by Matt Lincoln
I would have laughed if it weren’t so strange-sounding and still plausible. “I guess… maybe?”
“It would explain a good deal of the situation.” Even Doc sounded doubtful.
“Okay, so, if the Hester was sinking so quickly, maybe the pirates didn’t have time to search the entire ship?” I thought out loud. “They wanted to come back but couldn’t find the location until… oh crap…”
We left the buoys. Rosa’s digital voice completed my thought.
“Yeah.” I nodded and sighed. “They may have been looking for it for days, weeks even, and couldn’t locate it for whatever reason until we did it for them.”
“Well, that’s super-depressing,” Xavier added for more effect that none of us needed.
“We couldn’t have known, Header. We were doing the mission as we were hired to do it.” Doc spoke softly, and he was right.
“At least they didn’t get anything, though.” Xavier perked up. “I mean, we already had the case and all the bodies. The boat itself was never going to be salvaged, so…”
He’s right. They wouldn’t have gotten anything from here that was worth much. No treasure hunting. Rosa gave us a thumbs-up to show that it wasn’t all so bad.
“You’re right,” I conceded. “We did what we’re being paid to do, and the inheritance will still go to Speirs, where it should. That’s the happy ending we have to focus on.”
“Such as it is,” Doc grumbled a bit. “What do we tell Claude Speirs, though? This is all still a theory, and we can’t prove anything.”
“True.” I didn’t like that part at all. “We’ll just have to tell him the truth about what we absolutely know and hope that satisfies him. If we can ever get an agency out here to investigate this, well, that’s the only tangible way to be sure.”
Agreed. We’ve done all that we can for now. Rosa started to head back for the passageway to leave. There wasn’t much else for me and Doc to do but follow her.
Xavier’s voice then broke up our quiet contemplation with unexpected news from the surface. His tone was nearing panic, but it was as if he was forcing himself to stay calm and not cry out in terror. “Hey guys, there’s a boat headed our way. And um… I think they might be shooting at Wraith.”
24
Jake
We all risked decompression sickness if we came up too fast, but with the possibility of Wraith and Xavier under attack above us, it was a tempting thing to do. Doc, Rosa, and I abandoned the wreck of the Hester as quickly as we could manage, all the while talking to Xavier and trying to help him out as best as we all could.
“Seal all the hatches and doors except for the forward-leaning hatch at the right terminal. We’ll come up that way,” I advised him as I kept a close eye on my monitors. They would tell us when we absolutely had to stop for depth check breaks to keep from getting sick.
We could hear him racing around and mumbling to himself, and we also heard the beeps, locking mechanisms, and all the other noises that meant that he was following my orders. The monitors gave us their first warnings, and we all three slowed our ascent, stopping and forcing ourselves to relax for a brief while.
“You have the cameras trained on this oncoming boat, right?” I knew that he probably was way ahead of us in his actions, but I needed to stay connected, even if it was just by talking to him.
“Yes,” Xavier spat hurriedly. “The cameras are recording everything and jamming the signals so that whoever that is won’t be able to transmit your position and transponder information. But I’m still a little worried about the big guns they’re shooting at us.” Xavier was huffing a bit, as he had to have been moving at top speed to get everything done by himself.
“Are they close enough to hit you yet?” I asked, watching the countdown on my monitor tick away. I needed a little more time before I could start for the surface again, and the seconds down here were just crawling along.
“No, they’re still out of range, but---” Xavier stopped speaking abruptly. “Nope, scratch that. I just heard something pinging off of the side of Wraith. They’re getting within range now, Header. What do I do now?”
He wasn’t panicking, which was a good sign. Not that I had anticipated him to. But this situation was a little nasty and being up there alone couldn’t have been a fun prospect. My monitor beeped, and I sped upward. I knew that Doc and Rosa would be following me soon enough. “Go load up the forward and rear guns. You can program the front to target fire, but if they get around you, you’re going to have to aim for them.”
“So, then, you do want me to shoot back at them?” Xavier’s question seemed odd, considering the circumstances, but I had to remind myself that he’d never had to be the sole team member and under fire at the same time.
“Yes. I want you to fire back,” I coolly replied, making as fast and hard strides as I could to reach him and Wraith. That only made me have to take more depth check breaks, but I needed to get there as rapidly as I could. I looked back once I’d slowed to rest to check up on the rest of my team.
Rosa glided up to me with Doc right beside her. I could see in their eyes how anxious and concerned they both were, too. Doc was watching me a little closer than usual, I noticed. He probably thought that I was planning on doing something stupid, like cutting the checks short and risking getting the bends. I wasn’t going to lie, I had toyed with the idea, but I knew that would only cause a bigger problem later.
For now, Xavier was safe where he was, and the three of us were on the way. That was the wisest way to look at this, I kept telling myself. I looked over at Doc. “Don’t fret, Doc. I’m not going to dart off and do anything to endanger myself or the rest of the team.” I held up my monitor to let him see where I was.
“I never said a word otherwise,” Doc answered with a tiny, twisted grin on his lips. Even through his apparatus and gear, I could still see that.
“But you were thinking about it, weren’t you?” I smiled and nodded upward.
“Hey,” Xavier interrupted the banter, “does this targeting system always take so long to recalibrate? We need to fix that.” Leave it to him to worry about enhancing things in the middle of a firefight.
Yes, Rosa’s digital voice answered. It takes a lot to hit a fast-moving target, Xavier. Don’t force it or rush it. The machine is doing all that it can to be accurate.
My monitor beeped in unison with hers, and we raced to make up more time to the surface.
“Let that do its thing, Xavier,” I added. “Just get ready to start Wraith up when I give you the command. Once Rosa or I hit that hatch, we’ll need to have the engine prepped to run. One of us will jump on the helm, one on the rear gun, and one in the co-captain’s seat with the targeted gun. Understood?”
I could hear Doc saying, “I suppose that leaves me as the rear gunner, as usual.” He was joking, he had to be, so I let it go without a retort.
“Getting all of that ready now,” Xavier replied as we could hear more pinging off of the sides of Wraith. At least whoever this was didn’t seem to be great shots. My baby was an easy target right now, just sitting there, dead in the water and unmoving. I tried not to think about that too much.
“How’s Wraith holding up? She’s not taking too much of a beating, is she?” I wasn’t sure that I wanted to know the truth if it was bad, but I needed to fill the silence with something. I was coming up on another depth check, which, hopefully, would be the last one.
“We may need to get a bodywork specialist into the marina in a few days, but other than that…” Xavier got cut off, and for a second, I felt a pang of terror brush inside my mind. My monitor beeped threateningly at me to stop and rest.
“Xavier? You still with us?” Doc asked, floating to a stop beside me. His own voice was etched with concern and then relief when we got a response.
“Yeah,” Xavier replied sharply. “I think they hit one of the antennas or something. Everything just cut out for no reason. The automated gun hit them, and they’re smoking, but they ju
st keep circling us now.” Xavier’s tone was bordering on fearful. “I tried to hit them with that rear gun, but, um, I’m going to need some practice with that thing first, let me tell you.”
At least he was still able to pull off a humorous note to the tension. “We’re on our last stop, Xavier. At least, I think it’s the last one.” I’d forgotten to count and moving this fast might be throwing us off. “Just hold tight. We’ll all be up there ASAP.”
Rosa positioned herself to make a break for the top as quickly as her body and safety would allow her. I could see her form straining to hold her energy in and to keep her nerves in check. We were still too far away to see the other ship clearly, even though it was supposed to be moving all around Wraith. But then I got an idea to help Xavier out.
I reached for the HK-P11 snuggly mounted on my back pouch. All I had to do was to pull the strap, and the mount would shift to allow me to grab it for use. I checked it out, having not fired one in quite a while. I looked up to see Doc doing the same as me. Together, we might be able to fire at the attackers from underneath, and if we got really lucky, maybe we could cause it some damage.
Rosa kept her rifle in its place. She wasn’t looking to do anything except to get on the boat and get to Xavier. I was fine with that. That was why as a team, we always prepared to back each other up. One way or another, we were all going to be taking this fight to them.
Our monitors all three beeped at once, and we were all off like a shot. Doc and I had the guns at the ready to cover Rosa’s entry onto Wraith, if nothing else. The hatch we were going to be using took a little extra effort to get into and out of, but it was the safer option while under fire.
We all started to see daylight trickling through the waves and water, and the black hull of Wraith was like a beacon or magnet bringing us home. I saw the ripple of water on the far side of the boat, and I took that to mean that the attackers would be coming around on our left.
“Xavier, we have eyes on,” I informed him. “Start her up and get ready for a boarding party.”
“He means us,” Doc added, joylessly, “so don’t shoot at us, understand?”
I’d assumed that he’d have understood that, but maybe it was a good thing to clarify. I could see the other boat coming around, so I slowed and aimed the HK-P11 right at the seamed underside, very close to the exact middle, where it stood a better chance of penetrating.
Doc was going for the backside, where the cabins and living quarters were likely located. It was hard to judge the size of the boat, with the water distortion, the speed, and without knowing the model or modifications. We both just had to make our best guess, take our shots, and hope for the desired outcome.
While we were doing this, Rosa made her beeline to the designated hatch. There was a crank handle that would allow her access, and from there, a decompression tube to flush the water back out, and then the final hatch to get her back inside Wraith.
Only one person at a time could use it, and they had to be okay with tight, cramped spaces. It wasn’t a prolonged process, but when dodging gunfire and rushing to safety, everything seemed to take an exorbitant amount of time.
I saw Rosa make it to the hatch and start the procedure to get inside. I was going to move slowly, to let the other boat make another pass so that I could take another shot. I had five shots and had only used one.
I nodded to Doc, “You go up next. I’ll hit them as often as I can to give you the cover you need.”
“Are you sure?” Doc asked, seeming a little leery of leaving the captain out for last.
“Trust me,” was all I could say because the boat was coming back around. I took aim again, going for the same general area as before. I could see some damage from the first shot, and that made me smile with satisfaction.
Doc also placed his final shot there as he swam for the hatch once Rosa was closed up in the tube.
Xavier’s voice came out into our ears, a little less refined than it normally did. “They’re slowing down. And the smoking is still present. Maybe they’ll run away or sink or something.”
That was wishful thinking, but I’d take it over the worry and anxiety that he’d been speaking with earlier. I watched as Doc swam into the tube and the hatch sealed behind him. In my ear, I heard Xavier speaking to Rosa and telling her how glad he was to see her.
As the boat came around again for what was going to be my third and final shot, I could, at last, get a good look at what the HK-P11 shots had done. There was a small and vicious-looking hole starting to fill their boat with water, no doubt. I fired for the last time and then made my way to the hatch.
This close to Wraith, I could hear the turret gun moving and firing at will. I let myself heave a sigh of relief that we were all almost on board again. Then we could do some real damage. I opened the hatch, crawled inside, and heard it seal behind me. The water pumped out, draining away at a good pace, but ridiculously slowly for the mood that I was in. I wanted to be up there now.
Once the hatch above me sounded and unlocked, I turned the lever, popped it open, and jumped into action. I barely took note of what was going on all around me. I ditched my gear and dropped it as speedily as I could. I practically leapt to the helm and fell not too gracefully into my seat. Rosa was back at the gun, and Doc was there beside me, recalibrating the targeting gun. I would have to remind him of his earlier remark later on.
I could hear the pinging and the sharp piercing sound of Rosa’s objectives getting the works.
I barely had the presence of mind to call out to Xavier, “You did marvelously. Now, sit down, and let’s get the hell out of here.”
Wraith was more than ready, and together, we flew across the water, letting her open up without hesitation. At our rear, I knew that Rosa was going to cover our escape and that we could outpace them without much effort. Doc then seemed to realize that his job up here was superfluous, so he stood and started to pick up the gear that we’d all shed the moment we got on board.
“That… was not as fun as I thought it was going to be,” Xavier breathed as he began to help Doc clear the floor of the equipment we’d left.
“The gunfight part, or the being in charge up here alone part?” I teasingly asked him.
“All of it,” he chuckled. “But don’t get me wrong, I want to do the latter again. But let’s not do the shooting at me thing if we can help it, okay?”
“No promises.” I glanced back at him and smiled coyly. “I’m just glad that we all got back up here safe. And now, well, there’s going to be a lot to figure out.”
Rosa, Xavier, and Doc all made short work of getting the gear stashed back where it belonged. Wraith had left the other boat miles back, but I kept Wraith going steady and fast to get us back to the marina. It was going to be a wild couple of days sorting things out and making plans for what was to go next. And boy, that was saying something.
25
Eve
I arrived at George’s house as early as I could while trying not to interrupt their breakfast time. There was so much to go through with both of them, and I really didn’t want either one of them to come across the bad news by accident while checking their newsfeeds or by getting a private message from a reporter looking for a scoop.
I had broken down and rented a small vehicle for the duration of my stay here in Miami. It was a tiny two-door compact Cadillac Coupe, with a new white repaint job. It was suitable for me and my needs, and I was tired of spending a fortune on cabs.
George’s driveway was completely empty, so I guessed that he’d put all of his vehicles down in the garage. I parked close to the door, hoping that I could get in without much notice. If the reports I had gotten an hour ago were to be believed, their privacy was about to be destroyed.
I knocked a few times, trying not to let my own urgency at the matter overtake my concern and actions. I had my briefcase at the ready. A minute later, I could hear the locks on the other side move, and the door opened to reveal a very sleepy-looking Verity.
>
“Oh, hey, Eve,” she mumbled. “Um, did we have a meeting this morning?” She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. “Sorry, I must have forgotten all about it. Come in, please.”
Verity moved to let me come inside, and I noticed that she was wearing what looked like pajamas. This led me to assume that she wasn’t staying at her own place much anymore. She had on a tee-shirt with a stylized Mona Lisa on it and a pair of fuzzy capris. Her hair was all over the place, and she yawned more than once in my direction.
“No,” I replied quickly. “I’m sorry to be here so early, though. This wasn’t on the schedule, but some things are happening that I thought you and your father would be interested in.” I tried to make that sound as simple and not scary as I could.
“Okay, well…” Verity was still trying to get her mind and body on the same page, it appeared. “Just, um, I guess, give me a minute to get Dad up. We had a late night. Um, if you want, just have a seat in there.” She motioned to the area I now called the waiting room. “I’ll be right back.”
She padded down the stonework hallway in bare feet and exited off into the kitchen. I could smell coffee brewing and thought that it was probably on a timer as I hadn’t seen George up and about yet. I stepped into the guest sitting room, the waiting room, and took the solitary chair this time. It faced the open archway, and I wanted to see them as soon as they came in.
I opened my briefcase and pulled out the papers, forms, files, and memos, all pertinent to this case. I piled them onto the coffee table in neat stacks and waited. I checked my watch, grabbed my phone from my pocket, and waited some more. I was trying to relax when I heard and saw George walk into the archway with a big smile on his handsome face.
“Good morning to you, Eve.” His voice was warm and bold, and he had two cups of steaming coffee in his hands that made all the difference in the world. He handed me one, and I sighed gratefully.