Caribbean Passion Ch. 18

At three thirty, most of the passengers were on the ship. Dave Richards appeared behind the Front Deck of the Pursers Office. Pressing a button on the PA system, his voice rang out across all areas. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the SS Oceanwave and Florida Tropical Cruise Line. This is Dave Richards, your Cruise Director for your vacation with us. I'd like to welcome you onboard this two-day cruise to Freeport, Bahamas and hope you have an amazing time with us. Before we depart on time at 4pm today, I'd like to inform you that lifeboat drill is starting right now on deck. Please locate your lifejacket in the closet in your cabin and kindly make your way outside using the staircases. Our staff will escort you to where you need to be. Thanks again and I look forward to seeing you around the ship." Dave Richards looked up at Edward and Mercy, who were both on duty. "All right -- let's do this!" He walked out.

Twenty minutes later, every passenger was out on deck on Fourth or Fifth Deck. Staff Captain Kostas inspected the troops, walking around making sure everybody was present and correct and had tied their lifejackets on properly. The Cruise Staff were in their places, directing passengers to the relevant muster stations closest to their cabins. Making his way towards the aft of the ship, he chanced upon Carmen standing to attention. "Everybody present?"

"Yes, sir," replied Carmen, with a smile.

Kostas looked at her. "Good," he replied.

"Staff Captain?"

"What?"

"Could I have a word with you after lifeboat drill is over?"

"Sure."

"Thanks." Carmen smiled. Her new plan was about to begin.

Back down at the Pursers Desk, Edward saw a tall, medium-build man in a golf shirt and brown slacks, with sensible shoes approach. He had brown, mousy hair, some wire-framed glasses and a moustache. Mercy approached the desk as he appeared. "Good afternoon, sir," she began, brightly. "How can I help you?"

"Hi," said the man. "I'm Madson Banner."

The SS Oceanbreeze moved slowly forward. Passengers crowded the railings, waving to relatives in the Terminal. The stern cut through the waves leading out to the sea, a wake of white foam marking its passage behind, the Panamanian flag fluttering in the breeze at the rear of the vessel.

"Yes, I'll be cruising with my wife and son," said Banner. He was in the Chief Purser's office.

"Great!" responded Rachel Johnson. "I hope it'll be fun for them."

"I'm sure."

"Do you want to speak to the Hotel Manager or anyone?"

"No, no, not now. Work can wait." He looked at her pointedly. "Rachel, I do hope there won't be any trouble this cruise. There's a lot of stress shoreside. I don't like what I'm hearing."

"Of course. I very much hope there won't be."

"Lately, I've been made aware of a few "issues", shall we say, with certain staff. Some passengers disembarking have come by the office to complain. A couple have threatened lawsuits. We can't afford to develop a reputation. My reception staff do their best to smooth things over -- but I'm not happy. A steady stream has been established that wasn't there before."

"I understand. However, like I said before, the Hotel Manager is the final authority onboard about these issues. I do what I can."

"So I've seen." Banner paused for effect, then continued. "Since I'm here, I plan to put a stop to any further incidents and will be discussing these with not just you but also the Hotel Manager, Cruise Director, Captain and Staff Captain. I expect to hear plans of how to rectify this situation."

"I'm sure that we will give the matter the time and respect it deserves."

"I hope so." Banner looked behind him at the back office and Front Desk. "Right, I'd best be getting back to my cabin to see what's happening; I'll see you around."

"It's good to see you again, Madson," smiled Rachel.

"Likewise. See you later." With that, he got up out of his chair and left.

Rachel watched him walk out. "Time to make some internal phone calls," she said to herself.

Fifteen minutes later, Dave Richards showed up in the back room. He was dressed in a tuxedo, ready for the evening show in the Rendezvous later. "You called?" he asked Rachel.

Rachel came out of her office. "Yes. Did Ramon leave the ship?"

"Yes, he did."

"How did it go?"

Dave shrugged. "About as well as could be expected."

"Well, perhaps it's for the best. Anyway, the Captain would like a short meeting with you and some of your staff. Madson's onboard and he wants some answers about what we plan to do, so the Captain wants to fend that off."

"Who exactly?"

"You, plus Lucia, Carmen, Pablo and Estella."

"Hmph! What time?"

"Five."

"That's in only half an hour. Where?"

"The Movie Room."

"Right. I'll arrange it." Richards went over to the Front Desk to use the PA system.

At five o'clock, Captain Papandreiou walked into the Movie Room. Dave Richards was standing near the back wall, while his four staff were lined up against the backs of the last row of seats for the Movie Room.

"Captain," began Dave.

"Sit down, please, Dave." Turning to face the staff, he said, "So! I have called for you and arranged this meeting with Dave and yourselves! I don't feel happy that I need to do this -- and maybe you don't, either! However, Madson Banner is onboard with us this cruise and I want the minimum of fuss." He looked around at them.

Pablo looked at Lucia. Estella looked at Carmen. Lucia looked at Dave. Carmen looked at the Captain.

Continuing, Papandreiou said, "I don't know how to say this -- at least, not politely -- but awareness has been building among officers, staff and crew, that you four maintain some relationships between each other."

Dave shifted in his seat. The staff variously tried to avoid looking at the Captain too much.

"These relationships have proven to negatively affect staff morale, inconvenience Department Heads, create unnecessary drama onboard and even involve innocent passengers, some of whom have complained to the shoreside office. Reception staff shoreside have had to explain away your behaviour and report things you have done to various office personnel, the cruise line has been threatened with lawsuits and now word has reached Madson Banner. Today he has told us that he wants an end to this and, in truth, so do I. So listen up! I know all of you are fairly new to seaborne life. You're not used to having to live at the place you work. Typically, shoreside staff deal with work stuff at the office, then leave it there when they go home. They don't bring work problems home with them and they don't bring private or relationship matters to the office. Professional and private remain separate. Here we live an unusual life. For the crew, it's relatively simple. They stay below decks and never meet passengers. Officers and staff are different. You and I are customer-facing. So the rule is this -- when you're in front of passengers, you're professional. When you're below decks, that's private. Public areas are your workplace. You are expected to act like you're at work. You DON'T bring relationships or private issues into public lounges like the Miramar, Rendezvous or the Barbizon Restaurant. Keep it below decks at all times. Below decks is your home. You can live your private life the way you want. You can conduct relationships with each other if you wish, as long as it never appears in public. What happens in your own cabins is your business. We don't interfere unless passengers see it and complain. Above all, be discreet. Is that clear?"

All four of them nodded.

"So, how can we address Banner's concerns? What can I say to him? The usual thing is to rigorously enforce a division between public and private. I will request your duty rosters from Dave and deliver them to the Staff Captain, who will go around at the times when you are off-duty to see if you are around in public. If you are, he'll send you below. Second offences will involve a fine of one hundred dollars taken from your monthly pay packet. How about it?"

"Captain," said Pablo. "Is this for all staff or just us?"

"Hmmm!" replied the Captain. "What do you think?"

"I think it's better if all staff obey," remarked Carmen.

"Well, that would be fair," said the Captain. "But it wouldn't be popular. Why should all staff suffer for the sake of you four? I wouldn't like to hear what the conversation would be like between you down in the Staff Mess when the rest of the staff find out."

"Yeah, that's right," said Lucia. "Everyone will yell at us."

"Definitely," agreed Estella.

"See, this is it. You're learning," remarked Papandreiou. "You're learning not to be selfish. You're crew onboard a ship, not employees in an office. We all pull together for the sake of the passengers to give them a good time on vacation, which is what they're paying for. So what solution do you think you should adopt?"

Just then, the Staff Captain walked in through the glass door.

"Ah, Kostas," said the Captain. "We're just discussing how to resolve these issues."

Kostas turned to the four of them. "Yes, let's talk about this! YOU!" He pointed at Lucia, who opened her eyes wide. "You're the Social Hostess. Your job is to host special events onboard for our top passengers, those who have paid a lot of money for this cruise. Do that! You're not paid to have an opinion or try to do other people's jobs."

"But -" began Lucia.

Kostas interrupted and turned to Pablo next to her. "AND YOU! You have committed two acts of violence against other people -- one of them was ME, an issue that has still not been resolved to my satisfaction, and another against the DJ, who was doing his job at the time of the offence."

"Sir, I -"

"And you!" He turned to Carmen. "Dave, she's a dancer. Why hasn't she been dancing for the last past few cruises? SHE MUST DO HER JOB! I suggest you put her immediately with Pablo!"

"That was my original intention, in fact," remarked Dave.

"And you!" The Staff Captain turned to Estella. "You should dance with Pablo, too, and support Carmen."

"Got it," replied Estella.

"Staff Captain," said the Captain. "Thanks for your input but we need to decide how to deal with the existing issues that concern Madson Banner."

"Hmmm," said Kostas, walking directly up to Pablo. "You are responsible."

"Why me?" demanded Pablo.

"Because you're the only man among the four of you. If there are any relationships going on with these women, no matter which one is at fault, you're always guilty; for they will always do it with you."

Lucia, Carmen and Estella shifted uneasily where they were standing.

"Furthermore, I'll be keeping my eye on you. As far as I'm concerned, you're a violent, oversexed thug from the wrong side of town."

"Whoa, Kostas," interrupted Dave. "I think that'll be enough for today, don't you think?"

The Staff Captain turned to face the Cruise Director. "A little protective, aren't we, Dave?"

"It's my job to stick up for my staff."

"I've already said what I expect them to do."

"I'M IN CHARGE of their roster and I will decide who does what job and who dances with whom."

"Violence onboard is my jurisdiction. I'm in charge of discipline."

"AND I'm in charge of passenger entertainment -- and they will be entertained by my staff as I see fit."

"Hmph!" said Kostas, eyeing over the Cruise Director.

"Further, I do believe passenger satisfaction remains our number one priority. As it is, I'm down by one DJ -- I need someone to work the Disco now that Ramon is gone."

Lucia gasped. "Is Ramon gone?"

Dave turned to her. "I fired him this morning."

"What! It wasn't that bad, what happened between us!"

"It wasn't about that -- there was something else that happened after you left."

"Ramon was a reckless idiot," chimed in Carmen.

"He was drunk," explained Lucia.

"WHICH HE SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN!" roared the Staff Captain.

"He's gone!" repeated Dave. "Forget about that. He's done."

Kostas turned back to Dave. "Hear this, Richards! You just get me those duty rosters! I want them on my desk by tonight. Lockdown starts tomorrow!"

"KOSTAS!" yelled the Captain. "We haven't even decided on that yet!"

"Stavros," said Kostas. "What are you going to do, then?"

The Captain took one step forward. "Kostas, I'm sick of you constantly challenging my authority. I HAVE DECIDED to let Dave prepare his staff roster to cover all the duties of his Department. THEN he will submit the roster to ME. THEN I will decide whether a lockdown is necessary. Is that clear?"

"What about Banner?"

"That's MY jurisdiction. I'll handle him." The Captain pointed at the door. "As for you -- get back on the Bridge."

Kostas glared at the Captain, glanced briefly at Carmen, then walked out.

The Captain looked at the Cruise Director. "Dave, I think it's best I give you the time to arrange your staff and come up with a solution. Come with me for a moment -- I'd like a quick word in private." Turning to the Cruise Staff, he continued, "As for you four, return to your cabins and await instructions. I will delegate to the Cruise Director. Until then, remember what I said and observe company regulations about correct behaviour in public for staff in customer-facing positions. Don't let me have to bring you here again."

"Yes, sir," said the four of them, variously. They walked out.

After watching them leave, he said, "Dave, Kostas is on the warpath against Pablo. He has been ever since the incident in the Barbizon."

"That was Kostas' fault entirely."

"I am aware of that. The thing is, so is Banner. I'm meeting him after the Captain's Cocktail Party for drinks. I'm planning to schmooze my way through it as best I can but really, I think Kostas' days are over."

"Really?" remarked Dave.

"Yes. I saw you dismissed Melita this morning. The thing is, what he did was objectively against the rules. Sexual harassment at work is illegal, especially passengers."

"Agreed."

"Kostas is more or less in the same boat."

"What a boat this is, too!"

"Hahaha! Yes, well -- so it's going to be a tough call holding onto the Staff Captain. However, all this other stuff is just drama and gossip -- it'll just take some smoothing over."

"I hope you're right."

"Just try to keep the peace between your staff, if necessary through your duty roster. Submit it to me as soon as possible."

"Will do."

"All right, let's get out of here."

The four Cruise Staff were still on their way downstairs and were now on Second Deck in the stairwell.

"AND SO," threatened Carmen. "Keep away from Pablo!"

"Listen -- he's my boyfriend!" cried Lucia.

"Carmen, Dave will decide this stuff, not you!" said Pablo.

"Stop causing trouble, Carmen!" said Estella.

"Boyfriend, huh? BOYFRIEND?" continued Carmen. "He's obviously dancing with me -- we don't have another male dancer, now that Ramon is gone. Get on with your job and quit interfering!"

Estella grabbed her arm. "Come on, let's go! Back to the cabin!" She pulled Carmen away as they approached First Deck.

"You'd better make yourself scarce, Lucia!" yelled Carmen, as Estella dragged her off down the corridor.

Pablo and Lucia watched as she disappeared around the corner.

"This is so bad," said Lucia.

"I don't know what's so important," agreed Pablo. "I would have danced with her from the beginning and, in fact, I did. Why she's got something against you beats me."

"Listen, Pablo," said Lucia, turning her face towards him. "If Dave says you have to dance with her, I trust you. We can still be together -- 'below decks' or whatever. We can go on dates in Freeport, head to the mall in Canaveral. This doesn't change anything."

Pablo held her in his arms. He was grateful for her faith in him. "You're a fantastic woman, Lucia. I don't deserve you. I'm sorry I got physical with Ramon the other night. I've been thinking about what you said." He squeezed her hand. "I still want what we spoke about before."

Lucia smiled. "Me, too." She thought for a second. "Besides, I'll still get to introduce you at the beginning of the show, so I won't be far away."

"There you go," replied Pablo. He hugged her tightly. He knew a good thing when he saw it and he wasn't going to let it out of his sight.

That night in the back room in the Rendezvous, Dave Richards assembled his team. "OK," he began. "So after some thought, I've decided to let Pablo dance with Carmen before the main act, then he can dance with Estella after."

"Good!" remarked Carmen.

"Marcia -- you can be the DJ down in the Disco until I can find a new DJ."

"I don't know how to DJ -- I can't mix tracks!" cried Marcia.

"Don't worry about it for now. Just get the music started and fade in and fade out each track. Don't care too much about the rhythm or the beat -- just make sure the music keeps going all night."

"OK -- I think I can handle that," said Marcia.

"Lucia -- you're still continuing your usual hostess duties, including introducing the dancers."

"Right," said Lucia.

"Is that it?" asked Estella.

"Not much change," said Pablo.

"I know," admitted Dave. "I don't really have a lot of choice -- who else is there? What's important is that we all work together. Whether we make a success of this totally depends on you guys and your attitude. I figured that the Captain's meeting with you was enough to let you know the score. I don't want you to be under lockdown with the Staff Captain -"

"Yeah, no way," interrupted Estella.

"So, guys -- make it easy for me! Too much stress and drama in this Department! I guess it goes with the territory -- showbiz talent, creative types, whatever -- but just -- get the job done!"

"Right," agreed Pablo.

"If not, then it's lockdown time for you -- I won't tolerate every member of the staff onboard to be locked down, either -- it'll just be you four who saw the Captain, plus you'll have to put up with the Staff Captain breathing down your neck. However, don't worry too much about him. If the worst comes to the worst, though -- heads will roll, just like Ramon's already did. So, guys -- let's get this show on the road -- let's entertain these passengers!" He punched the air.

"YEAH!" yelled the Cruise Staff with him.

"All, right, let's do it! Move on out!" cried Dave.

Dave walked out to the wings, ready to start his comedy set. Lucia, Carmen and Estella attended to their make-up. Pablo got changed into his Latin clothes.

"We'd better make this good," remarked Lucia. Carmen and Estella agreed, yet kept silent as they got ready.

The announcer, one of Dave's other staff, began. "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! Welcome to tonight's entertainment live, here at the Rendezvous Lounge! Now, here's your host, your Cruise Director, the one and only MR. DAVE RICHARDS!"

A cheer went up and Dave went on.

Lucia, her make-up done and her outfit ready, stepped out of the back room and into the wings. Her hair was tied up, a sprinkling of glitter accentuated her beautiful Hispanic eyes, while her exquisite green evening gown shimmered as she moved. Despite Dave's reassurance, she felt apprehensive. She had the dubious duty of introducing her boyfriend and Carmen as a dance duo. She felt she could trust Pablo but Carmen was an unknown quantity. She bit her lower lip as she worried.

After the usual ten-minute warm-up, Dave finished his spiel and walked off to a round of applause.

I'm on, thought Lucia. Taking the microphone from Dave, she walked out onto the stage, the spotlight trained on her. "Ladies and gentlemen, I am Lucia Gonzalez, your Social Hostess!"

Another round of applause.

"Thanks to Dave for that! Now, are you enjoying the show!"

"Yeah!" yelled the crowd.

"Sorry, what was that? Could you say that again?" smiled Lucia.

"YEAH!" the crowd responded.

"That's better!" She was getting to be an old hand at this. "OK, now, for your delectation, next up please welcome our hot dance couple, the one and only Pablo and Carmen!"