Lu’s reasoning for launching the rockets at exactly midnight, besides his desire for theatrics, was to maximize the number of people outdoors when the gas was dispersed. Polk imagined the optics of hundreds of thousands of paralyzed residents lying out in the streets on New Year’s Day.
Five minutes later, they approached the far end of the harbor where it turned to exit to the Pacific. The anchored Centaurus came into view behind Shark Island, home to a small park for picnics and parties. Around them overlooking the harbor were some of the most expensive estates in all of Australia. It was very likely that some of the customers for the Enervum antidote would be people living in those villas and mansions.
As they rounded the island, Polk saw a boat lashed alongside the Centaurus. It had MARITIME painted on the side. He was alarmed to realize that it was a boat from the Port Authority of New South Wales.
When he reached the Centaurus, he climbed on board, letting his men haul up the boxes of antidote. He asked where he could find Captain Rathman and was told that he was on the bridge.
Polk looked at the men transferring the boxes. “I’ll come back to secure these. If I return to find any of the contents missing or broken, I will hold every one of you responsible.”
He took the external stairs to the bridge. When he got there, Captain Rathman was speaking to a man in a shirt with the Port Authority logo on it. It was clear the captain was nervous, despite the fake smile that was plastered on his face.
“I’m Alfred Johnson,” Polk said. “I’m with the importer receiving this ship’s cargo. What’s this about?” His hand rested on the Glock pistol tucked in his waistband.
“It’s nothing,” Rathman said. “Just some confusion about our crew.”
“I’m Paul Smythe,” the visitor said. “We’ve had a report that a man was found floating in the open ocean north of Brisbane.”
Rathman shifted uncomfortably.
“What does that have to do with the Centaurus, Mr. Smythe?” Polk asked.
“When this man was rescued, he was speaking in Chinese. He said only one sentence over and over.”
“What did he say?”
“The people who plucked him out of the sea thought he was saying, ‘The centaur left me.’ But the Border Force district office in Cairns had his words professionally translated. He was actually saying, ‘The Centaurus left me.’ We thought he might have fallen overboard from this ship.”
“And I’ve just shown Mr. Smythe our manifest,” Rathman said, pointing to the logbook Smythe was holding. “As you can see, we arrived in Sydney with our full complement of crewmen.”
“Did this man say anything else?” Polk asked.
“Sadly, he died before he could say any more or reveal his identity,” Smythe said.
“What an odd situation.”
Smythe looked at Rathman with an unconvinced expression. “Why do you think he was saying ‘The Centaurus left me,’ if he wasn’t from your ship? It seems like a strange thing for a dying man to utter.”
Rathman shrugged. “We were traveling in that area a few nights ago. Perhaps he saw us pass by and was upset that we didn’t see him.”
“I suppose that’s a possibility. But he must have fallen off some ship to be that far out in the ocean.”
“I hope you’re able to solve the mystery someday,” Polk said.
Smythe handed back the logbook. “Everything seems to be in order.” He began to walk out, then turned and said, “How long will you be in Sydney?”
“Just another day,” Rathman said. “We set sail on January first.”
“Then you’ll be able to enjoy the fireworks while you’re here. This year I understand it will be even more spectacular than ever, something truly to remember. Good evening, gentlemen. And Happy New Year.”
Polk glared at Rathman as Smythe left. When the official was out of earshot, Polk said, “Tell me what happened.”
Rathman cleared his throat. “We did have a man fall overboard. It was during that storm. I thought he was a dead man for sure, so I didn’t turn around to search for him. It would have delayed our arrival in Sydney.”
“And you just admitted the ship was in the area where the man was found.”
“He probably would have found out anyway.”
“Do you realize how dangerous it is to have the authorities snooping around on this ship?”