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“It ain’t right, leaving them behind like that Not after what they’ve sacrificed”

Bell was unmoved He said, “Ask Jake Hobart what he thinks”

—

Bell spent the last evening at sea with Ragnar Fyrie in his cabin playing chess on a nets in their bases so that no one over his plan with the whaling captain and had even written out what he wanted sent by telegraph to the Van Dorn office in London Fyrie had no proble the miners aboard with a deception and said he’d have one of his raph dispatch

“There is one thing I would ask in return,” Fyrie said without taking his eyes off the board on his desk

Bell, always reluctant to agree to ter them, asked, “What would that be?”

“I’ve seen you writing in a journal I assume it’s for an official report you will turn over to your employer”

“Mostly, it’s my personal observations, but some of it will make it into Joseph Van Dorn’s hands if for no other reason than reimbursement of money I’ve spent on this mission It is not an inconsiderable sum”

“I believe you would call that an understatement”

“And then some”

“I would ask, Isaac, that you do not mention me, my crew, or this ship in your report I’ve seen Brewster scribbling in a diary too, and I ask that you review it and make certain he doesn’t describe his time aboard the Hvalur Batur either”

“I believe I know the reason why, but would youme?”

“We sank a French ship It doesn’t matter that they fired first We put thenificant loss of life There will be repercussions I don’t knohat the spy ht on the radio, but I doubt it was detailed enough to name the ship or crew There is no need to identify this ship in anything official if the spy failed to identify it himself Our anonymity remains intact”

“That’s what I thought”

“I can see reasons to mention us but plenty of reasons not to I’h I’ll have Ivar fetch their agent to the ship so we can make plans to have her scrapped It’s a clean slate after that”