Ocean Blue (Sea Lab Book 1)

CHAPTER 64

If the ship sank, Jake didn't want the killer barracuda to escape the steel chamber that surrounded the aquarium. So he and Tony secured every exit before they left the inner hold. Jake rehashed the idea of his backup plan. It would be risky, but it was the only move that might make Zanderthal think twice before shedding blood. Of course, it might also spell doom for everyone if Jake had to follow through with it.

Instead of using a door to the forward section of the ship, they headed back to the corridor that led them to the cavernous hold. Jake remembered the stairwell down the hall from the luxury suite they found. That would lead to the icebreaker's top deck.

A second before Jake placed a foot on the bottom step, behind them, a metallic creak broke the silence. It wasn't loud and lasted for a second, but it was enough to draw his gaze down the passage. Tony swept his pistol toward the corridor's dark recesses.

"Don't shoot unless we have to," Jake said. "One discharge and we'll have Zanderthal's army swooping down on us."

Tony glared at him with wide eyes. "Had to be one of those normal groans a ship makes on the ocean. Think we should check it out?"

"No. Waves can put a lot a stress on a hull. Besides that, we don't have time for a sideshow, anyway. We should keep going."

Tony nodded and then lowered his weapon.

As they crept up the stairwell, the tension of walking into the unknown became palpable. Sweat stung Jake's eyes. He wiped it away with his sleeve. The humidity hung like an invisible fog, pressing in on them from every angle. The walls creaked and a light breeze moaned through the passage as they continued up, one step at a time, their chances of running into opposition increasing the further they advanced.

The last stretch of stairs offered a view of stars twinkling in the night. His stomach sank. They had ascended to the ship's top deck without encountering a single guard or crewman. He held Tony back and slunk close to the steps for a careful peek over the edge.

The entire length of the ship was in complete darkness.

Ocean-going vessels always used bright floodlights above the bridge to warn other ships of their position in the water at night. It was an added precaution in case of radar failure. Oncoming vessels could spot each other and pass without collision. The top deck of the Hercules Australis should have been lit up like downtown Orlando, but it wasn't. He recalled Cat's story of when it sideswiped the Atlantis the night before.

"Might wanna take the safety off," Jake said.

"My finger's on the trigger."

He nodded toward the ship's bow and they hustled into the open, keeping low. Again, their eyes adjusted to the dark, but even with the quarter moon over the ocean, it was still hard to see, near pitch black. It made him feel like a blind man. The best sense available to them was that of touch and sound.

A strong wind blew over the ship, whipped past Jake's ears and lifted the hairs on his arm as he strained to listen.

Up ahead, a towering shape emerged, an outline in the darkness—the ship's three-story bridge. As before, nothing else was visible. Then a scurry of movement encircled them. Jake froze. Tony bumped into him and stopped behind him.

Jake's senses went haywire, the fine hairs on the back of his neck standing on end. He cautioned Tony, and backed away from the bridge wing.