He brought the sub about, unable to maneuver well with the cable still attached, and moved closer to the fallen statue. Poseidon gazed up at them through dead eyes of stone, a faint echo of the life that once teemed in this sunken ghost city.
“Should we call to the surface for help?” Sofia asked.
“We lost contact with them a while ago,” Willis said. “Too far below the surface and too much rock in between.”
“There’s nothing they could do anyway. We’ve got the only sub.” Dane extended the sub’s mechanical arms, grabbed hold of the statue, and lifted, but the statue didn’t budge. The point of the device was stuck between Poseidon’s left arm, held down by his side, and his hip. Dane tried again, but to no avail.
“New plan. Let’s see if we can cut it free.”
“You’re not going to cut the statue!” Sofia protested. “It’s thousands of years old.”
“You’d prefer to leave the device down here?” Dane asked. When silence met his question, he extended the sub’s cutting blade and set to work on the statue. The stone was solid and the blade’s first stroke scarcely made a scratch. Gritting his teeth, Dane set to cutting again. Silt and bits of stone clouded his view, and he used a water jet to clear his view. Soon, he’d managed to cut more than halfway through.
“Will you get it before our air runs out?” Sofia’s forced casualness lent a stiff tone to her voice.
“No problem.” Dane didn’t know if that was necessarily true, but he saw no reason to worry her. “Not much more to go.” He set to cutting again, the blade now chewing up the rock. Just a few seconds more…
“Maddock! Stop for a minute.” Willis, usually unflappable, sounded concerned.
“What is it?”
“I’m picking up some odd vibrations. Hold on.” Willis activated the sub’s external microphones and turned them up. “You hear that? It sounds like…”
“Falling rock.” Dane’s mouth went dry. “We’ve got to get out of here. He turned the sub about and gunned the engines. It strained against the cable. Dane’s finger hovered over the release switch that would free the sub from its tether. He didn’t want to lose the strange, Atlantean device, but his desire to live was stronger.
Just as his finger touched the switch, they broke free, and the sub lurched forward, dragging the device behind it. Willis and Sofia cheered as Remora zipped toward the exit tunnel.
Up ahead, chunks of stone fell like giant snowflakes from the ceiling of the passageway. Dane had no choice but to try to make it through, or else they’d be trapped in the pyramidal chamber.
“Guess those torpedoes were a bad idea,” Willis said.
“We’re about to find out.” Dane gritted his teeth as the mini sub entered the tunnel. Falling rock pelted the sub’s exterior, but the little craft surged ahead. “Hang on!” Dane barked, steering the sub hard to the right as a huge chunk of stone broke free and fell right in front of them.
They almost managed to avoid it.
The falling rock struck Remora on its port side, causing it to pitch to the starboard side, where it banged into the tunnel wall.
“Oh God!” Sofia cried.
Dane struggled to regain control of the sub. The craft rolled, righted itself, and plowed forward again. The shower of rock continued unabated, debris now collecting on the tunnel floor, narrowing their window of escape.
“We’re never going to get out,” Sofia groaned.
Another huge chunk of rock fell in their path. Dane took the sub hard to port…
…and then they were free.
He angled the sub upward, climbing the shaft as fast as they dared. A quick glance told him they had fifteen minutes of air remaining, and a long way to go before they reached the surface. As they emerged from the mouth of the Sphinx and began their ascent, they regained contact with Sea Foam.
“Maddock! Do you copy?” Tam sounded as agitated as Dane had ever heard her.
“I copy. We’ve got the device and we’re on our way back right now.”
“We’ve got company up here,” Tam said. “The Cubans have located us. We’re bugging out.”
“Wait! We’ve only got a few minutes of air left.”
Five seconds of silence greeted this proclamation. Finally, Tam replied in her trademark, patronizing tone.
“Why don’t you turn on the carbon dioxide scrubber, sweetie?”
Dane felt his cheeks warm, Tam’s words rendering him mute and more than a little bit embarrassed. During their training exercise in Remora, he’d focused on piloting and working with the various mechanical appendages, leaving most of the other details to Bones.
“Aw, hell,” Willis finally muttered. “Okay, I got it.”
“You think you boys can get Doctor Perez back safely? I mean, now that you can breathe again?”
“We’ll be fine,” Dane said, “but what about you and Corey?”
“We’ve got a good lead on them, but it’s going to be close. I don’t know if we can make it back to international waters before they catch us. If we make it back in one piece, I’m arming this boat.”
Dane considered the situation. “I’ve got a better idea. We’re going to ping you. Corey, bring her about and head for our location.”
“Got it,” Corey said.
“Just what are you planning, Maddock?” Tam sounded suspicious.
“I’m planning on atoning for my stupidity.”
He brought Remora to the surface, and hovered just below water level. “Corey, have you got a reading on us?”
“Affirmative. We’re closing on you fast. What’s the plan?”
“I want you to pass right over me and keep going in a straight line. Make sure you’re followed.”
“That’s not a problem.”
The seconds crawled by, stretching into an eternal minute.
“What are you gonna do, Maddock?” Willis whispered.
Dane didn’t reply. As Sea Foam closed in, Dane took Remora deep enough for the craft to safely pass above them. When the ship had jetted past, he swung the sub a few meters to port and brought it up to surface level.
“Cuban ship’s closing fast,” Willis said.
“I’ve got it.” As the craft shot toward them, Dane activated the targeting system and made ready to fire. “Now it’s my turn to try out the torpedoes.”
The Cubans were almost on top of them when Dane fired. The torpedoes cut through the water and struck the ship on its starboard bow. Willis whooped at the sound of the explosion.
Dane took them deep and made a beeline toward Miami. The ship wouldn’t sink, but it wouldn’t be following Sea Foam.
“Nice one, Maddock,” Tam said. “But you know you’ve got to write up an expense report when we get back. Torpedoes are pricey.”
Dane couldn’t help but laugh.
“Will do, and you’re welcome.”
Chapter 16
A sleek, silver BMW 4 series wove in and out of traffic and screeched to a halt in front of Bones and Greg. The passenger side window lowered a few inches and Kasey called out to them. “Hop in fast, boys, and don’t you,” she said to Bones, ”make any cracks about women drivers.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Bones stuffed his bulk into the back seat. “Some of the hottest drivers I know are women.”
“Whatever.” Kasey floored it, and the BMW screeched out into the sparse traffic. “In case you haven’t noticed, I think someone’s following us.
Bones stole a glance through the rear window where a white sedan bore down on them.