Fire Ice Read Free Page B

made their way to the stem. The captain leaned over the fantail and peered into the wooly darkness that swallowed their broad wake. He listened a few seconds, blocking out the burble and hiss of the water.
     
     
"A boat is following us," he said.
     
     
Yakelev looked at him with suspicion and cupped his hand to his ear. "You're crazy. I hear nothing but the noise from this stupid ship."
     
     
"You're a Cossack," Tovrov said. "You know about horses?"
     
     
"Of course," the major replied, with a contemptuous snort. "What man doesn't?"
     
     
"I don't, but I do know ships, and we're being followed. , A piston on that boat is missing a stroke. I think it is the fishing boat I saw earlier."
     
     
"So what of it? This is the sea. Fish swim in the sea."
     
     
"There are no fish this far from shore." He listened again. "No doubt. It's the same boat and it is moving in on us."
     
     
The major uttered a string of curses and pounded the rail: "You must lose them."
     
     
"Impossible! Not with one engine down."
     
     
Yakelev's hand grabbed the front of Tovrov's coat and he lifted the captain onto his toes.
     
     
"Do not tell me what is impossible," he snarled. "It took us weeks to come from Kiev. The temperature was thirty degrees below zero. The wind lashed our faces like whips. There was a burin, a blizzard like none I have ever seen. I had a full sontia of one hundred Cossacks when I started. These pitiful fellows are all I have left. My other men stayed behind to watch our backs when we came through German lines. If not for the Tartars' help, we would all be dead. We managed to find a way. You will, too."
     
     
Tovrov stifled the urge to cough. "Then I suggest we change our course and cut the lights."
     
     
"Do it then," Yakelev ordered, releasing his iron grip.
     
     
The captain caught his breath and dashed back to the bridge, with the major close behind. As they approached the ladder that led up to the wheelhouse, a bright square of light appeared on the deck above. Several people stepped out onto the open platform. The light was from behind, so their faces were in shadow.
     
     
"Inside!" Yakelev shouted.
     
     
"We came outside for air," a woman said, speaking in a German accent. "It is stifling in the cabin."
     
     
"Please, Madame," the major said in a softer, pleading voice.
     
     
"As you wish," the woman said, after a moment. She was clearly reluctant, but she herded the others back inside. As she turned, Tovrov saw her profile. She had a strong chin, and her nose was slightly curved at the tip.
     
     
A guard emerged from the ship and called down. "I couldn't stop them, Major."
     
     
"Go back inside and shut the door before all the world hears your stupid excuses."
     
     
The guard vanished and slammed the door behind him. As Tovrov stared up at the empty platform, the major's fingers dug into his arm.
     
     
Yakelev's voice was harsh and low. "You saw nothing, Captain."
     
     
"Those people - "
     
     
"Nothing! For God's sake, man. I do not want to kill you."
     
     
Tovrov started to reply, but the words never left his mouth. He had felt a change in the ship's movement, and he jerked his arm away from Yakelev's grip. "I must go to the bridge."
     
     
"What is wrong?"
     
     
"There's no one at the wheel. Can't you feel it? My stupid first mate is probably drunk."
     
     
Tovrov left the major behind and climbed to the wheelhouse. In the light from the binnacle, he saw the wheel slowly spinning back and forth as if moved by invisible hands. The captain stepped inside and stumbled over something soft and yielding. He swore, thinking that the mate had passed out. Then he turned on the light and saw how wrong he was.
     
     
The mate lay facedown on the metal deck, a puddle of blood around his head. Tovrov's anger turned to alarm. He knelt beside the young officer and turned him over. A wound grinned at him like a second mouth where the poor wretch's throat had been cut.
     
     
Eyes wide