Echo

my own feelings?” She marched over to a cabinet, taking down a glass and slammed it on the counter, inadvertently breaking it. Penny immediately got up to sniff the glass that had fallen on the floor.
    “Watch out Penny. Abby the dogs are going to get hurt now.” Scotty got up to clean the mess.
    “So now I’m hurting the dogs? Really?” Scotty started to open his mouth. Catching Jose’s eye, he stayed silent.
    “Come on Ab.” Jose moved to put his arms around her.
    “Don’t. I’m not in the mood.” Shrugging him off, she pulled out another glass, letting the cold water run, the sound calming her down. Filling her glass, she mumbled “I’m sorry,” then stalked out to the terrace where she remained for the rest of the evening, not even getting up to say goodbye to Jose as he left for the airport. She hoped she could snap out of her malaise by the time Mama Diaz returned with the girls. Glancing down toward the dock, she saw Captain Cobby sitting alone, watching the sunset. She had been meaning to find the time to chat with him regarding the tension between Kane and Scotty. Scotty filled her in on the incident in the garage and she hadn’t like the sound of what could have been a disaster, if Scotty’s secret got exposed in the middle of a fight.
    Slipping on her sunglasses, she adjusted her clothing, making sure everything remained properly concealed, then headed down to the dock.
    Walking the short plank, she stuck her head in before entering the deck.
    “Permission to come aboard?” Captain Cobby hurried to lend a hand, leaving his drink on the cocktail table near the captain’s chair at the wheel.
    “Ms. Abby, you know you don’t ever need permission. The Lucky Lady belongs to you.”
    “I know, Captain, but I do like to observe the niceties where I can. I hope I am not interrupting your evening.”
    “No, no, please join me.” He led her over to the cocktail area where plush green and white striped outdoor chairs were strewn about. The area could hardly be called intimate as it appeared spacious enough to hold a reception for one hundred people. Sitting down, she held up an empty Baccarat crystal glass, plucked off the outdoor sideboard. The captain hastened to fill it for her. She held the crystal, twirling it in the waning late afternoon sun, absently noting the similarity to Echo’s antlers. There was a time when they counted themselves lucky to have plastic glasses, if colored all the better. The colored ones hid the scratches that collected on the cheap plastic. She shook her head imperceptibly as she waited for her wine to breathe, reflecting on all the grandeur and glamour of her new life; just handed to them. Was she dreaming? Just the mere fact that she even knew red wine must breathe, startled her. Nothing about her new life felt real.
    “Hope a Pinot Noir is okay.” Nodding, Abby took a sip, eyeing him from over her glass. Captain Cobby struck a rather handsome appearance, in an exciting older virile Italian kind of way. It must be the thick dark curly hair, she thought, forgetting that Jose used to have dark thick curly hair. They sat together, neither speaking, letting the lapping of gentle waves against the hull weave a calm and intimate ambience around them. Breaking their companionable silence, she asked,
    “Is Kane around tonight?”
    “I’m disappointed. I hoped you were her to visit me.” Laughing, he gave her a quick wink.
    “I am here to see you, Captain, just didn’t want our conversation overheard.” Leaning back in his chair, he nodded his head slowly, rubbing his strong weather beaten hand across his closely cropped beard. He gently set down his wine glass, crossed his tanned arms and looked at her without a trace of humor.
    “Is this about my son?” Taken aback by the quick change of tone, Abby decided to tread softly.
    “Yes, Captain. I just hoped you and I can do something to bring the boys together, before any blood flies.” Relaxing a bit, the captain adopted a low confidential tone.
    “Kane has not had an easy go of it in life, Abby. His mother kept me from seeing him and then took off for God knows where. He lived with the notion I was dead. I did my best to find them but my job on the water was not conducive to raising a child. I gave up pretty easily. When he turned ten, she suddenly showed up to dump the boy with me. You can imagine how it went from there. It’s taken me a long time to get Kane to this point. He has a chip on his