Passage by Night - Jack Higgins [23]
8
The Cretan Lover
As Manning emptied the cup, Anna Melos filled it again. The coffee was so hot that it scalded the back of his throat. As it burned its way into his stomach, he felt life returning.
She went into the galley and he watched her over the rim of the cup. Her slim, almost boyish figure seemed strangely sexless and yet the lips had an extra fullness that suggested sensuality.
Turning, she caught him watching her and smiled. 'Feeling better?'
He nodded. 'No time to decompress, that was the trouble. It doesn't do any harm if it's only once in a while.'
'But not too often,' she said. 'When I was twelve, I saw my uncle Alexias die of the bends. It wasn't pretty.'
A step sounded on the companionway and her father came in. He was about seventy with grizzled hair and a white moustache that stood out clearly against the swarthy skin.
He sat down and started to fill an ancient briar pipe. 'How do you feel?'
'I think I'll survive.'
That was quite something. I must have been a good seventy feet down. Not many men can free-dive that far.'
'Oh, I've met a few,' Manning said. 'Down in the Caymans, they go to a hundred and fifty, but they use a lead weight to get there quickly.'
'You done much diving before? Real diving, I mean.'
'With an aqualung. You wouldn't get me into the sort of contraption you were wearing.' Manning grinned. 'The only good thing that comes out of this is the fact that you've ruined it.'
'The suit?' Papa Melos shrugged. 'I can patch it up easily.'
Anna had been cutting sandwiches in the galley and now she came forward quickly. 'No, Papa. Never again.'
'You would prefer Mikali to take the boat?' He took her hand in his. 'We must live, Anna. What else can I do?'
She turned away quickly and he smiled at Manning, changing the subject deliberately. 'Good thing you came by when you did.'
'It was no accident,' Manning said. 'I'm looking for someone to run me down to San Juan. Nikoli Aleko told me you might be interested.'
'San Juan, on the Isle of Tears?' The old man frowned. 'What would you want to go there for?'
'I'm a freelance photographer. I'm doing a Cuban feature for an American magazine. I was told boats from Harmon Springs sometimes put in at San Juan with tuna. I served in the Aegean during the war so I speak a little Greek. I thought maybe I could be passed off as a crew member.'
'Sure, I used to make the trip. We all did. They paid top price for tuna down there, but things have changed since the crisis. You can't tell which way those people might jump; could even impound my boat.' Papa Melos shook his head. 'I'd like to help you, Mr Manning, but not this time.'
Manning reached for his jacket and took out his wallet. He opened it and produced a wad of banknotes. 'Five hundred dollars - a thousand. Name your price.'
The girl's breath hissed sharply between her teeth. 'Papa, with money like that you could pay Mikali what we owe him. Our worries would be over.'
The old man stared down at the money as if hypnotized and then shook his head slowly. 'If I go to San Juan, I'd probably lose the boat anyway. At least I've got till the end of the month to pay Mikali what I owe him.'
Manning schooled his face to a pleasant smile. 'Not to worry. There must be somebody in Harmon Springs who wants to earn that kind of money.'
He was up on deck and stood at the rail, looking out towards the island, wondering what the hell he was going to do next. A moment later, the girl joined him.
'I'm sorry,' she said. 'I feel that we owe you so much, but the boat is my father's whole life. He couldn't stand the thought of losing her.'
'Do you really think he can raise the money to pay off this man Mikali?' Manning said.
She shook her head and turned to the rail, her slim shoulders hunched in defeat. For a brief moment he was conscious of an irrational tenderness. It was as if she were a young child faced with something she couldn't handle, that he must comfort at all costs.
He became aware of the sound of an engine and a speedboat roared round the tip of Blair Cay and come towards them.