With his first week of forced vacation over and his second week just beginning, he was feeling pretty good. The laboratory was cramped, but he had traveled by submarine several times as a SEAL and had no problems with claustrophobia. The lab was well-stocked with every deep-sea movie and novel available. The lab’s full refrigerator, air conditioning, microwave, shower and high tech computer system, complete with video games, not to mention unlimited time to swim or even spearfish, made this place Miller’s dream come true. Of course, he’s spent the last few days lazing about, watching movies, playing games and reading books. He suspected the “ocean dumping” investigation was just a clever cover story for his vacation and had taken a break from his scheduled Scuba patrols. There was plenty of time left to dive, he just needed some couch potato time first.
The facility was a forty-three foot long, nine-foot in diameter, 80-ton cylindrical steel chamber separated into two different compartments, each with its own air pressure system and life support. There were living quarters for sleeping and eating, and labs for work. At the far end, off the lab, was a wet porch with an open moon pool for entering the ocean. Miller had all of this to himself, plus—and this was the best part—not a peep from the outside world for three days.
It’s not that he didn’t like people. It’s just that people liked to talk, and after his first day aboard had decided the break would be good for him. Quiet was bliss. Years of pent up tension he hadn’t realized he carried began to melt away. So when the NOAA staff stopped checking in on their laboratory, he didn’t think twice about why. Instead, he allowed himself to undergo an emotional re-adjustment. He went over years of cases, of killers caught, of terrorists exposed, and the few who slipped away. Then he moved further back, to the SEALs, and the event that etched a long scar into his leg and left a little girl dead. The tragedy ended his career with the SEALs, but down there, fifty feet beneath the surface of the ocean, he thought he might finally make peace with his past.
After he finished the movie.
Finished relieving himself, Miller hustled back to his seat without washing his hands. Why bother? Urine was sterile. More important, no one was here to judge him. He’d let his appearance slide over the past week, as well. His black hair was uncombed, his face unshaven. Being half-Jewish and half-Italian, Miller’s week’s worth of facial hair was damn near a beard now.
The chair beneath him groaned as he leaned back and propped his legs up on a work desk. With the remote back in his hand, he waited, held his breath and listened.
Silence.
Wonderful silence.
No worried NAOO voices. No traffic. No cell phone calls. He thought about telling the Director that the time off had convinced him to retire. Sure, he was only thirty-nine, but life without responsibility was fun. He held out the remote, positioned his thumb over the play button and—
Thunk!
The noise wasn’t loud, but was so unexpected that Miller flinched, lost his balance and toppled over. He struck his head hard on the metal floor.
“Son of a bitch!”
He lay there for a moment, wondering exactly how he’d ended up on the floor, and then felt the back of his head. One area, the size of an apple, was swollen, pulsing with pain, but there was no blood. He wouldn’t need stitches, which was good because he couldn’t get them here. In fact, if there was any kind of emergency, he was pretty much screwed. A nine-mile boat ride, and a fifty-foot dive, did not make for an easy 911 rescue.
He was on his own.
With a sigh, he rolled his head to the side and caught his reflection in the polished stainless steel base of a workbench. He grunted at the sight of himself. He flashed what he thought was a winning smile, sharpening the fine spread of crow’s feet around his blue eyes, but his current disheveled appearance hid his good looks. He hadn’t seen himself look this bad since just after...
He pushed the images from his mind, still not fully prepared to deal with his past—not with a movie to finish, and a mysterious noise needing investigating.
He sat up. Pain surged through his head twice, following the rhythm of his heartbeat, and then faded away. When he stood, the pain rose up again, but only momentarily. Shuffling over to the fridge to grab an icepack, he passed by the small bedroom containing six bunks, three on each side, with a large viewing portal between them. He stopped suddenly, his eyes focusing on the glass portal.
Something wasn’t right.
It was a fish, not an uncommon sight, but something was odd about this one. Its movements were all wrong. He squeezed between the beds to get a better look.
Thunk!
The fish was back, this time smacking hard against the window.
Miller blinked a couple times. The fish, a black grouper, wasn’t moving on its own. The ocean’s currents were pushing it up against the hull.
Well, that’s damn annoying.