Return to The Deep (From The Deep Book 2) (20 page)

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Greg had been thrown off balance by the explosion and along with the others, had been knocked to the ground. He was vaguely aware of someone from the other boat shouting at him as he pulled himself back to his feet. The plans had been to slow, drop the bomb and accelerate away from the blast zone, however, something had gone wrong, and be it miscommunication or just poor timing, they had been caught in the resulting explosion. The rear of the Lady of the Water had been tossed towards Andrews' boat, and Greg was praying there wasn’t any damage to Victor's vessel, which might cost him another body part or worse. He squinted at the man on the boat opposite, who was pacing and screaming. If he was a government official, he didn’t look the part. He was wearing shorts and a white t-shirt, and his hair was sticking up in the back. Greg staggered closer to the stern to hear him.

"What the hell did you just do?" Andrews screamed, the prominent vein in his forehead pulsing in fury.

"What I had to," Greg replied with a grin. "That bastard fish of yours ruined my life."

"You fucking idiot! There's a diver down there in the water!"

Greg froze, the grin melting off his face. This wasn’t what he wanted. Not more death. His issue was with the creature and the creature alone.

"I didn’t know, how could I know? You should have warned us," Greg stammered.

"I tried but you didn’t answer your damn radio."

Tom and the others had overheard, and now all of them stood on deck looking at Greg.

"We need to get down and help. Whoever is down there could be trapped," Joanne said.

"Not with that creature in the water. No way," Fernando said.

"Creature is dead. My bomb very powerful," Pavel interjected.

Andrews glanced inside the open wheelhouse door to the monitor, but the feed was dead.

"I don’t have any diving gear on board this boat," Andrews said. "Do you have anyone with diving experience that can get down there?"

"Jim, you've taken diving lessons haven’t you?" Fernando asked.

"I'm not going down there. No way."

"Come on, we need you."

"Forget it. I’m not risking my own skin for someone I don’t know."

"Is that what you said to Clayton?" Joanne said before she could stop herself.

"You should watch your mouth, bitch," Jim spat back.

"Hey, don’t talk to her like that," Tom said, shoving Jim in the shoulder.

"Fuck her, and fuck you. You don’t tell me what to do."

"Look, we don’t have time for this. Someone needs to go down there and help them," Marie said.

"I’ll go."

They looked around to see Greg struggling to climb into a wetsuit.

"You can't go, you're..." Fernando's words died in his throat.

"Disabled, I know. I’m also the only qualified diver here. Now, will you shut up and help me into this wetsuit?"

Tom hurried to Greg, helping him to fasten the suit.

"Thanks," Greg muttered. "Air tanks are in there," he said pointing to the small door by the wheelhouse. "Grab that box from in there too."

Tom did as he was told, grabbing the scuba tank as Fernando dragged out the box behind it.

"What happened to not caring?" Tom said as he helped Greg to strap on the heavy scuba tank.

"Whatever you lot might think of me, I’m not some heartless prick. As much as I hate this monster, I don’t hate it enough to get more blood on my hands. Trust me, I've been there."

"Will you be okay down there, with your hand I mean?" Tom said.

Greg nodded. "Got it covered."

He walked over to the box which Fernando had dragged out on deck and removed the lid.

"What is it?" Tom asked as he looked inside.

"Pegasus thruster. Single diver propeller to aid underwater movement. These things can be pretty nippy. Can get up to quite a speed too. Clip it onto my scuba tank will ya?"

“How do you control it with just one hand?" Tom asked as he strapped the elongated black unit with the propeller at the rear onto Greg’s scuba tank.

"It’s pretty simple really," he said, grabbing the cable attached to the unit. At the end was a contoured hand controller with a grey button on top.

"I can pretty much do it all with my thumb. I press the button, the prop kicks in, and I get a speed boost."

"Fast?" Tom asked.

"I hope so. The bugger is pretty powerful, so it should get me down there sharpish to help this diver and get him back to the surface."

"Her," Andrews shouted.

"What's that?" Greg replied, looking over his shoulder.

"Her. The diver is a woman."

"You let a woman dive down there with that thing in the water?"

"Trust me, it’s not like I had a choice. Now, can we hurry this along?"

Greg nodded and walked to the transom, as Pavel opened the hatch leading to the diving platform at the rear. As Greg went to pass, the Russian grabbed him by the upper arm, his grip vice like as he whispered in Greg's ear. "Don’t die down there. Remember, you still owe Mr Mallone money."

"Thanks for the support, Pavel," Greg said, pulling his arm free. "I'll try my best."

Greg sat on the platform, his feet in the water. Adrenaline surged through him. He hadn’t been in the ocean since he'd lost his hand, and almost his life, and it took every ounce of effort to keep the memories of what happened repressed. Tom brought out the facemask and helped Greg put it on.

"Alright," the Australian said, unable to keep the waver out of his voice, "keep an eye out for me. I’ll go down there and take a look. When we get back, get us out of the water quick."

"Got it," Tom said.

Greg put the regulator in his mouth and took two deep breaths, then gave the thumbs up. He shuffled to the edge then stopped and removed the mouthpiece. "You have to believe I didn’t want this to work out like this. I never wanted to hurt anyone." He replaced the mouthpiece and shuffled over the edge as the others watched, disappearing beneath the surface in a torrent of bubbles.

CHAPTER THIRTY

Bracing against the wall as best she could, Clara was powerless to do anything but watch as the creature lunged and snapped, as it tried to pull her from her sanctuary. She was remarkably calm as the giant dagger like teeth ground and clipped off the rock. Every time the creature opened its mouth, she could feel the change in temperature between the cool water and the heat of the monsters maw, and the suction as seawater was pulled into its depths, threatening to take her with it.

I’m going to die.

It was with calm that she readily accepted her fate. There seemed little point in fighting it. Already, the creature had broken away some of the rock, and she knew it wouldn’t be long until it had made a large enough hole to pluck her out and devour her. She wondered if it would hurt, if she would be aware as those fifteen inch teeth punctured her body, if she would feel her bones crushed as she was swallowed into its stinking, black gullet.

II

Greg saw immediately the damage done by the explosive they had dropped. The cave roof had been obliterated, the original entrance completely sealed by debris. Inside, directly below, Greg could see the creature as it lunged and snapped at the wall. Between each thrust, he could see the pale blue wetsuit of the trapped diver.

A mixture of feelings surged through him. Guilt. Excitement. Fear. None able to quite take control, and content instead, to swirl around his brain and wait for him to make a decision. He hadn't considered what he was actually going to do when he arrived before he had made the dive. It had seemed like the most natural and right thing to do under the circumstances. The half idea he had formulated, seemed like nothing but a suicide mission now that the creature was within sight. He took a moment to look at it, hating how despite himself, he had a certain respect for its sheer power and majesty. It took another lunge by the creature at the diver trapped to spur him into action. He swam closer to the hole, his thumb hovering over the trigger for the Pegasus thruster. He didn’t even really know if it would be fast enough to keep him at a safe distance from the creature, and yet, he found that very fact to fill him with euphoria. As he approached, and could better see the powerful tentacles and the immense flipper-tail of the creature, he was transported back to the day in the cage. The day he had been so overwhelmingly stunned to see such an incredible creature, which against all odds, had remained hidden from mankind for so long. Anger replaced wonder, and he knew it was time to do what he came to do before he lost his nerve. Taking a second to compose himself, Greg depressed the button held in his remaining hand, activating the twin propellers attached to his air tanks and launching him towards the hole where the cave roof once stood.

The reaction of the creature was immediate. Still infuriated by the attack on its lair, it turned towards Greg and snapped its jaws, the concussion wave enough to rock the Australian as he circled away.

The creature didn’t give chase, instead, it turned back towards Clara, smashing its nose into the tiny gap in the cave wall as it tried to pluck her free.

Greg came again, this time arcing towards the creature from the front, skimming down past its head and massive eye.

I’m close enough to reach out and touch it.

He said to himself as he dove under its giant flipper and circled around again.

At least I could if I had a hand.

A mad cackle of laughter reverberated around his skull, as he came again at the creature, aiming for its eye then veering away at the last second. Once again, the creature snapped.

Greg circled away, marvelling at the manoeuvrability he was afforded by the thruster. His excitement lasted only seconds, however. As this time, the creature didn’t return its attention to Clara.

It was coming for him.

He sped through the opening in the roof, sensing more than seeing the creature smashing through in pursuit. He pushed his flippered feet together, as he tried to eke every last drop of speed from the Pegasus thruster. He glanced over his shoulder and had to swallow the scream which lurched up into his throat. His entire field of vision was taken up by the creature. Suddenly, the ocean didn’t quite seem like such a wide and expansive place. He considered going deeper, back into one of the other caves, which were scattered across the floor of the ocean. Instead, he ascended, hoping the diver he was desperately trying to free had taken the opportunity to get to the surface.

III

Clara didn’t think she would be able to move. She watched the creature go, a streak of green and grey as it lurched through the hole in the roof in pursuit of whatever had grabbed its attention. After the utter chaos and violence of its repeated attacks as it tried to get to her, the silence in which she now lay was somehow worse. She could feel her body trembling, her breath ragged as she gulped in air, grateful just to be breathing. She wasn’t sure what it was that set her into motion. Partly, it was the thought of the creature coming back to finish what it started. Partly, it was the fear of the roof finally giving way and trapping her forever, leaving her destined to die a slow, painful death, as she waited for her air to run out. Mostly, though, it was the thought that life would go on without her. She felt an intense need, a desire to live it, to take part in the world as one of its citizens, not to die in a cave and possibly never to be recovered. She couldn’t bear the idea of her parents having to bury an empty coffin. That image spurred her to move. She pulled herself free, glancing at the huge gouges in the rock, and kicked furiously, making for the bobbing shadow of the boats hull, curious to see the second boat alongside it and wondering where it had come from.

IV

It was a life and death situation. Greg was in no doubt of that. He no longer dared look over his shoulder, and didn’t have to. He could feel the sheer mass of the creature behind him. Using the weight of his body to change direction, he was becoming aware that he was nowhere near as efficiently designed for underwater manoeuvrability than his pursuer. Despite his best effort, the snapping behemoth was closing on him. He absently wondered if he had given the diver enough time to escape, a thought followed quickly by the idea that for all he knew, it could be a waste of time, and said diver could already be dead, pierced by one of the creature’s giant teeth. Either way, he had done all he could, and had given them all the time he could spare to escape. As powerful as it was, the Pegasus thruster had a limited fuel supply, and he couldn’t even begin to think about the repercussions if it expired before he had managed to get to safety. He angled to his left, catching a glimpse of his giant pursuer in his peripheral vision as he changed direction. Larger and slower to turn, Greg bought himself some precious distance as the creature turned to follow. In the distance, he could see the diver making for the surface, nothing but a dark blue shadow against the paler backdrop of the expansive ocean. His distraction almost cost him, and he instinctively veered to the right, ascending at the same time as the creature closed, biting down on the area of ocean he had occupied just seconds earlier. Trying to squeeze every last ounce of performance from the Pegasus, Greg focussed on reaching the boats without trying to think about how he might find the time to board it before he was devoured. He smiled inside, and wondered if he had lost his mind.

V

On the surface, there was little evidence of the life and death struggles going on beneath the surface. Andrews had seen Clara free herself from the cave wall, from the camera, which she had left behind, and was now readying the tranquilizer harpoon. Loaded with a powerful drug used to stun Bull elephants in the wild, Andrews knew he would likely only have one shot. The dart acted quickly, however, was likely to infuriate the creature until the drug took effect. He was just finishing attaching the dart when Clara broke the surface of the water. He hurried to the stern, holding out a hand as she swam towards him. Rather than watch her, he was staring beyond into the ocean, expecting to see the mammoth head appear beneath her and snatch her back into the abyss when she was so close to freedom. However, that didn’t happen, and she grasped Andrews's hand as he pulled her from the water, gritting his teeth as she scrambled onto the deck. She pulled off her goggles, spat out her regulator, and unclipped her tanks, letting them fall to the deck. She took a second to appreciate it, the feel of the baking sun warming her skin, the feeling of fresh air going into her lungs, even the sight of her shadow, narrow as it stretched across the deck. She knew she had been lucky to survive.

"Jesus, Clara," Andrews said as he turned back to the harpoon gun, "you could have been killed down there. What the hell were you thinking?"

"There's no time for that now. That thing is on the loose."

"I know, I was watching the feed," Andrews snapped.

"Did you see the eggs?"

"Yeah, I saw them," Andrews said, his throat suddenly dry. He swallowed, coughed, and then turned back to the weapon. "I called it in. The fleet are on their way."

"How long?"

"Too long. I’m gonna have to tranq it."

"You can’t do that without killing it, can you?" She asked, pushing the wet hair from her forehead.

"At this point, I don’t care. I just want this stopped."

Clara nodded. Even as a child, she had always been pro animal conservation, always believed that there was no viable reason to kill any other living creature, and had even fought against the harming of the creature during the first encounter. Something came to her then, an epiphany of sorts. Something which she must have always known on some level, but had never acknowledged.

"This is all my fault," she said to Andrews.

"What do you mean?"

"Everything that's happening here and now, it's all my fault."

"How exactly do you figure that?" Andrews said as he snapped the barrel of the harpoon rifle into position.

"In the ice cave. You weren’t there of course, but I was. Rainwater and me...Mackay..." she lowered her head and continued to speak, unable to look at him. "We put this thing back into the water. We allowed it to swim free. If we'd have just left it there on the bank, it would have died.”

"And Russo would have lived, which means there was a good chance you wouldn’t have."

"That's not the point. Russo was wounded, we could have handled it."

"Clara, please, I-"

He was stopped mid-sentence by the commotion from the other boat. Andrews looked at them, the teens, as they shouted and pointed. Andrews and Clara turned, squinting at the sun as it scattered gold across the surface of the water. They still saw it though, and Andrews felt the unforgettable numb ache of terror creep up on him like an old friend. For the first time, he appreciated how completely out of his depth he was. Although he had seen the creature up close countless times in the facility in Florida, he was always safe. Always on the surface or in the underground viewing area. Now however, things had changed. Now he was in a tiny boat on the ocean, and the enormous wake that rolled towards them was showing no sign of slowing.

"Jesus Christ," he muttered as he picked up the rifle.

"You're shaking," Clara said, glancing from the wake to Andrews.

"I'll be fine."

"Bullshit you will. Give it to me. I'll take the shot."

"I can’t do that; I have a responsibility to-"

"Damn it, Andrews, just hand me the weapon.”

Andrews did as he was told, partially glad to be free of the responsibility. Clara took the gun and walked to the stern, then climbed up on the transom. She spread her feet, distributing her weight, then tucked the rifle into her shoulder, nestling it there and getting comfortable as she watched the wake roll closer. For the first time, she truly understood how Rainwater must have felt that first night back on the fishing boat, when he had seen a wake much bigger than this one approach and broadside his father’s fishing boat. She could see the psychological damage that could cause, and felt bad for giving him such a hard time about it. Pushing it aside, she concentrated on her breathing, on matching her movements with the steady bob and sway of the boat. Less easy to push aside was the duality of the situation, the similarity to another time when she was in an almost identical position. Back then of course, she had been bullied into it by Russo, who was refusing to rescue Rainwater and his crew from their boat, which was under attack from the creature unless she took the shot for him. Like all the memories of that time, it came back to her with an oozing ease, the memories, ones she knew she would never be able to forget.

Murmurs from those on deck pulled Russo's attention back to the water, just in time to see the creature smash broadside into the boat a second time, making deck boards explode as it was spun around, the resulting wake slewing the Victorious aside and furthering the distance between it and the Lisa Marie. Already wounded, the fishing boat began to slide slowly into the ocean, its bow lifting out of the water as its stern sank. The crew scrambled to stay above the waterline as the creature retreated again, pausing to snag Ox's body where it bobbed on the surface, swallowing it in a singular bite, as it once again raced away and readied a new attack.