplessly around the gulf; the storm had blown them off course.

  “Do you think you can fix it, Benny?” asked Captain Anthony.

  “I don’t know,” answered Benny, “but I’ll try my best.”

  “Go ahead,” replied Captain Anthony, “and see what you can do. We have to do something. This sun is going to keep getting hotter and hotter over this water.”

  “Okay, captain, I’ll try,” said Benny.

  Benny worked on the engine for about thirty minutes. Unfortunately, he didn’t have any luck and neither did Captain Anthony. The only thing they could hope for was that the wind would pick back up and catch the sails. The others had all come back up on the deck because it was too hot below. There was no air at all stirring. The boat sat paralyzed in the calm water. There was no wind stirring, nor was there a breeze. The heat was stifling. It seemed like they had been out there for days, but it has only been a few hours. Everyone was quiet and praying for a miracle when they heard the engine of another boat.

  “Ahoy! Are you having trouble?” a man asked from the boat as he pulled up next to them.

  “We are having engine trouble,” shouted Captain Anthony.

  “Do you need our help?”

  “You can look at it, but my first mate and I haven’t been able to get it started” replied Captain Anthony.

  “Well, I have my mechanic here with me; he’s the best at what he does. I’m sure he can get it working again,” he responded.

  Captain Anthony motioned for them to come on aboard. The man, who was the captain, his mechanic and another crew member boarded Captain Anthony’s boat and everyone introduced themselves.

  “That was one heck of a storm,” said the other captain. “For awhile, I thought we were doomed.”

  “I felt the same way,” replied Captain Anthony.

  As the two captains talked, the mechanic went down into the hole to see if he could repair the engine. He was down there about twenty minutes when he yelled back up out of the hole for them to try it. Captain Anthony turned the key, but the engine didn’t turn over.

  “Wait a minute,” yelled the mechanic. “Now, try it again.”

  But, there was still nothing. About ten minutes later he yelled again. This time, Captain Anthony turned the key and the engine fired up. He and everyone else were so thankful; they couldn’t thank them enough. It was such a great relief to have the engine running again. The other captain and his crew boarded their boat and shoved off into the open gulf. As everyone waved by and thanked them once again, Captain Anthony took control of the boat and headed back towards home. But, Dewayne seemed troubled, like something was bothering him. When his wife questioned him about it, he said that one of the men that came aboard looked like one of the mobsters he had squealed on.

  “Are you sure,” questioned Cynthia.

  “Yes, I’m sure,” he replied. “Did anyone see the tattoo of a heart with a snake wrapped around it on the back of his right hand?”

  “Yes, I did,” said Susan.

  “I saw something on his hand,” replied Marcus. “But, I didn’t pay that much attention to it.”

  “Do you think it was a coincidence that they found us out here or do you think they have been looking for us the whole time? asked Kelvin.

  “I don’t know,” responded Captain Anthony. “We’ll watch for them and see if they come back.”

  The still of the water created a haunting feeling; the captain had already picked up on it. He had a bad feeling about the situation, but he didn’t want to alarm the others. The water smelled of death. It had never smelled like that before. There was no movement at all, not even a bird in the sky and the sun was so hot. They felt like they were being watched, but by who. The guests were still up on the deck. The captain could sense that they had smelled the same thing. And this time it wasn’t Benny’s feet. Captain Anthony pressed onward trying to get out of the calm. The fear of the unknown had crept upon the boat; they were all crippled by the unexpected. Then without a warning, there was an explosion; it could be heard for miles. The boat blew up in the middle of the water killing everyone on board.

  Shortly afterward, another boat noticed the smoke and flames and radioed for the coast guard. They hurried over to see if they could help, but there was nothing they could do. The fire was too intense. The boat continued to burn as black smoke rose straight up toward the sky. There were bodies floating around in the water with no sign of any survivors. Slowly, the boat burned and started sinking. By the time the coast guard arrived, there wasn’t much left. The other boats crew filled them in on what they had seen. They told them they had seen another boat next to the boat a few hours before it exploded, but didn’t really think anything about it at the time. As the coast guard recovered the bodies out of the water, they called in for a team to pull the wreckage to shore for investigation.

  Days later, the investigation proved that there was some kind of bomb device onboard that caused the explosion. There were eight bodies recovered out of the water, but there had been nine people on board. The only body that was unaccounted for was Clint’s; he was the only missing person. He could have slipped onto the other boat without their knowledge and hid. Boaters had reported that sharks had been seen around the area. The boaters who reported about another boat being alongside the Hook Line and Sinker could never be found. There were no records of any other boat on the shipping chart. The investigation uncovered that Captain Anthony had a second mortgage on his boat, he was behind on his payments and they were going to repossess it. He had also done twenty-four years in prison for arson which killed a homeless man that was living in the old warehouse that he set on fire. Dewayne was tied to the mob by gambling debts. It could have been mob related or could it have been Shelia’s ex-lover. The police speculated he could have been involved after they checked his background records. According to the police report, she had turned him in and he had threatened to kill her. Benny was a drifter who worked on the dock picking up odd jobs. No one really knew much about him. He just appeared there one day and never left. He took jobs on boats that a lot of other people didn’t want; he cleaned and washed boats, etc. The best they could find out, he was originally from around West Virginia and he had an incurable cancer. The doctors had only given him a few months to live. He had been in Florida for about two years. He was fascinated with boats and water; he was the main suspect in the investigation. Benny had been a patient at a mental hospital years ago and was diagnosed as bipolar and schizophrenic; the doctors prescribed him lithium. They say he walked out of the hospital one day and never came back. The doctors believed he stopped taking his medicine and became unstable again. There was a warrant out for his arrest; he was linked to a murder that had occurred in Kentucky. Benny had supposedly killed Captain Anthony’s younger brother over the disappearance of some money. But, Benny didn’t know the man he supposedly killed was Captain Anthony’s brother. The question was did Captain Anthony know Benny may have killed him. Benny always believed he had been set up by his roommate but he
could never prove it. He worked in the homeless mission in Nashville, Tennessee for a while. When winter came he moved to Florida. The investigation was closed; they never figured out how the explosion happened. The investigation could not come up with enough solid evidence to pinpoint who placed the bomb on the boat. It was considered a random act with no real solid motive. The case went on for years, but later on in 1986 it was labeled a cold case FL0762-NK.