Beneath the Waves

by Ali Vali

  “You’re a funny man when you want to be, Dad,” she said and laughed, sad when he didn’t join in. “While I’m gone, try to think back to when you were my age and what you wanted out of life.”

  “Sometimes responsibilities trump our great desires, sweetheart. Hopefully you’ll accept that fact like I did, especially after you have a family. Life has to be more than the things that make us happy, especially when so many people are depending on you.”

  The guard at the gate of Marmande Shipyard waved her through when she showed her ID, since they had a few boats in dry dock for repairs, but she headed in the opposite direction, to the pier where Mac kept his boat. “That’s a depressing thought,” she said, and heard her father sigh. It was as close as she’d ever come to getting him to agree with her. “I can try my best to be happy and still do what’s right. If not, what’s the point of all this?”

  “A few days, Vivien,” he said, slamming the door on any further conversation, “I expect you in the office helping your brother and Steve with this project.” The phone went dead, and usually that would’ve pissed her off for the day, but Kai was walking toward her with a smile. The sight seemed familiar to her somehow, but nothing came to mind as she looked past her to the large, beautiful sailboat.

  “Expecting me or someone else?” she said when Kai opened her door and offered her a hand out of the company truck she drove. Kai wore baggy shorts, sandals, and a navy T-shirt that brought out the green of her eyes.

  “Your brother said you preferred the water to helicopters, so I gave him a call to offer you a ride. You’d already left, so you’re more of a nice surprise than an expected guest.” Kai reached in the truck bed and lifted out her duffle, as if her coming along had been settled.

  “Did it occur to you that he meant I preferred the water alone? He might’ve told you I left as a way of letting you down easy.” She followed Kai like a tamed puppy, despite her sarcastic commentary.

  “When it comes to you, Franklin only speaks the truth that’s in his heart. You’re not only the most important person in his life, but you’re also his favorite.” Kai stepped aboard with her bag and stood with her hand out to help her with the step down. She found it almost insulting but took Kai’s hand anyway.

  “That’s a profoundly poetic statement,” she said as she let go of Kai’s hand and moved around her to the wheel.

  “It’s true, right?”

  “Franklin’s my favorite person in the world too, so yes, that’s true.” Kai laughed as she started the quietest engines Vivien had ever heard and walked along untying the boat from the dock. “What’s so funny?”

  “I’m relieved you didn’t say Steve from last night was your favorite person,” Kai said and winked. After the boat was free, Kai pointed to the wheel and made a driving motion with her hands. “You’re more familiar with the river so take us out.”

  “You don’t have to be at work for another three weeks, so is this about sucking up to the boss already?” The boat’s engines were shockingly powerful for a sailboat, and she liked the way the craft responded to her touch, but she let up on the throttle so she wouldn’t empty the small fuel tank these things usually had.

  “Speed it up, Boss, or it’ll take longer than that to get there.” Kai walked the length of the boat unfastening the sail covers but stopped and peered back at her. “And if that was a serious question, I seldom engage in sucking-up behavior. You’re either going to like me or you aren’t. I don’t really need to work for you, but I want to.”

  “Are those anti-cheerleading statements I hear again?” She laughed along with Kai as the ease of her companionship settled around her like a favorite sweater. She really enjoyed the open water alone, but she didn’t want to waste this opportunity.

  Kai Merlin had to be incredible if her father, not a man known for his whims, had hired her sight unseen. That he was also considering modifications to his baby, Triton, was also so out of character she’d stared at him throughout dinner the night before to see if she saw any sign of impairment. Her father had to be either high or drunk to chance any delay in Triton’s coming online.

  Mentally she started a list of questions to ask Kai so she wouldn’t seem too intrusive, but the shell at her throat warmed enough to derail her thoughts. It’d done that in the years she’d worn it, and while it seemed strange, it was part of her. The heat was never unpleasant, but when it happened, it seemed like she was touring whatever was going on in Frankie’s head. Now, though, all she got from Kai was her great smile, and Franklin seemed a million miles away.

  “I’ll try to keep my enthusiasm levels high when your father’s around,” Kai said when she was done and sat behind her.

  The two bridges that connected the east and west banks of the river downtown were close, and the crescent that gave the city its nickname was a dangerous spot for crazy currents, so she tightened her hands on the wheel and concentrated on getting them safely through it. “Are you sure you don’t want to do this?”

  “You can handle it,” Kai said, not moving from her seat.

  “You don’t know that.” She wanted to turn around and look at Kai, but concentration was paramount.

  “Do you keep the Sea Dreamer moored in the middle of the Gulf?”

  “Since you know my boat, I guess you know where it’s docked, so point taken.” The powerful engines took them effortlessly through the bend, and once the river straightened out, she relaxed and glanced behind her. “Question is, how do you know so much about me?”

  “Because I checked you and your family out as extensively as you did me, I’m sure,” Kai said as she opened her eyes. “I wasn’t really desperate for a job, so I wanted to make sure Palmer would be a good fit. If I’m miserable I wouldn’t be of much use to you.”

  “And what made us a good fit for you?” This was an unusual conversation to have with an employee. She hated to admit how spoiled she was because of her last name, but in most cases people went out of their way to be agreeable. Kai made it sound as if they were lucky to have her.

  “Your willingness to evolve.”

  She saw the down side of accepting Kai’s invitation to guide them downriver since she liked to face someone when she talked. It was the only way to tell if they were truthful. Now she was like a bug on display for Kai to study without interruption. “Are you mocking us?”

  “For someone who says she appreciates the truth, you don’t care for it unless it’s phrased to your liking, do you?” Kai’s feet hit the deck, and she took over so they could reverse their spots.

  Kai seemed to have read her mind and changed everything about the situation that bothered her. “That’s not what I meant, so don’t make the mistake of speaking for me or putting words in my mouth. I don’t appreciate it.” She cringed since the statement was lame and sounded childish.

  “I’m not upset with you, Miss Palmer.” Kai’s voice was gentle, but like the night before, her tone had changed. “I meant that despite what everyone, perhaps including you, thinks about your father, he genuinely sounded interested in trying to streamline your operations by bringing in techniques that big oil doesn’t usually embrace. He’s an innovator, even if the environmentalists think he’s a dinosaur, and if they don’t wise up, all that’ll be left are the dinosaurs not interested in changing anything.”

  “Are you sure we’re thinking about the same guy? My father’s only interested in the bottom line and keeping the dinosaurs on our board happy. Anyone who tries to rock that boat doesn’t go far in any company, including ours,” she said, forcing herself to shut up. It wasn’t a good idea to divulge her thoughts to a total stranger, no matter if she was on their payroll. “That’s the reality, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t share what I just said with anyone.”

  “If you’re worried I’m only interested in spying on your operations for some nefarious reason—don’t.”

  There was still plenty of river traffic, but Kai pressed a series of buttons at the center of the helm and the sa
ils went up. “I’ve never heard a roughneck use the word nefarious.”

  “I’m rough around the edges, but I have a mother who loves language and insisted I develop an extensive vocabulary. And to answer your question, we are talking about the same guy. Your father’s willing to indulge a few of my ideas, and it doesn’t really matter to me that he’s more interested in the good press than in my crazy eco side.”

  “That does sound like him, but if you want my advice, stay clear of Steve Hawksworth whenever you can. My father and the board have plenty of reasons to love him, and it’s not for his crazy eco side.” Kai navigated skillfully around the tugs with strings of barges, the freighters, and the other work vessels they met. The wind directions had allowed them to pick up speed, but the ride was still as smooth as if they were gliding over the water instead of on it.

  “What do you like besides work and Franklin?”

  “Is this the fluff piece of the spy story you’re working on?” she asked and laughed, but she sensed that maybe she should sit back and simply enjoy the ride because Kai wasn’t all she appeared to be. “What are you really after here?” She didn’t make any effort to keep the suspicion from her tone.

  Kai glanced back at Vivien, and Vivien’s shell warmed and vibrated at her throat again. She held it away from her skin, but Kai knew the sensation wouldn’t last long. This trip was about linking Vivien’s mind to hers to see why Vivien still hadn’t taken the necklace off, but after sensing that it was only because of the bond it strengthened between her and Franklin, she didn’t find anything else interesting about her. Her mothers had been right—the only people she could trust until she was done were Isla and Talia.

  Vivien by nature was a suspicious person who was trying to delude herself into considering herself an explorer, but she had plenty to learn before she found anything besides the occasional old wreck and pretty fish beneath the water’s surface. The wonders Vivien longed for would never be visible because of the blinders she wore through life.

  If she had something to do with that because of what she’d done all those years ago, she’d try her best to get Vivien to open up more, but even if she could, she doubted they’d ever become good friends. Vivien seemed to enjoy her solitude too much to ever let anyone but Franklin in. Whatever their future relationship would be, she had enough information to attempt to make a plan to fix what she’d broken in Vivien and Franklin’s lives.

  She pressed the main switch for the sails, and all of them came down at once. When the engines kicked back on, they slowed enough that she could come up to the crew boat with the Palmer Oil logo on its side.

  “What are you doing?” Vivien asked as she stood close to her.

  “Making you feel more at ease.” She radioed the boat, and it didn’t take long for two workers to come out of the cabin to man the ropes that brought them together. “I’ll see you soon.” She threw Vivien’s bags up to Talia and smiled at her old friend. “Could you make sure Miss Palmer gets to Triton please, Captain?”

  “No problem. That’s where we’re headed with supplies.”

  “You’re seriously throwing me off?” Vivien asked, her fists on her hips.

  “I think it’d be best if you go a way you trust.” She grabbed the lower rail of the crew boat and pulled it close enough that Vivien could step aboard. “Our talk reminded me I don’t have to be at work yet, so I’ll see you when I’m expected.”

  Vivien changed vessels with the help of the two crewmembers who’d first come out, then immediately turned around and stared at her as if she was still in disbelief she’d been asked to leave. They drifted apart since Talia had guided her vessel clear, and she was grateful Talia had planned her departure in case this exchange had to happen. Talia had gotten a job as a boat captain and Isla as a diver, and both of the royal guards had been assigned to Triton to be near her without raising any suspicions.

  She raised her sails again, passed the crew boat quickly, and didn’t think to look back for an hour. By then Vivien and the others were out of sight. “The water will always be a strange and cold place for you, Vivien. What happened to the caring young girl I met years ago?”

  The problem didn’t have an easy solution since she didn’t have any experiences to draw from. “One idiotic act on my part couldn’t have caused this much damage,” she said softly as she enjoyed the breeze on her face. “But if it did, I owe it to you to fix it.”

  Kai had no clue as to how to break through the pile of painful memories Vivien clung to like talismans—none at all.

  *

  “Have we met?” Vivien asked the woman who sat in the captain’s chair with a large mug of coffee in her free hand.

  “No, ma’am. I’m new to this route and the company. Talia Hessen,” she said, and nodded slightly in her direction.

  “Do you know Kai Merlin?”

  “No, ma’am, but hopefully you’re Vivien Palmer. If you’re not, I might have some explaining to do when we reach the rig and I discover I picked up a stranger along the way because someone asked me nicely.”

  “I’m glad you were there so don’t worry about it.” Vivien stepped outside and unclipped her satellite phone from her belt. The phone was a gift from Frankie, who liked for her to stay in touch no matter where she was.

  “Did you find the big Amazon?” Frankie said as a greeting.

  She gave him a brief rundown of what had happened and had to suffer through his laughter. “If I needed anymore humiliation today I’d have called Mom and asked her to appraise my hair and wardrobe.”

  “I’m sorry, and I’m sorry for sending you out to what was basically a crappy day. After dinner last night I figured you two would become fast friends.”

  “She asked a lot of questions and I called her on it, so the next thing she did was beeline it to one of our boats and dump my ass.” They were close to the mouth of the river, and the water was getting choppier here as the skies became overcast. “Can you pull her file and read me the highlights.”

  “What kind of questions?” She could hear Frankie typing as they spoke. “Last time someone was that interested in me, it didn’t turn out to be corporate espionage. They just wanted to be my friend.”

  “Go ahead and say it—I’m a jackass.”

  “The first step to recovery is admitting you’ve got a problem, sister,” Franklin said and laughed. “According to her file she graduated from an Ivy League school, has an excellent work record, and Dad actually recruited her away from an English outfit that had her working in the North Sea. From all this, she sounds cerebral with some roughneck mixed in. No one works the North Sea without having some serious backbone. The conditions are brutal most of the time.”

  “He went after her? Why?”

  “It doesn’t say, and you blew your chance to find out when she made you walk the plank.”

  “Can you have the Sea Dreamer brought out? She’s got a head start on that speed demon of hers, but I’ve got a shot of finding her.” The mist was turning to a light rain, and she didn’t want to arrive soaked so she went back inside. “If you get a chance, try to bring the subject up casually and see what Dad tells you about it. He’s not the type to go looking for someone like this without good reason.”

  “I’ll let you know, so be careful.”

  She went and sat at the table behind the captain and took out her laptop. As it booted up she looked at the row of boxes lining the opposite wall that had Merlin stenciled on the side. She doubted they contained Kai’s personal items or snacks, and she no longer cared if she seemed nosy or not.

  “Can I see your manifest?” she asked the man closest to her. Every box was listed, but it was like reading gibberish when she tried to make out the descriptions, so she flipped open her pocket knife and cut through the top of the closest one.

  Even after she’d opened five, she still had no clue as to what she was looking at, and it was unlikely anyone on board could offer her an explanation, so she sat back down and Googled Kai Merlin’s name. Her
search found numerous pictures of Kai with the locals of whatever country she was in, smiling in celebration over another successful well, but none of them had to do with crude. Kai’s specialty seemed to be finding water.

  She saw some of the same equipment in the background of the photo labeled Amazon Jungle. There were monitors in the trees, but the people in loincloths gathered around Kai didn’t appear alarmed or upset. Was a ready water supply payment for drilling rights? Maybe the do-gooder traded the convenience of a well for something these people would surely regret when the heavy equipment arrived.

  Vivien thought about it for the next three hours as she studied Triton’s blueprints, looking for anything that might be a problem as they geared up for production. Triton’s capacity would catapult them to the big leagues, which would make the shareholders ecstatically happy, but she primarily wanted to prevent another disaster that would sink the company faster than a torpedo through a rusty hull. Unlike BP, they’d never survive financially if the same thing happened to them.

  “Triton, this is the Sea Witch,” Talia said, and Vivien looked out the window. “We’re tying up at the southwest station and request assistance.”

  “Make sure all your bumpers are out,” a man said. “In seas like this you’ll get beat to hell if you don’t.”

  Vivien took out her rain gear and stowed her stuff. They were rocking in the high waves, which made unloading a pain in the ass, but she’d rather ride out the storm on Triton’s massive structure than here. “Hope you found safe shelter,” she thought about Kai, upset with herself for what had happened. “No one deserves to be out in this alone.”

  But that’s exactly how she felt right then.

  Chapter Eight

  Kai checked her radar again and saw a few blips she figured were anchored fishing vessels, probably because of the weather and rough seas. She’d started making contacts in the area the year before, so she sailed toward them to see if they were some of the people she’d met.