Wilbur Smith's Smashing Thrillers (69 page)

‘
Good morning, early birds, this is W.W.O.K. with another lovely day
ahead of you. A predicted
85
^o
at Fort Lauderdale and the coast, and 80
^o
inland with a 10% chance of rain. We've got a report on hurricane Lorna
for you also. She's dipping away south, towards the lesser Antilles -
so we can all relax, folks - relax and listen to Elton John.
’

‘
I love
Elton John
,’
Samantha said sleepily.
‘
Don't you?
’

.
Who's he?
’
Nicholas asked.

‘
There! I knew right away we had a lot in common.
’
She blinked at him
owlishly.
‘
Did you kiss me good morning?
I forget.
’

‘
Come here
,’
he instructed.
‘
You're not going to forget this
one.
’

Then, a few minutes later,
‘
Nicholas, you'll miss your plane.
’

‘
Not
if I cut breakfast.
’

‘
It would have been a grotty breakfast anyway.
’
She
was coming awake fast now.

She gave him the last kiss through the open window of the Cougar.

‘
You've got an hour - you'll just about make
it’

He started the engine and
still she held on to the sill.

‘
Nicholas, one day we will be together - I mean all the time, like we
planned? You and me doing our own thing, our own way? We will, won't
we?
’

‘
It's a promise.
’

‘
Hurry back
,’
she said, and he gunned the Cougar up
the sandy driveway without looking back.

There were eight of them crowded into Tom Parker's office.
Although there was only seating for three, the others found perches
against the tiered shelves with their rows of biological specimens in
bottles of formaldehyde or on the piles of reference books and white
papers that were stacked against the walls.

Samantha sat on the corner of Tom's desk, swinging her long denim-clad
legs, and answered the questions that were fired at her.

‘
How do you know she will take the passage of the Florida Straits?
’

‘
It's
an educated guess. She's just too big and clumsy to thread the needle
of the islands.
’
Samantha's replies were quick.
‘
Nicholas is betting on it.
’

‘
I'll go along with that then,
’
Tom grunted.

‘
The Straits are a hundred miles wide
-‘

‘
I know what you're going to say
,’
Samantha smiled, and turned to one of the other girls.
‘
S
ally-Anne will answer that one.’

‘
You all know my brother is in the
Coast Guard - all traffic through the Straits reports to Fort
Lauderdale
,’
she explained.
‘
And the coastguard aircraft patrol out as
far as Grand Bahama.
‘
We'll have a fix on her immediately she enters the
Straits - we've got the whole U.S. Coast Guard rooting for us.
’

They argued and discussed for ten minutes more, before Tom Parker
slapped an open palm on the desk in front of him and they subsided
reluctantly into silence.

‘
Okay
,’
he said. Do I understand the proposal to be that this chapter of
Green-Peace intercepts the tanker carrying cad-rich crudes before it
enters American territorial waters and attempts to delay or divert the
ship?
’

‘
That's exactly it
,’
Samantha nodded, and looked about her for
support. They were all nodding and murmuring agreement.

‘
What are we trying to achieve? Do we truly believe that we will be able
to hold up the delivery of toxic crudes to the refinery at Galveston?
Let's define our objectives,
’
Tom insisted.

‘
In order for evil men to triumph it is necessary only that good men do
nothing. We are doing something.
’

‘
Bullshit, Sam
,’
Tom growled.
"Let's cut down on the rhetoric - it's one of the things that does us
more harm than good. You talk like a nut and you discredit yourself
before you have begun.
’

‘
All right
,’
Samantha grinned.
‘
We are publicizing
the dangers, and our opposition to them.
’

‘
Okay
,’
Tom nodded.
‘
That's
better. What are our other objectives?
’

They discussed that for twenty
minutes more, and then Tom Parker took over again.

‘
Fine, now how do we get out there in the Straits to confront this vessel
- do we put on our water-wings and swim?
’

Even Samantha looked sheepish
now. She glanced around for support, but the others were studying their
fingernails or gazing with sudden fascination out of the windows.

‘
Well
,’
Samantha began, and then hesitated.
‘We thought –‘

‘
Go on
,’
Tom
encouraged her.
‘
Of course, you weren't thinking of using University
property, were you? There is actually a law in this country against
taking other people's ships - it's called piracy.
’

‘
As a matter of fact -'
Samantha gave a helpless shrug.

‘
And as a senior and highly respected member of the faculty, you would
not expect me to be party to a criminal act.
’

They were all silent,
watching Samantha, for she was their leader, but for once she was at a
loss.

‘
On the other hand, if a party of graduate researchers put in a
requisition, through the proper channels, I would be quite happy to
authorize an extended field expedition across the Straits to Grand
Bahama on board the Dicky.
’

‘
Tom, you're a darling
,’
said Samantha.

‘
That's a hell of a way to speak to your Professor
,’
said Tom, and scowled
happily at her.

‘
They came in on the British Airways flight from Heathrow yesterday
afternoon. Three of them, here is a list of the names,
’
Bernard Wackie
slid a notepad across the desk, and Nicholas glanced at it quickly.

‘
Charles Gras - I know him, he's Chief Engineer at Construction Navale
Atlantique
,’
Nicholas explained.

‘
Right
,’
Bernard nodded.
‘
He gave his occupation and employer to
Immigration.’

‘
Isn't that privileged information?
’

Bernard grinned.
‘
I
keep my ear to the ground,
’
and then he was deadly serious again.
‘
All
right, so these three engineers have a small suitcase each and a crate
in the hold t
h
at weighs three hundred and fifty kilos, and it's marked
“
Industrial Machinery
”
.
’

‘
Don't stop now,
’
Nicholas encouraged him.

‘
And there is an S6
1
N Sikorsky helicopter sitting waiting for them on the
tarmac. The helicopter has been chartered direct from London by Christy
Marine of Leadenhall Street. The three engineers and the case of
machinery are shuttled aboard the Sikorsky so fast that it looks like a
conjuring trick, and she takes off and egg-beats for the south.

‘
Did the Sikorsky pilot file a flight-plan?
’

‘
Sure did. Servicing
shipping, course 196 magnetic. ETA to be reported.
’

‘
What's the range of
the 6
1
N - 500 nautical miles?
’

‘
Not bad
,’
Bernard conceded.
'533 for the standard, but this model has long-range tanks, she's good
for 75
0
. But that's one way, not the return journey. The helicopter
hasn't returned to Bermuda yet.
’

‘
She could refuel aboard - or, if they
aren't carrying avgas, she could stay on until final destination
,’
Nicholas said.
‘
What else have you got?
’

‘
You want more?
’
Bernard looked
aghast.
‘
Doesn't anything ever satisfy you?
’

‘
Did you monitor the
communications between Bermuda Control, the chopper, and the ship she
was servicing?
’

‘
Nix
,’
Bernard shook his head.
‘
There was a box-up.
’
He
looked shamefaced.
‘
It happens to the best of us.
’

‘
Spare me the details.
Can you get information from Bermuda Control of the time the chopper
closed her flight-plan?
’

‘
Jesus, Nicholas, you know better than that.
It's an offence to listen in on the aviation frequencies, let alone ask
them.
’

Nicholas jumped up, and crossed swiftly to the perspex plot. He
brooded over it, leaning on clenched fists, his expression smouldering
as he studied the large-scale map.

‘
What does all this mean to you, Nicholas?
’
Bernard came to stand beside
him.

‘
It means that a vessel at sea, belonging to the Christy Marine fleet,
has requested its head office to send machinery spares and specialist
personnel by the fastest possible means, without regard to expense. Have
you figured the air freight on a package Of
350
kilos?
’

Nicholas
straightened up and groped for the crocodile-skin cheroot case.

‘
It means that the vessel is broken down or in imminent danger of
breakdown somewhere in an area south-west of Bermuda, within an arc of
four hundred and fifty miles probably much closer, otherwise she would
have requested service from the Bahamas, and it's highly unlikely they
would have operated the chopper at extreme range.
’

‘
Right
,’
Bernard agreed.
Nicholas lit his cheroot and they were both silent a moment.

‘
A hell of a small needle in a bloody big haystack
,’
said Bernard.

‘Y
ou let me worry about that,
’
Nicholas murmured, still without taking his
eyes from the plot.