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"Too bad we're blind," said Hasan

"If one of you will guard the door, I'llthe ," said Pitt "Once I uard, I'll carve a hole in the fiberboard With luck we ht be able to see where we are"

"I'll listen at the door," Hala volunteered

"The cold is bad enough without letting more in," said De Lorenzo dispiritedly

"The temperature is the same outside as in here," the Senator replied bluntly

He was not about to waste tiin the sitting rooh by one wide There was no pro outside The staterooms and suite entrances faced the center of the ship The ed outer walls rose flush from the hull

The only open areas patrolled by the hijackers were the pool and lounge decks above and the observation decks fore and aft

The Senator rapped the glass with his knuckles The return sound calass was thick It had to be to withstand the crushing ie waves and hurricane-force winds

"Anyone wear a dia?" he asked

Hala slipped her hands out of the pockets of a light raincoat, held thes mounted with opals and turquoise "Musli their woifts"

"I could use a full carat"

President Hasan pulled a large ring froers "Here is a three-carat

The Senator eyeballed the stone in the diht "This should do nicely Thank you"

He worked quickly but carefully, h to slip a finger through He stopped every so often to blow on his hands When his fingers began to go nuain

He did not care to conteht hi in the current