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time together. They admired a reddish iceberg tinted crimson by a summer-blooming algae. Suddenly something floating nearby caught their attention.
    “Look over there,” Smallwood said. “It's a boat. A schooner. Looks damaged.”
    “Let's take a look.” As they got closer they could make out the schooner's name, Phantom.
    “What kind of name is that?” Smallwood asked.
    “It does seem a bit eerie. You know what the most common boat name is?”
    “Tell me.”
    “Serenity.”
    There were scratches all over the vessel. Some were just an inch long, others a foot or two in length. When they were alongside the schooner, Elmo put down an anchor, threw a rope, and jumped onto the other boat. “Anyone here?” he called.
    There was no answer. “Surely not a derelict vessel?” Nathan called, smiling. “I thought those existed mainly in ghost stories.”
    “They do,” Elmo agreed somewhat tersely. His eyes tracked grooves in the deck that led to the hatch. A wave of graynesspassed over him, a kind of dark premonition. “I see a lot more scratch marks here,” he yelled to Smallwood. Then he stooped to pick up a camera which rested on the wooden deck. Perhaps it held some clues as to the former occupants of the schooner.
    For a few minutes there were no sounds from the schooner. Just silence. The more Elmo studied this, the less he liked it.
    “Anything the matter?” Smallwood called from the patrol boat.
    “Something's wrong here. Dead wrong.”
    “Don't keep me in suspense, Elmo. What do you see?”
    But Elmo was not eager to tell what he saw. Not immediately. This was real mischief.
    There was blood on the deck. The railing was torn off in places. There were signs of struggles. Heroic ones. A broken mast. A torn off engine. More blood. Something resembling an esophagus.
    And there was a human head. A head with carotid arteries still dripping. The head of a woman. A head evidently torn from its missing body with incredible strength.

CHAPTER 7
    Environment
    M ARTHA SAMULES LOOKED up as the door to Martha's Fish Store opened to admit a solid man. She was in the back, but could see the door without being readily seen, because of the shadow. This was no coincidence; she preferred to have better knowledge of her customers than they had of her, especially when they were strangers. This could make a difference, when trouble threatened.
    This man was no stranger; she recognized him. Oh, no! Martha dreaded the coming encounter, for the man was her brother Elmo. They were so similar yet so different. All they ever did was quarrel, yet they couldn't let go of each other. She would have faded to the back room, leaving the store to her hireling Lisa. But Lisa wasn't due to report for another twenty minutes. Martha was stuck for it.
    She stood, approaching him. She was determined to keep things positive, this one time, but knew that she would fail as she always did. She forced a smile. “What can I do for you, Elmo?”
    “There's been some trouble,” he said gruffly. He walked around the store, gazing at the fish tanks, as if he were a customer. By that token she knew that he was not any more comfortable with this meeting than she was. But that gave her scant comfort, because he was not a shy or evasive man. Somethingwas really bothering him, and it was bound to bother her in a moment. “I have a meeting coming up. But that's not why I'm here. Mother's in trouble again. She may or may not make it. Will you come?”
    It was just as bad as she had feared. She knew she had no reason for guilt, yet he made her feel it. “You know I won't, Elmo.”
    “I know how you feel, Martha. But—”
    “Oh, do you!” She stifled the rest, clinging to her resolve.
    “But she is your mother, and she is a human being. She never meant to hurt you, or knew that she was doing it. She may have allowed you to be hurt, but she was blameless in intention. I know it would please her just to see you, even if you don't say a word.” But his eyes