A Town Called America (34 page)

Rick sat in handcuffs aboard the boarding craft as it made its way to the rear of the cruise ship. Right now he wasn’t thinking about the mission or about the fact that he had more than three thousand people who now looked to him for leadership and guidance. His mind was on one thing only.

Chris. He missed her. He had missed her since the day he’d told her to leave, and although he had yet to admit it to her, he knew he had made a mistake. How few times in life does a person get the chance to have someone dedicated to him or her no matter what? He’d had that, and he’d thrown it away. If the intelligence he had received from L.J. was correct and she really was aboard this cruise ship, he was going to find her.

He hadn’t told anyone—not even Billy or Robbie—that he had other plans besides the mission. He was going to find Chris and wouldn’t leave the ship until he did.

As the boarding craft approached the rear of the cruise ship, a very large door opened, a bay door that allowed the boarding craft to enter the rear of the ship. Inside the cruise ship, the door behind them, on its enormous hydraulics, slowly closed.

The boarding craft was tied to a small dock inside the ship, where a half dozen soldiers stood, paying little attention as Rick’s group, dressed as members of the M.M., stepped onto
The Gem of the Seas
.

Rick was in still in handcuffs and still wearing that obnoxious yellow raincoat and acting intoxicated, not to the point that he would draw too much attention to himself, just enough to be convincing.

Walking past the soldiers, the group of three made their way down a long corridor that reminded Rick more of a military vessel than a luxury liner. The hallway was painted off-white, and on the ceiling, exposed pipes and wires ran the length of corridor. The hallway appeared to extend forever, and the group walked fast, as they were all on a strict timeline.

Passing door after door and a number of hallways leading to the left and right, Rick, who was in front, abruptly stopped. “This is it,” he said.

The man standing next to Rick was Mike, who was short, stocky, and slightly disproportionate—his arms looked too long for his body.
Mike opened the metal door on his left, and all three men entered a small electrical room.

Inside the room, with the door closed, Mike set a large bag on the floor. From it he removed the homemade explosives, all on timers and all ready to go.

The third member of the group was Chuck. He was seventeen, very thin, and had a gentle look to him. He was young, but as he’d grown up after the global collapse, Rick knew he could take care of himself. He had shown that on the refuel vessel when he had shot the M.M. soldiers. It was his job to move through the air shafts and set the explosives at predesignated points throughout the vessel. After Chuck gathered the explosives, Mike picked him up with little effort and lifted him into an overhead vent.

Inside Chuck looked down at Rick and Mike and smiled. “No worries. I’ve done this before.”

“When have you done this before?” Mike asked.

“When you carry out a mission of great importance, you can’t talk about it. Sorry, but I’m sworn to secrecy. It’s hush-hush shit. Relax. I got this!” Chuck said, just before he disappeared into the vent.

“That kid’s nuts,” Mike said, looking at Rick.

“Perhaps, but he’ll pull this off. I’m sure of it.” Rick looked at his watch; nearly two hours had passed since they’d left the beach. “It’s just about time.”

Moving fast, Rick and Mike left the electrical room and quickly made their way down the hallway, taking a series of turns until they ascended a metal staircase to the fourth floor, where they entered a small kitchen intended for ship’s staff. There they waited.

Outside the cruise ship, near the hole that had been cut, the skiff, now empty, was floating unoccupied, away from
The Gem of the Seas
. The hole had been cut through the ship, and Billy’s group was now inside. The engine room was just down a corridor from where they entered,
and the bridge was directly above them. Getting inside it would be easy; taking control of the bridge, however, would be more challenging.

Billy’s men were armed with various guns, but they were under strict orders not to use them until he gave them the signal. In the meantime all three had swords they had trained with for months. Billy figured they were quieter than guns, wouldn’t run out of bullets, yet they were just as effective as any pistol at close range. He was still fond of his two revolvers, but under the circumstances, he was willing to make an exception.

The skiff Robbie and his men were in had been in place for some time, waiting for just the right time, and then that time arrived.

On the edge of an interior observation deck several stories up, three M.M. soldiers were looking over the railing at the refuel vessel below with binoculars.

“What the hell is he doing down there?”

“Hell, if I know. It looks like he’s…I think he’s dancing.”

On the refuel vessel, L.J. was indeed dancing. He had turned on the CD player near the steering wheel, and to his amazement, it still worked. It was Metallica’s
Black Album
, and L.J. knew the song well: “Enter Sandman.”

Although L.J. had hooked up the fuel tubes to pump the fuel from his vessel to the cruise ship, the end of the line wasn’t actually connected. A different tube was connected to the pump, and it was pumping the fuel not into the generators aboard the cruise ship but into the water between his vessel and the cruise ship.

L.J. was dancing and shaking his head to the rhythm of the music he was lip-synching to. That was just how he was; he was a free spirit. Even in the worst of times, he always wore a smile and enjoyed life. That’s why Billy, Rick, and Robbie liked him so much. No matter the situation, he always made them laugh.

The soldiers who were watching him didn’t know what to think.

“He’s OK,” one of them said. “Look over there. Another one of our soldiers is on board with him. It looks like he’s helping with the engine.”

That man was the one handcuffed near the engine-room door.

“Yeah, they were having a problem with the rudder earlier.”

Beep, beep, beep
. One of the men’s watches chimed. When he looked down to check the time, the entire ship shook, as a massive explosion rocked it, causing the three soldiers to almost lose their footing.

On the bridge the soldiers ran to their stations in a panic, trying to figure out what had happened.

“Look—they’re four hundred meters straight ahead,” one soldier said, pointing to his monitor.

The captain turned and rushed out the door to the deck outside the bridge. Looking through his binoculars, he clearly saw something in the distance that had blown up. Whatever it was, it was now burning, and the flames were consuming everything that was left.

“Put the ship on high alert,” the captain told the officer standing next to him.

“Yes, sir.”

Robbie had rigged the skiff with explosives. After his group had jumped overboard, they swam to the hole that had been cut into the side of the ship and climbed inside.

After Robbie’s team entered, Billy leaned through the hole and pulled up the ladder he’d left hanging from the ship. They’d been aboard the ship for only a minute when Robbie looked at Billy and grinned widely as he pushed a red button on a device he held in his hand.

From where they were in the ship, the explosion was overwhelming, as the boom echoed off the steel walls. As everyone held their ears,
Robbie laughed as his companions instinctively ducked. When the small skiff blew up, it sent smoke, flames, and debris in every direction.

“Good to see you, Billy,” Robbie, said smileing.

“Shut up,” Billy told him.

Pulling out the swords from the sheaths on their backs, Billy and Robbie’s groups made their way to the engine room.

The hallway to the right of where Billy’s team had entered the ship was narrow and sparse, but as they made their way through, it opened up to nearly double its size, with faded paintings and aged decorations dotting the walls.

Billy, in front, led the group as Robbie took the rear, ensuring no one was able to sneak up on his group. Billy rounded a corner and looked straight down a hallway to the left. Making sure it was clear of people, he rounded the next corner, where he ran directly into three M.M. Soldiers. He literally ran into them, almost knocking down one of them and attempting not to lose his balance.

One soldier stood looking in astonishment as he slowly pulled a cigarette from his mouth. The other two, who stood to the left and right, didn’t move.

“Who the hell are you?” the soldier with the cigarette said, sizing Billy up.

“Um, the cleaning lady?” Billy quipped.

“You’re not really the cleaning lady, are you?” the soldier said, raising his pistol toward Billy.

“Oh, man,” Billy said. “How’d you guess?”

“So if you’re not the cleaning lady, I’m guessing you think you’re a ninja. You know what they say: never bring a knife to a gunfight.” He threw his lit cigarette directly at Billy’s face.

Without hesitation Billy raised his sword and swung it in the air, cutting the cigarette in half, only inches from the man’s face.

“Oh, shit,” the soldier said, as Billy came around low, cutting him just under the knees. Before the man completely collapsed to the floor, Billy lunged forward and pushed his sword through his midsection.