psychic crystal 03 - killer cruise Read Online Free Page A

the log book. We write everything, but it’s also communicated electronically online with the office. We know where we are, we check our wind speed, and we track the swells,” he said, looking into Juliette’s eyes and then letting his gaze rove farther down to settle on her breasts. “Right now, it’s quite smooth.”
    Will grabbed Juliette’s hand possessively while Alonzo spouted off about the gyro compass, the magnetic compass, the electronic navigational charts, marine navigation systems, and echo sounders.
    “Our sea maps show all land, water depth, buoys, piers, and currents. And our sextant is used for celestial navigation so we can determine our position by the sun, stars, planets, and the moon.”
    “Impressive,” said Juliette.
    “Here’s where we steer the ship, at the steering console. There are three ways to steer the ship—manually, on auto pilot, and with our backup. And besides these steering controls at the center cockpit, there are steering controls on each bridge wing.
    “Our ballast tank is filled with sea water, so if the ship lists we can transfer the ballast from one side to another to make it upright again. We have two pumps, and it takes only two minutes to correct by computer. We wouldn’t want the beautiful lady to lose her balance.”
    Alonzo reached out as if to catch Juliette off balance. He was flirting as though he knew her onboard marriage was a sham. Or maybe he just didn’t care about traditional matrimonial boundaries. And truly, First Officer Gonzalez was very nice to look at.
    “We will cancel a port if it gets really windy,” continued the first officer, ignoring Will’s grunts.
    “How long does the crew stay on the ship?” Juliette asked.
    “For the captain, it’s ten weeks on and ten off,” noted the first officer. “The first officer rotates every twelve weeks, and the second officer every six months. After this cruise, I will have some free time.”
    “Which he will presumably spend with his wife and four children,” said the captain, smiling, in an attempt to unruffle Will’s feathers.
    “Oh,” said Juliette, sounding a little disappointed.
    “I am my own man,” claimed Alonzo proudly.
    Will smiled and wrapped his arm around Juliette’s waist.
    “We try to keep the same team from cruise to cruise,” noted the captain, “except for the free time rotation.”
    “What happens in case of emergency?” Kate asked.
    “We use a signal horn and an alarm bell to sound the general emergency alarm, which is seven short blasts and one long blast.
    “We have six hundred forty-eight fire hydrants and seven fire stations, with a dedicated certified firefighting team onboard, just in case. To ensure the safety of all guests, every week we hold a simulated emergency drill for crew members. We simulate fires, groundings, crash stops, man overboard. And on embarkation we hold a mandatory passenger drill to familiarize the passengers with onboard procedures in the unlikely event there is an emergency. An alarm will sound on the bridge if a detector has been activated. The panel will display the exact location of the alarm. Detectors can be activated by smoke or heat, or if removed or tampered with. Don’t touch this panel.”
    “Do you have many emergencies?” Juliette wondered.
    “More often than you would imagine,” confirmed the captain. “Mostly it’s someone who’s had too much to drink.”
    “What happens in that event?”
    “Well, for a man overboard, we reduce speed right away and follow emergency procedures, prepare a rescue board, and dispatch a rescue-and-medical team. We can stop the ship quite quickly, in seven minutes. We have a global maritime distress and safety system with medium and high frequency communications as well as satellite communications, which we test every day.
    “We assess and evaluate emergency situations from the safety center here on the bridge with a variety of safety equipment controls and devices.
    “On our last