Kenzie and Reese followed Pierce and his men down a set of metal stairs into what appeared to be one of the data control centers.
Five men and one woman, dressed in the yellow coveralls worn by the Poseidon crew, sat in front of a bank of dials and gauges, watching production levels and God only knew what else.
They went from one room to another, one level to the next, Dave Pierce or one of the other men rattling off complicated explanations of the different work done by the massive drilling equipment.
They talked about blowout valves, cement-lined casings, and all the other important safety precautions in place. Reese asked poignant questions and seemed to comprehend most of what was being said, but the lengthy discussion of machinery and equipment was putting Kenzie to sleep. Which Reese seemed to sense.
When they reached the cafeteria, he pulled her aside. “We’ll be coming back here to eat when the tour is over. In the meantime I’d like to get your take on employee morale, what their workdays are like, their family life, that kind of thing. I think it would be more productive for you to talk to some of the crew while I finish the tour of the rig.”
Relieved, Kenzie smiled and nodded. “I can handle that.” Reese left with the men and Kenzie pushed through the doors leading into the cafeteria. She paused next to a heavyset man with thinning gray hair and asked how to get a cup of coffee.
“Just head in that direction, ma’am.” He pointed toward a line of thermal containers and stacks of paper cups against the wall. “They never run out. With twenty-four-hour shifts seven days a week, coffee is the lifeblood of this place.”
“I can understand that. Thanks.” Kenzie headed across the room and poured a cup of coffee from the container of French roast next to the decaf, then walked over to speak to one of the few women she had seen among the crew.
Introducing herself and explaining her interest, she sat down at the table with a safety engineer named Marty DeSalvo.
“I’ve been wondering what it’s like to work here.” Kenzie sipped her coffee, which was fresh and hot and strong.
“It’s not an easy lifestyle, that’s for sure.” Marty, a small woman with heavy black hair and a pretty face, explained that there were few women on the rig because it was difficult for them to be separated from their children for two weeks at a time.
“For me and my husband, it works. We don’t have any kids and he’s a salesman, so he sets his own schedule. My two weeks off gives us a chance to travel, something we both really enjoy.”
Kenzie spoke to a few of the men and got similar answers. Leaving home every two weeks wasn’t easy, but having two weeks off all at once had its advantages, and the pay was good.
A guy named Joe Wickersham warned her that rig life wasn’t for everyone. “There ain’t no windows in your room, you know? So you got a problem with enclosed spaces, this ain’t the job for you.”
She was beginning to understand that. The cafeteria was big, with plenty of lighting, lots of tables, and room to move around, but you couldn’t see outside. In a lot of ways, the rig was like a giant submarine. She would be glad when they were headed back home.
Her gaze went to the door as Reese walked in. The man with him was taller, more muscular, with a thick barrel chest. But it was Reese who dominated the space, clearly the man in control.
Her pulse kicked up the way it always did. As he strode toward her, she felt the same spike of awareness that hit her every morning when he walked into the office.
“How’s it going?” he asked.
“Great. It’s an interesting life. It’s not for me, that’s for sure, but the people who work here seem happy with their jobs.”
He nodded. “Good to hear.” He glanced around the room, taking note of available tables. “Let’s get something to eat.” They went through a line that offered a variety of food, everything from lettuce wraps to enchiladas to good old American standards like burgers and chili.
Good food was important on a rig.
“There’s a supply ship on the way,” Reese said as they sat down across from Dave Pierce and the big guy he had walked in with, Tony Sandini. “We’re scheduled to go for a ride, take a look at the rig from the water. You like the ocean, right? You don’t get seasick or anything?”
“Nope.”
“Good. Soon as we’ve finished our boat ride, we’ll take off back to Houston.” His gaze heated. “I’ve got plans for us tonight.”
Kenzie’s stomach contracted. He just had to look at her the way he was now and she wanted him. She swallowed and nodded. “Okay.”
The supply boat was a red-and-white affair sixty feet long. The platform produced its own power and water, but food supplies, all sorts of products that were needed on a daily basis, arrived by boats out of Galveston.
Kenzie stepped onto the deck and immediately lost her balance as a heavy wave lifted the vessel several feet into the air. Reese’s strong hand wrapped around her waist to steady her, and she smiled. “Thanks.”
“My pleasure.” His hot glance said his mind was already on the night ahead. Kenzie felt a rush of heat, but Reese’s attention had returned to the job at hand.
He followed Tony along the deck toward the bow of the boat, where a big metal crane was offloading supplies to a deck that circled the base of the rig. An elevator lifted the goods to the various decks, where they were unloaded.
Reese was busy asking questions, but as the boat pulled away from the lower deck to circle the four massive pillars supporting the rig, Kenzie was absorbed by the beautiful day, the clear blue sky, and foamy white waves breaking against the hull.
She watched a seagull circling above her and smiled at the warmth of the sun on her face. She noticed Reese moving farther away as Tony explained something about the crane.
It took a moment to realize something in the atmosphere had shifted. She turned at the sound of shouting and running feet. The engine stalled and a wave washed over the bow. Then the big boat shuddered and erupted in a fierce explosion, pieces and parts flying into the air with murderous force.
“Kenzie!” Reese raced toward her. He was still several yards away when a second explosion ripped through the air, lifting the center of the boat out of the sea and flipping the deck onto its side.
Kenzie screamed as she hit the cold water, the shock taking her breath away. Kicking her legs, she pushed toward the surface, broke through, and dragged in a deep breath of air. The sea was littered with huge chunks of wood and pieces of plastic, some of them on fire, but the boat itself seemed to be holding together in some kind of tenuous bond. But where was Reese?
Treading water, she turned in a circle, madly searching for him, determined not to panic, fighting to stay calm until she found him. He had been farther away, somewhere past the crane on the bow of the boat. Half the crane remained on the deck, but the rest had been blown apart. A huge piece of metal attached to a slab of wood floated in the ocean a few yards away.