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“One of the crew members?” asked Pitt.
Gu
Pitt swirled the yellow liquid around the ice cubes.
“Could any one of those twenty-two men be responsible for your problems?”Gu
“I’ve thought about that, I’ve even dreamed about it, and I’ve analyzed each man’s perso
Gu
The boy soon returned with the two halves of the broken cable. He handed the braided steel to Gu
It looked like any other greasy steel cable. Each piece was about two feet in length and contained twenty-four hundred strands that were braided into a standard five-eighth-inch diameter. The cable was not broken in a compact area. The breaks were spread over a fifteen inch distance that gave both frayed wires the appearance of a pair of uneven, unwound horse tails.
Something caught Pitt’s eye. and he took the magnifying glass and peered through the heavy lens. His eyes glinted with intensity and his lips slowly spread into a grin of smug satisfaction. The old feelings of excitement and intrigue began to course through his veins. This might turn out to be an interesting operation after all, he thought.
“See anything?’ asked Gu
“Yes, a great deal,” replied Pitt. “Somewhere along the line you’ve found yourself an enemy who doesn’t want you fishing around in his territory."
Gu
“This cable was purposely cut,” said Pitt. His voice was very cold.
“What do you mean: cut,” cried Gu
Pitt held up the magnifying glass for Gu
Guns stared at the shattered cable. “I don’t understand. What could have caused this?”
Pitt looked thoughtful for a moment. “My guess is Primacord.”
Gu
“Yes it is,” Pitt said calmly. “Primacord looks like string or rope and can be made in any thickness.
mainly, it’s used for blasting down trees and setting off different groups of distantly spaced explosives at he same time. It reacts like a burning fuse except that it moves and bursts rapidly, almost with the speed of light.”
“But how could anyone plant explosives under the ship without being seen.. The water is crystal clear in this area. Visibility is over one hundred feet. One of the scientists or crew members would have seen any intruder… Not to mention hearing the sound of an explosion.”
“Before I attempt to answer that, let me ask you two questions. What equipment was attached to the cable when it parted? And at what time did you discover the break?”
“The cable was co
“No,” replied Gu
“There’s your answer!” Pitt exclaimed. “Someone swam under cover of the predawn darkness to the cable and set off the Primacord. Visibility may be one. hundred feet after the sun comes up but at night it’s less than one foot.”
“And the noise from the blast?”
“Elementary my dear Gu
Guns looked at Pitt with respect. It was basically a sound theory, and obviously there was little he could think of to debate about His forehead creased, “Where do we go from here?”
Pitt downed the scotch and banged the glass onto Gu
Suddenly the door burst open and a man leaped into the cabin. He wore only a pair of abbreviated swim trunks and a wide belt, containing a knife and a nylon net bag. His wet, sun-bleached hair was streaked with whitish yellow and freckles dotted his nose and chest.
As he stood there, the water dripped to the carpet around his feet in spreading dark stains.
“Commander Gu
Guns jumped to his feet. “Are you sure? Did you get a close look at him?”
“Better than that, sir, I took a picture of him.”
The freckle-nosed man stood there, gri
“Quick,” snapped Gu
“Yes sir.” The fellow turned and dashed out of the door, spraying Pitt with a few drops of saltwater as he passed.
Guns’s face had a happy but determined look.
‘My God. To think I was about to give up, throw my tail between my legs and set a course for home.
Now, dammit, I’m going to stay anchored here until I die of old age or catch a Teaser.” His eyes twinkled as he glanced at Pitt. ‘Well, Major, what do you think of that?”
Pitt merely shrugged. “Personally, I prefer angling for girls.” With very little effort his mind dropped the business at hand and formed a tantalizing picture of Teri standing on the beach in her red bikini.
4
It was a few minutes past five when Pitt arrived back at his quarters on Brady Field. Within seconds of discarding his sticky clothing, he was firmly entrenched on his back in a narrow shower stall. It was a tight fit; his head was crooked into one corner, his back pressed flat on the wet tile floor, and his hairy legs and feet thrust upward on a ninety degree angle in the opposite corner.
To anyone who might have peeked, it looked like a contorted and bone torturing position, but Pitt found it thoroughly comfortable and immensely satisfying. When time allowed, he always relaxed in the shower in this ma
He mentally juggled the facts and unknowns together, seeking a pattern and trying to concentrate on the most important problems. It was no use. His mind eluded his grasp and stubbornly chewed on the minor and inconsequential riddle of the noiseless truck by the beach.
For some inexplicable reason the riddle irritated him and he endeavored vainly to shake it, but it remained. Finally he gave in to it and closed his eyes and recreated the scene, hoping to visualize a sign or solution.