Read Online Carpathian by David Lynn Golemon - Free Book Online Page B

would never see Alice again. And he found that was the only regret he had. Alice.
    Suddenly his leg was tugged on and he felt himself being pulled further down into the water. Whoever had his leg was not too gently pulling him to the bottom of the engine spaces where all hell was breaking loose. As Garrison fought to keep consciousness he saw the floating bodies of many of the Golden Child ’s crewmen. Most were burned and some had parts of their bodies missing from the two powerful explosions. He was pulled even further along the hull. Then suddenly Lee and his savior were free of the Golden Child . The water was much cooler as he felt himself rising from the depths. When he broke the surface of the choppy sea he didn’t think he had enough strength to take a deep breath, then just before he did he felt his face being slapped hard.
    “Don’t you know when you abandon ship you head to the deck, not the engine room?” the voice said as a life preserver was thrust into his hands.
    Lee tried to catch his breath as he saw who his rescuer had been—the young Gypsy girl from the salon. She was treading water not inches from Lee’s face. Her smile caught the senator off guard.
    “Don’t think us cruel,” she said as her swim fins kept her easily above the choppy water. “I set the first charge to scare the guests, the second to sink the ship, but I’m afraid it went off too early. I’m really not that good with explosives.”
    “Who are you and who made you judge, jury, and executioner?” Lee said, spitting saltwater from his mouth.
    “I am no one, Mr. Lee, but the woman who gave the execution order is that pig Harrington’s judge, jury, and executioner, and also my queen.” The girl smiled and lowered her dive mask. “Your woman is your equal American, but don’t allow her to follow us. It will only bring her grief. If we ever meet again, Keeper of Secrets, it will not go so well for you.”
    Lee started to say something but the girl turned away. Lee watched her swim away as sirens and patrol boats from the distant harbor were starting to get closer to the scene of the tragedy at sea. Lee looked for the girl but she was nowhere to be found.
    “Thank God!”
    Lee quickly turned around.
    “Hamilton!” he said as he reached for her.
    Alice placed her arms around Lee and then they both just remained that way as the seas lifted them and then lowered their floating bodies back down. As Lee held her he noticed that they were being carried away from the survivors and the arriving rescuers.
    “We better start swimming or it may be a while before I can apologize for being such an ass.”
    Suddenly and before Alice could speak a splash sounded next to them. As Lee looked up he saw that an inflatable raft had been tossed into the sea.
    “As I said, my crystal ball may be cracked, but it still shows a pretty clear picture of future events. Mrs. Hamilton, Mr. Lee, good luck, and swim that way.”
    Lee and Alice looked up onto an ancient-looking Chinese junk. Standing at the railing was the young raven-haired girl. She was wrapped in a blanket. Standing next to her and leaning on the old wooden railing, the girl’s grandmother stood with her arm through that of the girl for support. The junk was slowly pulling out of the debris field left by the sinking Golden Child .
    “Remember, Mrs. Hamilton, what you have seen here tonight cannot be.” She slowly waved her small hand, as did her grandmother. “God doesn’t have that kind of sense of humor. After all, animals like that cannot, should not exist. God wouldn’t have it,” the girl shouted. The junk slowly vanished into a fog bank and was gone.
    “That has got to be the strangest girl I have ever met.”
    Lee didn’t answer Alice, he just yanked the ripcord on the CO 2 cylinder and the raft immediately inflated. He pulled himself in and then Alice after him. As the sirens and the screams slowly started to fade because of distance, Lee looked into the fog after the