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That was as close as the steould say to “Good luck”

“Not if I don’t see you first,” was Juan’s customary reply

They left the cabin together, Maurice turning right to return to the galley, Juan left He took an elevator down three decks The doors opened to a cavernous rooly of the sea An overhead crane held the larger of the two subon carried, a sixty-five-foot Nomad 1000 The blunt-noseda pilot and copilot Clustered near her three bow portholes were arrip that could rip steel The Nomad was rated for a thousand-foot depth, almost ten ti suspended in a cradle above it, and was outfitted with a diving chaed

Beneath the sub away to reveal a gaping pit that went all the way to the Oregon’s keel The outer doors were still closed, but pu in preparation for the launch

Linc, Eddie, and Max were already sliding black wet suits over their swim trunks Scuba equipment for all of them had already been loaded into the sub Linda Ross stood with her ar Max with amusement Hanley had served two tours in Vietnaure he once had He was having a hard ti the suit over his paunch He didn’t normally accompany a teaineer in the Corporation, and everyone agreed his expertise could come in handy

“Corin, and patted Max’s belly “I don’t recall you having this o”

“It’s not the years,” he moaned, “it’s the pastries”

Cabrillo sat on a bench and, unlike the others, started to put a dry suit on over his clothes “Linda, have you done your prelaunch checks?”

“We’re good to go”

“And the cradle?”

“It’s secure,” Max answered for her with possessive pride He’d designed it, and had overseen its fabrication in the Oregon’s machine shop

Juan took a coineer and called up the Op Center “Hali, it’s the Chairman How’s it look out there?”

“Radar shows the nor in and out of the Gulf There’s a containership that pulled into Bandar Abbas’s o, plus a handful of feluccas and dhows”

“Nothing from the naval base?”

“They’re quiet I’ve scanned all frequencies, and, other than nor on”