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The next part of the plan took three hours,the rope the Germans had left behind, about half of which was either co to trust it They would get only one chance at what they were atte, he told Renal fire idea and hope help would arrive before the smoke killed them

After four hours, at nearly two AM according to Sae of the pier, studying their handiwork

Two quadruple-braided lines, one secured to the sub’s bow and the other to its stern cleats, rose fro, where Reh a catwalk ceiling eyelet Froain and was tied off to a cable under the catwalk planking The vertical support cables were themselves connected, midpoint to midpoint, by a carefully constructed spiderweb of rope To one of the cables—the farthest one from the lines secured to the sub—Sam had lashed one of their scuba tanks

“So,” Remi said “Let’s review: You shoot the tank, the blast sheers the cables, the catwalk drops, the sub pops to the surface, and the water drains out Is that it?”

“More or less The tank won’t explode, but it’ll take off like a rocket If I’ve rigged it right, the torque should part the weakened cables Beyond that, it’s all math and chaos theory”

Estiht of the sub and the water inside it, as well as the co liiven Sam a headache, but he was fairly confident in his process Using the ancient and rusted but still-serviceable hacksaw they’d found in the toolbox he’d cut halfway through eleven of the eighteen vertical catwalk cables

“And gravity,” Re her arm in his “Win or lose, I’m proud of you” She handed hiet the honors”

They climbed behind the protective bulwark of crates they’d asse was snug around the slit

“Ready?” he asked

Remi cupped her ears and nodded

Saun hand on his opposite forearer

The gun’s report was instantly overwhel steel, and a thunderous splash

Sam and Remi peeked their heads above the bulwark but for ten full seconds could see nothing but a finethe cavern Slowly it cleared They clie of the pier and looked down

“Never had any doubt,” Remi murmured

The Marder-classspent the last sixty years of its life lying on the bottoht on the surface, water gushing from its scuttles