Lost At Sea by Arthur Limbada (simple ebook reader TXT) 📕

The last few threads of sunlight curled its way back towards the horizon as the sun disappeared in the distance. Joseph Farrow switched on the lights and quickly finished his safety check on The Fair Lady, his small fishing boat. Once he had completed them, he made his way downstairs and collapsed on his cot.

   Today had been tough. Well, recently, everyday had been tough. His fishing business had slowed a considerable amount over the past few years. The competition in the fishing business seemed to have picked up even. Either that or the fish had decided to go on an early vacation.

  His large amount of doctor’s bills was actually the main reason he was out here tonight, sleeping in his boat. A couple of years ago he would have had enough money to hire some lads to help him out, but with his many doctor visits and long list of prescribed medication, he simply didn’t have the money anymore.

  Merely thinking about his immense hospital bills made his frail bones ache.

   As Joseph was musing on his cot, a beep sounded from the intercom. It came from the radar monitor, which signified that a ship had entered its radius. Joseph knew he should get up and check the radar screen but at the moment, he felt like all the energy in his body had fled from him. While he was working up the force to get up, another two beeps sounded in quick succession after the first one. With his curiosity roused, Joseph slowly pushed himself up from his bed and stood up.

    As soon as he did this, he knew he shouldn’t have. An immense wave of dizziness washed over him. He let out a gasp and slumped back onto the bed, his head throbbing. He sat still, trying to regain his strength. Once the dizziness had remotely faded, he tried getting up more slowly this time. He managed to do so without too much trouble and slowly dragged himself out of his cabin into the starry night.

    He stepped out of the cabin into the dark. Joseph switched on his flashlight and reached out his arm to direct him to the staircase leading to the boats deck. His hot hand grasped the cold steel of the railing as he walked up onto the deck. He felt like he needed to take more medicine, his pulse was rapid and he was panting from exertion. However, the doctor specifically said that he should only take one every three hours, and he had taken his pills with his supper two hours ago.

  Joseph looked from the edge of the boat into the sea but he couldn’t spot anything in the blackness. A heavy mist snaked its way around him and his boat. The pale glow of the light from his flashlight cast an eerie glow around the Fair Lady. 

   He warily walked over to the bridge only to realize he had forgotten the keys in his cabin. Laboriously, he headed back to his cabin, the cold wind gnawing at him. Once he had collected the keys and made his way back, he opened the door to the bridge.

   He walked into the dark room, stumbling over different objects, obscured by the dark, as he made his way to where he knew he would find the desk lamp.  Once he found it, he switched it on and stumbled painstakingly to the radar monitor.

  What he saw surprised him immensely. The three vessels that should have been on the screen had vanished!

* * * * *

    Andrew Gray gulped down the last of his coffee. It was like he always had it: milk and two sugars. Andrew worked for I.D.I. (International Department of Investigation) as a detective, and at the moment, he had a lot of free time on his hands. Although some of you might find that bizarre, picturing detectives constantly caught up in exciting cases, Andrew just didn’t have anything to work on now. Sure, he had several adventurous and daring cases previously, but for the past few weeks his assistance hadn’t been required.

    Andrew Gray originally got hired by I.D.I. for his advanced knowledge in computer technology. He started off running simple forensic programs. Since then he has advanced in status considerably. He’s managed to help solve several hacker cases, run complex forensics programs, and finally, proved himself as a formidable field worker. After eight months of working for I.D.I. he was already assisting the best at the crime scenes.  

    But as I mentioned before, despite his immaculate case record, and high level of expertise, Andrew was bored.

   Suddenly, a beep from his desktop computer’s speakers alerted him that he had just received a new e-mail. Clicking into his inbox, he opened the new message, its subject screaming    “URGENT!”

   Skimming over the e-mail, this is what he read.

    Andrew Gray

     A situation has cropped up and we will need your presence in the briefing room ASAP!

                                             I.D.I. Executive.

  Andrew smiled and exited the e-mail.

  “Nice and concise”, he thought, “Couldn’t be bothered to give anything away.”

      He tossed the empty Styrofoam cup into the waste basket standing near the door before exiting the office and locking behind himself. Once he stepped into the corridor, he suddenly felt excited. He told himself it probably was because he had drunk too much coffee this morning. He had heard it could do these things to you, yet he knew that wasn’t why.

  You didn’t need experience as a detective to tell that that letter pointed to a new case. About what he wasn’t sure, but he’d willingly welcome anything that wasn’t sitting on his butt. He walked on with strong, purposeful strides. An exciting mission was exactly the perfect shock treatment to wake him from his laid back mindset of the past weeks.   

    The next second Andrew felt himself colliding into something else. He quickly reached out to try to break his fall, his hands connecting with the cold, hard tiles. Unhurt, he looked up to see what or who he had bumped into.

  To his surprise, Terrance Ridly was also on the floor, his dirty blond hair in an untidy mess. The flow of human traffic side stepped the two fallen men as they scrambled to pick themselves up.

  Terrance was on his feet first and offered Andrew a hand up.

    “Funny bumping into you here,” Terrance quipped.

  “Ha-ha,” Andrew laughed, “quite literally. But speak of the devil; I was practically thinking of you the exact moment you carelessly smashed into me!”

   “I think we both know who did the smashing old friend,” Terrance retaliated as he stepped back to allow room for people to walk by. “Don’t tell me you were thinking about my beautiful cheek bones please.”

   “Ha-Ha,” Andrew mock laughed, “You’re so funny. No just I got this e-mail about a minute ago and . . . . Let’s walk while we talk? We’re kind of standing in the way here.”

      “That’s the smartest idea I’ve ever heard from you Andrew! I’m extremely impressed. Oh and, remember, eyes are for looking.”

   “Yeah yeah,” Andrew said as they started walking.” Anyways, I’ve been requested to the briefing room, which I am hoping is for a case. And it kind of got me thinking back on our old operations.”

     “What!? Seriously? I’m on my way to briefing too.”

 “Are you just kidding or are you actually heading there?”

      “I’m actually going there man! Maybe we’re going to be working on something together. I won’t be able to call you rookie anymore though. That’s gonna be a bummer.”

      “It’d be great to work with you again! You have no idea how much of a drag it was working on my last case. My partner was a total crank, constantly got on my nerves.”

     “Right, I know exactly how that’s like! But you and I, we’re a match made in detective heaven Andrew. I’ve been hearing about your exploits buddy, making quite a name for yourself I see?”

    “You have? Well, not intentionally,” Andrew answered as they stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for Floor 10.

    “Haha, sure my modest friend,” Terrance chuckled as he smoothed his hair to the right. “I know you Andy, you’re probably planning to like, buy the whole of I.D.I. someday. Not intentionally my ass!”

     “Do I sense some jealousy?”

   The silver elevator doors slid open silently. Andrew and Terrance both stopped their talking as memories flooded their mind of the last times they had been in here. A receptionist sat behind a desk on the right end of the room. There were three wooden doors leading from the reception area. The girl looked up from her desk as the two men stepped out of the elevator. She smiled as they walked closer.

    “Hello gentlemen, you’re here for the briefing, is that correct?”

   “Yes, umm, I’m Andrew Gray and this is Terrance Ridly, we were requested to come to the briefing room.”

    “Yes you two are awaited, it’s in that room,” she said as she pointed to the door on the left side of the rectangular room. “And may I say, we’re very happy to have you back Mr. Ridly.”

    “I’m quite glad to be back darling,” he said with a wink.

“Yes Andrew,” Terrance said as they walked away, “extremely jealous.”

      Andrew knocked on the wooden door.

     Almost instantly it swung open, revealing an older looking lady. Her chestnut coloured hair was tied in a tight bun. If Andrew were to describe her age, he would say approximately in the late thirty’s.  

   She was tall without the need for high heels and her whole body seemed to radiate authority and power. The lady nodded her head at the two men, indicating that they should enter. Terrance stepped in with Andrew tagging behind him.

   The room they had walked into was a fairly large, circular shaped room. It had a lush red carpet, white, spotless walls, and black leather couches. They were positioned in a circular formation with a matching black round coffee table in the centre.

   Besides the lady who let the two men in, there were four other people in the room. There were two males and two females each positioned on the black leather couches.

       A click was heard behind the Andrew and Terrance as the lady shut the door. The he walked up to the two men and shook their hands.

   “Thank you very much for coming at such short notice,” she said as she shook both of their hands, “as you will see, you’ve been requested for a matter of great importance. Please sit down and then I will tell you all why you have been called here.”    

    Andrew and Terrance sat down next to each other and glanced around at the other people.

  “Rookies,” Terrance whispered into Andrew’s ear as they noticed the anxious expressions on the faces of everyone else.

   Andrew smiled as he remembered his early days at the department and the first time he had been