Free Unearthly Power by R. K. Page A

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    “So where are you two from originally, Professor?”
    After he took a moment to collect his thoughts he said, “Pennsylvania. A small town in the northeast called Danville. We lived there for twenty years until Tori was old enough for college.”
    “You didn’t want to go to college near your home?” Sean asked her.
    “No. Small towns might be good for some people, but not me. It was a total bore.”
    “How about you professor, were you looking for excitement too?” Sean asked in jest, but with a serious look on his face.
    “No.” He answered seriously, “I taught Anthropology courses at a nearby college in Bloomsburg, but that was a way to pass the time until Tori was old enough to finish high school. The position I had waiting for me was a much better opportunity.”
    Tori smiled at him, recognizing what he was doing. She decided to play as well. “How about you? Where did you grow up and what was it like?”
    “I was born in an orphanage. Then I finally made it to the streets. I don’t really remember much from those days as it was a struggle just to stay alive.”
    Dee did her best to keep from spitting her drink onto the table as she held her hand over her mouth and started to choke.
    Before Professor James could completely buy into his recitation, Alex said, “Oh bull! I saw your house and met your parents. Your mom was in the movies and your dad is a big shot in the Navy. If anything, you were a spoiled brat.”
    Tori was caught between her own laughter, helping to make sure Dee was in fact okay, and looking at the reaction of her father. After she addressed all three things, she gave him a look of warning. If it was meant to change his behavior, it served no more than to have the opposite effect.
    “Your mother is an actress?” Professor James asked.
    “Mostly she was in commercials advertising suppositories and VD medications.”
    “Sean!” Dee yelled. “That’s enough already. Don’t you take anything seriously?”
    “Actually, I take both suppositories and VD very seriously,” he replied in mock sincerity.
    Alex couldn’t control his laughter, while Dee and Tori were doing their best to show their disapproval through a series of easy to read looks. Feeling out of place, and a little uncomfortable, Professor James excused himself and returned to his room.                
    “You are making such a fine impression on my father,” Tori said to him with the intended sarcasm.
    “I think he likes me,” he said with a smile.
    “You’ll have to excuse my brother. He isn’t nearly as clever as he thinks he is and he often embarrasses himself before he realizes it.”
    Sean decided to let the comment pass. Tori redirected her question to Dee. Once they were engaged in a discussion of their childhood, Sean and Alex excused themselves from the room.
    Even when morning came there was little evidence that the day would be any less gloomy. The ocean swells had subsided and the readings from the underwater currents were not optimal, but were manageable if they didn’t get any stronger. Today, Marcel and the professor came out early to see if a dive would be possible. They were all wearing lightweight windbreakers because of the chill moisture rising from the water. They originally anticipated sunny skies and calm waters in this part of the ocean, but their experience was proving otherwise. Sean agreed to a test dive, but said he would go alone. The other two men were not happy with that announcement, but Sean left little room for debate—it was his ship and his rules regardless of who was paying the bill. Sean agreed to it himself only because of the rising disappointment among his guests over their lack of activity.
    The excitement of someone finally going into the water had spread to cause everyone on board to watch with anticipation and offer help where they could. That excitement quickly diminished when they realized there was nothing more to do, or see, once he