Far From The Sea We Know

by Frank M Sheldon

CHAPTER 30

  When Penny arrived on the bridge for her shift at the helm, Emory was yawning, but he cupped his mouth when he saw her.

  He answered her unasked question. “Malcolm and I have decided to stay. Becka, too. Jack is going off as planned, with Mary to look after him. Dirk and Lorraine are leaving together. Daryl the cameraman, and the helicopter pilot, they’re leaving, of course. Most of the core crew is staying, including Mateo, thank God. We’ll still eat well. A Navy ship should be coming soon for all who are leaving.”

  “Really?”

  “Lieutenant Chiffrey’s idea. To speed things up and save a side trip back to port.”

  “Well, the Captain didn’t mention that the last time I saw him.”

  “Chiffrey dropped by our meeting and presented the idea. He’s going to ask the Captain about it.”

  “Then until the Captain changes the plan,” she said. “We’re headed back to Port Angeles and the Point.”

  “Lorraine dropped by the meeting, too. Just for a few minutes. She said we wouldn’t be going straight back. Said that even before Chiffrey showed up.”

  “I heard the Captain. We definitely are heading back.”

  “Lorraine seems to see things. You know.”

  “No, I don’t know. You think she is prescient? Can see the future or something? What the hell’s happened to you?”

  “More like stuff stopped happening to me. What I thought I knew. Now it’s what just is. It doesn’t have to be either-or, and arguing against everything doesn’t always make you so smart.” He yawned again. “I don’t want to debate it.”

  “Well, you are debating it.”

  “Not any more. I’m tired, and I’m going.”

  He gave her a vague smile as he left the bridge, and his heavy footsteps clanged away down the steps and companionways until she could hear them no more. It was strange that Emory was so matter of fact about his belief that Lorraine could foresee the future. He seemed oddly confident and relaxed. Thinking about it made her tired.

  She checked the heading. Dead on. All seemed well. The engines’ deep thrumming reverberating in her gut felt reassuring. There were lights off the port side, but not many. A tanker was slowly passing them to starboard, far out to sea. She enjoyed taking her turn on watch, but especially the late one. It reminded her of cross-country trips she had taken, driving nonstop coast to coast with only brief breaks for sleep. But this was easier, with the few course corrections needed spaced minutes apart.

  There was very little to see tonight. The disabled Navy ships were gone, and apart from the frigate trailing well behind, the radar showed no other vessels in the area. Usually, there was more traffic. Was that significant? She pondered the possible implications for a minute but put them aside as Jack Ripler came unwelcome into her thoughts. The last she checked, he was still in the infirmary, consumed by his own fire. Although the encounter with the whales seemed to have brought it on, he must have always been a match looking for a strike. Just too bad he had to find it here.

  Yesterday, in the early evening, Penny had come across Becka and Mary talking to Ripler’s sister on the sat-phone. Malcolm had patched it into a speaker so they could all hear. It soon became clear that Joan Ripler was not completely surprised by her brother’s breakdown. She told them that something similar had happened to their father years ago. He had become paranoid and delusional and thought the people at the investment company in Seattle where he worked were plotting his downfall. Apparently, the last part had become a self-fulfilling prophecy. After a series of outbursts laced with bitter accusations against even the head of the company, he was forced out of his job as CFO. His accumulated wealth, however, was enough to enable a retreat north to the relatively sunny shores of Sequim in the rain shadow of the Olympics. After a time, and with the help of his daughter, he began to raise strawberries and fresh herbs, most of it going to gourmet restaurants. No doubt his income from stocks and bonds made leading the simple life simpler.

  It turned out that there was an excellent private clinic in Sequim that could take Jack, the same one his father spent time in years before. It would not be cheap, but Jack’s father had the money to give his son the care he would need.

  Joan Ripler was receptive to the idea of Mary coming along. From listening to them talk, Penny realized they must have met a few times. By the end of the conversation, they had concluded that it would be extremely helpful to have Mary around. A familiar face, and one Jack had trusted, could make a big difference.

  Penny made a small course adjustment.

  Since the incident, Mary gave her the creeps. She was obviously in love with Jack, though Penny had no idea why. She ministered slavishly to him, and the word was that she kept all night vigils, hovering over his bed in her own private rapture. Coming across her yesterday in one of the companionways, Mary gave Penny the impression of being well along in the process of turning into Jack’s own private Mother Teresa.

  The truth was, she didn’t really care much about Jack now. Just knowing he and Mary would soon be gone was nothing but good news, and it couldn’t happen too quickly. Penny had not voiced it, but if they decided to lock Jack away forever, she wouldn’t lose any sleep.

  Was that something off the starboard bow? The rising and sinking form of a whale, or perhaps it was just a wave that caught the dim light of the moon. She kept looking, and checking the radar and sonar, but nothing showed. A wave, most likely, but she instinctively listened hard for a moment, listened for anything: nothing but the sound of the ship. One of Andrew’s regular crew would be in the engine room and would call in if anything was amiss, but the deep thrum of the engines continued as always, sounding like a cave full of purring cats.

  The time went by slowly, as she wished. A feeling of peacefulness enveloped her on the bridge, and she nuzzled into it with gratitude. The sunrise was sharp and fast when it finally came ages later, and quickly burned from dull red into a near pure white. The shell necklace that had belonged to Andrew’s wife swayed gently above the center port window and gleamed as if it had a light of its own.

  Penny was checking the heading automatically by this point, and the engine as well. There were no trouble lights, and all seemed good. People were coming out on deck, getting back to work, cleaning up, and putting away gear, but all in a relaxed way. There was not too much talking, but a few long telling looks were exchanged. It was certainly better than yesterday. It was as if a great storm had finally blown past, and in its wake people were luxuriating in the afterglow of the unprecedented effort they had made to survive.

  Dirk came to relieve her. She just said “fine” when he asked how she was doing. He took the wheel without another word, and she was thankful he left it at that. The whole thing with him and Lorraine getting together: she didn’t really want to deal with it, at least right now.

  She felt tired and sleepy and headed back to her cabin. Matthew was gone, but she didn’t mind. In the moment, it was near ecstasy to just lie down in peace for a while. A few of her concerns threatened to find their way back, but fell away like unanswered echoes as she descended into a deep and dreamless sleep.

  When Penny awoke hours later, she headed to the small media lab where they had watched Chiffrey’s video and got there just in time to meet Andrew as he was leaving. He told her that Chiffrey’s people had managed to get the side-scan files ready, and the Navy had brought them over by launch.

  “Malcolm reminded me how much easier this would be if we had our own downlink.”

  “Still has enough of his old self for that, at least,” she said.

  “And I suppose he’s right,” Andrew said with a soft laugh, “but maybe it’s a blessing since with that, everyone would get a leash and muzzle on us.”

  Andrew went on to say that Matthew had joined him for a while in the lab. He had given him a rundown of their meetings with Chiffrey, and they had watched the video together. After Matthew had left, he had gone over the scans of the ocean bottom from the Honey Pot location
for hours, scrutinizing them one by one as they came off the printer. Assuming the scanning equipment had been in order, there was nothing of any interest.

  “So, you’ve given up?” she asked.

  “I hope so,” Chiffrey said, coming around the corner and sticking his head through the hatchway. “I won’t rub it in, and I appreciate your effort. Any word on the whales from your spotters up north?”

  “Nothing relevant.” Andrew said. “As much chance running into our whales along the way back as anywhere.”

  “How much of a chance is that?”

  “Given we have no idea what really happened,” Penny said, “next to none.”

  The sun in its slow sail was well on its way to the western horizon when the Valentina crew gathered again in C-lab. Almost everyone who was not on duty was there, fitting around the equipment as best they could. A few latecomers had to stand in the passageway and look in. Penny was in the back on her own. Matthew, she observed, didn’t seem to do meetings these days. Mary was absent, off ministering at the feet of Ripler, no doubt. Andrew stood up front with Chiffrey.

  The Captain explained their situation and why they were going home to let some people off. It sounded like Chiffrey’s argument had not carried, and Lorraine’s prediction was wrong. That should give a few people second thoughts, Penny noted. The fact that their heading had been south since yesterday could not have been lost, but no one made even the semblance of an objection. Lately the crew accepted whatever came their way, carefree as the lilies of the field even while they toiled. They’d gone back to work almost as if nothing had happened, or at least to the necessary work of maintaining the ship. Even Becka looked calm. Going home early without getting anywhere near the Bering Sea should have been a major upset to her. The research she was to have taken part in on this trip was specific to her thesis, but here she was, sitting on a lab bench, as serene as if attending a recital of chamber music.

  “Lieutenant Chiffrey has asked to stay onboard,” Andrew said. “I’ve agreed. Arrangements are being made to get Jack and Mary off soon. Most of the rest you already know. After we resupply at port, those of you who want to continue with us will be welcome. We’ve all been through a lot. For some, clearly enough. Our mission’s changed. We can’t be sure where it will take us or what we will find. There may be danger. Do not discount that.” He glanced at Chiffrey. “Should just kick you all off, but after all that’s happened, you’ve earned a berth on this ship. Whatever you’ve decided, you have until we reach port to change your mind. If you are still on board when we sail again, you are in this to the end.”

  Andrew finished up. “Any questions? Good.”