Deep (9780545628129) by Korman Gordon

Author:Korman, Gordon [Korman, Gordon]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic
Published: 2013-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

* * *

The wet porch rang with anxious voices.

“We didn’t do anything to that coral!” Star pleaded their case. “Cutter broke it up with dynamite! We were just nosing around.”

“This never was a real internship,” Kaz continued. “The whole thing was a sham — a smokescreen to hide the fact that they were looking for a shipwreck.”

“And they found it,” Dante added. “Actually, I found it. But they stole it. And now they’re digging up half the ocean looking for the treasure.”

“It’s the truth, Mr. English,” Adriana said earnestly, “whether you believe us or not.”

“I believe you,” the guide said gravely.

They were struck dumb. It had never occurred to them that Menasce Gérard might take them at their word.

“Oh,” said Kaz, surprised. “Great. So what happens now?”

The giant ignored him and pulled off his dive hood, checking the security of the Band-Aid on his head.

Dante spoke up. “You know — what’s our next move? How do we stop Cutter?”

English shrugged hugely, his massive shoulders blotting out all view of the pressure hatch that led to the entry lock. “It is not my job for save the world, me.”

“You mean you’re just going to let him steal everything?” Dante protested.

English raised both expressive brows. “This is my property on the bottom of the ocean?”

“Well, shouldn’t we at least call the cops?” asked Star. “That reef is protected, and they smashed it. They’re smashing it right now!”

English laughed mirthlessly. “The cops — you refer to seven Saint-Luc men with the asthma. They cannot dive, so they are the cops.”

“What about the government?” Adriana prompted.

“The government is eight thousand kilometers away, in Paris. The local magistrate is on Martinique, and would not know coral from corral, the place where you keep the horse.” He looked earnestly into their faces. “Tiens, I agree with you. This is a terrible thing — a waste. But this is not my business. I am a diver. Justice is for someone else. A judge, peut-être.”

Dante hefted the bell. “Well, here’s one thing Cutter’s not going to get. What do you make of it, Adriana?”

She took it from him. It was heavier out of water, about the weight of a small TV. “It’s the ship’s bell, all right. We can try to clean off some of this rust. I think these things were engraved, so we might be able to identify the ship.”

“For what?” grumbled Dante. “So Cutter can know whose gold he’s getting rich on?”

“For historical value,” Adriana insisted. “We know the artifacts are Spanish. Maybe the Spanish government keeps online archives we can check.” She turned to English. “Do you think?”

“Why do you look at me?” the dive guide said, almost defensively. “What do I know about the Spanish treasure, me? A Frenchman named English.”

The interns were taken aback. That was almost a joke! Humor from the implacable Menasce Gérard. It didn’t seem possible.

“You know, you never explained that,” Star ventured at last. “Where your name comes from, I mean.”

“Exactement,” English agreed. “I never explain you this thing.

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