With the roughness of Westburn behind him, Chris came aboard the Peliopadus feeling good, experiencing a scintilla of self-importance after traveling first-class rail to Antwerp, where the ship was discharging a cargo of cotton. He"d stopped in London to attend an intense first aid top-up course, adding to skills learned as first aid man in The Old Hotel. Stavros Michas had asked Chris to deal with first aid on the ship.
Chris anticipated camaraderie afloat, but the British officers gave him a curt handshake, and a brusque, “How do ye do?” It dawned on him that the officers wanted to see what he could do before offering friendship.
He had no idea what to expect when he signed on the Peliopadus as supernumerary. The ship bunkered in Antwerp and the pungent stench of heavy fuel oil and the
