After their talk Rene checked her camera again and saw that it had four new videos saved in slots that were supposed to be empty. She watched them with her friends, but they were nothing special; typical teenage hijinks. The thief recorded a few sets of boobs he liked, and his friends participated in a God-awful rap battle near the bow of the ship one day.
Rene erased the videos, and for the rest of the evening she played cinematographer while her friends took her on a tour of the ship. They had the most fun in the karaoke lounge. The talent was a little better that night, but the Finley Sisters were all together and they were all tipsy, and ridiculing strangers was the main order of business.
They didn’t talk loudly enough for their victims to hear them, but everyone noticed there was a lot of laughter coming from the sisters’ table, and this laughter varied in volume, depending on how unsavory the current singer was.
Before they left Rene remembered how Dawn used to be a pretty good singer back in their high school days.
“Why don’t you go up there and show ’em how it’s done?”
“Why?” Dawn asked with a chuckle. “So y’all can make fun of me?”
“We’re not going to make fun of you!” Mona assured her.
“Don’t you still sing?” Rene asked.
“Not really,” Dawn replied. “I haven’t been in a choir since the tenth grade.”
“I’ma go get the book,” Mona said, referring to a huge binder filled with songs that were available for the karaoke event.
“No!” Dawn grabbed her arm and pulled her back to her seat. “I’m not going up there! I been drinking too much!”
“All right,” Mona said. “But tomorrow you’re singing before you get all drunk.”
“Y’all gotta do something, too,” Dawn said with a giggle.
“That’s cool,” Rene said. “We’ll all go up there, give these people a chance to laugh at us for a change.”
“Ooh, check this one out,” Mona said as their next victim took the stage. This time it was a homely middle-aged woman who said she was singing her favorite Bonnie Raitt song. “She so ugly,” Mona quipped, “I bet her husband takes her to work with him so he don’t have to kiss her goodbye!”
Rene and Dawn got a big laugh out of that, but by then it was mostly the liquor tickling their funny bone.
***
The next morning Dawn overslept for the first time in over a year. By the time she jerked her head from the pillow, the sun was shining brightly through her portholes, and someone was banging hard on her cabin door.
Dawn jumped out of bed and rushed to see what the problem was. Mona stood on the other side of the door looking calm and quite beautiful.
“What?” Dawn nearly screamed.
“What do you mean, ‘what’?” Mona said.
“Why you banging on the door like that?”
“It’s almost ten o’clock,” Mona informed. “This is my second time coming to your room. Just wanted to make sure you were all right.”
“Oh.” Dawn rubbed her eyes and straightened her hair with her fingers. She looked back and saw land rather than water though her circular windows. The land wasn’t moving, and as Dawn shook the cobwebs from her equilibrium, she realized the boat wasn’t, either. “We landed again?”
“Yep. You missed it,” Mona said. “We’re in Cozumel now.”
“Where’s that?” Dawn asked.
“It’s still Mexico. Didn’t you read your schedule?”
“Yeah, I did,” Dawn said. “Gimme a minute to wake up. Did y’all eat breakfast yet?”
“We’re trying to wait on you,” Mona said, with just a little impatience. “Come to Rene’s room when you get dressed.”
“I gotta shower and everything,” Dawn said. “Y’all go ahead without me. I’ll catch up with you in the cafeteria.”
“Cool,” Mona said. “Maybe you should order some wakeup calls for the next couple of days. You can’t be the best–”
“Yeah, I know,” Dawn said. “… if your ass is in bed all day. You already told me.”
“Oh. Well act like you know.” Mona continued down the hallway, her haughty stroll in full force.
***
Rene and Mona were done eating by the time their friend made it to the cafeteria, but they remained at the table while Dawn wolfed down a simple meal of cereal and toast. Both Mona and Rene had new excursion lists, and they were busy making plans for the fourth day on the boat.
“I wanna go parasailing,” Mona said. “I never did that before.”
“Parasailing?” Rene frowned. “You might as well go bungee jumping if you’re going to do something that crazy.”
“I did that before,” Mona said, “but I can do it again.” She scanned the list anxiously. “Where’s bungee jumping? I don’t see it on here.”
“It’s not on there,” Rene said. “I’m just saying, if you want to do something dangerous, you might as well—never mind.”
“Parasailing’s not dangerous,” Mona said with a wave of her hand. “Quit acting like a baby.”
“What do you think?” Rene asked Dawn.
She took a sip of orange juice and cleared her throat. “About what?”
“About parasailing,” Rene said. “Does that sound like something you want to do?”
Dawn shook her head. “I’m not going parasailing. What are you talking about?”
“Today’s excursions,” Rene said. “Are you even listening to us?”
“Not really,” Dawn admitted. “I thought y’all was talking to each other.”
“Stop playing,” Mona said. “You’re coming with us today.”
Dawn noticed that was a statement rather than a question, but she still said, “I don’t have no money for no excursions. I told you yesterday.”
“Mona and I are splitting the price of yours,” Rene said. “We already agreed on it, and we’re not taking ‘no’ for an answer. So what do you want to do?”
Dawn sighed. “Man, I–”
“Stop with the whining,” Rene said.
“Yeah,” Mona agreed. “That shit’s getting old. You need–”
“Excuse me.”
The ladies looked up and saw that a familiar gentleman had approached their table. It took a second to place him, but Rene remembered he was one of the men who came on the cruise with Dwayne. The uncle was still in Progresso, so this had to be one of Dwayne’s cousins.
The stranger was tall and dark-skinned, and he was ten times more handsome than his suicidal relative. And he didn’t look one bit crazy. Rene thought he looked like Wesley Snipes in his heyday.
“Yes?” she said.
“My name is Patrick.” The cousin spoke to Mona directly. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but I wanted to meet you and apologize for what happened with Dwayne yesterday. Actually I want to apologize for everything he put you through since we got on this ship.
“I’m really embarrassed about the whole thing. Dwayne has had problems like this in the past, a couple of restraining orders here and there, but he’s never done anything as extreme as that stunt he pulled yesterday.”
Mona had a way of flirting with men without making it obvious that she was doing so, and Rene laughed inwardly while she watched her friend in action.
“It’s not your fault, Patrick.” Mona batted her eyes. “You can’t hold yourself responsible for what Dwayne did. Even though you did say you would look after him…”
“I know,” Patrick said. He flashed an awesome smile that got all of the girls’ attention. “That’s why I feel like I owe you a formal apology.”
“All right,” Mona said. “I accept your apology.”
Patrick nodded and almost walked away, but something in Mona’s eyes made him linger. “I, uh, I never believed anything Dwayne said about you. I mean, he said you liked him, and y’all had some sort of relationship…”
“Oh, not at all,” Mona said without a pause. “I had a drink with him on the first night we boarded, but that was it. I’m not sure why he developed this fixation on me. It’s sad, really…”
Dawn lowered her head and sighed to herself.
Patrick grinned and decided to try his luck. “That’s good. It’s nice to know that. I, uh, I know this might sound strange, considering what happened with Dwayne, but I’ve been attracted to you since the first moment I saw you. I would really like to spend some time with you—if my cousin hasn’t turned you off our whole family.”
He chuckled. Patrick was confident and fine like a ball player.
Here we go again, Rene thought, but to everyone’s surprise Mona shook her head.
“I’m sorry, Patrick. You sound like a nice guy, but there’s someone else on this boat I like. And we only have two days left… I’m pretty sure I won’t have time to spend with you.”
Dawn looked up with wide eyes, and she saw that Rene was equally confused.
“Well, maybe we could exchange numbers,” Patrick persisted, “and stay in touch afterwards. I live in Midland.”
“Um, no,” Mona said, her smile still dazzling. “But it was nice to meet you.”
That was a huge blow to Patrick’s poise, and it showed, but only in his eyes. “Oh, well, it was nice meeting you, too. Good day, ladies.”
He nodded and made a hasty retreat. Rene and Dawn stared at their friend when he was gone.
“What?” Mona said.
“What was that about?” Rene asked.
“That’s called rejecting a man,” Mona informed smugly.
“I know what it’s called,” Rene said. “I want to know why you did it. That brother was fine. You can’t tell me he wasn’t.”
“He was,” Mona agreed.
“I can’t believe you’d sleep with Dwayne but not him.”
“I already like somebody else on this boat,” Mona reiterated.
“That’s another thing,” Dawn said. “You was actually honest with him. Since when do you tell men the truth?”
Mona laughed. “What did I tell you last night?” She answered her own question: “I said I was having one more fling on this cruise, and then I’m going to find a man to fall in love with. You didn’t believe me?”
“No,” Dawn said.
“Me neither,” Rene said.
“Well, maybe you believe me now,” Mona said. “If I say I’m going to do something, I’m going to do it.” She returned her attention to the excursion list. “Now, do you want to go parasailing or not,” she asked Dawn.
“I’m definitely not going parasailing,” Dawn said, still awed by Mona’s supposed transformation. “What else they got?”
***
Cozumel, Mexico was the exact opposite of the poverty Rene witnessed in Progresso. The streets were clean, it was a lot less crowded, and there were virtually no vendors to avoid as the Finley Sisters toured a downtown area that looked brand new.
There were still plenty of markets ready to snatch up the tourists’ dollars, but every store the girls visited was neat enough to meet America’s standards. There were no butcher shops, no live chickens for sale, no moldy fruit, and no drunks being hoisted into the back of pickup trucks. And all of the restaurants were American. Rene saw a Chili’s, a Don Pablo’s and a very Tex-Mex Three Amigos.
“This is nice,” Dawn said.
The girls lounged under a shady bench while they waited their turn to pose with a Three Amigos backdrop. The painting featured three cartoon cowboys with oval-shaped holes cut where their faces should be. There were steps behind the prop, so even the littlest cowpoke could stick his face in and become part of the scene.
“This isn’t nice,” Rene countered. “This is fake! It looks like we’re in El Paso or something. This isn’t Mexico.”
Dawn frowned. “Where are we then?”
Rene shook her head. “This may be Mexico, but yesterday we were in the real Mexico. This place has been bought out, completely taken over by the white man.”
Mona laughed. “The white man.”
“You know this ain’t right,” Rene whined. “You saw what real Mexico looks like.”
“Yeah, it was stinky and ugly,” Mona said with a frown. “I like this better.”
“You would,” Rene said.
“I don’t really remember Progresso,” Dawn said. “I was too busy running. But this is pretty.”
“Yes, it is,” Mona agreed. “Get off your high horse,” she told Rene.
***
Instead of parasailing the Finley Sisters decided to go on a horseback adventure through what was supposed to be ancient Mayan trails and caves. Rene had fun on her horse because she hadn’t ridden one since she was a teenager, but the historical aspect of their excursion proved to be as big a farce as Cozumel’s downtown area.
Their tour guide was a real charro, and his skill with horses was impressive. Once everyone got saddled up, he led them down an exceptionally long trail that was said to be used by the Mayans before their civilization was destroyed by the Spaniards.
Rene didn’t doubt that the Mayans traversed that land once upon a time, but all of the artifacts their guide pointed out were cheap replicas, and they were clearly out of place, scattered strategically along the trail for the purpose of the tour.
They stopped a couple of times to explore caves that probably did provide shelter for the Mayan people, but Rene thought they went overboard with silly cave drawings that looked a few months old rather than thousands of years.
Overall Rene thought the stop in Cozumel was a bust—from an archeological standpoint—but the time spent with her friends made it worthwhile. Dawn had never been on a horse, and Rene got some great footage of her friend struggling to learn the basic riding techniques. And the Mexican landscape was picture perfect, teeming with natural wildlife, like eagles and other birds of prey that fed on a huge population of wild iguanas.
After their outing the ladies had lunch at Three Amigos, and then they hit the beach for a couple of stress-free hours of fun and relaxation. There were no jilted lovers threatening suicide that afternoon and no dissention when Rene wanted to check out a few stores before they left. The best friends did their shopping together, and they made it back to the boat thirty minutes early without a hitch.
***
From Cozumel, the Ecstasy set sail again, heading for Galveston, Texas; the last stop on the cruise. The Finley Sisters knew they only had two days left on the boat, and they wanted to make the most of them.
“I’ve got to sleep with Bart tonight,” Mona told her friends at dinnertime. “I haven’t spent time with him in almost two days. He’s going to think I’m not interested.”
“He knows you’re interested,” Rene said. “I don’t think you could’ve made it any clearer.”
“You’re right,” Mona said. “He was the one playing hard to get.” She grinned mischievously. “I like that, though.” She licked lobster sauce off a cheddar biscuit. “It makes me want him more.”
“Really?” Rene teased. “You want him more because you can’t have him? I wonder if that’s ever happened to anyone else. That’s, that’s got to be new concept.”
“Whatever,” Mona said and then asked, “What about you? What—or should I say who—do you want to do before we go home?”
Dawn laughed.
“I’m good,” Rene said with a chuckle.
“I know you like Xavier,” Mona said. “And you said we’re all single. Why don’t you take him to your room?”
“I don’t know him,” Rene reminded her.
“That’s why it’s called a fling,” Mona said. “Don’t forget: Whatever happens on the boat, stays on the boat.”
“That’s what they say about Vegas,” Rene said. “But a lot of stuff that happens there gets on the plane and follows your ass home.”
“Come on!” Mona urged. “Peer pressure, peer pressure!”
Rene laughed. “The last time I heard that, you got me to kiss Tremont Story on the last day of school in the eighth grade.”
“You liked it, too,” Mona recalled.
“I did,” Rene admitted, “until he put his tongue in my mouth.”
Dawn laughed. “I remember that!”
“You liked that part, too,” Mona said.
“Nuh-uhn.” Rene shook her head, but her smile said otherwise.
“What about you?” Mona asked Dawn. “What’s on your to-do list before we get back home?”
Dawn shrugged. “I don’t know. Nothing, I guess. Just kick it with y’all some more.”
“You haven’t seen any fine men on the boat?” Mona asked. “You’re not down with flings, either?”
“No,” Dawn said.
“You sure?” Mona asked. “What about that guy you were in the pool with?”
“No,” Dawn said again. She wasn’t smiling at all, and Mona knew to drop it.
“You’re still doing karaoke tonight, though, right?” Rene asked instead.
“Oh, uh, yeah,” Dawn said, her bubbly personality back intact. “If y’all do a song, too.”
“I can’t sing worth a lick,” Mona said.
“We’ll down a few shots first,” Rene suggested. “It’ll be fun.”
***
After dinner the girls changed into sexy outfits for their appearance on the karaoke stage. Mona had a strapless cocktail dress that was candy apple red with a slit on one side. It clung to her curves magically, and she couldn’t wait to see the look on Bartolo’s face when he saw her. Rene’s dress was navy blue. It had straps, but it hugged her boobs and hips, and Rene thought she looked better than Mona that night. She already knew her booty was more enticing.
And, not to be outdone, Dawn put on a new dress, too. It was shimmering purple with a sash around the waist. Dawn’s dress was looser and less revealing than either of her friends’, but she knew she looked good, too. Maybe she wasn’t as fine as Rene and Mona, but she felt she was just as pretty.
The trio headed for the karaoke club in good cheer, but their confidence began to dwindle when they got there. The singers were surprisingly talented that night, and Mona was no longer keen on the idea of making a fool of herself.
“Uh-uhn.” She closed the DJ’s big song book and handed it to Rene. “I changed my mind. I can’t do it.”
“Yes, you can,” Dawn urged.
“No. I can’t sing.”
“I thought you were going to get some drinks to calm your nerves,” Dawn said.
“That’s not gonna be enough,” Mona said. She looked seriously spooked. Dawn laughed at her. “What’s so funny?”
“I’ve never seen you afraid to do anything,” Dawn said.
“That’s because I’m good at everything,” Mona said. “Except singing.”
“How about we go up together,” Rene suggested. “That way they won’t be able to tell which one of us is off key.”
Mona thought about that and sighed. “All right. But we need to get some tequila shots first.”
Rene and Mona left for the bar, but Dawn stayed to hold their seats and maintain her sobriety. Her friends returned twenty minutes later. By then they were bold enough and tipsy enough to take the stage for an ultra-sexy rendition of No Scrubs by TLC. Their singing was as awful as Mona predicted, but they looked so good, every man in the room was hooting and hollering throughout their set.
When they returned to their seats, Mona was once again sure she was the greatest thing since push-up bras, and Dawn didn’t say anything to the contrary.
“Y’all did great! I thought you said you couldn’t sing.”
“I didn’t know I could,” Mona replied. “Even I’m surprised by my awesomeness every now and then.”
Dawn laughed. “I wish they would hurry up and call my name so I can be through with it.”
“What song are you doing?” Rene asked.
“I’m not telling you,” Dawn said with a smirk. “You’ll see when I get up there.”
The girls had to wait only ten minutes before it was Dawn’s time to shine. The DJ called her up after three skinny kids who clowned around with the always popular Baby got Back by Sir Mixalot. The crowd was pretty hyper by then, and Dawn wondered if she should’ve picked a different song.
“Hey, pretty lady, what’s your name?” the DJ asked when she got to the stage.
She spoke softly into the microphone. “Dawn.”
“Dawn; such a beautiful name. As beautiful as the break of dawn.” He laughed, and some in the audience did as well. “What will you be singing for us tonight?” the DJ asked.
“Loving You,” Dawn said, “by Minnie Riperton.”
“Oh, like the Burger King commercial!” the DJ joked. “The Cini-Mini’s!”
Everyone laughed, except for Dawn, who had flittering butterflies in her belly.
“All right, let’s hear it!” the DJ said. “Give Dawn a hand, y’all!”
The crowd applauded politely, and the music began to play, and Dawn closed her eyes and leaned closer to the mic.
Loving You was a special song for Dawn—had been for a long time. She first heard the piece twenty-six years ago, when Cabbage Patch kids were all the rave, and Dawn was still learning that her mom preferred she used the potty rather than wear diapers. Dawn’s grandmother had an old record player she refused to get rid of even though most people had moved on to cassettes by then. Maw Maw had a vast music collection. Her favorite records were Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down and Minnie Riperton’s Perfect Angel.
Dawn fell in love with Loving You before she knew her ABC’s, and she started singing along with the record before she could speak well. Her grandmother used to tell her, “Girl, if you can sang that song, you know you can sang!” and Dawn took pride in that.
Maw Maw died of breast cancer when Dawn was in middle school, and, among other inexpensive yet emotionally priceless items, Dawn found herself in possession of the Perfect Angel album. When she later learned that Minnie Riperton died of breast cancer just like her grandma, Dawn cherished the album even more, and she thought about Maw Maw every time she sang Minnie’s most memorable ballad.
The people at the karaoke club had no idea how much the song meant to Dawn, but when she sang the first line they knew they were in for a real treat. Not only could this pretty girl in the purple dress sing, but she could sang, and that was something none of the amateurs had brought to the table thus far.
Half of the crowd’s jaws dropped when Dawn hit the first high note, and the other half scooted to the edge of their seats when she hit it again. People started to cheer before she was halfway through, and by the time Dawn finished the song, everyone in attendance was on their feet. This was the first standing ovation in the karaoke club, and they wouldn’t have another one for many cruises to come.
Dawn opened her eyes and thought she was dreaming. People yelled and clapped and some pumped their fist in the air. Mona and Rene screamed the loudest, but Dawn couldn’t hear them over the rest of the hoopla. When she stepped off the stage, strangers rushed to congratulate her like she was a real celebrity.
The DJ didn’t regain control of his show for a full five minutes.