Chapter 4

It had been over a week now, and still no sign of Lee Crane. Hardy's agents in Djibouti did come up with an interesting bit of information that there was a gang kidnapping men and selling them into service aboard vessels or for other endeavors requiring grunt labor, to the highest bidder. They had pulled in the Djibouti police, raided the group's headquarters, and came up with a wealth of passports, IDs and other personal effects of the men they had shanghaied. Looking through the documents recovered, they came across Lee's forged credentials and identification cards letting them know they had at least discovered why he hadn't shown up for the meet.

That was the extent of their luck however since there were no records regarding where the kidnapped men had been sent. It was a cash only business with no questions asked or answered, and from what the ring leader said very few repeat customers. There was no telling where they had gone once turned over to the buyers. The only lead they could follow up on was to check the crews of vessels that had been through the port after Crane had disappeared.

Knowing there was virtually no way to find Lee, Hardy finally made the decision to notify Nelson that his captain was missing. Tom pulled open his lower left desk drawer and removed a bottle of bourbon and a clean glass, then poured a generous shot and threw it back. He'd need that fortification once he broke the news to Harri.

He reached across the desk, picked up the phone and buzzed his aide sitting outside. "Webber get me Harriman Nelson on the Seaview. I believe they're somewhere in the Indian Ocean conducting fish surveys or some such nonsense."

"Yes sir, I'm on it," Webber replied then sprang into action making that happen. After 15 minutes he knocked on the admiral's door and peeked in letting him know Nelson was on the line.

Hardy nodded his thanks and stared at the phone momentarily as though it were a venomous snake that would jump out and bite him if he got too close. Steeling his resolve he picked up the receiver and hit the flashing button connecting him with Nelson.

"Harri, Tom here," Hardy started.

"Morning Tom, to what do I owe this pleasure?" Harri replied. "What's Lee done now?"

"Harri are you alone?" Tom asked.

"No. Do I need to be?" Harri replied as a dark specter skittered up his spine sending chills over his body.

"I think it would be advisable."

"Okay, just a minute," Harri responded. Hardy could hear Nelson dispatch the individuals with him, and then the crash doors to the nose section sliding shut. "I'm alone Tom, what's wrong?"

"Harri I need to let you know we've lost contact with Crane. As best we can ascertain he was kidnapped and sold into service to either a vessel or mining operation."

"What?! How the hell did that happen? When did that happen?" Harri bellowed.

"He never made the meeting with his contact. As soon as we were aware that he had failed to show up, we started making subtle inquiries at the usual places and came up with nothing. Once the information transfer was completed with another agent, we expanded our efforts and came up with a kidnapping ring preying on the sailors on liberty at the port," Hardy explained. "The Djibouti police busted the ring, and we found Lee's credentials amongst those of the other men they had shanghaied. One thing in Lee's favor is that these men just grabbed people based on their needs, with no eye towards who they really were. We're 99% certain that Lee is not in the custody of any unfriendly governments looking for information related to our operations or yours."

"Damn it to hell," Harri spat. He felt as though he'd been punched in the gut and was reeling badly from the shot. "Do you have any idea who has him or where he might have been taken?"

"According to the ring leader, it was a cash only transactions and his buyer only needed able bodied men. He thought they may have gone to a ship because the customer indicated sailing experience was preferred. I've got a list of all the vessels that have sailed since Lee disappeared, and we will have agents there to greet them when they make port. We've also sent out feelers for anything in the region that would rely on slave labor, but that's coming up blank," Hardy expounded. "I'm truly sorry Harri, I know how close you and Lee are. Although he may be in trouble, this is Lee Crane we're talking about, and if there's even the slightest chance of making it out he'll take it and succeed."

"I appreciate the notification, Tom. If there's anything we can do to help don't hesitate to let me know. I would also appreciate it if you would keep me up to date with your efforts to find him," Nelson replied.

"Of course Harri. I've not given up hope and neither should you. Again I'm truly sorry, I'll be in touch," Tom responded then hung up the phone.

(olooo)

Harri sat quietly in the nose as he digested what he had just heard from Hardy. It seemed unthinkable that Lee could be taken out by just human traffickers. The man had a sixth sense that worked overtime to keep him safe from situations like that, there had to be more to it than Hardy was letting on. The more he replayed Tom's words in his mind, the more sincere they seemed. He seemed as equally shaken up by Lee's disappearance as he now was.

Harri picked up his coffee cup and finished off the last of the cold dregs in the cup. His stomach already in a knot, the stale coffee only served to tighten it even further. He sighed deeply knowing now he needed to inform Chip and eventually the entire crew of Lee's disappearance. He knew Chip would be as concerned as he was, along with a good portion of the crew.

After a moment he pushed to his feet and headed up the staircase to his cabin. He entered and made a beeline to the head to splash some cool water on his face. He dried his face then walked over to his desk and hit the intercom. "Mr. Morton, report to my cabin."

"Morton here sir, I'm on my way," Chip responded instantly. Harri wasn't surprised at Chip's immediate response as he knew once Sparks informed him ONI was on the line he would be on alert until he found out what had gone wrong.

Harri sat down slowly at his desk, pulled open the left hand drawer of his desk and removed his bottle of the family label and two glasses. As he set them on the desk top there was a soft rap at his door and Chip entered.

Taking in Harri's shaken appearance and the bottle and glasses on the desk Chip knew immediately something was wrong, something had happened to Lee. "What's wrong sir? What did Admiral Hardy have to say?"

"Come over and sit down Chip," Harri replied. He poured them each a small shot and pushed the glass towards Chip. "Hardy called to say that Lee has gone missing. He never showed up for the information transfer, and they suspect he's been kidnapped by human traffickers and sold into slavery, most likely on a boat."

"What?! That doesn't sound likely. Lee would never leave himself open to something like that," Chip responded.

"According to Tom, they discovered the kidnapping ring when he dispatched agents to look into Lee's disappearance, and with the aid of the Djibouti police they raided the ring's headquarters and found Lee's credentials. There are no records of who bought whom, or where they went, but the head of the ring thought Lee went to someone looking for sailors," Nelson explained. "Tom's certain that it was just a crime of opportunity and not aimed at Lee specifically because some unfriendly government wanted him for the information in his head or a little revenge. If that's the case, then there's always a chance that Lee will seize any opportunity for escape and make it work."

"So what are they doing to find him, or have they just left him to the wolves like they usually do?" Chip snarled.

"They're checking the region for any illegal mining operations, and they have a list of all the vessels that left port since Lee was abducted and will be checking them out when they make their next port of call."

"That's just great. And what if the captains toss their impressed sailors overboard before they make port?" Chip asked angrily.

"If Lee's still alive, we're going to have to rely on his abilities to rescue himself. They've never failed him in the past, we just have to hope they don't now," Harri offered. "As long as there isn't a body, there's always hope and hope is a good thing."

Chip nodded solemnly. He picked up his glass and inclined it towards Harri. "Here's to hope," he said then threw back the shot as did Nelson. "Well sir, if there's nothing more, I need to let the crew know."

"No Chip, there's nothing else," Harri replied quietly. "He's the best Chip, we just need to keep reminding ourselves of that fact." Chip nodded and gave Nelson a small smile then turned and exited his cabin to break the news to the crew.