A wry smile crossed Zavala's face. “Who in his right mind could resist an opportunity to crawl into the innards of a ship that could roll over with a sneeze?”

“I thought you were worried about a seagull.”

“How about a sneezing seagull?”

“Look at it this way. Where would you rather be, behind your desk at NUMA or a place like this, where you've got a great ocean view?”

“I'd like to be behind the wheel of my Corvette with a view of a lovely blonde.”

“I'll take that as a yes,” Austin said. “I think I see a way in.”

Despite their playful badinage, both men were well aware of the chance they would take going belowdecks. But Zavala trusted Austin's judgment and instincts implicitly, and would have followed him into the gates of hell without hesitation. Austin made his way to a deck hatch, about three feet square, that his sharp eyes had picked out.

He unlatched the cover, braced his feet and pulled back. The cover banged against its hinges, and a foul exhalation flowed from the opening and rocked them back on their heels. Austin undid the halogen flashlight clipped to his belt and pointed it into the opening. The intense beam reflected off the rungs of a metal ladder.

They slipped off their flotation vests. The vests would only get in the way, and would be useless if the ship rolled over while they were belowdecks. Austin was the first down the ladder, which was sharply angled because of the ship's list. He descended twenty feet and felt a solid surface under his feet. The deck slanted sharply, and he held on to the ladder to steady himself.

Zavala was right behind him. He glanced around and said, “It looks like a fun house.”

“Let's go have some fun,” Austin said.

Bracing himself against the lower wall, he made his way along a narrow passageway. After walking for about fifty feet, they came to a stairwell leading below. The prospect of descending deeper into the stricken ship was not an appetizing one, especially when they felt the deck list another few degrees. Both men knew that if the vessel capsized, they were dead. There would be no time to get out. But Austin was determined to pry out the secrets the ship held.

“Feeling lucky today?” he said, his voice echoing off the walls of the passageway.

Zavala smiled. “We just tangled with a giant whirlpool and won. I'm betting our luck is still holding.”

The stairs led down to another deck that was identical to the first. The passageway ended not in a stairwell but in an unlocked door, which they opened. As they stepped through the doorway, their noses told them there had been a change in their surroundings. Instead of the briny odor that had pervaded the passageways, the air had an electrical smell to it, as if they had stepped into a Radio Shack.