016. Think Tank

Caroline had taken to sleeping in a small crawlspace on “E” deck, between the Eastern Promise’s double-hull. It was uncomfortable and far too hot between the hull plates and Caroline had no other choice but to sleep in nothing more than her slip. She heard a soft knocking on the opposite side of the crawlspace’s access panel.

‘Who is it?’ she said, then felt daft for saying it.

‘Mohsen.’ a young male voice whispered.

Caroline covered herself up with her jacket.

‘What is it?’ she asked.

The access panel was pushed aside. Mohsen held in his hands a wooden tray with a bowl of soup and several slices of crusty bread on it.

‘Mr. Rexton thought...’ the boy began.

Caroline smiled, ‘Tell Mr. Rexton thank you.’

The boy nodded, returned the smile sheepishly and disappeared back the way he came. The hatch was replaced a moment later. Caroline set the tray down on her knees and tore a small piece of bread from one of the slices. As she hungrily snacked down on her soup, she thought of what had happened so far.

Four days had passed since the Eastern Promise left England. As far as Caroline could tell, Hattie was being fed and treated reasonably well. After the incident in the main cargo hold, the Captain – whose name Caroline had learned to be Cavali – had banned his crew from entering. It was a strange ship. The Eastern Promise possessed a Panamanian registration, Italian officers and a mixed crew of English and Filipinos.

It reeked of someone trying to keep a low profile. More so, it reeked of John Brady. Caroline could not be entirely sure, but she remembered that the Eastern Promise wore the same livery as those ships owned by Southern Continent Shipping, Brady’s company. And like SCS’s fleet, the ship was registered in Panama and carried a crew that included Filipinos. John Brady’s fingerprints would be all over this...were it not for Spalding.

He was the “rogue” element, Caroline thought to herself as she ate her soup, the part that did not fit the puzzle. He was an intelligent man, with a knack for codes and numbers. John Brady was smart – not intelligent per se but he knew enough to turn the system to his advantage. Spalding was not like this. He had to fit, though as this stage Caroline was unsure where. She finished off her soup and bread and leaned back on the wall.

12th of June, she thought to herself. What was so important about that date? Spalding had, for the most part, kept his cards close to his chest. He had let very little slip, only that they were headed to the Port of Alexandria where Spalding and a dozen of his men were to disembark. The Eastern Promise would then return to England a few weeks later, without Spalding or his men.

The clay sphinx was the key, Caroline told herself. It had to be important; otherwise why would Spalding have risked kidnapping Hattie? Her father had enough pull to make even John Brady quake in his boots. Four weeks, Caroline though. That was almost a month! She doubted she would be in any sort of condition spending a month in this place. Caroline considered asking Rex if there was some vacant stateroom he could smuggle her into.

A soft bed and a warm shower: that was what Caroline needed more than anything. Maybe a change of clothes too. She stretched a little and wondered what time it was. Caroline found the ship was most quiet after dark, which was when she now did most of her snooping around. She occasionally ran into Rex or Mohsen and, after being scolded by the former, tried to stay out of their way. Caroline began to doze.

Several hours later she awoke and, hearing little or no sound from the deck above her head, ventured out into the meat locker outside. She froze. A man in a bloodied butcher’s apron stood in the locker, staring at her.

‘What the bloody hell...’ he began, but Caroline had already got to her feet and was moving swiftly towards the door.

He blocked her, and after a quick scuffle caught her by the back of her neck.

‘’ere,’ he growled, ‘What do you think you’re doing?’

Caroline remained resolute and completely silent. The man marched her out of the meat locker, up a stairwell and onto “D” deck. He was stopped by a large, hulking figure with a snake-like grin.

‘Got a stowaway, have we?’ the hulk said.

‘Yes, Mr. Jacobs,’ the first man said, ‘Found her down in the meat locker.’

‘Turn her over to me, if you like,’ Jacobs grinned, ‘I’ll make sure she gets taken care of.’

Caroline remembered the name “Jacobs”. He was the one that had “taken care of” the custom official; one of Spalding’s men. Jacobs put a firm hand on Caroline’s shoulder and pushed her through a nearby door and into a map room. Within stood Spalding and another man Caroline had never seen before. Both turned as Caroline and Jacobs entered. Recognition dawned on Spalding’s face. His lips curled into a wicked grin.

‘Mrs. Carol,’ he said softly, ‘How nice of you to join us.’

TO BE CONTINUED...