"These are no ordinary fish," Barker said with pride in his voice. "They are designed to survive in salt or fresh water. The seed fish are improvements on the models I developed with Dr. Throckmorton. They are slightly larger and more aggressive than ordinary fish. Per- fect breeding machines. The airship will fly within feet of the ocean's surface, and they will slide down special chutes built into the belly of the zeppelin." He spread his arms the way he had done at his pep rally. "Behold my creations. Soon, these beautiful creatures will be swimming in the sea."
"Where your monsters will create incredible havoc," Austin said.
"Monsters? I think not. I've simply used my genetic-engineering skills to produce a better commercial product. There's nothing ille- gal about it."
"Murder is illegal." "Spare us your pitiful indignation. There were many casualties before you came onto the scene. There will be
many more obstacles to be removed." He crossed to the tanks on the other side of the fish hold. "These are my special pets. I wanted to see how large and hun- gry I could make an ordinary fish. They are too aggressive for breed- ing purposes. They are separated by sluice gates now so they don't at- tack each other."
At a word from Barker, a guard went over to a cooler and ex- tracted a frozen cod around two feet long. He slid back the plastic lid covering one of the tanks and tossed the carcass into the water. Within seconds, the cod disappeared in a bloody froth.
"I've made dinner reservations for you," Barker said.
"No thanks, we've already eaten," Austin said.
Barker studied the faces of the two men, but saw no sign of fear, only defiance. He frowned and said, "I'll give you and your partner time to think about your fate, to imagine what it feels like to be torn apart by razor-sharp teeth and scattered over the ocean. Our men will come for you shortly after we stop at our facility on the coast to re- fuel. Adieu, gentlemen."
Barker's men grabbed Austin and Zavala and hustled them down a corridor leading to a storage room. They were shoved inside, and the door was locked behind them.
Austin tried the lock, then found a seat on a pile of cardboard boxes.
"You don't seem very worried about being fed to the fishes," Zavala said.
"I have no intention of providing entertainment for that white- eyed freak and his cretinous henchmen. By the way, I liked your comment about Kiolyan women."
"It went against my grain. As you know, I love women of any kind. They have a lot to put up with, with their menfolk running around killing and sacrificing people. So, Mr. Houdini, how do we escape this little mess?"
"I guess we bust our way out of here."
"Uh-huh. And assuming we can get beyond that door, what chance do the two of us have against a battalion of armed men?"
"There are three of us, actually."
Zavala looked around. "An invisible friend, no doubt." Austin peeled out of his coat and drew the sword from its scab- bard. Even in the faint light inside the storage room, the blade seemed to glow. "This is my friend-Durendal7'
38
THE CATAMARAN CAME in like a marine landing craft, and the twin hulls slid partway onto the shore with a shriek of fiber' glass against gravel. The boat had no sooner come to a grinding halt than the people on board started to pile off. Ben Nighthawk was the first to hit the ground, followed by the Basques and the SOS crew. They helped the villagers climb down, and the group headed inland. Only Ben and Diego stayed behind.
Jesse Nighthawk turned and saw his son lingering on the beach. He shooed the other villagers into the woods and walked back to where Ben was standing.
"Why aren't you coming?" the old man said.
"Go on without me," Ben replied. "I've been talking to Diego. We have work to do."
"What do you mean? What sort of work?"
Ben looked across the lake. "Revenge." "You can't go back!" Jesse said. "It's too dangerous." Diego, who had been listening to the exchange, said, "The heli- copter pilots who were shot down were our friends. Their death can- not go unanswered."
"Those people killed my cousin," Ben said. "They beat and tor- tured my friends and family. They've raped our beautiful forest."
Jesse couldn't see his son's face in the shadows, but there was no mistaking the determination in Ben's voice. "Very well," he said sadly.
"I will see the others to safety."
Marcus Ryan emerged from the woods, trailed by Chuck Mercer and Therri Weld. "What's going on?" he said, sensing the somber at- mosphere.
"Ben and this man are going back," Jesse said. "I tried to stop them. They want to get themselves killed."