Barracuda (17 page)

8

Flacka was setting up the pool bar in
anticipation of a busy day. The grand opening festivities had drawn
a huge crowd, and she was checking her stock of liquors and looking
at her favorite CDs, hoping they might keep the crowd cheerful. She
held her Righteous Brothers CD and silently smiled. It was one of
her favorites, and she knew that the New York cop would drop by
again, so she placed it amongst the day’s picks.

Flacka had just made an inventory of bottles
that needed replacing from the hotel when Tanya appeared, walking
with a graceful yet determined stride. Flacka did not like or trust
Tanya.

“Good morning, Flacka,” the Russian greeted
her.

“Mornin’,” Flacka returned.

“How are things going?”

“Fine,” Flacka answered, uninterested.

“I hear you had an interesting customer
yesterday. That detective seems pretty inquisitive. What did you
two talk about?”

Flacka didn’t like the tone of Tanya’s voice.
The question was more of a demand than a curiosity.

“We talked about music.”

Flacka’s short answers infuriated Tanya, but she
put on her happy face and asked, “Do you like working here,
Flacka?”

A shadow of fear crossed Flacka’s face as she
carefully answered, “Yes.”

“Then you had better cooperate with me or I will
have you fired, and the management here can cause many problems for
you and your family.”

Flacka knew that Tanya’s threat was real. Many
an islander had gone missing after crossing paths with the Russians
and Japanese.

“Please, I don’t want any trouble,” she
stammered.

“Then tell me everything that cop talked to you
about and why he’s here,” Tanya growled.

Tanya spent the next hour learning Micko’s likes
and dislikes in women, beer, music, etc. Bartenders were always
great sources of information, and Tanya pumped Flacka for all she
was worth. She was devising a scheme to find out why that cop was
really there on Shark Alley Island.

***

Steve motioned to Micko that it was time to
surface, but Micko shook his head and stuck up three fingers,
indicating that he would hang for another three minutes. Steve
nodded in acknowledgment and slowly ascended the final ten feet to
the
Lily II
.

Micko hung suspended in the warm, clear waters
of the idyllic paradise, wondering what mayhem lay ahead. He had
spent just one day on the island and he was aware of the
scientists’ kidnapping and possibly murder, dead divers, strong-arm
tactics by the resort managers, rebel dissidents, and a group of
dead sharks killed by unknown means. He silently thanked the
Goldberg sisters for pushing him into this trip that helped him
regain his lost confidence. He was sure that he would need it in
the coming days.

Micko’s concentration was broken as he watched a
huge manta ray swim by with its two young in tow. It seemed like
the mother ray was teaching her offspring to feed and swim through
the gentle current. The mother twisted her twin mandibles to form
giant spoons to direct microscopic nutrients into her mouth. She
swam in a graceful performance that resembled a well-choreographed
ballet. The supple manta executed barrel rolls and backward flips
in an attempt to forage the unseen nutrients. Her young were
comical in their clumsy attempts to mimic Mom.

The ocean was full of such wonderful and
exciting sights, but the ghastly sight of Bill dangling from the
ceiling of the
Saratoga
kept popping back into Micko’s mind.
After three minutes, he checked his computer and was satisfied that
he had successfully completed his decompression.

Mara was at the ladder awaiting Micko’s return,
and helped the weary diver into the boat. After removing his dive
gear and sitting on the tank bench, Micko looked at Steve.

“We have a problem here, buddy.”

“A
big
problem,” Steve agreed.

Micko began telling Steve about the missing
scientists and his conversation with Flacka. Steve listened
intently, shaking his head vigorously at times.

“I have seen many disturbing things between
these Japanese and Russians, but I just ignored it,” he said.

“Do you know where the scientists were diving?”
Micko asked.

“I know they placed some research equipment near
the canyon between Enidrik Island and Lukoj Island.”

“We have three hours to off gas from the deep
dive, so why don’t we take a ride over there and look for
clues?”

“We need to retrieve the bodies and cover that
hatchway before we lose any more divers,” Steve answered.

“Let’s take a look at the canyon, and then go
back to the resort and make your report,” Micko suggested. “I hear
there’s no police force here, and that the resort only reports what
it wants to report, so we’ll need to launch our own investigation.
Steve, I need your help.”

Steve hesitated. He didn’t want to jeopardize
his job, but he knew that the cop was right. “Mara, pull up the
deco tanks and hang bars, and then take us to the Enidrik
passageway.”

One-Eyed Jack was sitting across Micko’s lap as
the two divers discussed possible strategies. Micko was gently
rubbing Jack’s ears when the boat approached the passageway. The
atoll narrowed like a funnel at this southwestern end of the
lagoon. There was barely a mile separating the two islands in the
narrow channel, and the coasts of each island were inhospitable
with no visible beach, just rocky walls of ancient, volcanic rock.
Micko watched as the waves crashed unmercifully against the
weathered stones.

“This would be a very bad place to have boat
trouble,” he commented.

“What you see is only the tip of the iceberg,”
Steve returned. “Wait until the tide changes. This funnel causes
the water to race in and out at twice the normal speed, and the
current is unforgiving. Fishermen don’t come here because of the
unusual tide flow.”

“What’s out there in the open ocean?” Micko
asked.

“Nothing much. A couple of small islands that
the fishmongers and fishermen use on occasion,” Steve answered.

“Can we check them out?”

“They’re pretty much scattered all about in a
hundred-mile circle,” Steve lamented.

“It looks like the tide is going out now, so why
don’t we just turn the engine off and see where it takes us?” Micko
suggested.

“Mara, what do you think?” Steve questioned.

“I think you two are crazy, and me and One-Eyed
Jack are the only sane ones,” he groaned.

“Let’s just do it,” Steve commanded. “Cut the
engines, but stay near the starter in case we get too close to the
rocks.”

The
Lily II
floated aimlessly out of
Bikini Atoll and into the open ocean. Mara scoured the horizon for
small, uninhabited islands with his binoculars. They drifted for
two hours and were about to return to the resort when Mara said,
“There is a small fishmonger island about three miles west.”

Before anyone could reply, One-Eyed Jack jumped
off Micko’s lap, ran to the bow of the boat, and began barking
incessantly.

“Give me those binoculars and start the engine,
Mara,” Steve ordered.

***

“Professor, we have too many fish already, so
pull in those lines,” James yelled.

The two scientists had feasted well, but now
James feared the extra fish would cause a swarm of crabs to overrun
their small refuge.

“We don’t know how long we will be here, James,
so I think we should build a small smoke house, smoke the fish, and
save them for consumption later. This way we won’t have to waste
precious time fishing.”

“And how, pray tell, do you expect to do that?”
James queried.

“I can dig a hole and then surround it with palm
fronds. Then I’ll build a small fire and add some wet wood to cause
smoke. I’ll suspend the fresh fish above the palm leaves to expose
them to the smoke. We can then wrap the smoked fish in wet palm
fronds and bury them deep in the wet sand near the shoreline and
save them.” Dr. Collins smiled victoriously.

James shook his head in amazement. It was an
ingenious plan if it would work. “I’ll have to ration our water
supply since we don’t know when the next rain may come.”

“Good idea, James, good idea.”

James smiled and thought to himself,
He’s Dr.
Two-Times again
. After checking the fresh water supply, he was
convinced that they could live indefinitely on their small piece of
terra firma with a little water conservation.

***

“Come in, Tanya, come in,” Andrej greeted.
Although he was smiling, Tanya knew that he was very concerned.
“What have you learned about the New York cop?”

“Nothing definitive yet,” she answered. “He
appears to be here on a random vacation, but he is just too
inquisitive. I don’t know if he is suspicious by nature or if he
has an ulterior motive here.”

“And how do you propose to find out?”

“I’ll use my feminine talents to seduce the
information out of him,” she declared.

“You had better be successful. Our heads depend
upon it,” Andrej scorned.

***

“I can’t see anyone,” Steve shouted over the
boat’s racing motor and Jack’s yelps.

“At least we can get some fresh coconuts,” Mara
moaned. “I’m hungry and thirsty.”

“Wait!” Steve yelled. “I think I see someone.
No, that must be a palm tree. Wait! There
are
two people on
the island!”

“I hope they aren’t fishmongers,” Micko
stated.

Mara powered the boat closer, and suddenly the
two figures on the island became aware of their presence. They
began doing a celebratory dance as they rushed down the small beach
to the water’s edge.

Micko leaped out the
Lily II
first.
“Doctors Collins and Donaghy, I presume.”

A round of laughter erupted as the men all
exchanged handshakes.

“How did you find us?” James queried to no one
in particular.

“One-Eyed Jack led us to you,” Mara
answered.

Dr. Collins looked incredulously at the
handicapped dog and then vigorously rubbed Jack’s head.

“How did you guys get here?” Steve asked.

“We were diving in the Enidrik passageway. Our
boat floated away and we got caught in a fierce current,” James
answered.

“The anchor line was cut,” Dr. Collins piqued in
a snit.

“We’re really not sure of that,” James added as
he looked questioningly at his colleague.

“I know what I saw,” Dr. Collins snapped
back.

“I have no doubt that the anchor line was cut on
purpose and you were meant to meet your demise out here,” Micko
chipped in.

“How? Why?” James asked incredulously.

“I told you, James. Dead men tell no tales,” Dr.
Collins answered solemnly.

The five men discussed the circumstances while
they packed up the scientists’ dive gear and brought it aboard the
Lily II
. Soon the dive boat was speeding back toward Bikini
Atoll. The men were discussing the unusual events of the past few
days. Micko learned that the scientists had indeed inadvertently
seen a nefarious ledger detailing money laundering. The scientists
had also learned from the divers about the ghastly shark corpses
displayed on the flight deck of the USS
Saratoga
. At first,
they had been in denial that such an event could ever occur. A
round table discussion was in full session as to which culprits
might be responsible when Mara cried out.

He was negotiating the
Lily II
through
the passageway and pointed ahead. The discussion ended as the
participants stared in disbelief. Gray reef sharks were leaping out
of the water in an erratic fashion like clumsy dolphins, as if they
were attempting to escape a larger predator.

“This is impossible!” Dr. Collins exclaimed.
“Impossible!”

“These sharks are the top predator in these
waters, and they hunt in packs like killer whales. Nothing could
scare them like this,” James clarified for the rest of the boat’s
crew.

The sharks resembled baitfish running for their
lives from larger fish, leaping out of the water and scurrying in
every direction seeking to escape being eaten. Mara had to be
vigilant when steering the boat so he didn’t crash into the
bounding marine animals.

Once in the safety of the placid lagoon, Steve
asked Micko, “Will you help me dive back down on the
Saratoga
? I have to cut some of the stray fish netting off
the bridge and tie it up to the entrance where the hatch is
missing.”

“Sure, I will. The authorities can remove the
bodies later. It’s too dangerous for us to do it without the proper
rescue equipment,” Micko answered. “Mara, can you take us to the
mooring ball of the
Apogon
? I need to see something.”

“What’s up?” Steve inquired as he looked over
his shoulder at the two scientists, who were engaged in a
discussion related to the sharks-a-leaping.

“I just want to confirm something that I
heard—and it’s definitely relevant,” Micko said.

Soon Steve was tying up to the mooring ball
above the resting place of the U.S. submarine. The underwater
visibility was spectacular as Micko entered the water with his
mask, snorkel, and fins. He swam to the mooring line, took three
large gulps of air, and pulled himself down the line. Micko could
see the outline of the sunken sub lying at a thirty-degree angle on
the atoll floor. When he pulled himself down the line thirty feet,
he was able to see another much smaller boat nestled against the
stern of the
Apogon
’s hull. He was unable to hold his breath
much longer, so he took notice of the size and style of the smaller
wreck and then raced back to the surface.

As Steve and Mara helped him back onboard, Steve
asked, “Why don’t you tell us what that was all about?”

Instead, Micko asked, “Dr. Collins, can you
describe your boat to me?”