by Alex Archer
Holly came up behind her. “Annja, it’s time to go.”
“All right.”
Annja let herself be helped to her feet. The strain and struggle of everything she’d been through finally caught up with her and her legs buckled as she took a step.
Holly caught her. “Okay, okay, I got you. Just let me get you inside the shark. You can rest there.”
“I’m fine,” Annja said.
A sudden roar filled the air and Annja looked up.
The roof of the cavern started to fall apart. Massive boulders came down in chunks.
“We’ve got to get out of here now!”
40
Holly and Annja scrambled aboard the shark. Dave checked to make sure that everyone was in and then slammed the hatch. He pointed at Annja. “Are you okay?”
“I think so.”
“Good, because I’m going to need your help to maneuver us out of here. We’re going to be dodging boulders the entire way out.”
Annja shook her head. “Why is the cavern collapsing like this, anyway? Was it unstable to begin with?”
Dave shrugged. “I may have used a little too much explosive on the mine I put on Henderson’s sub. It’s possible the explosion caused the water to draw out into the open ocean and the pressure became too great for the cavern.”
Dave pointed. “Get up toward the front there and you’ll see a small observation visor. It should give you a view of the water ahead of us. Try to see if anything is going to come crashing down on us from above. I’ll steer us clear until we can get into the tunnel.”
Dave powered the engines while Annja squatted by the viewfinder.
“Coming around,” Dave said. “Give me a read, Annja.”
“Clear as far as I can see,” Annja said. But as she said that, a huge chunk of the cavern roof broke off and plummeted toward the water twenty feet from them. A wave from the splash washed over the mechanical shark and caused it to loll sideways.
Dave righted the shark and looked at Annja. “That’s exactly what I’m talking about. Now try to make sure we don’t get another one of those.”
Annja nodded. “Go right. Ten degrees.”
Dave made the course correction and kept his bearing. Annja could see the entrance to the tunnel but it seemed so far away through the tiny visor. More and more rocks came showering down from above.
“Go left now! Fifteen degrees!”
Dave jerked hard on the steering as another boulder crashed into the water on their right side. Another wave washed over their bow and Annja took a moment to catch her breath.
“You’re doing fine, Annja,” Dave said. “Now just keep us on our heading and we’ll be okay.”
More rocks tumbled out from the cavern ceiling, showering the water with stones of every shape and size. Annja could hear the smaller ones bouncing off the metal hull of the mechanical shark.
“We’re almost there,” Dave said.
Annja saw another section of the roof start to crumble. It was directly ahead of them, over the mouth of the cavern. “Twenty degrees to the right.”
Dave corrected and then brought the shark around again as the rocks tumbled in alongside their left.
“Almost there,” Annja said.
Dave throttled up the engines and the shark lurched forward. Annja could see they were a scant twenty feet from the opening of the tunnel mouth.
A huge clang sounded on the exterior of their hull. Annja looked at Dave but he waved it off. “Can’t be helped. If we took any serious damage, we’ll just have to weather it for right now. We can’t stop.”
Annja peered out again through the viewfinder. The water in the tunnel was turning into a vortex of rushing waves that carried the shark along with it. She could hear them scraping against the sides of the tunnel.
“Can’t we get out into the middle of the tunnel? We’ll be smashed to bits if we stay here.”
“I’m trying,” Dave said. “The current’s too strong now. I can’t risk breaking the rudder by manhandling it too much. It might be better if we just let the current eject us as it wants to rather than fight it.”
“There might not be anything left of us if we do that,” Annja said.
Dave shook his head. “We’ll be all right. Just hold on a little while longer.”
Annja glanced over at Cole’s body. Jax and Holly knelt close by, holding him so he wouldn’t flop around. They held on to each other for support.
“Hell of a ride,” Jax said. “Now I know why I hate submarines.”
Dave grinned. “You ought to try getting shot out of a torpedo tube some time. It’s a blast.”
Jax groaned. “That was too horrible even for you.”
“Probably.”
Annja peered through the viewfinder again. Ahead of the shark, she could see the massive wall of water that seethed and boiled as if there were two converging storm fronts buried deep under the ocean.
“I can see the entrance to open water,” she said.
“Better hang on,” Dave said. “The ride’s going to be brutal.”
Annja looked at him. “Just how much explosive did you use on that mine?”
Dave smiled. “P for plenty.”
“D for dead,” Annja said. “You might have killed us.”
“We aren’t dead yet,” Dave shouted over the building roar of water as they shot toward the wall ahead of them.
Annja risked another look outside. She could see the current actually twisting like spun steel cords, warping in on itself and torquing around as they got caught up in a jet-stream-like funnel of water.
The shark started to shake and rattle. Bits of metal came off the instrument panels. The bridge area shook and rumbled. Pings and clangs sounded everywhere. And, near the fused metal panels, small fountains of water started spraying everywhere.
“It’s going to break apart,” Annja shouted. “We’re never going to make it out of here.”
“She’ll hold,” Dave said. “She’ll hold.”
The rattling increased and the entire shark assembly started to rumble. Annja felt as if she was trapped in an aluminum can that someone was slowly starting to crush with their hand, twisting it as they did.
She grabbed the closest grip and held on for dear life.
“Here it comes,” Dave said. “Hold on!”
The roar exploded in her ears and Annja thought that they were surely about to die. The shark seemed to accelerate forward and then slam right into a solid wall before again being ejected forward as if spit from the mouth of the cavern.
And then the roar died almost instantly.
The creaking stopped.
They were through.
The fused panels seemed to regain some of their structural integrity and the water leaks ceased for the time being.
Annja glanced at Dave, who seemed very pleased. “We made it.”
She smiled. “Thanks to you.”
He shook his head. “Thanks to us all. This was a hell of a ride.”
“You’re telling me.”
Jax got to her feet and helped Holly. “We’ve got an injury here.”
Annja looked at Holly and saw that she had a golf-ball-size lump on her head. “Anything serious?”
“Nothing that a little time on the ship won’t cure.” Jax laid Holly down and set about taking care of the swelling.
Annja looked at Dave. “How did you get down here, anyway?”
“I came down with Cole and the others, but I got off before they motored into the dock. I always prefer going in alone if I can. Anyway, I arranged with them to hold back until I got myself infiltrated and able to store that little improvised explosive in the bomb. Cole told me all about it, so I figured that Henderson might want to take it back. May as well give him his dearest wish.”
“You did. A good one, too, by the looks of it.”
“And then it was just a matter of slinking back into the water at the dock and waiting. I couldn’t stop Henderson from shooting Cole—I would have bee
n too exposed.”
“So you rigged the mine?”
“Not until the sub was under way. I had to set the timer and hope that you knew you had to get out of there.”
“I did, but not because of your mine. Although I did see the bomb. It toppled over and I saw your present.”
“Yeah, I was hanging on when that happened. What the hell went down in there, anyway?”
“Just a little struggle for control,” Annja said. “But as soon as I saw it I knew I had almost no time to waste. I got out of there as fast as I could.”
“Good thing,” Dave said. “If you’d have stayed any longer, you never would have made it out in time.”
Annja frowned. “You were willing to take that chance?”
Dave smiled. “I had to. I didn’t want to kill you, Annja. But sometimes the mission comes first.”
“And, in this case, your mission was to neutralize Henderson.”
Dave grinned. “I’ll never testify to that if you drag me into court.”
“Who said anything about court?”
Dave steered the shark on a course that slowly drew them farther and farther up. “Let’s just say that we’ve known about Henderson for some time. And right now, if my internal clock is functioning, as I hope it is, the other station he built around here should be receiving a fairly large intake of visitors all too eager to make sure that his plans never see the light of day.”
“Is that so?” Annja couldn’t help the smile that was slowly spreading across her face. For some reason, she just felt good.
“Yep.”
“But you’d never admit that under oath.”
Dave shrugged. “I have no information regarding whatever supposed actions may or may not have been undertaken by my government in the interests of world peace and security.”
Annja pointed at him. “That sounds like a speech you’ve delivered before.”
“I may have had need of it once or twice in the past.”
“Should I even ask how you came to be on the Seeker in the first place?”
Dave sighed. “I wasn’t alone initially. Jock was a buddy of mine. Assigned to this operation from his SBS unit in the U.K. We both went in because Henderson had been seen operating around here over the past several months. The Seeker was a good hunch for us.”
“But if the shark wasn’t real, then what happened to Jock?”
“Henderson had him shot and killed.” Dave frowned. “We found his body floating farther down the coast. I don’t know that Henderson had any idea of Jock’s true identity, but he was a convenient way to drum up fear with the mechanical sharks.”
“I thought they recovered body parts and presumed it was Jock.”
Dave shook his head. “Henderson had a few stiffs on loan from a morgue that he chopped into bite-size pieces and scattered around. The evidence seemed to suggest a shark attack. And I even fell for it until I started to suss things out.”
“Lucky for us there was no real shark.”
Dave nodded. “I don’t know how eager I would have been to tangle with a forty-foot man-eater.”
“I don’t think anyone would have been,” Annja said.
Dave nodded and kept his hands on the wheel. “So, Cole tells me you’ve got this really cool sword.”
Annja looked at him for a long moment and then grinned just a little. “I have no information relating to the supposed nature or existence of any such thing.”
Dave smiled. “Sounds like you’ve rehearsed that speech before.”
“I might have had need of it once or twice in the past.”
“Yeah, well, if you ever get clearance to show it, I’d love to see it. I’m a big sword fan.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Annja said. “For now, let’s just get back to the Seeker. I’m sure Hunter is going out of his mind.”
“Presumably,” Dave said. “He was determined to come down with us but Cole told him no.”
“He did?”
“Yeah, said he had a bad feeling about it and begged Hunter to stay with the ship.”
Annja frowned. “I guess he had reason to fear the return trip.”
“I guess.”
“Anyone ever tell you two that you talk way too much?”
Annja whirled around. Cole was sitting up. Jax had one arm around him to keep him propped up.
“Cole!”
And then Annja was rushing, falling into his arms, crying and laughing all at the same time.
Epilogue
The dark blue waters off Prospect, Nova Scotia, hummed with noise and activity. As the Seeker bobbed in the undulating swells, smaller boats zipped back and forth, ferrying divers and crews out to the dive site where the wreck of the HMS Fantome lay partially unburied.
From the deck of the Seeker, Annja stood with Cole and watched the recovery effort unfold. Cole was looking better than he had in the two weeks since he’d almost died in the underwater cavern. Spending time in a hospital ashore helped ensure that he’d be fine.
“I’m glad the surgery went well,” Annja said.
“It was relatively minor,” Cole replied. “They had to repair the arterial tear properly. Jax used duct tape to stop the bleeding, for crying out loud.”
“A thousand and one uses,” Annja said, laughing. “Where’d she go, anyway?”
“Hunter says she took off for a more sedate job piloting barges down the Amazon.”
Annja nodded. She knew that if Jax really did work for Garin, there was no way she was going to stick around now. Not with the crucifix already recovered. The barge job was just a convenient exit for her. “And Hunter?”
“Having the time of his life,” Cole said. “Unearthing this ship means the world to him. And I’ve decided to stay here for a little while to help him get it all done.”
“You’re giving up the shark thing?”
“I don’t know that I’m giving it up,” Cole said. “It’s unlikely I can purge my love of the study of them from my system. But I’m also a way from climbing back into the water.”
“I’m relieved to hear you say that,” Annja said. “No sense testing that fresh surgery by risking life and limb, huh?”
“Well, let’s just say that I may have a newfound appreciation for life, having come so close to death.”
“I understand.”
Cole looked at her and smiled. “It’s the strangest thing, Annja.”
“What is?”
“Me. When I spoke to you on the dock, I genuinely thought I was dying. And I don’t mean I was going out on this whole martyrdom thing. I mean, I really and truly thought that my life was ending. I was starting to hear things. See things, even. I didn’t know what they were. But I knew that my time was almost over.”
“Well, obviously that wasn’t the case. Jax patched you up good and you just needed a little time to recover from your blood loss. That’s all.”
“That’s not it and you know it.”
Annja eyed him. “What are you driving at here, Cole?”
“Why did you put that crucifix around my neck, Annja?”
Annja started to tell him something else. She started to tell him that she wanted him to have peace of mind and that she thought perhaps seeing the cross would give him some of that. But she didn’t think he would believe it. And she wasn’t sure she would have in his place, either.
“I don’t know what I thought,” Annja said. “I just knew you needed to have it around your neck.”
“Well, I’m glad you put it there. Because as soon as you did, the entire sensation that I was dying vanished.”
“But you did die. Dave checked your pulse. You didn’t have one.”
“Yeah, I know. It felt like I went to sleep, but it was the most pleasant sleep I’ve ever experienced. But at the same time, I knew I wasn’t dying anymore. I was just…going away for a little while.”
“And what happened then?”
“I woke up and we were on board the shark. You and Dave were talking. And I felt re
ally pretty good.”
“Well, if it helps, you look pretty good, too.”
“I’m being serious here, Annja. That crucifix saved my life. You know it and I know it.”
Annja nodded. “Maybe so. But there are a lot of people who would kill to possess it.”
“Yes.”
“You’ve got to take care of it,” Annja said.
“I shouldn’t have it anymore,” Cole said. “Someone else should take this thing and use it for others who might be in grave peril.”
Annja shook her head. “It’s yours now, Cole. And I can’t think of a finer man to carry it with him.”
“What about a finer woman? You could take it.”
“No way. I’m already carrying around enough on my own. I don’t need my life complicated any more with something new.”
“But what about you? You’re the first to admit that your life is pretty much always in danger.”
“Yep. It sure seems to be. But that’s because it’s of my own design. I’m not sure, but I have the feeling that the crucifix isn’t so much something that grants immortality as much as it is something that gives a better understanding of our own mortality. It grants us an appreciation for life. And it’s what we do with that appreciation after we’re given it that determines whether the crucifix works or not.”
“That’s pretty deep.”
“I’m feeling very metaphysical today,” Annja said. “And I’m very glad that one of my dearest friends is alive and kicking.”
Cole looked at her. “Stay with me.”
“What?”
“You heard me, Annja. Stay with me. I don’t know what we have here, if anything at all. But maybe there’s something. We shared that kiss and I’ve always liked you. Who knows what it might grow into?”
Annja smiled at him. “You’re crazy, you know that?”
“I’m being serious.”
Annja looked out at the ocean. Hunter’s team was really progressing on the dive site. Each day they were bringing up more and more loot that would make them all wealthy beyond their wildest expectations.
But it wasn’t what Annja wanted.
At least, not right now.
“I can’t stay,” she said sadly.