"Andy! Is that you?" a familiar voice yelled. He looked up and saw a lifeboat ten feet away; Milo was standing in the hatchway.
"Yes!" Andy yelled, swimming to the boat. He reached up and felt hands around his forearm. He was pulled into the boat. He looked up and saw only four other men in the vessel: Milo, Royce, Bob Taylor from Maintenance and Oscar from Production.
"Where's everybody else?" he yelled.
He noticed Royce was weeping. So was Bob. Oscar sat in a seat silently, his face in his hands.
Milo spoke up. "They're either dead or in the other two lifeboats man."
"What? Why did this boat launch with only you guys in it?"
The cook looked down. "We didn't have a choice. It was either launch or be cooked!"
"What?"
"That second explosion almost killed us!" Oscar yelled.
More explosions rocked the platform behind them.
"We have to go back!" Andy said. "What if people are left on the platform?"
Royce shook his head. "No. You were the only one. We thought you were dead. Bodies have been dropping off that rig by the dozens; most of them in flames."
The radio crackled. "Lifeboats, this is Carlos Rodriguez. Please state your presence and number aboard. This is Lifeboat A. We have fifteen aboard. Over."
"This is Merle Hoskins, coxswain of Lifeboat B. We have ten aboard."
Andy walked to the radio console and picked up the microphone. "This is Richard Andrew Gibson, acting coxswain of Lifeboat D. We have five aboard."
"Alright, where's C?" Carlos asked.
Milo looked at him. "It was destroyed in the third explosion. Everyone aboard was killed."
"One of the gentlemen on my boat said he saw Lifeboat C get destroyed in the third explosion," Andy said.
He heard gasps from one of the boats.
"That's distressing news. Crew leads, we will now go through the various crews and list how many are present. If someone on your boat got on the wrong boat, have him speak up please. We need to determine who is missing," Carlos said. "Alright. Culinary. We have three on A according to Chef Keel."
"We've got Milo on D," Andy said.
"Alright, Culinary is fully accounted for. Medical staff has one plus Carl Becker. They are fully accounted for. Second and Third Mates?"
"They were scheduled to be on C if I recall correctly," Merle said sadly.
"Alright. Let's see, Tool Pusher, Drilling, Derrick, and Floor hands and Lease hands were scheduled to be on C. So were the Mud Engineers."
Oscar shook his head and began to cry.
"Scaffolding is fully accounted for," Carlos said. "Control Room is fully accounted for. Production? Is anyone still alive out there?"
"Yeah," Andy said. "Oscar Mendez is on D."
"Fire Team?" Carlos asked.
"We only have two on D," Andy said. He felt tears welling up in his eyes as he realized how severe their loss was.
"Anyone else? Okay," Carlos sighed. "Geologists? Security? We've got Tyrell Cook with us. What about Robbie?"
"He's not on D," Andy said.
"Engineering?" Carlos asked.
"Five of us," Merle responded. "All accounted for."
"Maintenance?" Carlos asked.
"All accounted for except for Bob Taylor," came the response.
"Bob's on D," Andy said.
"Alright. Well Services? Welding?"
"We've got one welder on B," Merle said.
"Crane Operators?"
No one replied.
"Alright. We are going to steer to a safe distance while we send out distress calls. Is anyone on any boat injured?" Carlos asked.
"Kyle has some burns on his right side, but he’s okay. Otherwise we’re okay on B," Merle said.
"No one’s injured on D," Andy said.
"Well, that's good. If no response comes to our distress call then we will make for Port Fourchon."
Andy sat down in the coxswain seat and started the motor. He followed the other two boats away from the burning platform. Once they were about a half a mile out, they all stopped.
Andy stood and walked to the hatchway and watched the installation burn while the others wept behind him. He and Royce were the only survivors from the Fire Team. They were the only survivors besides Tyrell from the entire Safety Department.
He sighed and turned to the others. "Alright, what happened up there? We need to piece this together.”
Royce sighed. "After I went to the Control Room, I heard a huge explosion. I ran down to the lifeboat platform and saw that it was in danger of being consumed by flames. We launched, even though we knew we had room for more because we knew more folks weren't coming. Man, the whole drilling crew was up there when that first explosion went off! The whole Fire Team was too."
"So what caused the first explosion?" Andy asked.
"I don't know," Royce replied. "I guess that gas was gushing up with the mud that was blowing out. It probably spread out and hit an ignition source. The gas alarms were all going off. The first explosion was huge. I'm lucky I was standing behind some machinery talking to Mikhail." He sighed again. "I just got knocked out and stuck under a beam. Mikhail wasn't so lucky."
"Man, this is bad," Andy said.
"Yeah, I was in the galley washing dishes when the first explosion hit. I woke up lying in front of the fridge. I couldn't make it to Lifeboat A because the hallway was filled with rubble and gas. So I hightailed it to the other lifeboat deck. When I got there Oscar was already seated. I thought about launching when the second explosion went off. Seriously, the fireball missed our boat by no more than twenty feet. It must have come from the drilling deck," Milo said.
"Mitch and Dale showed up for C and then Greg showed up. We tried to convince them to launch when the second explosion happened, but they wouldn't listen," Bob said. "I came here for the same reason Oscar did. It was the closest lifeboat to where I was when the first explosion happened."
"Yeah, we launched because it got too hot in there," Milo said.
"We knew no one would be able to make it here through the flames. And about ten seconds after we launched, the third explosion happened and we watched C get destroyed," Royce said. "Man, why did this happen?"
"Because Josh Hammond sabotaged the shutdown process," Oscar said.
"What?" Milo asked angrily. Andy saw Bob's face turn red.
"Josh told me about five minutes before the first explosion," Oscar said. "He said he had the Mud Engineers pump too much mud out of the well. He wanted to cause a minor blowout to damage the derrick. He assured me it would be safe when I objected. He said it would just be mud coming out. I told him that if gas came up, we wouldn't be able to smell it," Oscar said tearfully. "He said that the alarms would catch it! The Fire Team was nearby, ready in case something bad happened. Then I went to go find Greg and tell him since he was Josh's supervisor. I was about thirty feet away when drilling mud started pouring onto the drilling floor. I had just descended to the drilling deck because someone said Greg was down there when the first explosion happened." He sighed. "A lot of good men died today."
Andy nodded. "I found Josh on the production deck. He confessed to me. He was killed by the second explosion."
"Alright crew, let's set a course for Port Fourchon. Set these coordinates in your navigation systems: Twenty-Nine-Point-One-One degrees North by Ninety-Point-Two degrees West. We should make it there around Five A.M. Stay close," the radio crackled.
Andy looked back at Bald Point. The geyser of flame shooting skyward had stopped.
"I guess someone did activate the blowout preventer," he said softly. He walked to the coxswain seat and fired up the engine again. They set a course for Port Fourchon using the coordinates Carlos had radioed over.
A lot of good men had died because of the vengeful decisions of a few. Andy felt the tears coming again. And unlike a disaster during normal times, there wouldn't be a rescue ship coming. There would probably not be any attempt to stop the leakage of oil fro
m the wrecked spar, at least not until they got to shore and someone could be mobilized.
He wondered how much dispersant would be sprayed on the water to reduce the oil slicks to sinking molecules. He wondered how much oil would be spread across the sea floor like a blanket of foul, dark death no creature could easily escape.
The ride north was quiet except for the whoosh of the lifeboat cutting through the water and the dull buzz of the engine. At one point, Andy looked back and saw everyone except Bob asleep. His face was still red.
He looked up at Andy. "Those imbeciles that caused this got what they deserved. I hope they rot in hell."
Andy nodded. "The justice they'll face is more intense than any they will have ever witnessed in life. The blood of dozens of men is on their hands."
He nodded. "I've never felt so angry. What would possess someone to do something so idiotic?"
Andy shrugged. "The thirst for blood is a powerful and destructive motivation. When Sterling told me they were planning to do some drilling tests the day before we were scheduled to leave, I had a strong suspicion some kind of sabotage would take place. Tyrell told me a couple of weeks ago of rumors that something like this would happen. But, if it happened like Royce suggested, there was no way to do anything except try to vent the gas."
"Awful, just awful!" Bob shook his head.
They sped toward the Louisiana coast for a while longer and finally Andy saw pinpoints of light on the horizon. His relief quickly turned to horror as they drew closer; the lights turned out to be oil platforms that were ablaze, their wells burning out of control.
The radio crackled as they passed a point thirty miles from shore. Andy could hear commotion in the background noise of the transmission.
"This is Tyrell Cook on board Lifeboat A. We have a serious problem. Carl Becker has gotten loose and has bitten people. I fatally wounded him but people are now gravely ill. Carlos is severely wounded. Can anyone assist?"
Andy shuddered in horror. Why had they brought Carl Becker?
Suddenly the radio crackled again.
"Uh D, did you see that?" Merle asked.
Andy looked to the right and saw a small boat that was on fire, a small mushroom cloud of flame rising above it. "What was that?" he asked.
"I think that was Lifeboat A."
"Tyrell? Tyrell? Can you hear me? This is Andrew Gibson from Lifeboat D. Do you read me?" Andy said urgently into the microphone.
"Uh we are going to circle around and see if we can find any survivors," Merle said.
Andy turned the boat and cut the throttle. "Us too."
Royce and Milo stirred as they neared the flaming wreckage.
"What happened? Why are we going slower?" Milo asked.
"I think Lifeboat A just exploded," Andy said tentatively. "Open the hatch."
Royce stood and opened the hatch. A cool breeze carried the fumes of burning rubber into the boat. They pulled alongside the burning wreckage as it started to sink. Andy killed the engine and walked to the hatch.
"Hello out there!" he yelled, cupping his hand to his mouth. "Can anyone hear me? Hello! Can anyone hear me?"
No response came. The only sound was the surf.
"Hello out there!" Merle yelled from about twenty yards away. "Can anyone hear me?"
Silence.
"I think they're all dead!" Merle yelled.
"I think so too!" Andy yelled back as the remains of Lifeboat A sank beneath the waves.
"Let's continue on!" Merle yelled. "When I find those fools at CPG I'm going to strangle them!"
Andy started the engine again and they continued on. Everyone sat in stunned silence. They passed more burning and ruined oil platforms as they neared the coast. Andy saw flames dancing on the shore as they passed a buoy indicating a remaining distance of two miles to the jetty.
"Uh Merle, I don't know about this. Fourchon looks like it's in pretty bad shape," Andy said nervously into the radio.
"Well, wait at the jetty and we'll go ashore first. We'll let you know if it's safe," he replied as the radio crackled.
Andy killed the engine as they entered the jetty and waited. Everyone behind him woke up.
"Where are we?" Oscar asked.
"In the jetty at Port Fourchon," he replied. "The whole port looks like it's on fire. Merle is taking Lifeboat B ashore first. He'll radio back to let us know if it's safe."
The radio crackled. "Pulling up to a dock now. There are a lot of folks on shore but they're walking kinda funny," Merle said. "Hey! What's wrong with you? Hey! Stop right now!" Andy heard growls in the background and screams. It sounded like a terrible struggle.
"D! Run! Run for your lives! Do not come ashore here!" Andy recognized Scott Maniczewski’s voice. He was screaming. More screaming in the background and then the radio went silent.
"What just happened?" Royce asked.
"I think we're the only survivors from Bald Point," Andy said quietly. Oil tanks burned in the night in front of them, sending pillars of smoke toward the sky.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Katie Barnes
Day 17
They came around a bend in the highway as the clouds above thickened. They had been driving all day and were now just north of Pittsburgh.
"We'll be exiting the highway soon!" Joel yelled over the din of wind and motor. He motioned to Rachel who was on the other moped with the bags.
They had left the cabin in the Allegheny National Forest that morning just before dawn, when the forest glade was illuminated by civil twilight. They had loaded their gear onto the moped Rachel would drive while Katie rode on the back of Joel's. Each bike had a spare tank of gas. Everything had been tinted gray in dawn's early light.
Rachel had tearfully bid the cabin goodbye and they had sped off into the forest. It had been chilly. Really chilly. So Katie had hugged Joel tightly.
They sped through rural Pennsylvania, following US Route 62. The Allegheny River was to their right most of the time. They drove through mostly deserted towns. Sometimes Katie saw Infected shuffling through towns on the opposite bank of the Allegheny; sometimes she saw them just a block away in empty towns.
The hilly arboreal landscape reminded her of Canada. She thought back to when she had arrived in Toronto.
When she had disembarked from the airplane at Toronto Pearson International Airport, Katie expected her aunt and uncle to either fail to show up or to be unhappy to see her; she had been projecting her father’s failures on them. She was stunned when she saw a brightly colored sign saying,
WELCOME HOME KATIE!
A tall slightly chubby man with graying black hair stood next to a slender blonde who looked strikingly like Katie’s mother. They were both holding the welcome sign. Katie walked to them and they hugged her tightly. They were so excited to have her in Toronto. Their accents and attitudes contrasted sharply with Katie’s father's. When they got outside the terminal, she saw that a light snow was falling.
Uncle Martin drove them back to a house near Casa Loma in his old Toyota Camry. They drove to 288 Spadina Road. It was an old Victorian style house with a gabled roof that was rather imposing from the street. Katie would have been more reluctant to enter if Martin and Catherine hadn't been so welcoming.
"I'll be right back ladies," Martin said after carrying Katie’s luggage in. He walked back outside.
Catherine smiled. "Katie, I know you must really be hurt by what your dad did. I'm sorry you had to face that. We love you and we intend to treat you like you're the daughter we never had."
"Thanks," Katie had murmured uncomfortably.
Any awkwardness dissipated when Martin returned with Chinese food. They shared the first of many meals together and Katie concluded living in Toronto might work out as she ate a crab wonton.
After she had been there for a few days, her aunt took Katie to work with her, after Katie expressed an interest in art. Catherine worked at the Art Gallery of Ontario as a photographer and did a lot of photography on the side.
As Catherine took her on a tour of the Gallery, she saw a lot of beautiful paintings by artists such as Picasso and Cézanne and Dalí. When they walked up to the second floor they entered the Canadian Art section.
Something caught Katie’s eye as she and her aunt entered a room. There on the opposite wall was an oil canvas depicting a lonely pine tree on the shore of a lake in vermillion and green. Katie felt drawn to it by some unseen magnetism and, so compelled, walked to it.
She studied the detail, the way the mountains in the background weren't obscured by the lonely pine in the foreground. The clever use of vermillion as an undercoat drew her attention too, as it contrasted with the other colors on the canvas.
"Ah, I see you found The West Wind," Catherine said, as she walked up behind Katie.
"I did," Katie replied, as she looked at the plate on the wall next to the painting. "Who was Tom Thomson?"
"Tom Thomson was a Canadian painter who died in Nineteen-Seventeen. His paintings heavily influenced a group of painters known as the Group of Seven. Together, they are among the most influential and significant artists in Canada's history. The Gallery here has some of his work and some of his work is in the National Gallery in Ottawa. Do you like what you see?"
"I do, I really do."
"I'll tell Martin; he's been wanting to go visit Ottawa for a while," she chuckled and hugged Katie.
Katie was snapped out of her thoughts of Canada as the moped decelerated, exiting the highway. They drove around onto East Street and crossed a bridge over the highway. Katie saw mountainous forests surrounding them. Joel veered left onto a road that wound up the side of a mountain. They passed a few burned out houses. A few turns later, they drove into a desolate neighborhood. Red sheets hung in many windows and some of the houses were boarded up with signs spray-painted on them,
INFECTION WITHIN. BIOHAZARD. KEEP OUT.
They came around a bend and suddenly houses became sparser. Katie saw a house on the left up ahead that had a brick wall around the property. Light shone from the windows within.
"That's Austin's parents' house!" Joel yelled, pointing at the fortified home.
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