The Sam Reilly Collection

by Christopher Cartwright

  He continued, driven on by the mad desire to find the fabled ship.

  Frank tapped on his dashboard and said, “Sam, this is it. We have to turn around, or you and I are going to have a pretty bad day, and one hell of a swim back.”

  Sam looked at his own power monitor. It had moved further towards the left than he’d expected. Maybe, he’d travelled further than he thought. He would have to turn around.

  “Okay, you turn around. I just want to see what’s beyond this bend.”

  Frank shook his head. “No, we go together or not at all.”

  “Suit yourself, Frank. We go together then.”

  “And then, no matter what, we turn around?”

  “Agreed,” Sam replied.

  The dark tunnel appeared to narrow again, giving Sam the worry that he’d been wrong again. No ship could have travelled through such a narrow section. The speed of the current increased again, and the height of the tunnel dropped so much that he had to lean forward to stop his head hitting the ceiling.

  As the pull from the powerful current gripped him, Sam realized his mistake. He was never going to make it back against this sort of river flow. Then he came around the corner, and forgot about all his concerns.

  In front of him, were the remains of the Mahogany Ship.

  *

  Sam could only see part of the bow of the ship, but even that much of it indicated how enormous the grand vessel once was. The stern and main compartments were entirely buried in sand and river silt. Instantly, he realized the reason for the narrowing of the tunnel – the Mahogany Ship had become lodged ahead, and over the last two centuries, become filled with sand and rocks, until the tunnel became nearly completely blocked.

  The bow itself was raised above the waterline.

  “My God, we found it!” Frank said.

  “Of course we did.”

  “I never doubted you, mate.”

  “Come on, Frank, now that we’re here, we may as well explore it,” Sam said, dragging his Seadoo up on the submerged sandy beach.

  Frank nodded his head and followed.

  Just before the waterline Sam saw the damage. The gash in the massive hull appeared unnatural. As though a single rock had torn through her hull at that precise location, leaving the rest of the beautiful ship unscathed. Sam gave it minimal thought before proceeding to enter through it.

  “Are you certain it’s the Mahogany Ship?” Frank asked.

  “That’s what I’m trying to find out.”

  Sam swam through the dark hull, and past the old ladders, until he reached a cabin above the waterline. Carefully bracing himself on the inner deck, Sam expected its timbers to crumble beneath his weight, but the rare, blackened wood remained strong as steel.

  He was certain that it wasn’t mahogany, but that didn’t matter. Nothing in the notes from the survivors of the Emily Rose, ever determined that it was indeed made out of mahogany, only that it was a blackened wood, unfamiliar to them all.

  Against his better judgement, Sam climbed the ladder and stood on top of the now dry inside cabin. It was dark, and the wood seemed unnaturally sound. He removed his facemask and breathed the stale air.

  Frank looked at him, waited another minute, before shrugging his shoulders and removing his facemask too. “This ship is hundreds of years old. You sure it’s going to take our weight?”

  “No clue, but she seems pretty strong to me.” Pointing his flashlight to the walkway leading towards the aft of the ship, Sam said, “Shall we?”

  “All right, but if this thing starts to break apart, I’m going to be out of here before you can stop me.”

  “Agreed.”

  Sam walked confidently over the sturdy floorboards. He’d already guessed why they were in such a good condition, but all the same, he knew he should have been more circumspect about exploring the ancient wreck. They looked down several openings in the walkway. Each appeared empty, all evidence of the original occupants of the vessel now gone.

  “Seems deserted,” Frank said.

  “What did you expect, treasure?”

  “Well, yes, actually. We did start this hunt with a gold coin. I kind of expected more of the stuff.”

  Sam laughed. “Everyone assumes that sunken ships carry gold. In my experience, they normally carry rotten wood, and a myriad of sea life. Here of course, being fresh water, and in an area devoid of light, the ship is just an old ship, and nothing more. I hope Mr. Rodriguez isn’t too unhappy with his investment.”

  “He’s a big boy. He’ll just be glad that we found her, but he’s keen to prove that she was Spanish, and would have been bloody heartbroken if you’d found something that suggested she was not.” Frank then looked at a solid door at the end of the internal companionway. “What about that?”

  “The door?”

  The door looked more like something out of Fort Knox than a door on a ship. “Whoever built that wanted to keep something out.”

  “Or something in?” Sam suggested.

  Frank’s arms shook suddenly, like a cold shiver. The suggestion appeared to have triggered a nerve, Sam noticed. Then, shrugging the thought off, Frank said, “Nah, something like that there… was designed to keep something precious in. I’ve worked with enough gold in my time to know when I’m close to something of value.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Sam pushed on the door, but it wasn’t going to move. He kicked at it and received the same response.

  There was a large keyhole, made of iron, in the middle of the door. The iron had well and truly rusted, leaving more of a hole than lock, which was large enough that he could see through to the contents of the other side of the door.

  In an instant, he saw it.

  “Holy shit. That’s a lot of gold.”

  *

  Sam paused, studying how the door connected to its frame. Despite the keyhole, the whole thing appeared to be completely molded to the frame surrounding it, as though a team of carpenters were required to open it.

  And perhaps there once were?

  “You want a hand with that door?” Frank asked.

  “Sure, what’ve you got in mind? I don’t think even the two of us would have any hope in knocking it down.”

  Bringing out a diamond tipped angle grinder, Frank replied, “This.”

  “Wow. What were you expecting, bringing that?”

  “You thought I’d be stupid enough to enter a submerged shipwreck, without a means of cutting my way out if things went wrong? No way, I look after myself.”

  The story didn’t seem to match up, but Sam was glad not to have to return to the dive platform in the Mahogany Cavern before being able to access the locked room.

  Minutes later, Frank had cut a hole in the door, large enough for the two of them to shimmy through.

  On the back wall of the ship’s vaulted room, Sam could see the remains of a very old treasure chest, now broken open. And inside the dilapidated chest, were at least two hundred gold coins.

  Sam stepped forward and picked one up.

  It was identical to the others he’d seen. The gold, having lost none of its luster, sparkled as though it were only just minted yesterday.

  “Frank, I think we just found the Mahogany Ship.”

  “That we did, Sam.”

  Sam carefully looked around the rest of the room. It was almost completely empty, with the exception of the gold coins.

  But is it here? Sam thought, disappointed that he hadn’t found it yet.

  The two explored the room and where they could, accessed the rest of the ship. Nothing indicated that it was even still there, but Sam knew that it was early days yet. For the most part, he had at least found what he and his father had searched for all those years ago.

  After a number of hours of searching, it was time to return to the Mahogany Cave. Sam was the first to look at the remaining power on his Seadoo. It was low, but he might make it back. Then again, he might not.

  “How much juice have you got in yours, Frank?�
��

  “Enough, maybe. It will be close. I kind of wish we’d brought a reserve power supply.”

  “My fault. Okay, Frank, you take my battery pack. That way, when yours becomes depleted you’ll have mine to fall back on.”

  Frank looked at Sam’s battery monitor, already close to empty. He was a bright man – Sam had no doubt that he could predict the outcome of them both trying to return to the Mahogany Cave. “Okay, thanks Sam. We’ll come back for you as soon as we can.”

  “Not a problem. I’d like some time alone with this old lady, anyway.”

  Frank unclipped the power pack and put it in his pocket. With a quick wave of his right arm, the man disappeared, leaving Sam alone, to explore the cold, dark, confines of the ancient ship.

  If it’s still here, I’ll find it.

  *

  By the next morning, Sam heard the sounds of the two motorized Seadoos approaching. He waited until they came up from the crack in the hull. Michael Rodriguez’ was the first head to pop up through the still water inside the hull, quickly followed by Frank’s.

  “Morning Sam, I brought you some breakfast,” Michael said, handing him two large bacon and egg rolls, filled with barbecue sauce. “I believe congratulations are in order.”

  “I believe so,” Sam said, relieved to see Michael’s gregarious face again. The man was obviously driven when he had a purpose, and the search for the Mahogany Ship had kept him going for years. Sam had seen the same look in his own face, when he finally reached the answer to an ancient question, or lost artefact.

  He took Michael for a tour of the fabled ship.

  “It’s going to take some time to recover everything. And you and I both know that there’s going to be a lot of red tape around its excavation. But at the end of the day, I think it’s safe to say, we found the Mahogany Ship.”

  “That’s great, Sam. Thank you, for everything.”

  Over the course of the next five days, Sam, Michael and Frank photographed, marked, and examined the entire ship where they could reach, while Byron made reports and documented the information for the world to one day know.

  That afternoon, the three of them made the discovery known to the world, via a televised press conference. Michael indicated that the exact location of the fabled ship would remain hidden to protect her from looters, and treasure hunters.

  That night, the four men drank expensive whiskey, fine wines, and ate decadent food to celebrate.

  After each man had gone to bed, Sam stayed up late, completing some final reports to go with the discovery. Despite finding the Mahogany Ship, he still hadn’t found what he was really after. He would remain on site for the next few weeks until he could confirm that it was no longer aboard when the Mahogany Ship disappeared.

  And if it was gone, then what hope would humanity have of ever finding them?

  Taking a snapshot of the GPS coordinates, Sam looked up the farmers who owned the land. They weren’t going to be impressed with all the attention their quiet parcel of land was about to get, now that the discovery of the Mahogany Ship had become national news.

  Sam looked at the registered owner of the land on which the mine shaft rested, and then double checked the date of purchase.

  I don’t believe it!

  Sam looked at the old land and council papers again. At the bottom line was the name, Michael Rodriguez and the date of sale, December 3, 1983.

  It was the first time that his gut feeling had been confirmed. Michael’s been lying to me, but why?

  Metallurgical analysis had already dated the original gold coin to the 15th century, so that much had been true… and the wood itself had also come from the 15th century. So if it was a hoax, Michael had gone a long way to preserving it.

  He dialed a number to see if his thoughts were right.

  It rang three or four times and then a familiar voice answered.

  “Aliana, it’s good to hear your voice!”

  “Samuel, I thought you had left me for another woman…”

  “Never!” Sam replied, then, quick to get to the point, he said, “Aliana, I have a problem, and I need to pick that fantastic brain of yours.”

  He went through what he knew to date, finishing with the fact that he had no proof that the entire treasure ship had been a hoax, and neither could he think of a reason why a man like Rodriguez would even want to do so.

  “But something’s not right, and I need your help to prove it.”

  “Tell them that you want to bring me in as a scientific name to report on the find, so that the wider community of archeology will see it as legitimate,” Aliana suggested.

  “But you’re a microbiologist. Why do archeologists want to listen to you?”

  “Because I can date the microbes that were on the hull of that ship, and where it once came from.”

  “I hadn’t thought of that, of course.” Sam pictured her in his arms, and said, “I knew there was a reason I loved you. You’re beautiful and incredibly intelligent. When can you get here?”

  “I’ll pack now, and can have my jet leave tonight – they won’t be happy about the short notice, but that’s why I pay them their exorbitant holding fee. I should be there by tomorrow afternoon, your time. It will be just like old times.”

  Sam’s mind flashed back to the night that they had spent together inside a similarly cold, yet beautiful, subterranean cavern, when they found the last airship, the Magdalena The prospect was welcoming.

  “I’ll see you then. Aliana…and yes, I’ve missed you.”

  “I’ve missed you too, Samuel. Keep yourself safe.”

  “I’m fine. Michael has no reason to hurt me. I just don’t understand what this is all about. A part of me still hopes that the ship was real… maybe, he had a rough idea where it was and bought up large farming land, just so that he could secure its discovery.”

  “It seems pretty far-fetched to me, but we’ll find out soon enough.”

  *

  Sam’s cell flashed with a message.

  He quickly opened it, hoping that Aliana had sent him an additional message.

  Instead, he found an online freebee email account name. One of those with about ten numbers after an otherwise normal name like “John,” most commonly associated with robot based spam marketing. There was no name attached to the message, and had he tried to ring the number back, his cellular service provider would have informed him that the number was no longer active.

  He switched on his laptop, and typed the name of the account into the login page, followed by a password that was pre-arranged.

  There was only one message waiting for him.

  Sam, I’ve taken your coin to a numismatics expert. The coin is legit. One problem though. It’s in mint condition. If it was found in a treasure chest, locked away in a cave, maybe it could be possible. But not underwater in a river. That’s impossible. Someone is lying to you. I suggest you look after yourself.

  Elise.

  Chapter Fourteen

  The strange blue light seemed to be reflecting off the sarcophagus, and shining directly on it, making it glow a deep blue color. Billie looked at the image of the Mahogany Ship on the wall. It could have been any ship on earth, except this one had eight masts. On its deck were the simple markings of the Master Builders and next to them, a scepter with the sun shining out of it.

  Her eyes dropped much lower, and saw that Tom was staring at her, breathing deeply, and still gripping the hammer – ready to kill an intruder. He then noticed what she was looking at, and said, “Is that what I think it is?”

  “The Mahogany Ship.”

  “Which means…” Realization crossed his face, and he said, “Sam Reilly was here a couple weeks ago and he must have seen it. Why else would he have left, unless he thought that the last real Master Builder was on that ship?”

  Billie nodded her head.

  “There’s something else you need to know, Tom.”

  “What’s that?”

  “You and Sam weren’t
the first people to lay eyes on this place in the past 1000 years.” She looked up at him with expectation in her eyes, “Who else do you know that has gone looking for the Mahogany Ship?”

  “Michael Rodriguez!” Tom answered instantly. “Of course he knew about the pyramid. He’s mining just below it. He must have any number of geologists who have investigated the area. No wonder he explored it before us, and left it alone – upon discovering no real value inside, he didn’t want to lose money by identifying an archeological site right above his largest mine shaft!”

  “That’s right, but something about this picture made him want to bring Sam Reilly into the equation.”

  “What makes you so certain that Rodriguez did see this picture before us?”

  “Because the likelihood of an oceanic disaster drawing one of five known people in the world who have even heard of the Master Builders, and the only one who’d realized that the Mahogany Ship was connected, is infinitely small. But then to have Rodriguez turn up just after you and Sam dived the site, and ask Sam to help him with a brand new lead on the Mahogany Ship, is just plain impossible.”

  “You’re right. But for what purpose could a man like Rodriguez have to con Sam into exploring a Mayan tomb? I mean, the man’s already rich, so what could drive him to such a ruse?”

  “He must have needed the credibility that only Sam could provide to his discovery of the Mahogany Ship?”

  “But even that doesn’t make sense. What could possibly be so valuable to him that he would need such an elaborate hoax to drag Sam into it?”

  “No, not money – he has that. Something infinitely more important to him…”

  “What’s more important than money to a rich man?”

  “Power.”

  “Oh, shit!”

  “What?”

  “I just remembered where I’ve seen Rodriguez previously… I know exactly why he needed him… Sam’s walking into a trap! Come on, we have to get back to the dive bell so we can get a message through to Sam!”

  *

  Sam left the cavern, alone in the middle of the night.

  Leaving without anyone noticing, he slid into the water. He allowed the diving scooter to submerge below the surface, silently, until he was 300 feet along the tunnel before switching on the electrical motor.