Undertow (29 page)

The sounds the fish and other underwater life made harmonized with the rhythmic bel -like chimes of the bubbles on the exhale of his regulator. Even though Zane anticipated the glory hole would be covered once again, he felt his usual sense of excitement and anticipation under the water.

And for reasons he didn·t want to analyze too deeply, having Teal there beside him enhanced the experience.

Magic.

With any luck, the storm hadn·t adversely affected the wreck of the
Vrijheid
and it was just where they·d left it. There was a pretty good chance that they·d have to fan the sand al over again. It would certainly add several days to his schedule, and they were already pressed for time as they entered hurricane season. But the good news was that the
Sea Witch
had moved on, leaving Zane and his crew to excavate the site in peace without any distractions.

He had no idea where she·d gone or how long she·d stay away. Hopeful y the police had spooked her and she·d be gone for a good long while. He·d see her again ³he was sure of it.

But he hoped it was long after he·d claimed every piece of treasure the
Vrijheid
had to offer.

He·d left her to the authorities to deal with, but she·d been long gone when they went to haul her ass in for questioning. So be it.

He had no doubt he and the redhead would clash again.

Teal touched his arm. She looked as gorgeous and mysterious as a mermaid with her dark hair fanned around her head. He winked at her through his mask. She didn·t smile back, and her fingers tightened on his arm. She used her free hand to point behind him and to the left. Jesus. Now what? He reached for his dive knife as he spun around.

What the³

A twin-engine plane was perched like a damned vulture, right smack bang on top of his treasure.

What the fuck?

A Cessna. One wing had been neatly sheared off.
That
could be yards or even miles away.

The attached wing had smashed into the few standing ribs of the
Vrijheid
and given them a crew cut. Damn it.

Clearly a casualty of the storm, the smal plane had barely made it a hundred miles from St.

Maarten or one of the numerous other islands. Someone trying to outrace the storm? How many passengers? Christ³There·d be
bodies
. Man, he didn·t want to do this part. Not at al .

Teal grabbed his arm, pointed to her eyes, then the plane. Yeah. He was going to look. He pointed up. As much as the very idea made his scrotum shrink, and his heart sound like a bass drum in his ears, Zane figured he·d do a quick look -see on his own before getting Ben or Ryan and the camera. He·d cal it in, but dol ars to doughnuts, someone was go ing to want documentation, and with the water moving around as it was, he needed to hustle.

If someone had flown out of St. Maarten and targeted
Vrijheid
on
purpose
, they couldn·t have had better aim. Shitcrapfuck.

He indicated Teal return to the
Decrepit,
but of course, Teal being Teal, she shook her head, no. For several seconds, they had a heated argument in sign language, which neither of them actual y knew, ending up with them both laughing and spewing bubbles. The situation wasn·t in the least bit funny. But Teal made even a crappy and, frankly, creepy situation manageable.

He ran his hand over her hair, knowing she couldn·t feel his touch, but wanting to touch her anyway. Inside her mask her eyes smiled. Good enough to brace him for what was to come.

They searched together. No sign of any bodies. Thank God. There was every chance they·d been thrown clear³possibly somewhere near the missing wing. And while he loved nothing more than salvaging wrecks, he preferred them to be hundreds of years old. Maybe the bastards had gotten lucky and jumped before the plane crashed, complete with parachute and inflatable seat cushions.

They·d be hard to find or possibly shark food by now if they hadn·t. Either that, or, no one had been inside when it had hi t the water. A damn lucky, quick -thinking save if that were the case. But stil , stupid to fly in those high winds. What a dipshit.

Maybe the passengers had been picked up by a boat heading back to one of the islands to out run the weather. Right. In the middle of a major storm. It seemed impossible to him, but stranger things had happened. Whoever had been on the plane must·ve somehow survived the impact and bailed in time, or the bodies were somewhere out there in the murk.

He just wished it hadn·t happ ened smack bang on top of his treasure.

He·d cal it in, then after the authorities had a look at it, he·d offer to move it.

He had the crane. Officials could bring a barge « Zane·s brain went a mile a minute as he cataloged what might be involved. He tried to figure out just how he·d move it, how he·d get it up onto a barge, and what the delay would be while various authorities fought over jurisdiction.

They swam around the plane. Zane knew enough from flight school ³one didn·t live on a miniscule island without knowing how to fly³that it looked like a wider-span laminar-flow wing, meaning it might be a Cessna Citation. A business jet. Too pricy for a local rental.

Pricy. Private. The hair on the back of his neck prickled.

Drugs?

Shit!

He couldn·t see any luggage or personal effects, but that didn·t mean anything.

Personal shit could be scattered over a mile of ocean. The front windshield was shattered, the body broken in half, tail gone, and one wing sticking up like a middle finger. There was no sign of the second wing.

What a pain in the ass.
Worse, a
hel of a lot worse if this
had
been a drug run.

They packed that shit wel . They·d want it back.

Feeling atypical y grim, Zane pointed up. Time to cal it in.

* * *

There·s what looks like a Cessna CJ Three parked a hundred feet under water and right over my wreck.µ He paused to listen. Í can tel the difference between a boat and a plane, yeah.µ

He was using his cel phone to cal a friend at the airport in St, Maarten. Until he knew who had been on that plane, he wasn·t going to use any open channels that anyone could listen in to. He looked out the big windows. The sea was flat calm. The sky a tranquil blue.

Considering the shit-storm his salvage operation was about to hit, it didn·t seem fair.

He had a bad feeling his life was about to take a detour that he could never have anticipated.

´The nose and most of the body,µ he told his friend. Óne wing.

Tail·s gone. No, we did a thorough search. No one that we could see. Yeah. I hear you. Let me know.µ

Everyone on board was in the salon as Zane cal ed it in. Their avid glances bored into his back. When he snapped the phone shut and turned, he could see they al looked as worrie d as he felt.

´Barry over at Princess Juliana International says they didn·t get a mayday.

Nothing in months, let alone the last twenty -four hours. And no one filed a flight plan for a smal aircraft³incoming or outgoing³for twenty-four hours. There was no reason for it to be this far off the beaten track, so it was coming in under the radar.

He·s going to do a discreet check.µ

Ít·s drugs,µ Colson said with confidence. He was folded over the gal ey counter like a rag dol , a Coke in one hand, and a slice of Maggie·s apple pie in the other.

´Maybe.µ Zane felt sick to his stomach. Drugs meant an alphabet soup of agencies, not jus t the DEA, NTSB, and the FAA who·d be investigating if it was an American plane, but Feds,
plus
the local authorities. It also meant ten thousand miles of red tape and strangers al over the
Vrijheid
. He felt as though someone had come and ripped away his magic cape.

He ran both hands through his hair. Í have to stay here. But I want the rest of you to leave.

Go back to St. Maarten and wait for me there.µ

Śo that if the drug lords come looking for their drugs you·l be the only one here?µ Teal demanded, brown eyes flashing. Áre you insane?µ

Ńot insane. Cautious. Whatever is going to happen, hopeful y it·l be fucking
soon
so we can get back to work while we stil have this short window of opportunity.µ

Źane, you can·t charm a drug « salesman, or whatever they·re cal ed,µ

Maggie said nervously. Ónce they know where their plane is, they·l
kill
you.µ

Ńo they won·t,µ Zane said calmly. His insides were coiling around like venomous snakes because he had not a shred of doubt in his mind that Maggie·s assess ment was accurate.

´These are
businessmen
. I tel them the general direction their plane went down, and they go get their product.µ

´Wel , right now they don·t know we know where their plane is,µ Teal said practical y.

Ánd we don·t know that it
is
a drug plane. Your friend, Barry, wil cal us back and tel us that some moron got blown off his flight path, and he·s drinking a rum drink with an umbrel a in it, sitting in the hot tub at some resort hotel as we speak.µ

Wouldn·t that be nice
, Zane thought, wrapping his arms around her from behind, and resting his chin on her hair.
Totally fucking unlikely, but nice.
This situation was going to turn from sugar to shit on a dime. The thought of having Teal anywhere dangerous turned him ice cold. He·d already put her in jeopardy once.

Once was one too many. Í·l get the security guys with big guns back. Wil that make you happy?µ

´Knocking you unconscious and dragging you off somewhere
safe
would make me happy.µ

Maggie exchanged a look with Ben, then shot Zane a sl y smile. Át least you two final y figured it out.µ

They hadn·t figured anything out. He was pleased Teal hadn·t heard or was ignoring Maggie·s comment.

Saul shoved up his sleeves and addressed Zane. ´We can try running the fish on the mag, see if we get any hits. Tail and wing are probably aluminum al oy, but there might be something else the mag could pick up.µ

´Good idea, Saul,µ Zane told him. ´But I don·t think they·d be carrying an anchor chain or cannon.µ

´What other kinds of metals does the magnetometer pick up?µ Teal asked, leaning against him as though she did it every day. It felt good having her nestled in his arms. Damn good.

´Just ferrous metals,µ Saul told her. Ás Zane says³anchors, cannon, chain«µ

Íf I could go down and examine the engine, I could see if any of the oil was drained³

possibly the cause of the crash. Maybe a broken hose³whatever. If that·s the case, ferrous material
would
be present. In the bottom of the sump.

Ferrous material could also be in the oil filter canister.µ

The woman wanted to give him respiratory failure. ´You aren·t going anywhere
near
the plane until everything·s been cleared.µ Zane glared at each of them in turn, making himself perfectly clear. ´
Nobody
is to go anywhere near it until we hear what Barry has to say first.

There·s sure to be some ¶official· way to do this. Let·s not waste our time if they·re going to send a swarm of professionals in to do it instead.µ

Zane reluctantly unwrapped his arms from around Teal and immediately felt «

alone. Crazy. He stepped away from her. ´Maggie, Ben. Cat and Liz are going to need you.

You would·ve been home for the baby next week anyway. I·d feel much better if you two took off. Worry, about al of you, is going to make it that much harder for me to keep focused. I·d like you to take Teal with you.µ

Í·m not going anywhere!µ Teal said stubbornly. Áfter everything I·ve been through for this salvage, I·m not letting some mystery plane chase me off. But I do think Maggie and Ben should go. Colson, too.µ When the younge r man tried to protest, Teal pointed a stern finger at him. ´You·re a minor. Your parents would sue Zane and take everything he owns if you were stupid enough to end up dead.µ

Zane bit back a smile. She was damn cute when she was bossing someone else around.

Í·l cal you the second the coast is clear,µ Zane assured them.

´There·s no need for any of us to stick around,µ Ryan pointed out, twisting on a bar stool to look at everyone in the room. ´What·s to stop us from sailing into port, not saying a word, and letting the authorities deal with this mess?µ

´That plane is on
my
wreck,µ Zane pointed out the obvious. Ás long as it·s there, I·m going to be right here making sure no one helps themselves to our hard work. But you guys need to split.µ

Í agree,µ Ben said flatly. ´Maggie needs to go back and be with the girls. And, sorry son, Colson has to be away from this mess. But I·m not going anywhere.

Maggie and Teal can³µ

Í·m not leaving,µ Teal told the group at large. Énd of story. Suck it up . I·m here for the duration. I know a thing or two about drugs and dealers.µ She shot Maggie a smal smile.

´
Salesmen
too. I·m going to my engines, cal me when things start happening.µ Ryan watched her go before turning to Zane. ´You·ve lost your touch, Ace . You should·ve told her she had to
stay
.µ

Zane smiled. ´Yeah. I should·ve. But then she·s so contrary she might have cal ed my bluff.µ

Maggie put her arms around Zane and rested her cheek on his chest. Í want to stay and see what happens with you two, but I·m going to go because I know you·l worry about me if I stay. I·l take care of our girls and worry about al of you from afar.µ She gave him a hard squeeze. Ńone of you do anything stupid, you hear me? We stil have a fortune in treasure to find.µ

* * *

Teal hadn·t done much praying in her life, in fact, only about three times that came to mind, but she bowed her head the second she reached her engine room.

´Please God, don·t let this plane be trouble. And if it is, don·t let Zane be an idiot.µ

That covered a lot of ground. She figured God got it and left it at that.

She got out her tap and die kit to pound some sense into the zincs in the heat exchangers and simultaneously get out some of her frustration.