Even though Alexi had said he would hit the shark first attempt, beside him on the deck three more harpoons waited to be loaded. She hoped they wouldn’t be needed, as the one he had ready was red-tipped, meaning it was an explosive charge. Once the thing impacted with hard flesh, a split second later it would explode forward, detonating inside the animal. It was meant for a quick death and a more humane way to kill. A bit like getting shot in the head by a hollow-point slug – it went in, blew up, and turned the brain into scrambled eggs.

Good, she thought, grimly.

Regina jogged out onto the bridge deck. “Cate, Jack, better come see this.” She then yelled to Mironov, waving him in.

Jack quickly checked his tracker – the Megalodon was still miles away. “What now?” He grabbed Cate’s arm and they headed up to the bridge.

Once inside, there came the smell of coffee, but the Californian warmth was causing all manner of new fish and oil odors to be released to compete with it.

Sonya paced, her arms folded. Mironov entered, and she addressed him first in Russian. The billionaire half smiled and nodded.

“English, please,” Cate said sharply.

Sonya then turned to them. Her teeth were grit. “Seems we are about to have a welcoming committee. They’ll be here within the hour.”

“What? Who?” Jack looked to Vince who was grimacing.

“One guess – who else harasses whaling ships on the seas?” Sonya asked.

Jack put a hand to his forehead. “You gotta be shitting me.”

“Who is it?” Cate grabbed at Jack’s arm.

Jack leaned his head back, closing his eyes. “They think we’re actually whaling… and probably Russian.” He looked at her. “Earthpeace.”

Cate’s mouth dropped open. “Earthpeace.” She put a hand over her mouth, her eyes crinkling. “You’re joking?”

Jack nodded. “Great damn timing.”

“Well, we need to make contact.” Cate folded her arms. “Vincent.”

He shook his head. “Not taking my calls.” He shrugged. “But think about it. We tell a boatload of penguin-huggers we’re about to put a harpoon into a giant prehistoric shark – the only one in the world – yeah, that’ll get them onside.”

Jack nodded. “He’s right. I’ve had to deal with these guys before. Uncompromising ignorance is a badge they wear with pride.”

“Jesus Christ.” Regina threw up her hands. “They start to buzz us, and they’ll make it impossible to take a shot.”

“That cannot be allowed to happen.” Mironov straightened. “Shoot their boats.”

Cate scowled. “The hell we will.”

“Just to scare them off.” Mironov waved her away.

“Oh shit.” Jack’s face looked agonized. “They’re going to arrive about the same time as the Megalodon.”