Primordial

Chapter 25

“I’m getting sick of waiting. We’re accomplishing nothing here. I say we go in.” Laine scowled at the array of monitors, turned, and stalked out onto the deck, slamming the door behind him.

“That’s friendly.” Slater made a face at the man’s back as he walked away. Sighing, she turned back to Aston. “I wouldn’t say it where he could hear me, but I don’t entirely disagree with him. We’ve been hanging out by this channel for nearly two days and we haven’t seen anything. I say the two of us put on the SCUBA gear and do some exploring. Even if we don’t find any new evidence, I can get some cool footage. Maybe search for more dead Germans?”

Aston couldn’t deny the thought of getting off the boat and into the water was appealing, and diving with Slater could be fun. He was a skilled diver, and letting her see him at his best just might spark a little renewed interest.

“Maybe,” he said. “But we’ll have to convince Holloway. He’s certain the creature is in there somewhere and is afraid we’ll frighten it off if we go poking around in its lair. He wants a sighting first, but this sitting around is killing me. Personally, the lack of a sighting is what makes me more keen to dive.” What he wouldn’t give for a long dive in the cool water followed by an evening in his bunk, unwinding with a few drinks, and perhaps some female companionship. He resisted the urge to let his eyes wander up Slater’s legs, and instead kept his focus on the screen in front of him.

“He thinks we’re going to frighten off a sea monster.” She shook her head. “If this thing is real, and I’m still not certain it is, I think we’re the ones who ought to be afraid. It’s big, there’s not enough vegetation in the lake for it to be a herbivore, and if the legends are true, it’s eaten people in the past.”

Aston nodded. “Might have eaten someone quite recently.” He regretted the statement immediately.

Slater stood ramrod-straight and cuffed him on the shoulder. “Don’t say that. Dave was my… is my friend.”

“Sorry. I don’t mean to be insensitive. It’s just that my filter doesn’t always work.”

“It’s all right.” She sank into the chair next to him and rested her head against his shoulder. “He’s dead. I’m sure of it. I suppose he drank too much and somehow managed to capsize his boat. That’s the only thing that makes sense. I don’t want to believe that a big freaking monster ate him, Sam. I just don’t want to think about it.”

“I hear you. He was a good guy.” Aston could think of nothing else to say, so he was relieved when loud voices outside drew their attention. “Can you watch the screen for me?” he asked, rising from his chair, but Slater was already out the door.

“I’ll do it.” Carly had been sitting quietly nearby. Funny how quickly one could grow accustomed to the presence of a camera crew, or a crew member in this case, and stop noticing them.

“Great. Give a shout if anything interesting pops up.” Aston hurried out into the humid day. He immediately spotted the source of the commotion.

Holloway leaned against the stern rail, arguing with Superintendent Rinne, who stood in the bow of a small launch. A deputy manning the outboard watched the two with a bemused grin on his face.

“For the last time, I’m not letting you onto my boat. You have no reason to harass us like this.” Between sunburn and the flush of anger, Holloway’s face was a delicate shade of crimson.

“There has been a pattern of suspicious activity surrounding this craft and I will investigate it.” Rinne held his chin high and his fists clenched. “I’m the authority here.”

“There’s nothing suspicious going on. We’re doing research, as you well know.”

“Research?” Rinne barked a laugh. “What about your missing crew member? I wouldn’t know about it if he hadn’t reported it to me.” Rinne pointed.

Immediately, all eyes turned to Aston, who came to a halt a few paces from Holloway.

“What the hell is he talking about?” The billionaire’s burning gaze might have caused another man to flinch, but in Aston it stirred defiance.

“Dave took off to God knows where. If anyone can find word of him, it’s the police. There’s no reason not to ask them to do their bloody job.”

Holloway narrowed his eyes and stared a hole through Aston. “We’ll discuss this later.” Shaking his head, he turned back to Rinne.

“Do you deny it?” the policeman challenged.

“Yes, one of my men took off. He’s a soft kid from Hollywood who couldn’t handle it out here. In what world does that constitute a pattern of suspicious behavior?”

“What about my missing man?” The moment he uttered the question, Rinne’s eyes widened.

“Oops,” Slater said in a voice meant only for Aston’s ears.

“Your missing man? Are we supposed to know something about your personnel issues?” Holloway asked.

“I sent one of my men out to investigate your activities and he didn’t come back. That’s two missing persons associated with your project.”

Something clicked into place in Aston’s mind. This must be the reason for Rinne’s odd behavior during their meeting. That and the fact the man was a tosser with an obvious power complex.

“When? You’re the first police officer to pay us a visit.” Holloway’s volume had lessened but he kept a white-knuckled grip on the rail.

Rinne grimaced and looked down at the water. “Two nights ago.”

“You’ll have to be more specific. What time did he come by?”

Rinne hesitated. He shot a glance at the officer in the stern.

Aston leaped to a conclusion. “Did you send someone out here in the middle of the night? To scope out our boat? Did they sneak on board?”

Rinne held up a hand. “It doesn’t matter. The fact remains, I sent my man out here and he didn’t come back.” He paused, took a deep breath, and let it out in a rush. “You’re hiding something, Holloway. I know it, and I’ll prove it.”

At the words ‘hiding something’, Slater shot a sideways glance at Aston. He knew what she was thinking: the severed foot.

“Good luck proving anything,” Holloway sneered. “There’s nothing to prove. We’ll be right out here in the open, the same way we’ve been since the very start, until we complete our research and our film. All our paperwork is in order. Not to mention the extra license fees we paid on arrival. And you have no search warrant.”

A grin crept across Rinne’s face. “I think you might not be here for long. I just learned there’s a rare species of plant which can only be found in this lake. We’ll likely have to suspend all boat traffic until scientists can thoroughly investigate and determine how to best protect it. It could take months.”

“You’re lying. There’s no plant.” Holloway’s voice once again rose to a shout and Rinne matched it.

Aston and Slater seized the renewal of hostilities as an opportunity to slip away. As they descended below decks, Slater cocked her head and fixed him with an appraising look. “You did it for me, didn’t you?”

“What’s that?” Aston felt suddenly off-balance.

“Going to Rinne. I know we discussed notifying him, but you don’t seem the sort to trust the authorities. You knew how worried I was but you also knew I have a non-disclosure agreement with Holloway that would be in jeopardy if I spoke to someone outside the expedition.”

Aston didn’t know what to say. The truth was, he had simply done it because his gut told him to, and he’d said he would. But what was the harm in allowing Slater to think he’d stuck his neck out for her? She must have taken his momentary silence as an affirmative reply, because she reached out and gave his hand a squeeze.

“Thank you. There’s more to you than I thought.”

They made their way to the galley, Aston distracted with thoughts of Slater and whether or not he’d just inadvertently improved his chances with her. When they arrived, Slater stood watch at the door while Aston opened the freezer.

His throat clenched and he sucked in a sliver of breath. The foot was still there, but it lay partially unwrapped. Someone had been there, and if it wasn’t one of their crew, that meant Rinne’s man had found it. And if that was the case, they could all be in serious trouble. But where was the man?