“Just fish?” said Jeff. “Or everything?”
“Actually, everything. Every type of sea creature — right down to the plankton.”
“Wow… and how ‘large’ an area are we talking about?”
Hanson shrugged. “Not sure. The estimates vary depending on how soon after the ‘killing event’ has happened. But it’s at least 20 square miles.”
“Hmmmm. Nothing to sneer at. That’s a lot of fish. Could be significant. Depending on how many times it’s happened.” said Parker.
“I agree.” Hanson checked another file, then: “But we can’t be sure about that. We can only work from the instances it’s been observed — the first time was in December of 1946, and thirteen times since then.”
“What? Thirteen’s a lot. Any pattern to the occurrences?”
“A cyclic pattern is suggested of approximately every five or six years. The gaps in the pattern might be times when nobody noticed it.”
“Is it possible there’s some naturally occurring phenomenon causing it? Temperature drops? Vulcanism?”
“From what I can find, nothing much has been done about it, other than make note of it. But funny you mention vulcanism — a routine Geophysical Satellite mapping survey uncovered something strange at essentially the same coordinates.”
Parker’s instincts were humming like a high tension wire in an electrical storm. What the hell had McCauley sent him? “Tell me.”
“The satellite’s instruments detected an unusual heat signature several hundred feet below the surface and also some unexpected data to suggest widely varying densities in a localized section of the shelf.”
“Heat signature like what?”
Hanson shook his head. “Not sure. I didn’t have enough time to dig into it. But I’m telling you, Admiral, there’s a lot going on at those coordinates — if we can pull it all together.”
“Looks like my old Chief McCauley already did.”
Hanson looked a bit sheepish as he picked up another folder. “Well, sir, there’s something else…”
“Are you serious?” Checking his watch, he saw his work day slipping away, but Parker had a feeling he’d be cancelling anything else on the planner. He motioned his aide to keep talking.
“I found an unconfirmed report that the Russians lost a hunter-killer class near these coordinates.”
“What?”
“1981. One of their Alfa class. Naval Intelligence was never able to verify verbal rumors with either documented evidence or SOSUS data.”
“What in hell’s damn does all this crap mean?” Parker sat on the edge of the desk, aware of the alarms in his head. The papers spread before him had a strange and terrible but unknown significance.
“I have a feeling we’ve barely gotten a glimpse.”
Parker nodded, glanced at the chronometer on his desk, one of those engraved commemorative things they give you when they ease you out of an assignment. He looked at his aide. “Time to close up shop, Pye. We can schedule more time for this tomorrow.”
Hanson looked disappointed. He gestured at the spread of files and printouts on the table. “Very well, sir. Should I leave this here, or—”
“You can leave it. No one will be in here to bother it.”
“What about McCauley? If he calls again?”
Parker grinned. “He won’t. He knows he’s given me all I need to get back to him.”
After dismissing his aide, Parker called his driver and told him he may be delayed in leaving the building. Then he called Karen and told her the same thing, but she had long ago stopped caring about things like that.
As he sat down behind his desk, holding the memo from McCauley in his left hand, Parker Whitehurst reached for his phone with the other.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
The interior of the 5001 clanged and rocked with celebrations. Erich wanted to join them, but there was one final thing still troubling him. His friend and Exec had also kept his elation under control, and was just standing there, awaiting the next order. Erich spoke softly to him.
“Manny, will you join me topside?”
The night was cold and clear and the light of a thousand stars burned over their heads as they emerged from con’s hatch. Both men pulled their parkas tightly around their necks.
“Well, Captain, it has unfolded as you imagined.”
“But we have one final, loose thread to gather in.” Erich looked at his friend while Manny fumbled to light a cigarette in the cool air.
“A thread? Is that what you call it?”
Erich chuckled. “Thread… actually more like a hawser.”
“I assume you are talking about our secret weapon.” Manny pulled on his cigarette, its tip glowed brightly in the cold air.
Erich nodded. “I say we get it off this boat. As quickly as possible.”
“You mean toss it overboard?” Manny looked apprehensive at this solution.
Erich shrugged. “That is one possibility. But perhaps fate has prepared something different for us?”
Manny exhaled a thin plume of smoke, pretended to study its shape and dissolution. “All right. I am listening.”
“I am not normally so mystical,” said Erich. “But I believe we found that place for a reason. There is something… wrong about it. Maybe even… evil. I don’t know if I can even explain why I feel it — I just do.”
“I don’t follow you. What are you saying?”
Erich cleared his throat. “There is only one place for that device…”
“What?” Manny’s tone revealed his sudden understanding. He looked at him, then out across the cave-dark sea toward the Greenland shore. “You… want to go back? Down there? In there?”
“Crazy. Yes, Manny, I know. But I feel it. Just like I feel we carry a great terror on this boat. You suspected. You knew.” Erich paused, felt oddly embarrassed as he discussed his orders. “I wanted to confirm it for you, but my orders forbade it.”
Manny smiled. “We talked, remember. You did not have to verify it.”
Neither man spoke for a minute or two.
Manny exhaled, his breath captured briefly in the frigid air. “Well, we have time to make rendezvous and… and still do what you want.”
Erich looked at him, pulled an envelope from his pocket. “These are sealed orders for you and Kress.”
“Kress?”
Erich nodded. “Yes. At rendezvous, when we were supposed to take on the pilots from the Sturm, Kress would be required to arm the bomb. Just before we launched the ME-5X.”
Manny laughed lightly, not from any humor in the words, but rather its maniacal obverse. He looked at his friend, his mirth suddenly gone. “We are all insane.”
Erich nodded. “Does that mean you agree with me?”
Manny looked toward the shore. “We have carried this evil in our bellies for a while now. Even just suspecting it had sickened me. Let’s heave it up. Here. Now.”
When Erich gave the command to return to the ruins, his crew could not mask the shock on their faces. Even Massenburg and Ostermann could not maintain their decorum. Erich ignored their attempts to get more information — only telling them the 5001 had a final addendum to the new orders they’d received.