Ocean Dreams

Chapter 8

Back on the mainland, her father was at the hotel to shower and dress. He took over her old room rather quickly. He obviously had a far more advanced phone from how he could get the internet on it. Instead of it flipping open, he just pushed a button on the surface of it. He made the necessary calls to his wife to show that he handled the issue, but that he would be staying out there until they appeared as a precaution. He had contacted the scuba diving school, and they agreed to give one free set of lessons to his other kids in appreciation for not mentioning the issue of his daughter to the locals. That would have been another five hundred bucks out of his pocket. Pulling up the internet on his phone, he brought up the details of the coin. Then he whistled. The coin was worth a lot of money by itself. All of the right stamps and markings were in place.

"Okay, let's see where we can get a tent. I'll handle the pearl after all that shopping is done," he sighed to himself. On getting back to the survival store he was at earlier in the day, he found a decent one on sale. Taking it off the shelf, he also grabbed a couple large bags of jerky and a massive bag of dried fruit. A large tube of high quality sunblock was next, and he picked up a guide book on deep sea fish. Then he saw a book next to it on how to cook them and grabbed that. Toiletry supplies were next, along with some medicine that could be used for more emergencies. It even included the removal of internal parasites.

After a bit more searching, he found a suture kit. I could have used that earlier! A portable kit for handling bad cuts and burns was picked up and added to the cart. One for bug bites was found and claimed. He mused to himself and got a campfire cooking kit with pans, a small rotisserie, and cooking utensils. Reusable plates, cups, and eating utensils were grabbed to go with the rest. A small trash receptacle was added. He winced at how much it was going to cost, but he told his daughter he would help her. He was just all too happy that he did have the money to burn.

"Expedition?" the sales clerk asked.

"Yeah. Roughing it a bit with the family," he grinned back. "I need to teach them that hotels aren't the only way to survive."

"Good luck!" the sales clerk chuckled, as he ran up the credit card.

"Thanks," Joel nodded. He only hoped that the dolphin would be able to bring him back to the island safely. Then he thought and cringed. I don't think that one trip is going to work. Groaning to himself, he bought another waterproof bag. That would help him. Why do I spend so much money?! Sighing, as he knew it was all for Nichole, he judged that he would only need one trip on the dolphin now. He didn't want to go back for a second round. It would actually become a third round, and he knew he wouldn't survive. Stopping at the hotel again to drop off what he just bought, he now scoped out the small tourist city for a jewelry store. He was thinking of a pawn shop, but he knew how some locals worked when it came to coins. I don't want to become the center of attention.

The cab dropped him off at a place that was well-known. He walked into the luxurious jewelry shop and started to browse the black pearl section.

"May I help you?" a lady asked in business casual dress. It reminded him of a designer suit.

"Yeah. I need a really large black pearl. The largest you have, but I need it to be one that is uncultivated. It has to be a wild pearl, if possible. It's for my daughter. A wedding gift," he smiled. She nodded cheerfully and went into the back room. What she brought out for him was perfect. It wasn't even in a setting yet. It was a three-inch round pearl. It was a deep, smoky black in clarity with a hint of purple undertones. It was clearly authentic and very natural. There were no flaws, and it looked very expensive. Frightfully expensive. This was the pearl he needed.

"We just got this in from Tahiti. It's six thousand dollars," she said calmly.

"Can I talk to your boss? I want the pearl, but I have something that I can possibly trade it with," he chuckled. "No gimmicks. I promise you."