“Well, actually, I, uh ...” Noah was stammering.
“Hey, I know about the situation with your old man. Tough break.” That was even more casual.
“Yes, which is one of the reasons I called.” Noah quickly added, “Not for money, but maybe discussing a job?” He cringed as he waited for a response.
There was a moment of silence. Noah thought perhaps they had been disconnected. Finally, Ruffing cleared his throat. “What did you have in mind?”
“I’m not exactly sure.” Noah hadn’t thought it through before he dialed the number.
“Well, then, why don’t you come by the marina next week. I’ll be back in the States by then. Say Wednesday?”
“Absolutely.” Noah regained some of his composure. “What time?”
“Come by around noon. We’ll have some lunch, and I’ll show you around.”
“That would be great. Thanks very much. I appreciate it.” Noah was stunned by the invitation. He truly did not expect such congeniality from a man of Ruffing’s stature. Maybe he and his father had had a close relationship. Then he remembered how his mother squashed her breasts against Ruffing at the New Year’s Eve party. Come to think of it, Noah couldn’t recall his mother being so chummy with anyone. At no point in time, with anyone.
“My pleasure, Noah. By the way, will your brother be joining us?” Ruffing asked.
“No. Just me. He’s preparing for exams. Thanks again. I’ll see you next week.” Noah got a rush of adrenaline. He was going to have lunch with the rich and powerful Daniel Josephson Ruffing. And if all went well, Noah would be gainfully employed after graduating. Next was finding an apartment for himself and Liam. He reminded himself not to start counting the money he hoped he could make. At least not until he nailed a job.
Fortunately, Ruffing obliged without too much convincing and made him a marina attendant. A fancy expression for dockhand. They were the people responsible for fueling boats and assisting boaters with whatever they needed. And there were always lots of those. But it was a start. A start in a very lucrative business, surrounded by very wealthy people.
* * *
In the beginning, it wasn’t as glamorous as Noah had anticipated. He didn’t get the royal treatment. The staff viewed him as a rich kid who wanted more spending money. They weren’t too far from the truth. The difference was that Noah wanted lots more spending money. He wasn’t about to let the ruin of his father become his legacy. He had often thought about changing his last name, but that would require too much paperwork. Besides, most people in South Florida had no idea who Bernie Madoff was, let alone Sidney Westlake. It was extremely rare for anyone to make a connection.
Noah was doing well financially. This pattern continued for a couple of years. He had gained more respect from his coworkers and was well liked by Ruffing’s clients, which was evident by the large tips he would receive for simply tying up one of their boats. It wouldn’t be unusual for someone from a foreign country to tip him two hundred dollars to tie a simple cleat knot.
It also helped that Ruffing had begun to give Noah some extra side work, for which he paid Noah, under the table, in cash. He felt he had achieved a lifestyle more to his liking than continuing to toil in academia.
In addition to selling yachts, renting slips, and running a robust bar and dining dock, Ruffing’s marina provided an offshore supply service to day-boat fishing charters. With the ability to have goods delivered while out on the water, charter boats could offer bigger packages to their customers. The boats would take people out for big-game fishing, often spending one or two nights on the water. With the speed of the cigarette boat topping out at eighty knots, and with GPS, it was easy to arrange deliveries. Noah would be given the coordinates, then pack the high-speed craft with insulated boxes. Presumably, the boxes contained supplies, but Noah never packed them himself. Nor did he ever witness their being filled. The boxes were labeled and set on the dock, and he would put them on the boat and head out. When he arrived at the fishing boats, the boat captains would give him a banker’s bag, seemingly filled with cash. Day-boat fishing was largely a cash business, so there was no reason for Noah to suspect anything was amiss. This pattern continued for a couple of years, and Noah was making good money. Very good money.
Noah continued to work for Ruffing while Liam pursued his doctorate in the area of cultural psychology. It was the study of how a set of ideas, behavior, and attitudes are formed in a group of people such as a family, and how that gets handed down from one generation to another. Liam was hopeful he would have some insight as to why his family was so messed up and hoped he could avoid the pitfalls in his own life.
After he completed the program, Liam applied for a grant to visit several countries and do research on the psychology of groups. He spent two years traveling to Tibet, India, and Peru, while Noah was banking the money he was earning with Ruffing.
When Liam returned to the States, he obtained a position as an adjunct in the psychology department at the University of Miami. Teaching wasn’t his passion, but it provided his half of the rent and gas for the Jeep Grand Cherokee he had gotten as a high-school-graduation present. Noah had traded his for a newer, more expensive car. A Range Rover Sport. Liam often wondered exactly how much Ruffing was paying Noah, but he never dared to ask. But something didn’t feel quite right.
Most of Liam’s old classmates in the doctoral program had gotten jobs with organizations that needed people to help them deal with the issues that arose from the increased presence of minorities, many of whom came from different cultures, in the workplace. Their doctoral program had focused on groups of people and cultural influences. Many were consulting with government agencies. Liam, on the other hand, was searching for spiritual significance in the cultural aspects of psychology.
Noah’s take on all of what Liam found fascinating was that it was a crashing bore. He enjoyed the lifestyle that his income and rugged good looks afforded him access to, not staring at his navel contemplating the cultural divide.
Noah was always out late at night, and his friends were not always upstanding citizens. “Fast and loose” would be a good description. Liam needed to find his own group of like-minded people, even if he had to search beyond the walls of the university.
There were a number of health-food stores that attracted the “New Age” types and open-air markets that attracted a lot of drifters, people looking for free food. Liam would frequent these magnets for holdover hippies and lost souls, and began attending drum circles and several moon-worship festivals.
Still, it wasn’t quite what Liam had in mind. When he had the opportunity, and there were plenty, he would converse with these (almost) kindred spirits. He discovered that many of them were simply lost in society. They had been drug abusers, alcoholics, prostitutes, and runaways. Many lived in shelters. Many of them were spiritually wounded. These were the people he wanted to connect with. Damaged souls in need of spiritual healing.
He found a park on the outskirts of the city limits. It was a remote area beyond the urban sprawl of Miami, at the edge of the Everglades. A perfect location. There they could meditate and chant without disturbing anyone or being mocked or hassled. Liam would read passages from Eckhart Tolle and Lao Tzu. Inspiring words like “eliminate everything that doesn’t bring you joy” were part of the ritual. At one point, Liam was writing his own verses of encouragement.