Kevin Anderson - Artifact

Relinquishing her hold on the pendant, Selene balanced against the rubber eyelets of the black raft. Through the hum of the powerful outboard motor and the whisper of the waves, she could hear her father’s ghost laughing.

She herself wouldn’t laugh until the bloodshed and the horror of the next few hours were done.

Soon enough, the bulwark of the OilstarYucatán loomed up out of the water, surrounded by starlight. Selene and her assault team switched off the motors of their dark Zodiac rafts. From that point on, they approached cautiously and in silence.

The garish display of the monstrous production platform sparkled like the contents of a treasure chest. Selene wished they could do something against that target—thereal target—but her small group had no chance against something as big as theValhalla . There were two hundred people on board. Her group could cause some damage, but they’d all be killed.

On the other hand, if her information was correct and the timing worked out properly, Green Impact could get aboard the tanker and deal with the skeleton crew. Her group would have a chance of survival—and the oil-ladenYucatán would certainly make a sufficient statement for their cause.

With whispered commands and information communicated through gestures, the two Zodiacs approached the tanker from the rear. TheYucatán sat far from the towering offshore platform, drinking deeply of the crude petroleum that poured down into its holds from the pumping station.

They coasted closer to the stained hull of the ship. Next to her, one of the men stifled an outcry and lunged away from the side of the Zodiac. The large inflatable raft jerked and bumped as something struck it from beneath and swam away, a shadow disappearing into darkness.

“Great white,” the man said.

“Fortunately, we’re not going swimming,” Selene said. “Our business is aboard the tanker.”

A couple of men chuckled quietly.

The commandos lashed their two rafts to the lower rungs of the metal ladder on the tanker’s hull. Moving like shadows, they climbed to the deck, all but one man, whose task it was to tie the rafts together and move them around to the bow in readiness for the planned escape.

If nothing untoward happened, they could all make it back to the encampment.

In deciding which Green Impact members to take with her from their primary jungle compound, Selene had selected the most dedicated ones, those most ready to follow orders and do what had to be done. These people would be called upon to kill. In an operation like this, she couldn’t risk someone flinching or hesitating at the wrong moment.

The Green Impact commandos had studied detailed blueprints of the OilstarYucatán, memorizing every cranny, every deck plate. They had a fairly good idea of where the tanker’s remaining crew members would be. Most would be snoozing in their cabins, perhaps grumbling that they couldn’t go to theValhalla platform like the others. Captain Calisto would almost certainly be in his private stateroom taking care of small details and reveling in the peace and quiet. He loved his ship and would not be the least bit interested in leaving her for R and R.

The assault team carried their packs of weapons, ammunition, and explosives. Upon reaching the deck, they stashed the more fragile items they wouldn’t need until after they’d dealt with the crew. Then they split up, moving in small groups with separate, well-rehearsed objectives.

Selene and three companions marched up to the officers’ quarters while the others entered the lower levels of crew cabins, rec rooms, and mess hall. The first muffled gunshots rang out as she reached the captain’s private stateroom. The door was partially ajar, so she could see his expression as he whirled around, astonished to hear the weapons fire from below.

Her three companions held out their assault rifles and Selene took a step forward. “I’m sorry about the disturbance, Captain Calisto.” Her voice was quiet; commanding. “We need to have a word with you.”

19

“At least you didn’t suggest climbing out there to roast marshmallows.” McKendry pointed at the jet of flame coming from a pipe extended away from the rig, burning off the waste gases before they could build up and become a danger.

Keene managed a soft chortle. It blended into the murmur of music and laughter that came from the complex of living quarters. “They seem to be having a party down there,” he said.

“Another egregious security lapse. Oilstar could certainly use our services as security consultants,” McKendry said.

“I’ll consider making the offer to Frik.” Keene touched his nose, which had begun to ache from McKendry’s punch.

From what he could tell, so many people worked on the rig that it was like a condominium complex. He imagined what it must be like to live in a small cabin, to share common rooms. “Not the life for me,” he said. “Hard work, long hours, boredom—”

“None of which excuses the lack of security.Nobody tried to stop you?”

Keene shook his head. “I didn’t see a single human being. This place is wide open to an attack.” They strolled around the platform, looking in all directions. “I can’t believe Frik Van Alman is so blind. If Selene Trujold means to strike this rig, she won’t have much trouble.”

“Especially if she shows up tonight.” McKendry glanced at his watch. “It’s almost two-thirty. We should get back to the tanker before the replacement crew decides to do its job and head over there. We can talk to Calisto in the morning and maybe get him to call Frikkie and set up some better security here.”

“I’m all for that, buddy. Let’s go.”

They climbed back down the leg of the platform as quickly as possible, not pausing to admire the view of the tanker a quarter mile away. As they swam across the placid water toward theYucatán, Keene thought he sensed movement below him. Despite his professed lack of fear, he got set to defy the laws of motion if he encountered any contact with an undersea creature.

“Hey, McKendry,” he called out. “Did you ever read any of those Peter Benchley books? You know,Jaws, The Beast, White Shark ?”

“Idiot,” McKendry yelled back, but he put on some speed. Keene was impressed by how little fear there was in his partner’s response. See, he said to himself, it was for your own good, Terris.

“I hope the replacement crew hasn’t come back yet,” McKendry said, climbing out of the water and scaling the tanker’s hull ladder.

Keene was right behind him. “If they have, we might have a harder time sneaking back to our presidential suite down in the pump room. Let’s see if the captain’s awake. Maybe we can talk ourselves into a decent meal.”

They had reached the deck. Keene could see a group of people at the far end of the tanker, disengaging the long hose that had been filling theYucatán ’s hold for hours. The shadowy workers made no noise, quietly going through the motions with all the finesse of a Green Beret squadron instead of a crowd of roughnecks.

“A meal sounds fine to me. I’m so hungry I could eat a shark.” McKendry grinned.

“Better than the other way around,” Keene responded. He yawned. “It’s after three in the morning. Asleep or awake, Calisto’s likely to be in his stateroom.”

They entered the crew quarters, climbed up another level, and reached the larger rooms where the crew and officers slept. McKendry sniffed and frowned. “Do you smell that? Gunpowder. Cordite…blood.”

“Looking for trouble, McKendry?” Keene said. They had reached the captain’s stateroom. The door was not entirely shut and light spilled out. “Captain?”

Keene tapped lightly on the door. McKendry pushed it wide open. Both men froze.