H.J. Gaudreau - Jim Crenshaw 02 - The Collingwood Legacy by H.J. Gaudreau

rope and then moved the awkward beast to the side of the boat. Soon the four had scrambled up the side and were standing in the command console area of the boat. Dark green cushioned benches lined the exterior walls and a galley way door hid in the center under the mahogany framed windows. The cushions were clearly the home of numerous mice.
    “This is nice, well…it was nice!” Sherrie gasped.
    “We could have a heck of a party on this couldn’t we?” Gerry said as he examined the settee.
    Jim ran his hands along the smooth mahogany wood, admiring the workmanship then moved to the bridge deck. Eve quickly followed and spotted the ship’s wheel.
    “Check this out! Look how this thing is flat,” she said to Jim. The ships wheel was mounted parallel with the floor on a chrome column extending to waist level. A matching chrome drum stood on the console in front of and to one side of the wheel. It held the throttle mechanism. Jim tried to move the wheel, it barely budged. “It’s stuck,” he said to the group.
    “Might be how this thing ended up with a hole in the front,” observed Sherrie.
    Eve then opened the door to the interior cabin. Dark green cushions, again the home of mice and what appeared to be sleeping berths.
    “Nice boat once, what a waste it’s just sitting here,” Jim sighed.
    “I wonder how it got here? I don’t ever recall any mention of this thing when we were kids,” Sherrie looked at Jim.
    “I don’t either. But, come to think about it, I really didn’t know anything about this place. Dad just didn’t want us crossing the fence and for some reason that was one of his rules that I never broke. This place always had bad karma, ya know what I mean?” Jim explained.
    “I DO! I always felt the same way. Denise and I used to pick blackberries all up and down that fence, but I never would go on the other side.”
    No one could come up with an adequate explanation of how this boat ended up ten miles from Lake Michigan and soon they resumed their exploration. It was a cabin cruiser, obviously a high-end antique boat. Except for the damaged bow section, years of dirt, lots of mice and what appeared to be a mummified raccoon it appeared to be in remarkably good shape.
    “This thing has to be worth a lot of money,” Jim remarked.
    “I’ll bet you’re right,” Gerry said. “We’ll have to get it appraised.
    Jim and Gerry climbed down the ladder and inspected the damaged left front of the cruiser. Gerry ran his hand along the gash, examining the damage in detail. “Jim, this looks like someone ran the boat onto the rocks. Look, the front part of this impact point splintered the wood, caved in several boards and then dragged back along the bottom of the hull.”
    Jim studied the marks where Gerry pointed. “I think you’re right. And look here, this board is pulled the opposite direction. This boat was pulled off the rocks.”
    “Wonder why it didn’t sink?” Gerry mused.
    Jim grabbed a stool from in front of the workbench and sat looking at the damaged bow. Finally, he said, “Maybe it was being supported or floated somehow. I’ve heard of sailors wrapping a sail over a hole as a plug. But, to be honest, I have no idea.”
    “Well, somehow somebody did it,” Gerry murmured as he tried without success to reach inside the damaged bow. “I’m wondering if we can fix this.”
    “If the keel is sound…if it’s just this hole and refinishing the old wood, maybe some motor work, yeah, we could do it. Shouldn’t be too hard.” Jim said with an ironic grin. “Going to be expensive; that’s mahogany. And “it ain’t cheap” as they say.”
    They finished exploring the boat then climbed down to the barn floor. Jim edged over to the tool bench and began exploring the antique tools and other objects.
    Sherrie and Eve found a broom and began clearing dirt from the boat. Gerry began surveying the building. Eve appeared at the toolbox, removed a claw hammer and disappeared again. A