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“It was white knuckle most of the way,” Adams admitted.
“Hell of a job, George,” Cabrillo said.
Before Adams could answer, the Oregon’s medical officer, Julia Huxley, raced over and opened the door just as the rotor stopped and Adams engaged the brake. Right behind her was Franklin Lincoln.
“He’s in back,” Cabrillo said.
Huxley nodded and opened the rear door and quickly checked Ackerman’s vital signs. Then she stood back and Lincoln reached in and lifted the archaeologist, sleeping bag and all, into his arms. Carrying Ackerman in front at waist level, he raced for the sick bay with Huxley following closely. Hanley walked over as Cabrillo was climbing from the helicopter. He didn’t waste time with pleasantries.
“Murph called from the Akbar.”
“He’s compromised?” Cabrillo asked expectantly.
“Nope,” Hanley said as he steered Cabrillo toward the door leading into the interior of the Oregon, “he heard some noises and freed himself. After waiting a safe amount of time, he ventured from the cabin where he was being held and started searching around. The ship was empty and there was no sign where Al-Khalifa and his crew had gone, so he risked a call.”
The men had exited the rear deck and were heading down the passageway to the control room.
“Did he recover the meteorite?” Cabrillo asked.
“It was gone,” Hanley said as he opened the door to the control room. “We’re receiving tracking signals from the bugs you left, but they’re intermittent.”
The men walked into the control room.
“Where are the signals originating from?” Cabrillo asked.
Hanley pointed to a monitor. “There,” he said, “the track was heading north but now it’s heading east in the sea above Iceland.”
“He switched boats,” Cabrillo said, “but why?”
“That’s the question,” Hanley said.
“How far are we from the Akbar?”
Without replying, Stone entered commands into the computer and an image came onto a monitor on the wall. A video camera that was lit by spotlights on the Oregon’s bow was filming.
The Akbar was dead ahead.
THE FREE ENTERPRISE was steaming at full speed through the tossing seas.
“Stop at the Faeroe Islands,” a man said over a secure link. “I’ll have someone at the local airport to pick up the package.”
“Where do you want us after that?” the captain asked.
“Calais,” the man stated, “the rest of the team is there.”
“Very good, sir,” the captain said.
The man added, “One more thing.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Explain to the team they each have a fifty-thousand-dollar bonus coming,” he said, “and be sure they know that Hughes’s family will be well compensated for their loss.”
“I’ll do that, sir,” the captain said.
The man disconnected then reached for a folder on his desk. He removed the sale document for the British textile firm as well as the authorization for payment. He signed both, then fed them into a fax machine and awaited receipt.
Once he received the confirmation, he stood back for a moment.
