China Marine: Tsingtao Treasure

by Buzz Harcus

  Moving quickly along the passageway, he found a second gob of explosives and disarmed it. Then a third and fourth. How many had Ernst set? Sweat stood out on his forehead as he feverishly made his way back toward the engine room. All the explosives had to be found immediately or they didn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of living.

  The helicopter! Had it arrived yet to pick up Ernst? He was the only man who knew the exact location of all the explosives. Quickly, Harry dashed up the ladder to the main deck. A crowd had gathered at one of the hatch covers where Ernst lay on a stretcher attended to by Captain Andress and Peter. Already Harry could hear the screeching thok, thok, thok of a jet engine as the helicopter approached the ship.

  Harry raced down the deck barreling his way roughly through the crowd. "Don't release him!" he yelled at Captain Andress making his voice heard above the high-pitched whine of the approaching helicopter. He thrust the fuses and timing devices into Ernst's face. "You aren't pulling this shit a second time!" he screamed.

  Strapped in a metal stretcher, Ernst paled at the sight of the fuses and timing devices. He looked at Harry fearfully.

  "Yeah. You recognize this stuff don't you, you scheming bastard!" Harry screamed in Ernst's face. "You thought you could kill us with your damned explosives, but you're not. You're not getting off this ship! You'll die with the rest of us!"

  "Vat is dis?" Captain Andress demanded, startled at the way Harry had shoved him aside, at his screaming at the poor injured sailor. He jerked Harry around. "Vot do you haf dere?"

  "Timing devices to blow up the ship, sir," Harry replied holding the devices before him. "This son-of-a-bitch planted plastique explosives below deck. When I heard he'd fallen and was injured, and was to be taken off the ship, I remembered what was said about his leaving Nuergren, how he was the only survivor. I found these, but not all of them. We're the next victims for his ship sinking scheme."

  Captain Andress took the devices from him, examining them.

  "He told Peter and me it was just putty down there in the hold," Harry continued. "Putty, my ass! It's plastique explosives. There's enough down there to send this ship to the bottom in seconds with no survivors. Nine o'clock tonight and BOOM! No more Nurad."

  Captain Andress turned his attention to a cowering, cringing Ernst. His expression served as his confession. Looking up at his first officer, the captain asked, "Is vat he says true? Vy vasn't I informed of dis?"

  Peter gave a half-hearted shrug. "Ernst said it vas putty. It's der kind ve use on board ship. He showed Harry und 1-1 believed him."

  "You believed him? Vat Harry is showing us is serious. Look at dese devices."

  "It seemed minor at der time," Peter replied defensively with a wave of his hand. "It vas brought to my attention. I took care of it."

  "You may have bought his explanation but I didn't," Harry yelled, "especially after I learned he'd survived the sister ship sinking." He turned to Ernst. "You remember the Nuergren, don't you? You were the only survivor!"

  Ernst looked away without answering.

  "Keep him on board and he'll sink with the rest of us!" Harry screamed making his voice heard above the increasing noise of the fast approaching helicopter. The chopper swung in past the bow appearing suddenly over their heads, hovering back and forth, aligning itself over the hatch where Ernst lay.

  A wave of fear crossed Ernst's face. He glanced quickly at Harry, then Peter, who turned away looking up at the chopper, and then over at the captain. There was no sympathy in the look from the captain.

  "He is wrong!" Ernst cried out. "Captain Andress, please, I hurt bad, send me to Vake Island. I need help. Please! I got to go to Vake Island!"

  Captain Andress knelt close to Ernst, his stern face only inches from the injured sailor. "Is vat Harry says true? Did you plant explosives on board dis ship?"

  Ernst looked away. "No! Is not true! I know nossing of vat he says. Nossing!"

  Captain Andress grabbed Ernst by his collar, jerking his head up till they were eyeball to eyeball. "Don't lie to me," he demanded. "Don't lie to me! Is vat he says true? Did you set explosives on dis ship?"

  Ernst trembled, his eyes breaking contact, shifting away, and avoiding the intense look of his captain. Peter knelt close watching, waiting.

  "Ahoy on board ship —" a voice boomed from the helicopter. "We are ready to hoist your injured man on board. Please hook the descending cables to either end of the stretcher and secure them tightly."

  Ernst looked up at the helicopter, at the descending cables; his chance for freedom.

  "He stays on board!" Captain Andress snapped, glancing up at Peter" Vave dem avay! He vill stay vis us. Ve get to der bottom of dis or so help me."

  "No! NO! I must go to Vake Island! Please, Captain Andress," Ernst begged. "I am badly hurt, I am in pain. Please! I know nossing of dis, nossing. Please!" But his pleadings fell on deaf ears.

  The cable from the helicopter dangled just above their heads now. A crewman reached up to grab the two end sections.

  "Don't!" Captain Andress barked. "I said to vave dem off!" he snapped at Peter. "Did you hear me?"

  Peter jumped at the sharpness of the command. "Aye, sir!" he replied backing away, frantically waving at the helicopter.

  "No! I need help! I tell! I tell!" Ernst screamed. "I tell. Just get me to a doctor. Please."

  "Der location of each and everyvun of dem," Captain Andress yelled. "Every single location on dis entire ship."

  Harry yanked a pen and small lined pad from his shirt pocket and began writing down the locations as Ernst rattled them off.

  "What's the deal?" boomed the helicopter speaker. "Why the wave off?"

  Peter spoke into his walkie-talkie yelling that there would be a slight delay.

  "Are dese all der locations?" Captain Andress demanded when Ernst stopped talking.

  "Yah. All of dem."

  "No lies?"

  Ernst shook his head. "Dose are all der places I set explosives."

  Harry reached down and grasped Ernst's broken leg squeezing it tightly, grinding the broken bone. Ernst screamed in pain trying to break the man's grasp on his leg. Harry tightened his grasp. Terror stricken, Ernst looked into his face. "The truth," Harry hissed. "Are these all the places?"

  "Yes! I tell der truth!"

  Harry relaxed his grip on the man's leg.

  "If dis ship sinks, you vill be held accountable," Captain Andress said. "I vill radio dis information to der autorities at vunce." He stood, and then looked at those surrounding him. "Go. Search dis ship from top to bottom. Bring back all explosives, timers und fuses. Go now!"

  There was no need to repeat the order. The men dashed below to search out the explosives knowing their lives depended on it.

  "What's your decision on deck?" came the helicopter speaker. "We have a limited fuel supply. Hook him up or we'll have to leave him behind."

  "Should ve keep him on board?" Peter asked.

  "Hook him up. Get him out of my sight. He disgusts me!" said Captain Andress. "I vill notify der American autorities who vill hold him for shipment back to Stockholm und prison." He stepped back shaking his head sadly. A man he had known and trusted, trying to sink the ship, killing his own shipmates, men he had sailed with, drank with, broken bread with. It was insane. The man must be insane.

  In the meantime, Peter had grabbed the two sets of cables and was kneeling down to connect the cables to the stretcher. Mr. Helmstrund knelt to assist him but Peter waved him away. "No. I vill do it by myself," he snapped brusquely. Mr. Helmstrund quickly backed off.

  Peter waved, giving the thumb's up signal to the helicopter to haul away. The chopper rose slightly and the winch started reeling upwards, lifting the stretcher clear of the hatch. Out over the side of the ship, the stretcher started swaying dangerously in the downdraft of the huge blades.

  "Oh!" someone screamed.

  One of the hooks had broken loose and the stretcher was flipping back and forth in the downdraft. Ernst, strapped t
ightly onto the stretcher, was screaming in pain, in fear.

  The downdraft intensified the jerking motion of the stretcher and it began twisting violently. Paralyzed, Harry watched helplessly with the others, horrified at the scene unfolding before them. Suddenly they gasped as the last cable snapped, and the stretcher and it's screaming patient plummeted into the ocean.

  They all rushed to the railing. There was no sign of him, nothing but a turbulent ocean.

  Peter gripped the railing, knuckles white. "I am sure I had it hooked properly, I am sure of it," he kept repeating, a tremor to his voice.

  "We can't see any sign of him," the helicopter speaker boomed. “Hes gone.”

  Captain Andress waved them off. The helicopter turned and headed back for Wake Island. Consolingly, Captain Andress laid his big, beefy hand on Peter's shoulder "Don't take it so bad. It vas an accident. It vas justice."

  They stood at the railing for several minutes before Captain Andress started away. Finding a few crew still on deck, he angrily yelled, "Don't just stand dere. Turn dis ship inside out. Do not leave vun nich unsearched. Go! Go now! Your lives depend on it!"

  Chapter 42

  A VISIT WITH THE CAPTAIN

  Second Officer Helmstrund caught Harry just as he entered the galley for a well deserved break. "Der captain vants to see you right now. It is urgent."

  "Can it wait a couple of minutes?" Harry asked. "I wanna get a cup of coffee. I'm bushed." All he wanted was a few minutes to sit back, relax, and collect his thoughts. It had been one hell of a grueling day.

  "He said urgent!" Mr. Helmstrund retorted sharply.

  "Yes, sir!" Harry retorted just as sharply, snapping off a salute. He turned, brushed past the officer and headed for the bridge on the double. Urgent must be important as hell, he decided taking the steps two at a time. And Helmstrund, what a dink! Not even time for a cup of java. What a dink!

  Did it matter to him that the captain had ordered him to take charge of the search relieving him of the noon watch? Did it matter to him that for several hectic hours he and the crew searched every damned nook and cranny for the hidden explosives and, in fact, had brought a staggering amount of explosives, timers and fuses up and stacked them on deck? Not even time for a cup of coffee! What a dink!

  And then a thought chilled him. Osa! He came to a screeching halt on the steps. The conniving bitch must have told her uncle that he tried to rape her out on the bow of the ship last night. Dammit! That must be it; he was headed for the brig!

  All of a sudden his legs turned rubbery, and could not support him. His mind was frazzled. No. He wouldn't let the bitch get the best of him. The captain had to hear his side of the story.

  "You wanted to see me, sir?" Harry gasped on entering the bridge, exhausted from struggling up the last set of steps.

  "Yes. I sent a communique off to Stockholm detailing all dat has happened today. I requested a search of Ernst's files, bank account und an investigation of der people he has associated vis in der past two years. Dere may be a clue as to his actions in vanting to sink dis ship." He stopped, glancing past Harry at the radar scope. "Dammit! Get dat electrician up here to vork on der radar. It is malfunctioning again!"

  Turning his attention back to Harry, Captain Andress continued, "I vas amazed at der amount of explosives he had stashed on board our ship. Ve haf pictures of everyting. I had der stuff trown overboard as a safeguard. Now, tell me about dis incident, every detail."

  A feeling of relief came over Harry. It wasn't about the bitch at all. She hadn't told him - yet. The incident, yes. Starting slowly, for the next half hour, Harry recounted the details of the incident with the so-called putty, the trek below decks with a fawning Ernst, the comment that Ernst had sailed on Nuergren, had been injured and removed from the ship before it sank, and that when he heard Ernst had been injured and was being removed from this ship, it triggered a horrible thought - the deepest part of the Pacific Ocean was dead ahead, the Bonin Trench.

  Captain Andress eyes widened at the news of Ernst's sudden departure from Nuergren due to a bad accident, so similar to what had happened today. As he listened, he asked an occasional question, took time to light his pipe, puffing clouds of blue-ish smoke into the air.

  "Und Peter never suspected anyting?" he asked when Harry finished speaking.

  "No, I don't think so. He was concerned when I told him of my finding what could be plastique explosives, but said he would get to the bottom of it before bringing it to your attention. He seemed satisfied at the explanation Ernst gave —"

  "But you veren't?"

  "No. I felt Ernst had pulled a con job."

  "It appears somevun targeted dis ship for sabotage. I don't know vy but at least der home office is now alerted. Anyvays, tanks to you, ve got der culprit." Grinning, he gave a hearty slap to Harry's shoulders. "I vant you to repeat der entire incident into a tape recorder for der record."

  Sitting alone at one side of the bridge, Harry repeated his story into the tape recorder. When he was done, he handed the recorder to the captain. Captain Andress thanked him, adding, "On behalf of all of us, tank you for being so alert. Trough your qvick action you saved der ship und all our lives."

  Embarrassed, Harry mumbled that he was sure anyone else would have done the same thing. On that note he left. Once off the bridge, he felt a wave of stupidity for not being able to accept the captain's praise. But then, he was not one for being in the limelight.

  Peter was waiting for him when he arrived back in their cabin. He appeared agitated. "Vot did der captain vant?" he demanded.

  "More details. He wanted me to record the whole incident on tape," Harry replied. Knowing Peter was distraught about his role in the incident, his not suspecting Ernst of skullduggery, and his handling of the lines which caused the man's untimely death, Harry downplayed the report to the captain.

  "I told him that Ernst had tried to con us into believing that cock and bull story about the stuff being putty. I had a hunch he was lying but I didn't let on that you weren't aware of the scam. I guess because you've worked with him over the years, you probably took him at face value."

  "Yah. I trusted Ernst," Peter replied. "I haf known him for many years, even before he came back to dis ship. I guess you can't take anyvun for granted." He paused seemingly relieved at what Harry had told him. "Der captain vas satisfied vis your report?"

  "Yes."

  "Good." Peter strode to the door, stopped and said, "I must go und check out some details for tonight. I vill see you later."

  Harry gave a wave of his hand, plopped down in the desk chair, stretched and propped his feet on the edge of the desk. Folding his hands behind his head, he stared reflectively at the overhead reviewing the events of the last several hours. It's mind-boggling, he thought, mind-boggling!

  Glancing at his watch, he saw he still had time for a quick snooze before dinner. As his feet slipped off the desk, one foot caught the edge of the wastebasket spilling the contents across the deck. "Shit!" he swore, stooping down to pick up the bits and pieces of paper. Several scraps were from a ship's cable. Curious, he flattened the pieces out on the desk fitting them together as a jigsaw puzzle.

  The message was from the ship's headquarters in Stockholm and addressed to Peter.

  SORRY FOR LOSS. STOP. IMPERATIVE THAT VOYAGE PLAN BE SUCCESSFUL. STOP CONTINUE OPERATION AT ALL COST. STOP. LINDSTROM.

  Harry read the message a couple of times. It had no meaning for him, just management sending a supportive message to continue the voyage. But why was it sent to Peter? Why not Captain Andress?

  He re-read the message. On an impulse, he folded the pieces of the cable and stuffed them in his shirt pocket. The rest of the spilled papers were dumped back into the wastebasket. Climbing into his bunk, he pulled a blanket over him settling down for a couple of hours of well-earned sleep.

  Chapter 43

  COLLISION AT SEA AVOIDED

  The ship was directly east of the Ryuku Islands when Harry reported to the b
ridge for the midnight watch. He noticed they had made a course change heading more northerly, a straight line to Shanghai. The weather report indicated a moderate tropical storm brewing dead ahead. Outside the bridge, a balmy breeze swept across the ship.

  Peter seemed unusually quiet, pre-occupied, less than his normal communicative self. Harry shrugged it off. Yesterday had been one hell of a day. Today had to be better. Peering into the darkness he could see a scattered layer of low-lying clouds. Occasionally stars twinkled through the broken edges of the clouds as the layer moved on. Off the port bridge Harry saw the faint lights of small villages along a distant shoreline they'd be passing before long.

  About an hour into the watch Harry reached over and tapped the radar screen. It hadn't made a good sweep in the past several minutes. Blips appearing on the screen would not show up the second and third time around. These were busy waters with many small coastal vessels on the move and the radar was very necessary. The last radar sweep showed the area devoid of shipping, yet, visually, he knew there was a small coastal off his starboard that would pass astern.

  He tapped the screen again. Ships couldn't be appearing and disappearing that fast. The damned radar was definitely malfunctioning. One big blip suddenly appeared, but was gone the next sweep. Now there was nothing.

  "Peter," Harry called. "This damned radar is screwing up again. What should I do, throw the damned thing overboard?"

  Peter smiled at the comment. Stepping over, he examined the unit. He tapped it several times. "Hmmm, I am not an electrician. I vill call him."

  Picking up a phone, he dialed. After several rings someone answered only to have his ears blistered by a not too pleasant First Officer ordering him to the bridge on the double.

  "He vill fix it right dis time or he doesn't leave der damned bridge," Peter said, slamming the phone back in its cradle.

  Within minutes a sleepy-eyed older man reported to the bridge carrying a large tool case. He offered an apologizing look in Peter's direction, shrinking back at the harsh look he received in return. Quickly he turned to the task of repairing the radar. Soon, parts of the radar were strewn about him as he worked feverishly under the scrutinizing observation of the First Officer.