Page 39 of Honor Code

With a startled look, the roughneck jumped in and the cast off, bobbing away from the structure.

Phoenix yelled out to Boomer. "Get off there, buddy. Now!"

“I’m just going to try?—”

“Now!” Phoenix shouted.

But he was too late.

The world exploded in a massive fireball, the shockwave slamming into him like a freight train. He was hurled off the ladder, the sea rushing up to meet him. Pain exploded through his body as he hit the water, darkness closing in around him, and then... nothing.

CHAPTER 19

Ellie was a mile out when she saw the explosion. At first, she thought she was imagining things, but when thick black smoke began billowing into the sky, she panicked, her blood running cold.

Oh, my God!

Was that for real?

She floored the tiller, coaxing every last ounce of strength from the outboard motor, her heart racing with disbelief. What had happened? Had they hit gas? Had a pressure gauge blown? More importantly, was anyone hurt?

From out here, it looked like a massive explosion. Great big clouds of black smoke were unfurling into the air like some monstrous beast.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

In a blind panic, she gripped the tiller, anguished tears running down her face. As she sped towards the inferno, she could only pray everyone was alright.

Phoenix? Boomer? Billy?

Suzi would have left by now, along with most of the other weekly workers, thank goodness, but what about the rest of the staff?

As she got nearer, she noticed another boat speeding away from the wreckage through the thick curtain of smoke. Black, sleek, and going at one hell of a pace, she hadn't noticed it before. It didn't look like one of the boats attached to the Explorer.

By the time she reached the burning jack-up rig, the black boat had disappeared into the distance, lost in the smoke. She slowed and gazed in horror at the debris floating around the base of the rig. An enormous, jagged gash had been blown through the center, the steel innards—pipes and wires—hanging down like garish metal entrails.

Cutting the engine, she bobbed amongst the flotsam, desperately searching for signs of life.

"Phoenix!" Her voice sounded hollow and insignificant amidst the backdrop of the raging inferno consuming the rig. "Boomer!" She couldn't see any bodies, but that didn't mean there weren't any.

Oh God, please let them be alive...

Tears poured down her face, making it hard to see through the stinging smoke. The rig burned ferociously, the searing heat scorching her skin even at this distance. The launch pad had disintegrated, and the great jack-up rig groaned mournfully as its twisted steel structure listed heavily to one side like a wounded beast.

How could this happen?

What should she do? With violently shaking hands, she managed to pull out her phone. No reception. That wasn't surprising since they relied on the Wi-Fi on the rig to communicate with the outside world. Fat lot of good that was now—it had all been blown to smithereens along with the rest of the structure. She should have brought a sat phone with her…

A short, anguished cry cut through the smoke, and she turned to see the second inflatable bobbing a few hundred yards away, having been hidden behind the remnants of the scorched rig.

“Oh, thank God!” She headed toward it.

Billy stood at the helm, frantically beckoning to her, his face a mask of shock. "Holy shit, Ellie. We just got off the damn thing in time."

"What happened?" She stared at him, wide-eyed, her mind reeling. He looked haggard, his face pinched and strained, as if he'd aged a decade in minutes.

"Phoenix found an explosive device of some sort under the rig. Boomer was checking it out when it detonated. They gave us a warning, and we got everyone into the boat. Not a second too soon." He coughed and raked a trembling hand through his hair, his eyes haunted.

Her voice was a hoarse, choked whisper. "What about Phoenix and Boomer? Where are they?"

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