Marriage is Murder

Michael took them off in the direction he'd pointed. As they got over a large cropping of rocks, Khaat could vaguely see something that seemed to be spiraling upwards for a bit. As she got closer, she could identify it. It was a broken mast of an old 18th century merchant ship, or what was left of it. The wreck was turned over on its side. A large hole was in the broadside of it. Michael guessed it was from perhaps cannon fire. Brian pointed to Khaat to go around the bow and take a look. Brian headed aft to go around the stern. Michael was heading right for the hole in the port side.

Khaat saw that the bow was even with a sharp drop off down into a crevase. But she saw noting unusual but ship rubble. Brian saw a trail of debris going out behind the stern off into the distance. He figured that was where the large part of the cargo or fittings for the ship would have fallen.

Michael chased a large shark out of the inside of the ship and watched it go off into the distance. He looked into the inisde of the ship. It seemed structurally safe enough. He went inside, lighting his wand, looking.

Jim waited out side letting Cassidy explore on her own but with in eye sight of him he saw an old chest and swum over to it opening the lid he found it empty and closed the lid once more returning to watch Cassidy. Cassidy swum around the mast and ran her hand over the old wood swimming down she stood on the old deck carefully a she saw the shark dart out of a hole and away from them. She moved to a port hole and glanced in seeing an empty room she sighed and swum back to Jim.

Michael wormed his way to the cargo hold and slithered inside. There was still cargo in the hold. Crates that were deteriorating. He used his wand to cast a spell to open the crates. Endless bottles of aged brandy, rum, scotch. Some of the most desired and collectable vintages in the known world. His eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas. Brian followed him into the hold and when he saw what Michael did, he smiled. This was worth more than the price of several of the Donohue's yachts. He and Michael cast a spell to send each bottle to the surface, to the deck of the ship, one at a time, carefully, unbroken. He and Michael looked at each other. They would sell the entire haul and divide the spoils equally--after the Donohue's ship was paid for. That would come off the top.

Khaat had slipped inside to the bridge. She saw the large wheel. It was still beautiful. Still intact. She wanted to collect it so that she could later give it to Angus for Christmas. It would look outstanding hanging on his wall. But she wasn't sure she could free it from the steering column without damaging it, And then there was still the business of shrinking itand pocketting it before it could fall and break--and so that Angus did not see it. It might be a job for a couple more hands.

Jim and cassidy followed Khaat into the bridge and saw the wheel Jim nodded and moved to hold it as cassidy tapped the rotten peg holding it as it came away Jim shrunk it placing it in the net Cassidy had hanging from her belt. Jim indicated it was hers but he would let Cassidy take it up to the surface for her. Cassidy nodded and saw a carved wooden box picking it up she shrunk it and placed it in her bag carefully with the ships wheel as she swum with Jim. It was then she felt something snake around her ankle and tug her down , Jim saw it too a large octopus and fired his wand at it, it let her go and slithered away in a cloud of black ink.

Khaat nodded to Jim and Cassidy, grateful for their help. She continued to explore and she saw something hanging out of what would have been a glass window in front of the bridge. Whatever it was, was hanging by a thin tatter of a piece of red fabric. She used her wand to summon it. It was a beautiful ornate gold compass. There was some sort of engraving on it. She handed it to Cassidy to put in the bag.

She turned and saw a doorway leading down what was left of the passageway. She went that way and saw a room off to her left. She went inside. It was the captain's quarters--or what was left. There wasn't much left there now. Decaying furniture and tattered fabrics and equipment. She thought she saw a glitter of gold and swam that way, but found it was only a piece of yellow seaweed when she pulled on it. The next thing she knew, something hit her hard on the head. It took her a minute to regain herself. She found she'd been hit with a long, rather flat wooden box. It had the crest of the captain engraved upon it. It was padlocked. She decided to take it.

She shrank it and turned to see a rather fierce looking set of teeth ready to bite her in half. The hit to the head had cuased just a trickle of blood from a cut, and that had raised the deep hunger of an enormous white shark who was doing his best to push through the rotting window in the captains quarters and was only a fraction of an inch from her. She tried to move and fell, her ankle caught in a rotting floorboard. She saw no way out. She was going to die. After all the adventures, it would end like this? On a harmless dive? By a fish? That wasnt' what she had expected.

Jim watched as cassidy took the compass and place it in her bag then he motioned for her to swim up while he moved to follow Khaat seeing the collapse he swum forward just in time to see the shark snap at Khaat taking his wand he shot an arrow into the shark and pushed it out of a hole for the others , swimming down he tugged at the floor board , reaching around he checked her dial and was glad to see she had plenty of air. He motioned for her to stay put while he got Brian and Michael. swimming back out he saw Brian and waved his arms pointing down to the room with Khaat in.

Brian and Michael immediately saw the signal Jim was giving. They left the spell to finish emptying the haul out of the cargo hold and floated up to the deck where Khaat was trapped in the captains quarters. It didnt take them more than a couple of moments to see her foot was caught in a rotted floorboard. Michael fired a spell at the floorboards to bend the ones that pinned her. Brian put his hands on her ankle and freed it from the hole. There was a bruise forming on her ankle already and it was starting to swell.

Brian motioned to the others that he was taking Khaat to the surface. He put his arm under her shoulder and took her out of the wrecked ship and took her to the surface. There was a full crew on the deck, taking in the great haul of bottles of finely aged liquor as it came up one at a time. When Khaat and Brian surfaced, the crew flew to get them on board. Robert was already on deck. He went over to them and took the large wooden box that she still held. He put the box aside and helped her to a chaise lounge and sat her there. Angus and Brian freed her of the air tanks and the gear and the flippers while Robert began checking her for injuries.

Jim nodded and followed once he saw Khaat free and on her way up he too moved up to the yacht and climbed out a crew man helped him out. " she going to be alright" he asked and dried himself walking over to them cassidy walked over as Jess quickly came up and headed for Khaat touching her ankle she reduced the swelling and took some of the pain from her she also healed the cut.

" Robert she had a swollen ankle and a cut to her head but nothing life threatening. " Jess said looking over at him.

"Well done, Jess," Robert said. He didnt' find any other injuries. "I think you'll live," he told Khaat. "Looks like you all found quite a haul. Well done, indeed. All of you. What's in the box you brought up, Khaat?"

"I have no idea," she said. He went over to the box and found it padlocked. He was going to simply blow the lock, when Michael walked between them.

"Let's not handle this with overkill, shall we?" Michael laughed. He knelt and got a lockpick out of his belt and opened the lock easily. It clicked open in his hand and he removed it. "Do you want the honors, Khaat?"

"Go ahead," she told him. He found a wax seal around the edges of the box and he broke the seal and opened the old rusty hinges and inside he found several large beautiful shawls, all packed carefully in old paper to prevent them from being crushed.

"Oh well done," Michael said. "They're beautiful. There have to be a dozen of them here. And theyre in perfect, mint condition with the price tags still attached. Looks to me like they were to have been his gift to a woman, and they never made it home."

"Make sure that Jess and Cassidy and my mother each get one," she told him. "Their choice."

"You heard the lady," he said to them. "Come and pick one for yourselves."

Jess smiled and took a light blue shawl she loved how it shimmered in the light , cassidy took a deep rich red one Jim smiled " that one suits you cassidy " he said and she smiled as she headed down to her room to look at her self. Jim saw Jess and nodded as Jack complimented her as well . Jim moved to look at the bag Cassidy had brought up taking out the campus he handed it to Khaat then took out the small wooden box cassidy had found inside he found gold jewelery of all kinds and he smiled as he showed Angus it. " well she didn't do too bad for her first dive , though I think the crown goes to Khaat " he said handing Khaat the small ships wheel as if he was shaking her hand so Angus wouldn't see.