Justice

THIRTEEN

Maddock allowed himself to relax completely as he dropped to the bottom of the ocean. The descent took only a few seconds, and he found both feet planted in a bed of rocks and sand. Switching on his headlamp, he spotted Bones a few feet away. They’d easily found the location. As his father had warned him, researchers buzzed around the area, but had left before sunset and hadn’t returned.

The wreck of Blackbeard’s flagship lay in less than thirty feet of water within sight of Atlantic Beach on the North Carolina coast. The alleged wreck, Maddock reminded himself. It wasn’t likely to be certified as authentic for some time. But Maddock kept himself up to date about interesting shipwrecks, and everything he had seen told him that the ship was indeed the legendary Queen Anne’s Revenge.

This would be one of the easiest dives he had ever undertaken. No need for decompression stops. No need for communication with the surface. The current near the surface was several knots, but down at the bottom he could stand without having to steady himself at all.

The main concern here was secrecy, which is why he hadn’t switched on his light until now. They were exploring after midnight in a prescribed location. He didn’t figure the archaeological team would be diving the wreck tonight, but the need to stay silent and dark remained. A SEAL specialty.

Sterling had no diving experience and remained on board the rowboat they had used to traverse the mile from the shore. A little exertion with the oars was a small price to pay for avoiding the tell-tale sounds of a motor. After dropping anchor, they had slipped over the side.

Bones motioned with his flashlight along a trench in the seabed. Maddock knew that a number of these trenches dotted the area, designed to assist in locating items which scattered when the ship struck bottom. Without some structure to the digging, over time the sea would defeat all attempts at methodical searches.

Their target was the ship itself. He didn’t know what they would find, but he and Bones had one big advantage over the archaeologists: They didn’t have to follow any defined safety rules when exploring the wreck. Neither man wanted to damage the site, nor did they want to meet a quick end from a falling timber. But they could swim through the wreck without any kind of detailed plan of action.

As they reached the hull, they glided over what had to be one of the cannons entombed in silt. The ship had settled in a generally upright position, though of course it leaned to one side. Maddock felt a sort of reverence as he settled just above a square opening in the deck and peered into darkness. He felt something similar any time he dived on an old wreck, imagining that doing something like this for a living after leaving the military would have great appeal.

The beam of Bones’ light cut through the gloom, and Bones moved slowly into the opening head first. Maddock gave it about ten seconds after the big man’s feet disappeared before following into another world.

Everything was covered with various forms of aquatic growth, but he could still see what was intact and what wasn’t. Moving slowly, he made his way deeper into the ship through a couple of different openings. At one point he stopped and backtracked a few feet. He had almost missed a tiny container tucked under a collapsed beam. He opened it, discovering several coins inside. How could you beat diving on a pirate ship and finding a treasure chest? He shook off a twinge of guilt as he slipped the coins into his dive bag.

Some time later he spotted Bones’ light. Closing the gap, both of them swum up through another opening to leave the interior of the wreck. Maddock looked at his watch and was only partially surprised to find that over thirty minutes had passed. He jerked his thumb upwards and Bones nodded.

He left his flashlight on during the short trip to the surface, but kept it pointing downward. A brief flick across the surface confirmed the location of the rowboat, and he switched it off for good. A few freestyle strokes saw him climbing smoothly over the side.

“Where’s Bonebrake?”

“What’s the matter, did you miss me?” Bones raised himself into the boat a moment later.

“No, but I’m going to miss the peace and quiet. Did you guys find anything?”

Bones shook his head, spraying brine in her face. “Just a few coins.”

“So it was all for nothing, right? This was our final clue.”

“I don’t know,” Maddock said. “There was no treasure, but I didn’t get the feeling that the wreck had been plundered.”

“Me neither,” Bones said. “It’s doesn’t have that vibe.”

“Vibe?” Sterling asked.

Bones winked. “Trust us. Besides, no one’s ever been certain of the location of this wreck, and as far as I know, no treasure associated with Blackbeard has ever shown up.”

Maddock looked at Bones, but even with a sliver of moon visible, he couldn’t see enough to make eye contact in the darkness. “That gives me an idea. You and I both know someone who might be able to find out more about these coins.”

“We do? Oh yeah, Jimmy Letson. We keep calling him every time we need research and we’ll owe him so much Wild Turkey we’ll need to buy stock in the company.”

Sterling still didn’t sound pleased. “Who the hell is Jimmy Letson?”

“He started SEAL training with me and Bones. Great guy, a genius with computers, but couldn’t hack the physical side. He’s now a reporter in DC. He was traveling when we first hit the area, but I’m pretty sure he got back yesterday. We’ll show him the coins and see if he has any ideas.”

Sterling just grunted in reply, which Maddock took as a sign that the discussion had ended. He settled himself into the center, set the oars in the locks, and started rowing.

He allowed himself to disappear into the repetitive motion, thinking about the coins. Letson would come up with something. He always did.