Coincidence - Alan May [69]
Earlier in the day, Dave had found in the bosun’s locker two carabiners, a harness, and a line strong enough to pull Pierre back from the Coincidence. He’d stowed them near the transom, where he had stood trying to convey as best he could to Mac that someone would be crossing over to talk to him at about 2000 hours that night.
Now Dave and Pierre crept through the classroom to avoid being spotted by Phillip on their way to the transom. The night was clear, the sky illuminated by thousands of stars. Pierre donned the harness and Dave attached the small line to the buckle. Pierre easily climbed up and over the transom, clipped the first carabiner to the towline, and then, just to be extra safe, clipped on the second as well. He launched himself away from the ship, using a hand-over-hand technique to propel himself along the taut line.
Dave watched as Mac swiftly unhooked the harness and disappeared below with Pierre. Then he turned and walked through the classroom again to the mess, where he poured himself a cup of coffee and made a point of standing near the hijackers and applauding wildly for Ryan and a girl named Sonia, who had teamed up to produce an epically melodramatic “silent movie.”
He had come in just at the climactic scene in which Sonia, bound to the railroad tracks (portrayed by Ryan’s surfboard, with crossties neatly indicated by duct tape), was thrashing her voluminous scarves about and screaming—silently, of course—at the top of her lungs. Ryan held up a large cardboard sign with “HELP! HELP!” printed on it, just in case there was any question about the nature of her wailing, then flung it aside, and, drawing his cardboard scimitar, arrived at Sonia’s side in the nick of time to save her from the oncoming locomotive—a small suitcase with a flashlight strapped to its end and a sign proclaiming, “CHOO! CHOO!” taped to its side.
Ryan slid the suitcase along with his left foot as he bent to wield his sword against the ropes that bound the damsel in distress. And then he helped her up. Her body swaying as she pulled out from her gown another sign—“MY HERO!” Just then he gave the suitcase a sharp kick. It rolled past the spot where Sonia would have met her Certain End, then fell over with a thud and flew open, revealing Ryan’s soiled laundry.
Polo doubled over with laughter at this, and Esteban and Severo nearly doubled over laughing at Polo.
Dave exaggerated his own laughter as he moseyed past them on his way to the refreshment table again. He picked up two brownies as Michael introduced the next performance—an all-girl barbershop quartet—then stepped into the galley and eased down the stairs once more, making his way back to the transom. He was just finishing one brownie when Mac and Pierre reappeared. He brushed the crumbs off his hands, hauled Pierre back over to the Inspiration, helped him remove the harness—noting with elation the walkie-talkie Pierre had with him. Now they’d be able to communicate with Mac whenever they needed to.
Dave put the walkie-talkie in his pocket. He handed the second brownie to Pierre and pushed him toward the classroom. He hid away the carabiners, rope, and harness. He was anxious to know what Pierre and Mac had worked out, but forced himself to walk nonchalantly to his cabin to stash the walkie-talkie out of sight. Then he sidled in to the mess and poured another coffee, nodding in agreement with Mary Wilson about the amazing creativity of the kids.
Out of the corner of his eye he could see Pierre sitting at a table to his left, nibbling the brownie and waving his hand high. Dan was on stage, a towel wrapped swami-style around his head, a black paper moustache stuck on his upper lip, asking for a volunteer