He’d all but given up hope when Jacko and two other men slid down ropes and landed on the deck of the death boat. Jacko offered him the rope if he wanted to be hauled up, but he shook his head. He doubted even ten men could pull him onto the Tower Bridge.
Still, he was glad to have six additional arms. The new men looked to be strong, and more importantly, fresh.
Jacko had him sit and face the wind so he could stop holding his breath and take a breather as the two strong fellows assisted Jacko in turning the slug. The new guys did great on the first turn, but were giving out on the second, so Tubs returned and with all four of them, they got the beast through the hairpin.
Just one more and they’d make it.
Jacko passed his oxygen tank around so each of the men could pull a deep breath of healthy air. Tubs grinned at his friend when it came his time. He was amazed at how much better it made him feel. He just hoped it was enough to finish the job.
Due to fatigue, or maybe it was the poison, Tubs wasn’t sure, but the two officers crumbled on the deck. Tubs moved them back so he wouldn’t step on them, but there was nothing he could do for them but to finish the mission, then get them into the rowboat and row to the other side of the river.
It was only due to stubbornness and the refusal for either of them to give up that Jacko and Tubs remained on their feet, driven to finish the mission.
Once the ship was lodged on the marshy bank, Tubs dragged the unconscious officers into the boat then he and Jacko got in and tried to row to the other side, but neither had any strength left at all.
Tubs felt burning in his throat. The wind was blowing them against the ship. They remained too close to the gas. To die after coming so close to success seemed wrong, but as Vic pointed out days ago, life isn’t always fair.
Jacko slumped over, laying on top of one of the officers. Tubs leaned back, so he wouldn’t accidently fall and crush the other officer. He had enough deaths on his soul.
***
“No, no, no!” Vic exclaimed. “I am not losing those men!” She turned and rallied the remaining two officers to assist her and Meyers in retrieving the unconscious men. Vic and Meyers rowed hard to catch up with the heavy rowboat hanging by the deadly boat. She tied their boat to hers, and then with the help of the two men on the marshy shoreline, pulling for all their worth, she and Meyers paddled as hard as they could against the wind. In what seemed a lifetime, they finally reached the safe marshy shoreline.
Only now they were all too exhausted to carry the men ashore.
Vic spotted some fishermen and forced herself out of the boat. She stumbled towards them and asked them if they would help. They apologized and said they were hungry and needed to fish. She then offered them a nice meal if they would help bring her friends ashore. The three guys shrugged and followed her back to the rowboats.
“Nice boats,” one of the men said.
“You can have this one,” she pointed to the one with the unconscious men in it.
They frowned at the sight of the men. “What happened to them?”
She pointed to the boat across the waters. “That ship is filled with deadly toxins. It’s knocked them unconscious, but they’ll be alright if we can get them to the carriage.”
“Will the poison come over here?” one fisherman asked.
“Depends on the wind direction. Right now you’re safe enough, but if it blows towards us, we’d all be in danger.”
The men relaxed. “It always blows north here.”
Just then Jacko pushed himself off the man he was laying on. “Bloody Hell, this better not be my afterlife!”
“Captain Jacko, sir,” one of the fishermen said.
Jacko blinked several times and squinted trying to see the fellow. “Polly?”
“It’s me, Captain. Glad, to see you ain’t dead. This young lad said we could have your rowboat if we helped you and the others to their carriage. It’s a rather long way to carry a man, so I’m glad you’ve woken up. Any chance Mr. Tubs will wake up, because there is no way we can carry him.”
Jacko stood, but quickly sat back down. “There should be a metal canister somewhere in the boat. Would you search beneath the guys and see if you can find it?”
“Aye, aye, captain,” Polly replied and slid his hand beneath the other bodies, searching for metal. When he slid his hand beneath Tubs’ leg, a vice grip clamped down on his arm. “Sorry, Mr. Tubs. Didn’t mean to disturb you. I was just looking for a metal container that Captain Jacko wants.”
Tubs released the guy and smiled as he looked around. “We’re alive?”
“Seems so,” Jacko replied. “Find that canister yet?”
Tubs sat up and tossed him the canister.
Jacko took a deep draw, then handed it back to Tubs, who breathed in deep as well.
“Is that opium?” Polly asked excitedly.
Tubs laughed. “Better, it’s pure oxygen.”
Polly scratched his head. “I ain’t never ‘erd of that.”
“It’s like the air you’re breathing but without the stink,” Tubs explained.
“I think I’ll stick to opium,” Polly muttered.
Groans came from the other two men. One sat up, but quickly let out a string of curses ending with “I am never volunteering for nothing again.”
The other pushed himself up. “Second that!”
Vic smiled at the success of their mission. Everyone was alive and the stinky ship was out of London proper.
The fishermen assisted Jacko and the two officers to the carriage, while Tubs and Vic each dragged a rowboat across the wet marsh. They had to stop several times and pull another whiff of oxygen before they finally made it to the road where Connors and Meyers waited.
After consuming more charcoal with a chaser of water, Vic, Connors, Jacko, and Tubs joined the three fishermen in her carriage. It was cramped but no one complained. Casey tied the fisherman’s new rowboat on the top of the carriage, then headed home.
She sighed with exhaustion and leaned her head onto Tubs’ beefy arm. “I’m so glad we all survived this debacle.”
Jacko snorted. “I’m glad we saved Stone, but otherwise I wish Xavier had left me in the country, playing with my boys.”
Vic nodded in agreement. “Well, one good thing came out of it. We got rid of a very bad minister.”
Jacko hit her on the side of the head. “You aren’t allowed to discuss that person.”
“Why not? He’s dead; he won’t complain.”
Tubs spoke softly. “Xavier don’t want any of us celebrating the man’s demise. It might come back on us.”
“That is so unfair. The only good thing about this fiasco and we can’t even celebrate it.”
“Can’t say that either,” Tubs replied.
Chapter 12
Never had Vic brought home such a large and filthy entourage before. Yet amazingly, Gregory did not scold her. Not even for committing him to feed three hungry fishermen who had help them get back to their carriages.
Instead, Gregory offered them time to freshen up, then asked Vic if he could give the men some of Xavier’s out-of-fashion suits.
Vic wanted to hug her butler/parent but there were too many eyes about. She’d get a blistering scold for sure. So instead, she offered to get the suits herself. Given how busy Gregory was, he thanked her for her assistance and returned to ensuring everyone else was healthy, no longer trusting them to report their injuries.
Vic selected three old suits that Xavier never wore. They would, no doubt, be far warmer during winter than anything the poor fishermen currently possessed.
***
When Gregory claimed the suits and long johns for the fishermen, he smiled at Vic. “Well done!” He then took them into the downstairs bathing room, where the three men were soaking in the large tub together. He laid their suits out.
He worried that Xavier might object to the loss of three pairs of long johns, so he sent Fagan out to buy three new pairs.
***
The fishermen wasted no time in obeying her. Tubs and Jacko dived in as well. Not surprising given all their hard work.
In fact, the table had never been quieter. Just a bunch of starving people stuffing food in their mouths as fast as possible. And for once, Gregory didn’t chide anyone. In short order, they had devoured a massive quantity of food. Before everyone scattered, she asked Gregory to call in the kitchen staff.
When he ushered them all into the dining room, Vic stood and thanked them for the wonderful meal. That resulted in everyone at the table standing and applauding the kitchen staff and Gregory. He assured them it was his pleasure to have fed them. Then he led the happy staff back to the kitchen.
Just then someone pounded on the front door. Vic rose to yell at whoever was trying to knock the bloody door down, only Tubs rushed before her and placed his body before the door as he opened it an inch. He then jumped back and let a very angry fellow into the hallway.
Xavier’s gaze locked onto Vic. “While you have been dallying about the table, someone has ransacked the office!”
Vic opened her mouth to give as good as she got, but noticed his fatigue. He’d been with the parliament ministers for most of the day, which meant his day was marginally more horrible than even hers.
“Not intentionally. Tubs and I will evaluate the situation now, if you wish, but we were all starving, so we had to eat.”
Xavier breathed in and out. “Any chance you left something for me?”
“Sorry, we left nothing on our plates. However, if you speak to Gregory, I suspect he has a fresh plate being held in the warmer for you.”
“Of course. I apologize for snapping at you. I’ve had a rough day.”
“Ours wasn’t so fun either. I believe Jacko died at one point, but Dr. Connors revived him. This task was far more difficult than anticipated, so I had to modify your instructions.”
Xavier held up his hand to silence her as he stared at the fishermen. “Are those men wearing my clothes?”
“Yes, they helped us get out of the marshlands, so I brought them home for a proper meal. And now Fagan will take them back to their home. You never wore those suits anyway.”
Xavier opened his mouth to complain, only Gregory entered with a massive plate of food. Xavier smiled at the nervous fishermen. “Enjoy the suits, gentlemen. You have no doubt earned them.” Once the men left with Fagan, she kissed the top of Xavier’s head while he attacked the plate like a starving man. Between bites, he ordered Vic to secure the office and get a new lock.
She rolled her eyes. “I’ll be very surprised if the lock has been broken. I suspect Ben staged a break in so he could steal those three gold coins.”
Xavier frowned, then sighed. “Let me know if that’s the case.”
Cheered by Xavier’s new openness to fire Ben, she almost walked in front of a carriage again. Fortunately, Tubs pulled her to safety. Unlike everyone else, he didn’t scold her when she nearly died. He would simply rescue her. The front door of their office stood wide open. Tubs examined it carefully. “This wasn’t a break in, it was left open,” he declared.
Once inside, Vic stared at all the files thrown around the room. “This will take forever to clean up. Maybe Pete wants a job.”
“That’s a good idea.” Tubs said as he picked up a lamp and set it back on the desk.
Vic opened the scheduler to see if anyone was written in for tomorrow. If so, they would have to reschedule because it would be days before they had this place back to right. She stared at the dates and frowned.
“Something wrong?”
“Someone has torn a week of the scheduler out.”
“What week?” Tubs asked.
“The one starting tomorrow.”
Tubs walked to Xavier’s door and tested it. “Door’s still locked.”
“That’s because I took back Ben’s key to Xavier’s office.” She walked over to his desk and pulled out the drawer. “He’s the sorriest excuse for a criminal that has ever lived.”
Tubs examined the drawer to see what had riled her up. He planted his finger in the fine black dust and then touched his tongue. “Activated Charcoal. I’m really familiar with the taste of it now. That was a sad place to hide the coins.”
“I don’t understand why Xavier won’t let me fire him.”
“He might if you hire Pete. I think the problem is that he doesn’t want you stuck in the office wasting your skills interviewing clients. You are far more valuable on the streets.”
Vic grinned at Tubs’ explanation. That was a reason she could appreciate.
Tubs went downstairs to see if the basement remained as they had left it, while Vic went upstairs to their old bedroom and kitchen. She had put an ‘unpickable’ lock on the door to their bedroom so Cannon wouldn’t pick the lock and see their bed with naked bodies carved into the wood doing things her son did not yet need to know about. She checked Davy’s room and it remained locked as well. When she entered the kitchen, the floor was littered with broken china. She concluded by the mess, Ben hated serving tea to the clients.
She returned to his desk and searched it thoroughly to see what other clues Ben might have left to prove he was the culprit who ransacked the office then purposely left the door open. Far back in the drawer, she pulled out a bundle of letters. She opened one and discovered it was a love letter from, of all people, the demented wasp.
She checked the dates. The woman had been writing Ben soon after she sent her own sister to prison. Vic quickly sorted the letters by the date it was mailed. Reading them in order would ensure she had the facts in the order Ben had received them.
Tubs returned from the basement. “Any chance Xavier took the skeleton?”
“I have no idea. I suppose it is possible the ministers wanted to see the body… but given these letters, it appears Ben has been stealing information from us for nearly a year! If he’ll steal to make his beloved and her husband rich, then I’m sure he’d steal a skeleton if someone wanted it.”
“He’s done what?” Xavier’s angry voice demanded from the door.
“Don’t yell at us. This is your fault. I would have fired Ben last year.” When she recalled the probable reason why he had not done so, she hurried to him and gave him a hug. “I’m sorry I said that. It’s not your fault. You were just trying to keep me on the streets, solving crimes.”
Xavier lost his anger and wrapped his arms about her. “That was my motive, but we need another plan. Think Alice and Jacko might give us Pete?”
“First, we need to deal with Ben.”
“Not a problem, he’s fired,” Xavier stated.
“Actually, now I wish to keep him on.”
“Bloody Hell!” Xavier yelled and threw up his hands.
“No. Listen to me. Do you remember my plan to have the wasp lady be hung when she discovered her new husband had no money and killed him?”
“Yes, I do. At the time, I thought you very clever.”
“But then the husband came into money.”
“His luck definitely improved once he changed wives,” Xavier admitted.
“And do you know why?”
“Not a clue.”
“Don’t feel bad. I didn’t have a clue either until I found Ben’s love letters to the Wasp.”
Xavier sighed heavily. “You’re not going to make me read love letters, are you?”
“Not in their entirety. I can’t even bear that. However, this one paragraph will clue you in as to why my clever plan never worked.”
My darling Ben, the information you shared about the House of Worth stock has saved us from bankruptcy. You are such a treasure.
“Yes, and while I’ve not read every sickening page, from what I can tell, we have made the vile wasp quite wealthy.”
“I’ve changed my mind. I’m not going to fire Ben, I’m going to see him imprisoned.”
“That’s a wonderful idea, but first let’s hold off.”
“For Godsakes, why?”
“Because I still want the Wasp to kill her worthless husband and go to prison!” Vic explained.
“But they are wealthy now.”
“They are now, but when Ben gives them a new recommendation, so extraordinary that their greed overrides any sense of reasonableness and they put every dime they own into this soaring stock, then their wealth will completely disappear when it tumbles to the floor. Thus, my original plan will finally come to fruition.”
He pulled her into his arms. “That is a brilliant plan!”
“Thank you! However, since you remain the better financier, I’ll leave you to pick the stocks.”
Xavier sighed. “There’s only one problem.”
“Damn it!” She scowled and demanded, “What’s the problem?”
“It’s quite likely that Ben’s messy departure was his way of saying ‘I quit’.”
Vic relaxed and wave the worry off. “I totally agree with you. However, when he arrives at his beloved’s house and tells her that he has quit, I’m certain she will convince him to remain working here. To be fair, it is possible she has mesmerized Ben. So once this is done, we might want to see if there is a doctor who can recover the old Ben.”
“You’d let him work here again?” Xavier asked in surprise.
“While we are setting this trap? Absolutely, but afterwards? No. We’ll try to get him well, but we are not taking him back. And I agree with your request for Pete so I’ll talk to Alice about it.” She then gripped his hands. “And just so you know, Ben has ripped out the entire next week of schedules. So we have no clue what clients might show up, but it’s a great excuse why we cannot go anywhere nor take any more deadly missions from whomever the new Internal Affairs Minister is.”
Toxic Diamonds (The Adventures of Xavier & Vic Book 8) Page 9