“Certainly, doctor. We’ll all go back to Hilo by boat.”
“Well then, when you get there, look for a message from me. I’ll have run my tests long before you can get back by boat. Then I’m off. I’m due at an international scientific convention in Switzerland early next week. I’ll have to leave Honolulu before you get back.”
The doctor shook hands all around. His last words to the group were:
“Thanks for my pipe, young man.”
Biff grinned in reply. It was hard to believe that this was the same old man who had been carried aboard not long ago.
The doctor boarded the plane, and in five minutes it was out of sight, winging its way to Hawaii.
Tom Brewster took the tiller of the Easy Action. Li was at the anchor winch, Biff at the mainmast, and Hank Mahenili at the mizzen.
“Hoist away,” Tom Brewster sang out as he felt the anchor pull free.
Sails rattled up their masts. The wind caught them, and the Easy Action was put on a course for Hilo.
It was a pleasant sail. Everyone was relaxed. There was little conversation. All were happy to loll about the deck, resting from their recent near escapes from violence and storm.