Jeremy Robinson - Kronos

“Stop!” Andrea yelled, but neither man heard her. “Stop or I’ll shoot” She accented the statement by pulling back the hammer of her Coast-Guard-issue SIG P229R-DAK. 40 caliber handgun.

Remus froze.

Atticus moved.

With amazing speed, Atticus twisted Remus’s wrist, dislodging the knife. As Remus was just beginning to register the pain, Atticus caught the knife and brought it up to Remus’s throat.

With a growl, he said, “Try to kill me again and I’ll return the favor.”

Remus trembled as he glared at Atticus with liquid hatred, tempted to act even with a knife to his throat and a gun to his head. He looked like an animal, barely contained in the shell of a man.

“Oh dear, oh dear. I do believe that will be quite enough of that.” Trevor Manfred slid into the room with a grin on his face. “Now that you’ve all had your fun, why don’t you explain to me what the devil is going on?”

Remus replied, “He tried to-”

“I would prefer to receive an answer from someone with more brains,” Trevor said. “It’s clear you have, yet again, offended our guest.”

“He wasn’t that much trouble. Like a fly, easily swatted.” Atticus removed the knife from Remus’s throat and shoved him away. Remus caught himself against the wall, clearly enraged and ready to continue the fight.

A strong slap on his ear shocked him out of his rage.

“Switch off, you oaf!” Trevor shouted. “You are to stay away from both Atticus and his guest. I’m docking you one month’s pay. Don’t fail me again.”

He bowed his head.

“Now sod off.”

Remus exited, his head turned down, afraid to look Trevor in the eyes.

Trevor turned his attention to Andrea. His eyes burned with anger. “You have no business being on this vessel, and if I didn’t think your government would give me the runaround, I’d press charges. In the meantime, I leave you in Atticus’s hands. However, you must first sign a nondisclosure form.”

With that, Trevor removed a folded piece of paper and a pen. “It’s fortunate I was on my way down here with this.”

Andrea was incredulous. “What!”

“Make no mistake; you are trespassing on this ship. If you do not sign a nondisclosure form, stating that everything you see, hear, and smell on this ship will be kept confidential, you will be thrown overboard.”

“This is ridiculous.”

“There are a number of technologies on the Titan, the nations of the world would love to get their hands on. I can’t have you leaking information.”

“More like national treasures.”

Trevor smiled. “You say tomatoes…Now sign it.”

Andrea looked up at Atticus. With a sour face, he nodded his agreement. “Any testimony you could give about what you see on board would be disallowed anyway because you broke into the ship.”

“The voice of reason!” Trevor slapped Atticus playfully on the back. “I like this man more and more every day.”

Andrea took the pen and paper and quickly signed. Trevor took the paper and pocketed it. “There now, that wasn’t so hard, was it, my dear?” Before Andrea could object to being called “my dear” one more time, Trevor headed for the door. “Welcome to the Titan. Do try to get some sleep tonight; for in the morn, we hunt!”

“Wait,” Andrea said. “Do I have a room?”

Trevor smiled wide. “You can stay where you undoubtedly want to stay, with Atticus. After all, every hero needs a woman to couple with before the final battle.” With a “ta ta,” Trevor left the room.

Atticus bent down and picked up the photo of his family and his. 357, placing the gun back in its holster. “C’mon,” he said. “Let’s get out of here. It’s hot as hell.” He looked back at her and reached out his hand, causing a nervous twang to move up through her body. The idea of spending the night with Atticus was tantalizing, yet wrong. Too soon. When Atticus spoke, she realized there was nothing to worry about, or look forward to.

“Tomorrow’s going to be a hard day, and I need to sleep.”

Andrea left the room with him, glad to be out of the glowing white inferno but terrified by what the next day might bring. She’d seen the look of a killer in Atticus’s eyes twice-first, when he was launching the harpoon at the creature, then again, when he fought with Remus. When he transformed into that killer, when hatred clouded his soul, she feared him. But now, calm as he was, leading her to his room, she felt at ease and safe. She wasn’t sure she could handle seeing his dark side again, but knew she would.

The Titan-Gulf of Maine

The heavy double doors opened automatically, allowing Remus access to his opulent bedroom. He silently stole through the room, avoiding the plush king-size bed set atop a frame of ivory tusks. He moved through the dimly lit space without incident, having memorized the room’s unchanging layout years ago. From the bedroom he entered a small library full of several aging first editions, then on to a living room, the modern accoutrements of which spoke in marked contrast to the ancient relics found around the ship.

In addition to the pixel-perfect, fifty-inch flat-screen TV, superbly concealed surround-sound system, dark-wood executive desk, and plush leather seating found in the living rooms of the rich and famous, this room had an entire wall covered in security monitors through which every room on the Titan could be viewed in full color. The wall shone brightly with streaming video from every lounge, bedroom, and bathroom.

As Remus entered the room, Trevor acknowledged his presence by leaning forward and tapping on one of the screens with a letter opener fashioned like a scimitar. The brig, currently empty, filled the screen in all its stark white glory.

“You’re lucky I was watching,” Trevor said. “I do believe you would have met your demise had I not arrived when I did. Do you know how hard it is for this frail body to move that quickly down so many flights of stairs? I expressed nearly a day’s worth of water through my armpits at the effort.”

Remus huffed. “I could’ve taken him.”

Trevor spun around in his jet-black swivel chair, his black-clothed body seemingly melting into it so that his face and Muppet-like burst of white hair hovered in space like a fuzzy planet. His crooked posture added to the odd look. “That’ I’m afraid, is still up for debate. It was the woman that would have done you in.”

“Stupid bitch. I’ll-”

Trevor waggled his finger in Remus’s face. “You are to treat the woman with respect for as long as she and Atticus are aboard the Titan. When she leaves, I will grant you shore leave so you can finish what you started in the brig.” Trevor sighed and looked back to the empty security screen. “It’s a pity, though; I was looking forward to the entertainment.”

Trevor stood and moved to the room’s single window. The black sky outside shimmered with radiant stars and the white glow of the Milky Way. “Tell me, Remus, what were your mistakes tonight?”

Remus stood suddenly rigid. He knew the answers to the questions would result in either a reward or punishment. He mentally replayed the night’s events and everything that went wrong. “I should have locked the brig behind me.”

“Correct. You’re extracurricular activities will have to be conducted in a more clandestine manner while Atticus is on board. He may be a killer, but he’s got the moral fortitude of a saint. If he chooses to remain on board,” Trevor set his eyes to burrowing in Remus’s. “I expect this to be a permanent change.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Now then, what else?”

“I should have known I was being followed.”

“Correct again. While having your fun, do be more aware of your surroundings. I’m sure Atticus is stealthier than most, but you know this ship. Stay off the beaten path from now on. What else?”