John wasn’t taking any chances. He made sure they played cards at the bar right across from their gate. They boarded the plane at six forty without incident. That time, they sat next to each other across the aisle. Mel didn’t care and didn’t want to push her luck. By then, she was ready for a nap. The flight would take nearly four hours.
“I’m going to snooze for a while. Do you mind?”
“Nope, I think I’ll do the same until they come around and offer drinks. I’ll probably want a beer by then.”
“Okay, good night.”
“Good night, Mel.”
***
The jarring bounce of the wheels hitting the runway woke Melanie. “What happened? What’s going on?” she asked with a startled look.
“We’re here. We made it to St. Thomas.”
“I slept the entire way?” She primped her matted hair and tried to get the sleep out of her eyes. A stick of peppermint gum was in her mouth in a flash.
“Yep. I guess those four margaritas at the bar got the best of you. I just hope they’re quick with the luggage. We’re on island time now. It’s a little different than what you’re used to.”
“Oh, okay. I can handle it.”
Mel followed John out of the airplane, down the steps, and across the tarmac. The island air was thick with humidity. Luckily, a light breeze offered some relief. They entered the building, which was small and crowded even at that time of night, then headed to the baggage claim area.
“This could take a while. We might as well get comfortable.”
“Where?” Mel looked around and saw only a few chairs, and they were already occupied.
“On the floor. Let’s find a corner spot where nobody will trip over us.”
They sat, staring at the carousel turning and luggage dropping down from the chute. People grabbed their bags and left. Within thirty minutes, everyone was gone, and the carousel stopped.
“That’s awesome… no bags.”
“Oh, hell no, this can’t be happening. I’m such bad luck.”
John stood and looked around. “Damn it, why didn’t I think of that earlier?”
“What?” Mel stood and brushed off her shorts, hoping he’d just had an epiphany.
“We were supposed to be on the morning flight. Our bags probably went out on that plane. I bet they’ve been here all along sitting in the claims office.”
“Oh, good. Where’s that?”
“I’m not sure. I’ll ask someone.” John called out to the gentleman who was locking up the customer service booth. “Excuse me, sir. Where is the claims office for Delta?”
“It’s down on your left, but they’ve been closed since nine o’clock. They open again at eight tomorrow morning.”
John groaned. “Okay, thanks. That’s just great.”
“What is?”
“My house keys are in my luggage. I guess I wasn’t predicting any problems.”
Melanie’s eyes welled up. “Everything that’s gone wrong is my fault. I should have stayed home.”
“Don’t blame yourself. It was stupid of me to put the keys in my suitcase in the first place. Let’s see if we can spot our bags through the office window.” He reached for Mel’s hand. “We’ll laugh at this tomorrow.”
“Yeah, over the strongest level Painkiller.”
With their hands cupped against the glass, they peered through the office window. With only a night-light illuminating the counter area and most of the bags black, it was impossible to determine if their bags were among the dozens sitting against the wall in the small room.
“I guess that’s useless. I’ll call in the morning and find out if our bags are here. I doubt if they’ll deliver them. I have a great idea.”
“Really? I’m definitely open to hearing anything great.” Mel breathed a sigh of relief. She couldn’t believe he hadn’t kicked her to the curb yet.
“If our bags are here, we’ll come back and pick them up, shop for a while, and have lunch in town. We can walk around Charlotte Amalie. I’ll show you some of the interesting sites.”
“Oh, yay! That sounds like fun.” The happy-go-lucky Mel was starting to reappear. She had already counted her blessings a dozen times that John wasn’t angry with her.
“I have one question for you, Mel.”
“Sure, lay it on me.”
“Do you have the keys to Abby’s house?”
She smiled. “Thankfully, I do. Abby gave them to me last night, and I put them in my backpack.”
“Awesome… our luck is starting to turn around. Come on. Let’s get the hell out of here.”
***
The cab slowed to a stop near a small booth along the gravel road.
“What is he doing?” Mel asked. It looked as though they were out in the middle of nowhere.
“We’re here. This is Magens Bay. The booth is where you pay to get in. It’s a park.”
“How can anyone tell we’re at the right place? It’s pitch black out here. I can’t even see my hand in front of my face.”
John pulled a twenty and a five out of his wallet and handed them to the cab driver.
“Thank you, sir,” the cabbie said as he slowly backed up and turned around.
“I thought Magens Bay was party central.” Mel grabbed her backpack and slung it over her aching shoulders.
“It’s busy here during high season, that’s for sure, but Magens Bay isn’t party central, and it’s one a.m. You’d find more of that near the harbor where the cruise ships dock.”
“Oh… how far is it to Abby’s house? How can you see where you’re going?” Mel walked carefully, hanging onto John’s back pocket for fear of tripping over something.
“Her house is about a block from here through the trees.” John walked through the darkness as if he did it all the time.
“This is creepy.” Mel stepped up her pace to stay next to his side.
“Paradise is far from creepy. It’s just nighttime, and you aren’t used to it. The only things out here besides us are probably a bunch of iguanas and maybe a stray dog or two.”
“You mean curs?”
“Yep, that’s exactly what I mean, except here, they’re just stray dogs or mongrels.”
“Do they bite?”
“Only if you look like food,” he said, chuckling. “Okay, here we are. Watch your step. There’s a sidewalk and three steps before we get to the front door.”
“Here, you take the key. I don’t want to drop it in the sand. I’m going to stand right here until you open the door and turn on a light. I seriously can’t see a thing,” Mel said.
“Okay, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“Shit… wait for me. I’ll go with you.”
He laughed as he walked up the sidewalk with Mel glued to his side. “All right. This time, you should stay put. I don’t want you falling off the porch. It isn’t big enough for both of us at the same time.” John slid the key into the dead bolt lock and turned it to the right. With a wiggle of the doorknob, the door opened. He flipped on the light and quickly turned off the alarm. “Okay, here we are… home sweet home.”
“This is Abby’s house? Oh my God, I love it!”
“The house has two bedrooms. You take the master down the hall on the left. It has its own bathroom. I think you’ll be more comfortable there—it’s Abby’s room. I’ll take the guest room on the right.”
“Oh, okay. Should we sit and relax for a minute? Abby said there’s beer in the fridge.”
“Really? Isn’t she the considerate one? Let’s take a look. Humph. Sure as shit, there’s a twelve-pack of Red Stripe in here. What a gal.” John grabbed two cold cans and cracked them open. He dropped down on the couch next to Mel and handed her one. “What a day, right?”
“You can say that again. Hopefully, starting tomorrow, everything will fall into place.”