Masters of the Broken Watches
Page 32
“Given the dangerous nature of our work, I’ll understand if anyone wishes to depart from the team.” Cebrián shared his thought.
They all looked around at each other, deciding who should speak. Sebastian was quiet—he wanted others to take the lead.
Adora spoke up. “Thank you, Cebrián. I, for one, am very concerned about the possible violent situations we’d land in, in our search for these specimens.” She paused, looking at Charles affectionately. “On the other hand, I know how Charles and I are wired. We can’t stand back and let you all discover the hidden animals without us.”
Pham Kai and Minh were quiet. Knowing that they came from a culture of deep respect, Sebastian understood that they wouldn’t say anything until invited to speak. He asked Pham Kai to share his thoughts.
Pham Kai gently held Minh’s hand and spoke in Vietnamese while Poseidon translated. “All my life, I have dreamt of being more than a fisherman. This adventure to save Minh has taught me one thing—I don’t think I can go back to catching fish and selling them at the market. Even though it has been a good life for the two of us, I want to be part of something more.” He kissed Minh’s forehead. The room broke out in applause. He had summed it up for all of them.
“Pham Kai, I have something for you,” Cebrián said. Pham Kai eyes grew larger, puzzled, but didn’t say anything. Cebrián got up and pulled out a small box from his coat, and presented it to him with a bow.
Pham Kai, feeling embarrassed, looked at Minh. She nodded for him to go ahead. He opened the box, and tears started flowing down his face. It was his grandfather’s wristwatch. Minh moved closer and held her husband’s trembling hands.
“Okay, folks, I’ll let you enjoy,” Cebrián said, turning to the elevators. “I’m heading back to the office to read a new report Poseidon has submitted.”
“What new report?” Sebastian asked.
Cebrián called for the elevator and then glanced at his Paramarines. Their eager faces said it all. He knew he would not be allowed to leave till he gave them some hint.
Stepping into the elevator he shared, “In the caves of Cappadocia, Turkey a new hidden animal may have been sighted. According to the locals this animal can change its shape to mimic other animals, and also appear in two different places at the same time.”
As the elevator doors were closing he stuck out his hand and stopped them. The elevator complained by making a buzzing sound. He then shot off a final question, “Who would like to join me on this new adventure?”
Not waiting for an answer he removed his hand and the doors closed.
EPILOGUE
“You’re the diver’s clothes lying empty on the beach.
You’re the fish.”
~ Rumi
Cabrillo National Park – One week later
SEBASTIAN, YOU KNOW something you’re not telling us. Maria’s words kept playing in his mind. How did he end up communicating with the species? How did he know to follow the Rahpido tunnel wall that would get him to Sydney?
Sebastian stepped into the tidal pond. The usual surge of energy went through his body. He bent down and skimmed his fingers over the surface of the water. As soon as his fingers touched the water, the neural images came rushing back. But this time, they were different. The revelation shocked him, and shivers went through his entire body. All the mystery that had surrounded him throughout his life had now become clear.
He now knew where and when he had seen the red mist.
SITES TO VISIT
1. Scripps Institution of Oceanography
2. Bocas del Toro Research Station
3. Ultimo Refugio
4. Darien and Cerro Tacarcuna
5. Vietnam Maritime University
6. Andersen Air Force Base
7. Magellan Inn
8. Island Girl Coffee ‘n’ Quenchers
9. Bombay Reef
10. Bharati Antarctic Research Station
11. Gloucester - Marine Genomics Research Institute
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
These next paragraphs have been the hardest to write. How do you even begin, especially when armies of friends, family members, technical experts, scientists, and literary consultants have made this project a reality? How do you acknowledge them with your heart and say thank you?
The feeling of gratitude I have toward them is so strong that words on this page don’t even come close to doing justice.
My daughter, Zoha, read the first ever manuscript and spent hours walking me through the areas that needed attention and rewrites. She went chapter by chapter highlighting my repetitions and inconsistencies. My wife, who had lost me for over four years while I was mentally and physically immersed in this project, gave me the support I needed to complete this book. And my daughter, Alina, who while accepting a new job, moving to a new city, selling her homes, taking care of an eighteen-month-old angel, still took the time to edit my first five chapters. My son-in-law Christian highlighted the fact that I needed to emphasize the main discovery of the protagonist.
My dear Farhad introduced me to his network of literary legends. My sweet Shaheen confirmed and edited all of the scientific lab equipment and recommended that I change Maria’s gold bikini to a bronze bikini since gold was too cliché. My sister Roohi validated my recipes, especially when I only know how to make rice and omelets. My sister-in-law, Sobia, who reads two books a month, provided the positive and emotional support to get this book published. My brother, Arif, read the entire book on his phone. Being shortsighted he would remove his glasses and hold the phone three inches from his left eye and read. And my sister-in-law, Kaukab, not a
lover of science fiction still read the book and gave me her thoughts on the characters. My nephew, Kashif, who said “You are not a writer. You have not written a book, you have written a movie.” My niece Hina highlighted the sentences that were her favorite and expressed her deep love for my characters.
Help also came from all walks of life, from my friends, Michael Kolbrenor, Ruth Netanel, Mellissa Salandro, Arnie Sholder, Leigh Bishop, Terry Reyes, Sandor Katz, Matthew De Reno, Andy Mecs, Shad Connelly, Keith Ferrazzi, Lynne Campeau Zapadka, Deborah Ledford, Maegan Beaumont, Elizabeth Law and Walker Kornfeld. You all made my work better and helped me get the story out of my mind.
Thank you!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
RAZI IMAM is a Carnegie Science award-winning technology entrepreneur and the author of Driven, a John Wiley and Sons publication. His interest in creative writing began accidentally at the age of seventeen, when during the day he worked in the harsh dusty hot climate of Kuwait alongside some of the roughest blue collar workers who would spit and urinate on the side of the cargo ships, and then in the evening as a library clerk surrounded by literary professors, students and scientific books. He has an uncanny knack of creating stories that are a cross-section of global cultures, mysterious science, human ingenuity and hard-hitting action adventure.
His dream has always been to write books that would inspire readers to rise up and get involved in solving some of the greatest challenges faced by humanity such as hunger, poverty, illiteracy and disease.
He is also the CEO of the AI company 113 Industries, where his work in understanding human behavior acts as a catalyst for his stories.