CHAPTER 5: IC - At Sea > Panama to Australia

[Mr. Handy]

"That sounds like the safest move," says Katie. "Tossing it overboard means we'd lose the evidence, but it would ensure that this thing doesn't detonate aboard the ship. It depends how confident you are that you can render it safe."

[Anatomist]

"That sounds like the safest move," says Katie. "Tossing it overboard means we'd lose the evidence, but it would ensure that this thing doesn't detonate aboard the ship. It depends how confident you are that you can render it safe."

George unconsciously takes a step back. 'but the evidence...' 'Vittorio can you un-arm the explosive? with your expertise i mean?'

[Job]

"That sounds like the safest move," says Katie. "Tossing it overboard means we'd lose the evidence, but it would ensure that this thing doesn't detonate aboard the ship. It depends how confident you are that you can render it safe."

George unconsciously takes a step back. 'but the evidence...' 'Vittorio can you un-arm the explosive? with your expertise i mean?'

Vittorio's face is lit by Starkweather's electric torch. You notice a slump in his stance and his eyes flitting about the main deck before his gaze finally meets yours. "I can try, Seniorina. Senior, I can try, but...," his voice trails off.


Starkweather asks, "But what? What is it, man? Out with it!"

"It is-a the fuse, Comandante," responds Vittorio. "I am not-a sure. The fuse, it looks sbagliato. Um, wrong? I think if I move-a the fuse in a certain way..." He moves a fist into the light and opens it in a quick gesture, splaying his fingers upwards, flatly stating, "Boom."

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Job.

[Mr. Handy]

"I think the risk is too great," says Katie. "You could take the bomb into a boat and work on it a safe distance from the ship, I suppose, but you'd be taking an awful chance."

[Job]

Vittorio looks down at the deck and hesitates for a few long moments, then brightens and says, "Let us place-a the caps in a wooden box. This-a way, there is-a no spark." He smiles. "And-a then, we fill-a the box with water to wet the fuse. And-a we lower the box into the ocean. To sink."

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Job.

[Mr. Handy]

"Yes, I think that's for the best," says Katie. "Let's find a box and do it."

[Job]

The team retrieved a wooden box from the kitchen and filled it with fresh water--Vittorio cautioned against using salt water to eliminate the possibility of an unanticipated chemical reaction. He slowly immersed the cloth-covered blasting caps in the water and breathed a loud sigh of relief. He then asked if anyone in the group was an expert at tying knots so that the box could be tightly bound in a balanced fashion and lowered to the sea without spilling its contents.

[Mr. Handy]

"I'm pretty good at it," says Katie, "but I expect sailors are the best at tying knots."

[Job]

James Starkweather says, "Exactly right," and asks for help from a nearby seaman. Once he's finished tying the box, they lower it without event into the ocean where it sinks beneath the waves. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief. And then the commander says, "So let's now gather in the mess and figure out how to identify this saboteur, shall we?"

[Mr. Handy]

"Yes, let's get to the bottom of this," says Katie, following Starkweather to the mess. "I'm tired of someone trying to kill us all."