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"That's very kind of you, Captain," replied Burch. "I accept your offer. We've set a course for Wellington, too. I hope we don't slow you down too much."
"Wouldn't do for the heroes and heroines of the hour to sink along the way."
"Our pumps are keeping ahead of the flooding. Barring a major typhoon, we should make Wellington in good shape."
"As soon as you get under way, we'll follow."
"How are you managing with eighteen hundred people on your ship?" asked Pitt.
"We have most of them in two of our empty cargo holds. The rest are scattered throughout, some in half-empty containers. We have enough food in the galley for one proper meal. After that, everyone, including my crew and I, will go on a rigid diet until we reach Wellington." Nevins paused for a moment. "And, oh yes, if you could pass between my ship and the Aussie frigate, we'd like to give you a send-off. Over and out."
Burch looked bemused. "Send-off?"
"Maybe they want to say aloha and throw streamers." Pitt laughed.
Burch picked up the ship's phone. "Chief, are you ready and able to get under way?"
"I'll let you have eight knots, no more," answered House. "Any more speed and she'll leak like a rusty bucket."
"Eight knots it is."
To the ship's crew and the NUMA scientists, haggard and dead-tired from twelve hours of nonstop physical and mental exertion, it was an ordeal just to stand on their two feet, but stand they did, straight and proud as Pitt lined them up on the work deck. The ship's crew was grouped on one end of the deck while the scientists, men and women intermingled, stood opposite. Everyone was there. Burch insisted that the entire engine room crew turn out. Chief Engineer House balked at leaving the pumps unattended, but the captain prevailed. Only the helmsman stood alone in the pilothouse, steering the survey vessel between the Earl of Wattlesfteld and the Australian guided-missile frigate that lay to no more than two hundred yards apart.
The little survey ship seemed dwarfed between the two much larger ships. She sailed proudly, the NUMA flag flying on her radar mast and a huge stars-and-stripes streaming stiffly on the stern jack staff.
Pitt and Burch, standing beside each other, stared up, startled to see the crew of the frigate turn out as if for a formal military review. Then suddenly, as the Deep Encounter entered the gap between the two ships, the silent tropical air was shattered by the whoops of the ships' air horns and the cheer
s of the more than two thousand survivors who lined the rails of the containership and frigate. Pandemonium broke out across the water. Men, women and children all waved wildly and shouted words that went unheard in the din. Shredded newspaper and magazines were thrown in the air like confetti. Only at that moment did everyone on board the Deep Encounter fully realize what their magnificent exploit had achieved.
They had gone far beyond the rescue of over two thousand people; they had proven that they were willing to sacrifice their lives to save other humans. Tears flowed unashamedly from the eyes of everyone.
Long afterward, the men and women of the survey ship could never describe it accurately. They were too moved to fully absorb the event. Even the tremendous rescue effort seemed like a nightmarish dream in a distant past. They might never forget it, but they could never do it justice with mere words.
Then, almost as one, each head turned and gazed for the last time at the lamentable image that only twenty-four hours before had been one of the most beautiful ships ever to sail the seas. Pitt stared, too. No man of the sea likes to see a ship die dreadfully. He could not help but wonder who had been responsible for such a hideous act. What was the motive?
"What is it worth to read your thoughts?" asked Burch.
Pitt looked at him blankly. "My thoughts?"
"I'll bet my grandmother's rosary beads that curiosity is eating you alive."
"I don't follow you."
"The same question that's on all our minds," explained Burch. "What motive would a madman have for murdering twenty-five hundred helpless men, women and children?"
"As soon as she's towed into Sydney Harbor, an army of marine fire insurance company investigators will sift through the ashes and find the answers."
"They won't find much to sift."
"Don't underestimate them," said Burch. "Those guys are good. If anyone can ferret out the cause, they can."
Pitt turned and smiled at Burch. "I hope you're right, Skipper. I'm just glad it's not on my shoulders."
By the end of the week, Pitt would be proved wrong. Never would he have predicted that he would be the one called upon to solve the mystery.
8
The first tug to reach the Emerald Dolphin was the Quest Marine Offshore Company's Audacious. At 190 feet in length, with a beam of 58 feet, she was one of the largest tugs in the world. Her twin Hunnewell diesel engines provided a total of 9,800 horsepower to drive her propulsion units. Since she'd had the advantage of being stationed in Wellington, the closest port, she had beat out two other big tugs from Brisbane.
