Eliot and Neil made rapid progress, in no small part to the hope and praise lavished on them by a truly demoralised and despondent crew. The song Don't Stop Me Now by Queen became the unofficial anthem of their recovery. Chief Officer Eliot was popular and whilst Second Officer Neil was not popular the crew were desperate for good news in any form.
Eliot had been the first to come round but was still suffering with dizziness and it was Neil in the end who was first to be up and about. Walking unsteadily with severe damage to the muscles in his neck Neil wore a neck brace and used a stick to keep his balance.
The crew were overcome with emotion as they realised in the short time at sea two crew members had died. Watching on in horror helplessly as the lifeboat sunk into the sea had torn at the already fragile constitution of the crew. The Captain was very worried about morale and called a meeting with Chief Engineer John Fox and the Purser David Clough in the hope of getting some ideas about how to proceed.
John and Dave sat in the Captains Office waiting for him and talked about the events of earlier in the day.
'Do you think the hull of the lifeboat cracked as it hit the water or do you think Ray put a hole in it to commit suicide?' Dave asked John who as Chief Engineer knew all about the ship and its construction.
'I've seen them make those lifeboats and they're designed to hit the water hard so it's very unlikely that it broke or cracked on hitting the water. Why would Ray choose that as a way to kill himself though, it seems like a lot of trouble to go to.' John responded.
'Yes a very strange way to go, it's almost like he wanted us all to watch him die. Maybe to shame us for the way we treated him.' Dave replied.
'How is Trish coping? I hear Jess has spent a lot of time with her.' John asked with genuine concern.
'She doesn't believe it and she's all over the place and saying all sorts. I gave her some pills to calm her nerves and Jess made sure she took them' Dave responded.
The Captain came in noisily after having stood outside the door listening to Dave and John talk. The Captain had dark black bags under his eyes and was weary from the stress and strain.
'I have just got off the radio with HQ. They want us to carry on but will allow us to stop in Brazil if I deem it "necessary to maintain crew morale" which is their way of saying on your head be it and we'll hold you responsible for any delays in arriving in Japan' the Captain announced to John and Dave.
*
The lifeboat continued to sink deeper and deeper into the Atlantic Ocean. The sea floor was a long way off as the Atlantic was very deep here. As the lifeboat sank deeper it got darker and darker and the body of Ray Reid was no longer visible to the fish swimming by.
Whilst the lifeboat continued to drift into the depths of the ocean Radio Officer Mark Chelmsford sat in the small office just at the back of the Bridge. Mark sat in the small cubicle area with his headphones on, over one ear, leaving the other to hear the music playing quietly over the tape-deck he kept in the office with him to keep him amused. It was playing one of his favourite songs and one fitting for a trip across the globe, Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick by Ian Dury & The Blockheads.
Mark was shocked out of his relaxed state as he was horrified and dismayed by the message he was given by Second Officer Neil Farmer. "For immediate transmission to HQ in England" it said across the top.
Neil Farmer loomed over his shoulder trying to hurry Mark along and Mark made an excuse and said there was a fuse blown to escape Neil's oppressive stare. Mark made his way to the electrical room a few meters away and then used that time to dash across to the Captains Office.
Mark had no time to knock and he burst in to find the Captain, the Chief Engineer and the Purser. Mark had no time to apologise or for subtlety. If the men in here didn't know about Jamie's secret then they would now.
The Captain looked up angrily at the interruption.
'Captain I'm terribly sorry. The Second Officer has instructed me to transmit this message to HQ in England and said I had to do it right away. I managed to give him the slip as I wanted to confirm with you first Sir.' Mark said hastily with panic and worry etched on his face.
The Captain snatched the message out of Mark's hand gruffly and with a huff looked down and started to read.
'Neil Farmer gave this to you...to transmit to HQ?' the Captain said with fury.
Mark was even more frightened now but had to tell the truth 'Yyy..Yes Captain' he stammered.
>>>> Please vote if you enjoyed the chapter, thanks, M.
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Floating Lies and Sinking Truth - P1 COMPLETE
Mystery / ThrillerIt's July 1980 and one of the crew go missing on the first day out on a new voyage. Did they jump ship or were they pushed? Were they murdered? If so by who and why? If he is dead and we never find the body we'll probably never know! If his body...
