I slashed at the coral again and this time I felt the huge clam give as I pushed against it. Another hard shove and it broke away from the coral. I put my shoulder against the bottom of it and pushed as Mona swam for the surface. Underwater, we could move the huge bulk. Once on the surface it would be something else.
I felt her change direction and saw the bottom of a small coral island appear. She headed for it and surfaced on the beach, half of her still hanging into the water. I got a foothold on the beach and dragged the heavy bulk of the clam up onto the shore as Mona pulled herself up and lay there, breathing hard. I was taking a few deep breaths myself as I rested on one elbow beside her. I reached over and took her face mask off and unstrapped her tank. Then I did the same for myself. She was on her stomach, unable to do more than half turn over because of the huge bivalve holding her foot. I moved down to the huge clam, took the knife and put it into the opening where his shell had closed around the girl's ankle. The clam's mantle was an electric green and as I moved the knife down inside the shell, cutting into the mantle, down along the edges of the living tissue, suddenly the clam opened with a cracking noise and Mona pulled her bruised and cut ankle free.
I pushed the clam back into the water and looked at her ankle. It wasn't broken but it was badly lacerated, and the bone had probably chipped. She had turned on her back, the little bikini panties almost off altogether.
"Why did you do it?" she asked me, looking at me with green pinpoints. "Why didn't you just leave me there to die?"
"Is that what you'd have wanted?" I asked. "Have you become that Oriental in your thinking? You'd rather die than fail?"
She didn't answer, but continued to watch me with her green eyes. "Sorry, doll," I said. "Maybe it was force of habit on my part. Saving life is more basic to our decadent thinking than taking life, even with people like me."
My leg hurt where the knife had slashed it and I looked down to see it was still bleeding. I was looking to see just how deep the cut was when the hard, sharp piece of coral hit me on the temple. I fell backwards and rolled over to see Mona, fa arm upraised, come down with the piece of rock again. I was seeing her through haze as my head spun, dizzily. The raging anger that spurted inside me like an explosion cleared my head. The no-good amoral vicious little bitch, I heard myself saying.
I got one arm up and partially blocked the second blow from the rock. I grabbed for her leg, but she was off and running. She hit the water in a perfect running dive and struck out. I had started after her when I saw them, five long, triangular shaped fins. They'd been brought by the smell of blood that by now was all through the water around there.
"Come back, damn you," I yelled after her. "You haven't got a chance."
But she kept going, swimming right into them. I saw the fins suddenly start to move in fast, darting motions and then I heard her scream — a terrible, agonizing scream of pain, then another. I saw her body half tossed out of the water and then pulled back into the churning sea. Red colored the blue, and there were suddenly no more screams. I turned away and sat down. I'd have to wait a while, maybe hours, before heading toward the Australian coast, a relatively short distance away. I'd never know what made her plunge headlong into the midst of those sharks — the harakiri philosophy of the Orient or the conscience of the West. Maybe she didn't even know they were there. I had the feeling she did, though.
VIII
When I finally made it to the mainland, I walked down along the beach alone — slowly — my body tired — the job done. A deadly blow aimed at the South Pacific Defense Alliance had been deflected. There'd be reports and explanations and all the questioning to go through, but right now that could wait. I wanted to go back to Judy and see if she really delivered the promise that lay in her eyes. I hadn't expected to see the Mercedes still on the beach where I'd left it, nor the yellow bikinied figure that rose as I approached. She ran toward me and pressed herself against the wet scuba suit.
"Oh, Lord, I was so worried," she said. "I didn't leave right away, not really, anyway. I swam to a little coral reef that stuck up about a quarter mile away, and I thought I'd wait there."
She saw the set of my lips and the gathering disapproval in my eyes. "I know, it's not what you told me to do but don't start a ruddy fuss over it," she said. "Anyway, I waited there and waited and I started to get worried. Finally, I decided to come back here and I was just starting off when the whole bloody ocean seemed to be exploding. Well, I dived off on the other side and made a big circle to get back here. If I was worried before, I was sure worried then."
She leaned her head against my suit. I felt her body quivering.
"Hey, now," I said, lifting her chin up. "None of that." I took her arm. "Let's go back," I said. "I need some doctoring."
We were back at her place and I'd slept a few hours and was feeling a lot better as she came in with some coffee and muffins. I was in shorts and she had a thin cotton dress on. Her breasts moved softly under it. She could have had a bra on or they were just that beautifully molded and high. I finished the muffins and reached for the phone.
"I'm calling my boss," I said. "Collect," I added with a grin.
She put her hand over the phone and her eyes were unsmiling. "No," she said flatly. "Not till later."
She moved toward me and her lips opened on mine and I fell back on the bed. The cotton dress came off and Judy lifted herself high, pressing one round, sweet breast into my lips. I kissed her and ran my tongue in concentric circles around the pink tip of her nipple and felt it grow large. Her hands were holding me, moving up and down, exploring, and her body was alive with its own desires. She offered herself to me, not with the angry abandon that had been Mona, but with a sweet passion that was no less strong for its sweetness.
"Yank, Yank," she murmured, burying her face into my chest, biting against my skin as I brought her to the doorway of doorways, the dwelling place of ecstasy. And then, as I let her in, she cried out in a gasp that was part release, part joy and part gratitude. We lay together quietly, after, in contented happiness. Finally, when she stirred and looked up at me, I got up on one elbow and drank in the beauty of her firm, young body, the rounded breasts, high and proud, the girl-woman figure of her, the sweet sensuousness that was an echo of her smoke-gray eyes.
"Why didn't you let me call before?" I asked, watching her eyes.
"I didn't want you to think I was doing it because you'd gotten that visa for me," she said quietly. "You've done more for me than getting that visa could ever do. You've made me feel proud of myself again. And you've made me feel, which is more important. I was just living, just scratching, and that's no good. A person has to feel, even if to feel means to get hurt. Don't you think so?"
"I think so, Judy," I said and I reached out for the phone. The call went through quickly, and I heard Hawk's flat, dry voice.
"It's over, Chief," I said. "You were right. You don't have to be surprised. The Chinese Reds were behind it. They had a subtle, clever operation going. I'll give you all the details when I get back. I'll take the plane in the morning. Meanwhile, get an extended visa rushed through for me, will you? I'm bringing someone back with me."
"Someone who's helped you in this?" he asked warily. It was just his natural suspicion. He knew I wouldn't pull anything smart on him.