Page 36 of Wild Tempest

I asked Tempest, "Will you be okay here alone?”

"I'm not alone. I'm with Dale.”

Even in Dale's current condition, he could be a threat. He seemed normal now, but something had gone wrong here. I wasn’t sure Dale was in his right mind. I didn't trust him.

I gave Tempest my backup pistol after press-checking it and making sure the safety was on. "You know how to handle one of these things?"

She nodded.

"Don't shoot me or JD.”

She gave me a mock salute. "Aye-aye, Captain.”

Her gold bar rested atop a small desk.

"We'll be back," I said before we left.

The beam of my flashlight led the way as we crept through the corridors, keeping our rifles shouldered.

Thunder rumbled, and the sea grew more tumultuous. Another nasty storm hammered the boat.

Our first order of business was to send a distress signal. JD and I climbed up to the bridge deck. Wind howled through a broken window. Rainwater sloshed on the deck as the boat rolled. A patina of rust bubbled paint on the bulkheads, and corrosion stained the helm.

We cleared the bridge and the chart room. In a storage locker, we found a few marine batteries. We rigged one up to the radio and powered it on. I didn’t know how much juice was left in the battery after sitting for five years.

“Mayday, mayday, mayday! This is the Almaz Morya. Repeat, this is the Almaz Morya. We are stranded aboard the derelict vessel.” I gave coordinates to our last known location.

JD and I listened for a response.

Nothing but static.

There was nobody out here to hear the broadcast. With the storm and magnetic interference, I wouldn’t be surprised if the range was 20 miles. Hell, I didn’t know what condition the antenna was in after all these years. If there even was an antenna.

I kept trying, but we never got a response before the battery died. We tried the others, but they were all dead. JD and I searched for the EPIRB, but it was missing. Perhaps deployed or sabotaged by the original crew when they went mad.

Nobody was coming to save us.

We left the bridge deck, less than optimistic about our chances of rescue. The metal steps clattered as we moved below to the clandestine lab. It was pitch black.

We advanced through the staging area, through the airlock, and back into the lab.

Again, we cleared the area.

I grabbed a notebook from a desk and started flipping through the pages. Fortunately, I was fluent in Russian, and the author’s handwriting was pretty good. I started at the beginning of the notebook and skimmed through it. It didn't take long to figure out what this was all about.

23

By the look on my face, JD could tell it wasn't good.

"Do I even want to know?”

I shook my head. "This is pretty sick."

Jack groaned.

"They genetically engineered a neurotropic virus.”

"You want to dumb that down a little bit?”