The Bouncing Buns Gentleman's Club

Chapter 24

A new sound had entered the mix. They'd become used to the sound of rising water slapping on the hull and decks, but this was different. There was an occasional bump, a muffled clang, and the sound of what? She couldn't quite make it out at first, but then it struck her. She was hearing the sound of rising bubbles!

"Does that sound like bubbles to you, Ensign?"

She had no more than asked when they looked down and saw several lights coming from below, through and around the door into the hallway.

"It sure does sound like bubbles, and it looks like them as well, doc. I believe we just might be rescued!" The Ensign's voice gave away his obvious relief that they wouldn't have to rely on his plan after all.

Something had finally happened for which he had not felt the need to curse under his breath. He knew his prayers had been answered and he would likely be around to see his child born after all.

A new flood of tears sprang from Dana's eyes as they felt the tickle of the bubbles rising in the water now. It wasn't long before three divers could be seen below. They wore black wet suits, air tanks and masks. Beverly had joined Dana in contributing to the flow of tears, and Ensign Adams was doing his best to hide his emotion when a head popped up into their air pocket.

The man's head was fully covered by the hood of his wet suit, his eyes were mostly concealed by his mask, and he had the mouthpiece of his air regulator in his mouth. As these pieces of equipment came off, however, Beverly was amazed to see a now familiar face just inches from hers.

"TOM! What are you doing here?" Beverly asked while trying to wipe the tears from her eyes, an impossible task with a wet hand. Dana was glad to see anyone, she didn't care who it was, and Ensign Adams was wondering who this stranger could be. He knew it wasn't a member of the crew.

"I happened to be in the neighborhood, so I got Lieutenant Murrain's permission to come along. I convinced him it would be good for me to see the boat as soon as possible firsthand, you know, just in case," he said smiling.

Beverly, still a bit off balance by all this said, "Ensign Adams, Dana, this is Agent tom Baker of the FBI. I'm not sure why he's here, but I'm sure glad to see him."

"I'll second that," said the Ensign, "very happy to meet you, sir."

"Can we just get out of here?" Asked Dana, teeth chattering and still aware their air pocket continued to get smaller and smaller by the minute.

"Absolutely," Tom said. "We do need to move fast. Things have been stabilized topside, but you guys have been in the water quite awhile now and the medics are worried about hypothermia setting in. We're going to do what's called 'buddy breathing'. Has anyone, other than the Ensign of course, done any diving?"

"I have years ago, Tom," said Beverly.

"I haven't," trembled Dana, lips visibly blue by now.

Tom's mention of hypothermia and Dana's trembling caused Beverly to think they really were close to even more danger than she had realized. They needed to get out of the water which was acting as a heat sink draining them of core body warmth, and begin to recover it as soon as possible.

"OK, there's nothing to it, Dana." Tom said. "Just take my regulator and start to breathe through your mouth. You can hold your nose if you need to, but most people can block that area without having to do that."

Dana took the mouthpiece and did as she was told.

"Now, keep breathing and stick your head under water for a few seconds to see what it'll be like. Keep your eyes open. It'll be a little uncomfortable at first, but you'll get used to it."