There was a palpable sense of foreboding rising aboard the cruise ship. Even those that couldn't quite put a name to it could feel it. They complained about the food, which wasn't living up to its usual five-star rating. There wasn't much the staff could do about it. The lack of power forced them to work with bare essentials. There's something about a hot meal that puts a person at ease. Now, all the meals being served were cold. Not even cold ... more like lukewarm. Most of the ice left on board at the moment was buried in the bottom of a freezer chest under hundreds of pounds of steak that was thawing out quickly.
The weather was also having an effect on people. You didn't have to be an old timer with a weather-predicting trick knee to know that things were taking a turn for the worse. The cloud cover was increasing. They were changing from fluffy, friendly white to threatening gray with a hint of nasty black. The wind was gradually picking up, and in spite of the fact that it was a warm breeze, the strength of it was becoming noticeable. Napkins blew off tables, and magazine pages turned on their own if you didn't hold them in place. People were noticing. The mood was changing.
Garrett and Holly kept an eye on the two older men from a distance. While the ship was relatively small, there always seemed to be plenty of people around to blend in with.
"I have a bad feeling about this," Holly said.
"How's that?" Garrett asked. "We're not doing anything wrong. Nothing that all these other people aren't doing." He motioned towards the crowds of people milling about on deck.
"We should have just reported what these guys did. They shot someone. We shouldn't be playing cops and robbers at a time like this."
"We're not playing cops and robbers. We're just keeping an eye on these two. It's not like I've got plans to arrest them or anything. Besides, the captain has enough problems of his own right now. There're still a thousand things wrong with the ship, and he's got to get that sorted out."
"Something tells me that he'd make a shooting on board his boat a top priority. The safety of his passengers is his number one priority."
"We have no proof to go to the captain with."
"There you go again, playing cops and robbers."
"No, actually, I'm not. What I'm saying is that it's just my story against these other guys right now. Without a gun, or a victim--"
"Or a body," Holly interrupted.
"Or a body," Garrett acknowledged. "We can't very well go to the captain and just tell him a story."
"But, it's what you really saw. You're not making it up."
"You know that, and I know that. I'd just like a little more to go on before we report it."
The men headed into the stairwell, towards the passenger cabins. There was some emergency lighting now working around the ship, with at least every other stairwell landing lit up. While the ship's crew kept a watch on the main stairwells, there were simply too many to monitor completely. Many of the passengers had figured this out, and quite a few were heading towards their rooms. Garrett wondered how many had figured out that none of the rooms were locked. How would they react? It wouldn't help to ease the growing concerns aboard the ship. As the two older men headed down the stairwell, it was harder to tail them without being noticed. Garrett and Holly hung back even further, and kept as quiet as possible, whispering only when they had to, and stepping lightly on the steel steps. The men they were following, however, were oblivious to the fact they were being followed. Their voices carried and echoed throughout the stairwell, as their footsteps did on the stairs.
"I told you this was a stupid idea from the beginning," the first man said. "You should have just taken what they gave you and walked away from the whole situation."
"You know that's not how I work," the second man said. "It's a matter of pride, and respect. Debts have to be paid."
"That's ridiculous. They did pay their debts and you know it. They gave you enough money to retire anywhere in the world you wanted to. I never should have agreed to go along with this crazy idea in the first place. All you had to do was keep your mouth shut about the arrangement and spend the rest of your life living like a king."
"I will keep my mouth shut, but you don't understand just how little this meant to them. What they paid me was practically nothing. A drop in the bucket compared to what they have. They get away with the whole thing scot-free and will probably do it all over again. The public needs to know what happened."
"You're just feeling guilty. You wish you had said something when you had the chance."
"Maybe a little, but that's not the point now. This was my life. My career. I never wanted to do anything else more than spending my life on the seas. Ever since I was a little kid. I worked my whole life to be a ship's captain. Then they took it away from me because they screwed up. They care more about their profits than they do about people."
"Of course they do. You were just too naive to see it. You were always too focused on yourself. Now look where that's taken you ... a crippled ship in the middle of the Gulf Stream, about to be hit by a massive storm, and we're trapped on it. Well, at least when we're all at the bottom of the ocean you won't have to worry about being charged with attempted murder."
"I didn't try to kill anyone, I just barely wounded her. She recognized me. They'll take care of her, and they won't say anything either. Not after what happened. They know they have nowhere to go. They're scared. It's as simple as that. Stop worrying so much."
The men descended the stairs beyond the main passenger decks and exited the stairwell through a water-tight door that said Crew Only Beyond This Point
. Garrett and Holly picked up their pace, not so concerned about their footsteps now that the men were out of earshot. As Garrett prepared to open the door the men had exited through, Holly grabbed his arm, holding him back.
"You heard what those men said," Holly said. "There's something more to this than we realized. We need to report it to the captain."
"Yes, I agree, but let's just see where they're going. The more information we can give the captain the better."
"We're not even supposed to be on this level. We'll be recognized. If not by the men, then by some crew member."
"Aren't you even a little bit curious?"
"Curious?"
"Yeah, as to what goes on behind these doors. It's like seeing how things work behind the scenes."
"Are you kidding me? You've got us chasing some crazy old guys through a powerless cruise ship, and now you want to go exploring? I'm starting to wonder just what the hell I was thinking giving you a second chance." As soon as Holly said that, she covered her mouth with her hand, wishing she hadn't chosen those words in that moment. Garrett looked at her, surprised and a little deflated. "I'm sorry ... I didn't really mean that. I'm just stressed right now, about this whole thing. I just want to be back home. Back on solid ground."
"I understand." Garrett wrapped an arm around her and kissed her on the forehead. "I'm scared too, but I just need to check this out." He opened the door halfway. "You can wait here if you like. I'll just be a minute."
"I don't think so," Holly said. "You're not leaving me all alone in a deserted stairwell on a sinking ship."
"This ship is far from sinking." They proceeded into a long, empty hallway with several doors.
"You heard what those men said. From the sounds of their conversation, at least one of them has a lot more experience on boats like this than we do. He didn't sound too optimistic about what was going on."
"What he sounded like was crazy," Garrett said as he tried the first door. It was marked with Crew Only signage as well, and locked by a card entry system like the passenger cabins
. "These must be controlled differently than the passenger cabins. Let's try the next door."
"What he also sounded like was someone that used to be a captain or an officer on one of these ships, and left the company on bad terms." The second door was locked as well.
"I got that. A disgruntled former employee of the cruise line, I suppose. Probably n
ot even supposed to be on board. It explains how he managed to get a gun on board though. He would know all the loopholes to get himself and anything else he wanted aboard."
They tried the rest of the doors in the hallway, and they were all locked. The two men had obviously disappeared behind one of the doors using a key card that granted them access to crew-only quarters.
"We know enough now," Holly said. "Enough to tell the captain what they said, and that whoever they are, they have access to crew quarters. There can't be that many disgruntled former ship officers in the fleet. With what we heard, he should believe us."
"Yeah, I agree. Looks like we can't go any further anyways."
Just as they started making their way back down the hallway towards the stairs, the ship listed badly to one side, throwing them both into the opposite wall. Grabbing the hallway railing, they proceeded down the hall as the ship heeled. Halfway towards the stairs, the ship listed again in the opposite direction, throwing them into the opposite wall.
"This can't be good," Holly said. "The storm?"
"Must be. It's either really bad, or they don't have power for the ship's stabilizers yet to cushion us against the waves. Either way, it's not a good thing."
"We need to get back to where we're supposed to be."
"I agree. The sooner we get back up those stairs the better. They're going to be tricky to navigate if the ship keeps bouncing around like this."
"The sooner we start, the sooner we finish."
"Yeah, let's go."
They gripped tightly onto the handrail as they moved. At least the hallway was narrow, so when the ship listed, they didn't get tossed far. Just before they got to the stairwell door, the last locked door in the hallway was flung open. Out came the two men they'd been following down the stairs. The two men looked like they'd just been caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
"What are you two doing down here?" the taller man demanded. Holly could feel her heart racing, and before Garrett could answer, the tall man spoke again. "This area is for crew only. You're not supposed to even be below deck, let alone in this area." The heeling of the ship didn't seem to bother the tall man, as he stood in the middle of the hallway without holding the handrail. He took a menacing step towards them as the ship listed again, and the emergency lights in the hallway flickered off then on.
Chapter 22 ~ Rescuers
"Oh my God," Becky said. "What's wrong with him?" Suddenly, the boy started shaking. He arched his back, almost pulling himself out of Becky's arms.
"He's having a seizure, I think."
Fearing she'd drop the boy with all his shaking, Becky gently set him on the sidewalk. He continued to shake, but stopped arching his back. He arms were limp at his side.
"I don't know what to do," Becky said. She looked to William for help.
A couple of people slowed down to see what the commotion was, but then carried on their way.
"Turn him on his side so he doesn't choke on his tongue."
William called to the people passing by. "Is anyone a doctor? A nurse? Anyone." No one responded.
Finally, an elderly lady approached. "Is he yours?" she asked, suggesting that William and Becky were the boy's parents.
"No," Becky answered. "We just found him like this."
"He was seizing when you found him?"
"No, it's just been a few seconds now. I think he's hurt though. He's bleeding. Are you a nurse?"
"No, no, but just wait. He should stop. They usually do."
The three of them watched the boy. Becky supported his back, keeping him on his side. She noticed his clothes. Blue jeans and a button-down shirt, white with blue pinstripes. Over the shirt, he had on a kiddie-sized sports coat, and he wore tan shoes.
"He's dressed like a little model. Where are his parents?" the lady asked.
"We have no idea," William answered, looking around at the crowd. "They have to be somewhere close by; probably worried sick."
"What if he doesn't stop seizing?" Becky asked, looking up at the lady.
"I don't know. My brother used to do this when he was younger, but he always stopped. We just had to wait and watch, and make sure he didn't hurt himself."
"How long do we wait?" William asked.
"Till they stop. Should be only a few minutes. If they don't you'll have to get him to a doctor. Nearest hospital is Bellevue. It's quite a ways though. You have a car?"
"No, do you?"
"I did, but the darn thing doesn't seem to want to start. It's brand new too. I told my husband those fancy German things weren't worth the money, but no, he didn't listen. 'Women don't know cars' he said."
Finally, the boy stopped shaking and tried sitting up.
"There you go. I told you he'd stop. You two can take it from here now." She disappeared into the crowd before they could say anything else.
"Easy there, buddy," William said. "You've had a bit of an episode. Has that ever happened to you before?"
The boy looked confused, and tried shifting away from William. He bumped into Becky, and tried moving away from her as well. He tried standing, but his knees went weak, and he plunked back onto the sidewalk.
"It's alright," Becky said. "We're not going to hurt you. We want to help you. Can you tell us your name?"
"I'm not supposed to talk with you."
William shuffled a little closer, and the boy's eyes widened. Becky looked back at William. "Let me do this. He's scared." William inched back, nodding his head. The boy relaxed.
"You were just wandering the street and bumped into us. You had a seizure. Do you know what a seizure is?"
The boy shook his head.
"It's like you fell asleep and started shaking. Like you were having a bad dream. Do you remember doing that?"
"No." The boy touched his nose and pulled back his hand with blood on it. He looked confused.
"Does that hurt?" Becky pointed towards her nose. "It is bleeding."
"No." He put his hand to his head, just above his hairline. "This hurts. I have a bump."
"Would it be OK if I checked it? Can I touch it?" The boy flinched. "I'll be really gentle. You just tell me if it hurts, and I'll stop. OK?" The boy nodded tentatively. Becky inched herself closer and slowly reached out her hand, then touched his head with her forefinger. The boy squinted, but didn't complain.
"You do have a good-sized bump there. We should probably have your mom look at it. Do you know where she is?"
The boy nodded his head. "Yeah. She's still in the car. With my dad, and my dog."
"Where's your car?" William asked.
The boy looked concernedly at William. "It's OK," Becky said. "He's my friend. His name is William. I'm Becky."
"I'm Adam."
Becky smiled back at William. "That's a great name. Nice to meet you, Adam. Do you know where your car is?"
"I'm not sure. Back there somewhere, I think." Adam looked back down the street. "We got into an accident. I was looking for help."
"Oh no," Becky said. "Was everyone OK? Your parents?"
"They were sleeping. My dog was barking, that's what woke me up. The fireman was there."
"Fireman?" William said, looking at Becky. "If there's a fireman, then there're probably paramedics. They could help Wayne, probably better than the hospital. They'd have a way of getting up and down those stairs."
"Yeah. Why didn't we think of that before?"
"You gotta try hard and remember, Adam," William urged him.
"There was a fireman, and a truck too. A firetruck. A big one, with ladders and sirens. They crashed into us. Mom was yelling at Dad to stop the car. He kept saying 'I'm trying. I'm trying.' That's the last thing I remember, until Buddy woke me up with his barking. I think the fireman at the window scared him. He barks when he's scared. The fireman left, but he yelled through the glass that he'd be back. He didn't come back though."
"Did you see other firemen? Like paramedic firemen?" William asked.
Adam looked confused. He tried
to say paramedic, but it sounded more like parmic. He continued with the rest of his story. "I tried to wake up Mom and Dad, but they were still sleeping. The don't like it when I wake them up, so I let myself out of my seat. I learned how to do that last year, when I turned five. You can do lots of stuff when you turn five. Like ... at home, when I get up too early for Mom and Dad. I go watch TV by myself. I let them sleep. They like that. Especially my dad. My dad likes fishing too, that's one of his favorites. That and--"
Becky politely interrupted him. "That's great, Adam. We should talk about that after though. OK?" Adam nodded his head, then grimaced, putting a hand to the bump on his head. "It's really important now that we go and wake up your Mom and Dad. It's getting late, and I'm pretty sure they're worried about where you are. Do you think you can take us back to them?"
Adam gave an emphatic 'Yep.' He didn't nod this time, but he did take Becky's hand when she offered it.
It took them a lot longer than William and Becky had hoped to get back to Adam's car. When they got there, there was good news though. Adam's parents were sitting on the back bumper of the firetruck they'd crashed into. In between them on the ground sat a golden retriever. They were a little banged up, but had been attended to. His mother was crying inconsolably. At least, until the golden retriever started barking and running towards Adam. Mom and Dad quickly followed.
Adam was hugging a very happy dog when his mom scooped him up and squeezed him like she'd never let go. His dad hugged them both, while Becky and William watched. In the midst of all the confusion, it was like an isolated island of happiness. Adam's car wasn't the only one hit by the firetruck. When the EMP had hit, vehicles lost their power steering and power braking, but not their momentum. For vehicles with room to stop, that wasn't an issue. For vehicles on crowded streets, or firetrucks rushing to an emergency, it was a different story. This firetruck had hit a number of moving vehicles before sliding sideways into a row of parked cars, where it now sat.
"Hello," William said, holding out a hand to Adam's dad, who was just now noticing them. "I'm William. This is Becky. We found Adam a few blocks away. He had a seizure." Adam's mom suddenly looked concerned, and held Adam out in front of her to get a better look. "Maybe from the nasty bump that's on his head. He seemed alright while we were looking for you guys, but you should get him checked out."
EMP Survivors (Book 1): Destination Lost Page 11