*This is a crossover with Secret Agent otherwise
known as Danger Man in the USA, but only with the character John Drake. It takes place immediately after the episode
Blow Up. Huge thanks to Kate for
beta-ing my work.
BREAKING POINT
By Sea Spinner
Seaview slid silently into the dock at Nelson Institute
of Marine Research. It was late at
night, with a ghostly fog riding ahead of the amazing submarine. On top of the sail, Captain Lee Crane stood
alone, as silent as his boat. He rubbed
a weary hand over his eyes, for once he was relieved to be back home. This voyage had been particularly difficult on
the whole crew, but especially his XO, Chip Morton.
It was
only a matter of minutes before the rest of the docking crew came aloft so Lee pushed
himself upright from where he’d been leaning on the side of the bridge. He heard footsteps on the ladder leading to
the top of the conning tower and sighed.
Time to put his best Skipper’s face on again, time to try to mend the
rift between Nelson and the rest of the crew – and between himself and Chip.
“Skipper,
I wondered where you were,” said Sharkey quietly. “Message from Mister Morton, Sir. He wondered if you needed him up here?”
“No,
that’s alright, Chief, I can take it from here.”
Sharkey
hesitated. “Uh, Skipper, are you
alright?”
Lee took a
deep breath. “I’m fine thanks,
Chief. How’s the crew holding out?”
“They’re
ready for shore leave. If there’s
anything I can do…”
Lee chose
to ignore Sharkey’s question. “Where’s
the Admiral?”
“He’s in
his cabin again, I haven’t seen him for a while.” Sharkey took a quick look below. “Permissions to speak freely, Sir?”
“Granted.”
“Maybe it’d help if you went to see him,
Skipper. He’s still feeling pretty bad.”
“Thanks,
Chief, I’ll take that under advisement.”
“Aye,
Sir.”
Lee
watched as Sharkey headed back down below.
He briefly rested his head on his hands and thought back to the events
of the past few days. After the Admiral
had used the experimental breathing apparatus, there had been something not
right about him. He uttered a silent
curse. He should have seen it and done something about it. By the time he had finally begun to believe
something was seriously wrong, the crew had almost mutinied – and Chip, he was
riddled with guilt over how Nelson had treated his friend and XO. It was only later that Lee had discovered
that the Admiral told Chip he would break him, and publicly humbled him. The escalation had been his fault and his
alone for not recognizing it for what it was.
He shrugged the memories away as the bitterness rose from deep within.
He grabbed
for the microphone. “Crane to control
room. Make preparations to come
alongside.”
“Aye, Sir,
preparing to come alongside.”
Once again
Lee could sense the simmering anger in Chip’s stiff reply. He couldn’t blame him for feeling the way he
did. How could he not have believed his
XO – what is this, an indignation
meeting? The words he’d uttered came
back to haunt him, he’d almost behaved as badly as the Admiral, but without
excuse. He cringed at the memory.
“Morton to
Captain Crane.”
“Crane
here. What is it, Chip?”
“Urgent coded
message from COMSUBPAC for you…Sir.”
“Very
well, have someone relieve me on the bridge and I’ll take it in my cabin.”
Lee swung
down the ladder as soon as he’d been relieved, picked up his message and headed
towards his cabin, pausing only to open the door. He took out his code book and began to
translate it.
COMSUBPAC
Admiral Johnson
To
SSRN Seaview
Captain Crane
Make all haste to below co-ordinates to take on
passenger. Provide all assistance to
aforementioned passenger. Further orders
will be provided on pick-up. Orders are
For Your Eyes Only.
End Message
“Damn!”
The
coordinates were somewhere near
“Crane to
control room.”
“XO here.”
“Chip,
belay docking orders. Prepare for
immediate departure to the following coordinates.”
“Departure?”
“That’s
right. We have orders from COMSUBPAC to
pick up a passenger.”
Lee gave
him the coordinates, unable to keep the irritation out of his voice. A few minutes later, he heard a knock on the
door.
“Come in.”
“I take it
you just received confirmation from COMSUBPAC of our new coordinates??”
“Yes,
Admiral. Who’s the passenger?”
“I have no
idea, I thought perhaps Admiral Johnson would have told you in his signal.”
Lee shook
his head. “Just the coordinates.”
Nelson
stood in front of Lee. “This has come at
a bad time.”
“Yes, the
crew needs some shore leave.”
It wasn’t
hard for Lee to see that Nelson was still suffering from the voyage.
“Why don’t
you go ashore, Admiral, we could launch a dingy. I’m sure we could handle things on this end.”
Flames
burned in Nelson’s eyes when he responded.
“To what end, Captain?”
“It’s
just…I know you’ve spent a lot of time locked away in your lab. The men have begun to notice your absence
around the boat,” Lee replied awkwardly.
Nelson
flicked at the piece of paper he held in his hands, his eyes lowered towards
it. “I appreciate your concern, Captain,
but…and I’m making an assumption here, when we rendezvous with the passenger, I
take it there’ll be some involvement on your part in an ONI mission.”
“I won’t
know until that time.”
The
Admiral snorted. “Oh, come on, Lee. You know as well as I do that anytime
Johnson’s involved, you’re put at risk.”
“Perhaps
you need to take some time to rest, Admiral.”
“Rubbish,
I’m fine.” Nelson waved his hand around and dropped the
sheet back on Lee’s desk. “I feel for
the crew, what I did…what happened was unforgiveable, but I wouldn’t feel happy
being ashore while you’re off gallivanting around some hostile country.”
“As you
wish, Sir,” Lee said formally.
“Let me
know when we arrive at the coordinates.”
“Yes, Admiral.”
Lee
watched Nelson leave, he felt uneasy about Seaview
sailing under the circumstances, but there was nothing he could do about
it. Orders were orders and Admiral
Johnson wasn’t to be taken lightly. He
was congenial enough, but Lee had seen him lose his temper once, and that had
been enough. Fortunately he hadn’t been
the one to bear the brunt of it on that occasion.
He was
about to get up from his desk when there was another knock at the door. “Enter.”
“Captain,
what’s so urgent that we’ve got to leave immediately?”
“We’re
picking up a passenger. I’m sorry, Chip,
I haven’t got any further information yet.”
He rubbed a hand through his hair.
“Even if I had it, I wouldn’t be able to disclose it to you.”
Chip stood
where he was. It looked to Lee as if he
was debating to say whatever it was that was on his mind.
“Well, if
you’ve got something to say, say it!”
Chip’s
face darkened. “The crew’s strung tight. Hell, I’m strung tight. This last voyage was more than enough to
warrant an extended shore leave, now we’re going off on some top secret mission
and you can’t even tell us anything about it.”
“I
appreciate what you’re saying. The
orders came directly from COMSUBPAC.
There’s nothing I can do about it.”
“Fine, but
you’d better do something about the men, because they’re at breaking point.”
“Don’t you
think I know that,” he snapped, wanting to tell Chip how desperately he needed
shore leave as well. Lee took a deep
breath, drawing the shreds of his self-control together. “Leave the crew to me. I’ll be in the control room to make a
boat-wide announcement in a few minutes.”
“Aye,
Sir,” Chip said with an unusual surliness to his reply.
“Dismissed.”
Lee slammed
his hand onto the desk after Chip left.
His XO had brought up a valid point, now he just had to figure out what
to say that would satisfy the crew. He
decided to do a brief walkthrough of the boat to clear his head before making
that announcement. Passing the crews
quarters proved to be more of a challenge as he was abruptly knocked from his
feet and slammed to the deck.
“Oh, no,
it’s the Skipper.”
He felt
edges of grey filling his vision until a weight was lifted from his chest.
“What’s
going on here?” came Sharkey’s voice.
“It’s the
Skipper, Chief. We had, uh, a bit of an
accident,” admitted Riley.
Lee
managed to roll onto his side without passing out, sucked in two deep breaths
and hauled himself to his feet.
“Skipper,
what happened?”
“I’m not
entirely sure, Chief. I was walking by
when someone hit my legs from under me.”
Riley and Maxwell
gave each other guilty looks and hung their heads, still standing to attention.
Sharkey
glowered at them. “You two, with me
right now. Are you okay, Skipper, you
don’t look so good.”
Lee waved
him away. He wasn’t going to tell anyone
he felt like he’d been hit a few times with a giant meat tenderizer. Jamie wasn’t going to get his hands on him
during this mission.
“I’ll be
fine, I have to go to the control room.
I want a full report of what happened by 2400 hours.”
“Aye,
Skipper.”
He watched
as Sharkey led the two offending seamen back into the quarters and closed the
door ever so softly before beginning to bellow.
It was going to be a very long voyage.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Lee made
his way to the control room, the last four days had been difficult for
everyone. Tempers were frayed and he’d
even seen Sharkey yell at Kowalski over something trivial which Lee had ended
up smoothing over.
“Mister
Morton, what’s our current position?”
“We’re
five miles out from our rendezvous point.”
Lee
nodded. “Kowalski, are there any
contacts?”
“Not yet,
Captain.”
Chip
watched as Lee picked up the microphone.
He looked tense and annoyed, but Chip put it down to the last few days
aboard. To be honest, right now, he
didn’t really care, all he wanted was off this boat for a while. Where had Lee been when he’d been in the
Admiral’s line of fire? Too busy molly
coddling the Admiral to notice how bad things had gotten. It was the first time he’d really been
disappointed by his friend, no, his commanding officer.
“This is
the Captain speaking. As you are aware,
we have been directed by COMSUBPAC to assist them in a mission. In a few hours we will be picking up a passenger. Once this operation is over, we will dock at
the nearest port for some well earned shore leave. I expect all of you to carry out your duties
with the same professionalism I have witnessed on every mission since joining Seaview.
Crane out.” He jammed the
microphone back into its cradle. “Prepare
to surface.”
“Is that
wise? It’s Sea State 5 up above.”
“Are you
questioning my orders, Mister Morton?”
“I…no,
Sir. Prepare to surface. Surface,” he replied stiffly.
Before
long Seaview was sitting on the
surface, swells tossed and pitched the submarine about like a cork.
“Crack the
hatch, Chief.”
“Aye,
Skipper.”
Lee pulled
on a jacket and ascended the ladder. The
weather outside had made surfacing an unpleasant job, and with a ten foot swell
the submarine rolled mercilessly in a corkscrew action. He hooked himself onto the tower as a
precaution and scanned the peaks of the waves with his binoculars. Twenty minutes later he hadn’t seen a thing
and the waves were beginning to gain momentum.
Just as he was about to order a search pattern, he saw what he was
looking for.
“Mister
Morton, all ahead slow. Have a deck detail
kitted out in heavy weather gear and prepare to bring our guest aboard.”
“Aye,
Sir.”
The
massive submarine closed in on the rubber all-weather raft until they were mere
yards away.
“All
stop. Prepare to take on our passenger
through the sail hatch.”
“All
stop,” echoed Chip’s voice. “Deck party
to the sail hatch.”
Lee
watched as the deck party struggled to snag the life raft and bring it to the
side of the boat. After several aborted
attempts Kowalski finally made the lucky jag and pulled at the raft. As soon as it bumped against the side, the
flap was thrown open and the raft’s occupant was dragged aboard. He removed his hat and goggles and stared
upwards at the sail. Lee sucked in his
breath, the last thing he needed right now was this man on his boat. As quickly as they’d exchanged hostile glances,
the deck party had taken him inside and secured the hatch. Lee did the same from the bridge.
“Mister
Morton, prepare to dive.”
“Be glad
to. Half the men are starting to look
green.”
“I’ll be
in the observation nose, please see that our guest is escorted there, and close
the crash doors.”
“Very
well.”
Lee poured
himself a black coffee and waited for the man whose cold blue eyes he’d come to
see in nightmares.
“Permission
to come aboard, Captain.”
“Granted.” Lee turned to stare into those eyes once
again. They still harbored a cold
hostility that hadn’t dimmed over the years, nor had the arrogance that always
seemed to surround him.
“Mister John
Drake.”
“Chip,
please close the crash doors while Mister Drake and I speak.”
“Aye,
Captain.” Chip sensed a whole new level
of tension building in the room.
It was
obvious straight away that the two knew each other. But it sure as hell wasn’t as friends or
acquaintances, and despite his resentment he aimed to find out from Lee, if he
had to drag it out of him. He took one
last glance and closed the crash doors behind him.
“Take a
seat. Coffee?”
Drake gave
him a contemptuous look, then nodded. He
pulled an envelope out of his jacket and handed it to Lee.
“Here are
your orders, Captain.”
Lee stared
at the envelope for a moment then reluctantly took it.
“It won’t
bite.”
“After the
last mission with you, I’m not in a hurry to go on another.”
“Oh, come
now, Captain, if you hadn’t grown a conscience the whole thing would have gone
without a hitch.”
“The woman
and her children were innocent bystanders,” he snapped a little more loudly
than he’d meant.
Drake gave
him a frosty smile. “Believe what you
will, nobody is completely innocent.” He
took a sip of the coffee, dismissing Lee’s anger. “Now, shall we get on with the business of
our mission?”
Grabbing a
letter opener, Lee sliced the envelope open and read the body of the
orders. The more he read the more his
face tightened in a frown. Drake perched
casually on the edge of the desk and lit a cigarette apparently amused by Lee’s
irritation.
“They’re
not serious.”
Drake
shrugged, but his eyes never left Lee.
“You have your orders, now carry them out.”
“I believe
you’re under a misapprehension. I won’t
allow either this submarine or its crew to be endangered on a loosely planned
mission like this.” He shook the paper
at Drake. “Who knows what sort of
security has been set up on the island, or even the facility itself?”
“You’ll do
as you’ve been ordered or I’ll have you arrested for treason,” he said, his
clipped English voice leaving no doubt that he would gladly carry out the
threat.
“I’m
sorry, but did you just threaten my Captain?”
Lee looked
up as Admiral Nelson stood on the last step of the spiral staircase.
“Ah,
Admiral Nelson, I wondered when you might make an appearance.”
“Admiral
Nelson, this is Mister Drake.”
Nelson
didn’t offer his hand and neither did Drake.
“While you’re on Seaview, any
threats made towards its officers or crew will be dealt with by me, and you
won’t like the outcome. Have I made
myself clear?”
“Perfectly. Now, may I use your radio, it appears there
is a need to clarify the urgency of this mission.”
“This
way.” Lee stood up and opened the crash
doors, showing Drake to the radio shack.
“
“Aye,
Skipper.”
He left Drake
with
“I take it
you know this man already?”
Lee
nodded. “It was two years before I
joined Seaview, I was on a mission
with him. Everything went wrong, we barely
made it out alive. I barely made it out alive.”
“I take it
Drake’s British Intelligence?”
“Yes, I
don’t think he’s got anything to do with the military. He might have in the past, but I’m pretty
sure he’s civilian intelligence now.”
Nelson
leaned against the herculite windows.
“Lee, this last trip was hard on you, too. Are you sure you’re up to this?”
“I’m fine,
Admiral.”
Nelson put
his hand on Lee’s arm. “What I meant was that you’re in need of some leave, just as much
as the rest of us. I don’t want you
making a mistake on this mission because of it.”
“Don’t
worry, Admiral, I won’t make the same mistake I made last time.”
“Now, tell
me about that mission with Drake.”
“You’re
not at liberty to disclose that, Captain,” said Drake, sauntering back into the
nose.
“I have
top clearance, there’s no need for secrecy.
I want to know the details of your previous mission,” Nelson insisted.
Drake
leaned against the window. “All you need
to know is that your Captain blew his cover and the mission wide open.”
Nelson
shook his head. “Lee would never have
done that without a good reason.”
“Let me
just say that perhaps a position in the Peace Corp would have been more
appropriate for him.”
“That’s
enough! I won’t have you slandering my
Captain on his own boat. I can easily
throw you overboard and nobody on board would give you a second thought.” Nelson glanced at Lee and saw anger glowing
in his eyes.
“Ah, excuse
me, Captain, Admiral, I have a reply to Mister Drake’s message,” interrupted
Lee took
the reply. “It seems, Admiral, that we
have very little choice but to help him with his mission.”
Drake
smiled, but there was no humor in it.
“Don’t you mean our mission,
Captain?”
“Kowalski,
will you please escort our…our guest, to Cabin A.”
“Aye,
Sir.”
“Lee, I’ll
see you in my quarters in ten minutes.”
“Very
well, Admiral. In the meantime I’ll have
Mister Morton change course.”
Nelson
nodded then left the observation nose for the privacy of his cabin. Something was off, and he was going to find
out about the mission Lee had taken with Drake come hell or high water. If that meant getting some high ranking
people out of bed, then so be it.
He’d just
settled into his office when Lee knocked on his door and walked into his
cabin.
“Take a
seat, Lee.” He watched Lee sit down a
little stiffly. “Is something wrong?”
“I, uh,
slipped in the passageway a few days ago outside the crew quarters. It’s nothing.”
“Hmm. We’ll see.
Now, I want to know about this Drake.”
He watched
Lee closely as he struggled with some distant memory. “It was the year before I transferred to Seaview.
I knew him as John Drake even back then.
I think it’s his real name. I met
him in
Nelson
poured Lee a cup of coffee without asking and placed it in his hands. “Go on.”
Lee
absently took a sip from the cup. “Afterwards,
we ended up on the run, somehow they’d caught on to what we’d done and organized
what I can only say was a hunt. We’d
already missed our extraction once and there was another scheduled near the
border a few hours later.” He took
another mouthful and grimaced before setting the cup unsteadily on the
table. “They got close, I’d taken a hit
in the shoulder and wasn’t moving as quickly I should. That’s when we took shelter in a farmhouse.”
Nelson saw
the sudden pain in his eyes, and the look of guilt. “What happened?”
“The
military caught up with us. There were
four children and their mother in the farmhouse. I wanted to leave as soon as I saw them. I knew how much danger they’d be in, but Drake
knocked me out.” He struggled with the
simmering anger. “When I came to, I was
being dragged out of the farm by the soldiers. All I could see was blood. Every single one of them had been slaughtered. The military must have thought they’d
willingly offered us shelter.”
Nelson
waited, not knowing what to say. It was
obvious that the images were still very close to the surface. He could only imagine the horror of what Lee
had witnessed.
“There was
no sign of Drake, he’d taken off with the information we’d gathered.” Lee shuddered with the dark memories of the
interrogation he’d suffered. “I managed
to escape with the help of the underground a few days later.”
“Was it
very bad?”
Lee
frowned and nodded. “I spent the next
three months in rehab.”
“And now
he’s here and you’re supposed to go on another mission with him,” said Nelson,
aware of the tension that must be lying beneath his Captain’s apparently calm
exterior.
“That’s
right. Given the nature of the
situation, I’m obligated to go with him.”
“Someone
else can take your place,” Nelson said flatly.
“To be
honest, Admiral, I think some time off Seaview
would benefit everyone.” It hadn’t been
only Nelson the crew was angry with. Some
even blamed Lee for not taking action sooner.
“Why,
Lee?”
He
shrugged. “You know why, Admiral. Surely you’re not so blind that you can’t see
how everyone feels right now.” He’d said
more than he’d meant to, and was sorry to see the hurt he’d caused Nelson.
Before Lee
could say anything further or go into greater detail about the mission, there
was a knock on the door.
“Enter,”
snapped Nelson, frustrated by the untimely intrusion.
Drake
walked into his cabin, slowly shutting the door behind him. “Please, go on. Don’t let my presence disturb you.”
Nelson saw
the way Lee’s knuckles whitened on the end of the chair and took matters into
his own hands.
“Captain
Crane and I were discussing a problem with one of the circuitry panels in the
missile room,” he said, smiling. “I’m
afraid the topic is of a restricted nature.”
Drake
nodded, clearly he didn’t believe Nelson’s excuse. His eyes rested on Lee’s back.
“It
wouldn’t be closer to the truth that you were discussing my last mission with
Crane, would it?”
Nelson was
beginning to understand why this man grated on Lee. He was obviously going to be trouble. “Why would you think that?”
“Just a hunch,”
he replied, unperturbed, but his gaze never left Lee. “Tell me, Captain, what went through your
mind during those endless days and nights in captivity? Did you blame me or yourself for the endless
torment? How many broken bones was it
again, how many stitches to put you back together?”
Nelson saw
the color drain from his Captain’s face and watched as Lee slowly spun the
chair around to face Drake, whose lips curved upwards in a predatory response.
“That’s
right, I read the reports. I think they
got one point wrong.”
“What’s
that?” asked Lee.
“I don’t
believe you held out. I think you broke
and told them everything about the operation.
You probably don’t recall, but I spent twenty-four hours sampling their
special brand of care too. I had a lot
of time to think about whom the traitor was, and it always came down to
you. Call it revenge for when I gave you
a clout over the head.”
Lee
abruptly stood up, his chair left teetering on its edge with the violent
movement. Nelson knew it was time to
intervene, that Drake had gone one step too far.
“Captain
Crane!”
Lee took in
a ragged breath. He turned back to face
Nelson, cold fury in his eyes. “Yes,
Sir?”
“I’d like
you to go to the control room and give me an update on our progress. I’ll be there shortly.”
“Admiral,
I…”
“That’s an
order,” replied Nelson.
The
tension stayed in Lee’s body but he nodded.
“Aye, Sir.”
As Lee walked
towards the door, Drake stood his ground, unmoving. He raised one eyebrow towards Lee, as if
issuing him with a challenge.
“Excuse
me.”
He stayed
where he was for another second, then opened the door for Lee and ushered him
out condescendingly with his arm. Nelson
had to admit that he had toyed with the idea of allowing Lee to take a swing at
the other man. He sighed. In the long run it wouldn’t have achieved
anything. Somehow the two of them had to
resolve their differences, and quickly.
Before Drake had a chance to follow Lee out, Nelson stopped him.
“Colonel,
if you don’t mind, I think we need to have a word.”
Drake sat
down in the chair Lee had just vacated, every bit as agile in his movements as
the Captain.
“I have a
right to know what this grudge is that you have against Captain Crane. What makes you think he betrayed you?”
Steel blue
eyes met each other, neither willing to concede. “No, Admiral, you do not have a right.” He stood up and opened the door again. “Now, if that’s all, I’ll be on my way. I have more important matters to attend to
than explaining away the yellow streak in your Captain.”
Before
Nelson had the chance to react, Drake had closed the door behind him.
“Damn
him!” He fought to keep his temper in
check. Not only did the man have Lee
ready to snap, now he wanted a piece of him as well.
Nelson was
determined that he would get to the bottom of that insidious accusation if it
was the last thing he did. Morale was
bad enough as it was without a thing like that hanging over Lee. Perhaps it was time he sent a message to ONI
on the sly.
He picked
up the microphone. “Nelson to Chief Sharkey.”
“Aye,
Sir?”
“Please
report to my cabin.”
“On my
way.”
Yes, if Drake
wanted to play rough, then Nelson could still play rough with the best of them,
and he aimed to find out what was behind this friction.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
As Drake
left Nelson’s cabin, Maxwell quickly slipped around the corner, unseen by
either man. So, he thought with glee, the
Skipper’s a coward. He resisted the
temptation to rub his hands together. He
owed Crane, and he was going to make sure Captain Perfect got what was coming
to him. Ever since he’d come onboard the
Captain had ridden him. He’d hauled him
over the coals for missing just a little insignificant problem in Kowalski’s
dive gear. Sure, maybe he’d gotten too
much Nitrogen in the mix, but so what, it wasn’t enough to permanently damage
him.
Patterson
and Kowalski made him sick. They
worshipped the ground Crane stood on.
Well, he aimed to find out as much dirt on the Captain as he could, then
see how much they thought of him. He heard
the Chief’s voice down the passage, and quickly slinked off to find Drake in
his thirst for vengeance.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“Mister
Drake, wait up,” called Maxwell.
Drake
stopped and gave him an inconsequential stare.
“Yes?”
“Uh, Sir,
I just wondered about you and the Skipper, I mean, do you really think he
cracked and gave you up on your last mission?”
“I don’t
think you should be listening at people’s doors, it could be dangerous,” he
replied with a cold glint in his eyes.
“I wasn’t
listening at the door. I was walking
past, I couldn’t help hearing it. I want
to go on this mission with you. If he
tries anything, you need someone to back you up.”
Drake’s
insides nearly curdled at the thought of someone like Maxwell next to him, but
he could be useful. It was obvious that
he had no loyalty to Crane, and probably only thought of himself in a crisis
situation. In that event, he would make
an excellent sacrificial lamb, he thought calculatingly.
“Yes, I’ll
see what I can do, what’s your name again?”
“Maxwell,
Sir.”
He tipped
his head to the seaman. “If you’ll
excuse me, I have a few things to take care of before we leave.”
“Oh, of
course,” said Maxwell, trying just a little too hard to be his friend.
At least
Crane had some backbone, unlike this
young seaman who needed to grow a spine, he thought irritably as he headed back
to his cabin.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Lee was
approaching the control room when the dizzy spell hit him. He grabbed for the bulkhead to steady
himself, surely it couldn’t be a concussion.
The hit he’d taken hadn’t even been that hard. He waited until the unpleasant sensation
passed, then stood up straight.
Tiredness, that’s all it was, as soon as the mission was over he’d rest
up. Until then, he had to keep
going. His mind went back over the
orders he’d read.
According
to ONI, they were to lay off the Malaysian
“Skipper,
are you alright?” asked Kowalski.
Lee had
been so deep in thought he hadn’t heard Ski behind him. He pushed himself off the bulkhead and
swallowed the nausea that rose in his throat.
“Fine,
thanks, Ski.”
“Uh, Sir?”
“Yes?”
“It’s Mister
Drake, Sir. He’s asked me to check his
gear over for him.” Kowalski looked
uncomfortable. “The thing is, he was
kind of insistent and I’ve got my watch coming up in a few minutes. Do you want me to help him?”
“No, it’s
alright, I’ll see to it myself.”
Ski
nodded, but he’d known the Skipper for too long not to wonder what was eating
him. Ever since that English guy had
come onboard he’d been acting kind of distant, not angry, but close to it. Like he was only just keeping a lid on
things.
“What is
it, Ski, something else on your mind?”
Kowalski
had been thinking so hard that he’d forgotten the Skipper was still standing in
front of him. “Um, well, Skipper, I just
wondered if you were okay. I mean…” Ski stopped where he was and quickly closed
his mouth as darkness unfolded over Lee’s face.
He’d never
seen the Captain look so angry over nothing.
“I’m
sorry, Sir, I was out of line. I didn’t
mean to speak to you that way,” he said hastily.
Lee ran a
hand through his hair, it wasn’t Kowalski’s fault he was in a foul mood and
feeling stiff and sore. If anything, now
he felt guilty. Ski had been a confidante
in the difficult days following their early visit to Atlantis**. Over the years since that first mission
together their working relationship had developed into more of a partnership
rather than superior and subordinate.
“No, Ski,”
he said tiredly. “It’s me who should apologize
to you. I’m a little uptight right now. I appreciate your concern, but I’ll be fine.”
The
tension left Ski’s body. For a moment
there, he thought he was going to get all volleys fired at him.
“If
there’s anything at all I can do for you, Skipper, anything, just let me know.”
Lee smiled
at him, it was the first time since the incident with Admiral Nelson that Ski
had seen a bit of his old self.
“Thanks,
if I need anything I’ll be sure to let you know. Now why don’t you head down for your watch
and I’ll see what Mister Drake wants.”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Lee
knocked on Drake’s door. “Come in.”
“What is
it you want?” Lee said tightly.
“I want
someone to help me check my gear,” he replied, a little too smoothly for Lee’s
liking.
Lee closed
the door behind him and stepped closer.
“Let’s get something straight. This
is my boat, if you need my crew for anything, you go through me, is that
clear?”
Drake gave
Lee a smile that reminded him of a snake ready to strike. “My dear Captain Crane, I would never seek to
inconvenience you or your crew. However,
since the success of this mission relies on our preparation, I strongly suggest
that you accommodate me or my report on your conduct will not, shall we say, be
glowing.”
“Hang your
report, I don’t give a damn about that or you, but I do give a damn about my
crew.” Lee’s temper flared. “I do not
want my men involved in this mission any more than necessary. Your missions have a bad habit of someone
paying a price, usually with their life.
I’ll risk my own, but leave my crew out of it.”
Drake stood
up and shoved his equipment at Lee.
“Very well, Captain. I need you to check my equipment. There’s very little time left and I want to
be satisfied that everything works.”
Lee pursed
his lips and nodded, then pushed Drake’s equipment back into his own hands as
he opened the cabin door. “Meet me in
the missile room in fifteen minutes, I have some matters of my own to finalize.”
“I
wouldn’t tell Nelson too much, it’s bad for your health.”
Crane felt
his stomach contort. “Is that a threat?”
Drake gripped
Lee’s wrist menacingly. “If I had a
choice I’d comple this mission alone. I think you’re a liability, and I think
you’re a coward. One wrong move and I’ll
put a bullet between your eyes. This
time it’ll be permanent.”
Lee took Drake’s
wrist in his free hand and twisted it away easily, taking grim satisfaction when
Drake winced.
When he
finally spoke, his voice was harsh. “Missile
room, fifteen minutes.”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“I’m
telling you Ski, the guy’s out to get the Skipper. I was working on some switch wiring next to
his cabin and that’s what I heard him say.
That he’d put a bullet in his head.”
Kowalski
looked at Patterson. So that’s why the
Skipper had been so out of sorts, this guy was giving him a hard time. “Don’t worry about it, Pat. He won’t take any crap from Drake.”
“But he
didn’t say anything except to tell him to meet him in the missile room. I’m worried about him going on a mission with
this guy.” Patterson checked behind
him. “He makes me nervous, and the
Skipper’s still beating himself up about what happened with the Admiral last
trip out.”
“Well,
maybe he’s got a point,” sneered Maxwell, stepping out from behind one of the
missile silos. “I heard him call the
Captain yellow, and Crane didn’t say anything, not a peep. Makes sense why he hid behind Mister Morton’s
shirt tails when Nelson went all crazy last mission.”
“You stow
that crap, Maxwell. The Skipper’s not
yellow by a long shot,” growled Kowalski, itching to take a swing at him.
“Riley
never finished that fight earlier, you want some more?” said Patterson, hoping
to goad him into making the first move.
“That’s
enough, Patterson,” said Lee stepping into the missile room. “Don’t you have duties to perform?”
“Yes,
Sir.”
“Then I
suggest you carry them out,” he replied calmly.
He’d
already had a preliminary report from Chief Sharkey about Riley and Maxwell’s fight
a few days earlier. It appeared that Maxwell
continued to be a disruptive influence on the submarine. If he didn’t shape up very soon, Lee knew
there was only one alternative.
“Aye, aye,
Skipper. Come on, Ski.”
Ski shook
his head. “I’ll be along soon.”
“Okay.”
Maxwell
and Patterson left the room, leaving Ski and the Captain alone. “Sir, permission to go with you and Mister
Drake.”
Lee was
about to protest when Drake walked in on their conversation. “I think that’s an excellent idea. I was about to suggest two men accompany us
to set up an observation post on the beach and maintain communications.”
“I’ve
already told you to leave my crew out of this,” Lee warned.
Drake
leaned against the hatch. “Do I need to
remind you of the exact wording of the message from COMSUBPAC?”
“No,” he
said through clenched teeth.
Admiral
Johnson had left him in a corner with nowhere to go. Drake was a loose cannon, with a hell of a
lot of power behind him from the top. It
was clear that he thought Lee was a traitor and a coward. The vicious accusations still smoldered inside,
hurting him more than he cared to admit.
“Then
there’s nothing more to say.”
“You’re
wrong there. These men are under my
command and I don’t believe we need anyone else along.”
A smirk
flashed across Drake’s face. Lee wanted
nothing more than to knock it off.
“I believe
you’re well aware that while this submarine is under COMSUBPAC orders, you are
part of the Naval chain of command.”
Drake waited for a reply, then pressed on as Lee stayed silent. “Am I correct?”
“Yes.”
Drake
continued. “I think it’s time I reminded
you who’s in charge of this mission. The
signal response I received from COMSUBPAC confirmed the re-instatement of my
rank to Brigadier for the duration of this mission. Since this is equivalent to a Rear Admiral, I
outrank you. Furthermore, I believe that
entitles me to being respectfully addressed as ‘Sir’. Would you agree with
that, Captain?”
Ski
watched, horrified as Lee retreated behind his naval doctrine and snapped to
attention.
“Yes,
Sir. Sorry, Sir.”
Drake
nodded. “Kowalski and Maxwell will act as our base of communications once we
arrive on the island. Is that clear,
Captain?”
“Yes, Sir.”
The way
Drake had belittled the Skipper had been uncalled for, thought the senior
rating. Ski felt bad, embarrassed and downright
angry for him all at once. For an
outsider, especially one who hated the Captain, to treat him like that was
wrong. It was just as well he was
tagging along, who knew what else Drake had in mind for the Skipper. At least he’d be there to make sure things
didn’t get out of hand.
“With that
out of the way, perhaps we can complete what we set out to do.” Drake shoved his gear at Lee again. This time the Captain reluctantly took it
without a word.
The safety
check moved along quickly and within half an hour they had checked out all the
scuba equipment.
“How do we
get to the island?”
“We’ll
take the Flying Sub as far as we dare with the reef system in these waters.”
“How close
will that get us to Pulau Mutiara?”
“I’ve
studied the charts, we’ll be within four hundred yards of the shoreline. Is that suitable…Sir?” asked Lee, fighting to
keep the sarcasm from his reply.
“I think
that will be adequate. Now, where were
we?”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“Excuse
me, Admiral. I had this final report for
the Skipper, but since he’s not on the boat, I thought you’d want to see it.”
“What is
it, Chief?”
“It’s
about the dust up Maxwell and Riley had.
The Skipper got caught up in it and got knocked flat outside the crews’
quarters.”
“So that’s
what happened,” murmured Nelson, taking the report from his hands.
Sharkey
frowned. “What do you mean, Sir?”
“I noticed
he was a bit sore. How hard would you
say he hit the deck?”
“Pretty
hard, Sir. Maxwell landed on top of
him.”
He
grunted. “I should have known.”
“Morton to
Admiral Nelson.”
Nelson
grabbed the microphone. “Nelson. Go ahead.”
“We’ve
just launched the FS1, Sir. Kowalski and
Maxwell have gone along as backup.”
“Maxwell?”
“Yes, Sir.
Apparently Drake overrode the Captain’s
decision to take him.”
“Put me in
touch with the Captain immediately.”
“Sorry,
Sir, the Captain ordered radio silence until they reach the island.”
“What’s
wrong, Sir?”
“I…nothing
I can explain, just a feeling.” Nelson
got up and paced over to the door of the lab.
“This mission has a stink about it.
Has there been any news from ONI about Lee’s previous mission with Drake?”
“Not yet,
Sir.”
“Very well.
Ask
“Will do,
Admiral.”
“In the
meantime, ready the mini-sub and tell Mister Morton to be ready to leave at
short notice. I have a feeling we’ll be
needed.”
“Aye,
Sir.”
Sharkey
didn’t ask any questions. He’d seen the
Admiral act on instinct before, and it had always turned out right. If he thought the Skipper was heading into
trouble, then he probably was.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Lee
checked over the instrumentation for a second time. “We’re nearing the outer reef system. Kowalski, break out the scuba gear and start
getting ready.”
“Aye,
Skipper.”
Drake
stared at the small sonar screen. “Are
you certain there’s nobody else around?”
“Yes. Maxwell, you’ll be coming ashore with us as
backup for Kowalski.” Lee looked over to
Drake. “If that meets your approval,
Sir.”
“It does.”
Maxwell
grinned. “Sure thing, Skipper.” Nothing like putting the Captain in his place.
If
Kowalski had wanted to say anything about Maxwell’s inclusion, it was too late
now. He didn’t quite understand Maxwell’s
motives, but he also knew that he wasn’t going along because of loyalty to the
Captain.
They
suited up after Lee gently nudged the reef with the FS1 and anchored it a few yards
above the ocean floor. “There should be
a tunnel through the reef system about ten yards from our current position.”
“Why couldn’t
you take the Flying Sub through it?” asked Drake suspiciously.
Lee eyed him,
careful to keep his voice even. “It’s
low tide right now, but if the high tide comes in when we’re ready to go out,
it would be like trying to swim upstream in rapids.”
“I
understand.”
“Kowalski,
Maxwell. Once we’re ashore, you’re to
break out the radio set and establish communications with Seaview. Keep it brief and
only if necessary.”
“Yes,
Sir,” replied Kowalski and Maxwell in unison.
“Let’s
go.”
As they
swam closer to the opening in the reef, Drake had to grudgingly admit that the Seaview’s Captain knew what he was doing
under the water. Against his better judgment
he’d allowed himself to be impressed by his command style on board the
submarine. He’d kept a close eye on him,
ignoring the angry looks of Crane’s crew.
One thing still bothered him, though.
There was a tension amongst them crew that he couldn’t quite put his
finger on – and he knew it hadn’t been caused by him.
“There it
is,” said Lee, pointing with his light.
“Watch yourselves, the edges are sharp.”
On the way
through, Maxwell managed to snag his diving belt on a protruding piece of
coral. Lee was the first to try to
untangle him, but Maxwell started to panic and kicked out against him, knocking
the breath from his lungs.
“Maxwell, stop
struggling and I’ll have you out of this in a minute,” snapped Lee. “Maxwell!
Kowalski, take Drake through to the other side. I’ll follow with Maxwell.”
Slowly,
Lee’s voice began to penetrate Maxwell’s mind and he stopped struggling long
enough for Lee to extricate him from the reef.
“You go on
ahead. I’ll be right behind you.”
“Yes,
Skipper,” Maxwell managed through panicked breaths.
“We’re
about three hundred yards from the beach.
If we go straight ahead we’ll hit a stream that enters the lagoon from
inland. We can use that to cover us
until we hit the undergrowth.”
Nothing
else hindered their swim to the beach. Once
they had melted into the tropical undergrowth edging the beach they stripped
off their diving gear and donned their fatigues.
“You know
what to do. Drake and I will contact you
once we’ve completed the mission.”
He could
just make out Kowalski’s head in the darkness as he nodded. “Take care, Skipper.”
As Drake
started to follow him, Kowalski grabbed his arm. “He’d better come back in one piece.”
Drake
pulled away from him. “We’ll see. You do your job and we’ll do ours.”
“What was
that Kowalski said to you?”
“Nothing
of any consequence. After you, Captain.”
Lee felt
exposed with Drake taking up position behind him. He knew that one wrong move would result in
the British agent doing something volatile.
They moved silently through the jungle, stopping twice to make sure they
weren’t followed. Lee knew Drake thought
he was imagining things, but he was certain someone was trailing them.
“We’re
just about there. My contact lives on
the outskirts of the village. He’s got a
small banana plantation.”
“I hope
you’re right about this. Remember what I
said on the submarine.”
“Keep
moving,” Lee said, ignoring Drake’s veiled threat.
Lee
circled around until he was at the back of the small house. “Stay here until I check it out - Sir.”
“I don’t
think so. I’ll be right behind you.”
He took a
deep breath. “If he sees you he might be
spooked. Let me talk to him first.”
“One wrong
move, Crane…”
Lee bit
back a retort and moved stealthily to the rear of the house. A light shone through a faded, threadbare
curtain, illuminating the barren ground in front of him. He carefully skirted around the light and
knocked softly on the wooden door.
“Who is
it?”
“Michelangelo.”
The light
went off and Lee heard the click of a lock as the door slowly opened. A rifle was simultaneously jammed into his
ribs, sending a shooting pain through his already bruised body. He couldn’t quite stifle the groan that came
to his lips.
“Inside
now.”
Lee
stepped into the house and stood where he was until the light was turned back
on. He shielded his eyes from the sudden
glare and waited until he’d become accustomed to the light until he put his
hand down.
“It is you. I didn’t think you would ever come back here.”
The gun
was lowered and Lee’s hand was given a vigorous shake which he returned. The bearded old man that stood before him
smiled affectionately.
“I’m sorry
to trouble you at this time of night, Tom, but we’re here on an urgent
mission.”
Tom
frowned. “We?”
It was
Lee’s turn to smile. Old as he was, age it
hadn’t affected his mind. “I have
another man with me, from
“Why
didn’t you say so? Bring him inside,” he
chided in the island dialect.
“Turn the
light out again and I’ll get him.”
Lee
ventured outside again, but felt his earlier dizziness come back. “Not now,” he murmured through gritted teeth.
“Captain,
what’s wrong?”
Drake
hadn’t been as far from the house as he thought.
“Nothing. Let’s go inside before we’re spotted.”
Drake
didn’t say anything else until both of them were inside, then quickly snapped
on a torch and shone it in Lee’s face.
Lee averted his eyes from the light, but the intelligence agent’s rough
hands pushed his head back.
“You have
a concussion. When did it happen?” He asked, not wasting any time.
Lee sat
down gratefully on the chair that Tom had produced from nowhere. “On Seaview,
just before you boarded.”
“Why
didn’t you say anything?”
“Who else
speaks the dialect and has the underground contacts?” he said, rubbing a hand
over his weary eyes.
Drake
looked at Tom, then back at Lee. “Who’s
he?”
“Tom is
the leader of the underground. He knows
everything and everyone that’s worth knowing on the island, and even on some of
the surrounding islands.”
“You have
a point,” he admitted grudgingly. “I
suppose we’ll have to make the best of it.”
“I’ll make
some coffee, Lee.”
Lee nodded
gratefully. “Thank you, Tom. Oh, this is John Drake.”
“What did
you just say?”
“Tom is making
us some coffee and I introduced you.”
Drake
watched every move that the older man made in the kitchen, once he was
satisfied he returned his attention to Lee.
“How do you
feel now?”
“Fine.”
He sat
across from Lee and stared intently at him.
“What aren’t you telling me?”
“You’re
worse than Jamie,” Lee muttered, scowling.
“Who?”
“No doubt
you’ll find out,” he said acidly.
Drake
leaned back against the chair. “Maybe I
was wrong about you,” he admitted.
Both their
heads snapped around as the door handle began to turn. Tom hadn’t locked it behind them so whoever
was there would be able to walk right in.
Lee motioned to Drake to stand on one side of the door while he stood on
the other, gun in hand. He got a shock
when the door opened. Maxwell stood
where he was, unmoving as both Drake and Lee pressed their guns into his neck.
“What are
you doing here, Maxwell?”
“Kowalski
sent me to give you a message.”
Lee
removed his gun, but Drake kept his pressed against his jaw so tightly that it discolored
the skin beneath the barrel.
“What?”
“Message
from Admiral Nelson. Seaview has to move to deeper waters, a
patrol boat’s in the area.”
“That
could have waited. You might have
jeopardized the whole mission, Maxwell,” said Lee, frustrated by Drake’s choice
of crewmen.
He stole a
glance at the English man, and conceded that he wasn’t looking very pleased
with Maxwell, either.
“He’d
better stay with us now, Captain.”
Lee
nodded, once they got back to the submarine he’d make certain that Maxwell would
think twice about disobeying another order.
Tom placed
small cups of coffee in front of Lee and Drake, ignoring Maxwell completely, as
if he sensed the man had done something wrong.
“Tom, what
do you know about the new installation?”
He sat
down at the table between Lee and Drake, holding his own cup. “Most of the structures are only recent, a
few months, but there are still some older parts that we can use to enter the
complex. I’m glad you came, my friend,
our village has lost many people to the factory.”
“What do
you mean by ‘lost’?” asked Lee after translating to Drake.
“They were
taken by the soldiers, but never came back.
I heard they have been made to work on the project, but are being badly
treated.”
“How
many?”
“We had
about one hundred people in the village, now there are only thirty-five. The only ones left are old or sick.”
Lee
twisted the cup in his hand. “How long
ago did this happen?”
“Two weeks. Nothing has been heard from them since they
were taken.”
“Do you
have any idea what happened to them?”
“Only that
there is something there that nobody wants discovered.” Tom grabbed Lee’s wrist. “You will help us, won’t you?”
The
pleading look in the old man’s eyes nearly tore Lee’s heart in two.
“You’ve
lost someone close to you?”
Tom
nodded, trying to hide the tears that made his eyes glisten. “My children and grandchildren, they’re in
there, somewhere.”
Lee
translated again and grasped Tom’s hand.
“I promise we’ll help. You have
my word. We need your help, though, we
can’t do it alone.”
“I will
gather everyone, but we’ll have to wait until after dark. You can rest here until then.”
Lee looked
at Drake, unperturbed by the ‘here we go again’ look in his eyes. “We need his help. Without it, we won’t be able to carry out the
mission. He’ll do everything he can for
us if we rescue the other villagers.”
“At least,
that’s how you translate it, Captain. I
do hope you’re not, shall we say, embellishing the truth.”
“That’s
right, how do you know he’s not…” started Maxwell, stopping suddenly as Lee
stood up.
“You’re
very close to insubordination as it is, Maxwell. I suggest you keep your mouth closed and
you’ll make it back in one piece.”
Maxwell’s
expression turned ugly. “What do you
mean by that, Captain?”
“I was
just thinking of what the other side would do to you if you were caught.”
Drake had
stayed silent, but he immediately picked up the look of fear in Maxwell’s eyes when
Crane had spoken. Crane, on the other
hand, had stayed completely calm. Was it
possible that he had been wrong about
the young Captain?
“Why are
you here, Lee? I was so caught up with
my own problems that I forgot you had a mission of your own,” said Tom,
rejoining the conversation.
“We need
to find out what they’re producing in that factory. We received intelligence about an
organization that had been responsible for…” Lee searched for the words in the
dialect, “causing some environmental problems in the ocean.”
Tom
clasped his hands together tightly. “Yes,
they call themselves Pangaea.”
“Pangaea?”
repeated Drake, the term sending off alarm bells in his head. “Surely they can’t think that anyone would
allow them to join the continents using coral?
I mean, it’s not even possible.”
“This is
why I wanted to tell the Admiral,” snapped Lee, exasperated. “I don’t have the scientific expertise or
knowledge to understand what they’re working on.”
“Fortunately
for you, Captain, we don’t need to understand.
We just need to get a few happy snaps, take some samples and let the
experts do the rest,” he replied condescendingly.
Lee
ignored him. “Tom, how well guarded is
the building?”
“There are
maybe five guards that patrol the perimeter and two guardhouses. They don’t know about an old underground
access tunnel that leads into the building from under the water.” Tom took out some faded old paper and a piece
of charcoal from the fireplace. “The
tunnel leads into the factory from here.
It comes out just below here.”
He drew a
skeleton picture of the inside of the main building.
“What’s
this?” Drake pointed to some pipes
leading into the ocean as Lee asked Tom his question.
“Waste
from the factory, I think.” He hastily
finished the sketch and pointed to a middle section. “From what I’ve heard, this is where the
access hatch is, two corridors away from the main cell block.”
“Do you
know if it’s secured from the inside?”
Tom shook
his head. “I don’t think so. It’s many years old, nobody would even know
it’s still there. The buildings used to
be an old pearling factory and smugglers used it to slip into the factory at
night and sell their pearls.”
“Then
we’ll have to go back to get our scuba gear and get in that way.”
“Yes, but
please, have some food and drink first.”
Lee looked
at his watch and shook his head. It was
two hours to dawn. “I think we’d better
move before the sun rises, Tom.”
“As you
wish, Lee.”
“What did
he say?” asked Drake, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
Again Lee
translated.
“Let’s go,
then. What are we going to do about Maxwell
and Kowalski?”
“They can
stay in the FS1 until we’re finished inside the factory.”
If Drake
had any problems with the plan, he kept them to himself.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Admiral
Nelson waited impatiently for the response from ONI on Drake. He paced around his cabin, then moved into
his laboratory to finish the experiment that had occupied his time since the
incident with the re-breather. Ten
minutes later he irritably pushed the test tubes away. He picked up the microphone to ask
“Sparks to
Admiral Nelson.”
“Go
ahead.”
“I have
the reply you’ve been waiting for, Sir.”
“I’ll be
right there,” he said, all thoughts of his experiment swept aside.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
It took
them a good twenty minutes to get back to the beach again. Lee struggled with a dull headache for most
of the journey, which was starting to worry him. Once they had arrived at the beach he quietly
palmed two painkillers and quickly swallowed them before he suited up.
“Kowalski,
can I see you for a minute?” Lee stood
apart from the group, leaving enough distance between them that he and Kowalski
couldn’t be overheard. “Why did you let Maxwell
follow us?”
“He told
me that he was under Drake’s orders to relay any transmissions, and that it
would be okay by you. I told him not to
go, but he said I’d be in trouble if I stopped him.”
Lee choked
back a curse. “Okay, I’ll sort this out
when we get back to the boat. Thanks.”
“Everyone
ready?” Three heads nodded back at him
so he put his mouthpiece in and slid silently into the dark waters of the
lagoon.
After
about fifty yards, Lee switched on his dive light and continued to check the
homing beacon as he swam. They were on a
direct course for the Flying Sub.
“We should
be nearing the break in the reef in a few minutes.”
He shone
the torch ahead of him but saw nothing but a complete coral reef. Was it possible that he was off course? The beacon told him the FS1was just over the
other side of the reef.
“What’s
wrong?” asked Drake.
“I’m not
sure. The channel should be here, I
can’t explain it.”
“It must
be an equipment malfunction. Let’s swim
along the reef, we’re sure to come to it soon.”
“Kowalski,
you and Maxwell head east, Drake and I will go west. Call in the moment you have something.”
“Okay,
Skipper.”
“No,
wait!” The others watched as Lee edged
closer to the reef to retrieve something.
“This is part of Maxwell’s dive belt.”
A piece of
the cloth was caught in the reef, as if it had grown around it. Something made Lee turn around, he could
sense danger behind them. Abruptly the
darkness was turned into a blinding glare as spotlights pierced the gloomy
water. Divers seemed to appear from
nowhere, the metal on their spear guns glinting menacingly.
“What now,
Skipper?” asked Kowalski.
“We’re
outnumbered two to one. Do as they ask. For now we’re out of options,” he replied as
the men motioned for them to head back towards the shore.
“Looks
like you’ve blown another mission, Captain,”
said Drake accusingly.
Lee didn’t
reply. There was nothing he could say to
convince Drake how wrong he was. He
glanced back at the reef before following their captors. There was no doubt that the channel had been
there, but how could it have closed up so quickly?
They
reached the beach to find it swarming with guards. For the moment there was no escape.
“Drop your
equipment,” ordered a monster of a man.
Lee nodded
as Kowalski and Maxwell looked at him.
“Hands
behind your backs.”
He felt
the bite of steel handcuffs against his skin.
This wasn’t going well. With the Seaview out of the immediate area there
wasn’t going to be a miraculous rescue.
“Which one
of you is in charge?”
Nobody spoke,
but Maxwell looked at Lee. He didn’t say
anything but it was akin to giving them the information.
The big
man stepped closer to Lee until he was towering over him. “So you want to find out what we’re doing on
the island?”
“We’re
research scientists.”
The man
laughed and shoved Lee so hard he fell onto the sand. “I don’t think so, not with your
equipment. Where are your cameras? Your boat?”
“We were
dropped off by our mother ship. There’s
a…a submersible over the other side of the reef,” said Lee, not wanting to tip
them off that it was the FS1.
Lee knew
that there was a strong possibility that they’d already discovered the FS1. If he didn’t give them the information they
would immediately know it was a lie. There
was a chance they already did.
“Do you
think we are stupid, Captain Crane?”
Lee’s
mouth went dry, they already knew their identities.
“Bring him
onto the beach!” he shouted to an invisible guard.
As the men
watched, a frail figure was dragged onto the beach and thrown down onto the
sand beside Lee.
“Who is
he?”
The man kicked
the older man.
“I’m
sorry, Captain,” he gasped as his head fell back onto the sand.
“Take them
back to the compound. We’ll talk to their
Captain first.” He gave Tom another kick
in the side. “Throw him in the other
truck.”
A truck
backed up to the beach and Lee and the others were thrown in. Two armed guards were stationed at the end of
the truck as it started to move off.
“We have
to get out of here,” whined Maxwell.
“I’m not going to be tortured.”
“Shut up, Maxwell,”
snapped Kowalski.
Maxwell’s
expression turned nasty. “You shut up.”
“That’s
enough, both of you,” Lee said with more calm than he felt.
Lee was
starting to feel very ill. His head
ached incessantly as the movement of the truck made his stomach churn. The darkness in the cab was almost
impenetrable. He was glad for that, as sweat
had started rolling down his face in small rivulets, and he knew without having
Jamie tell him that he would probably end up in sick bay once more.
“Are you
alright, Captain?” asked Drake.
“Fine,”
came the taut reply.
The truck
came to a stop after what Lee figured was about twenty minutes and the flaps
were thrown open to reveal the inside of a large warehouse. Guards surrounded the truck as they were
dragged out, their handcuffs and wetsuits removed.
“Place
them in the cell.” The large man grabbed
Lee’s arm. “I’ll take this one for
questioning.”
Lee was handcuffed
again and hustled away from the others into a building off to one side of the
complex. It appeared to be more heavily
fortified and had guards posted at each entrance. He was taken through one of the doors and
found himself standing in a huge laboratory with transparent fish tanks. The tanks were different shapes and sizes but
had one thing in common – they all contained coral in various stages of growth.
“Captain
Crane, I presume?” said a tall pale man with a receding hairline.
“Who are
you?”
“I’m
Simpson Devereaux. I doubt you would
have heard of me.” Devereaux slid one bony index finger along the
top of a tank. “I suppose you’re
wondering what all this is?”
“You could
say that,” conceded Lee.
“These are
the prototypes of my growth hormone experiments. I’ve discovered a way to incrementally grow
coral. One day there’s nothing there,
the next a coral reef.” Devereaux looked at Lee. “Now, Captain, I want you to give me some
information about your submarine.”
Lee
ignored him, instead walking over to look at another tank that housed a
peculiarly colored specimen.
“Mukesh,
why don’t you show the Captain what will happen if he doesn’t answer the
questions I’m about to ask him?”
Strong
hands redirected Lee to a small tank which held seawater and a single piece of coral. Mukesh
removed the cuffs from his left arm, and forced it into two steel
manacles. One secured Lee’s arm by the
wrist, the other his forearm just below the elbow. The steel manacles held it so tightly that
there was not even a miniscule movement as he tried to pull away. The manacles in turn were bolted and welded
to the base of the tank by sturdy lengths of steel. His other arm was cuffed to a steel chain
bolted to the floor beside the legs of the tank.
“What are
you doing?”
Devereaux
walked over to a cabinet and removed a pink vial of liquid and a large bore
needle.
“Do you
remember the coral channel you used to enter the lagoon?”
Lee
nodded. “You did something to it?”
“At least
you’re an intelligent man, it makes things easier. Yes, this vial contains the growth
hormone. Once I inject it into this
piece of coral, you’ll have first-hand experience of how it works.”
Lee
studied the coral, noting uneasily that one of the long spikes was pointing
directly towards his forearm. He felt
his adrenalin kick in as fresh droplets of sweat began to form on his brow.
“Where is
the Seaview? I want her exact coordinates and command
codes.”
“No!” There
was nothing else to say.
Devereaux
smiled, but it chilled Lee to the bone.
“One last
chance, Captain. The coral will tear
your skin, your muscles and snap your bones.
The pain is like no other normal cut.”
Lee
clenched his teeth together. So things
were going to get nasty. He would hold
out as long as he could, then pretend to go along with them until he could free
the others.
“No,
Captain? I had really hoped you would be
more cooperative.”
Devereaux
used a small instrument to chip off a small piece of the coral’s hard exterior,
before injecting it with the liquid. Lee
started to struggle, but Mukesh hooked his arm around Lee’s neck and held him
immobile. Amazement briefly diverted him
from his predicament as the coral began to grow before his eyes. It was only then he realized the sharpened
point was only centimeters from his skin.
“Changed
your mind yet?” taunted Devereaux.
“Go to
hell, Devereaux.”
The point
came closer until he felt the hard surface penetrate his skin, first denting
it, then tearing it as it slowly slid through the area between his bones. A low groan tore from his throat at the
sudden tearing sensation as his arm was impaled.
“Now,
Captain?” Devereaux stroked the coral. “Before your two bones snap in half?”
Mukesh let
Lee fall against the tank as the pain almost overwhelmed him. Devereaux had been right, at least a knife
wound was quick and sharp. He felt each
movement, every bump of the coral’s rough surface as it excruciatingly pushed
muscle and sinew apart.
“Yes,” he
gasped. “I’ll tell you what you want to
know.”
Devereaux
indicated to Mukesh to undo the manacles.
“There is one problem though, you’re going to have to pull your arm off
the coral. Once the growth cycle has
started, the coral is very strong, and is extremely difficult to break. I could
use my special chemical to dissolve it, but I don’t think you’d like what was
left of your arm.”
The
thought of what he was about to do sickened him to his core, but he grasped his
arm and slowly forced it off the coral spike, falling to his knees when the
gruesome task was over. He felt bile
rise in his throat as he numbly heard his blood dripping to the floor. He couldn’t bring himself to look down at his
damaged limb.
“Bandage
it,” Devereaux told Mukesh. “We’re going
to need to keep him alive for a while longer.”
Mukesh
ambled over to the same cabinet and brought two dressings and a bandage
back. He forced Lee to his feet and
roughly dressed the ragged entry and exit holes before wrapping a bandage
around it.
“I think
it’s time you went to your accommodation, Captain. You look a little pale,” goaded
Devereaux. “But first, there’s the
matter of our little bargain.”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“Chip, are
we out of range of their ships?”
“Yes,
Sir. The nearest contact is eight
nautical miles from our current position.
We’re hiding in a thermal layer.”
“Very
well, have Mister O’Brien take the con.
Chip, I want you with me in the mini-sub. We’ll sit offshore in case we’re needed,”
ordered Nelson.
“Permission
to speak freely, Sir?”
“Granted. What is it?”
“I don’t
believe I should be the first choice for this mission, Sir.”
Nelson
knew damned well why Chip was being so truculent, and he wasn’t going to have
it. “Mister Morton, you will hand over the con to Mister O’Brien
and then meet me in the missile room ready to leave in twenty minutes. Have I made my orders clear?”
Chip drew
himself up and nodded. “Yes, Sir. Twenty minutes, Sir.”
The
Admiral scratched his forehead as he watched his XO’s departure from the
control room. This trip was going to be
interesting, and if nothing else, perhaps it would clear the air between them.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Drake
walked around the small cell with growing impatience.
“Excuse
me, Sir.”
He stopped
his pacing. “Yes, Kowalski?”
“How long
have you known the Skipper?”
He
hesitated. The whole story appeared to
have made its way around the boat courtesy of that idiot crewman Maxwell. Providing some insignificant details couldn’t
do any more harm than had already been done.
He sat on the floor across from Kowalski and leaned back against the
hard concrete wall.
“I knew
him briefly a few years ago, before he joined NIMR.”
“How
briefly?”
“We went
on a mission together. It lasted for about
a week.”
This
piqued Kowalski’s interest. “And after a
few days you could tell he was a coward?”
Drake felt
the growing tension run through the cell like an electric charge. “He was the only one apart from ONI who knew
the mission plan,” he snarled. “Because
of him I was captured and the mission was a complete failure.”
“But you
don’t know for sure that it was him?” Kowalski insisted.
Maxwell
opened his mouth to speak but took one look at the expression on Kowalski’s
face and shut it again.
“Couldn’t
it have been someone in ONI?”
“No!”
“Why not?”
Drake
couldn’t answer that question, so he just shrugged.
“Well,
I’ve known the Skipper now for almost four years,” he continued. “I’d risk my life for him and I know he’d do the same for me. If you’d bothered to ask any man on Seaview you’d know that. He never has
been and never will be a coward.”
The last
words he spoke were uttered with such conviction that it made Drake look up
from where he’d been studying the floor.
The British agent shook his head, then rested it against the wall and
closed his eyes.
“That
remains to be seen.”
Ski wanted
to grab the man by the shirt and shake him, rank be damned. It was obvious that there was barely a shred
of humanity in him. The cell door swung
open as Ski was about to have another go at Drake. Lee was shoved into the cell, but managed to
stop himself before he hit the opposite wall.
He stood where he was, swaying unsteadily until Kowalski got up and
steered his Captain towards the cot, worried that he might fall over.
“Skipper,
you okay? What happened?”
Lee ran a
shaky hand through his dark hair, which was curled with perspiration. “They kindly took me on a tour of the
facility.”
Ski
pointed to his arm. “What happened?”
He looked
down to find that blood was already beginning to seep through the bandage. “Just a scratch.”
“It looks
like more than a scratch, Captain,” Drake observed.
“Are you
sure they never touched you, Skipper?” asked Kowalski.
“No, they
were more interested in showing me their experiments.” He hid a small shiver that rippled through his
body by lowering himself onto the cot. I
caught my arm on a piece of metal.”
Drake sat
beside him, Kowalski shifting back onto the floor to make room. “What did you learn?”
“The
organization is run by a man called Simpson Devereaux. Have you ever heard of him?”
“Can’t say
I have, but it could be an alias.”
Lee shook
his head. “I read about him in some
abstract intelligence articles that came through recently from ONI. He’s an up and coming shipping magnate. He’s just finished building a new fleet of
superlight ships with a draft of about ten feet. They’re wider and shallower than any standard
cargo vessels.’
“I don’t
understand.”
“The coral
reef. We were in the right place, but it
had grown back together.”
“That’s
impossible, not in a few hours!”
Lee eased
back against the wall, using only his right arm. The left one hadn’t stopped throbbing, but at
least he could still use his fingers, even though his forearm stung when he
tried. Somehow the spur of coral had
missed the tendons.
“Actually,
he’s responsible for creating a hybrid reef. It’s been genetically modified to grow at
almost a thousand times the rate of normal coral. All it takes is for him to activate the
growth hormone and the process starts. I
don’t understand the scientific basis for the growth, but I saw it with my own
eyes.”
The
implications of the discovery worried Lee.
He knew that some parts of the shipping lanes around the Straits of
Malacca and other world shipping lanes were very shallow. If a coral reef sprang up in any of these
areas over a short period of time it could cripple the shipping industry. That was where Devereaux’s super light fleet
came into the equation. Without any
trouble he could corner the market and hold the world to ransom.
“I suppose
that’s when Devereaux’s shipping company comes to the fore?” asked Drake.
Before Lee
could answer the cell door clanked open to reveal Devereaux flanked by two
guards.
“Captain
Crane, thank you for the information you offered me. We’ve begun the hunt for Seaview, it shouldn’t be long now.
Why don’t you join me for dinner,” he looked down distastefully at Lee’s
filthy shirt and shorts. “I’m sure I can
find something more appropriate for you to wear.”
Drake
hauled himself to his feet. “Might I
enquire as to what information the good Captain imparted?”
Devereaux
smiled disarmingly as he answered in his Southern drawl. “I now have the position of your submarine. It’s only a matter of time before it’s snared
by my coral reefs. I also have the
command codes.” He carefully stepped
back outside the door. “Yes, Seaview will be a welcome addition to my
fleet. I’ll be back for you in one hour,
Captain.”
Before Drake
or Kowalski could react, Maxwell had jumped up and grabbed Lee by the shirt. He threw him up against the wall, pinning him
there one knee while the other rested on Lee’s injured arm. He was oblivious to the agony on Lee’s face. “You lousy…Drake was right. You’re yellow, now we’re all going to die
because of you. We almost lost our
submarine because of it, you were too weak to stop the Admiral. It’s all your fault!”
He hit Lee
hard across his mouth, knocking his head back against the wall. Kowalski grabbed him around the throat,
pulling his arm tight around Maxwell’s neck.
“Let go, Maxwell,”
he hissed. “Let go now.”
Maxwell
lined up for another blow, then felt the blood supply to his head cut off by
Kowalski’s arm. He slowly slid to the
floor, but Ski didn’t let go until he was certain he was out. He looked up at Lee, who was breathing hard
and had his eyes closed.
“Skipper, are
you alright?”
Lee opened
his eyes and weakly pushed Kowalski away.
“Get away from me, all of you.”
“Once
again you’ve proven me right, Captain,” Drake said contemptuously, his blue
eyes piercing Lee’s like icicles.
Lee painfully
stood up and moved away from them. “I
did what I had to do to survive.”
“How many
times have I heard that expression uttered by men to excuse unconscionable
actions,” he growled angrily. “You
disgust me. You’re a disgrace to your
uniform and your country.”
Kowalski
sat where he was and watched the exchange between the two men. It wasn’t his place to interfere any more
than he already had. What had caused
this bad blood between the Skipper and Drake was none of his business.
The next
hour was excruciatingly uncomfortable for everyone. Maxwell eventually regained consciousness and
glared at Lee continuously. Lee knew
that only Kowalski stood between him and Maxwell, but even Ski hadn’t spoken a
word since he’d pulled Maxwell off him.
The look of disgust on Drake’s face didn’t surprise Lee. He wasn’t feeling too special about himself
either – playing the part of a coward didn’t sit well with him, but it was a
small sacrifice. He finally managed to
find a place for his arm and head where neither of them ached so badly and
closed his eyes.
A sound
made him look up, Devereaux stood just inside the door. “Mukesh, why don’t you help our Captain to
his feet, he doesn’t look too well.”
Lee had almost
been grateful for that, since he didn’t think his own legs would hold him after
Maxwell’s assault.
“Make sure
he gets a change of clothes before dinner.”
He led Lee
from the room and the door was locked behind them.
“Spineless,
no-good…”
“Be quiet!”
snapped Drake venomously. “The last
thing we need is you whining all the time.”
“What do
we do now?” asked Kowalski.
Drake
wondered how much the man had figured out, since he was unusually calm for a person
in their situation. Crane couldn’t
possibly have given Devereaux the coordinates, since none of them knew Seaview’s location. He’d figured it out quickly, and played along
with the Captain’s ruse.
“We wait,
Kowalski.” He shifted to make himself
more comfortable. “We wait.”
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Lee was
guided into a large dining room with all the trimmings of a southern
mansion. Devereaux was already sitting at
the end of the long oak table. When he
saw Lee he stood up and walked over to him.
Lee winced as he thumbed at his split lip where Maxwell’s punch had left
its mark.
“It seems
your friends were a touch upset at you.
Please, take a seat.”
Lee was
shown back to the other end of the table while Devereaux returned to his seat
opposite him. It was a foregone
conclusion that there was at least one camera in the cell. That much Devereaux had unwittingly given
away.
“I have an
interesting proposition for you.”
“And what
would that be?”
Devereaux
appeared to be pleased with himself.
“I want
you to come and work for me. You’ll be
well paid for your loyalty.” He poured
himself a glass of wine. “You don’t have
to give me an answer yet. Just think it
over. While you do, I’ll give you some
more comfortable quarters. After all, Seaview will need another Captain once
she’s mine. The crew will be my guests
until I’m sure you’ll do as you’re told.
If not, they’ll end up as part of my coral reef system. You already know how painful that can be.”
Lee
touched his lip to wipe at the trickle of blood where Devereaux’s attention had
opened it up again.
“I suppose
I could consider it,” he replied slowly.
The other
man clapped his hands together and laughed.
“Very good, Captain, I think you and I will work fine together, once you
understand your position.”
Dinner was
served and Lee found that he had to force some food down his throat to at least
give the impression that he would consider Devereaux’s offer. His stomach was clenched so tightly that it
almost spasmed every time he swallowed a mouthful. He had only one chance at this deception, and
he had to get it right the first time.
“Tell me,
Captain, how is it that your friends accepted your betrayal so easily?”
Lee’s eyes
darkened. “I’d rather not talk about
it.”
He felt a
strong hand circle his injured arm and caught a glimpse of irritation in
Devereaux’s face.
“Please
don’t make me use Mukesh to help you answer.
He does tend to enjoy his work.”
Lee’s
utensils clattered onto the fine porcelain plate. He gave Devereaux a smile. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was that
important to you.”
“If you
will, Captain…”
He sighed
and leaned back in his chair. Devereaux
was testing him. Lee realized he’d
already figured most of this out from watching the cell footage. “I…the Brigadier and I were on a mission
together in
“And, did
you?”
Lee
dredged up all the recent memories of the way Nelson had treated Jamie and Chip
and let the shame show on his face. “Do
I have to answer that?”
Devereaux
shook his head. “No, I believe you
already have. But there’s something
you’re holding back, isn’t there?”
“No, I…”
his denial was choked off as Mukesh’s hand squeezed
the coral wound.
“Please,
Captain, it wouldn’t do to have a potential staff member damaged before he even
started work.”
Lee nodded
and Mukesh released his grip as raw emotions surfaced to replace the physical
pain. “Our last mission, there was a
problem and I wouldn’t take action against…against a friend, even though all
the signs were there that he needed help.”
Lee hung his head. “Because of
it, the submarine was almost lost.”
“Ah,
that’s what your crewman meant by his words.
Most interesting. Now, if you’ve
finished, I’ll have Mukesh escort you to your new accommodations. You must be tired.”
“You could
say that.” He tried to remember how long
it had been since he’d slept, but the exact timeframe eluded him.
Mukesh steered
him from the room and down a long corridor.
Lee was pretty certain it ran parallel to the cell block and filed that
information away. Now came the tricky
part - without any warning to the large guard, he suddenly bent at the waist
and groaned.
“Get up!”
Lee looked
up at him, hoping he had the strength to deal with him. “I can’t, I’m sick, my arm…I think it’s
infected.”
Mukesh
grabbed his biceps and pushed him against the wall, at least he didn’t have to
feign the agony or gray face.
“Surely
you have a sick bay, an infirmary?” he gasped.
The guard
checked the passage. There was nobody
else around to call for help. “Over
here.”
He dragged
Lee along beside him and pushed him into a room that reminded him of Jamie’s
office. Lee leaned against a metal
office chair and tested the weight. It
might do. Or he could end up much worse
off than he already was, but he had to take a chance on that.
“Are there
any painkillers?”
“I’m
looking. Stay where you are.”
Lee
watched as he turned his back to him then painfully picked up the chair and hit
him so hard across the shoulders and head that he was flung across the room and
over the desk. He was certain that the
massive guard would be unconscious, but when a large hand reached up onto the
desk he had to look twice to believe it.
The room held nothing else that might be used as a weapon. Then his eyes fell onto a metal letter
opener. He grabbed for it, reaching it
only milliseconds before the giant’s hand fell where it had been.
“You’re
going to pay for that,” he growled, slowly making his way around the desk.
Lee set
his teeth against each other and prepared himself for a fight. He wasn’t naïve enough to believe that he’d
come out of this unscathed. In fact he
had no doubt it would be a fight to the death.
“I knew
you were lying to Devereaux. Someone
like you would never give up that information so easily.”
Instead of
wasting energy on words, Lee circled him.
The office was too small for what he was about to do, and it had to be
done without anyone finding out, at least for thirty minutes.
“Too
scared to talk, Crane? Maybe I ought to
loosen that tongue of yours,” he sneered.
Lee waited
for him to make the first move, he didn’t wait long. The giant lunged across the room, taking Lee
with him into a bookcase, but it would be his last act on this world. Lee had kept the blade in front of him and
the full weight of the giant had pushed it through his ribcage into his heart. Agony shot through him as he fought to push
the man off him. He swore, the guy had
to weigh at least 240 pounds. Eventually
he managed to lever him away, but felt a tearing pain as the pointed bone
handle of the letter opener gouged its way out of his own ribs. He quickly smothered a groan and crawled over
to the desk to pull himself unsteadily to his feet. After recovering for a few moments, he dropped
to his knees and rifled through the dead man’s pockets. A brief search revealed what he was looking
for and he struggled back to his feet.
Since
nobody had come barging into the office, there was a good chance that the brief
fight hadn’t been heard. Lee slipped out
and haltingly found his way back to the cell block, making a short detour on
the way. He tried the keys he’d stolen
and eventually found the one that opened the door to his old cell. He motioned for the three men to follow him
outside. If he’d expected Drake to
protest, he was surprised when none came. His next task was to release Tom from his cell. Kowalski hooked his arm around his shoulder
and helped the older man to walk.
“We have
to move quickly, there’s a camera in every cell, I’m not sure how long it’ll
take them to figure out we’re gone.”
“Where to,
Captain?” asked Drake.
“I figured
out where Tom’s escape tunnel is. I left
some diving equipment there so we can make our way back out to sea. Afraid I couldn’t find any wetsuits, but the
water should be warm enough.”
“All this
time, Skipper, you let us think you were on their side,” said Maxwell, suddenly
aware of the ploy.
Lee didn’t
answer him, instead pausing to open a storage room door off to one side. “In here.”
They put
on the diving equipment, moving as fast as they could. Kowalski assisted Tom to do the same.
“Captain,
leave me, I’m not going to make it,” said Tom.
“I’m not
leaving you behind,” his tone left no room for argument.
“Drake,
would you mind pulling up the hatch?” asked Lee, struggling with the weight of
the tanks with his injured arm.
Strong
hands suddenly took the weight and helped him on with them. He thought it had been Kowalski, but Drake was
the one who had stepped out from behind him and pulled up the trapdoor.
“Thanks.”
“Anytime,
Captain.”
Without another
word, Drake did as he was asked and had it almost all the way up before an
alarm sounded outside.
“Damn,
they’ve found out we’re gone. Kowalski,
you take Tom out with you first.” Lee led the men towards the hole in the floor
as Drake gave them a hand down.
Maxwell
chose that moment to panic and tried to push Tom aside. “I’m going first.”
Lee
roughly grabbed him by the arm and dragged him back from the two men who slid
noiselessly into the void of swirling black water. Maxwell gave him a shove and pushed past Drake
just as the door opened. He jumped into
the water leaving the two men to deal with the threat.
He
motioned for Drake to get into the water and was about to follow him when a
guard flew into the room, sending him sprawling across the British man. He kicked out with his foot and the guard’s
weapon went spinning into the hole.
“Get out
of here, now!”
“Not
without you,” Drake said.
Lee watched
as another guard ran into the room and pointed his weapon at Drake. He didn’t hesitate and pushed Drake into the
water a second before the guard pulled the trigger. Before he had a chance to follow him he was
flung backwards by the first guard, hitting his head hard on the concrete edge
of the trapdoor. He was unconscious
before he’d even hit the water.
Drake
managed to snag Lee’s scuba harness before he disappeared completely and pulled
him away from below the trapdoor, only stopping to drag the breathing apparatus
over his face. Once he was assured Lee
was breathing easily, he took off after the other three with the Captain in
tow.
When he
felt it was safe enough, he turned on the flashlight Lee had somehow managed to
acquire. The gear had no communications
microphones so Drake had to rely on sign language. He checked the oxygen supply, they had about
an hour of air each. He only hoped it
would be enough or the tunnels would become their tomb. From memory, the distance between the
trapdoor and the tunnel exit was about five hundred yards. He roughly calculated that they’d travelled
about a fifth of that distance. Whether
or not they’d be able to find the FS1 would be another matter. It was on the other side of the small island
but he doubted their captors had the expertise to move it.
Drake
shone the spotlight onto Lee Crane. Blood
was flowing from the head wound just behind his left ear but there was nothing
to be done about that. He just had to
hope it would stop after they got back to shore and patched him up. What concerned him more was how this most
recent injury would affect the concussion that Crane had already suffered. The man had saved his life. He had acted without any thought for his own,
not the action of a coward but that of a selfless man. After putting two and two together, Drake had
decided that Crane had not given him up in
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“Chip, can
you see anything?”
“Not yet, Admiral. It’s pretty churned up out there, probably
from that hurricane coming down from
Nelson
strained his eyes to see out of the FS1’s viewports. They’d managed to find the Flying Sub behind
the reef, thanks to the accurate coordinates Lee had relayed to Seaview from the facility. The downside was they’d have to return later
for the mini-sub.
“What were
the tunnel coordinates you received from Lee?”
“We’re
only a few hundred yards away. The
tunnel should come out dead in front of us.” If nothing’s gone wrong, he thought.
“Get us as
close as you can.”
“Yes,
Sir.”
“Chip, for
heaven’s sakes, you can call me Admiral every now and again.”
“Yes…Admiral.”
“I know I
should have done this long ago, but please believe me, when I say how sorry I
am for my actions after the re-breather problem.”
Nelson
watched Chip closely. He’d never spoken
to Nelson about the incident and had successfully avoided him for the entire
voyage – until now.
“I’d
rather not discuss it, Sir,” was the stubborn reply.
“Dammit,
man, do you think I would ever humiliate one of my men as I did you?”
Chip
rubbed his hand across his neck. “No.”
“I know
you blame Lee for not acting sooner, and perhaps he should have, but he was
torn between you, me and the crew. He
still blames himself as well, haven’t you noticed how he’s looked the last few
days? Ever since it happened he’s become
almost reclusive.” Just like me,
thought the Admiral.
Chip
looked up at him. “I guess I hadn’t
really taken much notice. I was too tied
up in my own problems.”
“A few days
before he left on this mission, he was knocked down in the passageway outside
the crew quarters by Riley and Maxwell while they were fighting. I know he was hurting because he looked a bit
sore before the mission. I just didn’t
know why.”
“He didn’t
say anything to me,” said Chip, then remembered his last words to Lee as he
stepped down into the FS1.
“Is the FS1 ready for undocking?”
“Yes, Sir,” the belligerent tone still flew out
of his mouth unbidden.
Lee’s amber eyes held disappointment and regret,
but it didn’t stop him there.
“Do you have any other orders I can carry out
for you…Sir?”
The Captain shook his head, and quickly turned
his face away. “No, Mister Morton. That will be all.”
“What is
it, Chip?”
“I might
have been a bit, um, harsh with him.”
Nelson
muttered something unintelligible. “We
all were. He thinks the crew blames him
for the whole incident. As much as it’s
easy to lay the blame at his feet, he had his hands full trying to get Seaview to the surface. I told him that he didn’t know what I knew. I led him to believe I had information that
legitimized my actions. I asked him to
trust me.”
He stood
up and paced to the back of the FS1. “Trust me, I doubt he’ll do that again in
a very long time.”
“What?”
said Chip, startled by the admission.
“That’s
right, didn’t he tell you?” Then Nelson
answered his own question. “No, of
course he didn’t. Lee takes
responsibility for everything that happens on Seaview.”
Chip
nodded. Lee never blamed anyone for their actions
except himself, as if somehow he’d failed them.
“I made a mistake.”
“You
didn’t know.”
“I thought
he was just defending you, I didn’t realize he thought you were acting under a
secret directive.”
Nelson put
his hand on Chip’s shoulder. “It’s all
in the past now. Let’s work on getting
him home.”
Chip
peered back into the gloomy water. “I
thought I saw something.”
Nelson
squinted, following his XO’s gaze, hoping that he was right. “I see it too, a dim light.”
“I hope
it’s them and not someone else,” he clicked on the signal light without being
told.
The light
slowly got brighter, and Nelson opened the hatch of the FS1. He helped Kowalski with an older man, not
bothering to ask any questions. There
was time for that later.
“Is Lee
alright?” he asked anxiously.
“He’s with
Brigadier Drake. I think he’s
unconscious,” replied Kowalski.
Nelson had
to stand by and watch helplessly as Kowalski was pulled through the hatch, then
Maxwell and finally Lee’s unconscious body was pushed upwards by Drake. He grabbed one of Lee’s arms while Chip held
the other and lifted him onto the deck.
“What happened?”
he asked as Drake levered himself into the FS1.
Drake
carefully removed Lee’s mask. “He fell
and hit his head.”
“Chip,
take us back to Seaview. Kowalski, take care of the Captain.”
Ski didn’t
have to be told twice as he opened a locker to take out the field first aid
kit. The head wound required the most
urgent attention. It was a long gash
that ran from behind his ear just above the hairline almost to the back of his
head.
The
Admiral looked on as Kowalski efficiently cleaned and bandaged the injury, then
gently removed the soaked bandage around his arm. “Whoa, what happened to his arm? He said it was just a scratch.”
Drake
shook his head as he looked at the mottled purple bruising and untidy entry and
exit wounds. “Whatever it was, it must
have hurt.”
Kowalski
treated his arm, irrigating it with saline solution before padding either side
of the wound and re-bandaging it. It was
only after he and Drake had lifted him onto the bunk, he noticed the deep gouge
mark just below his heart. He didn’t
have any idea how he got that injury either, but got to work patching it up as
best he could.
“How is
he, Kowalski?”
“He’s
going to need stitches, Sir, and I don’t know how bad the concussion might be. There’s also a nasty injury on his left forearm.”
Drake chipped
in. “He already had a concussion. It happened on Seaview just before we left.”
“And you
didn’t say anything,” Nelson said furiously.
“I’m sorry
to disappoint you, Admiral, but the Captain took it upon himself not to tell
anyone. I can’t held be responsible for
that. I only found out after we arrived
on the island.”
“I hope
Lee doesn’t have a headache when he wakes up, because Jamie will certainly give
him one,” murmured Nelson.
Drake
cocked his head to one side. “Jamie?”
“Our
doctor.”
“Ah, now I
understand. Captain Crane made a rather
uncomplimentary comparison of me to your doctor.”
“I take it
you worked out your differences?”
“You could
say that.”
Nelson
nodded. “I have a classified file in my
cabin that you might be interested in once you’ve had a chance to clean up.”
“What will
happen to the factory?”
“Once Lee
confirmed what the facility was being used for, I alerted COMSUBPAC. The Malaysian authorities were standing by.” Nelson looked at his watch. “I imagine by now their special forces are
just moving in.”
In the
background, Drake heard Chip requesting the docking clamps be lowered and to
have Jamie standing by. There was a
slight jolt as the clamps hit their target and nestled the FS1 back into its
bay.
“Chip,
could you show Mister Drake back to his quarters, and ask Cookie to prepare a
hot meal for everyone?”
“Yes,
Sir.”
“If you
don’t mind, Admiral, I think I can find my own way.”
“Very
well.” Nelson suddenly drew Chip to one
side and spoke in a low voice. “I am truly
sorry for what I put you through, Chip.
I hope you can forgive me and we can still work together.”
“Already
forgiven and forgotten, Admiral,” smiled Chip, glad that things had finally
been sorted out. Only one matter
remained, settling things with Lee, but he knew that would have to wait.
He stepped
aside as Jamie came down the ladder with Frank.
“What’s he done to himself this time?” Jamie grumbled.
While
Kowalski gave Jamie a rundown, the others alighted from the FS1. In the middle of all the action Maxwell
silently disappeared up the ladder followed very closely by Drake.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Drake
stood outside Nelson’s door. He hadn’t
knocked but had a suspicion that the file Nelson had mentioned gave him some
previously unseen information on their first mission. He sighed and bit the bullet, knocking
softly.
“Come in,”
Nelson looked up at Drake. “Brigadier
Drake, I had some hot coffee brought down for you. Would you like a cup?”
Drake
nodded and gratefully sipped at the fiery liquid as it scorched its way down to
his stomach. Nelson pushed a file in
front of him and sat back in his chair.
“I thought
this would interest you. It came from
ONI, I took the liberty of digging a little deeper into the facts surrounding
your trip to
The other
man flicked the cover open and quickly found what he’d begun to suspect. ONI had discovered a mole in the organization. They tried to relay the information to Lee in
time, but there was a breakdown in communication at the last minute. He shook his head. All this time he’d been angry, casting nasty
accusations about Crane around like bait in the ocean, waiting for the fish to
bite. Closing the folder, he wrapped
both hands about the cup and gave a world weary sigh.
“It’s rare
that I find myself in the situation of making such a bad mistake about someone’s
character.”
Nelson nodded. “If you’d asked me, I could have told you
that Lee Crane values loyalty and honesty above all else. He’s put his life on the line for his crew
and shipmates time and time again without a thought for himself.”
“How is
he?”
The older
man’s face was deeply etched with concern.
“Not good, Jamie’s put him into an induced coma and he’s on a
ventilator. If he doesn’t show signs of
improvement, he may have to operate to relieve the pressure in his brain.”
“I’m truly
sorry to hear that. You do realize, of
course, that he was injured saving my life?” said Drake with a sincere look of
regret.
“I’d
expect nothing less of Seaview’s
Captain,” Nelson admitted.
Drake
stood up, this time offering his hand to Admiral Nelson, who took it. “Thank you, Admiral. How long will it take for us to reach my
rendezvous?”
“About two
days, why?”
“I’d like
the opportunity to speak with Captain Crane before I leave the boat.”
“Of
course, if he’s up to it, and if Doctor Jamieson allows it.”
“Yes, the
doctor, Jamie. I take it there’s a
history there?”
This time
Nelson grinned. “You could say that.”
“Well, I
won’t take up any more of your time.”
“Please,
join us for dinner in the wardroom.”
“I’d be
delighted,” replied Drake, his craggy face breaking into a smile for the first
time since Nelson had met him.
He reached
for the door and was gone as quietly as he’d arrived. The Admiral sat down and finally let out a
deep sigh. The last week had been
rigorous and telling on everyone, but things always seemed to have a way of
ironing out. He stared at the paperwork on his desk and sighed. Right now he didn’t have the patience to
tackle it. He pushed it aside instead,
and began to make his way aft to sick bay to wait for news of Lee.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Chip gave Maxwell
a casual glance as he was escorted into the observation nose by Sharkey. “What happened, Maxwell?”
“What do
you mean, Sir?” he replied thickly, his lips still swollen.
Chip
pointed his pen at Maxwell’s face. “I
don’t recall you having those bruises this morning.”
“It’s
nothing…I…” He flicked his eyes towards Drake
who was staring at him from across the room.
“I tripped over the welding equipment in the missile room and hit the
torpedo rack.”
Drake
hastily stepped in. “Yes, a nasty fall. Your seaman, Kowalski and I saw the whole
thing.”
“Um,
that’s right, Mister Morton, Sir,’ muttered Kowalski in support.
Chip eyed
the fresh cuts on Drake’s bruised knuckles but chose to ignore them. Kowalski
had his hands in his pockets, but again, Chip didn’t say a thing.
“Hmm,
you’d better go and see Doc. We’ll
finish this later. After that you’re
confined to quarters until the Board of Inquiry is convened.”
“Yes,
Sir,” he said, skulking unhappily from the control room with Sharkey following
closely behind.
He steered
clear of Kowalski as he headed aft.
When Maxwell
stepped into sick bay, the first thing he saw was Captain Crane lying on the
examination table, hooked up to a ventilator and various other monitors. He was so still that Maxwell thought he was
dead. Then his chest rose as the machine
pumped some more life-giving oxygen into his lungs. Admiral Nelson sat in the shadows across from
him, his face drawn with worry.
“Maxwell,
what do you want?” Jamie asked irritably, well aware of his role in the mission. That he’d spread malicious scuttlebutt about
Lee was another matter. “I thought you
were confined to quarters pending an inquiry.”
Nelson
looked up at him as well, showing about as much sympathy as Jamie.
“I…Mister Morton
told me to see you, but I’m fine, really.” He edged back towards the door. “I’ll come back another time.”
Jamieson
looked over to the Captain then motioned silently for Maxwell to follow him
into his office.
“You’re
probably lucky you didn’t get worse.”
Maxwell’s
face contorted. “What do you mean by
that?”
“Torpedo
racks can be very unforgiving,” said Jamieson, masking a grin as he turned to
open the medicine cabinet and began treating his newest patient.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
Low
murmurs woke Nelson. He hadn’t even
remembered drifting off to sleep. The
last two days had seemed like years. He
was still in sick bay and Frank and Jamie were beside Lee. “Jamie, how’s he doing?”
“He woke
up a few minutes ago and I removed the ventilator.” He finished taking the breathing equipment
away. “He’ll have a sore throat for a
few days, but he was lucky he only needed to be on the ventilator for 36 hours
so there shouldn’t be any long term problems.
The swelling’s gone down and he’s off most of his medication. There was some infection in his arm and that will
take some time to heal, but the antibiotics have kicked in and he’s improving. I’m in the dark about that injury right
now. The wound on his chest was caused
somehow by a letter opener. He said
something about it just before I put him under.”
“Is he up
to a visitor?”
Jamieson
took Lee’s blood pressure before answering.
“Not for too long. He’ll tire
easily for a while.”
Nelson
patted Lee’s arm, and was pleased to see his eyelids flicker open. “I’ll be back soon, Lee, but for now there’s
someone else who wants to see you.”
Lee looked
over to the door as Drake walked into the sick bay.
Jamie
handed him some ice to help his throat.
“You have five minutes, Brigadier, then I’ll be calling the Master at
Arms.”
Drake
raised his hands in surrender. “You have
my word, five minutes and no longer.”
Permission
obtained from Jamie, Drake approached the rack apprehensively. “How are you feeling, Captain?”
“Been
better, been worse,” Lee croaked before putting an ice block into his mouth.
“You
didn’t give up the position of the Seaview,
did you?”
“When did
you realize?” asked Lee, his voice barely above a rough whisper.
Drake’s
eyes crinkled into a smile. “None of us
knew her exact position. I admit it
took a few minutes for it to sink in,
but once it did, I realized what you were doing and played along. I’m sorry if I was too enthusiastic about my
role.”
“No
apologies are necessary, Sir. From what
Jamie said when I woke up, the mission was a success.”
“Please, make it John, as far as I’m concerned the
mission is over.” He looked guiltily at
Lee. “To be honest, it was inappropriate
for me to have dressed you down like that in front of your own men.”
“You did
what you thought would get the mission done.”
“Ah, there
was one more thing. I want to say
something I haven’t said for a very long time, Captain.” He raised a hand as Lee struggled to
speak. “Please, let me finish. I realize now that I have done you a grave
injustice. I made a mistake by being so
quick to judge you in
“We’re
only human,” he replied hoarsely, shifting his long body carefully into a more
comfortable position.
The agent shook
his head. “I’ve managed to convince my
superiors to send aid and medical teams to help the villagers to recover from
their ill treatment in the factory. It’s
to repay you in kind for the way I’ve treated you. When we last met, I was new to the game. Now I understand that we still need to feel
compassion, or we become as bad as those we try to stop.”
Lee laid
his head back against the pillow. “Yes,
we do. Took you long enough to figure it
out.”
He shifted
uncomfortably. “Admiral Nelson showed me
the full report on the ONI mole. You
weren’t lying. What you went through
because of my actions…well, I can’t tell you how sorry I am.”
“Forget it,”
mumbled Lee, his eyes slowly closing.
Drake
stood up and took one last look at the Captain of the Seaview. He had a strength
and resourcefulness that nobody would ever see at first glance, but after this
mission, he finally understood what made the young man tick. He felt deep regret that he’d been so blind
the first time, and that he’d caused such pain to be inflicted on Crane. Hopefully this time he had repaid in kind
some of that mistake. If it hadn’t been
for Crane’s quick actions, he would be lying where the Captain was right now.
“Take
care, Captain. Perhaps one day we’ll
meet again under better circumstances.”
There was
no response from Lee, who had settled into a drug-induced sleep, so Drake
merely nodded to Jamieson and made his way towards the control room to await
his transfer to the British submarine.
∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
“How are
you feeling, Lee?” asked Nelson as he sat in the chair next to Lee’s rack in
sick bay.
“Much
better, Admiral.”
Nelson
could see a healthier glow to his olive complexion and the brightness had
returned to his eyes over the last week.
His left arm was still in a sling, and for the life of him, Nelson
didn’t know how one of his arteries wasn’t severed during his ordeal. Chip had been to see him every chance he got
during his forced recovery period. The
two young officers seemed to have bridged the gap that had opened between them
since the re-breather debacle.
“Jamie
said I could return to light duties tomorrow if everything goes well.”
“I believe
I said if your temperature stays down you can go back to your cabin, Captain,” Jamieson’s
none-too-impressed voice cut in.
Nelson
chuckled to himself. “Well, it’s good to
see you back with us. I thought we’d
really lost you this time.”
Lee’s face
became serious. “So did I, Admiral. If it hadn’t been for Drake dragging me out
of that place… well, I’d be at the bottom of one of those tunnels right now. How was Tom when he left?”
“He had a
few bruises and a couple of cracked ribs, but they’d threatened his family if
he didn’t hand all of you over to Devereaux’s men.”
“Have you
heard how the families are coping?” Lee asked, pondering Drake’s last words to
him.
“A British
destroyer arrived at the island five days ago.
They’ve set up their tent hospitals on the island and are treating all
the victims.”
Nelson saw
Lee visibly relax.
“At least
the mission was successful.”
“No thanks
to Maxwell,” added Nelson.
“Where is Maxwell?”
Nelson
looked at Jamie before replying, trying hard but not succeeding in holding back
a smile.
“He got
back alright, but he apparently, ah…fell in the missile room and bruised his
face on the torpedo rack. Both Drake and
Kowalski confirmed what happened. Once
you’re feeling up to it, we’ll convene a disciplinary board. He acted in a manner that put your lives and
the mission at risk. I doubt he’ll find
another job like this for a very long time.”
“Drake
catch his ride back to
Chip
grimaced, walking in halfway through the conversation. “Hope that’s the last we’ll ever see of him.”
Nelson and
Jamie laughed and nodded. Lee was just
relieved that the next time he saw Drake, it would be on better terms - and he
had no doubt there would be a next time.
*Pulau Mutiara –
**Atlantis
Found