Chapter 11
“How the hell is that possible?” asked Cowboy.
Harrison dropped into a chair. “A well-trained saboteur would have little trouble knocking out our radio ability. The difficulty lies in the access. In order for someone to take out our radios, they have to have access to the bridge and an ability to override the computer. We’ve already seen their computer prowess. ”
“I can’t believe it’s that simple.”
“Oh, I can assure you it is not. There are many safeguards in place. Double and triple checks to ensure this doesn’t happen.”
“Who has access to the bridge?”
“Me. The captain and first mate. About a dozen other crew members who work there. No one who should be suspect.”
“One of them did it. But why?”
“I wish I knew.”
“Because of the royals.”
The security chief nodded. “Maybe. It could be terrorists. With the royals on board–”
“And thousands of built-in hostages—” added Cowboy.
“They have the ability to capture the attention of the world.”
“I need to call for backup from HERO Force. I’ll call the authorities as well.”
“You can’t. The communication system—”
“I have a satellite phone.”
Harrison made the sign of the cross. “Then you will be our saving grace. May I use it after you? I will phone the cruise line and let them know of our difficulties.”
“Of course.”
Cowboy went back to his room. He picked up his satellite phone from where it sat charging, then took it out to the balcony to search for a signal.
The screen was black. “What the hell?” he whispered, pressing buttons to no avail. He knew it was working when he plugged it in yesterday morning, but now it was clearly dead.
So much for being anyone’s saving grace.
He was supposed to check in with HERO Force twice a day. In theory, failing to make that call should alert the team that something was wrong. He looked out at the seemingly endless sea, wondering if the lack of a check-in call would be motivation enough for HERO Force to do something about it.
He walked back inside and plugged the phone in again, just in case. He nearly bumped into Abby. “What are you doing here?” he asked.
She bit her lip, making her look like a teenager. “Please don’t be mad. I can’t find the royals. I’m sure they’re fine, I just don’t know where they went.”
Cowboy’s eyes went wide. “Why did you leave them alone?”
“Because I had to go to the bathroom! I waited as long as I could, but you didn’t come back and I couldn’t call you.”
“Son of a bitch.”
“I’m sure they’ll turn up really soon. I’m sorry, Leo.”
“It might not be that simple,” he said. “The Wi-Fi and cellular service going down was no accident. Somebody did it on purpose, probably the same somebody who disabled the ship’s radio.”
“The radio is down, too?”
“I can’t believe you left them alone. Someone was killed on this ship already.”
“But you said that wasn’t a big deal! That it was a crew member fighting with another crew member or something.”
“That was before all this other shit hit the fan.”
Cowboy opened a drawer and withdrew a handgun, stopping to put on a holster beneath his shirt. Were there other weapons on this ship? He and Abby had bypassed the scanners the other passengers went through, but he had to believe their enemies were armed, too.
“Get your weapon,” he said. “We no longer know what we’re up against. Go back to the pool deck and look for them. Don’t leave there no matter what. I’ll check in with you within the hour.”
“What about you?”
“I’m going to check their cabin.”
“The prince and princess? They’re not supposed to know we’re watching them.”
“So if they answer I’ll tell them I knocked on the wrong door. Jesus, Abby. It’s more important that we find them.”
He took the stairs two at a time and made his way to the Lido deck. It was faster to walk outside than through the ship.
It wasn’t looking like Abby was going to have a future career with HERO Force, after all, but Jax was right. They needed some women on the team. Calling in someone like Abby when they needed a female was downright dangerous.
He told himself to calm down. The royals had probably retired to their cabin for some honeymoon sex and a nap, for Pete’s sake, but Cowboy's mind had already taken a turn toward the dramatic and he needed to see for himself that they were okay.
He made his way past the towering slides of the waterpark and a fenced-in basketball court on his way to the private elevator. He took it to one of the ship’s most expensive suites three floors below, where the prince and princess were staying on this journey.
He pounded on the door, but there was no answer. He pounded some more. When he was satisfied no one was inside, he withdrew a key card from his pocket — which Harrison had given him when he boarded the ship — and opened it himself.
His eyes took in the chaotic scene, even as his mind refused to process it. A fight had taken place here. A very physical fight, from the look of things. A painting was askew on the wall, pillows from the couch thrown this way and that. A glass coffee table was cracked.
He drew his gun, clearing first the kitchen, then a small study and a master bedroom and bath. The suite was empty.
He walked back to the sitting room, where he’d entered, swearing mightily as he kicked a couch. The royals he was hired to protect were gone.
He needed backup, and he had no way to send word to HERO Force. He was supposed to check in with them twice a day. Would Logan take his missed check-ins as the sign of trouble they were?
He liked Logan. The kid was smart — smarter than almost anyone else Cowboy knew — but he’d yet to prove himself to be the highly valuable member of the team Cowboy knew he could be.
Come on, Doc. Figure it out for me, or we’re all dead in the water.
Literally.