Behemoth 2

by Michael Cole

  “Two guys came in by boat. Knocked out the guard, took his tag, opened the pool, and took off. Nothing to ID them, unfortunately. They were dressed in black, with masks. So far, we’ve found no prints. It appeared they were wearing gloves as well. We’ve sent the tape to Forensics, but I’m sure they’ll have the same luck.” They arrived at the Neptune, and Forster climbed onto the deck. Nelson remained on the dock as she readied the boat, figuring it was best if he stayed out of the way. “If I may ask, what are you planning to do?”

  “Felt expects me to track the shark and bring it back in,” she said. She dipped into the wheelhouse and came out with a long pole. At the end of it was a hypodermic needle. Nelson felt mildly nauseous at the sight of it.

  “How do you plan on tracking it?” he said, gulping his coffee.

  “The shark was initially brought in as a rescue animal. Anything we rehabilitate that’s over a hundred pounds usually gets a tracking device so we can monitor its status once it’s released. Not that Felt expected me to actually track the thing, but it looked good for the papers.” She checked some vials, and moved some containers off to the side. She went into the wheelhouse and started digging about. Nelson downed the rest of his coffee and finally climbed aboard.

  “You need any help?” he finally asked.

  “No thanks,” she said. “I have my own way of doing things here.” Nelson realized his first instinct was correct, but decided to remain on deck. “Anyways,” she continued, “we were able to get authorization to keep the shark because its fins contained irreversible injury from the net it had been caught in. Really, it was nothing that prevents the shark from performing properly, as demonstrated yesterday. But Felt managed to exaggerate its condition to Wildlife Control, and they gave the green light for it to be contained indefinitely. So, it’s Felt’s property, and I have to go get it.”

  “All by yourself?” Nelson asked. Forster nodded.

  “No choice. My assistant was injured last night and is still in the hospital.” She started wondering how Marco was doing. She shook the thought from her mind. “So, I don’t have anyone else.”

  Nelson felt a flood of concern. Forster going out on her own? Of course, she seemed to know what she was doing, and appeared to be okay with it. But then again, she acted like she was okay with a lot of things, and Nelson knew that wasn’t truly the case.

  “You know, maybe you should…” he stopped as William Felt climbed up onto the boat. He had his usual insistent demeanor, as he had all morning.

  “Ah, Julie, there you are!” he exclaimed. “I’m glad you’re here. Things have been chaotic here.” His attempt to be sincere was as pathetic as it was false.

  “Tell me about it,” Forster said in a dry tone. Felt clasped his hands together at his waist and stood silent for a moment. Though she didn’t look directly at him, Forster could read his body language. He wanted to ask her something but seemed hesitant. “What is it, Will?” she said.

  “Uh, well I, uh…. I was just curious when you were planning to ship out?”

  “As soon as you get me some bait,” Forster answered without skipping a beat. Felt stood dumbfounded. She noticed this, and looked at him directly. “You do realize I need that to draw the shark in?” Felt made a nervous smile.

  “Of course!” he said. “I was just getting someone to head over to the butcher. The white certainly liked that beef yesterday.” His nervous chuckle ended when he remembered that yesterday’s incident wasn’t funny. Rather than risk saying anything more foolish, he simply climbed down. Nelson quickly followed him down.

  “Mr. Felt?”

  “Yes, Chief?” Felt answered, continuing to walk to the aquarium building.

  “Do you have any other assistants for Julie? She’s planning on going out on her own, and I don’t think that’s safe.”

  “I don’t believe so,” Felt said. Each word was long and drawn out, as he knew Nelson wouldn’t like his answer. “The aides are only trained in caring for some of the animals here, but none have any nautical training. At least, not to my knowledge.”

  “Not one?” Nelson asked. “And you’re okay with just sending her out there? It’s a two-person job at least.” Felt stopped and turned toward him. His face expressed severe irritation.

  “You telling me how to run this business, Chief?” he growled.

  “No, sir,” Nelson said. “I’m just advising you of the situation.”

  “Listen, Chief, it is not your concern. Ms. Forster is a very capable woman, and I have the utmost confidence she will successfully return the shark to my facility. Rather than worry about that, you should be focusing on who broke into my park last night.”

  “We’re already working on it, Mr. Felt,” Nelson said.

  “Good,” Felt said. “Now if you’ll excuse me…” without finishing his sentence, he turned and walked away. Nelson saw him speak to an employee, likely giving instructions to go into town and pick up some bait for Forster.

  A thought came to mind: Maybe I should tag along. Today was not a busy day in terms of administrative schedule. No meetings or seminars. Although he didn’t consider himself a seasoned sailor, he understood how to work on a boat. Most importantly, he could make sure she’d be safe.

  He returned to the Neptune and climbed up on deck. Forster had just stepped out of the wheelhouse.

  “Well, hell,” Nelson said. “You shouldn’t be going out there alone. Just let me finish up here, and I’ll head out with you. I know my way around a boat.” Forster chuckled; not quite the response he was hoping for.

  “Yeah? What are you gonna do? Arrest the shark if he doesn’t agree to come in?” She laughed. Nelson didn’t. “No offense, Chief, but I tend to work better by myself.”

  Nelson didn’t trust that she was telling the complete truth. He suspected she was avoiding possible conversation regarding last night’s incident. However, he felt adamant that she should not be out by herself.

  “Listen, I’m no Marine Biologist, and I’ve never worked on a research boat. But, looking at all of this, you’re gonna need somebody to drive the boat at some point, or look at the monitor. Or just to do the heavy lifting. Or you might need somebody to…” he fumbled for things to say, “Okay, I don’t know what I’m talking about. But, obviously you would normally take Marcus along. Just pretend I’m him.”

  Forster searched for reasons to say no. However, what he said was actually true. Although she would love the peace and quiet of being on her own, it wouldn’t be so peaceful once she sedated the shark. At the very least, she would need somebody at the helm while she applied the tow line. Still, she was tempted to say no.

  It was nothing personal against Nelson. In fact, in this entire island, he was probably the only person who truly gave her respect. It meant more to her than she would show. Deep down, she was worried she would do something to screw that up. Hence, she was still upset about the previous night.

  But it was more than that. This assignment was just another reminder that she was doing something far below her potential. ‘High tech monkey work,’ is how she thought of it. It was another torture for somebody who wanted to research and explore; to make a real difference in the world of science. Instead, she was basically wrangling a zoo animal, whose condition had so improved that it really ought to be in the open ocean. And it would be if not for a technicality brought up by Felt. She was working against her own belief system in a job that didn’t live up to her standards.

  Having Nelson on board to witness her misery just made it seem more real. But at the end of it all, she had to face reality. It was a job that needed to be done, and the Neptune was a large vessel. She would need help of some kind.

  “Wouldn’t it be imposing on you?” she asked.

  “I’ve got nothing going on,” Nelson said. “We’ll just consider this a police escort.” He made a small joking laugh. Forster made a small grin as a way of accepting his offer.

  “We’ll be shipping out once Felt gets me the bait,” she sai
d. “You’ll probably want to dress into something different.” Nelson looked at his uniform and understood her point. It would be a shame to get chum all over his trousers and shirt.

  “Give me twenty minutes,” he said.

  CHAPTER

  12

  It was forty minutes when Nelson had returned. He had timed the trip home and back almost perfectly, until he realized he needed to pick up Dramamine. Luckily, it had taken that long for Felt to gather the items that Forster needed. Dressed in jeans and a thin sweater, he helped with loading the tubs of bait on deck while Forster tested the crane. Shortly after, they were off.

  The Neptune cut through open water with the ease of a rocket through space. Nelson found the endless stretches of blue very peaceful. According to Forster’s computer, the great white had already traveled a few miles out. Pariso Marino looked like a thin grey bump in the distance behind them.

  Forster alternated her gaze between the bow and the monitor. She hadn’t exchanged many words with Nelson since they cast off. A headache had set in from lack of sufficient sleep, and there were still the awkward leftover feelings from the trouble he had gotten her out of last night. She focused heavily on the task at hand, more so for the benefit of getting it out of her mind.

  “It’s about a mile out now,” she said. “Northeasterly direction.” Nelson looked in that direction, off the starboard bow.

  “Is that the green light to start chumming?” he asked. Forster stepped from the helm and peeked out the door.

  “You sure you’ll be okay with that?”

  “I promise, I’m fine,” he insisted. Forster was used to people getting nauseous around the chum. While the sight was unpleasant to say the least, it was usually the smell that drove assistants over the edge. For Nelson, however, it was nothing compared to things he had seen in his fourteen years in Miami PD. Gang violence was not uncommon, and often hits would be carried out at the target’s private residence. Bodies would usually be found after baking in the Florida heat for numerous days, and as a cop, he would have to preserve the crime scene. This would mean spending hours with a foul, rotting corpse until it was cleared to be taken to the morgue. Compared to that, chilled fish guts did nothing.

  Forster brought the boat to a stop then stepped out to the bow deck to drop anchor. She stepped back into the wheelhouse and brought out two computer monitors. One displayed what appeared to be a radar image, with their boat in the middle and a blinking dot to the upper right corner. The other one showed a dark image from one of the underwater cameras. She placed both laptops on a table, and secured them to it with clamps. Nelson watched her do this and then walk toward the crane. She rolled up her sleeves and opened the large metal storage container. She reached down and groaned as she lifted the heavy piece of meat. Nelson stood up for a moment, instinctively to help.

  “I can get that…”

  “I’m fine,” she said. She strung a rope to it, which itself was clipped to the end of a cable. Nelson continued chumming.

  “I know I’m oblivious to shark hunting,” he said, “so could you tell me what the plan is?” He threw a scoop out into the water.

  “With that chum, you’re going to draw him in,” she said. “When he gets close, we’re gonna dip that beef into the water, just enough to force him to raise his head high enough to bite it. Basically, the proper version of Felt’s stunt, yesterday. When he comes up, I’m gonna hit him in the mouth with this.” She grabbed a black pole with a long syringe needle at the end. Nelson winced at the sight of it.

  “Won’t that piss him off?” he asked.

  “He won’t even feel it,” she said. It didn’t make Nelson feel any better. Looking at the pole, he realized it was the size of a broom handle.

  “Still,” he said, “you’ll have to reach out pretty far with it.”

  “I’ll be fine,” Forster said. Judging by her tone, she had heard the same thing from other people equally uneducated in her field. “The tranquilizer will take effect fairly quickly afterwards.”

  “That sounds easy enough, then,” Nelson said.

  “That is the easy part,” Forster said. She put down the pole and started walking back to the wheelhouse. “Afterwards, I have to dive down after it and secure the towing harness. Sharks sink when they’re not moving. If I don’t act fast enough, it’ll drown.” This time, Nelson’s eyebrows lifted. That feeling of worry crept back up, and he had to fight the near irresistible urge to ask her why she would do that. He already knew the answer she would give him. He just hoped it wasn’t anything else.

  Forster stepped back into the wheelhouse. She shut the door behind her and closed the blinds over the front windshield and windows.

  Minutes later, she came back out, dressed in black scuba gear. In her hand was a compressed air tank. She quickly tested the airflow and checked her goggles before setting them next to her flippers. She then grabbed the control unit for the crane. She lifted the beef and gently swung it over the portside, just over Nelson’s head. Nelson ducked when he saw it pass above. He then felt stupid, realizing it was at least ten feet above him.

  “Nice one,” Forster said. She adjusted the crane until it held the package just above the bloody water. For the next couple of minutes, she watched the monitor nearby. The blip remained in the same general location. It would probably take a bit of time for the white to become interested. “So…were you able to get any sleep last night?” It was the type of question to spark small talk and fill the dead air. Nelson just wished it was a different subject. Forster did too. She had simply asked the first thing that came to mind.

  “Not much,” he said. “I had to write a couple of reports. Get Jeffrey to settle down, and then get his wife to settle down. She was more pissed than he was, I think. Then of course, I wake up to a phone call around five about these guys who let this shark out. So, no, I’m operating on coffee mostly.” Forster now felt foolish for being tired. At least she got a few hours in. Also, there was shame, as she was part of the reason Nelson got almost none. In addition, here he was helping her when he should be home.

  “You should’ve gone home, then,” she said. “Taken a sick day.” Nelson just shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly and mouthed ‘nah’. “Seriously,” she said, “I would’ve been okay. Why were you so eager to come out here?” Nelson stopped chumming and looked at her questioningly.

  “I just didn’t think you should be doing this alone,” he said. “It just sounded like dangerous business.”

  “Is that what it was?” she said. He could tell she suspected an alternate motive. He felt an uncomfortable apprehension as to what thoughts were going through her mind.

  “Yes,” he said.

  “It’s just that you seemed awfully eager to come out here with me,” Forster said. “After what happened last night…sorry, I just am getting the feeling you’re keeping tabs on me.” Nelson stood up to face her.

  “Let me switch it around; why were you so anxious to come out here all by yourself?” Forster stared him down.

  “Probably because…I’m the only one who can capture the shark? Didn’t we discuss this?”

  “Not really,” he said. “Not thoroughly, anyway. You do realize the Coast Guard would’ve been able to pick it up, right?” Forster didn’t answer. “I just worry that you had something else in mind, coming out here alone. That’s all.”

  “And what would that be?” Forster questioned. He could see the anger building up in her eyes. It was a very specific body language that he recognized in people undergoing severe depression and exhaustion. He wasn’t sure if he should give an honest answer in fear that it would light a fuse. Unfortunately, even the silence seemed to worsen her temper. “Come on, spit it out.”

  “I think I’ll get back to chumming,” he said.

  “Oh, no,” she walked over to him until she was almost nose to nose. “Tell me. Come on, I dare you.”

  “Don’t do it,” he said, and took a step back. Forster looked at him, almost puzzled as to wha
t she meant. Then finally she saw her own clenched fist. She had balled her hands unconsciously, blinded by her own irrational anger. The anger gently subsided, and disbelief took over. She didn’t even feel herself doing this.

  “I, uh,” she loosened her hands. “Chief, I…I wasn’t going to…”

  “Oh, yeah you were,” he said. Her eyes welled up, and her mouth quivered. She backed away until she nearly fell into a seat, shocked at the extent of her rage, the lack of control she had, and how quickly she allowed it to escalate. She took a deep breath and regained control.

  “I’m…I’m sorry, I…” she struggled to find a sentence. Nelson walked over to her.

  “It was your dad’s birthday yesterday, wasn’t it?” he said. She looked up at him, slightly surprised that he knew, and nodded. “You told me,” he answered her unspoken question. “That’s why you were at the bar.” It wasn’t a celebration. She intended to get drunk, with a goal to forget it all. Nelson didn’t bother explaining this, as they both already knew. “When we get back, I think you should tell Felt that you’re gonna take some long overdue vacation. Take a boat to the mainland. Get out of here for a few days. You’re exhausted, pent up, and stressed. Way stressed.”

  He was correct, and his suggestion sounded very good indeed. She knew she could certainly use some time away. However, she was uncertain it would become a reality.

  “I like that idea,” she said. “But I don’t think it’ll happen. I’m the only biologist working at that aquarium, and I don’t see Felt approving the time. Besides…” she trailed off. Nelson knew what she was thinking of.

  He went back to the chum bucket. “Tell you what, kid; when we get back, go to Felt and demand the time off. If he refuses, then I’ll be sure to make his life a living hell.”

  “I guess I could stand a vacation,” Forster said. She stood up from her chair, and for once, she felt as if a small weight had lifted. “Any suggestions on where I should go?”