Sea of Suspicion Read online

  “We’re going back to the spot where we found the Ninfa Marina’s anchor,” Sean told her. “It’ll be a short day because of our delay, but I want to scour that area before dark. Another day when we have more time, I’ll bring up the anchor itself.”

  By eleven o’clock the Lady Jane was pounding through choppy seas about a mile off Key West. Nancy, Bess, and George were standing outside on the deck in front of the pilothouse. Through its window, Nancy could see Zach guiding the boat. Sean and Talia were behind him, monitoring some equipment.

  A big wave slapped against the boat’s hull.

  “Wow, it’s getting rough,” Bess said, clutching the rail for support.

  “It sure is. Just look at those dark gray clouds on the horizon,” George observed.

  Nancy nodded. “It looks like there’s a storm heading our way,” she said, opening the door to the pilothouse.

  “Hi, Nancy,” Sean greeted her. “We’ve got something new on the subbottom profiler. Since this is close to the spot where we found the anchor, I think we should check it out.” Zach cut the engine. “Talia, why don’t you take a quick look around in the submersible,” Sean continued. “But let’s hurry. We may have a squall kicking up to the east.”

  Sean seemed to have accepted Talia’s explanation for her involvement with Leif Dorning, Nancy noted. Nancy herself hadn’t made up her mind about the marine archaeologist.

  “Come on, Nancy,” Talia said, tapping her on the shoulder. “Let’s take the submersible down and have a look around.”

  Talia, Nancy, Zach, and Sean stepped out on the deck, joining Bess and George. Nancy checked out the tubular, metallic craft. The submersible had a robotic arm attached to one side, complete with a clawlike hand.

  “We use that claw for heavy lifting underwater,” Talia explained.

  Bess stared apprehensively at the sub. “I can’t believe you’re actually going underwater in that tiny thing,” she whispered to Nancy.

  Talia and Zach used a small hydraulic lift to maneuver the submersible into the water. Then Nancy and Talia climbed over the rail and down a ladder to the water. The tiny sub was pitching wildly in the swells.

  “Be careful, you two,” George called from the deck above them.

  Talia climbed through the hatch on top of the sub, followed by Nancy. Talia shut the hatch, flipped a switch, and the submersible plunged under the roiling waves.

  As soon as they were below the surface, Nancy felt they had entered another world. Except for the high-pitched drone of the submersible’s small propellers, all was silent. A school of brilliantly colored fish swam before the window. By pushing something that resembled a gear stick, Talia nudged the submersible into still deeper water.

  “It feels just like flying underwater,” Nancy noted. She heard a crackling noise and then a voice came over the intercom.

  “You there, guys?” It was Sean.

  Talia picked up a small black microphone. “Even under water, we can communicate by radio,” she explained to Nancy. “Right here, Sean,” she spoke into the mike.

  “You’d better hurry. It’s getting kind of rough up here,” Sean said. “See you topside soon.”

  As the craft nosed into still deeper water, Nancy glanced sideways at Talia. She really liked the marine archaeologist and had to remind herself that Talia was a major suspect.

  “Were you aware that Leif Dorning’s boat had been sabotaged, as well as Sean’s?” she asked Talia.

  Talia nodded. “I just hope he realizes that Sean had nothing to do with it,” she said. “I hate to see the two of them fighting.”

  “And what about your feelings about Sean?” Nancy pressed, remembering the bitter letter that Talia had started writing. “Do you blame him for your brother’s death?

  Talia sighed. “No, I don’t really blame Sean for Jaime’s death. It was just an accident. A senseless accident.” Almost despite herself, Nancy had the gut feeling that Talia was telling the truth.

  The sub was nearing the ocean floor. The water was very murky because of the weather on the surface. Talia shone the submersible’s light on a large object in front of them. “Uh-oh. Looks like our treasure is just a pile of rocks,” Talia said in disappointment. “I’ll have to tell Sean we struck out.”

  “Zach seems to be convinced that all the trouble you’ve had has been caused by that curse,” Nancy said as they headed back to the surface.

  “Oh, that again,” Talia said, rolling her eyes. “He’s been going on about that dumb curse for at least six months. I got riled at him the other day because he tried to pin my brother’s death on it. I think it was some wild idea that Hank Morley put in his head. He’s pretty superstitious.”

  “Hank Morley?” Nancy echoed. “Are he and Zach friendly?”

  “Oh, yes, very friendly,” Talia replied. “Don’t tell Sean, but I think Zach moonlights as a diver for Morley on the weekends.”

  “I didn’t know that Morley was an active treasure hunter—”

  Nancy broke off as Sean’s voice came crackling over the radio. The signal sounded very weak.

  “You two better come back to the surface right away,” he said, urgently.

  “What’s up, Sean?” Talia spoke into the microphone.

  A burst of static came over the speaker. There was a garbled transmission, and then Nancy thought she could make out the words bad storm.

  “I’m not sure what he said, but it sounds serious,” Talia said.

  There was another burst of static, and then Nancy distinctly heard the word sinking.

  “I don’t know what you made of that,” Nancy said to Talia, “but it sounded to me as though Sean just said the Lady Jane is sinking!”

  Chapter

  Eleven

  COULD THE Lady Jane actually be sinking? It seemed impossible to Nancy.

  “We have to get back to the surface as quickly as possible,” Talia said. She pointed to an emergency toggle switch on the sub’s control panel. “We can blow out the air tanks, which will shoot us to the surface like a rocket,” she said. “But it can make for a pretty scary ride.”

  “Let’s do it,” Nancy agreed quickly, checking her seat belt.

  Talia flipped the emergency switch. They heard a loud whooshing from the back of the sub. Then it started spinning and rising like a bubble.

  Moments later the sub broke through to the surface. Huge ocean swells immediately picked up the tiny craft and tossed it around like a piece of driftwood. Angry black clouds overhead spattered sheets of rain onto the sub’s view window.

  Catching an occasional glimpse of the Lady Jane, Nancy could just make out Sean, George, and Bess standing at the rail. The Lady Jane appeared to be weathering the storm much better than they were.

  “The Lady Jane looks okay.” Nancy breathed a sigh of relief. “We must have got Sean’s message wrong.”

  “Thank goodness,” Talia replied. “It’s going to be hard to get back on the boat in this weather,” she added in a worried voice. She explained the docking procedure to Nancy. “Zach will maneuver the boat as close to us as possible while Sean tosses us a rope.” Talia said, pulling back the bolts that fastened the sub’s entry hatch. “Catching the rope is the tricky part.”

  When the ship got close to the drifting sub, Talia lifted the hatch and got drenched almost instantly. Sean tossed a line toward her, and after several tries, Talia caught it and fastened it to a hook on the side of the sub. Sean reeled them in using a portable winch, and then he and Talia labored together in the downpour to tether the sub to the side of the ship.

  “What’s going on?” Nancy asked Sean as soon as they were back on board in dry clothes. “We heard you say something about a boat sinking. Is there a problem with the Lady Jane?”

  “No, it’s the Sea Scorpion that’s in trouble. We just received a distress signal from Leif Dorning,” Sean said breathlessly.

  “Oh, no!” Talia gasped, and stopped toweling her hair dry for a minute.

  “We have to try
to locate him,” Sean said.

  They went to the pilothouse, where Zach was bent over the radio. The rain was a mere mist now and the ocean swells had flattened out a little. The Lady Jane was riding almost smoothly in the still, gloomy darkness.

  “I’ve got the Sea Scorpion’s coordinates,” he said. “The Coast Guard is on the way, but we’re less than a mile away, so I think we can reach her first.”

  “What happened?” Nancy asked.

  “All we know is that the Sea Scorpion is taking on water. We got a distress call about twenty minutes ago,” Zach replied.

  Sean threw the engine into gear, and the Lady Jane surged forward. Meanwhile, Zach radioed Dorning to say that the Lady Jane was on its way.

  Nancy, George, and Talia went out on deck to scan the horizon for a glimpse of the black-hulled boat.

  “There it is!” Talia cried out after about ten minutes.

  As they drew alongside the Sea Scorpion, Nancy could tell it was in serious trouble. The vessel had already taken on a lot of water—its stern was sinking fast. Already the top deck was more than a foot underwater. Nancy could see Leif and his crew of three men loading equipment onto a motorized dinghy.

  “We have to concentrate on getting everyone off safely,” Sean said. “Then we’ll unload as much equipment as possible.” It was a long, dangerous process because the wind had kicked up and the sea was rough again with giant waves breaking over both boats. The two crews used the dinghy to ferry equipment onto the Lady Jane.

  Dorning was the last person to leave the sinking vessel. Once on board the Lady Jane he hugged Talia as he focused on his ship with an agonized expression.

  “I can’t understand what happened,” he said. “One minute everything was fine—the next minute we were swamped.”

  Before long a Coast Guard rescue helicopter came into view and hovered above them. Since everyone had gotten off the Sea Scorpion safely, there was little for it to do.

  It was nearing the end for Leif’s boat. Nancy and the others watched silently as it slipped away. Its graceful bow rose high in the air, then began its slow slide into its final descent. The Sea Scorpion vanished forever.

  After a moment of silence Sean walked up to Dorning.

  “I know how you must feel, Dorning,” he said with a catch in his voice. “I’m sorry it happened.”

  “Are you?” Dorning asked with a trace of hostility. “I owe you one for rescuing my crew, Sean. But I haven’t forgotten your little raid on my ship the other night.”

  “Did you notice anything unusual today before you started taking on water?” Nancy asked Dorning, ignoring his criticism of her.

  Dorning glared for a moment without answering, then he sighed and answered. “Not really. This morning we were all so excited—one of my crew members had found a gold doubloon. We thought it might be from the Ninfa Marina.”

  “You found a gold piece from the Ninfa Marina this morning?” Sean echoed excitedly.

  Dorning nodded. “After we found it we went back in to refuel at Hank Morley’s and have an early lunch. After lunch we went back out, and that’s when all the trouble started.”

  “So you left the ship unattended at Hank’s shop for a while,” Nancy said thoughtfully.

  “Well, Hank kept an eye on it.” Dorning shrugged. “I still don’t understand what happened. There was a cracking sound, and then the bilge pump wouldn’t work. Water just kept rising in the hold. We couldn’t even find the leak.”

  “Do you think the leak could have been the result of sabotage?” Nancy asked.

  Dorning shrugged. “Maybe,” he said in an exasperated tone.

  One of Dorning’s crew had been standing and listening with his eyes wide and staring. “It must have been the curse,” the burly sailor said in frightened hushed tones. “The curse of the Ninfa Marina!”

  “Keep a lid on it, Murphy,” Dorning snapped. “You know I don’t have any patience for that kind of talk.”

  Nancy saw Zach approach the man, and the two men began an intense conversation about the curse of the Ninfa Marina.

  Nancy turned away and walked by herself. She wanted a moment alone to think things through. She was recalling that Talia had said that Zach and Hank Morley were close friends, and now it appeared that Morley had access to the Sea Scorpion just before it sank.

  George and Bess came up and joined her. “What do you think all this means, Nancy?” George asked.

  Nancy looked over her shoulder to make sure no one could overhear. “Until yesterday, Dorning was high on my list of suspects. Now it seems that he’s been the victim of sabotage—just like Sean.”

  “Where does that leave us?” Bess asked.

  “The only person I know is involved in all this is that bearded guy—the one who left me the skull and the warning note,” she said. “And so far, all my information about him has come from one source—Hank Morley.”

  George’s brown eyes lit up with understanding. “And Dorning has just told us that Hank Morley was alone with the Sea Scorpion before she sank today.”

  Nancy nodded. “Exactly. The question is, how does Hank Morley tie into Rusty’s murder? I think it’s time I did a little checking on our friend Mr. Morley.”

  When they arrived back at the marina, Sean and Dorning’s crews began unloading the equipment that had been salvaged from Dorning’s ship. “This’ll keep us busy for a few hours,” Sean said to Nancy.

  “We’ll head back to the inn and pick up Ned,” she replied. Nancy, Bess, and George drove directly to the Sunset Cove Inn to find Ned waiting on the front porch.

  “Hi, Bess. Hi, George. Hi, Nan,” Ned said, greeting Nancy with a kiss. “I feel great now. See?” He held his hand up to show them all that the swelling from the scorpion bite had disappeared.

  Bess and George excused themselves to change for dinner.

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” Nancy asked softly after the girls had gone.

  Ned picked her up in a bear hug and swung her around. “Does that answer your question?” he said lightly.

  “Enough! I believe you!” Nancy protested laughingly. “And after I rest and get changed for dinner, I’ll even put you to the test.”

  “A romantic test, I hope?” Ned asked teasingly.

  She grinned. “That, too—but right now I’m talking about my case.”

  Ned turned serious. “What happened today?” he asked.

  Nancy filled him in on the developments of the day, including the sinking of the Sea Scorpion. “I have a hunch that was no accident,” she asserted. “I may need your help to do a little snooping around Hank Morley’s shop.”

  “Consider it done,” Ned replied.

  Nancy smiled. “Thanks,” she said. “But first, I think we’re entitled to eat some dinner, don’t you?” Ned nodded vigorously. “After I shower and change,” she added.

  • • •

  “I’m too stuffed to do any spying tonight,” Bess said a couple of hours later, pushing back from the table. She, Nancy, Ned, and George had just polished off a huge crock of spicy chili and corn muffins, with pitchers of iced tea, at Mile Marker 4, a tiny roadside café along Highway 1.

  “That’s all right, Bess,” Nancy said. “You can wait for us in the car at Hank’s place. We’ll need a lookout, anyway.” Nancy had asked Bess and George to join them spying that night.

  A kindly-looking woman with short gray hair suddenly appeared beside Bess’s chair. Nancy recognized her as the hostess who had seated them. “Does anyone here drive a white convertible?” the woman asked.

  “I do,” Nancy replied.

  The woman held out a folded square of paper. “Someone left a note that your lights are on,” she said.

  “Thanks,” Nancy said, pocketing the note. “I can’t believe I did such a dumb thing,” she said lightly. “I hope the car battery hasn’t run down.”

  “What a pain,” Bess sympathized. “I know because I leave my lights on at least once a month.”

  “I’ll be righ
t back, guys,” Nancy said, rising and making her way through the front door to the restaurant parking lot. She glanced at her car and was puzzled to note that the lights were not on.

  Whoever left the note must have been mistaken, Nancy thought. She shrugged and started back toward the front door. Then, on second thought, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the note the hostess had given her.

  Nancy drew in a sharp breath. The heavy scrawl on the note—it was the same handwriting that had been on the threatening note she’d received the day before. It was the bearded guy again! Nancy realized with a jolt. He must have lied about the headlights to lure her outside.

  Just then she heard a rustling noise off to her left. Instinctively, she ducked and dove behind a car, but it was too late.

  Nancy saw the flash of a gun at the same moment she heard a muffled shot ring out. A split second later she felt a searing pain in her left arm. Oh, no, she thought. I’ve been hit!

  Chapter

  Twelve

  NANCY WINCED and grabbed her left arm. Gritting her teeth, she made herself check the wound. Then she let out her breath on a rush of relief.

  The bullet had grazed her upper arm. Despite the burning sensation, Nancy could tell it wasn’t really serious.

  Ned and George came bursting through the restaurant door, followed by Bess.

  “Nancy! Are you all right?” Ned cried out, kneeling beside her. “You’ve been hurt.”

  “A bullet just grazed my arm. I’ll be okay,” Nancy assured him.

  “I’ll go get some towels to use as a compress,” Bess said. She hurried back into the restaurant.

  George bent over Nancy anxiously. “Did you see who fired at you?” she asked. “Was it the bearded guy?”

  Nancy nodded. “I didn’t see him. But I just realized that the handwriting on this note the hostess gave me matches the writing on the note in the skull. So I’m sure it had to be the bearded guy. It looks like this time he meant business.”

  By now some of the restaurant staff and other guests had gathered in an anxious circle around Nancy. Bess pushed through them as she returned with the towels.