Chapter 11
"We've got a problem," Daniels said.
I groaned. "What is it now?”
We had just finished breakfast and were enjoying a nice moment on the sky deck.
"You’re not going to like this, but there's a situation on the habitat."
"What kind of situation?"
"Somebody's dead. I don't know who at the moment. Communication is spotty right now. They're trying to get comms back online.”
My throat tightened. We had plenty of adventures with Flynn, and he'd become like a brother. I thought the worst, but hoped for the best.
"As you know, according to Florida law, that body can't be moved until it's been evaluated by the medical examiner. Now, Brenda does not have any training or experience with saturation diving, and you two nitwits do. That means you are my only option. You’re going to go down there, assess the situation, and preserve the evidence. But as you know, this is not going to be a quick trip.”
"Copy that."
"Get your things together and meet me at the station.
I'll take you out to the DSV Curiosity. You’ll go down to the habitat, and Brenda will walk you through a remote evaluation.
Once that's complete, you two will investigate the situation, determine if this was an accident, and arrange for the recovery of the body.
That body can't be brought up immediately without decompression damaging tissues. It will have to go through deco like everyone else.”
"I'm aware.”
"That means you have to find a way to pack it on ice for four days, or it's gonna be plenty ripe. There will be someone in deco to handle it from there.”
“There’s one slight problem. We’re in Miami.”
“What the hell are you doing there?”
I told him.
“I don’t care how you do it, just get your asses here pronto.”
“Send Tango One.”
“That’s 40 minutes up and 40 minutes back. Time is wasting.”
“I’ll figure something out. Let me make a few phone calls and see what I can rustle up.”
“Next time you’re going to be out of town, let me know.”
I ended the call and relayed the information to Jack.
Concern filled his eyes. "Is Flynn okay?”
I shrugged, then called a buddy, Tommy Thornwood. Turbo ran a helicopter charter business shuttling tourists around the Keys.
Tommy picked up after a few rings, and I told him the situation.
“You’re in luck. I’ve got a guy flying a corporate client to Miami now. I’ll have him pick you up on the way back. Where are you?”
I told him. “You’re a lifesaver.”
“I know. You owe me one. Maybe a dozen.”
“Probably two dozen at this point.”
Tommy had helped us out on numerous occasions.
He said he’d be in touch and ended the call. I called the sheriff back and told him we found a ride.
“What about me?” Paisley asked.
“You’re staying here.”
She shifted with discomfort. “You’re going to leave me alone? When are you coming back?”
I cringed. “It’s going to be a minute.”
“How long is a minute?”
“If all goes well, a day down and four days in deco.”
“A week!?”
I nodded.
“What am I going to do for a week?”
“Try to stay out of trouble.”
“Who’s going to protect me?” she sassed.
“Just the other day, you were wanting to go out to the clubs.”
“I wasn’t serious.”
“You said yourself, nobody knows you’re here.”
“Well, yeah,” she said in a pouty voice.
“You can stay here, we can take you to a hotel, or you can ride back with us and let the sheriff figure it out.”
Paisley thought for a half second. “No, I’d rather stay here.”
I figured she’d be safe. I hadn’t seen hide nor hair of the assailants in days. By now, I’m sure they realized she didn’t have the case.
“I need a gun or something,” Paisley said.
I gave her a look. “Do you know how to use one?”
“Yes, my dad took me hunting all the time when I was little.”
I shared an uneasy look with JD.
He shrugged.
“If I give you a gun, you have to promise not to shoot anybody unless they’re trying to kill you.”
She gave me a flat look. “Do I look like a psychopath?”
“Jury’s out.”
She sneered at me.
Against my better judgment, I gave her a gun and showed her how to use it. After demonstrating her proficiency in handling it, I felt a little more comfortable.
“Don’t rob a bank with it,” I warned.
“Oh, no. I won’t do anything like that. That’s crazy. I’ll start with liquor stores first,” she teased.
“We stocked up on food yesterday, so you should be fine for a week. Call the sheriff if you need anything. Don’t have any parties on the boat.”
“Not even a little one?”
My eyes narrowed at her.
“Kidding.”
“Don’t make me regret this.”
She scoffed. “Everything’s going to be fine. Relax. I’ll look after the boat.”
JD and I prepped our gear and prepared for a week-long excursion.
Tommy called and said his guy was en route and would pick us up.
We said our goodbyes to Paisley and hustled down the dock to the helipad. The high-end marina catered to the ultra-rich and was one of the few with a heliport. If you were really rich, you had one on your yacht.
Rotors thumped, and the sleek black helicopter touched down. Rotor wash bent trees and grass.
We crouched low and hurried to the craft. Once inside, we shook hands with Eddie, and Jack pulled the door shut. We put on headsets, and Eddie lifted us from the tarmac. He angled away, and the marina grew small as we headed south.
I looked back at the Avventura, hoping I’d made the right decision to leave Paisley there alone.