Phantom Scars Read Free Page B

distracted that I was late coming back from lunch. The captain decided to find me himself and popped his head in the door to find me with Emma.
    "Shit, boy, customs will be here in an hour.  What the hell are you doing with a girl in your quarters, and how the hell did you get her on the ship?"
    I rubbed my face, not sure what to say. I couldn't let them take her. I couldn't let him throw her off the ship. "She's my girlfriend," I lied. "I met her on the internet, and she was in Germany, so I picked her up there."
    "Damn it, boy, what am I going to do with a German chick with no passport? They'll toss her in a cell quicker than you can blink."
    “She’s American,” I defended.
    “Does she have legal documentation, a passport or visa?”
    “She has a license,” I offered weakly.
    “She only has a license, no secondary form of I.D., like a Social Security card or something?” he asked worried.
    I glanced at her, and she shook her head no. The captain and I both frowned. He was pulling at his beard, trying to think of something, and I was mangling my hair in frustration.
    “She's an American citizen. She just doesn't have papers at the moment. Can't we say we picked her up from someone further south or something? She has a driver's license," I begged, exasperated.
    The captain shook his head. "Log books will show we didn't stop anywhere. Look, maybe if she says she had a friend meet us seaside, and I marry you right now, so she has a second set of legal documents, they won't question her."
    I looked over at Emma and saw her staring at the floor, shivering in the corner. I walked over and wrapped my arms around her and whispered in her ear, “I won't let them take you.  Will you marry me, Emma, so I can help you?” I asked, and she nodded yes.  I gave her a reassuring smile and turned back to the captain.
    “We’ll do it. We’ll get married,” I said, knowing it was the only sure way to grant her safe passage.
    Captain left and came back with a standard maritime marriage license. He kept a book of them in his desk, but he had yet to ever use one. He opened the book, tearing off the top one and asked for our I.D., so he could write down the information on them. He frowned and looked between the two of us, when he saw Emmaline's I.D. I was sure he was thinking she was just a baby. He scratched his scruff and looked at us worriedly, but he filled out the paper. "Her Florida address will make her story about meeting us out here on the water more believable. You're lucky she isn't from Montana or some other land-locked state," he said and then handed me the pen to sign the paper. I signed without hesitation, too worried they would take her.
    The captain took the pen and reached it out to Emma. She flinched back a little. I took the pen from him and set it on the table, knowing she would feel more comfortable picking it up from there.
    "You sure about this, Ma'am?" the captain asked. "Once you sign this, it's done, you're married. I know we didn't do pretty words, but that's really just for show. This paper here is the meat of it. Once you sign it, you're stuck with him," he said motioning to me.
    Emma moved forward, cautiously watching the captain, and quickly signed her name without a word.
    The captain let out a rough breath. "Okay, kids, you're married," he said and tore off the little bottom part. "I have to mail this in to the registry, but you're still good to go. So, Clemens, you may kiss your bride."
    At that, Emma's eyes widened in surprise, and the captain let out a laugh. I leaned over and pecked her cheek. She nearly jumped out of her skin, but the captain found it humorous and left us alone.
    I sat down on my bed and looked at my bride. My momma was going to kill me. "Well, you're safe now. I won't let anyone lay a hand on you," I said, and she sat down on my dirty laundry bag. "The captain knows you're here, so there's no reason to hide in the grate anymore."
    She looked up at me surprised, and I