by Jordan Rivet
“How do we know such a technology exists?” Rawlins asked.
Cally spoke up: “Oh, we know because Es— ”
Esther stepped on Cally’s toe to silence her.
“I’ve seen it work,” Esther said. “The Calderon Group heard our man talking about it and must have decided to get an aggressive jump on the bidding during the chaos last night.”
She kept her foot on top of Cally’s for an extra second, willing her not to speak.
Rawlins laughed, wheezing in a humorless way. “If what you say is true, then it’s too late. They’ll already have the technology.”
“Maybe, but you won’t,” Esther said. “How much do you want to bet that the Calderon boys won’t be selling anything? Instead, they’ll become the most powerful coalition on the sea in one stroke. They won’t need to trade for fuel anymore, and you Harvesters will be left behind. Why else would they risk cutting ties with the Amsterdam Coalition last night?”
It occurred to Esther then that David’s idea of selling the technology exclusively would never have worked. It would make one group far too powerful, leaving the rest of the ships at their mercy. She wished she hadn’t gone along with his idea so quickly. And now David was paying the price . . . if he was still alive.
“How do you know Calderon has your inventor boy?” Rawlins asked. “He could have fallen into the sea.” He smiled, showing teeth that were the yellowish gray of carp.
“I heard a man talking,” Cally said. She paused as if she expected Esther to stomp on her foot again and then continued tentatively. “He said they didn’t want to pay for the system . . . that maybe they should just steal him. The man was super-scary, and he had huge holes in his earlobes.”
Rawlins grimaced, which made the skin stretch tighter across his bones. Luke uttered a string of curse words, including a handful Esther hadn’t heard before.
“That’ll be Burns,” Rawlins grunted. “When he’s around the Amsterdam, he acts like a quartermaster, but we have it on good authority he’s one of the real leaders of the Calderon Group, maybe even the top leader. If what you say is true, then Calderon definitely has your boy.”
“Will you help us?” Esther asked.
Rawlins spit in the rain pooling around their feet. “We’re going to have to take you to the higher-ups for this.”
“I just thought a few of you could—”
“We’re all under contract with the Harvesters. If you want some of our men, you’ll have to take it to the top.”
Esther felt like the deck had dropped a few inches beneath her feet. She hadn’t wanted to make this too complicated. They just needed a few men and some information before they went after David in the Lucinda. The last time she’d gone to ask “higher-ups” for help, it hadn’t ended well. But the Harvesters were their best chance at finding out where the Calderon ship might have taken him. They would know how the Calderon Group worked. She had no choice.
“Lead the way.” Esther tried to project confidence in her voice, like David would have, but she felt the situation spinning further out of her control.
Luke and Rawlins led the three women across the main deck of the cargo ship toward their own vessel. They emerged from between a pair of rusty shipping containers on the port side, where the Harvester ship was moored. It was a large trawler at least twice as long as the Lucinda, the kind of heavy seagoing vessel that would have been used for large-scale tuna fishing in the old days. Like most of the ships that had managed to remain seaworthy over the past sixteen years, it had undergone modifications. There was a pair of turrets above the bridge and two extra booms with trawler lines rigged above the starboard deck. A large crane stood out from the back behind a lookout tower. The ship was painted a muted gray green, with its name, Terra Firma, in thick black letters. A drawing of black coral spreading in a near-perfect circle was stamped on the side: the Metal Harvesters’ insignia.
The men and women working on the ship watched them closely as they boarded. A few sported fresh bandages, and everyone was armed. Their uniforms were shades of green, clearly salvaged and dyed to match. A handful of workers loaded barrels of oil onto the deck with the crane, readying the ship to sail.
Rawlins walked them directly to the bridge, where a very tall man guarded the door. He had a machine gun on his shoulder, and his eye had taken a bad punch, probably recently.
“Rawlins here. Is the captain in?”
The guard looked the women up and down, spending a few extra seconds on Zoe’s long, lean frame. “Yeah. He’s with the first mate.”
“He’ll want to hear this,” Rawlins said.
The guard shrugged, rapped on the door three times with the butt of his machine gun, and then pushed it open. Rawlins sized up their group.
“Esther, isn’t it? You seem to be the ringleader. Come with me. The rest of you stay out here. You too, Luke.”
Esther tried to give Zoe and Cally a reassuring nod, even as fear beat in her veins. She stepped over the raised threshold and followed Rawlins inside.
Chapter 12—Captain and Mate
THE BRIDGE WAS SURPRISINGLY cramped, given the size of the ship. The instruments were basic, and rust had infected the cold metal walls in man-sized patches. Condensation coated the forward windows. A man and woman turned away from a deeply creased chart when Rawlins and Esther entered. Both wore green uniforms, the man’s with a star stitched in dirty golden thread on the collar. He had a boxy, weather-beaten jaw and trim gray hair.
“Captain Alder?” Rawlins said. “This here is Esther from the Catalina, that cruiser. She has a proposition that might interest you.”
Rawlins pushed Esther forward. The captain stared at her without expression as the ship rocked on the unsettled sea.
Esther cleared her throat. “Um, David Hawthorne, one of our men, was kidnapped during the attack by the Calderon Group last night. He was trying to sell a revolutionary energy technology. We think the Calderon guys wanted to steal it, so they took him.”
“What technology is this?” the woman asked sharply. Her hair was black, and her hard eyes were the same cloudy-green color as her uniform. Her nose looked like it had been broken, possibly more than once.
“It’s a mechanical algae oil separator.”
“Ha!” the woman barked, making Esther jump. “That idea has been around for years. He wouldn’t have made much off it. That kind of tech uses more energy than it produces.”
“This one doesn’t,” Esther said.
“We get crazies promising sea-shattering, energy-from-nothing whaleshit six times a year.”
“I saw it in action myself,” Esther said. She was a little offended at the first mate’s dismissal of her system, and it gave her courage. On this at least she wasn’t out of her depth. “It produces enough biofuel to run the propulsion system on a cruise ship. Think what it would do for a smaller vessel.”
The first mate stepped closer, tipping her head side to side like a crow. She had a strange frenetic energy, as if she was always moving a hair faster than she had to.
“And you say the Calderon Group stole it?” she asked.
“One of my friends heard Burns talking about it last night. We—I didn’t listen to her warning in time,” Esther said. She felt a tight squeeze of guilt as she remembered how she had dismissed Cally and Dax the night before. I could have warned him.
Captain Alder spoke for the first time. “There was talk of this technology in the bazaar yesterday.”
“You really don’t want the Calderon to keep that technology,” Esther said.
Captain Alder remained expressionless, his voice steady. “I’ll decide what I do and do not want. What is it that you want?”
“I need information about the Calderon Group: where they might have gone, their numbers, their methods,” Esther said. “And I’d like to borrow some men, if you can spare them.” If Judith and the others wouldn’t give her the help she needed, maybe she could buy it. This had to work. “David will give you the separato
r technology in exchange for your assistance. I’ll guarantee that.”
“This technology is worth less than the asking price now that the Calderon Group has it.”
“He won’t tell them how to build the system,” Esther said. “You’ll get it practically for free—and they won’t have it at all.”
The first mate scoffed. “That’s a sweet sentiment, girl, but the Calderon Group will have no scruples about torturing it out of him. They’ll have the technology by sundown.”
Esther’s stomach did a painful slow-motion flip. David wouldn’t be able to tell them how to build her system because, of course, he didn’t know. She couldn’t let the Harvesters learn that particular truth, or they’d never help her get David back. She focused on Captain Alder, who had barely moved since they entered the bridge.
“Look, even if he does tell them, it’ll take time to build it,” Esther said. “I need to chase them down before they put the system in place, or I’ll never be able to catch them. If I get to him soon enough, he won’t be able to help them bang out the kinks. You, on the other hand, will end up with the separator plans, plus a cooperative and grateful tech expert. All it’ll cost is a bit of information and a few of your men.”
“Sounds like a Calderon ploy,” the first mate said.
“You said yourself that you’ve already heard of the technology,” Esther said, still addressing the captain. “You know it’s real, or at least that it’s too much of a risk not to take it seriously. It would make you the most powerful supplier on the sea, no question about it.”
The first mate whispered something in Captain Alder’s ear. He remained silent. Esther wasn’t sure what else she could say. If they weren’t going to help her, she was wasting time. There were three other ships docked at the Amsterdam that she wanted to try before she set out. And she still had to tackle the problem of getting control of the Lucinda. Judith wanted to leave the Amsterdam today, and David’s position grew more precarious with each passing minute.
Finally, Captain Alder turned back to her. “If we do this,” he said, “we’re not going to simply hand over our resources and intelligence.”
“We have a ship already,” Esther said quickly. “She’s fast. We just need a nav— ”
“One patrol ship won’t do it, even a nice one like Lucinda. Yes, I know about the Catalina’s new toy. We’ll retrieve the inventor in our own ships,” Captain Alder said.
The last vestiges of control over this operation spun away from Esther like a snapped line.
The first mate grinned, her face sharp and unfriendly. “We were already planning to go after the Calderon boys,” she said. “This attack was an act of war. Now we might get something out of it too.”
Esther didn’t like this at all. She didn’t trust these people, but without someone who knew how the Calderon Group operated, she and the Catalinans had little chance of getting David back in one piece. She was wasting time.
“Okay, use your ships,” she said, “but I’m coming with you.”
“Ridiculous,” the first mate said.
“I can guarantee that David follows the terms of our agreement, since he’s not here to make the deal himself,” Esther said.
“This ship is no place for teenagers,” Captain Alder said.
“I’m twenty-two,” Esther said. “You have crew younger than me. I’ll work in the engine room in exchange for passage. And I want to bring some crewmates with me.” There was no way Esther was letting Cally on this ship, but Zoe, Toni, and Anita would want to come, and perhaps they could bring some of the oilmen from the Galaxy for protection.
“You may bring one,” the captain said.
“But—”
“One.”
Captain Alder’s jaw clenched, and for a moment Esther saw a different man beneath his calm exterior. A dangerous man. His expression made her want to run all the way back to the Catalina. Then he relaxed and gave her a slow smile.
“Looks like you have yourselves a rescue team. But understand this: I am in command. We are not your employees, nor your mercenaries. You are only here to make sure our arrangements with the inventor go as planned. We will conduct this operation in our own way.”
“Yes, sir,” Esther said.
“Good. We sail at 1500 hours.”
Chapter 13—Departure
IT WAS STILL RAINING when Esther and Zoe boarded the Terra Firma later that afternoon. They had enlisted Anita and Toni to distract Cally while they packed up. Everyone was getting the Catalina ready to leave before sunset. The Catalinans rushed around, nerves on edge, snapping at each other in the corridors and squabbling in their cabins. They didn’t notice Esther and Zoe making their own preparations.
“I told Cally the Harvesters were casting off after dark to avoid suspicion,” Esther told Anita and Toni as they stuffed their few belongings into knapsacks in the Mermaid Lounge. “You have to keep her busy until then and make sure she’s below deck at 1500 hours.”
“She’s gonna be furious when she finds out you’re gone,” Toni said. She was running her fingers through Anita’s short, brown hair, twisting it into tiny knots. Anita sat in front of her on the floor, quiet as ever.
“I know,” Esther said, “but that ship is no place for her.” Esther didn’t fear Cally’s wrath as much as she feared that of Captain Alder. And Cally’s mother. “What about you two?”
“We’re annoyed, but we get it,” Toni said.
Esther hadn’t wanted to push their luck with the Harvesters by arguing about bringing more people aboard the Terra Firma. Anita and Toni would stay on the Catalina while Esther and Zoe made the voyage. All the Galaxians who had planned to leave now had no opportunity to seek other crews to join. Distrust was rife around the Amsterdam. They would have to sail with the Catalina again or risk being marooned without any allies. At least there were still extra crew members around to take over Esther’s duties.
Esther had thought about taking Reggie or one of Dirk’s muscled cronies instead of Zoe for protection, but there was a good chance they would tell Simon and Judith what she was up to.
“You’ll be back soon,” Anita said. “I have faith in you.”
“Why are you doing this anyway?” Zoe asked. “I mean really. You were all about staying on the Catalina less than twenty-four hours ago.”
Esther hesitated, busying herself with the straps of her pack. She wished she could keep acting on instinct without uncoiling the feelings behind her actions. That was how she had always been with David. Reacting. Pulled taut like a cable in a storm. But now she was taking direct action for him in a way she never had before. The decisiveness of it left her vulnerable. But David had done something like this for her once.
When she didn’t answer, Zoe nudged her foot. Finally, Esther said, “I owe him. He helped me save the Catalina. We’d never have gotten to them in time without him.”
“Is that the only reason?” Zoe asked, lifting her bag onto her shoulder. She wore a black jacket, and she had tucked her blond hair underneath a patterned scarf. When she lifted her arms to adjust the scarf, Esther spotted a small pistol tucked in Zoe’s waistband beneath her tunic. The metal was dented, but it had been polished to shine.
“I’m repaying a debt,” Esther said. No matter how confusing her feelings were, that made things simple. She may not understand why she dropped things in David’s presence or why his absence made her feel physically sick, but she understood duty. “Hawthorne can go where he likes once we save his skin.”
Zoe raised an eyebrow, but Esther was determined not to let the conversation get back to her and David.
“Ready?”
“If you are.”
They cleared up some details with Neal and then ate a late lunch in the Atlantis Dining Hall to avoid arousing suspicion. Esther wanted to sit with her father, but Simon was absorbed in a discussion with the council at another table. He had just returned from his meeting with the rig boss. Whatever he had learned, the Catalina would still be leaving th
e Amsterdam later that evening. Esther considered writing her father a note to explain her departure, but she was afraid he would find it too soon and try to stop her. She’d have to rely on Toni, Anita, and Neal to fill him in at the right moment. She felt guilty for leaving him. She didn’t know whether it was the right decision, but she couldn’t just abandon David to his fate. He had helped her save the Catalina. If nothing else, she owed him.
With Esther’s algae system now installed, her father and the Catalina would be okay for a little while. They had enough standard fuel left to take the Lucinda with them too. Esther wished she could set out in the Lucinda instead of joining the Harvesters, but she had no idea where to look for the Calderon Group—and taking the Lucinda would put even more of her friends in danger. Hopefully, she and Zoe wouldn’t be away long anyway. Every hour that passed made it less likely that they would find David in time.
Before long, Esther and Zoe were sneaking off the Catalina and making their way across the scuffed metal of the Amsterdam platform toward the Terra Firma, packs on their backs and weapons in their belts. Esther looked back at the Catalina only once. The shimmer of the rain obscured the worst of the dents and patches, leaving only the familiar silhouette of their floating home. This journey was dangerous, and Esther knew how unlikely it was to succeed. She might never see the Catalina again. The knot that had taken up residence in her stomach the moment she discovered David missing grew harder.
The gray-green Terra Firma waited for them beyond the cargo vessel. It was an impressive ship, perhaps 370 feet long. The sharp prow with the Harvesters’ black coral logo loomed, slick with rain. The haze obscured the broad deckhouse and lookout tower, but they were the same muted color as the hull.
Luke and his baby-faced friend Cody met them at the gangway between the Amsterdam and the Terra Firma, clad in the same mottled-green uniforms. Water clung to Luke’s short curls.