Linda sounded dubious, but she said, “Aye, Chairman.” The Gator swung around in a wide turn and headed back the way they’d come. The Kuyogs nimbly banked with them, their hydrofoils knifing through the water.
“Refill the ballast tanks, but keep the Gator trimmed with the bow up.”
“Got it,” Linda said with obvious understanding of what he had planned. “Filling tanks. I’ll straighten out so you can come below.”
“Not yet. Come in on a parallel course to the supply ship. Stick with the evasive maneuvers until we’re within five hundred yards of her.”
“That’s cutting it close.”
Juan glanced at Linc, who gave him a thumbs-up. “I know. We’ll make it work. Tell Eddie to open the hatch as soon as you are level.”
“Will do,” she said.
“You really think this will work?” Linc asked. “As far as I know, this tactic wasn’t one we simulated during the Gator’s testing phase.”
Juan smiled and shrugged. “We never tested it because it was too risky. I’d say it’s worth the risk now.”
“Have to agree with you there,” Linc said over the menacing snarl of the gaining Kuyogs.
“Get ready, Chairman,” Linda said.
Juan watched the Gator’s hatch. “We’re ready. You first,” he said to Linc. “Just don’t get stuck.”
They tossed their guns away, but Juan kept his pack with the Kuyog imaging sensor inside.
The supply ship loomed ahead and the Gator suddenly straightened out. The hatch flew up, and Linc lunged for the opening. He neatly slid inside, and Juan quickly followed, tumbling down as his feet slipped on the metal hull. He tucked and landed in the cabin.
Eddie sprang up and slammed the hatch down, whirling the wheel to seal it. When it was tight, he said, “Buttoned-up.”
Linc pulled Juan to his feet. Juan went forward to the cockpit and said to Linda, “Now turn us toward the supply ship.”
She yanked the wheel to port, aiming the Gator in the direction of the supply ship’s stern while continuing her evasive maneuvers.
Juan stuck his head into the cupola and looked back. The Kuyogs were no more than twenty yards behind them.
“When should I dive?” Linda asked, her hands tight on the wheel.
Juan turned and pointed at the supply ship. “Get as close to her as you can.”
• • •
TAGAAN WATCHED with a grin as the strange vessel aimed straight for the supply ship on what seemed to be a suicide mission. He didn’t really care if they wanted to kill themselves, since the supply ship was no longer of any use to him with the Magellan Sun on the ocean floor. He was more excited to see the performance of the Kuyogs. So far, they had outdone even his lofty expectations.
Then his grin vanished when he saw the fleeing boat plunge beneath the surface like a diving dolphin. With a surge of white water, it disappeared, leaving the pursuing Kuyogs with no target.
No, they did have a target. The sensors were programmed to reacquire the target as quickly as possible if they lost their lock.
So the supply ship directly ahead of them became the target.
They reached the stern of the supply ship simultaneously, detonating just as Tagaan had designed them to do.
He flattened himself on the dock as a hail of debris fell around him. The stern of the supply ship erupted in a geyser of flames, its fuel tank ruptured and burning. The crew fled the bow superstructure as the ship began to sink.
Tagaan blinked and stood up. He searched the water for signs that the submarine-boat had been damaged or destroyed by the explosions, but he saw no telltale slick or debris, though he didn’t know if they’d be distinguishable from the remains of the supply ship. He had to assume that the daring maneuver had worked and they had got away.
But even if the sub hadn’t escaped disaster in the sudden dive, the mystery cargo ship speeding toward them was still a threat. If it had more missiles or other weaponry on board, it might use them on the trucks loaded with half the shipment he’d come to collect.
Only now he noticed his mechanic still cowering on the dock with his hands over his head.