wrath of the Sea Queen (26 page)

Thirty minutes later, one of the guardsmen announced that they
were getting
ready to
refuel
.  Vin concentrated briefly on the winds and se
n
t them clear of the plane so that they would not hamper the procedures
, and
then
restored them as s
oon as the plane was clear
. 

The clock displayed
eight thirty
when they finally landed on the military base near Hilo.  Reports were already coming in of the downed aircraft
, along with
update
s
on
its location
and status; but they had not yet been able to launch a rescue attempt due to the weather
.

Once they were on the ground, Vin could see across the distance, through the
falling raindrops
, that a
huge
storm
offshore
was
,
indeed
,
darkening the horizon and causing turmoil in the water.  As he looked up into the clouds,
he
did not like the circular motion he saw there
either
.
 
He
hoped they would
find a way to
reach the crash
site
before he
was forced to
attempt to deal with winds on that large of a scale. 
Vin
noted that
,
in his
recent
endeavor
,
using his gift
fatigued him slightly.  It must be the restrictions of his
physical
body that were taking
their
toll on his ability
, something he never noticed wh
ile
on the other side of the barrier
.  He would have to keep that in mind when using his
gift
going forward, so he didn
'
t overexert himself. 
Vin
knew he
would be no good to anyone if he passed out.

A nudge from Ben brought
Vin’s
attention back to the present.  The
guards
men
assigned to the rescue mission
began boarding a shuttle that would carry them the short distance to the docks and
a
waiting
Coast Guard
ship. 
As they rode, Vin to
ld Ben about
C
a
eli
's
voicemail
message
that he had just played
.

A short time later, the
bus
pulled up beside a huge ship, easily larger than any cruise ship Vin
had
ever s
een
. 
P
ainted
primarily
gray with the traditional, distinguishing
,
bright red-orange
trim
, it
would be difficult to miss this ship, even in a storm.  There was a helicopter secured at one end of the deck, and several smaller boats attached to the opposite side.  Jeremy
described it as
one of
the
best
equipped
ship
s
in the
fleet
; designed
and prepared
for
almost
anything.  Vin certainly hoped so. 

They boarded and stood waiting for the ship to launch, but it
did
n
o
t
.  A bank of dense, gray fog rolled in
as the ship
prepar
ed
to depart
.  It completely surrounded the harbor,
drastically reducing visibility.  No
thing could be seen more
than
a few feet in any direction.  Ben left Vin standing on deck to check with the ship's captain.  The fog may be disconcerting to the eyes, but it should not deter the electronic devices.  They should still be able to launch. 

Ben returned a few minutes later
r
eport
ing
that, for unknown reason
s
, the radar
could not
penetrate the fog
.  T
he captain could not launch until the fog cleared
and
was hopeful that it would
dissipate
as quickly as it
arrived
.  B
en was doubtful.  He suspected that if someone
really had
used the weather to bring th
e
plane down, then using the weather to prevent rescue attempts
also seemed feasible
. 
Even though they knew the exact location of the plane, they
may not be able to reach
th
e
endangered
craft
and their wives
.  It was all too convenient, and his instincts, honed over more than
fifteen
years as a cop, were telling
Ben
that something else was at work.
 
Whatever
it
was
, it
lurked
out there with
Salma
and C
a
eli.
 
Ben walked up to Vin and leaned against the rail next to him. 

"I know
that
what you did on the plane took a bit out of you. 
However,
if you have
the
stamina to work a little more of your magic, now would be a good time.  Otherwise, we might be sitting here for hours.  The captain's instruments
, mysteriously,
can
no
t penetrate this fog, so he can
't
launch
the ship
.
"

Vin did not reply.  He remained where he
stood
, leaning with his arms on the rails.  He
held
his hands clasped in front of him and closed his eyes once more.  Vin could not connect with the clouds
of fog
, but he could feel the wind.  He focused on
push
ing the fog off into the distance, leaving a clear path between the dock and the
location
of the
downed
plane. 
Vin attempted to open the entire distance because he
did not want to
be forced
to try this again out in the middle of the ocean. 
After a while,
t
h
e
swaying
of the ship brought his awareness back to his body,
and
Vin
slowly opened his eyes.  Ben reached out quickly to catch him as his knees unexpectedly buckled.
 
Vin
was
the one
doing the swaying, not the ship.

"
Thanks.  I'm ok,
"
Vi
n
said, holding
on
to the rail
and lower
ing
himself onto a large piece of steel rigging nearby
.  He
sat with his head between his knees for a few minutes before continuing. 

"
I must have tried to clear more than I realized.  I wanted to
open a cl
ear
path
from here to the
plane
so I wouldn't have to
repeat
the
performance
.  There must have been a lot to clear.  It takes a
bit
more out of me than it did before,
and I
a
m getting a lot of
unusual
resistance.  I don't remember feeling that before
either;
but I'll be fine in a few minutes.
"

Ben watched Vin carefully to make sure his movements confirmed his words.

The ship lurch
ed
beneath their feet as it began to pull
away from
the dock and ease out into the harbor.  Vin
succe
eded
, and the ship was underway.  Vin looked up
to see
Ben
grinning
down at him.

"
Let's
go find
a
place to rest
.  It is going to be a while before we get there, and there
is nothing else
we can do to help.  We would only be in the way.  I think it would be best if we were both
well
rested when we arrive.
"

"
That sounds like a good idea to me,
"
Vin agreed.  He stood up and followed Ben to a hatch that led to the decks below.

They climbed down several ladders before reaching the level where the crews' bunks were located.
 
In t
he bunkhouse
,
rows and rows of three tiered bunk beds
were spaced tightly down each side of the room
.  Each
bed
was
just
spac
ious
enough
for an average
-
sized man to lay flat with his pack at his feet. 
A
t this point, Vin realized
that his exhaustion made him indifferent to the c
old
i
ron railings
and the
uncomfortable metal slab
beneath the thin mattress
.  All he wanted to do was l
ie
down and sleep. 
Vin
hopped into
the top bunk
immediately
on the left, and Ben took the top bunk on the next
stack
.  They were both asleep within minutes.