Lab Notes: a novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

vent the smoke, then turned on the VHF radio and tuned it to the marine weather frequency. The announcer’s nasal tones filled the pilothouse: “This is your NOAA weather channel with the forecast for Texas coastal waters to twenty nautical miles offshore ….”
    It was a humid December evening with a low fog covering the water’s surface. Fortunately, the temperature was not predicted to dip any lower than sixty-five degrees until a dry cold front from the north moved through later that night. That meant it should remain comfortable enough for guests to step out onto the decks during their cruise down Galveston Bay.
    The Enterprise would motor the twenty-five miles to Galveston while the guests enjoyed champagne and a seafood buffet. The yacht would dock in Galveston for an hour or so before heading back up the bay to the BRI marina.
    Gabriel Carrera took a long draw on his cigar and blew the smoke toward the open window. Then he turned to Raymond. “So, you have hired the coal miner’s daughter and her husband?”
    “Steelworker’s daughter,” Raymond corrected. “I have to say, though, Diane Rose’s credentials are impressive. And she’s fluent in more languages than you are.”
    Gabriel said, “If you like, I would be glad to introduce her to the right people to expedite her plant collecting in Central and South America.”
    Pensively, Raymond rolled his cigar between his thumb and index finger. “Ahh… I don’t have the Roses’ signatures on a contract yet.” There, he had said it out loud. But he felt no relief. He knew his tale of woe had not reached the sympathetic ear of a trusted compadre . Almost two decades ago, when he and Gabriel became business partners, they ceased being friends.
    Gabriel Carrera was one year younger than Raymond Bellfort, and they had grown up together, attending Winston Military Academy in Indiana. They had been close companions and confidantes until Raymond was expelled from school in their junior year, forcing him on a different academic route. But they had always remained in touch.
    Raymond’s American grandfather and Gabriel’s Colombian grandfather had drilled for oil in South America together years before, resulting in their children—Mary and Carlos—marrying. Raymond and Gabriel’s mothers were now both deceased.
    Raymond looked outside at the empty dock, checked his watch and shrugged.
    “Relax,” Gabriel said quietly. “You know how airport traffic is on Fridays… Did you make hotel reservations for them?”
    Raymond nodded. “Maxine booked the penthouse suite for them at Bay Harbour. I’ll check with the hotel again in a few minutes.”
    Raymond heard his wife’s boisterous laughter rising from below and rolled his eyes at his cousin. “Batten the hatches; here she comes.”
    The pilothouse door burst open to admit Raymond’s wife Charlotte, a stately vision in flowing red silk and diamonds. “Gabriel, how did you ever get past me downstairs, you handsome thing?”
    “Charlotte, my dear.” Gabriel embraced her warmly.
    Charlotte stepped back to admire her cousin-in-law. “Look at you. Age only becomes you. You’re a Latin/Anglo prince.” She glanced at Raymond, then back at Gabriel. “It’s hard to believe your mothers were sisters. Why couldn’t Raymond have half your looks, your panache?”
    Gabriel dismissed Charlotte’s effusiveness with a good-natured wave of his hand. “I swear you are the only person on God’s earth who makes me blush.”
    And one of the few who makes you laugh,” Charlotte pinched Gabriel under the ribs, making him jump. “Lighten up! Come down to the salon with me. They have a nice effervescent liquid that will pop your cork, let the pressure out.” Ignoring Raymond, she took Gabriel’s arm and steered him toward the stairs.
    “After you,” Gabriel said, tossing his cigar through the open window. Looking back over his shoulder, he shrugged at Raymond as though he had lost all control of the