It took what seemed like forever before Millie and Danielle’s number was called. Following procedure, she took the lead while her friend brought up the rear.
They descended the steps. Another five minutes passed before her muster group reached the exit and walked down the gangway.
From her vantage point, Millie continued watching passengers exit with their muster leaders. All the while, she prayed…prayed it was a false alarm. Nic and the other officerswould remain on board until every passenger and crew member was safely off the ship.
Whoo…eee…whoo…eee.Sirens blared. A slew of police vehicles and vans arrived. The stream of passengers turned into a trickle, and she breathed a sigh of relief when Oscar confirmed that all passengers, crew members and officers were off the ship.
The police vans stopped near the gangway. Dogs sprang from the back and were escorted on board.
“Bomb-sniffing dogs?”
Millie turned to find Danielle standing behind her.
“It appears so.”
The sun had started to set, offering relief from the sweltering Caribbean heat. Crew members began making rounds, offering chairs to those who had difficulty standing, cold drinks, and even placing a row of tents to shade passengers who were becoming overheated.
Meanwhile, Millie’s radio blared nonstop with snippets of updates. The bomb-sniffing dogs had worked their way from the top of the ship to the bottom.
Nic and the other officers stood monitoring the situation at a safe distance. Finally, the port authorities and dogs reappeared.
Instead of returning to the van, the dogs sniffed the side of the ship before circling back toward the security checkpoint. After finishing, the police made their way over to Nic and the other officers. Finally, they climbed into their vehicles and drove off.
All Clear for Boarding,Millie’s radio blared.
Danielle lifted her hand, giving her a celebratory high five. “Looks like we won’t be sleeping on the hard concrete.”
Additional instructions, a reminder about the order each station would board, ensued, basically a reversal of how they’d originally disembarked. When their muster number was announced, Millie and Danielle led their group to the gangway.
As soon as they cleared security, she went directly to the bridge. Hushed voices. Soft tones. Donovan, Staff Captain Vitale, First Officer McMasters, and Nic sat at the conference table communicating with corporate via conference call.
“…from a local number, a 649 number,” the man on the other end of the line stated.
“Do you have a name?” Dave Patterson asked.
“No. We do know it appears the caller used a burner phone.”
“Meaning we’ll have to jump through hoops to find out who purchased the phone and placed the call,” Nic said.
“Correct. We’re already working on it.”
“When will Siren of the Seas be cleared for departure?”
A brief silence ensued on the other end.
“Two hours, perhaps a little longer. PATCI, the port authority, is requesting the ship remain docked until they conclude their investigation.”
“Understood,” Nic replied. “We’ll be on standby until we receive clearance.”
Millie waited for the call to end. “The bomb threat was called in from a local number.”
“Possibly a burner phone purchased by someone on board,” Patterson said. “I can’t imagine a local calling in a bomb threat.”
“So…we wait. Meanwhile, whoever it is could very well be on this ship.”
Nic began shaking his head. “I see your wheels already spinning.”
“Cockburn Town is the only decent size town on the island. I wonder how many stores sell burner phones.”
