Limiting Liabilities: Book Two - The Martinique Files

by Colette Alaine

  Meeting in the lobby early in the morning Billy says very little. The car greets them shortly after and they head to the small airport where they board the helicopter. The flight is about forty-five minutes long and once they rest on the landing pad, they deboard and meet two military men who guard the elevator.

  It is simple enough Billy tells himself. He will just step into it. They will close the door and hit a button and he will be in the lab ten minutes later. He already told the other two he wants to go first.

  As they approach it Tawny hands him her iPod. Nervously, he inserts her ear buds and turns on the music. He doesn’t care what he hears. He will listen to anything. Thank goodness she has a Metallica song starting as the door on the elevator closes and the button is pushed.

  Going down in the small container Billy concentrates on the rock song. The trip is so slow in his mind. It is taking forever. Cramped inside like a full-grown chick ready to hatch he cannot break out. Sweat pours from every part of his body. His breathing is stilted and he cannot catch his breath.

  “Listen to the song. Just listen to the song,” he says out loud. He knows it is only a four minute tune and it is almost over. He tries to concentrate on the words but his whole body is trembling.

  “This must be what a panic attack feels like.” His knees buckle but the container is so small he cannot lie down. Paralyzed in the egg structure he wonders if he will make it without having a heart attack it is beating so fast. His throat is dry and feels thick. He tries to swallow and nearly chokes.

  Then he hears the Osmonds in his ear. ‘Down by the Lazy River’ is playing loudly. Twenty-six year old Tawny Martinique listens to the Osmonds. His breathing eases and he almost laughs out loud. The Osmonds are going to save him from a heart attack. The Osmond Brothers. What an immensely crazy miracle a song can create.

  Relaxing as the song plays, Billy calms down. He has to be close to the bottom of the gulf by now. It’s been at least seven minutes. Carrie Underwood’s ‘Jesus, take the Wheel’ appropriately brings him to the end of his tortious trip as he stops with a thud. A moment later the doors open and he escapes the cocoon to be greeted by eight smiling faces.

  “Billy Solomon, it’s a pleasure.” One hand after another sticks out to shake his. All of it is a blur to him as they lead him to a chair. Covered in perspiration, they were told earlier this would be a tough trip for their lawyer. Pouring him a tall glass of an energy drink he gladly takes it and empties it quickly.

  He is not ready to see the view yet. Staying in the little room in the center of the underwater lab he waits for Tawny to enter. It will be at least twenty minutes. Ten minutes back up and then ten with her coming down in it, plus however long it takes her to get into it. Then, it will be Ken’s turn. Whether or not he waits for the engineer he does not know yet. He is not keen on spending forty minutes in this room.

  Tawny steps out twenty-two minutes later and Billy is recovering nicely by eating cookies and drinking everything he can. His bodily functions return to normal and he hopes they remain that way.

  “Interesting choice of music.” Billy greets her with the first thought that comes to mind.

  “I thought the Osmonds and Jesus could get you down here safely.” Ah, she set it all up ahead of time. Such a smart girl.

  “Thanks. I would’ve never guessed you liked those old pop tunes.”

  “Exercising to them is fun. I have a few more on them for your trip back up.”

  “Don’t remind me. How was your trip?”

  “Claustrophobic. I panicked a little,” she admits.

  “Do you want your music for the trip up?” He so hopes she says no but will relinquish the iPod if she needs it.

  “You need it more than I do and now I know what to expect. I’ll just sing to myself like I do in the shower. Three or four songs ought to do it.”

  “I always get to see your big heart when I need it the most,” Billy compliments her and thanks her at the same time.

  “I’m hoping it’s always there and you just miss it most of the time.”

  “I don’t miss it.” Looking into her topaz eyes he is having a moment and knows he must do something before he makes a mistake and kisses her. “Shall we see what it’s like to live in an aquarium?”

  “Are you ready for this?” She hesitates wanting to make certain he is not going to lose it.

  “I’ll never be ready for this so let’s do it.” They walk outside the room. The scientists have returned to their work but before turning to greet Tawny as they hear the door opening, they allow the two attorneys to witness the extraordinary view.

  Magnificent beauty is too weak a phrase to describe the immensely glorious scene in front of them. Large and small fish and other sea creatures glide all around them through brilliantly colored coral and green algae. It is an overwhelming sight to behold. No matter where they turn they see the spectacular sights that only the floor of a great body of water emanates. Breathtaking and awe-inspiring in its elegance and presentation the two attorneys cannot speak. There are no words to describe their feelings. The view is more than their eyes can imagine.

  “Jesus just took the wheel.” Billy’s first words relate back to the song that got him here.

  “Wow. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. I’ll never forget this view ever in my entire life.” Tawny is as taken as Billy is.

  “Welcome, Tawny. We still get the same tingles that the two of you are feeling every time we come back here. It’s surreal and yet so very real at the same time. We can’t believe our good fortune. This is where we get to come to work.” One of the scientists speaks to her.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be so rude. I got so caught up in this view,” she tries to explain.

  “We expected it. We’d be sorely disappointed if it hadn’t happened.” Another scientist adds his voice to the conversation. “Ken should be down here in ten minutes or so and he made us promise not to show you around. He wants to do the honors himself. He hates that he has to miss your initial impression.”

  “I think it’ll remain the entire time we’re here,” Billy assures him and turns to Tawny. “You do get to experience how a fish in a bowl sees us. I feel like the trapped animal watching a whole other world unfolding outside my glass cage.”

  “It’s pretty eerie, isn’t it?” Tawny decides she would not want to spend too much time here despite the fabulous view.

  “Uh huh. But I am very glad I came. This was worth all the trauma.”

  In no time Ken is standing beside them and he cannot wait to show them the intricacies of the laboratory. All of the instruments are around the outer glass wall separating them from the beauty and the danger of the gulf. Surrounding the back side of the elevator room are three rooms. One sleeps eight women and the other eight men. The small one in between is the bathroom, which was the most difficult aspect of building the underwater lab.

  Only eight scientists come down but since no one knows the balance between males and females, they built bunk beds to sleep at least eight of each. Right now there are an equal number of both so four women and four men inhabit the two rooms.

  Generally four sleep while four work seven to eight hours at a time but the remaining eight hours they work together. That is what is happening now. Ken wanted all of them to be awake when the attorneys arrived, which is why they came in the morning.

  Inside the gigantic people tank for more than two hours it is Tawny who starts to feel the walls closing in. Ken realizes it and knows that Billy is right behind her and that they better ascend to the landing pad. Billy lets Tawny go first but she insists that he keep her iPod. He does not resist too much as the fear of returning to the top begins to invade his senses.

  When the elevator door opens and Tawny reaches for the handle to exit she nearly falls out she is so relieved to be back. The guards quickly send the elevator back down to fetch Billy. As she stands in the guard station she feels very uncomfortable with these men. They stare at her and she knows i
t is because they are not used to seeing a girl that looks like her in their country. Now she wishes that Billy had come up first. She only hopes he isn’t sick when he arrives. He will be no protection at all.

  Staying inside the guard station is quickly becoming too uncomfortable for her. She has no idea what to say to these men and she is almost afraid to start a conversation. It has been fourteen minutes since she got out. Billy should be here in seven minutes or so. She can stand out on the landing pad for that long.

  Excusing herself, she exits and wanders around the small floating dock connected to the underwater lab below. This structure is truly a wonder and how Ken ever imagined it, much less built it, is a marvel. Five minutes pass and Tawny can feel the eyes of the men on her. Two more minutes and Billy should be coming up.

  Fifteen minutes pass and there is no sign of Billy or the elevator. Tawny decides to ask the men if anything is going wrong although she is terrified of the answer. Going back inside the guard station she inquires.

  “It’s stuck,” one of them replies.

  “Is he in it?” Billy will die inside that thing if it is stuck.

  “Yes, but we make it move soon,” the beady eyed guard responds.

  “How soon?” Tawny is as afraid as Billy must be.

  “Two minutes. Ve vait two minutes and den start it again.”

  “Why is it stuck?”

  “Ve have to stop it so de shark doesn’t attack it.” Tawny freezes.

  Her expression must reveal her fear because one guard immediately addresses her concern. “Don’t vorry pretty lady. It happens all de time. Ve never lose anyone yet. Vne more minute ve start it again.” Ken never told them this could happen.

  Tawny does not know what to do. Pacing around the guard station she forgets her concern about the men ogling her and thinks only of Billy. Not knowing what else to do she starts to pray. A minute later the guard presses the button and five minutes later Billy emerges pale as a ghost.

  She explains what happened to him and sits on the landing pad as the elevator descends once more to pick up Ken and bring him to the surface. The helicopter is not here yet and Tawny hopes they make it back without incident.

  “I think I found religion in the last twenty minutes. That song ‘Jesus, take the Wheel’ kept running through my head. I’ve never been so glad to thank God in my life when it began moving again. I’m never coming back here again.” Billy inhales deeply as if he is afraid the oxygen over the gulf will run out.

  “Trust me, one trip is more than enough and those guards are freaking me out. They keep staring at me.” Tawny finally tells him of her own fears.

  “I thought about that as you were going back up and I said it to Ken. He didn’t think of it before and we were worried about you. I should’ve let him come up after you but I was getting claustrophobic and I could feel the panic building. Ken told me I better go up next. I’m sorry, I’m rambling. Where’s the helicopter?” Billy is realizing the situation is not ideal.

  “I don’t know. It’s been ten minutes. Hopefully the elevator is back down and Ken will have a smoother ride up than you did.” The two sit side by side waiting for their ride and their guide.

  The helicopter arrives first and both are immensely relieved to see it. As it lands they run toward it and crawl inside. Two minutes later Ken is opening the elevator, waving to the guards and pulling himself inside the flying machine.

  “You’re safe, Tawny. I forgot that you’d be up here all by yourself with those guards. That was stupid of me. Why did it take so long for them to send the elevator back down when Billy got up here?”

  “They stopped it while Billy was in it because a shark was circling it and they didn’t want it to be damaged,” Tawny explains.

  “Oh my.”

  “You conveniently forgot to mention that risk, huh Ken?” Billy is a bit put out.

  “It rarely happens. I never dreamed it would occur today. In fact, I think it’s only happened one other time. At least I know the guards are doing their job. I’m sorry, Billy. I really am. How do we find ourselves in these precarious states when the three of us are together? At least this is then end of it. We’ll have a nice tour of the farm areas this afternoon and then a relaxing day tomorrow doing whatever you want. I’m planning to go back to the lab for most of tomorrow so you two are on your own.”

  “After this tour we’re not leaving the hotel until we get in the car to take us to the airport. This is enough adventure for me.” Billy’s nerves are shot.

  “The drive to the farmland will relax you and maybe you’ll change your mind. Do what you want but I’d hate for you to miss out on all that Nigeria offers.” Ken is talking to deaf ears because Billy has no interest in other pursuits.

  CHAPTER 24

  I n order to reclaim their land legs, Billy and Tawny insist the three of them have a nice long relaxing lunch in their hotel. Ken is eager to please after the excitement of the morning. He still cannot believe the guards stopped the elevator with Billy inside while a shark passed. Thank goodness the animal did not decide to attack the steel pipe. It is sturdy enough to withstand water force but a shark attempting to puncture it is quite a different matter.

  All the scientists below are equipped with scuba gear and oxygen tanks so they have an alternate method of escape unless they get trapped in the elevator. Fortunately, that has not happened and neither have they used the scuba gear. Up to this point, there have been no problems at all. Whether or not Ken informs the others of Billy’s peril he has not decided yet. No need to cause undo worry.

  The leisurely lunch is just the ticket to soothe their frayed nerves. Billy returns to his old self now that the trip underwater is over. He even orders a drink, something he rarely does at noon and while with the client. No one says anything and Ken is happy that Billy was able to see inside the lab.

  “So now what?” Tawny asks as the waiter picks up her empty dishes.

  Ken is eager to respond. “I’ve rented a car and a guide to take us through some of the more rural areas of Nigeria. I figured two environmental attorneys would like to see the rich vegetation this part of the world offers.”

  “I’m anxious to see how the majority of the non-city dwellers live. I’ve read enough about this country to know that many are in dire poverty. Of course, it’s the women who have learned how to farm to provide for their families,” Tawny taunts the two men.

  “Say whatever you like. I’m game for anything as long as my feet don’t touch another boat and the only water on me comes from the shower.” Billy sips his bourbon.

  “Once is enough for you too, huh?” Tawny joins her boss’ sentiment.

  “You have to admit that once you were down there it was a truly remarkable sight,” Ken attempts to highlight the positive aspects of the trip. He truly wants his attorneys to experience his dream.

  “Definitely, and I’m glad I went but I’m not jumping to go back down again. I give those scientists a lot of credit for living down there a week at a time.” Ken smiles as he realizes Tawny is amazed they do not feel any of the apprehension that she and Billy felt.

  The engineer decides to shed some light on how his buddies feel. “I think they are so consumed with the studies that they don’t agonize over where they are and how they get there. I know none of them are too excited about the elevator but it’s the way they get to do the kind of work they love so they deal with it.”

  “I’m glad it’s over.” As usual, Billy has only one emotion.

  “But it was beautiful to see.” Ken so wants to hear one good thing from Billy and he knows it.

  “It was incredible and when I have nightmares about the elevator and being so far down in the water, I’ll think of you.” Ken can only laugh in response. This is the best he will get from his senior lawyer.

  Glancing at his watch, he says, “The car should be here in fifteen minutes. I’ll get this check and if either of you wants to jet up to your hotel room for a few, you should go now.”

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nbsp; “I’m going to change from these dress pants. I’ve got a pair of casual khaki’s and tennis shoes. I probably should grab a jacket too.” Tawny provides too much information as she gets up from the table and leaves. Billy excuses himself and follows her.

  “I prefer elevators like this,” Billy says as they comfortably enter the one in the hotel leading to the upper floors.

  “Me, too. The only other time I’ve been that cramped was when I went up in the St. Louis Arch and it wasn’t nearly that bad. And I wasn’t in it alone. And it didn’t take very long.” Tawny reveals her past travels.

  “What’d you do in St. Louis?” Billy is curious.

  “Met some friends and did a Labor Day party weekend one year. It was lots of fun. We drank a lot but we ran all over the city exploring it. Have you ever been?”

  “I have on a few cases actually. They keep an eye on the Missouri and the Mississippi rivers and perpetrators who think it’s an ideal dumping place. Here’s your floor. I’ll see you downstairs in ten minutes.” The doors close on Billy as Tawny steps out.

  Practically running to her hotel door she opens it quickly and starts undressing immediately. Knowing she would have little time to change, if any at all, she laid out her more casual clothes for the rest of the day. Since they left so early this morning to visit the underwater lab and ate an early lunch, there are plenty of hours of sunshine left for the trip a little north of the water’s edge.

  Dressed, she then exchanges her bulkier purse for a small backpack with some essentials she may need. The tropical weather is a balmy eighty degrees but she fears if they spend too long in the car she will need a jacket for the evening. They should find a nice restaurant for dinner so she cannot be too casual. No shorts or tank top on this trip.

  Armed with sunscreen, a large bottle of water, some granola bars, sunglasses, her smart phone, flip flops in case she needs to change her canvas shoes, a manicurist tool set for breaking a fingernail, lip gloss and hair do-floppies, Tawny is ready to go. With no time to braid her long thick hair she will do it while riding in the car. The three men will expect her to sit in the back seat and at that point, they will probably ignore her. Hoping the scenery will be captivating, she plans to admire it as they drive to their destination.