“Of course I didn’t. Just because I knew her many years ago, that makes me a traitor?” Virginia said as she left the window and advanced on the director.
“Please, no one here is a traitor to any cause.” The captain turned away from the upper railing and started making her way down a set of winding stairs, holding the rail and looking at the group as she did. “Ginny could no more betray her country”—she paused and looked at Niles—”than she could her friends. No, the only thing she was ever good at was being loyal, even to a fault.”
Virginia stopped and then sat hard into a chair at the large table.
“No, Doctor, she’s not the person you are seeking, but she was a name to throw your security teams off the trail, so to speak,” she said with a trace of a smile.
Niles nodded at Sarah, then walked over to Virginia and sat next to her.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked.
Virginia looked up and saw her face in Niles’s glasses. She did not like her reflection.
“I was praying that it wasn’t her.” Virginia looked from the director to the captain. “Because I was frightened, scared to death. Niles—she’s not bluffing, and yes, Senator Lee, you’re right, she is quite insane, but not in the way you may think.”
Heirthall turned, and none of them cared for her look. She was looking straight at them. Then she suddenly walked at a brisk pace toward the conference table.
“Insane? Let me show you the true meaning of insane.” She hit a switch embedded in the table. “Commander Samuels, alter course to the coordinates we discussed earlier, please.”
“Captain, we are beyond the point of center ice. If we alter course right now we—”
“Alter course to the impacted zone immediately,” she ordered angrily into the small microphone in the table. “Bring her shallow, Commander. We have to show our guests the consequences of human folly,” she said, slowly but firmly placing her hand down on the intercom, not waiting for the first officer’s reply. She placed both hands on the table, looked straight ahead, and then suddenly rubbed her temples and visibly relaxed.
“Aye, Captain, altering course to three-five-seven.”
Alice leaned into Lee and nudged him. “Her eyes, Garrison.”
Lee looked and saw Alice’s meaning. The captain’s eyes were dilated almost to the point of becoming totally blue.
Alice looked nervously at Lee, and even Farbeaux had stopped searching for the bar long enough to show concern on his face when he saw the intense way Heirthall was acting.
Alexandria lowered her head and then sat in the center chair of the large conference table. She brushed back a strand of long black hair that had fallen loose from her tightly woven braid. She swallowed and then looked up.
“You have my apologies. Some words …. well … they are made to hurt. Insanity is such a word. What is the difference between this awful thing and passion? A fine line can be affixed in between the two and make them unrecognizable as opposites.”
“Alex, your actions explain quite adequately your state of mind. What other conclusions can people draw from the things that you have done? Yes, as a species we are self-destructive, and yes, our country is one of the worst violators, but we need time, Alex,” Virginia said.
The captain suddenly stood, walked over to Virginia, and placed a hand on her cheek. In the spotlights surrounding the room, the raven-haired woman was indeed beautiful. She smiled down at her old friend.
“Time has expired, Ginny.” Their eyes locked, and Virginia saw something the others did not in those dilated blue eyes: a call for help. Heirthall was almost two people, gentle one minute, extremely violent the next.
Compton and Farbeaux felt the angle of the deck change before the others. Leviathan was coming shallow.
Virginia felt Alexandria’s hand slide from her face as she walked toward the large viewing glass once more.
“My great-great-grandfather once trusted men. Octavian Heirthall committed evil acts to ensure the United States remained the light of the world, for in his opinion, they could do such magnificent things—so young, so naïve, but they saw a path and they took it. The reward for his duty to his adoptive country?” she asked as she turned on them. “His friend assassinated, his family murdered before his very eyes, and his only remaining daughter, Olivia, hunted like a criminal for the rest of her life.”
“We don’t know—”
“I do not expect you to know anything, Dr. Compton. I am explaining why trust is no longer an option with my family. The test has been before you since the first particles of contamination flowed from the rivers and into the sea, when the first coal-fired factories started spewing their filth all over the globe. The test has been failed by the species, thus you have forfeited certain privileges, one being the right to transit the seas for profit.” She held up a hand as she looked up and saw the first officer step out onto the balcony above and nod his head. “And now I invite you to see firsthand the effects of the world’s murderous folly against nature.” She turned and gestured out the window.
As they watched, there was nothing. Then a very loud bang sounded against the outer hull of Leviathan and echoed throughput the giant vessel. The collision alarms sounded all around them as Niles and the others went to the glass and started looking around.
“All hands, rig for multiple collisions,” a voice said over the loud speaker.
“Oh, God, hang on,” Niles said as he grabbed the rail in front of him.
Outside the glass, a quarter-mile-wide piece of ice cascaded down into the sea from the ice cap above. The jagged edge bounced crazily off the observation glass and then hit the bow before being tossed back along the hull and out of the way. Another struck and then another. Many hit the water after calving from the bottom of the pack, then rose back up because of their buoyancy. Still, giant shards of ice were being sheared off the bottom side of the polar ice cap. From above the surface, the larger pieces let loose with a loud roar as they split and fell through the thin pack ice and down into the depths.
Leviathan pushed and maneuvered its way through the minefield of ice. The glass withstood the pounding, but was in danger of being pushed in by mountain-sized pieces of frozen water.
“Captain, we are sustaining minor damage. We have leaks in engineering and the forward weapons room. Recommend we dive.”
“The polar ice cap is melting above us. It is dying from a global phenomenon many politicians have said is only a cyclical happening. Global warming cannot be stopped, possibly not in our lifetime—that is not an opinion, but fact. The temperature in the past ten years has risen by six degrees.”
“Science agrees that the outer edges of the cap are indeed melting, but—” Virginia started to say.
“We are under the direct center of the North Pole. At the rate of the meltdown, in ten years there will be no ice at the top of the world,” she answered calmly and matter-of-factly. “Officer of the deck, resume previous course and speed, please. Take Leviathan to two thousand feet minimum depth. Secure the collision alarms and send a damage report to my cabin.”
“Aye, Captain, resuming previous course and speed.”
Heirthall clicked off the intercom and looked up as the bow of Leviathan dipped sharply, making them all grab hold of the table for support.
“There are far more disturbing things you will see before your time is up on Leviathan. Please, observe, and I will be happy to explain the depths of the oceans’ despair. For now, I must leave you,” she said, closing her eyes against the pain they all saw on her features. “I will see you at dinner.” She looked up at them and tried her best to smile, but failed miserably.
“Captain, are we here to be interrogated or taken on a sightseeing tour?” Niles asked as he stepped away from the observation windows.
Heirthall closed her eyes, lowered her head, and then turned to face Niles and the others. She swayed, then grabbed hold of one of the chairs to steady herself. Farbeaux made a move to assist but Alexandria he
ld up a hand and stayed him. She looked up and saw that First Officer Samuels was making his way down the spiral staircase. She almost looked conspiratorial when she looked back at Compton and the others.
“Please, give me time. I need you onboard for a reason I cannot go into now. When Sergeant Tyler asks his questions, answer any way you like; tell the truth, don’t tell the truth, it is no matter, but buy me some time.”
“Captain, are you all right?” Samuels asked as he took her by the arm.
Heirthall straightened and then looked at her first officer. “I am fine, Commander, just tired.” She shrugged off his hand and made her way out of the observation lounge.
Samuels watched her go. “I must apologize for the captain’s behavior. She’s … she is—”
They noticed Samuels’s words stopped when he saw that Sergeant Tyler was watching from above.
“Please excuse me,” Samuels said and quickly left.
They watched Leviathan’s first officer leave. When Niles looked up he saw that Tyler had disappeared also.
“I must reevaluate my earlier prognosis, Niles, my boy. It’s not just the captain who is insane, but her entire crew.”
“Senator, we need to buy some time. We have to give Captain Everett and Pete Golding time. They will find us. Until then we have to find out what’s going on here, because from what I just saw, we may be in more trouble than I thought.”
“Why? I mean, besides the obvious?” Lee asked.
Virginia watched the hatchway where her old friend had disappeared and knew exactly what Niles was thinking.
So did Henri Farbeaux, who was standing stock-still, his efforts to find the wet bar placed on hold.
“Because, my dear Senator Lee, a moment ago, for a reason only she knows, Captain Alexandria Heirthall looked terrified.”
LEVIATHAN
Niles felt ridiculous in the clothing he had been provided. While looking somewhat like a tuxedo, it was minus a bowtie, and instead a high half-collar with a blue sapphire stickpin was perched above the white dinner-jacket lapels. The material felt strange against his skin and was unlike anything he had ever felt before.
He watched the water flow past the massive bow windows, which had been fully opened once more to reveal the sea passing by as if they were in a fighter jet. He closed his eyes as someone touched him on the shoulder.
“Damned strange feel to the tuxedo, eh, Mr. Director?” Senator Lee said as he stood next to Niles.
As Compton turned, he saw at least a hundred members of the crew as they stood in various areas of the forward compartment, some eating strange-looking hors d’oeuvres and others just standing and talking amongst themselves. They all wore what Niles assumed to be the dress uniform of the Leviathan, consisting of a pure white short-tailed jacket with gold and blue braid at the cuffs, white pants and shoes, and again, like himself, no tie. The women crew members wore the same, except they wore knee-length skirts. All were elegant looking; even the senator managed to look debonair.
As Niles was about to answer Garrison, Sarah walked into the room, followed by Farbeaux. Many of the male officers turned to look at the woman and her evening dress. The deep blue and green gown was like the colors of the sea. It was long and flowing and was placed upon a woman who looked as miserable as Niles had ever seen her. Farbeaux, on the other hand, was dressed in his evening wear and looked as if he were made for it. They both approached and smiled.
“I hate this,” Sarah said as she politely grinned.
“I keep telling young Sarah that for her to dress any other way would be a waste of God’s talents as a designer,” Farbeaux said sincerely.
“For once, I have to agree with our friend,” Niles said as he took Sarah’s gloved hand and looked her over.
“Hear, hear,” agreed Lee.
“All right, old man, don’t let your one good eye fall out of your head,” Alice said as she took the senator’s arm.
Alice Hamilton was dressed in a nice gown of blues that had a chiffontype material that covered her arms from the shoulder straps to her elbow-length gloves.
“This one eye is torn between viewing either Aphrodite or Venus, as both are so lovely,” Lee said diplomatically.
“Indeed, Mrs. Hamilton, you are the very definition of grace and elegance,” Farbeaux agreed with a bow.
“This, coming from a Frenchman and a has-been politician, makes me giddy all over,” Alice said as she sneered at the two men, and then turned and started scanning the room. “I don’t see Virginia,” she said, craning her neck.
“Hasn’t shown yet. I would like to get a chance to speak with her alone,” Niles said as he saw the first officer, Commander Samuels, approach.
“Good evening—you all look very nice,” he said, bowing.
“Yes, well, if our clothes hadn’t been absconded with during our showers, I assure you, we would not have cooperated with you to this extravagant length.” Niles locked eyes with the commander and didn’t shy away.
“We thought for this occasion, the proper attire would be most appropriate. Your clothing will be returned cleaned and pressed.”
“And that occasion is?” Lee asked, leaning on his cane.
“Why, the anniversary of Captain Heirthall’s great-great-greatgrandfather escaping from Château d’If, of course, which coincides with the birth of Octavian Heirthall to the very day five years later, the very genius behind all of this,” he answered, gesturing about the room.
“Château d’If? That sounds familiar,” Alice said.
“If I may, Commander,” Farbeaux said. “The Château d’If is a very old prison of some renown in my country, Mrs. Hamilton.” He turned from Alice to Samuels. “More famously it is known for the setting of one of the world’s great novels.” He smiled at all in the half-circle around him. “French, of course—The Count of Monte Cristo.”
“Very good, Colonel,” Samuels responded with genuine pleasure. “One and the same.”
“You’re implying—just what are you implying?” Sarah asked.
“I imply nothing, Lieutenant McIntire. I am only informing you of a truth.”
“I find that somewhat hard to believe, Commander,” Farbeaux said without the mirth of a moment before.
“Roderick Deveroux was falsely imprisoned by the Emperor Napoleon in the year 1799. His crime was failure to deliver to the emperor his life’s work on ship design and construction of naval vessels that would have revolutionized the navies of France—swift, cutterlike ships that would have been models for today’s America’s Cup vessels. Plans for steam and coal-fired engines, battery storage systems for electricity—the list would continue for several hundred pages.”
“How could he have been so far advanced of the science of design and propulsion?” Niles asked.
“According to legend, Deveroux’s intellect was staggering. He spent his life entirely at sea, and most of that time corresponded with the most brilliant minds in the world. He was slave to the betterment of humankind: advanced ways to gather the bounty of the sea, and still not over-fish the grounds—ideas and plans for alternative fuels that would save the lives of whales the world over, and stop men from seeking their deaths for lamp oil and lubrication. Yes, he was a man of science, but also a man of compassion who still believed in his brotherhood with other men. Napoleon guaranteed he would take another view after his imprisonment.”
“The emperor couldn’t get his designs, so he threw him in prison,” Alice said aloud.
“Yes, but he escaped, just like Mr. Dumas said in his account of the story. That is where the tale departs on fits of fancy.”
“The treasure was a fallacy in the Dumas story?” Niles asked.
“Oh, no. During his escape, Deveroux was washed ashore on a small island in the English Channel. While there, he discovered a treasure long lost to history: gold and jewels from the sacking of Jerusalem and the Holy Land. We estimate its value in today’s currency,” he bowed to Niles, “in American dollars, to be just a little le
ss than three-point-seven trillion dollars.”
“A sum like that would have destroyed the economies of most nations of the world. Having that much gold and precious stones thrown into the market.”
Samuels looked at Lee with a smile.
“Not if the money is doled out slowly, evenly, and used only for the advancement of science being studied on a small, out-of-the-way island.” He gestured to a portrait that sat upon an easel. The large painting showed the family Heirthall.
“Mr. Deveroux is seated in the chair with his son, Octavian, and his wife, Alexandria. As I stated before, Octavian was the real genius of the family. After the murder of his father, that left Octavian and his mother, who was severely ill and bedridden by that time by a malady called Osler’s disease. The disease is passed from parent to child, and can cause blood clots throughout the body.”
The entire Group noted the mention of the disease for later discussion.
“Where did they go after Deveroux’s death?” Sarah asked.
“Nowhere; everywhere; America, Asia, the South Pacific—Octavian took his family’s work and developed it into the very submarine that you had within your complex, the very first Leviathan. It was meant to save the world and render warfare useless. He would command the world’s seas, and with that command he would guarantee to the world it could never war upon each other again, for without the sea, military measures are useless.”
“What happened to him?” Sarah persisted.
“Octavian Heirthall struck a deal that would preserve part of the sea for his work. Abraham Lincoln recognized the legitimacy of his request and struck that deal—one that guaranteed for Lincoln that the United Kingdom would be kept from recognizing the Confederacy. Heirthall only wanted the Gulf of Mexico protected. As always, men failed the captain—which brings us to the current mistrust.”
At that moment, the two large hatchways opened and the lights dimmed as the captain of Leviathan entered the observation lounge. The officers started applauding, the sound muffled by their white-gloved hands. She was dressed as they, only her uniform was a deep navy blue with sea green and gold epaulets and braid. She wore a pure white turtleneck, and her hair was pulled into a severe bun. She wore pants in lieu of a skirt, but her beauty was still unmatched by anyone in the room with the exception of Sarah. She bowed and then smiled.
Leviathan: An Event Group Thriller Page 23
