They added little to the practical lore1 he had picked up from Quarrel. They were all by scientists and much of the data on attacks was from the beaches of the Pacific where a flashing body in the thick surf would excite any inquisitive2 fish.
But there seemed to be general agreement that the danger to underwater swimmers with breathing equipment was far less than to surface swimmers. They might be attacked by almost any of the shark family, particularly when the shark was stimulated3 and excited by blood in the water, by the smell of a swimmer or by the sensory4 vibration5 set up by an injured person in the water. But they could sometimes be frightened off, he read, by loud noises in the water - even by shouting below the surface, and they would often flee if a swimmer chased them.
The most successful form of shark repellent, according to U.S. Naval6 Research Laboratory tests, was a combination of copper7 acetate and a dark nigrosine dye, and cakes of this mixture were apparently8 now attached to the Mae Wests of all the U.S. Armed Forces.
Bond called in Quarrel. The Cayman Islander was scornful until Bond read out to him what the Navy Department had to say about their researches at the end of the war among packs of sharks stimulated by what was described as 'extreme mob behaviour conditions': '… Sharks were attracted to the back of the shrimp9 boat with trash fish,' read out Bond. 'Sharks appeared as a slashing10, splashing shoal. We prepared a tub of fresh fish and another tub of fish mixed with repellent powder. We got up to the shoal of sharks and the photographer started his camera. I shovelled11 over the plain fish for 30 seconds while the sharks, with much splashing, ate them. Then I started on the repellent fish and shovelled for 30 seconds repeating the procedure 3 times. On the first trial the sharks were quite ferocious12 in feeding on plain fish right at the stern of the boat. They cut fish for only about 5 seconds after the repellent mixture was thrown over. A few came back when the plain fish were put out immediately following the repellent. On a second trial 30 minutes later, a ferocious school fed for the 30 seconds that plain fish were supplied, but left as soon as the repellent struck the water. There were no attacks on fish while the repellent was in the water. On the third trial we could not get the sharks nearer than 20 yards of the stern of the boat.'
'What do you make of that?' asked Bond.
'You better have some of dat stuff,' said Quarrel, impressed against his will.
Bond was inclined to agree with him. Washington had cabled that cakes of the stuff were on the way. But they had not yet arrived and were not expected for another forty-eight hours. If the repellent did not arrive, Bond was not dismayed. He could not imagine that he would encounter such dangerous conditions in his underwater swim to the island.
Before he went to bed, he finally decided13 that nothing would attack him unless there was blood in the water or unless he communicated fear to a fish that threatened. As for octopus14, scorpion15 fish and morays, he would just have to watch where he put his feet. To his mind, the three-inch spines16 of the black sea-eggs were the greatest hazard to normal underwater swimming in the tropics and the pain they caused would not be enough to interfere17 with his plans.
They left before six in the morning and were at Beau Desert by half-past ten.
The property was a beautiful old plantation18 of about a thousand acres with the ruins of a fine Great House commanding the bay. It was given over to pimento and citrus inside a fringe of hardwoods and palms and had a history dating back to the time of Cromwell. The romantic name was in the fashion of the eighteenth century, when Jamaican properties were called Bellair, Bellevue, Boscobel, Harmony, Nymphenburg or had names like Prospect19, Content or Repose20.
A track, out of sight of the island in the bay, led them among the trees down to the little beach-house. After the week's picnic at Manatee21 Bay, the bathrooms and comfortable bamboo furniture seemed very luxurious22 and the brightly coloured rugs were like velvet23 under Bond's hardened feet.
Through the slats of the jalousies Bond looked across the little garden, aflame with hibiscus, bougainvillea and roses, which ended in the tiny crescent of white sand half obscured by the trunks of the palms. He sat on the arm of a chair and let his eyes go on, inch by inch, across the different blues24 and browns of sea and reef until they met the base of the island. The upper half of it was obscured by the dipping feathers of the palm trees in the foreground, but the stretch of vertical25 cliff within his vision looked grey and formidable in the half-shadow cast by the hot sun.
Quarrel cooked lunch on a primus stove so that no smoke would betray them, and in the afternoon Bond slept and then went over the gear from London that had been sent across from Kingston by Strangways. He tried on the thin black rubber frogman's suit that covered him from the skull-tight helmet with the perspex window to the long black flippers over his feet. It fitted like a glove and Bond blessed the efficiency of M's 'Q' Branch.
They tested the twin cylinders26 each containing a thousand litres of free air compressed to two hundred atmospheres and Bond found the manipulation of the demand valve and the reserve mechanism27 simple and fool-proof. At the depth he would be working the supply of air would last him for nearly two hours under water.
There was a new and powerful Champion harpoon28 gun and a commando dagger29 of the type devised by Wilkinsons during the war. Finally, in a box covered with danger-labels, there was the heavy limpet mine, a flat cone30 of explosive on a base, studded with wide copper bosses, so powerfully magnetized that the mine would stick like a clam31 to any metal hull32. There were a dozen pencil-shaped metal and glass fuses set for ten minutes to eight hours and a careful memorandum33 of instructions that were as simple as the rest of the gear. There was even a box of benzedrine tablets to give endurance and heightened perception during the operation and an assortment34 of underwater torches, including one that threw only a tiny pencil-thin beam.
Bond and Quarrel went through everything, testing joints35 and contacts until they were satisfied that nothing further remained to be done, then Bond went down among the trees and gazed and gazed at the waters of the bay, guessing at depths, tracing routes through the broken reef and estimating the path of the moon, which would be his only point of reckoning on the tortuous36 journey.
At five o'clock, Strangways arrived with news of the Secatur.
'They've cleared Port Maria,' he said. 'They'll be here in ten minutes at the outside. Mr. Big had a passport in the name of Gallia and the girl in the name of Latrelle, Simone Latrelle. She was in her cabin, prostrate37 with what the negro captain of the Secatur described as sea-sickness. It may have been. Scores of empty fish-tanks on board. More than a hundred. Otherwise nothing suspicious and they were given a clean bill. I wanted to go on board as one of the Customs team but I thought it best that the show should be absolutely normal. Mr. Big stuck to his cabin. He was reading when they went to see his papers. How's the gear?'
'Perfect,' said Bond. 'Guess we'll operate tomorrow night. Hope there's a bit of a wind. If the air-bubbles are spotted38 we shall be in a mess.'
Quarrel came in. 'She's coming through the reef now, Cap'n.'
They went down as close to the shore as they dared and put their glasses on her.
She was a handsome craft, black with a grey superstructure, seventy foot long and built for speed - at least twenty knots, Bond guessed. He knew her history, built for a millionaire in 1947 and powered with twin General Motors Diesels39, steel hull and all the latest wireless40 gadgets41, including ship-to-shore telephone and Decca navigator. She was wearing the Red Ensign at her cross-trees and the Stars and Stripes aft and she was making about three knots through the twenty-foot opening of the reef.
She turned sharply inside the reef and came down to seaward of the island. When she was below it, she put her helm hard over and came up with the island to port. Al the same time three negroes in white ducks came running down the cliff steps to the narrow jetty and stood by to catch lines. There was a minimum of backing and filling before she was made fast just opposite to the watchers ashore42, and the two anchors roared down among the rocks and coral scattered43 round the island's foundations in the sand. She lay well secured even against a 'Norther'. Bond estimated there would be about twenty feet of water below her keel.
As they watched, the huge figure of Mr. Big appeared on deck. He stepped on to the jetty and started slowly to climb the steep cliff steps. He paused often, and Bond thought of the diseased heart pumping laboriously44 in the gieat grey-black body.
He was followed by two negro members of the crew hauling up a light stretcher on which a body was strapped45. Through his glasses Bond could see Solitaire's black hair. Bond was worried and puzzled and he felt a tightening46 of the heart at her nearness. He prayed the stretcher was only a precaution to prevent Solitaire from being recognized from the shore.
Then a chain of twelve men was established up the steps and the fish-tanks were handed up one by one. Quarrel counted a hundred and twenty of them.
Then some stores went up by the same method.
'Not taking much up this time,' commented Strangways when the operation ceased. 'Only half a dozen cases gone up. Generally about fifty. Can't be staying long.'
He had hardly finished speaking before a fish-tank, which their glasses showed was half full of water and sand, was being gingerly passed back to the ship, down the human ladder of hands. Then another and another, at about five-minute intervals47.
'My God,' said Strangways. 'They're loading her up already. That means they'll be sailing in the morning. Wonder if it means they've decided to clean the place out and that this is the last cargo48.'
Bond watched carefully for a while and then they walked quietly up through the trees, leaving Quarrel to report developments.
They sat down in the living-room, and while Strangways mixed himself a whisky-and-soda, Bond gazed out of the window and marshalled his thoughts.
It was six o'clock and the fireflies were beginning to show in the shadows. The pale primrose49 moon was already high up in the eastern sky and the day was dying swiftly at their backs. A light breeze was ruffling50 the bay and the scrolls51 of small waves were unfurling on the white beach across the lawn. A few small clouds, pink and orange in the sunset, were meandering52 by overhead and the palm trees clashed softly in the cool Undertaker's Wind.
'Undertaker's Wind,' thought Bond and smiled wryly53. So it would have to be tonight. The only chance, and the conditions were so nearly perfect. Except that the shark-repellent stuff would not arrive in time. And that was only a refinement54. There was no excuse. This was what he had travelled two thousand miles and five deaths to do. And yet he shivered at the prospect of the dark adventure under the sea that he had already put off in his mind until tomorrow. Suddenly he loathed55 and feared the sea and everything in it. The millions of tiny antennae56 that would stir and point as he went by that night, the eyes that would wake and watch him, the pulses that would miss for the hundredth of a second and then go beating quietly on, the jelly tendrils that would grope and reach for him, as blind in the light as in the dark.
He would be walking through thousands of millions of secrets. In three hundred yards, alone and cold, he would be blundering through a forest of mystery towards a deadly citadel57 whose guardians58 had already killed three men. He, Bond, after a week's paddling with his nanny beside him in the sunshine, was going out tonight, in a few hours, to walk alone under that black sheet of water. It was crazy, unthinkable. Bond's flesh cringed and his fingers dug into his wet palms.
There was a knock on the door and Quarrel came in. Bond was glad to get up and move away from the window to where Strangways was enjoying his drink under a shaded reading light.
'They're working with lights now, Cap'n,' Quarrel said with a grin. 'Still a tank every five minutes. I figure that'll be ten hours' work. Be through about four in the morning. Won't sail before six. Too dangerous to try the passage without plenty light.'
Quarrel's warm grey eyes in the splendid mahogany face were looking into Bond's, waiting for orders.
'I'll start at ten sharp,' Bond found himself saying. 'From the rocks to the left of the beach. Can you get us some dinner and then get the gear out on to the lawn? Conditions are perfect. I'll be over there in half an hour.' He counted on his fingers. 'Give me fuses for five to eight hours. And the quarter-hour one in reserve in case any- , thing goes wrong. Okay?'
'Aye aye, Cap'n,' said Quarrel. 'You jes leave 'em all to me.'
He went out.
Bond looked at the whisky bottle, then he made up his mind and poured half a glass on top of three ice cubes. He took the box of benzedrine tablets out of his pocket and slipped a tablet between his teeth.
'Here's luck,' he said to Strangways and took a deep swallow. He sat down and enjoyed the tough hot taste of his first drink for more than a week. 'Now,' he said,' tell me exactly what they do when they're ready to sail. How long it takes them to clear the island and get through the reef. If it's the last time, don't forget they'll be taking off an extra six men and some stores. Let's try to work it out as closely as we can.'
In a moment Bond was immersed in a sea of practical details and the shadow of fear had fled back to the dark pools under the palm trees.
Exactly at ten o'clock, with nothing but anticipation59 and excitement in him, the shimmering60 black bat-like figure slipped off the rocks into ten feet of water and vanished under the sea.
'Go safely,' said Quarrel to the spot where Bond had disappeared. He crossed himself. Then he and Strangways moved back through the shadows to the house to sleep uneasily in watches and wait fearfully for what might come.
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1
lore
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| n.传说；学问，经验，知识 | |
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inquisitive
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| adj.求知欲强的，好奇的，好寻根究底的 | |
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stimulated
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| a.刺激的 | |
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sensory
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| adj.知觉的，感觉的，知觉器官的 | |
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vibration
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| n.颤动，振动；摆动 | |
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naval
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| adj.海军的，军舰的，船的 | |
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copper
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| n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的 | |
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8
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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shrimp
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| n.虾，小虾；矮小的人 | |
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slashing
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| adj.尖锐的；苛刻的；鲜明的；乱砍的v.挥砍( slash的现在分词 )；鞭打；割破；削减 | |
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11
shovelled
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| v.铲子( shovel的过去式和过去分词 )；锹；推土机、挖土机等的)铲；铲形部份 | |
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12
ferocious
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| adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的 | |
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13
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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octopus
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| n.章鱼 | |
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scorpion
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| n.蝎子，心黑的人，蝎子鞭 | |
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spines
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| n.脊柱( spine的名词复数 )；脊椎；（动植物的）刺；书脊 | |
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17
interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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plantation
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| n.种植园，大农场 | |
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prospect
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| n.前景，前途；景色，视野 | |
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repose
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| v.(使)休息；n.安息 | |
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manatee
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| n.海牛 | |
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22
luxurious
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| adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的 | |
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23
velvet
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| n.丝绒，天鹅绒；adj.丝绒制的，柔软的 | |
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24
blues
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| n.抑郁，沮丧；布鲁斯音乐 | |
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vertical
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| adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置 | |
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cylinders
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| n.圆筒( cylinder的名词复数 )；圆柱；汽缸；（尤指用作容器的）圆筒状物 | |
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mechanism
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| n.机械装置；机构，结构 | |
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28
harpoon
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| n.鱼叉；vt.用鱼叉叉，用鱼叉捕获 | |
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dagger
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| n.匕首，短剑，剑号 | |
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cone
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| n.圆锥体，圆锥形东西，球果 | |
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clam
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| n.蛤，蛤肉 | |
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32
hull
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| n.船身；(果、实等的)外壳；vt.去(谷物等)壳 | |
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memorandum
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| n.备忘录，便笺 | |
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assortment
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| n.分类，各色俱备之物，聚集 | |
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joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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tortuous
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| adj.弯弯曲曲的，蜿蜒的 | |
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prostrate
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| v.拜倒，平卧，衰竭；adj.拜倒的，平卧的，衰竭的 | |
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spotted
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| adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的 | |
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diesels
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| 柴油( diesel的名词复数 )； 柴油机机车（或船等） | |
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wireless
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| adj.无线的；n.无线电 | |
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gadgets
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| n.小机械，小器具（ gadget的名词复数 ） | |
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ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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laboriously
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| adv.艰苦地；费力地；辛勤地；（文体等）佶屈聱牙地 | |
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45
strapped
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| adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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46
tightening
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| 上紧，固定，紧密 | |
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47
intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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48
cargo
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| n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物 | |
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49
primrose
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| n.樱草，最佳部分， | |
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50
ruffling
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| 弄皱( ruffle的现在分词 )； 弄乱； 激怒； 扰乱 | |
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51
scrolls
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| n.（常用于录写正式文件的）纸卷( scroll的名词复数 )；卷轴；涡卷形（装饰）；卷形花纹v.（电脑屏幕上）从上到下移动（资料等），卷页( scroll的第三人称单数 )；（似卷轴般）卷起；（像展开卷轴般地）将文字显示于屏幕 | |
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52
meandering
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| 蜿蜒的河流，漫步，聊天 | |
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53
wryly
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| adv. 挖苦地，嘲弄地 | |
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54
refinement
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| n.文雅；高尚；精美；精制；精炼 | |
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55
loathed
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| v.憎恨，厌恶( loathe的过去式和过去分词 )；极不喜欢 | |
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56
antennae
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| n.天线；触角 | |
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citadel
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| n.城堡；堡垒；避难所 | |
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guardians
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| 监护人( guardian的名词复数 )； 保护者，维护者 | |
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anticipation
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| n.预期，预料，期望 | |
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shimmering
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| v.闪闪发光，发微光( shimmer的现在分词 ) | |
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