She kept descending, keeping the same distance above Christa. Every few feet, she cleared her ears as the water pressure built against her eardrums.
Last night Christa showed her several techniques to equalize the pressure in her ears while underwater. She suggested she try flexing her jaw first. If that didn't work then try either the Valsalva or Toynbee methods — pinch and blow or pinch and swallow — Christa's tried and true methods. Or she could simply tilt her head back while looking up. That was the method Regan preferred.
She looked up and noticed the bottom of the boat bobbing in the water against another boat's wake. The world above her seemed so bright in contrast to the darkness below.
A tree appeared a few feet from where the rope attached to the marker, its limbs cut short and trunk covered in a brown muck. She imagined it was the same tree the old man described with the rope swing attached when he was young.
Seconds later, she hit bottom.
Christa removed the mallet and placed it on the metal capstone. With her gloved hand she waved the silt from the plate. "Ashley, hand me the wrench and let's get to work."
Regan stared at the grave. A metal capstone bolted to a concrete vault. The muddy bottom had receded over time revealing the top six inches of the vault. "These bolts haven't been touched for a long time. Metal to metal, in the water, they're probably fused together. We might be able to loosen the grip by banging on the bolts first with the mallet."
"Let me try my luck with the wrench first." Christa insisted.
"Remember, I'm the one who knows how to work on cars. I think you're just being stubborn." Regan said. "But go ahead, knock yourself out."
Regan snickered as she watched Christa fumble with the adjustable plumbers wrench. "You may have to take your gloves off to tighten it." Regan said.
Christa struggled with the wrench for a few more seconds then looked up at Regan. "Alright, Ashley, you win. You do it."
Regan started at one corner and worked her way clockwise around the metal plate attempting to loosen the bond between the metal bolts and the steel plate. Each strike of the mallet sent shock waves through her fingers and up her arm. The sound thundered in her ears.
"Did you know sound waves travel 4.3 times faster in water than in air?" Said Christa. "It's something crazy like 3300 miles per hour."
"Next time the subject comes up I'll try to remember."
She methodically moved from bolt to bolt giving each one ten sharp raps. "Let's give it a try." Regan pointed to one of the bolts.
Christa slipped the wrench over the bolt, ensuring the clamp was snug and gave it a tug.
Nothing.
"Maybe we should use the mallet," said Christa.
"Flip the wrench over then."
"What for?"
"If you hit the wrench in the opposite direction from the open end, you'll just knock the wrench off. Always strike toward the opening." Regan explained.
"And you know this how?"
"From busting my knuckles more than once when a wrench popped off a stubborn bolt." Regan put out her hand. "Let me show you."
After her demonstration of what not to do, she showed Christa how to keep the wrench from coming off the bolt. Regan pounded the mallet against the wrench until her arms ached.
"Is it moving at all?" Christa asked.
Regan shook her head. "Hard to tell, maybe a quarter of a turn."
"It'll get easier, right?"
"Normally I'd say yes. But this has been underwater for almost sixty years. It might be like this until it's out. Every bolt, too."
"This is going to take a lot longer than we figured, isn't it?" Christa asked.
"At this rate we'll be lucky to remove two bolts on each dive. After that we still have to contend with moving that heavy piece of steel."
She swapped with Christa, letting her friend take a turn. The bolt had turned one full revolution when Christa stopped. She looked at her computer then her air gauge. "My air is under 500 pounds. We need to go up now. How's your air holding up?"
"Look like about 450. Is that okay?"
"That's good. Let's go."
"Can we leave the tools here?"
"Well, I'm sure as Hell not hauling them up and down each time. Just leave them on top of the plate, they'll be here when we get back."
Regan followed Christa up the same line they came down. At twenty feet, they did a precautionary five-minute safety stop to allow extra time for absorbed nitrogen from the compressed air to be released by their bodies. After the five minute interval, they headed for the surface. Her mask broke the surface. The woman and her deck boat were gone. She was startled by what she saw next. The fisherman who had been next to them in the cove was sitting on the deck of their Bayliner, his bass boat anchored next to hers.
She swam over to the platform and the man extended his arm in assistance. "Who the hell are you?"
"Hey, you're the guy from the Pizza Place last night." Christa shouted.
"That's right. My name is Jake Pendleton."
"Well, Jake Pendleton, what the hell are you doing on my boat?" Regan shouted.
After Christa said it, Regan recognized the man from the restaurant. She looked up at the man, early to mid thirties, dirty blond hair, well built, and handsome. He had captivating blue eyes and gentleman's demeanor. She extended her arm and allowed him to help her onboard.
"Ms. Regan, Ms. Barnett, we need to talk."
36
Jake helped Ashley Regan out of the water and extended an arm to Christa Barnett. "Why don't you take those dry suits off before we talk?" He noticed Regan give him a funny look. "Or don't. But I guarantee you'll overheat."
"Why are you here?" She demanded. "And how do you know our names?"
He helped Barnett onboard and walked from the swim platform to the deck. "Your lives are in danger."
"What the hell are you talking about, mister?" Barnett was almost yelling. "No one's trying to kill us…except maybe you. What are you, some kind of stalker? Have you been following us since last night?"
"You saw the woman on the deck boat earlier?"
"The one who went swimming?" Regan said. "What about her?"
"She and I are here for the same reason. The big difference is I won't kill you to get it."
"Won't kill me to get what?"
"The book."
Regan felt dizzy when he mentioned the book. How could anyone possibly know about it? "What book?" She asked.
"The book you found in the glacier." Jake noticed Barnett move.
The small woman charged at Jake with a boat hook. "Get him, Ashley." She yelled.
He sidestepped her approach, grabbed the boat hook with one hand and threw her overboard with the other. He looked back at Regan. "Don't even try it," he warned. He pointed his finger at Barnett while she swam back to the swim platform. "You can come back onboard if you can behave yourself, otherwise stay in the water." He turned back to Regan and pointed to a deck chair. "Take that suit off and sit down."
She did as he instructed. Barnett crawled back on the swim platform and pulled off her dry suit. She took a seat beside Regan.
"While you two were in the water, that woman swam over here and rummaged through your boat." He studied Regan's face as he spoke. Not a flinch. A good poker face, he thought. "So if the book was on this boat, it isn't anymore."
Still nothing.
"Where is the book, Ms. Regan?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," she insisted.
"Okay. We can play this game all day but that won't get you any closer to Norman Reese Jr.'s casket. Eight bolts holding a steel plate to a cement vault." He noticed Regan look at him. "Yeah, I know. I've already checked it out and I know why you're here and what you're after."
"We don't know what you're talking about. Do we, Ashley?" Barnett said.
Jake pointed his finger at Barnett. "Tell you what. You don't say another word unless you want to go swimming again." He turned to Regan and put out his hand. "The book."