“Uh-huh,” her companion responded.
Karen looked at Jack, who leaned out one of the windows. He soaked his handkerchief with cold seawater, then sat on the windowsill, draping the wet cloth over his sweaty face. They had been clambering among these ruins all day, going from one site to another, stopping only for a cold lunch of bread and cheese. So far their search had proved fruitless. They had found a handful of barnacle-encrusted pieces of pottery and broken bits of statuary, but no further evidence of writing or crystals. Just rock and more rock. The ravages of sea, sand, and currents had erased everything but the basalt bones of this ancient city.
“Tired?” she asked, realizing her litany of stories were probably falling on deaf ears by now. She sat down on the wide sill beside him. “Sorry to take up your whole day. Maybe it would be best if we headed back.” She checked her watch. “Hopefully, Miyuki has made some headway on the translations.”
Jack pulled the wet handkerchief from his face and smiled. “There’s nothing to apologize for. You’ve opened my eyes on a past I never knew existed out here. I’ve traveled these seas in search of treasures for over a decade, but never heard a tenth of these stories.”
“Thanks for listening.”
Jack stood. “But you’re right. We should be heading back.”
Karen glanced out the window. Dusk was falling. Long shadows crept across the waters. She nodded.
Jack helped her stand, his grip firm on her hand. They crossed over to the building’s entrance where their motorboat was docked. Jack worked the rope loose, while Karen tossed her backpack into the stern.
Rope in hand, Jack suddenly froze. “Did you hear—” Then he was flying across the small room, tackling her to the hard floor. “Stay down.”
She heard it, too. A high-pitched whistle that was growing louder. She lifted her head. “What is it?”
“Rockets,” he hissed, straddling her.
“What—”
Then the world exploded with a crashing roar. Jack rolled off her and peeked out the window. Karen joined him. Off to the south she saw a billow of smoke and bits of rock climb high into the sky. As they watched, another explosion blew apart one of the basalt statues far to the west. A stone hand flew across the setting sun.
“What’s happening?” Karen asked, cringing.
Overhead, a military jet streaked south. United States markings. Twin streams of fire bloomed as a pair of missiles were launched from the jet’s underbelly, screaming across the darkening sky. Other jets shot past, one winging low across the islands, trailing smoke.
Jack pulled Karen back down. “Something tells me the blockade around Taiwan just exploded.” Together, they crawled to a window. The southern horizon glowed as if a new sun were rising. “We’d better get clear of here.”
Another explosion erupted nearby, quickly followed by another. Karen’s ears rang with the echoing roars as she scrambled to her feet. Out the window the twilight sky was streaked with ribbons of smoke. They moved back to the door.
“Damn it,” Jack muttered. Their motorboat, untethered a moment ago, had drifted several yards away. He shrugged out of his own pack and kicked off a boot. “I’ll fetch it.”
Karen grabbed his elbow as he teetered on one foot. Another telltale whistle pierced their ears, much louder this time. Jack’s eyes were huge as he glanced at her. Together, they leaped away from the doorway and rolled behind sheltering walls.
Karen screamed as the blast shook the walls and dust showered her. The roar of the detonation seemed endless. Jack scuttled to her side. His lips moved but she could not make out his words. A huge boulder landed in the next room, crashing down. As the echoes faded, she could finally hear Jack’s words.
“…okay. It was a near hit, but we’re safe.”
She nodded, her eyes blurry with tears.
He helped her up. This time she remained in the shelter of his arms. They returned to the door.
Jack kicked off his other boot. “I’ll just grab the boat, and we’ll get our asses out of the line of fire.”
Karen groaned as they reached the threshold. “Oh, no.”
His grip tightened on her.
The squat building across the canal was a blasted ruin. Smoke was so thick it was hard to see clearly. The force of the explosion had blown the boat right back to their doorway. They could easily clamber back in. But the boat was quickly filling with water. Huge rocks had pelted it, punching holes through its hull. Gas leaked in a slow spray from its ruptured outboard tank.
“Now what?” Karen asked.
Jack shook his head.
More explosions erupted—but farther south. Jack pulled Karen to his side. “Sit down.”
They sank to the stone floor, leaning against the wall. Each explosion trembled the stones. Karen found herself leaning less on the wall and more on Jack’s arm.
For a half hour they listened. Beyond the window, full night descended. The whistle of rocket fire and dull rumblings continued, but now far to the south.
Jack finally spoke. “I think maybe they’re done with us. Just retaliatory strikes. Harassing fire meant to intimidate. I think we’ll be okay. We’ll hole up here tonight. In the morning I’ll swim to Chatan and get help.”
Karen shivered with his words. “The Chinese—”
“I think they’ll leave us alone now.” Jack got up and crossed to the doorway. “I’ll keep watch.”
Karen stood and joined him. She kept near his shoulder. With the night already cold, she could feel the heat radiating from Jack’s body and leaned closer.
The dark sky was foggy with smoke. A jet sped past to the west. Karen followed its course with worry. Movement closer at hand caught her eye. Glancing to the sea beyond the ruins, she spotted a brief glint of starlight on metal. “What’s that?” she asked, squinting.
“What?”
She pointed.
Jack squinted, then fished her binoculars out of her pack. He stared through them for a few seconds and scowled. “Great…”
“What is it?”
“Conning tower. Chinese sub. Now I know why they were bombarding the ruins. Covering fire as it crept beyond the blockade. I spotted some type of special forces team loading into a pontoon.”
“Why? What are they doing?”
“Probably being sent in for surveillance and sabotage.” He lowered the binoculars. “How good a swimmer are you?”
Cold terror trickled through her veins. “I was on the university’s intramural swim team. But that was ten years ago.”