Because she wasn’t Aliana. The answer stung him with its subtle truth.
Was he still in love with Aliana?
Sam already knew the answer to that question. Now wasn’t the time for self-pity. Besides, Alexis was still in his arms. The thought made him feel guiltier. Alexis had already been through enough trouble with men. He checked his wristwatch. It was five thirty a.m. and the faintest of lights reached the opening to the valley. He should have made the effort to check on the wind.
He gently ran his fingers through her hair and watched her breathe. Some people snored when they slept. Others tossed and turned uncomfortably. Very few people ever looked peaceful, and fewer still remained beautiful. Alexis was one of them who managed both.
At six thirty a.m. Alexis woke up. “Don’t you ever sleep?”
“Sometimes,” Sam replied. “But I got distracted by you and once I was awake and you were in my arms, I was more interested in running my hands through your hair.”
“Oh, that’s sweet.” She kissed his lips lightly.
“It would probably sound less so if I told you your snoring woke me up.”
“Really?”
“Afraid so.”
“I don’t normally snore. Then again, I don’t normally sleep inside a hovercraft parked in an ice cave.”
Sam smiled. “I’m glad you woke me anyway. Your face is one of the nicest things I’ve woken up to in a long time.”
She dismissed the compliment. “Has the wind settled yet?”
He climbed out of the confined space of the bunk bed into the driver’s seat and slid his thick jumper over his head. “I haven’t looked outside. Let’s go see.”
He flicked on the headlights.
She climbed out onto the seat next to him. She’d already managed to slip her jumper and thermals on before leaving the bed. In front of them the faint light shined on the valley through the opening in the ice cave. Unlike when they’d entered the cave and the valley was made almost dark by the sand and grit being blown through, it looked perfectly clear.
Alexis zipped up the sides of her thick snow boots. “The weather looks good. If we leave right away we should reach the Pegasus station by afternoon.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Tom walked into the main eatery of the Antarctic Solace where Elise had set up a new computer hub and workstation. Veyron had modified a section of the restaurant to provide excellent protection against attackers while maintaining good all round visualization of the ship’s main promenade. Veyron and Elise were both arguing over something on Elise’s computer.
“What’s going on?” Tom asked.
Veyron shook his head. “We’re in trouble, again.”
“We’re not in trouble,” Elise challenged him. “So long as I can sort this out within the next day or two, everything will be fine.”
“Why, what’s wrong?” Tom poured himself a mug of black coffee. “I’ve been away for an hour setting up the makeshift machinegun turret above the bridge. How much trouble could we have gotten into?”
“Veyron tried the engines,” Elise said, as though that explained everything.
Tom looked at Veyron. “I thought you said everything was working?”
Veyron shook his head. “Yeah, that’s what I thought.”
“You were wrong?” Tom almost sounded happy at the thought of catching Veyron out for once. “What’s broken?”
“Nothing,” Veyron replied. “Per the computer controls in the bridge they are working perfectly fine.”
“So what’s wrong then?” Tom persisted.
“The computers are! Nothing’s physically working on the diesel engines and now we’re floating ducks in a sea that’s about to freeze over for the oncoming winter. The computers say everything’s working perfectly fine, but the second I try starting the engines, I get nothing.” Veyron’s face took on a new surly nature. “And do you want to know the best part?”
“What?”
“Guess where the access sites to the engine rooms are?”
Elise was grinning, but remained silent. Veyron was a double Doctorial graduate with one PhD in Submarines and a second in Mechatronics. He was fifty-five years old and the only person on board the Maria Helena who came close to her fundamental intellect, and now he’d made a mistake. Tom thought she looked as though the news that Veyron had made a mistake and was now paying for it was worth any amount of inconvenience.
“So, where are the engine room access sites?” Tom asked.
“Inside the crew levels.”
“Oh, good news there,” Tom said. “I just spoke to Gerald and he says he’s got a copy of the security codes.”
“Who’s Gerald?” Elise said.
Tom took a drink of coffee. “He works in security for the cruise ship company that owns the Antarctic Solace.”
Elise shook her head. “Sorry, and he has the security codes – to what?”
“Everything,” Tom replied. “The backup digital security tapes, the elevators, the crew living quarters – everything. He told me he had them in a spreadsheet on a memory stick in his drawer in case there’s ever an emergency where people need to gain immediate access.”
“So, where’s he been for the past few days?” Veyron asked. “Why are we only just now hearing of this?”
“He said he’s been on vacation and returned to the office last night, or this morning our time?” Tom looked at Elise’s face, beaming with relief. “I thought you might be happy.”
“You’ve got the codes?” Elise said.
“Should have,” Tom replied. “Gerald said he’d email them to me straight away.”
Elise pushed her laptop towards Tom. “Log in here and download them now.”
Tom quickly typed in his details, found the email and downloaded the spreadsheet. He clicked print and the entire list of codes to the ship was printed on a single page.
Elise picked the page up, read the first couple lines and said, “All right gentlemen, it’s time to get some answers.”
Chapter Thirty-Four
There were two elevators in the middle of the Antarctic Solace and one at each end of the ship. Tom entered one of the main elevator doors in the middle of the ship with Veyron. It was modern with a full length mirror extending to the floor on the inside and a recent digital photo of both the Arctic and Antarctic landscape. A security camera in the far corner still displayed its red light indicating it was recording. Both men held Israeli built Uzis. Each of them carried an additional four magazines, each one loaded with thirty two 9mm rounds.
Of the two men in the mirror, Tom looked taller and despite his muscles he appeared thinner. Veyron, on the other hand, appeared shorter, but not much at six foot three inches; he was also obviously heavier. Once a successful heavyweight boxer, Veyron would now be considered overweight. Beneath the excess body fat he still maintained extraordinary strength and agility. Despite Tom’s military training, he correctly guessed Veyron would be the one who was more dangerous in a fight.
Elise handed them both a security card with the code imbedded into a microchip inside. “These cards should grant you access to every location on board this ship.”
“Everything?” Tom asked.
“Anything on the list Gerald provided you with from the Captain’s quarters, right down to the cleaner’s storeroom.”
“You’re not coming with us?” Veyron asked, holding his Uzi cheerfully.
“No. I’ll keep an eye on you from the computer station.” Elise had a wry smile. “Besides, you don’t want to leave the entire topside of the Antarctic Solace unmanned if THEY return, do you?”
“Good point.” Tom looked at her. “Are you going to be okay?”
“Are you kidding me?” Elise replied. “I’ll be fine.”
“We’ll start at the bottom level,” Veyron said. “From the engine room we’ll work our way up so we don’t miss anyone. Elise, you’re certain you’ve put the other two elevators out of action?”
“Certain. I’v
e disconnected power to them. They’re not going up or down anytime soon.”
“Good,” Veyron said. “And you can stop the doors from opening on any of the main passenger levels?”
“It’s already done, Veyron.” Elise reached for the Uzi attached to her right thigh. “The only place anyone’s getting from the crew decks to the passenger decks is through the doors of these two elevators on this level. And I’ll be watching from this level – don’t worry, I don’t want a loose rat running through this ship any more than you do.”
“Good,” Veyron said. “Then I think we’re ready, Tom.”
Elise noticed the red light on in the elevator’s security camera. “Has that always been on?”
“I don’t know,” Tom said. “I just noticed it when we opened the elevator doors. Why?”
“It means I should be able to access the camera and visualize the elevator. I have access to every other camera that’s currently active,” Elise said. “But I don’t have access to that camera.”
“So, what’s it doing there?” Tom asked.
Veyron removed the safety from his Uzi. “It means someone else is watching us.”
Chapter Thirty-Five
The elevator descended past the second deck, where the main living quarters for crew and entertainers were. It then carried on down to the lowest deck. Per the ship’s schematics this level opened to the engine room. The plan was to clear out the lowest level first and then work their way back up.
Tom looked at Veyron. “Are you ready?”
“No, but I don’t have any other choices, so let’s get this over and done with.”
Tom switched the safety to off and held his trigger finger at the ready. “All right, here we go.”
The elevator came to a stop at the lowest floor. The engine room was located two stories below the ship’s waterline. A terrifying thought as the elevator doors remained closed. Veyron hit the door release button and the doors opened – to a completely dark room.
“Well that’s perfect!” Veyron said.
Tom switched on the flashlight at the end of his Uzi. The light barely reached the end of the room and there were more shadows than areas able to be seen. “Hey, if anyone’s down here, my name’s Tom and this is Veyron. We’re the good guys. We’re here to help.”
The sound of his voice echoed in the massive engine room, but otherwise there was no response. He looked at Veyron.
“I don’t think they’re interested,” Veyron said.
Tom swept his Uzi around the room so the light shined across it. “You have any ideas?”
“Yeah, this!” Veyron stepped out of the elevator. Shined the light from the end of his Uzi around until he found what he was looking for and then fired two, three round bursts, into the bilge water. “If anyone’s here, I strongly suggest you come out now before I light up this entire damned engine room.”
Silence.
“Jesus, Veyron!” Tom said, “Now they know we’re here!”
“Don’t worry, they already knew we were here. Remember the red light from the elevator camera? Someone’s been watching us.”
Tom shined his flashlight around the room. He felt exposed in the dark with his own flashlight forming a beacon to shoot at. A large brass miner’s lamp hung from the edge of the elevator. “What the hell is that?”
Veyron stepped closer and picked it up. “It’s a carbide lamp. Circa 1910 at a guess, but what the hell it’s doing down here, I have no idea.”
“Would it be bright enough to light up this room?”
“Something this size could light up a good portion of it.”
Veyron opened the water nozzle until tiny drops of water mixed with the carbide inside, causing a chemical reaction that released the highly flammable gas, acetylene. He flicked the striker at the back of the device a couple times. A tiny piece of flint struck the spark wheel and ignited the acetylene gas. The entire thing burned with a warm glow. He adjusted the flow of water until an adequate balance between flame and lighting was achieved.
The warm light filtered through the engine room. Not quite prominent enough to reach the back of the room, but it went a long way to making them feel less vulnerable to an ambush.
“Hey, what do you think of that?” Veyron said, placing the glowing light on the floor in front of him. A proud grin forming on his otherwise serious face.
“Great, but I think I just spotted the main light switch.” Tom looked at the wooden switch. It appeared old and ornate. Underneath, was a circular metal device like a light dimmer. Next to it a label: Engine Room. Main Lighting.
Veyron followed him. He looked worried. Something was definitely wrong about the whole situation. His hands gripped the Uzi’s handle, and Tom could see he was preparing for the imminent ambush. “Well don’t just wait there staring at it, turn the damn thing on and let’s see what we’ve got.”
Tom flicked the switch.
The sound of flint striking several spark wheels went, click, click, click. A tiny glow of light resonated throughout the ceiling. Veyron stepped behind him and adjusted the metal turn wheel. The sound of water hissing as it turned into gas resonated throughout the room. Moments later, the warm lights lit the room.
Tom felt instantly sick. He gripped the hilt of his Uzi for reassurance. Something was very wrong about the entire place. The warm lights flickered throughout the ceiling. Water could be heard dripping in the distance. And Tom couldn’t help but feel like he’d just entered some kind of disturbing nightmare envisioned by one of Steven King’s more outlandish imaginings.
The entire room could now be seen. The shadows dwindled away and the massive diesel engines and their outer mechanical workings were all that remained.
Somehow he saw the room for what it was – something evil.
“What the hell is that?” Tom asked.
“That’s a carbide lighting system,” Veyron said. “It appears whoever installed it has set it up to light the entire level.”
“But why is it here?”
“For lighting, of course.” Veyron grinned. “Carbide lighting was used in rural and urban areas of the United States which were not served by electrification. Its use began shortly after 1900 and continued past the 1950s. Calcium carbide pellets were placed in a container outside the home, with water piped to the container and allowed to drip on the pellets releasing acetylene. This gas was piped to lighting fixtures inside the house, where it was burned, creating a very bright flame. The house I grew up in still used carbide lighting. It’s awfully reminiscent for me. You know, it was inexpensive, but prone to gas leaks and dreadful explosions.”
“That’s really fascinating, Veyron…” Tom interrupted him. “But, what’s it doing in the state of the art engine room of a modern cruise ship?”
“Back up lighting, in case the power goes out?” Veyron suggested, although he clearly didn’t believe it.
“But this is a modern cruise ship. There must be any number of better electrical based options, such as LED headlamps to be used in an emergency power outage?”
“I have no idea, but it seems to me that whoever brought these down here was expecting to have a prolonged period without electricity sometime in the near future.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
Tom rapidly performed a reconnaissance of the now well-lit engine room. Veyron, behind him, covered him with his weapon as Tom searched the rest of the room. Tom moved around the room in a counterclockwise direction. Clearing each section and confirming no one was hiding before moving on. Two locked doors were found at opposite ends of the room. Per the schematics, each one led to the level above.
He turned to Veyron. “All right, the engine room’s clear – let’s get the hell out of here.”
“Okay. You want to go stairs or elevator?”
“Stairs. Easier to secure.”
Tom scanned the room and then approached the door at the end of the room. His eyes stopped at the elevator door, which after remaining open for the past ten minutes, su
ddenly closed. “Shit, the elevator.”
He ran towards it. Pressed the open door button and then watched as the elevator ascended without them. He banged on the up button, and watched as the elevator numbers glowed until it stopped at the second level.
Tom hit the up button again.
Instead of descending, the numbered lights continued to raise until it stopped. The number six remained glowing.
“Shit!” Tom swore. He hit the transmitter on his portable radio. “Elise, you’ve got company!”
“I’m on it!” Elise replied. Her voice calm and confident.
Veyron swiped his card on the elevator door and pressed the up button again. The light flashed red: Access Denied. “What the hell? I thought Elise said she gave us access to every door on the ship.”
Tom stared at the elevator numbers. Six was still glowing which meant the elevator hadn’t moved from the level Elise was guarding. “I don’t know what to say, but Elise is in trouble.”
Veyron depressed his radio transmitter. “Elise, what have you got?”
“Nothing,” she replied. “I tracked the elevator from the second basement level up to the sixth passenger level. It’s stopped but the doors have remained shut.”
“Don’t let whoever the hell is on the other side of that door out!” Tom said. “We’re coming back up to help.”
“I have the M2 heavy machinegun fixed on the door,” Elise said loudly enough for Tom and whoever was inside the elevator to hear. “If anyone tries to come out those doors they’re going to be made into pureed flesh pretty quick.”
“That-a-girl!” Veyron knocked Tom on his shoulder. “Let’s find our own way out of this mess. Elise can look after herself.”
“Elevator door’s opening!” Elise yelled. “I have an M2 heavy machine gun pointed at you. Get your hands up, now!”
The Sam Reilly Collection Volume 2 Page 38