Maria recalled little of our drunken escapade of the previous evening, remaining in bed as long as she could before we checked out of the hotel. She required human pain-relief medication and remained unwell for a considerable time afterwards.
As we packaged our purchases for transport on the carrier boat, she said little and I said less. I did not want to draw attention to the insanities of last night, or her change of heart toward humans.
Once our purchases were secure aboard the carrier boat, we had time to consume lunch before the vessel departed.
I chose a small shop a short distance from where the boat was moored. This shop sold cooked fish with chips and carried a considerable reputation among the humans for the quality of the fish. In my past experience, I felt this reputation was merited, as the fish was obtained from the fishing boats nearby, so it was fresher than most mainland fish.
Maria said that she was too unwell to consume any human food yet, so I ordered my meal whilst she sat outside the shop, looking at the vessels in the small harbour. The smell of boat fuel was strong, but not strong enough to discourage my taste for food.
Skipper watched us cross the paved parking area from the shop to his vessel. “Ready, girls? All aboard for the Abrolhos!” He grinned widely as he said this.
I permitted a small smile to cross my face in response as I boarded his vessel, followed by Maria.
We were not in the open ocean for long before Maria leaned over the side of the vessel and voided the contents of her stomach. When she was finished, she wiped her mouth and mumbled a commitment to avoid strange human drinks that were both warm and cold.
I smiled and said nothing. I thought of my whiskey, carefully packed in with our supplies. I would miss the fiery drink when we returned to the deeps, but I still had a week left in which to enjoy it.