Fair Game (40 page)

Dominik joined Shepherd at the rear of the bridge. ‘I see two skiffs,’ said Shepherd. ‘Seven men in one, five in the other. Armed.’ The captain put his binoculars to his eyes and cursed. ‘Heading this way, right?’ said Shepherd.

‘Yes, it looks like it,’ said Dominik calmly. He looked over his shoulder. ‘Chief, come here, please,’ he called. There was just a hint of tension in his voice.

The chief officer hurried over and Dominik gave him the binoculars. ‘Two skiffs, heading straight for us,’ said Dominik.

‘What are our options?’ asked Shepherd. ‘Can we restart the engine?’

Hainrich shook his head. ‘We’re dead in the water.’

‘Can they board us?’

Dominik took back the binoculars and focused on the skiffs. ‘I don’t see any ladders.’

‘They could have ropes,’ said Hainrich. ‘Ropes and hooks.’

‘Turn on the fire hoses,’ said Dominik. Hainrich hurried away.

‘Will the fire hoses stop them?’ asked Shepherd.

‘They’ll make it harder, but with the engine stopped they’ll be able to board at the stern, hoses or no hoses.’

‘So can we fight back with something?’

‘What, throw rocks at them?’

‘Have you got any weapons? Any guns?’

Dominik shook his head.

‘So what’s the plan?’ asked Shepherd.

‘There is no plan, not to fight them off anyway,’ said Dominik. He put the binoculars back to his eyes. ‘The plan is to take evasive action, but with the engine down that’s not possible. The company says that in the event of us being boarded, the crew and officers should gather together on the bridge.’

‘Then what?’

Dominik shrugged as he looked at the skiffs in the distance. ‘Then we wait. We cooperate. And the company negotiates for our release.’

Shepherd looked at the skiffs through his binoculars. He could see the men and their weapons more clearly now. Kalashnikovs. The skiffs were about fifty feet apart and moving at the same speed. ‘This was planned,’ said Shepherd. ‘It has to be. It can’t be sheer luck that they’re turning up just as we break down.’

‘They can’t have known,’ said Dominik. ‘The computers going down like that, it’s a one-in-a-million shot. No one could have predicted it. It’s just a coincidence.’

‘I don’t believe in coincidences,’ said Shepherd. ‘How long before they get here?’

‘They’re about six miles away, probably doing twenty knots,’ said Dominik. ‘Between fifteen and twenty minutes.’

‘And how long to board?’

‘While we’re drifting like this? Five minutes, at most. Then it’s all over.’ Dominik took his binoculars with him as he walked across the bridge to the radio. He picked up the telephone receiver. ‘Mayday, mayday, mayday, this is container ship
Athena
, call sign Alpha Delta Tango Two Four Six, we are under attack by pirates.’ He gave his position.

Hainrich walked up to the captain. ‘Fire hoses are on,’ he said. ‘Not that they’ll do any good.’

‘I need you to call the company’s emergency number,’ said Dominik. ‘Tell them we’re under attack and that we’re following the anti-piracy procedures but that we’ve lost our engine.’

‘They’re not going to help, are they?’ said Hainrich.

‘Maybe not, but they need to know what’s happening,’ said Dominik. ‘Once you’ve phoned the company, put in a call to UKMTO Dubai.’

He repeated his mayday broadcast, then sounded the general emergency alarm as Hainrich went over to the sat-phone.

Dominik let the alarm cycle twice then he announced over the public address system that all members of the crew should muster on the bridge immediately.

Shepherd stood and watched the captain as he repeated his mayday message for a second time, then looked over his shoulder at the two approaching skiffs. Shepherd knew that he could do one of two things. He could stand and wait with the crew for the pirates to board, or he could act. He knew that Button’s instructions were to stay with the crew, but he had a bad feeling about the way the hijacking was going down.

The door to the bridge opened and three Filipino crewmen walked in, followed by the second officer. The officer hurried over to the seaman on watch and took the binoculars from him. All the Filipinos started chattering in their own language.

Dominik put the transceiver to his mouth and called up the chief engineer. For the first time Shepherd saw a look of panic in the captain’s eyes. More seamen came up the stairs and on to the bridge. Dominik was talking to Tomasz in Polish.

Shepherd went out on to the port wing of the bridge and looked at the skiffs through his binoculars. They were close now. One of the men was holding something. The skiff was bucking up and down so it was difficult to focus but Shepherd was fairly sure it was either a radio or a GPS unit. He went back on to the bridge, where Dominik had finished talking to the chief engineer and was staring helplessly at the controls. Hainrich was talking on the sat-phone.

‘What’s happening?’ asked Shepherd.

Dominik shrugged. ‘The computer says the turbochargers are overheating.’

‘And are they?’

Dominik shook his head. ‘Tomasz has checked them himself. They’re fine. But so long as the computer says there’s a problem, the engine shuts down.’

‘That can’t be a coincidence, can it?’

‘What do you mean?’

Shepherd pointed at the approaching skiffs. ‘We’re a long way from land. They can’t just have stumbled across us.’

‘You think they killed our engine?’ He screwed up his face. ‘Impossible.’

‘Maybe not,’ said Shepherd.

Feliks appeared on the bridge and shouted over to Dominik in Polish. The third officer and three more seamen rushed in.

Shepherd came to a sudden decision, and without saying anything he rushed off the bridge and down the stairs to F-Deck. He burst into his cabin and grabbed the sat-phone. He tapped out Button’s number and she answered almost immediately. ‘Everything’s changed,’ he said. ‘We’re about to be boarded by pirates. Two skiffs heading our way and we’re at a full stop.’

‘How come?’

‘Some sort of computer fault, the engine just died.’

‘Are you OK?’

‘I’m not sure,’ said Shepherd. He looked at his watch. There were another five minutes before the skiffs would be there. ‘This doesn’t feel right.’

‘Explain?’

‘I can’t. It’s a hunch. A feeling.’

‘What do you want to do? I assume it’s a bit late to abandon ship?’

‘Charlie, the crew and officers are gathering on the bridge. That’s the company policy. If it looks like they’re about to be boarded they stay together.’ He took a deep breath. ‘I can’t do that,’ he said. ‘I can’t just roll over and die.’

‘I know you don’t mean that literally,’ she said. ‘It’s your call, Spider. Whatever you want to do, I’ll back you. You’re the one on the spot.’

‘It’s about observing the situation, and I think I’d be better placed to do that elsewhere on the ship.’

‘You can do that?’

‘It’s a big ship, Charlie. Bloody huge. Lots of places to hide.’

‘For how long? You’ll need food and water.’

‘I was trained for escape and evasion, I can handle it. And these aren’t highly trained soldiers. Most of them are kids. Look, there’re twelve pirates on two boats. I figure that two of the pirates will stay with the skiffs and head back to the mother ship. That leaves nine on board. Most of them will be guarding the crew or on the bridge so I reckon I can avoid them. I can watch what’s going on. And report back to you.’

‘And if it takes weeks?’

‘Then I’ll stick it out for weeks. Rather that than be locked in some storage area for the duration.’ He looked at his watch again. He was running out of time. ‘I’ll phone you when I can,’ he said. ‘I’ll have the sat-phone off to conserve power. If I can I’ll try to call on the hour and I’ll only call your mobile. I’ve got to go.’

‘Good luck,’ she said.

Shepherd ended the call and looked around the cabin. He opened the fridge and grabbed three bottles of water and shoved them into his bag, threw in some of his clothes and the sat-phone and then dashed along the corridor to the stairs. He hurtled down the stairs to B-Deck, passing Jimmy the messman on the way, then ran along to the officers’ mess. The bowls of fruit were still on the sideboard and he tipped them into his bag, then ran into the galley. There were two baskets of French bread left over from lunch and he threw them into his bag, followed by three plates of cheese that had been covered with cling film. Outside he heard the tat-tat-tat of a Kalashnikov being fired.

The skiffs had been approaching from the starboard side so he ran down the stairs to the Upper Deck and along the corridor to the port door. He opened it and then opened the metal hatch that led to the outside. He looked left and right but the sea was clear. He heard more automatic fire, louder now that he was outside.

They’d probably be boarding from the rear so he had to move quickly. He bent low and began running towards the bow, his bag held tightly against his chest.

The second officer ducked and backed away from the window as one of the pirates on the larger skiff let loose a burst of fire, spraying bullets over the top of the bridge. The other skiff had disappeared around the stern.

‘Bloody idiots,’ said Hainrich. ‘Why are they shooting?’

‘Because they’re morons,’ said Dominik. ‘Everybody, listen to me!’ he shouted. ‘Stay away from the windows. Don’t show any aggression and do exactly as they say. The company will handle this, everything will be OK. All they care about is money, they’ve nothing to gain by hurting us.’

‘They’ve got guns!’ shouted one of the seamen. ‘They’re going to kill us!’

‘They’re only firing to scare us,’ said Dominik. ‘If they wanted to hit us they could. They’re firing into the air. Now just relax and keep calm.’

The third officer came from the rear of the bridge. ‘Can’t see them, they’re at the stern.’

‘It won’t take them long to board.’ Dominik turned to the chief officer. ‘Is everybody here?’

‘Twenty, with two still on the engine room,’ said Hainrich. ‘But the human resources guy is missing.’

‘Mr Oliver? Where is he?’ said Dominik, looking around. ‘He might have panicked.’

‘He doesn’t look the type to panic,’ said Hainrich.

Dominik held up his hands. ‘Did anyone see Mr Oliver?’ he shouted. ‘The company man? Did anyone see him?’

Jimmy the messman raised his hand. ‘I saw him on the stairs. Going down.’

‘When?’

‘When the alarm was sounding. He had a bag.’

‘He had a what?’

Jimmy mimed holding a bag.

Dominik looked over at Hainrich. ‘What the hell’s going on?’

The chief officer shrugged. ‘Do you want me to go and look for him?’

‘It’s too late,’ said Dominik. ‘They’ll be here any minute. He’ll have to take care of himself.’

Dominik raised his hands again. ‘Can I have everyone’s attention!’ he shouted. Half a dozen of the Filipinos continued to chatter over on the starboard side of the bridge so he clapped his hands and shouted again. ‘Please, everyone, listen to what I have to say.’

The seamen went quiet and everyone looked at the captain.

‘We’re about to be boarded by pirates, and there’s nothing we can do to stop them. They have guns and as you know our engine has stopped. We’ve informed the company and there’s a warship on its way but by the time they get here the pirates are going to be on board.’

‘Why don’t we fight them?’ shouted the deck fitter, a well-built Filipino in his thirties who had once been a semiprofessional boxer and had the nose to prove it.

‘Because they’ve got guns and we haven’t and if we put up any sort of fight we’re just going to make them angry,’ said Dominik. ‘Our best chance of coming out of this without any injuries is to cooperate and to comply with any instructions they give us. That’s company policy.’

‘The company doesn’t care about us!’ shouted one of the younger seamen.

‘Listen, I understand you feel worried, scared even, that’s natural,’ shouted Dominik. ‘But as scary as these men might appear, they’re only interested in money. Just do as they say, don’t give them any excuse to get violent, and we’ll all get through this.’

‘We should lock ourselves in the engine room,’ said one of the seamen. ‘If they can’t get the engine started they’ll just leave.’

‘And what if they don’t?’ said Dominik. ‘How long could we stay down there with no food or water? Then when we eventually come out they’re going to be very angry and that’s when people get hurt. I’m telling you what the company is advising; they have experts who draw up their plans so we should follow them.’

‘It’s easy to be an expert when you’re sitting at a desk,’ said another seaman.

The tillerman took the skiff in to the rear of the ship, turning at just the right time so that it was parallel to the stern. Marlboro was standing at the bow of the skiff, swinging the grappling iron. He let go of it too late and it clanged against the stern and fell into the sea. Blue cursed him, then flinched as one of the men in the second skiff let rip with his Kalashnikov.

‘I told you, no shooting!’ he shouted, but his words were lost in the crashing of the waves against the hull.

Marlboro pulled the grappling hook out of the water and began to whirl it again, a look of grim determination on his face. He allowed the wet knotted rope to slide through his fingers and then he yelled as he launched it skywards. It spun through the air and then hooked over the safety rail. Marlboro yelped in triumph and pulled the rope tight. He began to pull himself up, using his hands and bare feet to grip the knotted rope. Blue could see the muscles in the boy’s arm tensing like steel cables as he hauled himself up, his AK-47 banging against his shoulders.

‘Go on, boy, faster!’ shouted Blue.

The tillerman grinned as he worked the rudder to keep the skiff close to the ship’s stern. ‘Like a monkey after bananas,’ he shouted.

‘Yeah, but this banana is worth millions of dollars,’ said Blue.

Marlboro reached the rail and rolled over it on to the deck. One of the men behind Blue came forward with a rolled-up chain ladder and attached it to the end of the rope and Blue waved up at the teenager. As he pulled up the rope the ladder unwound and snaked up the side of the ship, the metal rungs rattling against the stern. Marlboro hooked the ladder over the rail and waved at Blue.