Selene
Copyright© 2022 by Old Man with a Pen
Chapter 15
I did! I did! I did find something.
The Lagoon came with dive gear. I suited up, balanced my weight and let out air so I would sink. Just enough negative buoyancy. I dropped down the thirty feet and blinked.
Not what I expected. I was expecting a brass cannon. What I found was similar ... well ... it was long and round ... but it wasn’t brass and for sure not a cannon. A rusty crunchy torpedo. Complete.
I was very careful ascending.
When I called the Coast Guard I decided that ditz was better than intelligent. I wouldn’t have to be formal.
“Coast Guard, calling Freeport Coast Guard.”
“Coast Guard.” A woman’s voice.
“Hi.”
“Go ahead.”
“I’m Selene.”
“Good Afternoon, Selene.”
“Umh ... I think you guys are probably who I want ... but maybe Army Ordnance Disposal might want in on this.”
Sudden silence except for the woosh of indrawn breath. The Gulf coast had had a rash of beached mines. I remember reading that in an online paper.
“Go ahead Selene.” A different voice ... a command voice.
“I’m slowly backing away from what looks like a rusty torpedo.”
“What does the suspected torpedo look like?”
“A long tube with two bronze propellers. It’s maybe 20 inches in diameter and 20 feet long.”
“Yes ma’am. We’re interested.”
“The location is 28.768156, -95.618628.”
“Just outside the ICW?”
“Yes sir.”
“Tell me ... are there houses near?”
“Yes. There are a couple ... no ... three pickups full of teenagers. Volleyball net, bunch of kids. Looks like a picnic party.
“Whoops ... make that 20 pickups and a whole bunch of kids ... graduation party?”
Silence from the other end.
“Now my crew is interested ... a pickup with three kegs just drove up.”
“Cutter on the way, ma’am.”
“Speedo’s and tiny bikinis ... they’re in the water. Ten or 11 kids in the water ... the object is 30 feet down pretty much right below ‘em.”
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