Chapter 22
The Stranger
Miso soup and saltines with a side of fruit. More food.
Crystal sits across from me, watching me eat. In the dim lighting, her blue eyes catch and hold the light, like a shimmer.
We’ve got to talk about this. I’m not too bothered by what Finn did. Though I’m in the minority. He made a call. It was a mistake. We’ve all made mistakes.
But when I think of Crystal’s face the moment she saw me at the inn… the way it dropped… It was like I struck her.
I don’t want to ever feel that way again.
“What did Finn want?” I ask.
“He apologized. I believe that he’s sorry.” She frowns and brushes her fingers across the collar of her blouse. “But that doesn’t change much, does it?”
“No.”
We haven’t spoken about it yet. She wanted me to rest during the car ride, but my mind has been busy. Turning over every argument, searching for something that might convince her to say yes. In the end, I’m prepared to do whatever she asks. After what she’s been through, I owe her that much.
She puts her hand over mine.
“Nathan, I trust you to do what’s right.” She takes a deep breath. I hate that she looks so sad. “Whatever you decide… I’m here for you.”
I’ve promised to keep her and Natalie safe, and part of being safe is not worrying about me. But can I do that and also do what’s right?
“They need me,” I croak. “I can help.” I hate myself.
“Okay.” A tear falls down her cheek. She sniffs.
She clears the table and takes my hand, guiding me to the bedroom. A clean pair of boxers lies on the quilt. I fumble with my shirt, struggling to pull it over my head. Giving up, I lean toward my side of the bed.
“Here,” she whispers. She steadies me and pulls the shirt over my head. Then she helps me with my pants and boxers and tucks me in. Sliding in beside me, she buries her face into the crook of my neck and starts combing her fingers through my hair.
She talks about random things, her tender voice coaxing me to sleep.
“I love you,” I whisper.
Her voice hitches, then she sings to me.
“Time to rise and shine.” Her sweet voice.
“Hmmm,” I mumble, prying open my eyes and glancing at the clock.
No alarm. Shit. She must have turned it off last night. If I don’t get to the docks on time, they’re going to leave my ass.
I jump out of bed. I consider skipping the shower, but instead I set the timer on my phone and haul butt.
Five minutes later, I’m ready to go. On my way to the door, I see the bacon and eggs and a steaming cup of coffee waiting for me on the table.
“You’re an angel.” I pick up the coffee and give her a quick kiss.
“Eat fast, sailor. You’ve got less than three minutes.”
When I put the empty dish in the sink, she presses the back of her hand against my forehead. “You look much better.”
“I have an excellent nurse.”
“But you’re still a little peaked. Take it easy today—nurse’s orders.” She wraps her arms around me and rests her head on my shoulder.
“I can’t wait to come home.” I lean down and kiss her goodbye, then grab my gear. I hope I have my keys, I think to myself as I storm out.
“Good luck,” she says with a laugh and closes the door behind me.
I take the RIB to the research ship and greet Scott and the rest of the crew on the deck. Why does everyone look like they’re in a bad mood?
“Still waiting,” Jamie grumbles. “Twenty minutes and counting.”
Margaret and Liam stand beside him, pissed.
And Sid’s scowling. She’s been keeping her distance from Scott since last night. He told her she might have to sit out on the thermal dives, and it hasn’t gone over well. She’s alone today, without her team.
I survey the vessel. It’s about two hundred and fifty feet long and resembles a naval ship.
There’s a low hum of engines, and everything’s painted in stark whites and grays.
The deck is covered with the functional features you’d expect on a research vessel, including ROV storage racks, an A-frame crane, and dive stations.
Watertight doors line the bulkheads, sealing off the interior.
Margaret walks up to me, smiling, then she motions for me to bend down so she can whisper something in my ear.
“Your shirt’s inside out,” she says, then giggles and points to a door on the side of the interior.
Damn. This isn’t the impression I want to make in front of a Navy commander.
“What’s up with him?” I hear Jamie ask as I rush to the head.
After I change and return to the group, the main interior doors open.
Finn walks out and greets a glaring Scott.
“Sorry,” Finn says. “I’ve been in the middle of a rather heated debate with our guests for the last half hour.
My attempts to smooth things over before this meeting may not have yielded the outcome I was hoping for.
And Dr. Harlow’s enthusiasm about the prospect of the SEALs taking over the diving didn’t help our case. ”
He glances at Sid.
“Well, he can back off. It looks like he’s going to get his way, regardless,” she huffs and gives Scott a lethal look.
Finn turns his attention back to Scott. “This may be a hard sell.”
We follow him through two laboratory rooms and a galley, entering a conference room aft of the wardroom.
After he introduces us to the commander and his officers, we all gather around the rectangular table, where Garrett’s already sitting.
There aren’t enough chairs for everyone, so the officers remain standing, and Sid perches on the corner of the table.
Scott and I stand next to her. The body heat in the room is palpable.
The commander nods for Finn to begin.
“Commander Nicolaus’s SEALs arrive tomorrow,” Finn says.
“We’ve agreed to run a few reconnaissance dives with ROVs to collect as much data as we can, as deep as we can, while we wait.
We’ll also start staging supplies at the cave locations we can still reach in wetsuits.
There are eight Dante’s Shields, so we need to decide who’s diving and where.
Thin wetsuits are still usable in sections below ninety-five degrees, but only for limited exposure times. ”
“That’s a lot of information, Dr. Clark,” the commander says. His face is weathered, and he doesn’t frown or smile.
He inhales sharply and continues. “It makes the most sense for my men to wear the Shields. They’re trained, and they can use cave maps and anything else you can give them to get familiar with Carter’s Drop’s architecture.”
Finn clears his throat and glances toward us.
“Very good, sir. But if I may,” Finn says, trying to ignore the commander’s hard stare.
“Scott and Nathan are two of the most skilled cave divers in the world.” Finn clears his throat again.
“It’s taken them hundreds of hours of dive time to get that good.
Their teammates are also experts. Please understand that Carter’s Drop is one of the most complicated systems we know of, and with this heating anomaly, it increases the risk tenfold. ”
He pauses, gauging the commander’s reaction. There is none.
“You mentioned that none of your men have experience in caves yet. As skilled as they may be as divers, that doesn’t mean their skill will automatically transfer to cave diving, at least not in the time we’re talking about.”
“Do I look dense, Dr. Clark?” he asks. Finn shakes his head.
“We already discussed this twice. My men do the diving in the Shields.” He looks at Scott and me.
“What I will agree to is allowing your team to train with the suits, and Scott and Nathan can go on the missions. We’ll consider rotating more of your people in as we progress. ”
“Fair enough,” Finn quickly agrees.
“Good. We’ll start the training tomorrow, when my men get here.” He gets up and makes a curt goodbye gesture to the room. “Appreciate it.” He walks off briskly, his officers in tow.
“Did we do something wrong?” Jamie asks.
The Dante’s Shield schematic lies flat across the table. I’m going to get to dive in that suit. How awesome is that?
After we leave the room, I look at Scott. “You were quiet in there.”
“No point fighting it right now. I can’t tell him what to do with his men.
But none of us are getting in the water if I think it’s unsafe.
” He stops walking. “You don’t have to do this.
You’ve just got home. It’s all right to focus on Crystal and Natalie.
I know you don’t think so, but we can do this without you. You don’t have to prove anything.”
“I’m in.”
On the drive back home, I stop at the general store to pick up some groceries that Crystal asked me to get.
We’re having fish tacos.
With Natalie at Mads’s and Scott’s place, we have the house all to ourselves, and I feel much better than I did last night. I smile at the thought of dinner.
“There he is,” a woman’s shout and a scattering of footfalls.
Turning, I see half a dozen people coming my way with cameras and a microphone.
“Nathan, I just have a few questions for you. Is now a good time?”
“No.” I stare at the woman, dumbfounded.
One cameraman shoves his camera in my face, accidentally slashing my cheek as I try to turn away. “Is it true you’re living with Crystal Glassier, the widow of the man who tried to kill you?” the woman asks.
Fuck this. We can eat takeout tonight. I try to squeeze past them, and another man sticks out his leg, blocking me.
The hell?
“Did you have an affair with her? Is that why he wanted you dead? Is his little girl really yours?” she drones on and on.
I shove the cameraman aside. He trips and mutters something about me assaulting him under his breath.
“Do you have an anger problem, Nathan? Is that why you fled?” the reporter asks.
They continue to follow me as I rush to my car. Faster than they are, I whip out of the parking lot before they get into their van. If they’ve already connected me to Crystal, how long will it be before they show up at our front door?
I flinch when the cold cloth touches my cheek. Crystal gingerly cleans and dries my wound, then slathers a liberal amount of antibiotic ointment over it. Finishing with butterfly closures.