Dennis Wheatley - They Found Atlantis

Both of them looked pale and shaky. They had not been actually sick since the previous afternoon but their experience had been extremely frightening and the bout had been a bad one while it lasted. They were now more sorry for themselves than really ill and the salt air soon got a little colour back into their cheeks once the McKay's chatter had taken their thoughts off their condition.

He did not attempt to reproach them, as he had Count Axel for being fools to go down in the sphere at all, but fussed over them without ostentation, in a nice comforting sort of way which caused Camilla to say that she had never quite appreciated what a frightfully nice person he was until that moment, and made Sally somewhat secretly thrilled to have him like her. She almost regarded him as her personal property now and preened herself that Camilla should see him in such a good light when he laid himself out to entertain them.

He was recounting an episode of his earlier years when he had tried, and failed miserably, to get off with an extremely good looking young woman in Malta. Then, having the horrifying experience of meeting her at dinner two nights later and learning that she was his Admiral's wife just out of England.

'Was she a sport or did she tell?' asked Sally.

The McKay's eyes twinkled. 'She never told—then, or about the fun we had together later.'

'You wicked old man!'

'No, m'dear it was the Admiral who was old—in that case.'

'Ship!' Camilla exclaimed suddenly.

The McKay had been sitting on a small stool at their feet with his back to the sea. He jumped up and stared at thelong low craft that had just come into view round thecorner of the deck house.

'She's an oil tanker,' he cried, 'driven out of her course by the storm last night I expect. Where the devil are the others.'

He dived through the door of the lounge and saw Nicky poring gloomily over a scribbled sheet of figures which showed roughly what his broken contracts were going to cost him.

'Hi! he called. 'Ship—only a quarter of a mile away on our port beam. Come on m'lad and keep your eye on the gunmen by the wireless house while I flag her.'

Nicky needed no second bidding. He rammed his sheet of calculations in his pocket and tumbled out on deck.

'Let me know the moment you see them coming,' cried the McKay and he produced a couple of large white handkerchiefs that he had kept ready on him for the purpose of signalling.

Sally and Camilla had already cast aside their rugs and were watching the long barge-like craft with its single funnel at the stern. Now they glanced anxiously at the bridge fearing that the McKay would be spotted at any moment.

He had ensconced himself in an angle made by the deck house which was not visible from above however, and was waving the two handkerchiefs at the full extent of his arms in an endeavour to attract the attention of the people on the tanker.

Nicky had hardly installed himself beside the rope barrier and endeavoured to assume his most innocent expression when Slinger came dashing out of the deck house.

'In you go,' he shouted. 'And the rest—where are they?'

Slinger, for once, was not accompanied by any of the gunmen so Nicky stood his ground hoping to give the McKay another few moments.

'Get inside,' cried Slinger. 'Get inside d'you hear me.'

At the sound of raised voices Sally and Camilla appeared and the former stared at Slinger with well assumed surprise.

'What's all the excitement about!' she enquired innocently.

'Get inside,' repeated Slinger savagely. 'See that damn ship—think I'm going to give you any chance to signal it— Where's the McKay got to?'

The McKay was just round the corner waving his arms frantically up and down but Slinger did not wait for an answer. His arm shot out and caught Nicky on the shoulder giving him a violent shove towards the entrance of the lounge.

Nicky thought again of the total figure on that horrible 158

piece of paper in his pocket and decided to risk it. He lashed out with sudden vicious savagery and caught Slinger full on his beak-like nose.

'Well done,' cried Camilla. 'Oh well done, Nicky darling.'

Her encouragement was all he needed to get him really going and he began to hit out right and left. For a moment Slinger was blinded by tears and could see nothing, then he too began to drive and hammer, while he bellowed with all his might for assistance.

Neither of the two were trained boxers or had ever struck a blow in anger since they had left their schools so their scrap was more humorous than dangerous except for the first solid punch that Nicky had landed.

A moment later two of Slinger's men came running up with drawn pistols. Nicky now felt that discretion was far the better part of valour and holding his hands above his head backed into the deck house.

Meanwhile, Captain Ardow and two more men had hurried round from the starboard side and surprised the McKay in his violent endeavours to flag the tanker with his handkerchiefs. He too felt that a day was a day and thrusting one of them into his pocket began to blow his nose violently with the other.

'Inside please, Captain,' snapped the Russian with a stony glare. 'Else you will catch something more dangerous than influenza.'

'Certainly,' said the McKay laconically, 'but so will you, Captain, unless you see reason before you're much older.'

'Get in—also stay in until further order,' Captain Ardow waved his gun with a significant gesture and so the McKay joined the others in the lounge.

'Any luck?'asked Sally.

'No m'dear,' he shook his head. 'The tanker probably only had a cabin boy on the bridge. In any case they never saw me.'

'You should have seen me hit him,' said Nicky excitedly. 'I got him—didn't I Camilla—right on the nose.'

'Yes darling,' she cooed. 'You were a perfect hero. I shall never forget the way you stood up to him—never.'

Certainly nobody was allowed to forget Nicky's bravery in the hours that followed. Much as he disliked Prince Vladimir he could not resist paying the invalid a visit to give him a personal description of how he had hit Slinger— 'right on the nose'—and of course Count Axel and the Doctor were treated to every detail of the scrap when they returned from getting the bathysphere in order for its next descent.

After dinner that night this one abortive attempt to secure assistance was the sole topic of conversation and they only came down to earth when Sally said irritably:

'Oh, Nicky was splendid we all agree but that doesn't alter the fact that we are in just as hopeless a mess as ever, and— this is our last night here—tomorrow's Saturday.'

The McKay glanced at Camilla. 'I suppose if we could arrange something you'd be prepared to pay pretty handsomely for it?'

She nodded. 'Yes, Sally suggested that the other day. There's a quarter of a million dollars for anyone who'll see us landed safe in a United States port.

'All right—I doubt if anything will come of it but I'll have a talk with Slinger. There's just a chance that he might be prepared to double cross his boss for a whacking great sum like that.'

'We'll leave you to it then.' Sally stood up. 'There's more likelihood of his listening if he finds you on your own and the sight of Nicky is pretty certain to infuriate him.'

The others followed her example and when Slinger arrived at ten o'clock the McKay was the sole occupant of the lounge.

A big strip of plaster decorated the lawyer's beak testifying to Nicky's prowess, and he displayed none of his usual good humour.

'Down you go,' he said abruptly.

The McKay glanced towards the two gunmen who remained standing quietly in the doorway, then at Slinger.

'Can I talk to you alone for a minute?'