"Lumley, Brian - E-Branch 3 - Avengers" - читать интересную книгу автора (Lumley Brian)

Or he would have been.

But at a meeting in Trask's office, when all Jake's questions might finally have been answered:

An urgent message from the Minister Responsible: something had come up that he knew would 'interest' E-Branch. His usual British understatement, for in fact the minister knew that it was something that only E-Branch could handle.

And now read on . . .



11

---

1

THE SUN, THE SEA, AND THE DRIFTING DOOM


At some 35,000 tons and just over 700 feet from stem to stern, the Evening Star was a Mediterranean cruise ship without peer. Her eight public decks were all served by elevators, and with her casino, gymnasium, outdoor pools, bars, gift shops, sports deck - all the usual amenities - the Star was the pride of her line. Of an evening, her 1,400 plus passengers could choose to relax in the Moulin Rouge lounge or the All That Jazz show bar, dance the night away in the Sierra Ballroom, or simply sit and be serenaded, watching the sunset from the panoramic sun deck.

This being the Star's last voyage of the season, however, last night had been a little different. A mid-cruise 'extravaganza', the extra glitz of its shows . . . and its grand finale - a fireworks display from the stern, lighting the Aegean sky with dazzling spirals and brilliant, thunderclap bomb-bursts - had been one of the highlights of the voyage: the locals ashore in Mytilene on the island of Lesbos had enjoyed it as much as the passengers aboard had. Add to this cuisine straight out of a gourmet's dream of paradise, and it was easy to see why the on-board partying had gone on and on through the night, and why the run on the champagne locker had seemed unending . . .

But all good things do come to an end.

Now . . . it was early morning of a Monday in October, and in the galley breakfast was being prepared for those who still had the stomach for yet more food while those who didn't slept off their excesses. A few younger passengers were up and about, making the most of the pools while they still had them to themselves. As if emulating their energy a


12


pod of dolphins, like so many silver mini-submarines, played chicken on the bow-wave, criss-crossing the prow just beneath a sparkling surface that was so flat calm it might well have been a horizon-spanning plate of diamond-etched glass. While the sun had risen no more than half an hour ago, already the deck rails were warm from its rays.

Perfect!

So thought Purser Bill Galliard where he strolled the main deck for'ard, having risen early to prepare the shore-excursion roster for the Star's midday visit to the picturesque island of Limnos. Thus far the cruise had gone precisely to plan, without a hitch, and Galliard had wanted to do his bit to ensure things stayed that way. Now that he'd finished with the Limnos documentation, he could take it easy for an hour or so, at least until the bulk of the passengers were astir and those who desired to go ashore were readying themselves for terra firma.

Now, in the very prow of the ship, forty feet above and forward of the spot where the knife-like stem sliced the water, he leaned on the deck rail and looked out across the vast curve of the ocean. No land in sight, but Galliard came from a long line of deckhands; he knew how quickly land masses could take shape on the horizon, especially in the Aegean, looming up as if from nowhere into cloud-capped mountain ranges. And with the cooling breeze of the vessel's forward motion in his face, and the hiss of parted waters in his ears, he reflected on the trip so far.

Most of the passengers were middle-aged, comfortably well-to-do, generally easygoing Brits, and the crew was composed of a British Captain, officers and senior stewards, supported by a largely Greek Cypriot body of deckhands, engineers, chefs, and an 'international' line-up of entertainers. The passengers had flown out from England to Cyprus, joining the cruise in Limassol. After a week of sailing they would return to Cyprus before flying home.

Sailing from Limassol on Thursday evening, the Evening Star had cruised all day Friday, providing an ideal opportunity for the passengers to get to know the vessel and their fellow holiday-makers. Saturday it had been 'All ashore who's going ashore' in Volos on the Greek mainland, and purser Bill had taken time out to visit friends in their villa at the foot of the Pelion mountains, also to pick up some gifts in Volos's bustling bazaar for the folks back home. Sunday they'd cruised to Lesbos and Mytilene, where the sightseers had gone ashore again, and last night had been the food-and-fireworks fest.

That brought Galliard up to date. The next port of call in some four hours' time would be Limnos's new deep-water harbour, and tomorrow they'd be through the Dardanelles on their way to Istanbul. But that was


13