Mindbend

Carefully Adam pulled himself to the edge of the opening and looked over the rim. About halfway up the ladder was a steward. Adam panicked again. He was trapped. Maybe the man would not climb into the opening, but that seemed unlikely.

Adam could hear the man’s labored breathing, and a second later a hand gripped the rim, followed by a foot and then the steward himself. Adam waited until the man was silhouetted against the opening, his arms apart for balance. Lunging forward, Adam used both hands to grab the man’s head and ram it as hard as he could against the steel plate of the chimney. Adam had to grab the steward’s jacket to keep him from tumbling backward out of the opening. He pulled him in and allowed the man to crumble onto the catwalk. He bent down to look at the man’s head. At least there was no blood.

Pulling the steward into a sitting position, Adam struggled to remove the man’s shirt and white jacket. The bow tie was easy to take off, since it was just a clip-on.

Standing up, Adam tried on the clothes. They were big but serviceable. Buttoning the top button of the shirt, he put on the bow tie. Stepping over the man, Adam sighted down the ladder, deciding that he’d better leave before the man regained consciousness. Adam figured his best bet was to hide in the crew’s quarters.

He was halfway down the ladder when a number of stewards appeared on the deck below. He’d just have to bluff his way through. When he got to the deck, he straightened his tie, smoothed his jacket, and started forward.

He had to fight the urge to run as he passed one of the stewards who was checking deck-chair lockers near the main stairs. Fortunately, the stairway itself was empty, and Adam reached the promenade deck otherwise unobserved. The rest of the stewards had dispersed, no doubt searching for him in other parts of the ship. Adam exited on the starboard side and walked forward. As he slipped through the door in the barricade, he realized his disguise might make him look suspicious in that part of the ship. Pulling off the jacket, he threw it overboard.

Moving quickly, Adam walked to the door that he’d entered with José. Opening the door, he looked down a corridor illuminated by bare light bulbs which threw grotesque shadows on the walls. From the far end of the hall, Adam heard voices and the clink of cutlery. He guessed it was the crew’s mess.

Moving as silently as the metal floor would allow, Adam tiptoed to José’s door and knocked. There was no answer. He tried the knob, which turned easily, then stepped inside, quickly closing the door behind him.

Unfortunately, there was no light in the room. He ran his fingers along the wall by the door but didn’t encounter any switches. Cautiously, he advanced farther into the room, trying to recall the floor plan. He remembered there was a lamp fixed to the wall above the suspended bed.

Suddenly a hand came out of the blackness and grabbed Adam by the throat.

“José!” he gasped before the hand tightened its grip, cutting off his air. Adam was just about to pass out when the grip on his neck loosened. There was a click, and light filled the room. José was standing in front of Adam, looking at him with disgust.

“Are you trying to get yourself killed?” he asked, taking his hand away and sitting on the edge of the bed.

“I knocked,” Adam managed to say, rubbing his throat. “You didn’t answer.”

“I was fucking asleep,” said José.

“I’m sorry,” said Adam, “but it was an emergency.”

“One of the college girls after you?” asked José sarcastically.

“Not quite,” said Adam. “It’s the weirdos in the white jackets.”

“What the hell do they want with you?” asked José.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you. But there’s a chance for you to make some money. Does that interest you?”

“Money always interests me,” said José. “What do you have in mind?”

“When do we get to St. Thomas?”

“What time is it?”

Adam looked at his watch. “One-thirty.”

“In four or five hours. Something like that.”

“Well, I need to stay hidden until we dock, and then I’ll have to sneak off the ship.”

José wiped his face with the back of his hand. “What kind of money are we talking about?”

Adam took out his wallet and counted the cash. All told, he had close to three hundred dollars.

“I’ll need some for a taxi, but two hundred seventy-five is yours,” said Adam.

José raised his eyebrows. “I can’t guarantee anything, but I’ll give it a try. If you get caught, though, I’ll swear we never met.”

Adam handed over a hundred dollars. “You’ll get the rest when I get ashore.”

José nodded agreement and went over to his locker. He pulled out a pair of grease-stained khaki trousers and a torn flannel shirt. Tossing them to Adam, he said, “Put them on and you pass for crew. I got a couple of friends who hate the stewards as much as I do. Maybe they’ll help. You stay here.

No one should bother you.”

Adam tried to tell José how much he appreciated his help, but José stopped him and said the money was all he wanted.

Then he pulled on a pair of pants and left the room.