Chapter 31

"What sort of games have you been up to young lady?" The broadside came from the flagship of the fleet known as Joy Williams or Mum. "Sisters of Venus indeed, as though I didn't have enough on my hands with you and Litara."

"Mum, I am nearly 19 and Litara is 28 so we are hardly on your hands. In any case this is about Bill, Jack and Dad."

"So you've taken their toy but what can they have done to annoy you that much?" Mum continued, totally ignoring the fact that Dad was listening.

"Just leave it to the men Mum, and I'm sure they will do the right thing." I said to Mum while looking directly at Dad and nodding to get his agreement.

"All I know is there's plenty of other work to be getting on with so like it or not you are in circuit building today Venus" and with that he headed to the car.

"I'm sorry we pushed things too far last week, leaving you up the mast but taking Bill's boat as revenge on is an epic over-reaction. What will you do if she's involved in an accident while you have her?"

In the passenger seat I was blushing. "It isn't how it sounds Da. Admittedly I got a bit carried away, wanting to teach you Bill and Jack a lesson but that isn't what it's about about any more. What were your ambitions when you were my age Da?"

"Are you sure you want to ask that Venus? I am after all a 'baby-boomer', an antique, a 'wrinkly'!"

"You're also nobody's fool Da. You went on day release from work to college rather than go to university even though you were definitely bright enough and the government would have paid you to do it. Grandma Tina and Mum would be a handful for any man but you've held your own with them for years and I don't think there's a man in the city who doesn't respect you. You also raised two wonderful daughters and the younger one is asking a serious question."

"Well then. Like a lot of 18 year olds in 1968 I wanted to make the world a better place. I wasn't a 'hippy' because this is Wales after all but I thought I could do my bit starting from our home patch and with the people I knew. The world has changed a lot since then and I'd be a lot richer if I'd gone to work in London and bought a house there but I wouldn't have been happier and I wouldn't have my family and friends around me now."

"I'm not much different to you then Da. People are richer than when you were 18 but we've lost a lot as well. Lost the idealism that the baby-boomers had, lost the sense of community and lost our innocence. We don't expect to make the world a better place by making a house and a car affordable for everyone. My feeling is that the sense of community went with the big employers in the mines and factories but we can get it back in a new form by creating community projects. They don't have to provide paying jobs directly but things like the last half-marathon race and the dinghy race I've proposed bring people together where they are likely to come up with new ideas that do create local services and maybe even in time new jobs. Without that, the next time there is a major disaster or a recession, women like me will be at home with our babies surrounded by neighbours we don't know and prey to anyone who might help them put food on the table!"

"Wow! That I wasn't expecting! I thought this was no more than a teenage tantrum but you're really worried aren't you sweetheart?"

"A lot is happening in my life Da but for now it will help that you know that Bill is in on the ransoming of Dumblebit and that Arianrhod Development and your Brotherhood of the Coast friends are going into the 'making the world a better place' business."

Having arrived at the yard I hurried to put the kettle on to give dad time to think before I tried asking him to let me leave work early to prepare for tonight's grand meeting between The Brotherhood of the Coast and The Sisters of Venus. The local radio station was turned on with the news that The Pirates of Penzance were going to sing on the dock outside the restaurant that night at 7 pm in support of The Sisters of Venus - maybe one of our gang had used their theatrical connections to pull in a Gilbert and Sullivan production to promote the cause but my hope was that the event was snowballing.

At 10 am the Cardiff Hells Angels called the radio station pronouncing they would be there on the dock in solidarity with the Sisters and my sweet Da threw up his hands in defeat announcing I'd better clear off from work after lunch and sort out the mess I'd created.

It was Grandma Tina's timely intervention that provided the oil that finally set the wheels in motion on a grander scale. My idea was that I would change into my pirate costume on Dumblebit then Philip and I would sail to the dock by the restaurant where we would rendezvous with the rest of the gang and Bill for the handover. Having heard our scheme from Bill, Grandma phoned to offer her house for everyone to get into costume and the magic bus to ferry first all us girls to Dumblebit then all the boys to the dock where they could remain hidden in costume in the bus until Dumblebit came alongside.

Honestly, I had no idea of the forces I was unleashing! At 7 pm Dumblebit, unlit, was just around the corner from the dock with Serena, Kelly, Gwen, Jenny, Martina, Penny and cousin Beth aboard. Hidden in the magic bus parked by the dock were Evan, Philip, Andy and George with, in addition, cousins Matthew and Mark. On the dock were half of Cardiff with the Hells Angels revving the engines of their bikes when exactly on 7 the engines stopped and from the harbour entrance not one rocket but a whole barrage of ships' maroons went up so the coastguard and police must have been in on the event because the noise as they exploded would have woken anyone sleeping within 2 miles. The Pirates of Penzance had brought an orchestra with them and they struck up 'I am a Pirate Queen'

then Dumblebit's deck floodlightlights came on so that the crowd caught first sight of The Sisters of Venus in full pirate regalia on deck as we silently coasted up to the dock and secured our mooring lines. Only then did Bill graciously bow, offering me his hand as I stepped ashore.