Wilbur Smith's Smashing Thrillers (42 page)

They rode up in silence, all of them too tense to make the effort of
small-talk. and the waiter led them down the wide corridor, past the
Chairman's suite of offices and through the double doors into the
grandeur of the room designed by Adam for Bowood House, the country home
of the Marquess of Lansdowne. It had been taken to pieces, panel by
panel, floor, ceiling, fireplace and plaster mouldings, transported to
London and re-erected in its entirety with such care and attention that
when Lord Lansdowne inspected it, he found that the floorboards squeaked
in exactly the same places as they had before.

At the long table, under the massive glittering pyramids of the three
chandeliers, the two arbitrators were already seated. Both of them were
master mariners, selected for their deep knowledge and experience of the
sea, and their faces were toughened and leathery from the effects of sea
and salt water. They talked quietly together, without acknowledging in
any way the rows of quietly attentive faces in the rows of chairs facing
them - until the minute hand of the antique clock on the Adam fireplace
touched its zenith. Then the President of the court looked across at
the waiter who obediently closed the double doors and stood to attention
before them.

‘
This Arbitration Court has been set up under the Committee of Lloyd's
and empowered to receive evidence in the matter between the Christy
Marine Steamship Co. Ltd.
and the Ocean Salvage and Towage Co. Ltd. This Court finds common
ground in the following areas
:

‘
Firstly, a contract of salvage under
Lloyd's Open Form "No cure no pay" for the recovery of the passenger
liner Golden
Adventurer, a ship of
22,000 tons gross burden and
registered at Southampton, exists between the parties.

‘
Secondly, that the Master of the Golden Adventurer while steaming on a
south-westerly heading during the night of December 16th at or near 72
16 south and 32 12 west
–
‘
The President let no dramatics intrude on his
assembly of the facts. He recounted it all in the driest possible
terms, succeeding in making Golden Adventurer's plight and the desperate
endeavours of her rescuers sound boring.
I
ndeed, his colleague seemed
to descend into a condition of coma at the telling of it. His eyes
slowly closed, and his head sagged gently sideways, his lips vibrating
slightly at each breath - a volume not quite sufficient to make it a
snore.

It took nearly an hour, with the occasional consultation of the ship's
log books and a loose volume of hand-written and typed notes, before the
President was satisfied that he had recounted all the facts, and now he
rocked back in his chair and hooked his thumbs into his waistcoat. His
expression became decisive, and while he surveyed the crowded room, his
colleague stirred, opened his eyes, took out a white linen handkerchief
and blew two sharp blasts, one for each nostril, like the herald angel
sounding the crack of doom.

There was a stir of reawakened interest, they all recognized the moment
of decision, and for the first time Duncan Alex
a
nder and Nicholas Berg
looked directly at each other over the heads of the lawyers and company
men. Neither of them changed expression, no smile nor scowl, but
something implacable and clearly understood passed between them. They
did not unlock their gaze, until the President began to speak again.

‘
Taking into consideration the foregoing, this Court is of the firm
opinion that a fair and good salvage of the vessel was effected by the
salvors, and that therefore, they are entitled to salvage awards
commensurate with the services rendered to the owners and underwriters.
’

Nicholas felt Samantha's fingers groping for his. He took her hand, and
it was slim and cold and dry; he interlocked their fingers and laid
their hands upon his upper thigh.

‘
This Court, in arriving at the value of the salvor's services, has taken
into consideration, firstly, the situation and conditions existing on
the site of operations. We have heard evidence that much of the work
was carried out in extreme weather conditions. Temperatures of thirty
degrees below freezing, wind forces exceeding twelve on the Beaufort
scale, and extreme icing.

‘
We have also considered that the vessel Golden Adventurer was no longer
under command. That she had been abandoned by her passengers, her crew
and her Master. She was aground on a remote and hostile coast.

‘
We have further noted that the salvors undertook a voyage of many
thousands of miles, without any guarantee of recompense, but merely in
order to be in a position to offer assistance, should that have become
necessary.
’

Nicholas glanced across the aisle at Duncan Alexander.
He sat at ease, as though he were in his box at Ascot. His suit was of
sombre gunmetal grey, but on him
it seemed flamboyant and the
Zingari
tie as rakish as any of Cardin's fantasies.

Duncan turned that fine leonine head and looked directly at Nicholas
again. This time Nicholas saw the deep angry glow in his eyes as when a
vagrant breeze fans the coals of an open fire. Then Duncan turned his
face back towards the President, and he balanced his thrusting square
chin on the clenched, carefully manicured fingers of his right fist
.

‘
Furthermore, we have taken into consideration the transportation of the
survivors from the site of the striking, to the nearest port of succour,
Cape Town in the Republic of South Africa.
’

The President was summing up
strongly in favour of Ocean Salvage. It was a dangerous sign; so often
a judge about to deliver an unfavourable decision prefaced it by
building a strong case for the loser and then tearing it down again.

Nicholas steeled himself, anything below three million dollars would not
be sufficient to keep Ocean Salvage alive.
That was the barest minimum he needed to keep Warlock afloat, and to put
Sea Witch on the water for the first time. He felt the spasm of his
stomach muscles as he contemplated his commitments - even with three
million he would be at the mercy of the Sheikhs, unable to manoeuvre, a
slave to any conditions they wished to set.
He would not be off his knees even.

Nicholas squeezed Samantha's hand for luck, and she pressed her shoulder
against his.

Four million dollars would give him a fighting chance, a slim margin of
choice - but he would still be fighting hard, pressed on all sides. Yet
he would have settled for four million, if Duncan Alexander had made the
offer. Perhaps Duncan had been wise after all, perhaps he might yet see
Nicholas broken at a single stroke.

‘
Three.
’
Nicholas held the figure in his head.
‘
Let it be three, at least
let it be three.
’

‘
This Court has considered the written reports of the
Globe Engineering Co., the contractors charged with the repairing and
refurbishing of Golden Adventurer, together with those of two
independent marine engineering experts commissioned separately by the
owners and the salvors to report on the condition of the vessel. We have
also had the benefit of a survey carried out by a senior inspector of
Lloyd's of London. From all of this, it seems apparent that the vessel
sustained remarkably light damage. There was no loss of equipment, the
salvors recovering even the main anchors and chains
–‘

Strange how that
impressed a salvage court.
‘
We took her off, anchors and all, Nick
thought,
’
with a stir of pride.

‘
Prompt anti-corrosion precautions by the salvors resulted in minimal
damage to the main engines and ancillary equipment
–‘

It went on and on.
Why cannot he come to it now? I cannot wait much longer, Nicholas
thought.

‘
This Court has heard expert opinion and readily accepts that the
residual value of the Golden Adventurer's hull, as delivered to the
contractors in Cape Town can be fairly set at twenty-six million US
dollars or fifteen million, three hundred thousand pounds sterling, and
consideration of the foregoing, we are further of the firm opinion that
the salvors are entitled to an award of twenty percent of the residual
hull value
–‘

For long cold seconds Nicholas doubted his hearing, and
then he felt the flush of exultation burning on his cheeks.

‘
In addition, it was necessary to compute the value of the passage
provided to the survivors of the vessel
–‘

It was six - six million
dollars! He was clear and running free as a wild albatross sweeping
across the oceans on wide pinions.

Nicholas turned his head and looked at Duncan Alexander, and he smiled.
He had never felt so strong and vital and alive in his life before. He
felt like a giant, immortal, and at his side was the vibrant young body
pressing to him, endowing him with eternal youth.

Across the aisle, Duncan Alexander tossed his head, a gesture of
dismissal and turned to speak briefly with his counsel who sat beside
him. He did not look at Nicholas, however, and there was a waxen cast
to his skin now as though it had a fine sheen of perspiration laid upon
it, and the blood had drained away beneath the tan.

‘
Anyway, another few days and you'd probably have started to find me a
boring dolly bird, or one of us would have had a heart attack.
’
Samantha
smiled at him, a pathetic, lopsided little grin, nothing like her usual
brilliant golden flashing smile.
‘
I like to quit while I'm still ahead.
’

They sat close on the couch in the Pan Am Clipper Lounge at Heathrow.

Nicholas was shocked by the extent of his own desolation. It felt as
though he were about to be deprived of the vital forces of life itself,
he felt the youth and strength draining away as he looked at her and
knew that in a few minutes she would be gone.

‘
Samantha,
’
he said.
‘
Stay here with me.
’

‘
Nicholas
,’
she whispered huskily,
‘
I have to go, my darling. It's not for very long but I have to go.
’

‘
Why?
’
he demanded.

‘
Because it's my life.
’

‘M
ake me your life.
’
She touched his cheek, as
she countered his offer.

‘
I have a better idea, give up Warlock and Sea Witch
-
forget your icebergs
and come with me.
’

‘
You know I cannot do that.
’

‘
No
,’
she agreed,
‘
you could
not, and I would not want you to. But, Nicholas, my love, no more can I
give up my life.
’

‘
All right, then, marry me
,’
he said.

‘
Why, Nicholas?
’

‘
So I don't lose my lucky charm, so that you'd damn well
have to do what I tell you.
’

And she laughed delightedly and snuggled
against his chest.
‘
It doesn't work like that any more, my fine
Victorian gentleman. There is only one good reason for marrying,
Nicholas, and that's to have babies. Do you want to give me a baby?
’