Chapter Twenty
Twenty
Thiago dropped the anchor in the Jardim do Tabaco quay and the five of us took a boat taxi along the river Tagus and into Lisbon.
The harbour was jammed full of yachts, with happy tourists breakfasting on sunny decks, while the crew knotted ropes around them preparing to set sail.
Heidi was still in a huff with Leo about the state of my face, but it was just a black eye and some bruising – it would heal.
I glanced across at him, lounging back on the other side of the boat, like a poster boy for the Mediterranean.
All linen shirt and shorts with ironed on turn-ups, his mirrored aviators sparkling in the sun.
He clocked me checking out his bulging calves and winked.
‘I hear you’ve had another trip to the medical centre Kat,’ Brooke said, her head on one side. ‘That eye looks sore. How’s your head?’
‘Much better, thank you.’
‘Can you all be more careful, please? We’ll have to add danger money to the pitch budget at this rate.’
‘Yeah, nice try, Leo,’ Heidi piped up. ‘There should be rules against trying to knock out the competition by physical force.’
‘That would imply we see you as competition,’ he shot back, without missing a beat, as Heidi gaped at the air like a fish out of water.
‘It was an accident,’ I said. ‘If anyone’s to blame, it’s me, for getting in the way.’
Leo frowned. ‘Are you sure you’re OK over there? You look a bit peaky.’
‘It’s just so vast,’ I muttered, closing my eyes and swallowing down my panic. I couldn’t wait to get off this boat and onto dry land. The shore was so close now, I was half-tempted to dive off the side and swim.
‘The Atlantic?’ he chuckled. ‘Yeah, you could say that.’
‘There must be all sorts down there still waiting to be discovered,’ Zach added, peering over the side.
‘That’s really helpful, thanks.’
‘To think all human life started from an amoeba.’ Leo shook his head. ‘Unbelievable really, isn’t it?’
‘I can believe it with some humans,’ Heidi replied, pointedly.
The driver’s microphone clicked. ‘To our right you can see the Lisbon coastline with the famous Castelo de S?o Jorge at the very top. Saint George’s Castle, which is a very popular spot among tourists and one I would highly recommend to you all.’
It was a spectacular sight, set high up on the hill, watching over the city.
‘Lisbon will be the jewel in Esmeralda’s crown,’ Brooke whispered, leaning in to huddle us all together. ‘It’s our last official stop and we want to ramp it up a gear for the final few days of the cruise.’
‘How so?’ Heidi asked, taking photos of the shoreline.
‘It’s all on the app, but Chef has planned an exquisite Portuguese banquet on board; we’ve done a deal with the harbour restaurants for our guests to try a local dish, included in their cruise card; we have port tasting with grand cru vintners, a castanet show and a samba performance from Chico and Catarina, to mark the ship’s final turn. ’
‘Sounds incredible,’ I said, making mental notes.
‘Peri peri chicken all round,’ Zach drawled, sneaking a drag on his vape.
Leo laughed. ‘The original cheeky Nando’s.’
‘I’ve never understood that phrase,’ Brooke said, with a frown. ‘How can a Nando’s be cheeky? It doesn’t make sense.’
‘It’s more sneaky than cheeky,’ I said, confusing myself. ‘A quick one… kind of a secret treat.’
Brooke was completely baffled. ‘Secret chicken?’
Zach snorted then started to cough.
‘Kat said it, not me!’ Brooke said, affronted.
Heidi picked up the baton. ‘It’s more covert than secret. On the side… of a night out.’
‘Or in the middle,’ Leo added, catching my eye and daring me not to laugh.
‘It’s an unexplainable concept,’ Zach said, eventually.
‘Another one of your idiosyncrasies, eh? You funny old Brits.’
The river Tagus stretched out ahead of us and the driver pointed out places of interest from the front of the boat.
The Belém Tower, the Jerónimos Monastery, the 25 de Abril Bridge.
They all looked nice enough, but the only place I was really interested in was the hotel Heidi and I were checking into.
We’d agreed our stay in Lisbon would be off-ship, and I was so excited, I couldn’t wait.
I was ready to power down with a large gin and tonic in the bath, followed by room service and a mindless flick through Netflix.
Modern-day meditation in a big double bed. Bliss.
‘On our left we have one of Lisbon’s most famous landmarks, the Cristo Rei statue, inspired by Christ the Redeemer in Brazil. There is a viewing platform, which is accessible by boat across the river or taxi over the bridge – a wonderful spot to take panoramic photos of the city.’
The enormous stone Jesus gave us a wave as we floated by, his arms outstretched, sending out blessings to the world. The crew stopped for a beat and did the sign of the cross.
‘I don’t know about y’all, but I could do with a few hours to catch up on some work,’ Brooke said, frowning at her phone. ‘How’s about we meet for lunch later and then take the evening for some personal time?’
‘Great idea,’ Leo gushed.
‘Amazing,’ I agreed enthusiastically, glad she wasn’t one for sarcasm. I could feel Leo’s eyes on me, but I knew I’d laugh if I looked at him.
‘Glad y’all agree.’
‘Gives us time to check in and get our bearings,’ Heidi said, as the driver announced we were heading for the first stop.
‘Check in?’ Brooke asked.
‘Yes, didn’t I mention it? We’ve got a hotel for this final slice of the trip,’ she said, hurriedly. ‘Kat and I have a board meeting tomorrow before breakfast, so we need somewhere private to Zoom.’
‘With reliable Wi-Fi,’ I added. And a double bed to loll around in.
‘The hustle never stops,’ Zach said with a sly grin. ‘Fair enough. You’ll need your other clients when Excalibur Cruises comes over to us.’
Brooke shook her head, but the corner of her mouth turned up in a smirk. ‘Now, now… let’s all play nice.’
‘We can get off here, in fact,’ Heidi said, checking her map. ‘Yes. This is the closest stop to the hotel.’
Not according to my calculations, but maybe there was a shortcut. Or more likely she just wanted to get on dry land and have some space as soon as physically possible. The pair of us smiled at the three of them as the boat took forever to bob to a stop.
‘What say we meet at three at the harbour then?’ Brooke tinkled. ‘We can try a local wine or two and the Caldo Verde soup everyone raves about.’
Heidi nodded and Leo gave a thumbs up. ‘Fine by us,’ he said.
‘Sounds like my kind of lunch,’ I said, following Heidi off the boat. ‘Late and liquid.’
We waved them off and jumped in a cab, both glad to finally be free.
‘I thought we’d never get away,’ Heidi said, with a sigh of relief. ‘This trip is feeling more like an endurance test every day. I’m not sure I can take anymore.’
I nearly eye-rolled at her histrionics, she was never one to under-react. ‘You’re doing great. We’ll be back in London before you know it, and I’ve been playing with a pitch line that might cheer you up.’
‘Really? Go on…?’
‘The split trip sparked the idea when we were all on Terceira Island. You and Zach were living it up at the Uzu Yacht Club, while Leo and I surfed down a volcano, having a polar opposite experience.’
Heidi smiled. ‘You can say that again.’
‘I’ve had unimaginable moments repeating like an ear worm in my mind ever since and been applying it each day as the trip has gone on.
Cruising is like going off-grid for holidays – you can’t really imagine what might happen – you just have to wait and see.
Even now, you and I will have a different experience of Lisbon to the others. ’
‘Interesting,’ Heidi said, tilting her head. ‘I like it. Unimaginable meaning ‘off the scale’ but also doing things that haven’t been done before. It certainly rings true for me; this trip has been non-stop surprises. I could never have imagined it.’
‘And if that’s our experience when the two of us have been sharing a room, think of the extremes we could show across all the guests and crew.’
Heidi’s face shone with excitement as the taxi stopped outside the Hilton and bellboys descended on us from both sides. ‘There’s so much scope to play with, I’m already thinking of ideas to sketch up.’
‘Brilliant. I’ve scribbled a few down too, so let’s play around with some scenarios, then we can share with the team when we’re back.’