Washington
hadn’t exactly asked for a spy. All we knew was that two research vessels had blown up in the Aegean, and we ourselves were booby
trapped during our investigation. Somebody was hiding something. Something bad.
Of course the Grecian Isles had their own attraction for Lee. He'd sailed those waters before. Even had a smattering of the language. It didn’t hurt
that he looked the part with his Mediterranean tones as he suggested he
go undercover. A deep sea diver looking for a job could easily snoop around for
any hints of what might be going on.
It
sounded like a good idea at the time. Little did I know he'd soon go get himself missing. Maimed, or
killed, or something, the crew grumbled. I mean, after all, we'd only had him a short time, and now it looked like we'd
lost him.
I had no choice but to go ashore. Curley's fingernails were nearly bitten to the quick and mine weren't far behind. As ‘Harriman Jone’s I checked into Lee’s hotel, and stressed that
25 was my lucky number. Yes, Lee’s room was available. Cleaned and cleared
of all of his personal items of course.
It was by accident, sheer chance, or a little luck that I bumped into the girl he'd mentioned in one of his radio check
ins. The daughter of Dimitri Gounaris who had shown him the area where he'd dived and seen something. A city, he'd said, under
the sea. And he'd died giving Lee that information. Found murdered on the beach.
I asked her to show me where they found her father, hoping there might be a clue in it, which there was if her startled scream and the gunfire meant anything.
I was lucky to return to Seaview intact. The girl had vanished, and apparently my fears about Lee having been captured
were real.
We also lost two men as the
mini sub investigated the area, lost due to some kind of electrical interference. Finally we found the city and were promptly
fired upon. We had no choice but to return fire, even though Lee was possibly imprisoned down there.
My heart was in my stomach,
but lady luck had apparently embraced Lee yet again, for suddenly there he was, at our doorstep, stepping through the escape
hatch. And he had the girl with him! I should have known. Lee Crane is a born escape artist. Aboard Nautlius he escaped
sickbay all the time. More about that later.
I could hardly wait to debrief
him, but had to wait as he took his time escorting the girl home. Can't say I blame him, lucky dog.