The Ark: A Novel (27 page)

"Tyler Locke," he said. "I didn't know you were a biblical scholar." He didn't extend his hand, and neither did Locke.

"I just dabble," Locke said. "I'm surprised that a billionaire who can afford his own yachts would lower himself to ride on a ship with the rest of us peons."

The other passengers watched the exchange with curiosity.

"I happen to be a major stakeholder in this cruise line," Garrett said, "and I thought I'd lend my support for this historic occasion."

"What occasion would that be?"

Garrett paused for a moment, then widened his smile, as if acknowledging Locke's meaning. "Why, the sailing of the world's largest passenger vessel, of course. On my left is Svetlana Petrova. And who would your lovely companion be?" Garrett stole a glance at her locket. He knew very well who she was.

"I'm Dilara Kenner." With her eyes, she bored a hole into Svetlana Petrova. "Are you originally from Russia?"

"From the outskirts of Moscow," Petrova said with a faint Slavic accent. "I moved here when I was thirteen."

Dilara nodded. A subtle tightening of her grip told him it was the woman who had poisoned Sam Watson.

"Are you here for business or pleasure?" Garrett asked.

"A little of both," Locke replied. "The cruise line asked me to consult on some engineering plans for their next ship, and they offered me a cabin on this one as part of the deal. I thought, why not?"

"Are you staying for the entire cruise?"

"Just to New York. Forty days is too much time on board for me. What about you? What do the next forty days hold for you?"

"Oh, I'm spending the night on board, but then I must depart. I have a busy agenda."

"What do you think about the Rex Hayden plane crash? I understand his brother was involved in your church."

"It's tragic for two brothers to die so young. The media has been somewhat cryptic up to this point as to the cause of the crash."

"I'm actually involved in the investigation."

Garrett eyes glittered malevolently. "Is that so? What have you determined?"

"I can't talk about it. Still ongoing."

"Of course. I know you engineers are sticklers for process. And what is your profession, Ms. Kenner?"

"I'm an archaeologist. My father got me interested. Hasad Arvadi. Maybe you've heard of him?"

"As a matter of fact, I have. I'm something of a Noah's Ark buff, and I came across the work of your father. Intriguing ideas, if a bit misguided. I understand he's been missing for quite some time. A shame." He said it with exaggerated sympathy.

Garrett was having fun playing with them. Locke could sense Dilara rising to take the bait, so he headed her off.

"So when you were talking about something drastic," he said, "you meant the Flood. Something to wipe out humanity and start over."

"If God were so inclined, that would be His decision. But surely you know His covenant with Noah. God said He would never again send a Flood to destroy us. The Bible was very specific. Instead, God might choose to wipe us out with a rogue asteroid or some other method that we aren't even aware of. Such a grim outcome, in His view, might be necessary to reset all of the damage we've done."

"'To save the village, we had to destroy it,' as they said in Vietnam."

"Do you think humans will change their ways, Tyler? Do you really believe six billion people can make the right choice when it comes to protecting this planet?"

"If we don't, who will? A supreme being who believes he is the only one who knows what's right for everyone else?" Locke made sure Garrett understood that the supreme being he was talking about was Sebastian Garrett.

"If that's what it takes, I have faith that God has chosen the best path for humanity. Now, my dear," Garrett said to Petrova, "I am worn out from this party. I think we should take advantage of our suite amenities. Good evening, everyone. It's been a wonderful celebration. And Tyler, if we don't see each other again," he said pointedly, "enjoy your cruise."

He gave a last smile at Locke, then turned. Before he could leave, Locke leaned in and whispered in Garrett's ear.

"You'd better pray we don't see each other again, Sebastian. Because if we do, you'll know you've failed and I've won."

That finally got the smile to disappear from Garrett's face. The fear returned for a moment, then he dismissed Locke with a sneer and walked away.

Dilara watched them leave with a look of pure hatred.

"It took everything I had not to punch that woman in the face," she said.

"I know how you feel. But at least we know one thing."

"What? That Garrett is a psycho?"

"No," Locke said, "I already knew that. And I could tell by his smug expression that he thinks we're too late. Whatever he has planned, he's here to kick it off."

"It won't happen with him on the ship."

"That's right. He said he's leaving before it sails. So we've got until the Genesis Dawn leaves port tomorrow morning. If we don't find out what he's planning before then, he's going to get his doomsday scenario."

Locke and Dilara took time to eat at the gala. Locke kept one eye on his cabin door five decks up just to make sure no one entered while they were gone. He had been quiet since the conversation with Garrett, considering his next move.

What was Garrett doing here? If the incident on Rex Hayden's airplane was related, they could be planning the same thing on this ship. With such an immense vessel, distributing the bioweapon would be much more difficult. He could use the food, which was how the norovirus that continued to regularly sicken passengers was passed along, but the industry had gotten much better at maintaining a safe food supply. Locke looked at the empty plate on his table and immediately discounted that method. Garrett wouldn't have infected people while he was still on board.

The water system might be vulnerable, but it would require accessing the central distribution point from the desalination plant. Someone would have to get access to secure areas of the ship. It was a possibility, but risky.

The easiest method, one which Locke guessed was used on the plane, was an airborne pathogen. That meant finding a central location for inserting it into the ship's air handling system. But Garrett couldn't expect any device to be left alone for a significant period of time, not with the rigorous maintenance a new ship would be subject to. He'd need someplace that was guaranteed not to be disturbed...

The solution hit Locke like a two-by-four. He shot out of his seat.

"That's it," he said.

"That's what?" Dilara asked.

"Garrett. He made a mistake when he told me he wasn't staying for the cruise. Come on. I need to call Aiden and have him send something to my computer."

The music had stopped, signaling that gala was over, and they threaded their way through the thinned crowd toward the elevator.

On his way back to the room, he called Aiden to have him to send a complete schematic for the ship, particularly the air handling system.

Locke made a quick sweep of the room to make sure it hadn't been disturbed, and when he was satisfied, he flipped open his computer. One of the ship's features was a wireless Internet connection throughout the vessel, so he immediately saw the email from Aiden. In the body of the email was the other piece of information he'd requested. Garrett's cabin number.

He called up the schematics. Garrett's cabin, a sprawling 2500-square-foot suite, was on the highest residential deck at the bow of the ship, just above the bridge. The views from the balcony spanning from one side to the other would be marvelous.

Then he overlaid Garrett's cabin with the venting system and saw what he was expecting.

"I'll be damned."

"What is it?" Dilara asked.

"Until we got here, I assumed Garrett was taking the cruise since he had a suite. But then he said he was leaving in the morning before the ship sailed. It made me wonder why he would go to the trouble of booking the best cabin on the ship if he was only going to use it for one night. Look at this."

Dilara bent over Locke, and her perfume washed over him. He tried to ignore its exhilarating effect and pointed at the screen.

"His suite is the only one right next to the main air intake for the ship," he said. "Anything injected into the air stream would be distributed throughout the ship."

"That's how he's going to infect everyone?"

"That's my guess. He could drill a hole through his wall right into the air shaft, and no one would ever know. Even if he's not here, he could leave instructions not to have the room disturbed. There would be no chance that the device would be shut down."

"We should tell someone."

"The problem will be getting access to his cabin. It's probably guarded."

"What about the FBI?"

"I suppose that's an option, although they prefer to have warrants, and that'll be hard to get with the lack of evidence we have."

"Are you always so optimistic?"

He stood and found himself face to face with Dilara. His vision contracted to just her eyes, and he could feel her breath on his lips.

"I try to think through the alternatives. But believe me, I will get at whatever is in his cabin and stop it. Then we can find out what happened to your father."

"I appreciate you taking all of this on. You didn't have to."

"Yes, I did."

Before Locke realized the impulse, he swept her into his arms. He kissed her deeply, with a passion he hadn't felt in a long time. Her body felt warm and firm against his own. She ran her fingers through his hair as they kissed. He ran his hands down her exquisite back...

A knock at the door interrupted them. They stepped apart, as though their parents had caught them making out on the living room couch.

Locke smiled, and then he realized why that one simple kiss was different than any other in the last two years. For the first time, he hadn't compared the experience to Karen. He didn't know what that meant, but he didn't feel the guilt he thought he would.

The knock came again, and this time he could hear a voice from outside.

"Dr. Locke, it's Special Agent Perez. I need to see you."

Wiping the lipstick from his mouth with a handkerchief, Locke went to the door and opened it. Perez walked in. He gave a lingering glance at Dilara, who was fixing her hair.

"I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"Not at all," Locke said. "In fact, I was about to come find you."

"Now? You've been here all evening, and you didn't come tell me?"

"I didn't have anything when I arrived, so I didn't want to bother you. But now I do."

"Like what? Is this about our discussion yesterday?"

Locke shook his head. "Sebastian Garrett. He's on board. He's behind Rex Hayden's crash. The same kind of thing is going to happen on this ship, and I know how."

"The billionaire?" Perez said in disbelief. "That's great. I suppose you have evidence?"

"I have a theory. I can show it to you on my computer."

Perez put up his hands. "That can wait. I need you to come with me. That's why I came here. When I saw your names on the guest list, I made sure to observe you during the gala. I didn't want to make contact there in case we were seen together, so I waited to get you until you returned to your room."

"Where are we going?"

"We have a cabin set up downstairs where we can talk about it."

"What's it about?"

"I'm afraid I can't talk about it here."

"Okay. Come on, Dilara."

Perez shook his head. "I'm afraid she doesn't have the proper clearance. She'll have to stay here."

"She stays with me," Locke said firmly.

"No. Only you. Now." When Locke hesitated, Perez said, "It's important."

Perez's secrecy was odd, but after a moment, Locke grudgingly nodded.

"I have a key," he said to Dilara. "If someone knocks, don't let them in. Call me right away, and I can get back here in 30 seconds."

"You do look at all the alternatives, don't you?" she said with a smile. "I can take care of myself. I'll be fine."

Locke liked her spirit. She was a lot like Karen in that way. But even with the similarities, she was her own person, and that's why his feelings were different this time.

He returned the smile and nodded.

Then Locke left with Agent Perez to find out what was so important for him to see.

* * *

Dilara saw the door close and wondered what had just happened. The kiss certainly didn't come out of nowhere. She'd felt the attraction to Locke for a few days now. But she had just dismissed it as a crush brought on by unusual circumstances. Now she didn't know what to make of it.

If they were going to find out what was in Garrett's cabin, she was damn well going to help. That meant getting out of her clingy dress and into something more appropriate. The first thing was to remove her makeup, so she went into the bathroom to wash it off.

She was about to turn on the sink when she heard the faint whine of the electronic lock on the cabin door. It had been less than a minute since Locke and Perez had left. Her first thought was that Locke had come back for his computer.

"Forget something?" she yelled.

No one answered.

"It's okay. I'm in the bathroom."

Still no answer.

That was odd. Just a moment ago, he worried about her opening the door for strangers. Now he was creeping around the room? Dilara hadn't known Locke long, but she knew that wasn't his style. He would have answered her. Something was wrong.

With a jolt, she realized the answer. Someone else was in the room.

The bathroom door was ajar, but she didn't want to take the chance that whoever was out there would see her peeking. She needed to keep the person off guard. Without a weapon, her one asset was surprise.

"I'm just changing," she said, attempting to maintain the same tone of voice. "I'll be out in a minute." She removed her high heels.

She took her compact, opened it to use the small mirror inside, and backed behind the open door, which hid her from the view of the bathroom mirror. She lowered the compact mirror out of eye level and used it to see the reflection in the bathroom mirror. If she timed it right, she could make the most of her surprise advantage.