by Watts, Russ
Pippa fussed over me, worried I would have concussion or something, but I managed to assure her I was fine. Sure, I felt beat up, but I would be okay. I was more concerned at the lack of response to our flare. Time was hard to judge, but it felt like hours. With the cold rain battering all of us and nothing to do, it felt like time had slowed to a crawl. Manny kept pacing up and down, searching for a boat, a sign, anything that we had been spotted. I think two or three hours must have passed before we saw anything at all.
“There, a boat, see?” said Manny. “Is it heading our way?”
I squinted against the gale and saw what Manny had noticed before any of us. Rising and falling with the ocean there was a boat, although it was impossible to know if it was coming our way or just passing by. It looked a little like a tanker, long and gray, with no clear sign of life. We watched it for a while, all of us hoping it was heading south. After a while it became evident that it hadn’t seen us. It may have just been adrift itself. When it disappeared Manny became more withdrawn, disillusioned with our lot.
“Luke, what if nothing comes?” asked Pippa. “What if..?”
“Don’t,” I replied. “Don’t Pippa. There are others out there. We just have to be patient.”
The Tukino was a wreck, destined to be torn apart over time as the ocean rusted it. Its silent presence was an unfortunate reminder of how close we were to death too. It was hard clinging onto hope when there was nothing to see, nothing but the water and the sky surrounding us.
It could have been a few minutes or an hour. I really did lose all track of time. But finally, eventually, Manny spotted another boat. This was different, much smaller than the tanker. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but it was starting to get dark. Soon it would be cold and we had no shelter. I wasn’t sure we could survive the night out here, and we had no food or water either. This felt like our last chance.
“I saw it a while ago, but I didn’t want to say anything in case I jinxed it. I think it’s heading our way. I really do,” said Manny.
I detected optimism in his voice, and I hoped it wasn’t misplaced. Still, as we watched the boat it did appear to be coming for us. It got larger and larger, struggling against the large waves, until finally it was close enough to see clearly. When I saw the name on the side I couldn’t help but smile.
“You’re right, Manny. I think it’s coming for us. I think it’s Douglas.”
“Douglas?” Manny’s face was blank. “Do we..?”
“Is that who you told me about?” asked Pippa, clutching my arm. “Is that them?”
I nodded. “Douglas and Honey. It has to be. I recognize that name, the Bella. It’s their boat for sure.”
As the yacht neared the sandbank I suddenly worried that it might hit something too. How close would they be able to get? It was such a large yacht that it surely couldn’t get any closer to us than the Tukino.
“They’re going to pick us up, right? They’re good people, aren’t they?” asked Pippa.
I knew she was concerned, but I also knew that they would help. Even from the small amount of time we had spoken to them I could tell they were on the level. “Yeah, we’ll be fine, just as long as they can get close enough to pick us up.”
Pippa gripped me tighter. “But what about..?”
“He can see what happened to us,” I said. “He’ll know to avoid the shallow water. Trust me, they don’t want to end up beached like we were.”
“I wasn’t worried about them hitting the sandbank,” said Pippa quietly.
And then it dawned on me: the shark. Pippa was worried that it was still out there. I had to admit it could be. How long would it hang around? We hadn’t seen any sign of it for hours. Would it really wait that long?
“Surely it’s long gone?” said Manny.
There was that hope again, springing up out of him like an uncapped well.
“It must have better things to do than wait for us to be stupid enough to get back in the water.”
I watched the superyacht get close, slow, and then stop. I waited for a sign, for Douglas or Honey to come out and give us a big grin, but nothing happened. The yacht just sat there.
“What’s he waiting for? Send over the rescue party already,” said Manny.
“Luke?”
Pippa didn’t need to say any more. I could sense it too. Something told me that there was something wrong. It was just a feeling that this wasn’t right. Why weren’t they coming out to help us?
“This is stupid,” said Manny. “How do they expect us to get to them? What are they waiting for?”
Weir marched into the surf, letting the water reach his knees. “Come on, join the party. What is this, a peep-show?”
Whether his words had an effect or not, I don’t know. I suspected Douglas was just watching us, carefully, as Weir’s words would have been swept away on the howling wind. Whilst it was an uncomfortable feeling being watched like that, I guess it made sense. Douglas had no idea who had fired the flare, and given the nature of the seas, he had every reason to be cautious.
Chelsea shivered visibly, reminding me of how cold and miserable I felt. We were all physically suffering and it was a relief when Douglas appeared on deck. He waved at us and then disappeared. From around the back of the yacht a few seconds later came a small single-engine boat, no bigger than a bath-tub. At least we weren’t going to have to swim for it.
As the boat drew closer, its little engine straining against the storm, I saw it was Honey who had come out to rescue us. She looked the same, her arms so thin, yet now draped in a brown oilskin that flapped in the wind. Honey brought the boat right up to the sand, stopping a couple of feet short of Weir.
“Thank Christ for that,” said Pippa. “Chelsea, let’s go.”
I could see we weren’t all going to fit. The small boat would only fit three or four of us alongside Honey so she was going to have to make two trips to ferry us back and forth. We all approached nervously, desperate to get off the sandbank, and yet fearful of the ocean. The storm and shark had made us wary of the treacherous water surrounding us, yet we had no choice. We had to sink or swim.
I was in no mood for another fight, so I was pleased when Manny stepped forward. Weir had reached for the boat first and was about to clamber aboard when Manny tugged him back.
“You get to wait,” said Manny.
Manny helped Ava, Chelsea and Pippa climb in, and then Estelle squeezed in beside them. I tried to catch Honey’s eyes, to say hi, but she kept her head down and said very little. I guess it was difficult with the storm, and it was awkward just keeping the boat steady. Manny and I held onto it until the women were all in and then they were off. I watched Honey zip back to the yacht and waited patiently for her to return.
“She say much to you?” I asked Manny. “She didn’t seem too happy about being out here.”
“Do you blame her?” Manny sniffed. “I think I’m getting the flu. We’re damn lucky they spotted our flare.”
“True.” I looked at the Bella. It was an imposing vessel, larger than I remembered, yet it was the most beautiful thing I had seen all day. To know that we would soon be safe, dry and warm made me feel something approaching happiness. There was still no sign of the shark. It was gone, off to terrorize someone else. The yacht would be home for a short while, but I knew Pippa wouldn’t want to hang around too long. No matter how comfortable it was, it wasn’t home. It wasn’t ours. “What do you think, Manny? Douglas and Honey weren’t too well off last time we met. They’re going to need our help. How are you finding this life out on the ocean? Something you could get used to?”
Manny shook his head and gave me a look that suggested I had flipped. “Giant sharks chasing us? Are you crazy? No, this is just a rest-stop until we get back on track. We need to find dry land, man. You hear me? Dry land.”
I glanced at Weir. He kept his distance from us, a few feet back, and said nothing. He was just waiting to get onto the yacht. I suspected that once he was safely on boar
d, that would be the last we’d see of him. He wanted nothing to do with us, and that was fine by me. He’d made his own choices.
“I hear you. Pippa wants to find a place for her and Chelsea. Start over. I don’t know how easy that’s going to be. The mainland seems to get further away every day. And so much of the land is under water now that I don’t know how they’d find food or fresh water. I doubt much still grows. I want to help her, I will, but I just don’t know where to start.”
The little boat returned from behind the yacht, Honey driving it straight toward us.
“You sound like you’re not planning on joining her.” Manny folded his arms. “Don’t tell me Uncle Luke is thinking of breaking the family ties? I thought you and Pippa were joined at the hip.”
“Yeah, well, I figured maybe she was right. She said a few things to me on the trawler, made me see things a bit differently. I don’t know anymore, Manny. I’m not sure I can keep doing this. I mean I love my sister, and Chelsea, but… but I’m missing something. I’m missing out on my own family. Shoot, I sound like an idiot. I have no idea what’s going to happen. But Pippa needs the chance to raise Chelsea without me interfering all the time.”
“I’d hardly call it interfering. I know what you do for them, Luke. Still, if you want some help you know I’ve got your back. Chelsea’s a great kid. She’ll miss you like crazy if you go your own way.”
“I know.” Was I really contemplating leaving them? I had lived with Pippa and Chelsea for so long that I didn’t know any other life. Yet, faced with getting on this huge yacht it felt like I had a decision to make. How long could I keep following them, trying to please Pippa and bring up Chelsea when she was my niece, not my daughter? Thinking about them I felt proud; proud of everything they had done and everything they had become. I had played my part, but they could cope without me. Pippa was stronger than she let on, and Chelsea was hardly a little kid anymore. She would be seventeen soon. It was time for a clean break. Once we found somewhere safe for them to live, I would tell Pippa. I wasn’t going to abandon them, and I wasn’t going anywhere without them until I knew they had their own place to call home; I had to create my own life instead of living it through someone else. As I watched Honey approach, I knew what I wanted. I liked being out on the ocean, even if it did mean you had to watch your backs from being hunted by giant sharks. The Megalodon couldn’t be everywhere at once though. If we were clever we could avoid it, I was sure of that. To start my life over I just needed a chance to talk to Ava. She might be annoyed at me, but I knew there was something between us. If I could just talk to her, I could talk her round. I could really get to know her and if she got to know me better, I was certain things would work out.
“Finally,” said Weir, as Honey drew the boat up to us. He grabbed the side of the hull and leapt in.
“I’m not sorry to see the back of this garbage dump,” said Manny, as he jumped in behind me. “I never was one for the beach.”
The boat was cramped and water sloshed around the interior around our feet. I thanked Honey as I sat down and she grunted at me, but kept her eyes averted. With the ocean spray, it was hard to have a conversation anyway, and the second we were in she turned the boat around and headed for the yacht. As we got closer it looked even more impressive. I wondered if Douglas and Honey really owned the boat, or if they had just been lucky. Perhaps they had inherited it, or perhaps they’d stolen it. I didn’t care, quite frankly. I was just grateful they had come along when they had. I took one final look at the sandbank and the Tukino. She was stuck fast and half of the boat was under the ocean. It was pure luck that we hadn’t all been killed. Seeing the trawler like that reminded me of Jonah. He probably thought he would die on that ship, probably years from now. I felt bad for him, sorry that I couldn’t have done more. I looked to the Bella as we shuttled away from the sandbank. No more looking back. I had to look forward to the future now. There was a lot to sort out and a lot to discuss; thanking Douglas and Honey was number one on the list. After that they would have to get in line. Pippa and Chelsea had to talk to me about where they wanted to settle and where was realistic. They had to realize finding a new home wasn’t going to be easy. I had no idea what Estelle wanted, but I was fairly certain she would go wherever we went. She seemed to be getting along with us just fine, and being on her own, would be a fool to turn down an offer of help. Manny too. Weir would probably want to be dropped off at the first place we came to, where he could get his own boat. The feelings of dread left me as we neared the yacht. I saw Chelsea and Pippa waving at me, smiling. For the first time in a long time, I began to feel excited for the future. A fresh start. We all needed it, something to believe in and look forward to. As I looked at Ava, I knew where my future lay.
Honey pulled up alongside the yacht and Douglas appeared suddenly, his hands reaching down to grab us. He threw a rope to Honey and they quickly secured the boat. I couldn’t wait to get my feet onto the deck, onto something solid and dry. Douglas said nothing but helped me up, and together we hauled Manny up. Weir shoved my offer of help aside and pulled himself up.
“We did it,” said Ava, as she threw her arms around me. “I didn’t think… I thought we were done for.”
I hugged her and looked at the others, cold and wet, yet all grateful to be back on a boat. Relief was the overriding emotion.
“Douglas. Thank goodness you found us,” I said, shaking his hand. “I thought you were heading north? I guess lucky for us you changed your mind.”
He grimaced as I shook his hand. “We were heading for Kiawah Island when I saw you. The resort is still there, well most of it, and you got lucky with that flare you sent up. I figured I couldn’t just leave you.”
“I’m Luke,” I said. “This is my sister, Pippa and her daughter Chelsea.” I made brief introductions. Everyone thanked Douglas and Honey, apart from Weir. He simply grunted and looked out at the ocean. I don’t know if he was worried about the Megalodon returning, or just feeling embarrassed at having to be rescued. His attitude didn’t concern me too much. I knew he would jump ship at the first opportunity.
“Douglas, we don’t have time for this. We should get going.” Honey touched his shoulder and he jumped as if she had hit him with an electric current. “We’re behind schedule.”
“Okay, okay, I know. You don’t have to remind me,” he replied impatiently.
Douglas let go of my hand and pointed to a glass door nearby that led into what looked like a lounge. I could see reclining sofas inside, potted plants and what looked like a bar. Although the glass in the room’s windows were broken, the furniture looked comfortable. We were all so desperately tired, cold and wet, that we would’ve been grateful for a bare cell if it got us out of the rain.
“You should all get inside and warm up,” said Douglas. “There are blankets and some spare clothes around. Help yourself to a drink. We have food set aside too, but we can arrange that later. Right now, I should get us moving.”
“Douglas, we need to go.” Honey prodded him impatiently.
Douglas offered a wan smile. “Luke, you want to join me upstairs?”
I nodded and ushered the others toward the open door. Honey began to climb a staircase to the upper deck and Douglas followed her, pausing and beckoning me to follow.
“Are these two on the level?” asked Ava, before she left. “They seem a little off.”
“You prefer the company of sharks? Yeah, they’re on the level. Jonah knew it as soon as he saw them.”
“But they seem a bit, I don’t know, preoccupied. Like they don’t really want to be here. You heard how Honey kept saying we had to go.”
I cupped my hands around Ava’s face. “We just have to trust them, right? What choice do we have? They seem nice to me. Let’s go with it. I’ll go talk to Douglas and join you soon. I figure he just wants to know who he’s dealing with. Would you watch over Chelsea for me? I’m worried about her. She’d never say anything, but after the ordeal with the Tukino and nearl
y drowning earlier, she needs a good rest and a friend to talk to.”
Ava leant in and gently kissed me. “Deal.”
She smiled and slipped away from me. With the others starting to make themselves at home I followed Douglas up the metal staircase. He said nothing but led me up the steps until we reached a black door. With the rain still falling he hesitated in front of it and looked down at me a few steps below.
“Luke, I know you helped me before. I’m sorry about your boat. I wish things could be different.”
“Forget it,” I replied. “Let’s just get inside and figure out where to next. If you still want to get down to Kiawah then I’m all for it. This is your ship, Douglas. You’re in charge.”
“Right. Yes, of course.”
Douglas looked out at the ocean. There was nothing to see, just waves crashing into each other and a gray sky filled with rain. I followed his eyes in case he had seen the shark, but it had gone. There was no fin, no sandbank, and no land; just endless water as far as the eye could see. I took a step up closer to Douglas. I could see no reason for him to wait out here in the cold. Honey had intimated they should get moving quickly and I was inclined to agree with her.
“I’m pretty exhausted, you know. Shall we go in?” I glanced at the black door, which I guessed led to the bridge. “Everything all right, Douglas?”
“Yeah, yeah, I just… never mind.” Douglas glanced through the small square window in the door and sighed. “This is the bridge. You’ll find everything you need in here. Let’s go.”