Десмонд Бэгли - The Spoilers

The deck vibrated underfoot and Metcalfe held up his hand in warning. As Warren came up, he said in a low voice, ‘We just got here in time. She’s under way.’ He pointed. ‘There’s the bridge ladder — let’s go.’

He ran forward lightly and climbed up on to the bridge.

Even as Warren followed he thought it incredible that they should not yet have been seen; but now it came to the crunch — you don’t invade a ship’s bridge without the skipper having objections.

Metcalfe arrived on the bridge first and, as though by a preconceived plan, Tozier appeared simultaneously from the other side. There were four men on the bridge; the skipper, two officers and the helmsman. The skipper looked incredulously at the sub-machine-gun cradled by Tozier and whirled around only to be confronted by Metcalfe. As he opened his mouth Metcalfe snapped, ‘ Arrêtez! ’ and then, for good measure, added in Arabic, ‘ Ukaf! ’

The gesture he made with the gun was good in all languages and the skipper shut his mouth. A sweeping motion from Tozier’s sub-machine-gun herded the officers aside, while Metcalfe motioned the helmsman to stay where he was. Warren stood at the top of the bridge ladder and held his pistol loosely in his hand. He looked down at Hellier who stood guard at the bottom of the ladder; presumably Follet was doing the same on the other side.

The ship was still moving slowly and he could now see the widening gap of water between the Orestes and the quay. Metcalfe grasped the brass handle of the engine-room telegraph and rang for half speed, and the telegraph clanged again as the engineer obeyed the order. With the gun in his back the helmsman looked at Metcalfe’s pointing finger and nodded vigorously. He spun the spokes of the wheel and the quay receded faster.

Suddenly there was an interruption. Eastman stepped from the bridge house and froze as he saw what was happening. His hand dipped beneath his coat and was magically full of gun. Warren brought up his own pistol to the ready and for the minutest fraction of a second the tableau was held. Then Eastman cried out under the impact of a steel bar which struck his arm from behind. His gun went off and there was a ringing clang and a whine as the bullet ricocheted from metal and away over the sea. But he still held on to the gun and whirled on Dan Parker, who was just behind him with a steel bar gripped in his hand as though it had grown there.

He drove his elbow into Parker’s stomach and Parker doubled up in pain, the steel bar clattering to the deck. Then Eastman was gone at a dead run and Warren heard the bang of a door in the distance.

Metcalfe moved first. He ran to the side of the bridge and looked ashore and saw the ripple of movement as heads turned towards the departing ship. ‘They heard that,’ he said, and raised his voice. ‘Johnny, come up here.’ He turned to Tozier. ‘The crew will have heard it, too. Can you hold the bridge while Johnny and I nail Eastman.’

‘Carry on,’ said Tozier. ‘Nick, get Hellier up here, then look at our friend with the iron bar.’ He turned to the officers. ‘Who speaks English?’ he asked conversationally.

‘I speak English good,’ said the skipper.

‘Then we’ll get along together. Get the loudhailer and tell the crew to assemble on the forehatch there. But first, where’s the radio shack?’

The skipper took a deep breath as though nerving himself to defiance but stopped short as Tozier’s gun jerked threateningly. He nodded his head to where Warren was helping Parker to his feet. ‘Through there.’

‘Watch him,’ said Tozier to Hellier, and went off fast. When he returned he found the skipper bellowing into the loudhailer under the supervision of Hellier and already the crew was assembled. As he had thought, there were few of them; the ship was undermanned.

‘I’d give a lot to know if that’s all,’ he said, looking down at them.

Warren came forward with Parker at his side. ‘This is Dan Parker; he might be able to tell us.’

Tozier smiled. ‘Glad to know you.’

‘I’m even gladder to know you,’ said Parker. He looked over the deck. ‘That’s all — but I don’t see the engine-room staff. If they stop the engines we’re dead mutton.’

‘They couldn’t have heard the shot,’ said Tozier. ‘But we can soon find out.’ He rang for full speed on the telegraph and it clanged obediently. ‘No one has told them yet.’

‘If we get them out of there I can handle the engines,’ said Parker. He looked around. ‘Where’s Mike?’

‘I haven’t seen him,’ said Warren. ‘Where was he?’

‘In his cabin, I think.’

‘We’ll find him later,’ said Tozier impatiently. ‘What can we do with the crew? We have to secure the ship before anything else.’

‘There’s an empty hold,’ said Parker. ‘They’ll be safe enough in there.’

‘Nick, you and Hellier go along with Parker and see to it — and take this lot with you.’ Tozier indicated the ship’s officers. ‘They won’t give you any trouble; they look a pretty poor lot to me.’ He pulled at his lower lip. ‘I hope Tom is doing all right, though.’

Warren helped secure the crew and herded them into the hold, and then the three of them took over the engineroom. He left Parker and Hellier down there, put the three engineers with the rest of the crew, and then looked up to the bridge. Tozier leaned over the rail. ‘We’ve got a problem — come up here.’

‘What about this lot?’

‘I’ll send Abbot down — we found him. Leave him your gun.’

Abbot came down and gave Warren a cheery grin. ‘A nice bit of fun and games,’ he said. ‘I was very glad to see the gang.’

Warren gave him the gun. ‘What’s the problem?’

‘That’s a beauty — I’ll leave your pals up there to tell you.’

Warren went up to the bridge and found Follet on the wheel with Tozier close by. Tozier said quickly, ‘We have Eastman bottled up, but it’s a stand-off. Tom is keeping the cork in the bottle down there, but it leaves us with a problem. He’s down where the torpedoes are, so we can’t get rid of the heroin until we winkle him out.’

‘He went to protect the loot,’ said Follet, ‘It’s my guess he’s expecting to be rescued. The crew can’t do it, but Delorme has Fuad’s yacht and she might chase us.’

Warren dismissed that eventuality. ‘What arrangements have been made for firing the torpedoes?’

Tozier pointed. ‘Those two buttons near the helm. Press those and you fire two torpedoes.’

Warren nodded. We can get rid of half the heroin.’ He took a step forward.

Tozier grabbed him. ‘Steady on. Your man, Parker, has been working too hard. All the torpedoes are live. He found some explosives — each warhead is carrying a hundred and eighty pounds of TNT.’

‘Short of a hydrogen bomb it’ll be the most expensive bang in history,’ said Follet.

Warren was perplexed. ‘But what’s the problem?’

Tozier stared at him. ‘Christ, man; you can’t shoot live torpedoes indiscriminately in the Mediterranean — especially these. They have an eighteen-mile range, so Abbot says.’ He pointed towards the horizon. ‘How the hell do we know what’s over there? We can’t see eighteen miles.’

Follet laughed humorously. ‘Last I heard the US Sixth Fleet was in these parts. If we knock off one of Uncle Sam’s aircraft carriers that’s as good a way of starting World War Three as I know.’

Warren thought about it. ‘Are there any uninhabited islands around here? Or rocks or shoals? Anything we can shoot at without killing anything else except fish?’

‘A nice way to cause an international ruction,’ said Tozier. ‘You fire torpedoes at any rocks in the Arab world and the Israelis are going to be on the short end of the stick. Things are touchy enough now and a few bangs around here could really start something.’