Page 13 of Shinji Takahashi: Into the Heart of the Storm

Lucy!Shinji glared at her, making her eyes widen.That was a secret! You weren’t supposed to tell anyone!

Lucy winced, looking immediately guilty.Sorry, she mouthed, but Shinji turned away, still fuming. That was the last time he would tell Lucy a secret.

“Hmm.” Mano folded his arms, looking thoughtful. “I suppose that is something,” he mused. “Having a guardian around should act as a counter to any bad fortune the Mystic name might bring aboard.” He gave a gusty sigh. “I still don’t like it, but I guess it’ll do. She’s welcome to come along.” He scratched the back of his neck, giving Phoebe a guilty look. “Sorry, Miss Mystic. No offense taken, I hope?”

Shinji glanced at Phoebe. For just a moment, her eyes were hooded, a shadow of some dark emotion crossing her face. But then she brightened, and the shadow was gone so quickly he thought he had imagined it.

“Oh, not at all.” Phoebe waved off the tense moment with a cheerful smile. “Don’t worry, Mr. Mano. I am well aware that my family name might carry a bit of baggage for some. Especially after the whole music-box incident.” She snorted a laugh and made a dramatic gesture with one arm. “Really, you’d be surprised how often this sort of thing

comes up. Shall we go? I’m eager to see this boat you all keep talking about.”

“This way, then.” Mano gestured down the pier. “TheSeas the Dayis waiting for us at the end of the harbor.”

“There it is,” Oliver announced a few minutes later, nodding across the pier. “TheSeas the Day. That’s our ship.”

Shinji followed his gaze, and his brows rose. An enormous blue-and-white ship sat in the glittering waters at the end of the dock. It was, Shinji estimated, over two hundred feet in length, with a yellow crane at the back and a radio tower stabbing into the air up front. No tiny sailboat or clunky barge, it would’ve towered over theGood Tern, and it dwarfed most of the other boats in the harbor.

It was probably one of the bigger ships he’d seen, certainly the biggest he would ever be a passenger on.

“Pretty impressive,” Oliver said, arms crossed as he gazed

up at the vessel. “Not as fast as theSalty Siren, of course,” he added, referring to his own ship. “But as a research vessel, it’s better set up for these types of missions. Plus, there’s a full team of Society scientists and researchers aboard, so things are going to be interesting. What do you think, kid?” he asked, glancing at Shinji. “Not a bad place to be spending the week, right?”

“Oh, I can’t wait,” Phoebe exclaimed. “A ship like this will surely have all sorts of underwater cameras and motion sensors. I still hope we can see a kraken. Or a siren, though the boys might have to stuff wax in their ears to keep from being lured overboard.”

Oliver snorted. “Wax. What are we, in the fourteenth century?” Reaching into his coat pocket, he pulled out a small plastic bag, which he tossed at Shinji and Lucy. “Here, kids. Not that I think we’ll need it, but just in case.”

Shinji caught the bag and gazed down at the contents. “Earplugs?” He frowned.

“Never leave home without them.” Oliver nodded. “Especially if you’re a sailor. Siren songs are no joke.”

As Shinji stuck the earplug bag into his pocket, his nerves prickled a warning. It was that same sensation of being watched that he’d had right before Roux slammed into Lucy. Turning, he scanned the dock and the surrounding harbor, staring at the boats, searching for anyone who might be watching them. For a figure with long, sun-bleached hair and dark eyes. This time, though, he didn’t see anything

weird or out of place. If someone was spying on them, they were doing it out of sight.

Following Oliver and Mano up the ramp, Shinji, Lucy, and Phoebe were met by a dark-skinned, dark-haired woman in a long white coat. “Welcome to theSeas the Day,” she said, holding out a hand to Oliver. “I’m the chief archaeologist, Dr. Tamara Grant. It’s an honor to have such an esteemed Society member on board, Mr. Ocean.”

“Just call me Oliver.” Oliver grinned at her. “Also, who is going around calling me ‘esteemed’? I’m going to have to work on my reputation around here.”

The archaeologist chuckled. “Your reputation already precedes you, Oliver Ocean, trust me on that.” She glanced at Lucy and Shinji with a smile. “And these must be the new members of SEA,” she went on. “Welcome aboard.”

“Thanks,” Shinji replied. “This is a big ship.”

“It is.” She nodded. “And I know you’re probably tired, having flown all the way from the US, but would you like a little tour before we cast off? I’ll show you what we do here and where everything is. If nothing else, it’ll be a good way to combat that jet lag I’m sure you’re feeling.”

“Sure! If that’s okay?” Shinji added, glancing at Oliver. He really wanted to check out the ship, but the operation he was on wasn’t exactly a vacation. They had a mission to complete. But Oliver waved them off.

“You kids go ahead,” he told them. “Get the grand tour.

I’ll be catching up with Mano and seeing what we’ll need to do for this little excursion.”

“We cast off in an hour,” Mano announced, turning away with Oliver. “Sorry for the shortened time line, but I want to be well under way in case Hightower is already here. Be ready by then, Doctor.”

“Yes, Captain.”

As Mano and Oliver walked off, the doctor turned to Shinji and Lucy with a wink. “You two don’t have to be so formal,” she told them. “Call me Tamara.”

“I’ll come, too,” Phoebe announced. “I would love to see more of the ship, if that is allowed?”

---