by Unknown
“You can blame the stress on my old man.” She half-laughed. “He’s turned my stomach many times.”
Catherine smiled in sympathy. “It’s okay. I was forewarned. He doesn’t like women on board—no disrespect to you—unless they’re cooking and cleaning.” She hesitated, then said, “I think I really pissed him off. He was being a jerk, and I told him whoever brought him up didn’t do a good job. Didn’t teach him any manners.”
“That must’ve gone over big.” Joy stared out at the water. “He had it rougher than me growin’ up. I was raised in the Projects, that’s real bad, but Hennesey, he had no chance. Right from the start, he was tossed from foster home to foster home, like some hot potato. After one beatin’, he took off and didn’t look back. He was fourteen then. He’s been on his own ever since. Maybe that ‘splains his badass.”
“Maybe.”
“Still workin’ out the kinks.”
Joy obviously loved the guy to put up with his bullshit. If Hennesey had a certain charm, Catherine hadn’t experienced it yet. She supposed there had to be something that kept Joy loyal. If anything, he was a man’s man, like Hemingway.
Joy’s relationship with Hennesey got Catherine thinking of her own manlessness. Maybe she was the one who was too picky. Maybe that was why she’d left Richard and why she hadn’t found anyone else. That would be something to discuss with Barbara when she got back to New York.
~~~
Catherine threw her sports bag on the floor of her room and called Alex, who babbled non-stop about the horse she was going to ride. Alex had started the riding camp one week earlier. It was fine with her as not much happened in the last week of school. Catherine wished she could be there to share the excitement. She listened for awhile and then asked, “Have you met Papa’s girlfriend?”
“She’s so nice. She bought me a beautiful Indian jewel box. I keep my special stones in it.”
Catherine said, with a lump in her throat, “Wasn’t that sweet of her.” It wasn’t sweet; it was horrible. Having some other woman across the ocean trying to win her way into Alex’s heart was hard to take.
“When are you coming home?”
Good question. She had hoped the three weeks she’d planned would be enough but since they hadn’t found anything yet, she was no longer sure.
“Mama, did you hear me? When are you coming home?”
“In a few weeks, honey. We were out on the boat today, but we still haven’t found any sign of an old ship.”
“Sorry, Mama, I have to go. Kaitlin’s over and we’re playing equestrian with our dolls. Kaitlin has two horses and we’ve braided their manes and put ribbons on them and everything.”
“Are these dolly horses?”
“Of course. What do you think, silly?”
Catherine had hoped for a longer call. She should’ve at least arranged for a video chat, but she’d forgotten to mention it to Richard. After she’d hung up, the jealousy that had started when Alex mentioned Monique stayed with her.
She had a half-hearted impulse to call her ex, but after what Alex had said about Monique, she couldn’t. What would she say? Your new girlfriend’s a big hit. Good for you, Richard, but aren’t you moving a little fast? I know, it’s been awhile. Never mind, I think I’m in love, too. Only, don’t congratulate me. He’s getting married to someone else. Funny, huh? Oh, and you know what else? Those people in my nightmare, they’re real. At least one of them.
TWENTY-FOUR
Hennesey was now into his sixth straight day of combing the waters. Catherine stood with the others, glued to the computer screen in the wheelhouse. Standing next to her was Daniel’s assistant, Tom Warren, a baby-faced marine archaeology student from Galway. It had been touch and go whether Tom would recover from the viral infection that had prevented him from coming on board earlier.
Catherine was about to ask Tom how he was feeling—as he’d only joined the crew that day—when Gabe pointed to three dark elongated areas on the screen. “There’s a series of anomalies here.” His excitement was palpable.
Hennesey moved in for a closer look. “Could be masts or a bunch of rocks.”
Gabe said, “There’s enough here that doesn’t look natural.”
Daniel added, “Might be a couple of wrecks.”
“Even better.” said Hennesey. “It’s a little west of my coordinates, but it’s close enough.” He said to Olaf, “Drop a line.”
Catherine could feel the anticipation ripple through the group like an unexpected wave in a calm sea. She’d only seen photos of several shipwrecks from the Spanish Armada, but to be part of a hunt for one was overwhelming. But then, for some unknown reason, as she continued to stare at what looked like a mast in the water, sadness enveloped her as a fog does at night. She blinked away the tears that were threatening to fall and turned towards the door to escape the men’s scrutiny. Especially Hennesey’s. He’d be the one to mock her.
Why was she feeling so sad? And out of the blue like that? She dismissed it as a product of nerves, composed herself, and turned back in time to see Hennesey press the button on his GPS to lock in the latitude and longitude.
“Let’s dive!” he said, standing up and pounding the air with his fist.
They’d be diving in a secluded bay, sheltered from curious boaters but not from storms. Though they weren’t that far from shore, the shoreline was rocky and posed enough danger on its own if the weather changed. But for now, any concerns about nature’s fury were pushed to the back as the divers prepared to submerge.
~~~
Daniel watched Catherine put her dry suit on over her thermals, even though there wasn’t any need for extra layers. The temperature of the water was 14 degrees Celsius, which was considered to be temperate diving. He suspected she was a diver who suffered from the cold easier than most. But even under those layers, she couldn’t hide her lovely curves.
He imagined her naked, lying on a bed, waiting for him. His member stirred with his thoughts. Damn his engagement! How had he gotten himself into such a mess? But what if he was free, would he have a chance? Her ex had an obvious advantage. A residence on Central Park West, a prestigious profession, and a willingness to be more than accommodating. Not to mention they shared a child and he still loved her. Daniel told himself he was being ridiculous. Sure, he was attracted, but did he want to trade in one set of problems for another?
He strapped on his fins and checked his air. He glanced over at Catherine again. She was sitting on a bench, pulling on her neoprene booties. When she raised her head, their eyes met. She looked scared. He was tempted to put his arms around her. Instead, he said, “You almost ready?”
She nodded and checked her camera.
“Remember, stay calm and don’t move around much. You need to conserve your air. Any problems whatsoever, you let me know, and we’ll come up.”
“I can’t believe this is really happening,” she said, moving her long hair out of the way as he zipped up the back of her suit.
Again, he wished he could take her suit off and make love to her right there. At the same time, he hated not being in control. He thought it had all been settled with Sean. He thought what he had with her was love, but now that Catherine had come into his life, he had his doubts.
With the boat anchored, any thought about Catherine was taken over by the task at hand. Hennesey and Alfredo would take the first shift below while Jerry and Raul would stay as tenders on deck, monitoring their air through the connecting lines underwater and communicating via headphones on their helmets.
Because Daniel and Catherine would be diving independent of the others, they put on full face masks with wireless mikes. Even so, they rehearsed their hand signals. With equipment failures happening more often than not, they weren’t taking any chances.
Hennesey—as dive master—stood in the stern and scrutinized each diver like a mother hen checking her brood before letting each chick go out on their own for the first time.
Daniel watched Catherine spit
in her mask and rub saliva over her lens. She then put her dry gloves on over her woolen ones before grabbing her camera. He hoped for her sake, she’d have a good dive.
Catherine asked Hennesey, “Do you know what the viz is?”
“We’re lucky today. Thirty meters. Couldn’t be better.”
Daniel said, “We’re good to go.”
“Alright then,” said Hennesey, “let’s go down and find that gold.”
Hennesey and Alfredo jumped in, followed by Patrick and Tom. Daniel and Catherine, with their cameras, were only moments behind.
~~~
As the water embraced Catherine, her initial euphoria of being back in the world she loved transformed into the kind of serenity she experienced after a yoga class. It was the nearest thing to flying. This was both the allure and the danger of the work. The tranquility of being down in the deep could make any diver forget about checking diving tables—which gave readings of how long to stay at certain levels and when to come up. Without due diligence, a diver could risk getting disoriented, putting their buddy at risk. Fortunately, neither she nor Daniel were novices.
Daniel was swimming a few body lengths ahead of her. His bubbles in the water indicated all was working well with his equipment. She assumed he was checking hers as well.
As they swam deeper, she noticed a sea cliff east of their position. She estimated it was over 50 meters deep, making it an area to avoid. Jagged edges could easily slice an air hose.
Daniel turned and pointed below, to what looked like part of a damaged hull covered in sand and silt. Beside it, there was a long object resembling a mast. Hennesey and Alfredo were already swimming towards it.
As she descended, her suit tightened and she had to ease the pressure through the valves on her buoyancy compression vest. She kept one eye on Daniel and another on the beauty that unfolded as she dove deeper. She spotted several cuckoo wrasse. The males put on a dazzling show with their royal blue heads, their backs adorned with dark purple lines and their underbellies a bright orange. A glimpse of these brilliant creatures in northern waters had always been enough to keep Catherine diving again and again. She held her breath to minimize any movement blur and snapped a few photos of the colorful wrasse before kicking sideways to catch up with Daniel.
Next, she passed a craggy wall with a few golden sea sponges clinging to its face. Lobsters and spider crabs played hide and seek in its charcoal crevices. Smiling at the sight, she wished she could linger longer but forced herself to follow Daniel’s lead.
They were now about nine meters away from the wreck. It had obviously been broken in pieces. A good part of the majestic hull with its ancient carvings and intricate woodwork lay on its side. Some of the wood resembled a giant sponge, a result of Teredo worms burrowing into its surface. She took some wide angle shots and then moved in for some close-ups. Even though the ship was badly broken up, it was still possible to make out the vessel.
She took some snaps of Hennesey and Alfredo attaching the guideline to what appeared to be the stern of the once mighty ship. Patrick frog-kicked over along with Daniel and Tom. As the six of them swam along the remnants of the ship’s exterior, they traded signals and bubbled with excitement at finding the vessel.
It was fortunate the galleon had sunk in deep waters, finding its resting place on a sandy bottom away from rocks. With the frequent storms on the west coast, the ship could’ve been damaged beyond recognition on the sharp rocks if it had ended up in shallower depths. As it was, the pieces that remained were in remarkably good condition. The ship’s ballast and lower hull were still visible though there was a fair amount of corrosion sticking to the vessel. There was also sand and mud overburden on the exposed parts, but that could easily be removed with excavation tools. The fact that the ship had ended up farther out from shore explained why no one had found it until now.
While Catherine continued to snap photos, Daniel and Tom assessed the environment of the wreck. They each made notes on the slates they carried—notes that would help them determine the size and age of the vessel. Patrick stayed nearby, looking for hidden treasure.
She was watching a school of fish swim by when Daniel’s swearing caused her to look over. She followed his gaze and understood immediately why he was upset. Hennesey was already probing the sand with his metal detector on the sea floor while Alfredo assisted by shining a light along the keel. There was always one diver who suffered from impatience and wouldn’t wait for the archaeologist to give the go ahead. In this case, there were two.
Muttering as well over their disregard for protocol, Catherine joined Daniel and Tom, who were establishing a fixed baseline down the center of the site. They then moved on with their measuring equipment to the starboard side of the wreck, the side that wasn’t buried in the sand.
It was while Catherine was photographing them at work, that something white crossed her sight line. She turned to her right and saw a young woman in a long slip of a dress floating above the ship’s hull, her hair flowing out behind her. She was the same woman Catherine had encountered in her dreams and in the cemetery. She waved her hand, beckoning Catherine to follow. This time, strangely enough, Catherine didn’t panic. The apparition’s sudden appearance seemed as natural as a sunrise and for a moment, Catherine had the sense she was looking at herself.
Though mesmerized by the sight, she remembered her camera. She quickly brought it up and snapped picture after picture of the figure. She was tempted to play back the photos to see what she got but didn’t want to take her eyes off the spirit. She followed the young woman around a sea cliff. She was more than twenty meters away from the Spanish ship when the vision stopped and hovered above another ancient vessel. The old man with the beard flashed through Catherine’s mind. She could see the deck below, the same deck she’d seen in her dreams. Just then, Daniel startled her by appearing in front of her face.
“What the hell are you doing?” he yelled. “Did you forget we’re supposed to be watching each other’s back, or does that mean nothing to you?” His eyes were blazing and his voice was rough.
“I wasn’t thinking...”
“You just took off without saying anything.”
“I thought I saw something, I …” She hesitated. How could she tell him she’d seen a phantom and had followed it? She started to shake.
His eyes creased with concern. “Are you okay?”
“Just startled.” She tried to slow her breathing down. She was going through her air much too quickly. Still, she didn’t want to leave, not yet. “Do you see that?” She pointed to the strange vessel. The young woman hovered above. Catherine could not take her eyes off this second ship. There were a couple of brass letters lying on the sand. An ‘A’ and an ‘L’. She tried to take a few photos, but her hands were trembling too much.
Daniel said, “I see it.”
“What? What do you see?”
“I see a ship. Now, let’s go!”
She was relieved it wasn’t a ghost ship. Though comforted, she was aware he hadn’t mentioned the phantom. And instead of relishing the new discovery, his eyes looked alarmed. He grabbed her by the shoulders. “Your color’s not good. I think we’d better go up.”
She shook her head and turned away from him. She tried to steady her camera, but couldn’t as Daniel tugged at her arm. Annoyed, she pulled away from his grasp and growled, “I just want to take some pictures.”
His grip tightened and he said loudly, “We have to go! Now!”
She looked at her watch. They’d only been down twenty minutes. While they had planned on thirty, he was dive boss and she had to obey. Perturbed, she took a few deep breaths to calm herself and reluctantly started her ascent. Glancing back, she saw the spirit drift and fade away.
~~~
“I could’ve told you this would happen. I’ve seen it before. Once they get spooked, they never fucking recover.” Hennesey glowered over Catherine, as she sat shivering on a bench even though she was wrapped in a hot blanket.
“In case you fucking forgot,” said Hennesey, glaring, “this is my boat. I’m responsible for what happens on my watch. I can’t afford to be a goddamn babysitter. Either she does her job or she can get the fuck out!”
Catherine’s ears were blocked after the dive. She could see Daniel’s and Hennesey’s lips moving, but whatever they were saying was muffled, as if their words were wrapped in cotton batting. She only heard snippets, but she could see from the way their necks strained and the way they kept turning to look at her, that she was the center of the argument.
“Fucking irresponsible!”
“Look who’s talking.”
“Dumb broad.”
“It’s only her first dive since the accident. Cut her some slack!”
Unable to hear well, Catherine couldn’t appreciate the support she was getting from Daniel. Instead, her mind drifted back to the three-masted barque she’d seen lying below. Odd, how the ship was there, near what could be the Spanish one. As if it’d been planted there for her to find. The fact she’d been directed to the wreck by the spirit she’d first met in the middle of the night back in New York made the journey all the more strange. Was this the end of it then or was there more?
Moments later, her ears popped and the rest of the squabble came in clear.
“Well, if it happens one more time, I’m getting someone who can do her fucking job,” said Hennesey, as he stomped away.
Of course they were furious with her. Who wouldn’t be with the way she’d performed? Daniel had taken a chance on her being ready to go the distance and she had failed. She’d not only interrupted his work, but she’d also let Frank down. Who was she kidding? She wasn’t ready. She should’ve gone into analysis like Richard had suggested, but no, she ended up seeing the hippy dippy therapist that Lindsey recommended. Out of fairness to Barbara, there hadn’t been enough time to work out her problems, but what was she supposed to do now?