Tidal Rage by David Evans (best big ereader .TXT) 📗

Frau Shultz had cabin 4092, which was an ocean-view cabin, but this was irrelevant to Sebastian’s plans, as ocean-view cabins had a view through a window, but the portholes or picture windows were locked down with bolts. There was no CCTV in the accommodation deck corridors or in the stairwells.

Sebastian checked on the location of the cabin stewards; in a corridor this size there would almost certainly be three cabin stewards. He knew he didn’t have to worry too much about guests, as nearly all the ship had gone ashore, with only a few staying on-board, enjoying the sun by the swimming pool on the Lido Deck. As luck would have it, he saw a sign on the canteen noticeboard on the lower decks that the stewards were on lifeboat drills and would be late starting their cleaning schedules this morning.

The door of 4092 had a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign on it, but this did not deter Sebastian from knocking. He knocked several times before a dishevelled and obviously weepy Frau Shultz opened the cabin door.

“Good morning, Frau Shultz. I’m one of the entertainers, and as a lot of the crew have shore duties today, I have been allocated communication duties on-board,” he lied.

“Ja, I know you from the piano bar. What is it you want?” she asked sleepily.

“Can you accompany me to sick bay? Your husband has had a fall. He is okay, but he has broken his ankle. We need you to come down to the sick bay and fill out some forms and details, plus see your husband,” Sebastian continued.

“Broke his ankle? I wish he had broken his neck. Only six weeks married, I wanted a ship day. He leaves me here on-board while he goes off to the island, not to see lovely sights, but to drink beer.” she said, more upset than angry.

After some more exchanges, she excused herself, retreated into her cabin and tidied herself up. She exited the cabin a few minutes later and followed Sebastian a few yards down the corridor to a service door which had a ‘No Entrance’ sign. Explaining this was the quickest way, he led her through the doors and down the levels to deck one, which at this time of the day he was sure would have no members of staff around. Deck one was where the refuse holds were, and he knew the trash collectors worked around here at night only.

The light was dim and there was a large door in front of them. Frau Shultz started to turn to ask him what a first aid station was doing in this dimly lit place. The stench hit her as soon as he opened the door. Sebastian had directed her to the garbage room. Each evening, the elevators would be filled with bags of garbage generated from the multiple bars and restaurants, and throughout the hours of darkness the bags were thrown into the room.

The garbage room was a large metal hold that looked like the inside of a massive container, but with one side bent in the shape of the hull. It ran the length of thirty-four cabins and was two decks lower than the guest cabins. There were metal grids on the ground to allow some of the sickly-sweet ooze that spilled from the garbage bags to drain. The grids had drains that directed the stinking fluid into receptor tanks, which were cleaned and emptied into the sea most nights.

The lighting was subdued and background only, with orange lights in steel enclosures and glass on the side of the hull.

Inside of the giant disposal receptor, the garbage bags were piled up unevenly, some ten high on the starboard side. On the port side was a six-foot hull door that was opened and used to remove the bags to waiting garbage wagons when they arrived and berthed in ports.

Frau Shultz knew immediately something was amiss. She turned sharply on her heels to retrace her steps at a pace. Sebastian placed his middle and forefinger of his right hand swiftly on the pressure point in front of her left shoulder by her neck. This pressure point is an acupunctural pressure point that Sebastian had learned by studying and practicing the Chinese martial art of dim mak. The pain was intense and agonizing for a millisecond; Frau Shultz was unconscious before the scream could escape her mouth.

Sebastian dragged her deeper into the garbage room and closed the heavy hatch door. It was pitch-black once the doors were shut. Sebastian retrieved a pencil flashlight from his pocket and clicked it on to light the way ahead down the narrow aisle through the bags of garbage. He dragged the limp body over the metal steel decking and through the slime of the ooze that had leaked from the bags.

He was in no rush; he knew no one would come down here until night. He put on his disc player with earphones to listen to Wagner; this way he would not have to listen to the sounds of death. While the act of murder was euphoric, the sounds of the human body dying disgusted him a little. He really did not enjoy the groans, the moans, or the gurgling and bubbling as the fluids escaped the body. Wagner was much more appropriate to support what was to follow.

Slowly she regained consciousness and tried to scream, but no cry came out, only gurgled nonsense. She realized quickly that her arms had been tied behind her back with her own dress, and a piece torn off and strapped around her mouth. She was naked and dripping in the fetid garbage ooze. Frau Shultz urinated involuntarily with fright; she now feared the worst, except what she feared was not the worst.

As Frau Shultz regained some of her senses, she realized she was naked, and