Nina, specifically. It’s this bloke Glas, it’s got to be.’
‘But how did he know we were here?’ asked Nina.
‘Maybe you can ask him when you see him,’ said Matt.
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean, he’s probably around here somewhere. This sub couldn’t have got out here on its own – it doesn’t have enough range. It’s got to have a mother ship. So if the pilot’s still alive, he might tell you how to find it – and Glas.’
Eddie clenched his fists. ‘He’ll tell us.’
‘We’ve got to get aboard it first,’ Nina reminded him.
Matt moved the sub closer to the trapped craft. ‘Eddie, let me do that,’ he said, taking the manipulator controls. ‘This might be a bit tricky . . .’
He nudged the girder with what was left of the main arm. Their sub swayed beneath them. ‘I was afraid of that – I don’t know if we’ll be able to get enough leverage with only one thruster. Okay, Eddie, you keep it pushed against that beam. I’ll see if I can shift it.’
A tense minute passed as he applied power, the Sharkdozer swinging back and forth as the arm rasped against the girder. The beam slowly ground along the Mako’s hull. ‘Come on, a bit more,’ said Eddie. ‘We can do it!’
‘I’m giving it all she’s got!’
A shrill screech echoed through the water as the arm slipped, gouging a foot-long scratch out of the rusting metal. Eddie choked back an expletive, trying to hold the manipulator in place. The girder was still moving, inch by inch, but he didn’t know if it was enough . . .
The thruster’s whine fluctuated. ‘We’re losing power!’ Matt cried. ‘Eddie, push it!’
Last chance—
Eddie shoved the arm forward. The Sharkdozer lurched – then the girder came free, scraping noisily over the Mako before dropping off its stern to whump down on the silt and wreckage below.
The Sharkdozer drifted to a stop alongside the other sub. ‘Okay, but we’re not done yet,’ said Matt. ‘We need to lift it up so we can dock with its bottom hatch.’
‘But there’s another hatch on the top, right there,’ said Eddie.
‘Yeah, but we’ve only got a topside hatch, and I don’t think the ’dozer’ll take kindly to being turned upside down in the state she’s in! There’s a crane hook on its top – if you can grab it, we should be able to lift it. It’s neutrally buoyant, so it’ll stay put once we’ve moved it. I hope.’
Another precious minute passed as Eddie, craning to see through the viewport, tried to get hold of the hook. Finally, it seemed to be secured. Matt checked the status of the air supply, grimaced, and with a mutter of ‘Better get on with it, then’, powered up the thruster again.
The arm creaked and strained, but held. In a swirl of sand, the conjoined vessels slowly rose . . .
A new alarm sounded, a mournful, pulsing honk. ‘Oh God, what now?’ moaned Nina.
‘We’re on emergency power,’ said Matt. ‘If you hear that, it means if you’re not on the surface in five minutes, you’re not getting there at all!’
‘You built this bloody thing,’ said Eddie. ‘Couldn’t you have used a less annoying alarm noise?’
Matt huffed and switched it off. ‘Next one I build’ll have songbirds and heavenly choirs, just for you. If I get the chance.’ He looked down through the viewport. They were now about twenty feet above the ground. ‘Okay, that’ll have to do.’
Eddie released the arm, and Matt took the sub back down, inching it sideways to move beneath the Mako as it hung motionless in the water. The spotlights picked out its ventral docking port. ‘Okay, here we go.’ He switched one of the monitors to show a view looking directly upwards from their own hatch. ‘Just got to line it up properly . . .’
‘Can we do anything to help?’ asked Nina.
‘Yeah – wait by the hatch, and when I tell you, pull the yellow lever down as far as it’ll go. That’ll lock the docking clamps. Soon as they’re secure, I can drain the collar and we should be able to open the other sub’s hatch.’
There was an edge to his voice that suggested he was far more worried about the operation than he was letting on. ‘Matt, is something wrong?’
‘There’s a lot of things wrong!’ On the screen, the Mako’s hatch came in sight. He slowed to line up with it. ‘You just get ready on that lever.’
Eddie and Nina exchanged concerned looks, but