by Paul Byers
“Does that mean I can take the day off?”
“We need to do a damage assessment, but it will wait until two this afternoon.”
“Gee thanks,” she said with a weary smile, “I am going to charge you overtime you know.”
Cain chuckled, “Fair enough. Now go get some rest.” Mallory started to get up, then paused. “I was going to ask you earlier, that coat looks awfully familiar. Didn’t I see one very similar to that in one of the pictures of your grandfather back at the office?”
Cain slowly nodded his head.
“You always said you’d tell me the whole story behind that coat and your grandfather, now is as good a time as any.”
Pike watched with great curiosity as Cain’s expression and nearly his entire countenance slowly began to change. He had been laughing only moments before, but now the smile seemed a hundred years ago. His look was not one of sadness but more of a reverence, or perhaps a longing. Pike could see that Cain was trying to decide what, if anything to say and what words he could possibly use to describe the way he felt.
Cain began to speak slowly, testing each word to see if it would come out. He took a deep breath, then blew it out slowly. “What I’m about to tell you… I have not shared with anyone else. Anyone. And after hearing me out, you will either think me a fool, or a crazy liar, or perhaps both.”
Pike and Mallory looked at each other, both reflecting the same curiosity and bewilderment at what Cain was telling them. “Elizabeth, you know my grandfather, Thayer Lehmann, was a German immigrant who came over to this country around 1920.” Mallory looked at her boss and nodded her head.
“Yes, well what you don’t know is how he got here. Does the date April 14th, 1912 mean anything to either of you?”
Pike nodded his head. “Yeah, that’s the date the Titanic struck the iceberg and sank.”
Mallory’s eye popped open wide. “Your grandfather was on the Titanic?”
“In a way.”
Mallory looked at her boss in total confusion now. “In a way? What does that mean?”
“Grandpa Thayer wasn’t on the Titanic; he helped sink it.”
“Sink it!” Pike and Mallory exclaimed in unison.
“I know, I know,” Cain said, holding up his hands. “Let me finish before you call in the guys with the straight jacket.”
“Sorry,” Pike said, “but you did throw us a might big curveball there.”
“I understand.” Cain said, nodding understandingly. “Back in 1912, Thayer and his brother, Damien, joined the Kaiserliche Marine, the Imperial German Navy, in search of adventure where they volunteered for the fledgling Unterseeboot service.”
“The what?” Mallory asked.
“U-boats,” Pike said, “Submarines.”
She nodded her head knowingly.
“Even in 1912,” Cain continued, “rumors of war and unrest plagued the royal families of Europe. The potential of the U-boat had not been realized as a weapon yet so instead of preparing it for combat, it was used as a reconnaissance vehicle. The boat Thayer and his brother were on was testing a new form of camouflage to use to spy on enemy shipping.”
“And it was disguised as an iceberg?” Pike said.
Cain nodded. “Exactly, Gabriel, very good. Grandpa Thayer was up on deck as a lookout when the accident occurred. The Titanic was passing close to the sub when something happened to the steering and the sub ran into the side of the great passenger liner. The forward dive plane of the submarine punctured the hull and tore a huge gash down the side of the ship. He was thrown clear and ended up floating on a patch of real ice. The only thing that saved his life was this jacket. The dark blue color stood out like a sore thumb against the white of the ice and he was spotted and rescued.
“Afraid of what might happen if he told his rescuers that a German submarine, not pack ice, was responsible for the sinking of the Titanic, he decided to keep quiet. Grandpa Thayer knew he would never get another opportunity like this to come to America, and there really wasn’t anything left for him back home with his brother dead, so he kept to himself and he just disappeared after he landed in New York.”
Cain shifted silently in his chair and hung his head low, like a nervous defendant in a courtroom, waiting anxiously for the jury to reconvene, waiting to see if they believed his story or not.
Both Mallory and Pike looked at each other, not knowing what to say. It was Pike who broke the stunned silence. “Wow. And no one else knows about this?”
Cain shook his head. “No one knows and there would be no point in bringing out the truth.”
Pike nodded his head slowly in agreement. “Let sleeping dogs lie.”
“Exactly.”
“Nigel, I had no idea.” Mallory said, putting her hand on his arm. Pike watched as a sense of relief washed over Cain, knowing that she believed him. “I don’t know why,” Cain continued, “but I feel better now that I’ve told someone.”
Mallory started to smile but a huge yawn stifled her in mid-grin. “Don’t take this wrong,” Cain said, “but you look like you’ve been rode hard and put up wet. Now go get some rest. And make it three o’clock and not two to come in.”
Mallory got up and slowly walked away. “Thanks, but I’m still charging you overtime,” she said over her shoulder as she left the restaurant.
Cain took a sip of coffee and turned to Pike. “How are you doing there Mr. MacGyver? That was a pretty slick trick you did back there with the duct tape and using the plane as a crane.
“I wish I were as smart as him,” Pike grinned, “but I’m doing okay, nothing that a few hours of shuteye won’t fix. I’ll get some sleep then start inspecting the damaged areas of the berg.” Pike took his coffee cup and wrapped his hands around it, letting it warm up his stiff fingers. “I just hope this little storm won’t keep us from entering the harbor.
A worry line shot across Cain’s forehead. “Why would it? We’re still afloat and in one piece, thanks to you, so I don’t see how any of this could upset our schedule?”
Pike nodded his head. “I agree. There shouldn’t be a problem, but that’s what you’re paying me for, to make sure there isn’t one.”
“Of course.” Cain’s expression lightened a bit. “I’ll leave you to your work as I know you have a lot to do, as do I.”
“I’ll check in this afternoon with a preliminary report.”
Pike watched as Cain got up and left with strong, purposeful steps. Doesn’t the man ever get tired? Pike said to himself. He was just about to get up himself when he heard a voice behind him.
“There you are.”
He turned to see Tabatha Amies.
“Hi. You’re either up really early,” she paused for a moment as she saw his face then continued, “or up really late and now that I think of it, definitely up really late.”
“Thanks a lot.” Pike replied with a mock scowl on his face.
“When can we talk, Mr. Hero?”
Pike cringed at the word, hero. He thought about correcting her but he was just too tired. “Talk about what?”
“Part of the deal in helping Beth keep everything quiet and calm was that I’d get an exclusive interview with you on what happened and how you fixed it.”
“Okay, but not now. I’m really tired and I need to grab some sleep then start inspecting any damage we might have suffered during the storm. Maybe we can talk over dinner tonight?”
“Sounds good,” she replied, “call me at six, that is if you aren’t not too busy saving the world.” Getting in the last dig, she got up and left before he could reply.
He smiled as he watched her leave, then got up himself and went to his room where he collapsed on the bed and fell asleep without even taking his clothes off.
Pike awoke with a start. He sprang up in bed, disoriented, not sure where he was. He had a nagging thought tugging at the back of his mind that he had neglected something very important that he was supposed to. He sat still for a moment, letting the fog of sleep slowly dissip
ate. Suddenly it hit him harder than a plate of bad sushi. He was supposed to be inspecting the storm’s damage to the barge. He looked around his room, it was dark. Had he slept all day and into the night? He whirled around to look at the clock, 2:00. He had slept until two in the morning! He had missed his inspection, missed his date with Tabatha and would probably be missing his job after this.
“Great! Just great,” he said out loud as he plopped back down on the bed. As he lay there wondering what he was going to do, he noticed a crack of light running down the side of the curtain. Was there a ship passing by? He got up and threw open the curtains and suddenly felt like Dracula, throwing up his arms to protect himself from the penetrating rays of the sun. He shook his head; it was 2:00 in the afternoon. He’d been asleep only for a few hours. He felt very stupid at the moment, then suddenly stopped in mid-thought, his date with Tabatha? Was he going on a date? It was an interview right? Just an interview? He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He was not only feeling stupid, but now also confused.
He grabbed some clean clothes and was on his way to the shower when his phone rang. “Hello?”
“Hey Hot Shot.”
“K.D.! How are you?”
“The question is, how are you? We saw the news last night and it showed the storm and pictures of the iceberg and waves rolling over it. It looked pretty rough. Are you okay?” For the next several minutes, Pike explained everything that had happed with the anchor chain and the towing braces and how they had fixed it and how he was getting ready to inspect the damage and she filled him in with everything that was happening back at the office.
“I hate to say this KD, I’ve enjoyed talking to you and am really glad you called, but I gotta run.”
“I know, me too.”
“Speaking of which, it sounds like you already are. Are you on a plane? I can hear a constant rumbling in the background.”
“Yes, I am, and that’s why I have to go too. Some of us have to work for a living. I’ll see you later.”
“Okay, it was great talking to you. Bye.”
As he hung up the phone, he suddenly realized how much he missed home… and talking to her, but a quick glance at his watch told him he didn’t have time to be homesick. If he took a shower and hurried, and didn’t run into any major problems, he could inspect the anchor room and the towing assembly and still meet Tabatha on time. Tabatha. He sighed, suddenly feeling guilty again for some reason.
Chapter Thirty
Pike stepped out onto the pool deck. The breeze was still brisk, a steady ten-knot stream but its coolness was tempered by the rays of the sun. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, facing the sun and enjoying its warmth. It was a far cry from the way it was last night. The sky was now clear and a brilliant shade of blue. The Yankee Clipper was perched on the corner of the iceberg like a giant weather vane, her silver skin gleaming in the sun’s rays.
Directly behind the plane was a group of ten people in a circle, looking like a football huddle or a group singing around a campfire. At first he couldn’t figure out what they were doing, then it occurred to him: they were staring in the hole he had burned in the ice last night.
He flipped up his hood and zipped it all the way up with just his eyes showing in hopes that no one would recognize him. He walked over to the Clipper, checking her for damage and was pleased to find that she had weathered the storm just fine. Coming around from the far side of the plane, he walked over to the hole and looked down. The edge tapered down about a foot and ended in a three-foot crater, looking like someone had punched through the ice with a giant sledge hammer.
The ice in the anchor room had frozen clear, so the anchor could clearly be seen leaning up against the outside wall. Its massive size was magnified even more by the ice, adding to the rumors of the danger they had all been in and elevating his feat last night to near Herculean proportions. Satisfied that there were no problems, he turned and went back inside to check the anchor room from below.
“Hi Mr. Pike.” Pike heard his name called as he climbed up the last rungs of the ladder, popping his head up just outside the anchor room like the groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil. He reached up and Brian Centers helped him the rest of the way.
“Hi Brian, and call me Gabe, remember?” Pike replied as he stepped onto the ice. “Have you seen Dean? I told him I was heading up this way.”
Centers nodded. “Mr. Miles is down on the ships, checking things out there, so he sent me up here to help you.”
“Good. Let’s go take a look.” They walked over to the anchor room door and Pike began to examine it. “The seals look like they held well with minimal leaking.” Pike kneeled down and pointed to the bottom of the door where water froze while seeping out. He examined the rest of the door and then stood. “Looks good here, Brian. But since we have the time, I’d like to see if we can find a way to secure the anchor chain.”
“Why?” Centers asked.
“There’s still a very slight possibility that the block of ice in the anchor room could slip out like an ice cube popping out of a tray. No use taking chances if we don’t have to.”
Centers nodded his head. “I’ll talk to Mr. Miles about it right away.”
“Great. Now let’s get up to the bridge and check in with the captain and see what else we need to take a look at.”
Pike stood on the bridge, staring at the control screen for the towing bridle. Most of the screen was green but several stress points held at steady amber and two points on the left bridle flashed red intermittently. Still not good, he thought, but a far cry better than it was last night.
“Is there any way to relieve the stress on these two points?” Pike asked the captain.
Captain Gregory shook his head. “I’ve talked to the captain of the Rachel B. and we both agree there’s nothing more we can do until the seas calm a bit more. Once they do, we’ll bring in the other two tugs on the stern and they can push, relieving some of the burden on the bridle.”
Pike nodded. “Is there any way to either shore up or separate the towing towers so that if one side goes, it won’t yank the other out and rip off the front of the berg?”
“I don’t know Mr. Pike, that’s not my field of expertise.”
“How far out are we from New York Harbor?”
“Two to three days depending on how much speed we can maintain.”
Pike frowned. “That’s not very much time to recheck everything considering all the damage we took.” Pike studied the screen for a moment longer, and then turned to Centers. “Can you take me here?” He said, pointing to the first of the flashing red censors.
Centers shook his head, “That’s buried behind five feet of ice.”
Pike frowned, “How about this one?” pointing to the other red light.”
“Ten feet.”
“You’re full of good news. How about here? The bases of the support towers are on the decks of the ships right?”
Centers smiled and nodded his head, “That I can do.”
“Then lead on Macduff.” Pike said.
“Macduff?” Centers asked with a puzzled look on his face.
“I’ll explain on the way. Captain, does Mr. Cain know about all this?”
Gregory tried to stifle a yawn but wasn’t very successful. “Sorry, it’s been a long night,” he said, taking a sip of his coffee. “Mr. Cain was here earlier this morning and knows the entire situation.”
“All right Captain, and thank you. If he calls, please let him know where I’m going.”
“Will do.”
Pike and Centers left the bridge and headed for the elevator to take them down to the ship decks. “Who is Macduff?” Centers asked as they walked along.
Pike smiled, “kind of a hobby of mine, quotes and where they come from. Lead on Macduff is actually a misquote. It’s a line from Shakespeare’s, Macbeth. The real line is ‘Lay on, Mcaduff.’ It’s a fight scene where Macduff tells Macbeth to give it his best shot as they fight to the death. I’ve tried t
o find out why it’s so misquoted but I can’t find an answer anywhere.”
“Interesting. Got any more?” Centers asked as they reached the elevator and waited for the door to open.
Pike thought for a moment. “Sure. Have you heard the expression, ‘Cut to the chase?’”
Centers nodded as the doors opened and they entered.
“Back in the beginnings of the film industry during silent movies, the chase scene was usually the most exciting part of a film. People didn’t like watching all the boring stuff, so they wanted the producers to cut, or edit the film to the best part, usually the chase scene…thus ‘Cut to the chase,’ or as we use it today, it means get to the point.”
The doors of the elevator opened and deposited them on the forward ship, on the port side. The cavernous chamber was humming with activity, as work crews were scurrying about the decks and disappearing in the access tunnels like worker ants attending their queen. Pike stood and marveled at the sight. Even though he had seen it before, it still amazed him, not only the size of the cavern but the sheer size of Cain’s project. Pike followed Centers as they walked toward the bow and the first towing support tower.
They reached the base of the two-foot diameter steel pole where Pike began examining it closely.
The eight bolts that held the tower to the deck were all in place and the deck level, with no signs of stress or buckling. The shaft revealed no fractures and ran straight and true as it disappeared into the ice ceiling. The ice around the shaft where the two met was also solid, swallowing the pipe whole, showing no signs of cracking or splintering, which was also another very good sign.
Pike and Centers crossed the catwalk that linked the two ships to reach the other support tower. He knew he would find problems there, since it was this tower that was glowing with the steady amber and flashing red lights on the service screen. He just hoped it wasn’t too badly damaged.
From ten feet away, he could tell his hopes were sunk. The steel decking at the base of the tower was bulging slightly in places, showing where the stress had pulled on the tower. One deck bolt was sheared off completely and two more were twisted. There were also telltale streaks at the base of the pole, indicating stress fractures. Above, it looked like a giant hand had shaken the shaft, chipping and cracking the ice at the top where it joined the pole, routing out a six-inch space between them.