"Good evening. This is the captain. I have an important announcement; please listen carefully. A major storm will pass close ahead of the ship tonight. All guests are kindly asked to make sure their possessions are safely stored. Please take care as you move around. The stabilisers are operating, but the ship may pitch violently at times. Thank you." ._.. Alone in Stan's suite, I sat on a sofa in his sitting room. He was...

I sat at my desk, my chin resting on steepled hands, trying to make sense of Janet and her predicament. Hard knocks on the door startled her, and Janet hid her hands in her face. Doctor Smythe and a nurse came in. I looked up at him. "I don't think Janet is fully fit to work; she nearly passed out a little while ago." The nurse knelt beside Janet and whispered so softly I could hardly hear the words. "Janet, you know me;...

Twelve hours out of port, my alarm sounded. Half an hour later, I was ready to go to work. I walked from my dayroom into the office, then across to the exit door, and pulled it open until the magnetic latch clunked against its opposite part. Ahead was a glass wall; beyond, I could see a deep blue ocean and the horizon that divided the sea from the paler sky. I looked around, then ambled forward into the centre of the brid...