“We’ll need to keep rowing to make sure we don’t run into any of their lifeboats.”
“Nothing to worry about there.”
I turned and looked at Jedediah behind me. “Meaning?”
“I disabled some of their lifeboats, and locked the others to the deck with steel cables.”
I stared at him in the dark and he stared back at me. I saw no remorse. “They don’t have lifeboats?”
He shook his head slowly with satisfaction.
“We’ve got to go get the survivors!” I moved toward Jedediah who held tight to the oars. I knew I couldn’t wrest them out of his hands.
“Not a chance. They are a bunch of murderers.”
“Yeah but we’re not. I didn’t come here to kill anybody. I just wanted them floating out there, so the German Navy or Polish Navy or whoever could pick them up and put them in prison. We have them for even more murders with the ship’s crew. Turn around!” I stood in the bobbing lifeboat.
Jedediah continued to row slowly. I heard the slap of the oars against the water. He said, “This is exactly what you wanted since the day we met. You just needed me around so you could tell yourself it was all my doing.”
I scoured the water for survivors. I listened for cries. Nothing. I sat down.
He kept rowing, then asked, “What happened to the flag?”
“I wrapped it around one of the bricks of C4.”
“Gone forever,” he said with satisfaction. He rowed in silence, then said, “Your father will be proud.”
After contemplating I finally answered him. “I’m not so sure.”
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Many have helped immensely in the creation of this book. I would like to thank especially my good friends from Germany, Florian Köhler and Patrick Sonnenstrahl, who not only encouraged me and helped me with innumerable details about Germany, German law, and German history but also were gracious enough to allow me to use their very authentic names as characters in the book. I would also like to thank Nita Woodruff for her research assistance into DNA. My thanks also go out to my good friend inside the FBI, who gave me great insight into the inner workings of the agency and details that are difficult to come by. He asked that he remain anonymous, and I am happy to honor that request.
The Blood Flag Page 33
