him to survive such a ride.
Flynn knew he had to
act fast. Taking one last quick breath, he dived out of the bell, and then following
the hose, swam up as fast as he could. Soon he could see the rectangular
outline of the Seeker above, but his raft was not alone… It was flanked
by the silhouettes of two other vessels. Flynn wasn’t sure, but they looked
like boats…He kicked his feet harder, and as he got closer to the surface, he saw
that the boats had powerful propellers, churning away in the water… Suddenly,
there was no longer any doubt in Flynn’s mind… the Seeker had two motor
boats for company and they were Government boats!
Usually, like most
experienced divers, Flynn would scream during the last few feet before surfacing
from a deep dive, in order to get all the air out of his lungs. This time, he
held his breath and came up behind his raft, making sure he was as silent as he
could possibly be. He forced himself to suppress the urge to take a deep
breath, taking a few shallow ones instead. Then he grabbed hold of one of the
tires at the back of the Seeker and slowly hoisted himself up, his head
peeking an inch above the platform. There was no sign of Madison! The raft was
deserted… the oxygen pump pedals stood abandoned. Flynn pulled himself up a
little higher and saw the motor boats in front of him. The bigger of the two
was the Fury . She was leisurely tugging the Seeker in her wake, and
at her helm stood the familiar figure of Leo Van Zandt.
TEN
“Damn!” Flynn
lowered himself stealthily back into the water, cursing his bad luck…He had
taken a huge gamble by coming back to this spot. Tony had warned him to stay
away, and he should have listened to him… His friend was right…Flynn had become
too cocky and reckless for his own good. But it was too late to do anything
about it ... He had no choice, but to face the Van Zandt boy.
Grasping onto the
tires and ropes which hung on the side of the Seeker , Flynn began to
move carefully toward the front. Once there, he pulled out his knife, hesitated
for a moment, then reached up and cut the tug rope. Suddenly, free from the
weight of the Seeker , Leo’s boat jumped forward; made a wide U-turn and
came to a stop, facing the raft. The other boat made the same maneuver, cutting
off its engine. Flynn was standing now on the deck of the Seeker with
the knife still in his hand.
“Flynn!” Madison
cried and jumped up in the Van Zandt boat. The two boys sitting beside her
dragged her down.
“So...” Leo Van
Zandt slowly rose from his seat. “Our trespasser decided to show his sorry
face, after all!” He chuckled, then pushed the throttle and moved his boat
forward. Her prow bumped roughly into the Seeker , making Flynn stumble
back. Regaining his balance, he glared at Leo, his knuckles white from gripping
the knife so hard.
The guards in the
second boat rose immediately, cocking their guns, but Leo waved them down. “I
told you, I'd be watching you, Perry boy!” said Leo. He then patted the pair of
binoculars hanging round his neck. “You think you're smarter than me? Or just
plain stupid?" he asked.
There was no
response from Flynn. He was trying not to stare at Leo’s binoculars… the exact
same pair Leo had on him when he had nearly drowned at the Pier… So, Leo had
recognized him, Flynn thought, and that could only mean more trouble.
“What's your story
this time?” Leo continued. “Fishing again?”
“We were
training...” replied Flynn, keeping his voice steady, “…for the Trials.”
“Hah! And you
think you'll make it to the Trials,” Leo scoffed. “After all your illegal
activities here? You won’t be allowed to compete, scum boy!” Leo's smile had
disappeared. “I see only one future job for you, Perry! The closest you'll ever
get to scavenging is by picking garbage from the Junk Nets! Or even better ...
join the Waste Crew on their stinking rafts!”
Flynn tensed at
the memory of the Waste Crew. The Junk
Flynn knew he had to
act fast. Taking one last quick breath, he dived out of the bell, and then following
the hose, swam up as fast as he could. Soon he could see the rectangular
outline of the Seeker above, but his raft was not alone… It was flanked
by the silhouettes of two other vessels. Flynn wasn’t sure, but they looked
like boats…He kicked his feet harder, and as he got closer to the surface, he saw
that the boats had powerful propellers, churning away in the water… Suddenly,
there was no longer any doubt in Flynn’s mind… the Seeker had two motor
boats for company and they were Government boats!
Usually, like most
experienced divers, Flynn would scream during the last few feet before surfacing
from a deep dive, in order to get all the air out of his lungs. This time, he
held his breath and came up behind his raft, making sure he was as silent as he
could possibly be. He forced himself to suppress the urge to take a deep
breath, taking a few shallow ones instead. Then he grabbed hold of one of the
tires at the back of the Seeker and slowly hoisted himself up, his head
peeking an inch above the platform. There was no sign of Madison! The raft was
deserted… the oxygen pump pedals stood abandoned. Flynn pulled himself up a
little higher and saw the motor boats in front of him. The bigger of the two
was the Fury . She was leisurely tugging the Seeker in her wake, and
at her helm stood the familiar figure of Leo Van Zandt.
TEN
“Damn!” Flynn
lowered himself stealthily back into the water, cursing his bad luck…He had
taken a huge gamble by coming back to this spot. Tony had warned him to stay
away, and he should have listened to him… His friend was right…Flynn had become
too cocky and reckless for his own good. But it was too late to do anything
about it ... He had no choice, but to face the Van Zandt boy.
Grasping onto the
tires and ropes which hung on the side of the Seeker , Flynn began to
move carefully toward the front. Once there, he pulled out his knife, hesitated
for a moment, then reached up and cut the tug rope. Suddenly, free from the
weight of the Seeker , Leo’s boat jumped forward; made a wide U-turn and
came to a stop, facing the raft. The other boat made the same maneuver, cutting
off its engine. Flynn was standing now on the deck of the Seeker with
the knife still in his hand.
“Flynn!” Madison
cried and jumped up in the Van Zandt boat. The two boys sitting beside her
dragged her down.
“So...” Leo Van
Zandt slowly rose from his seat. “Our trespasser decided to show his sorry
face, after all!” He chuckled, then pushed the throttle and moved his boat
forward. Her prow bumped roughly into the Seeker , making Flynn stumble
back. Regaining his balance, he glared at Leo, his knuckles white from gripping
the knife so hard.
The guards in the
second boat rose immediately, cocking their guns, but Leo waved them down. “I
told you, I'd be watching you, Perry boy!” said Leo. He then patted the pair of
binoculars hanging round his neck. “You think you're smarter than me? Or just
plain stupid?" he asked.
There was no
response from Flynn. He was trying not to stare at Leo’s binoculars… the exact
same pair Leo had on him when he had nearly drowned at the Pier… So, Leo had
recognized him, Flynn thought, and that could only mean more trouble.
“What's your story
this time?” Leo continued. “Fishing again?”
“We were
training...” replied Flynn, keeping his voice steady, “…for the Trials.”
“Hah! And you
think you'll make it to the Trials,” Leo scoffed. “After all your illegal
activities here? You won’t be allowed to compete, scum boy!” Leo's smile had
disappeared. “I see only one future job for you, Perry! The closest you'll ever
get to scavenging is by picking garbage from the Junk Nets! Or even better ...
join the Waste Crew on their stinking rafts!”
Flynn tensed at
the memory of the Waste Crew. The Junk
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