Клайв Касслер - Marauder

The latch was shattered. He pushed against the hatch, and after a moment of resistance, it flew open.

He kicked himself up and out and found that he was on the stern deck behind the superstructure. The surface was already awash.

He looked down at the hatch to see Eddie’s and Raven’s heads pop up. He took the duffel from Eddie and then lifted each of them out.

He shoved the duffel into Raven’s hands and said, “Help Eddie get to the Gator .”

Then he turned and sprinted up the exterior stairs, taking them two at a time.

At the top, he saw Sylvia straining to pull Eric out of the bridge. Two dead mercenaries blocking her way didn’t make the task easier.

She ripped off the gas mask and handed it to Juan.

“He’s in there.”

Juan put it on, noting that only the upper parts of the Centaurus ’s cranes were now sticking out of the water. One minute left.

“Will the water short out the rocket ignition?” he asked.

“I doubt it.”

“Get some life jackets. Locker one level down.”

She dashed down the stairs.

Juan went into the bridge. Linc was on his back.

“Lying down on the job, buddy?” Juan said.

Linc responded with a hearty groan. Juan didn’t know if that meant he appreciated the joke.

Juan reached under the shoulders of the massive Navy SEAL and pulled him to the exit. When he was outside, he laid Linc down and tossed the mask aside.

Sylvia came back with four life vests. They put them on Linc and Eddie first, then donned their own.

By this time, the bridge was only thirty feet above the water instead of sixty.

“All right,” Juan said to Sylvia. “Jump. Be ready to assist Eric.”

She nodded. Without hesitation, she climbed the railing and leaped into the water below.

Juan easily picked up Eric. “Time for a quick swim. Hold your breath.”

He tossed Eric into the water. The moment he landed, Sylvia came over to him to make sure she got his head above the surface.

Linc was going to be a tougher one to deal with. Juan bent over and pulled Linc’s arm over his back and put his shoulder against Linc’s midsection. He then squatted the entire two hundred and fifty pounds into a standing position.

Juan edged over to the side with his rear toward the railing. As soon as he felt the steel, Juan tipped over backward just like he did when they were scuba diving off a boat.

The two of them tumbled through the air and splashed into the water.

In less than thirty seconds, two hundred and ninety-eight rockets were set to detonate virtually under their feet.

—

Polk’s eyes fluttered open, and he wondered why he was wet. Dim lights shined from the corners of the room. His last memory was that he’d been looking for that woman. He’d entered the ship’s galley and saw the mercenary’s body. Then he had a vague recollection about his wife, but that was all he remembered.

The only sound was the water rushing to fill the room. The air was ripe with the salty tang of seawater.

And then he realized he was no longer wearing his mask.

He tried to get to his feet, but his legs wouldn’t move. His arms would only make jerky movements.

He was paralyzed.

He’d been exposed to the Enervum gas. It had to be that woman. Somehow, she’d outwitted him. He didn’t even know who she was, but he couldn’t hate her more.

Water quickly rose around him. He thrashed him arms, but they were useless. He tried screaming for help, but he could form no words. His voice became the distressed wail of a terrified animal.

Polk continued his pitiful cry until it was doused by the water covering his face.

SEVENTY-SIX

The Gator motored over to where Juan was holding up Linc. Next to him, Sylvia was treading water with Eric. Eddie and Raven had already been picked up by Linda, and they were on the deck with MacD.

They came alongside and pulled Eric out of the water, then Sylvia. Linc was next.

Finally, Juan kicked himself onto the deck and followed the others in, grabbing a metal handhold, like the others had, while keeping a grip with his free hand on Linc’s life jacket to keep him from falling back into the water.

“Go, Linda,” he shouted.

She gunned the diesel, and the Gator rose until its hull was gliding across the surface.

Behind them, the superstructure and cranes of the Centaurus were all that was visible as water bubbled around it. The Sydney Harbour Bridge and opera house gleamed in the distance, framing the hundreds of sailboats and pleasure yachts that had gathered to observe the New Year’s Eve celebration.

“Midnight coming up,” MacD yelled over the wind. “Five . . . four . . . three . . . two . . . one . . .”

Fireworks shot up along the entire arch of the bridge in a glorious display of color. Glittering showers of sparkling crackers rained from its side.

Not three hundred yards away, the last of the Centaurus disappeared into the harbor. To punctuate its demise, a bright flash erupted underneath the surface as hundreds of rockets detonated simultaneously. A volcano of water exploded upward, lifting a dome of white foam into the air. It collapsed upon itself, sending out waves that diminished in size rapidly as they rippled in all directions.

The water settled again, and the flash vanished as suddenly as it had appeared.

Linda slowed the Gator and brought it to a stop.

“Are we clear?” she yelled.

Juan breathed in. He didn’t feel light-headed or woozy.

“How does everyone else feel?” he asked.

All of them were sopping wet except for MacD. Nobody was shivering, though. Even this late at night, the air was warm and pleasant.

“Other than my ankle killing me, I’m fine,” Eddie said.

“I think the water neutralized the gas just like we expected,” Raven said.

“Come on up and join us, Linda,” Juan called. “The weather’s beautiful.”

They were still catching their breath, not ready to do the hard work of lowering Linc and Eric into the Gator . So Raven and MacD propped Linc against the cupola to make him more comfortable while Sylvia cradled Eric’s head in her lap. Even though he was paralyzed, he seemed quite content.

Linda climbed up through the hatch and looked them over.

“You guys are a motley sight,” she said. “Is everyone okay?”

“Some better than others,” Juan said. “We’ve got a few injuries that will need tending. Eric and Linc got hit by the same gas that paralyzed Murph.”

“Oh, no.”

“There is good news. I hope.”

Juan took the duffel from Raven and unzipped it. He took out one of the plastic packs. He opened and removed one of the vials.

It was unbroken, just like all the others.

“This is the antidote,” Juan said. He looked at Linc and Eric. “Hopefully, you won’t be in this condition for very long. As soon as we get back to the Oregon , we’ll give these to Julia. She’s going to have a busy night.”

The fireworks kept going, the pops and bangs a familiar and heartwarming sound.

“When you told us to sink the ship,” MacD said, “Ah was sure we wouldn’t be seeing y’all again. Ah didn’t like being the one sending you to the bottom.”

“That’s the Chairman’s Plan C for you,” Eddie said. “Victory snatched from the jaws of defeat.”

Juan nodded. “Max is going to read me the riot act when we get back.”

“Speaking of jaws of defeat, what happened to Polk?”

“I don’t know.”

“I do,” Sylvia said. “He went down with the ship.”

“What did you do to get away from him?” Juan asked.

“I gave him a taste of his own medicine.”