Return to The Deep (From The Deep Book 2) by Michael Bray Read Free Book Online

She didn’t drink, she didn’t have any tattoos, and she hadn’t rebelled as a teen. She had drifted along under the radar, making her grades in school and college, and then taking the job at Ocean World. She took it not because she had to, but because she thought it would be a fun place to work, surrounded by children, families, and of course, the plethora of sea creatures.
    Her relationship with Tom had happened quite by accident. She had noticed him on his regular patrols of the building, and couldn’t deny the physical attraction to him. He was tall and muscular, with strong facial features and piercing eyes. Even so, those early months had been nothing more than a distant relationship between work colleagues, a nod in the hall, a lingering glance in passing. It was only when someone tried to steal something from the gift store and security was called that she had a chance really to speak to him, and discovered to her delight that the two were a seemingly perfect match. They shared a similar philosophy in life, one that was in favour of doing what made you happy rather than what society expected of you. They also shared the same interests and opinions in music, politics, and animal rights. They were perfect for each other and from that first meeting, had spent almost every day together in some way. Almost a year into their relationship, she couldn’t be happier.
    It was because of her unconditional love for Tom that she had agreed to help Fernando. She had often wondered what was in the sealed off section of the aquarium, and it was one of the few things Tom wouldn’t talk to her about. Fernando had shown her the photos they had taken outside the building, and told her of their suspicion that there was something being held there, which was for some reason kept secret. She had always had a soft spot for animals, especially doing everything she could to fight against cruelty. She had been instrumental in helping with the campaigns in 2014 and 15 designed to force SeaWorld to stop keeping orcas in captivity, rejoicing when the motion was finally passed in early 2016. As much as she liked her job, she absolutely would not tolerate animal abuse, and so, it hadn’t taken much convincing at least to see if she could find anything out.
    Remaining as calm as possible, she had managed to slip within the restricted area and see what was happening. She walked down an interior corridor, a place she had never seen before in the almost two years she had worked there. She knew she shouldn’t be there, and that if someone should challenge her as to what she was doing in the pristine white corridor, she would have no answer. Still she went on, curiosity guiding her and doing a fine job of silencing her rationale. Off the corridor were two further doors. One of them was labelled with a sign that read:
     
    Pump maintenance access.
    Strictly NO unauthorised personnel.
     
    For someone as curious as she was, such a warning was only going to be met with one reaction. She quietly opened the door and slipped inside. An iron staircase led down to a curved corridor that was lined with pipes. The corridor was dark, lit only by subtle low wattage strips set at intervals in the floor. Ahead, she could see another door, the sign this time even more intriguing.
     
    OBSERVATION AREA
    !!!WARNING!!!
    NO MOVEMENT IN PRESENCE OF SUBJECT!
    NO CAMERAS / MOBILE PHONES!
    NO ARTIFICIAL LIGHT SOURCES!
    NO ADMITTANCE WITHOUT PRIOR AUTHORISATION!
     
    She inched closer to the door, comforted by the pneumatic hum of the pipes on the walls, which was the only thing other than her own ragged breaths that punctuated the silence. She took out her phone and snapped a shot of the door and another of the warning sign, noting that here in the bowels of the building that she had no reception of any kind. Slipping her phone back into her bag, she inched towards the door.
    There appeared to be no locking mechanism that she could see. The steel door was set back in its