As Emily shrugged and sat in the proffered chair, Boone watched a darkness pass over Nicholas’s face. Just as quickly, he dredged up a smile and moved across to his seat. After Achilles had seated Em, the older brother struck a lounging pose in his own chair at the far end of the table and Boone turned to watch Lyra approach. He stood to pull out the chair beside him.
Karras rolled into his place at the table. “Where is Calypso?” When his query was greeted with shrugs and “I-don’t-knows,” he shook his head, muttering “No punctuality in this family.” He placed his palms on the white tablecloth. “I will say grace.”
Boone bowed his head and listened to the family patriarch speak the blessing in his mother tongue. Beautiful language… no idea what he’s saying. He snuck a peek during the prayer and noticed all were looking down except Nicholas, who was glowering side-eyed at his brother.
“And now… a prayer for agapiménos mou…” He bowed his snow-white head and prayed silently.
Lyra leaned in to Boone, close enough that her lips brushed his ear as she whispered. “Agapiménos means beloved. My father’s second wife passed suddenly a few months ago.”
“Efcharistoúme,” Karras concluded, then picked up a bell that sat beside his place setting and gave it a gentle, tinkling ring.
Boone thought for a moment that perhaps this was part of a Greek prayer ritual, but then felt silly as he realized Karras was merely signaling the waitstaff to begin the meal service. As a battalion of trays and tureens descended on the table, Boone took his napkin and dropped it in his lap. Turning to speak to Lyra, he found the young woman smiling at him.
“Uh… how are you feeling?” Boone asked.
“I feel wonderful… full of life! Thanks to you.”
“Good. But listen… I was just doing my job.”
“You are very modest.”
“Sir?” A voice came from over his shoulder.
“Yes?” He turned to find a blonde woman in a white polo and skirt holding a tray.
“Mimosa, Bellini, or Bloody Mary?”
“Oh, uh… maybe just some oj?”
She signaled another waitress who could have been her twin, this one bearing a tray of fruit juices. Across the table, a waiter with a silver coffee service atop a cart was making the rounds. A familiar floppy sunhat came into view as Calypso helped herself to the coffee pot, bringing it over to the empty seat beside Nicholas. She tossed down a battered, coverless paperback book and poured herself a steaming cup. From the look on the coffee server’s face, Boone figured this was a colossal breach of etiquette. Calypso handed it to the waiter and he winced as he took the scalding silver sides in his hands before placing it back on his cart.
“Where have you been?” Karras asked, not quite raising his voice.
Calypso held up a finger as she drained the cup and set it down. “Sorry, Father. I lost track of the time.” She snagged a Bloody Mary from the cocktail tray as it approached. “Good to see our saviors made it.” She took a noisy crunch of celery as she sat.
Boone glanced over at Emily, who was doing her best to seem interested in whatever Achilles was speaking about to her. The elder brother leaned over to say something in low tones and Emily forced a laugh, shedding her sunglasses and looking over to Boone with a widening of the eyes that signaled, “help me.” Fortunately, the arrival of the main dishes offered Em a distraction.
“That looks absolutely scrummy,” she gushed, as bowls of yogurt and baskets of breads were set down and lids were lifted from trays of egg dishes, breakfast meats, and arrangements of tropical fruits.
“I prefer my meals out here to be family style,” Karras said. “It reminds me of home. I hope you don’t mind. You can place an order for anything you’d like, if you prefer.”
“Not on my account,” Emily said. “And Boone will eat anything you put in front of him… so keep your hands clear of his plate, Lyra.”
The meal took nearly an hour, with Karras telling tales of his hard-working youth, Lyra fawning over Boone, Achilles fawning over himself to impress Emily, Calypso tossing well-aimed barbs of snark, and Nicholas quietly interjecting from time to time. Boone took it all in, and was beginning to think that this family, for all its wealth, wasn’t particularly happy.
As the servers began removing plates, Boone felt a buzz from his pocket. Though his Southern mama would’ve whacked him upside the head for looking at his phone during such a fine meal, he slid the cell out enough to read the text notification. It was from Ricardo.
My uncle says no one reported anything to the Marine Park about the illegal dumping.
Boone slid his cell back into his pocket as an assortment of tropical fruit sorbets made the rounds. And yet, that gargantuan Viking of a crewman said the Hygge Cruises crew had been told to leave. He made a show of looking off to the south. “I see the Nordic Starr is gone,” he said, addressing Nicholas. “Well done. I’m guessing you reported everything to the Marine Park. What did they say?”
“Oh… they were very interested in the video. Revoked their port privileges.”
“Yes, thank you for doing that, my son.” Karras said, selecting a stemmed, crystal parfait dish of mango sorbet. “That thing was offensive to look at and I’m sure our guests prefer the current view.”
“So… after you sent them the video, the Marine Park banned them from Cozumel and forced them to leave?” Boone prodded.
Nicholas shrugged. “I think the Harbor Master likely made the call.”
“You’re still planning to depart tomorrow?”
“Yes. We have a private tour out at Chichén Itzá at the moment, but once they’re back aboard, we’ll prepare for departure.”
“Where is your next port of call?” Em asked.
“Grand Cayman.”
“Yes, about that,” Lyra said, rising from the table. “Father… given that we decided to combine our maiden voyage with a shakedown cruise, I believe we have several unoccupied suites. Isn’t that right, Nicholas?”
“Yes… but why—”
“In light of their saving my life, I would like to invite Boone and Emily to join us on the next leg of our cruise.”
“Oh… I don’t know…” Nicholas began.
“Excellent idea!” Karras said. “Please… it is the least we can do.”
Boone watched Nicholas’s face as the man made several failed attempts at starting a sentence, but finally he smiled. “I suppose we can make that happen.”
Calypso squirmed in her seat. “I’m sure they have dive charters to fulfill. This is so last minute…”
“Actually…” Em retrieved her phone and looked. “Nope. All clear next couple days. Our ‘first mate,’ Ricardo, wanted some time with his family, so we’re taking a breather.”
“You’ll love it!” Achilles said. “I promise you, you’ve never experienced this level of voyage. The finest food, the finest wines, entertainment, gambling, the spa.” He leaned toward her. “Hot tubs. Massage.”
Em scooted ever so slightly away from him. “I admit, I could go for some pampering. Boone?”
“Well… what about Brix?”
“Brix?” Lyra asked.
“Brixton. Our dog. Ricardo’s wife usually looks after him but they’re over on the mainland for a few days.”
Lyra beamed. “Oh, we allow dogs aboard!”
Karras nodded as vigorously as his aged neck would allow. “Yes, we find that many of the wealthier families prefer to travel with their pets. We have a groomer and a full-time dog walker on staff. I myself have a dog aboard. A kokoni named Cerberus.” He laughed. “He’s only ten pounds, so not exactly a hound of hell.”
“So, it’s settled!” Lyra pronounced. “Be back here at…” She trailed off. “When are we leaving?”
“Tomorrow morning at nine,” Nicholas said. He rose from the table. “Emily, after you finish your
sorbet, I believe I still owe you a tour of the ship?”
“Oh, please… she’ll have a whole cruise to tour the ship now, Nicky,” Achilles said. “Besides, I’ve already invited her on a helicopter ride.”
“What?” both Nicholas and Boone said at once.
“Yeah. Perfect weather for it. We’re going whale shark spotting up by Isla Mujeres.”
“My son is an excellent pilot!” Karras said with pride.
“You’re invited too,” Achilles said to Boone.
“What a marvelous idea,” Lyra said. “I will go as well.”
Boone looked to Emily, who bit her lip and shrugged her bare shoulders.
“Well… okay.”
“Wonderful!” Lyra exclaimed. “I will need to change.”
Achilles rose. “I need half an hour for pre-flight. Nicholas, can you show them how to get to the helipad?”
Nicholas tossed his napkin beside his plate and stood with a wince. “I’m sorry, but there is too much to do.”
“You just offered to give Emily a tour,” Calypso said with a sly smile, “so how busy can you be?”
Nicholas ignored her and addressed Boone and Emily. “Enjoy the flight. Callie will show you to the helicopter.” He walked stiffly away.
“Nicholas doesn’t seem to like his older brother all that much,” Boone observed, as Calypso led them up two decks to the helipad.
Callie scoffed. “Achilles is just an asshole. And Nicholas has always had a stick up his butt, but after the accident he’s gotten a little dark.”
“The accident… where he lost his leg?” Emily prompted.
“I certainly didn’t mean the time he fell off his tricycle,” Calypso replied. “It happened nearly a year ago at a shipyard in the Netherlands. A naval architect was giving him a sneak peek at a ship being built for a rival company and a catwalk gave way.”
“He’s lucky to be alive,” Emily said.
Callie shrugged. “That’s what Lyra’s always telling him. But if he felt underappreciated before, it’s even worse now. If anything, he’s been working twice as hard to impress our father. Feels the universe owes him something. As if he’s the only one in this family with skills.” She unlocked a door with a keycard and pushed it open. “Well, here you are. I’ll see you around. I’ve got stuff to do.”
Boone and Emily stepped through and Callie pulled the door shut behind them.
“Bright ’n’ sunny disposition, that one,” Emily said, as the pair of them followed the wraparound of the upper-deck promenade to the side of the helipad.
“So… when exactly did Achilles ask you out on this airborne date?” Boone inquired, as they watched the flight crew attend to the helicopter that sat atop the pad.
Em tapped a finger on her lower lip. “Hmm… after I took a piece of spanakopita and before the yogurt and honey.”
“Surprised you said yes to him, given the looks you were throwing my way.”
“Umm… helicopter ride? I don’t know about you, but I’ve never been on one! Besides, I insisted you go along. I know his type. Achilles is a heel.”
Boone chuckled. “I see what you did there.”
“Just a little mythological wit to brighten your day.”
Achilles strode from the helicopter, wearing a flight suit and carrying a helmet under his arm. “Okay! We’re ready to go!”
“Still waiting on Lyra,” Boone said.
“My sister changes outfits so often, it’s a wonder she has time for eating and sleeping,” Achilles scoffed. “Come! I’ll show you the helicopter while we wait.”
They didn’t have to wait long. Just as Achilles was completing his tour of the interior, Lyra approached the edge of the helipad wearing a sundress that was strikingly similar to the one Emily wore, though powder blue in color. She climbed aboard the helicopter, and a waiting crewman slid the door closed behind her.
The cabin was laid out with seven leather seats: three in the back, one on either side in the middle, and two just behind the cockpit facing aft. While Achilles went outside to enter the cockpit, Boone and Emily each took a middle seat. Lyra selected the rear-facing seat across from Boone.
“All right, everyone strap in!” Achilles began flipping switches. “The co-pilot up here is Stavros. He’ll be hands-off, but my father insists on having him with me. If you look inside your armrests, you’ll find some wireless headsets with microphones. They’ll patch into the inflight intercom. Put those on so we can talk without yelling.”
Boone found the headset and put it on. On the side of the earpiece, he found a switch and toggled it on, immediately hearing the co-pilot’s voice.
“I was entering the coordinates from the shark spotter and came across this navigation entry for a point in Grand Cayman. No idea where it came from.”
“What’s so strange about that?” Achilles replied. “We’re going to Grand Cayman next, after all.”
“Yes, but… when we use a heliport, we rent time at the one on North Church… near the Burger King. This navigation point is inland… not even near the airport.”
“Must have been the main pilot, then.” Achilles replied. “What’s his name… Jackson?”
“Jason. But he always has me handle navigation entry, and I’m telling you, I didn’t set that waypoint.”
“Well… leave it in there. Doesn’t affect us. Spooling up!”
In moments, the whine of the engines rose to a roar, and as the blades bit into the humid air, the ach160 rose from the deck and headed out to sea.
Eyes on his laptop screen, Nicholas Othonos watched the helicopter angling toward the north, eventually leaving the field of view of the cameras atop the bridge. He leaned back in his suite’s desk chair, staring at the screen. Once more, his elder brother had stepped in and taken something from him. But if he was honest with himself, Emily was a distraction. Admittedly, a very beautiful distraction. Still, she and Boone were clearly in love; giving her a tour would have been a waste of his very valuable time. And the events at The Devil’s Throat and the subsequent delay of the Apollo’s departure had altered his carefully structured plans.
The accident last year at the Dutch shipyard had robbed him of his leg, true enough—but it had also served as an epiphany. Life was short. And he had already spent far too much of it trying to impress upon his father his rightful place in the organization. Karras may have built the business into a powerhouse, Nicholas thought. But I’m the one that turned it into so much more.
Tapping the keys on the laptop, he switched the camera feed to the corridor outside his door before reaching into a desk drawer and retrieving a second laptop. With practiced fingers, he brought up the program. Eyes scanning the layered code, he adjusted some of the dates and times. Satisfied, he retrieved a wireless earpiece from his pocket and made a call.
“Have you ever seen a whale shark?” Lyra asked Boone.
Boone nodded. “Yeah, once. Off Glover’s Reef in Belize.”
“And of course, I was up top, skippering that day,” Emily said. “And it was at depth, so I didn’t get to see it.”
“Well, you’ll be seeing one today!” Achilles said over the headsets. “We pay a few locals to give us a heads-up. There is a pair off Isla Mujeres, but they are already swarmed by cattle boats so we’re going to skip Mujeres and head further north to Isla Contoy, where a fisherman spotted one.”
Boone looked out the windows on the left as the white sand beaches of Cancún’s Hotel Zone came into view. Across the lagoon, the city itself was visible. The “Fort Lauderdale of Mexico,” Cancún was known as a mecca for spring break partiers, and Boone was smugly proud that he and Emily had never actually visited. They preferred the quieter coastal towns of the Riviera Maya to the south.
“Aren’t we outside the season for whale shark spotting?” Em asked.
“We’re right on the front end of it,
” Achilles replied. “A few months from now, there will be a lot more. I spotted twelve when we were down here aboard the Athena last year.”
“How many ships does your family own?” Em asked.
Achilles laughed. “A lot. Who knows?”
“Nicholas does,” Lyra said.
Achilles turned around to glare at her over the back of her seat. Boone noticed the co-pilot reaching for his set of controls, just in case. “I don’t need to know the size of our fleet. Nicky can tell me how many ships we have… when he’s working for me.” He turned back around. “I’ve got it, Stavros.”
“According to Father’s will, as the eldest, Achilles will take over the business when he passes,” Lyra explained. “My father is somewhat old-fashioned in that regard.”
“It’s the way it should be,” Achilles said.
“Your father…” Boone began, thinking of the wheelchair, the nurse, the oxygen. “Is he… um…”
“He is not well,” Lyra said sadly. “The doctors gave him six months a year ago. But then his second wife—Nicky and Callie’s mother—suddenly died, and—”
“Lyra!” Achilles barked, “this is not a subject for people outside the family.”
Below, Isla Mujeres passed by. Five miles long and half-a-mile wide, the low-lying Mexican island reminded Boone a little of the Belizean one he and Emily had last lived on, Caye Caulker. Well… except for the beaches and the mega-resorts and the larger population, he thought. If anything, it’s like Ambergris Caye was crammed into Caulker.
“Hey, Lyra,” Em began. “Did you swing by your ship’s dive shop? Ask about the computer malfunction and the half-empty tank?”
“Oh… well… no…” Lyra said, looking uncomfortable. “I still think it must have been an accident…”
“The guy who runs the dive shop ran off!” Achilles interjected over the intercom. “Nicky sent security to question him, but he was gone. Wiped all of the security camera footage, too! He probably realized he’d given them a malfunctioning computer. If I ever get my hands on that guy, I’ll—”
Deep Devil (The Deep Book 4) Page 16
