Dillon grabbed Quax by the arm as he got ready to jump.
“I can’t lose you again.”
“And we can’t lose them.”
Dillon knew it was true. He couldn’t lose his father and neither could Nami. But still…
He held out his hand for the robot’s sentience chip, but Quax pushed it back.
“If I don’t survive, I think I’d rather have my other chip, thank you very much. I would rather forget this event entirely.”
If only Dillon could. He patted his friend on the back. “Go for it.”
Quax launched himself from the helicopter, free floating for a moment until he landed on the squid’s tentacle. He used the sharp tip of his prehensile tail to sting the squid over and over as he got his arc welder out and started burning the flesh. The air smelled of giant calamari.
Nami held Dillon’s hand as the helicopter nearly got ditched sideways by the squid’s flailing tentacle.
Then Quax was through the flesh. The helicopter popped up, gaining twenty feet in a single moment.
Dillon watched in horror though as Quax and the severed tentacle fell from the sky. They landed in a huge splash. More tentacles came out of the water, latching onto Quax, dragging him down as if to punish him for his part in the squid’s injury.
Turning to Tonaka, Dillon said, “There must be something we can do.”
“How?” Tonaka asked, “Without endangering everyone else?”
Dillon turned away from the old man, watching Quax struggle against the giant squid.
He fought so valiantly, but it seemed futile.
Then Quax lit up, brighter than the day’s sun. He crackled of blue electricity. Bolts arced from Quax’s rigid body.
“He’s overloading,” Tonaka whispered. “It must be Shalie.”
Thank goodness Quax couldn’t feel any pain because that looked like it hurt. However Quax no longer seemed conscious, so there was that.
Finally the squid let go of Quax and took its Megalodon prize beneath the water, disappearing in the waves.
Which was great, except that left Quax floating on the surface, slowly sinking.
* * *
Nassar watched as Lopez backed up deeper into the helicopter.
“What do you think you are doing?” Nassar asked.
“Um, I will get to say I saved a robot,” Lopez answered as he tightened the line around his waist. “Pull us up, once I get him secured.”
Nassar didn’t bother to argue with Lopez as he executed an Olympian style dive, hitting the water next to Quax. Nassar lost sight of both of them under the waves, but wasn’t surprised when there came a tug on the line.
He turned on the electric winch and pulled them up and out of the water. Quax seemed out of it, but Lopez was fist-pumping away.
Nassar didn’t begrudge the corporal at all. As a matter of fact, he was pretty sure that was how everyone felt. They were just too shy to show it.
He felt down at his side. No gilded box.
Where and how had he lost it?
Watching Lopez whoop, what did it really matter?
EPILOGUE
Nami didn’t think she’d ever be so grateful for indoor heating in her life. Of course way out here in the Russian Arctic, fifty degrees was about as good as it got, but she would take it. At the least she had been able to shed about five layers of clothing.
The girl and her dog had not left Nami’s side since they got off the helicopter.
They were huddled together around the pellet stove as everyone else bustled about, making preparations to get home.
Nami didn’t care. She could live here forever and wouldn’t complain. It had running water, bathrooms and guess what? Not a shark or squid in sight.
“Nami,” a voice called out. It was higher pitched than her father yet sounded parental.
“Mom?” Nami said, turning around to find her borderline anorexic mother pushing through the crowd. “How did you get here?” Nami asked.
“Get here?” her mother snorted in a very fashion model-y way. “I arranged this all.”
“But… but…” Nami stammered. “I didn’t even send you a distress call.”
Her mother waved off her concern. “Oh please, I was in Japan on a fashion shoot. So when I got your message you were heading to a shark station, I just started organizing a rescue party and got ahead of the storm.”
Nami rushed forward and hugged her mother around her slim waist. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
“So I don’t have to go to the mother-daughter tea at your school next month?”
“No,” Nami promised. “And no other, ever.”
“That’s my girl,” her mother said, patting her on the back of the head awkwardly. “Well, I’d best find your father. This is going to cost him a whole new set of points.”
Nami watched as her mother sauntered off. She was possibly the worst ex-wife and mother in the history of ex-wives and mothers, but when it came down to it, she was an amazing rescue coordinator. Perhaps her mother had chosen the wrong career.
Lopez pulled up next to Nami. “So, do you think I have a chance with her?” he asked as her mother disappeared into the crowd.
“No, definitely not,” her father said from behind him. “Trust me.”
Nami chuckled as Lopez frowned and wandered away.
Callum came up with Dillon.
“Still hard to believe we survived isn’t it?”
Nami nodded.
“You know what?” Callum said. “I think I’m moving on from sharks and maybe working for Greenpeace or something.”
“That sounds great, Dad,” Dillon said.
Nami was pretty sure they all wanted to live a shark-free life from now on.
“And I’m calling my agent,” her father said. “I am definitely, for so many, many reasons not going to do that reboot of The Old Man in the Sea.”
CHURN – the bridge short story between Shark Station Nyet and The Shayu Situation
CHAPTER 1
Callum stood on the loading plank of the Rainbow Peace, the latest boat in the Ocean’s Guardians fleet. After Salechii, Greenpeace wouldn’t touch him, so he’d found another organization that would.
“Shalie, you really don’t need to come,” he insisted.
His girlfriend wrapped her arms around his waist. “I don’t have to, however, I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
She ran her finger down the slit in his shirt. This whole nearly dying and coming back able to speak English thing was working for them. It turned out to be a huge aphrodisiac for Shalie and he wasn’t going to argue with her anymore.
Dillon rolled his eyes. “Get below deck already.”
Sure his son moaned and groaned about he and Shalie’s newfound PDA, but Callum also noticed how much more Dillon was smiling since the Russian shark station. Despite the tragedy there, it had brought them more together as a family.
“Dr. Callum McClay?” a voice asked from behind him.
“Yes?” Callum said, turning on his artificial ankle, which no longer creaked, thank you very much, to find a man who looked like he belonged on this boat. Mid-height, the young man had a full beard, floppy hat and was wearing walking shorts and sandals. Yep, the standard uniform for an environmentalist.
The man’s face lit up as his chapped lips broke into a smile revealing pearly white teeth behind that thick beard.
“Brad Neffling. The Captain sent me to make sure you are getting settled in okay…” The man coughed, clearing his throat. “And on a personal note, I just wanted to say how much I admire you work. And how sorry I am about Salechii.”
Callum nodded to both. “Thank you.”
“Can I show you to your berth?” Brad asked.
Callum scanned the boarding plank. Dillon, Quax, and Shalie seemed ready but Nick and Nami were still arguing on the dock. Perhaps it would be best to give those two some time.
* * *
Nami put her hand on her hip. That was just how serious s
he was. “Dad, come on. Stay with Zoya. We are just going out to protect some whale. A milk run after everything we’ve been through.”
Her father frowned. “I don’t like it.”
Nami rolled her eyes. “Dad, Zoya has been tied up in debriefings for months and now, here we are in Miami. Take her out for goodness sake.”
Her father blushed, looking away.
For a huge movie star who had romanced most of Hollywood’s leading ladies both on screen and off, her father was crap when it came to real romance. Zoya and he had emailed each other for months, but now that she had been released awaiting to see if she was going to be awarded political asylum, the two stood three feet apart and awkwardly refused to make eye contact.
Adults.
“Dad, Zoya can’t leave American soil until she gets her papers. You can’t just leave her in Miami to fend for herself.”
Finally her father’s shoulders slumped. A sure “tell” that he was giving in. She should have gone for the responsibility angle the whole time. He was always a sucker for that one.
“You promise to be safe?” Nick asked.
Nami tilted her head. “My middle name is safety. No sharks, Dad. Just whales and some weird Norwegians.”
Her father nodded his head. “Callum promised to watch over you.”
“Dad, I’m seventeen. I’m going to be eighteen in a few months. I can watch over myself. I’ve been doing it for seventeen years.”
That got her father to smile as he hugged her. “Any sign of trouble and you call me?”
Nami sighed. “Nobody calls anymore, Dad. I’ll text you or better yet hit you up on Facebook if anything happens.”
Her father frowned. “Do I even have a Facebook account?”
Nami chuckled. “Dad, you have over four million friends and another five million Twitter followers.”
“I do?”
Nami sighed. For a guy who had starred in the world’s highest grossing techno-thrillers in history, he was pretty lame.
“Just ask your manager Arty. He’s got it covered.”
He hugged her again. “Be safe.”
She gave him a peck on the cheek, trying to show Zoya how to do it. “I will be.”
* * *
“I wish I had parents,” Quax said next to Dillon. They had gone below deck to find their cabins, but then Dillon and Quax had come back up to wait for Nami. Besides, his dad and Shalie looked like they needed a little alone time.
“They are pretty cool… most of the time,” Dillon responded.
“Maybe I can join an orphan Meetup group,” Quax stated.
“Sure, buddy,” Dillon said however that would probably be the most awkward roll call in the history of all Meetup roll calls. Despite the fact the world might not be ready for a fully emotional robot, Dillon never discouraged Quax from expressing himself. It was what Dillon loved about his best friend. How unashamed he was to speak his own personal truth.
By not having a childhood, Quax had missed out on all that societal programming that taught children to keep their emotions bottled up.
Quax was an open font. All Quax. All day long.
Dillon glanced down to the dock. Nami seemed to be saying goodbye to her father. Dillon thought they may need to use a blowtorch to cut that umbilical cord. Nick had originally signed up to come with them, however Zoya was unexpectedly released from the Navy’s custody this morning.
Which required a sudden change of plans.
Nick wasn’t so great on unscripted surprises. Dillon honestly thought that Nick would leave Zoya behind, but there must be some kind of connection there for him to allow Nami to come on the outing without him.
Dillon felt his chest swell. He knew in no small part that Nick’s decision was based on his trust for Dillon. Nick must have known that Dillon would never let anything happen to Nami if he could help it.
He would die for her. Literally.
Nami turned from her father and Zoya to wave to Dillon. She charged up the plank, launching herself into his arms.
“Finally!” Nami said, collapsing into his embrace. “I thought he’d never let me go! This was worse than when he freaked out on the Little World ride at Disneyland.”
He hugged her tight. “You’re here and that’s all that matters.”
Nami leaned back from him and looked Dillon straight in the eye. “So does that mean at some point you are going to tell me you love me?”
Dillon felt like all of the air had been sucked out of his lungs. How did this conversation get so weird so fast?”
He really didn’t think it could get any worse until Quax patted him on the back. “Dillon tells me he loves me all the time.”
* * *
Nick walked along the pier, not quite sure what to do with his hands. Zoya and he had shared so much via email. It felt like he’d known her a lifetime, but in reality she was still a stranger to him.
As much as he was concerned about not going out with Nami, Nick was glad to have some personal time with Zoya.
“Beautiful day, yes?” she asked.
He loved the way she slightly mangled the English language. “Yes,” he said. A perfect cloudless seventy-two degrees with a light westerly breeze.”
“We did not get seventy-two, nor ever a cloudless blue sky in Siberia,” Zoya chuckled under her breath. “I can tell you fifty shades of grey, but they are all about clouds.”
Now it was his turn to chuckle. On the next swing of his hand Nick brushed by Zoya’s. The side of their hands briefly touching. He felt so nervous. Just like in high school when he really wanted to go out with Shirley Marshburger. Back then he thought his nerves were because he was a nobody. He wasn’t even in drama club back then. Or chess club, or sports, or anything interesting. He was barely keeping his head above water with the classes that he already had. He didn’t want any extra-curricular activities. Except maybe Shirley.
Nick had thought the cold sweats and fibrillating heartbeat were due to inexperience and lack of charisma. But now? Now what excuse did he have?
He’d courted and bedded enough women to be considered an accomplished suitor. Still, there was something about Zoya.
He wanted to be near her, but when he was, he was an utter moron.
Like now. Why didn’t he just take her hand? Why the drive-by hand bump? That was so amateur.
Was he a great white, circling, making sure Zoya was the prey he was looking for?
“Your ex-wife is beautiful,” Zoya stated. “She a model?”
Nick noticed that Zoya increased the distance between them as they walked back to the car. “Yes, one could call her a super-model.”
Zoya made a sound between a grunt and a groan.
Nick smiled. So many people were intimidated by his ex-wife, especially women he might date, but there was absolutely no reason for any of them to be worried.
“It’s a good thing because I think that’s about the only thing she’s super at. Certainly not being a wife or a mother.”
“But she comes for you, does she not?”
“Okay, the second thing she’s great at is organizing a rescue,” Nick admitted. “But I swear that’s it.”
“How do you American’s say…?”
Nick cocked his head. That was the thing about Zoya, you never knew what was going to come out of her mouth.
“You are not an ex with benefits?”
Laughter spilled from Nick. He couldn’t help it. That was perhaps the funniest thing anyone had ever said about their marriage. “I’m sorry,” he said, trying to get his laughter under control. He had to wipe his eyes as the tears spilled out.
“Really, I’m sorry,” he said, coughing to cover another laugh. “Zoya I wasn’t a husband with benefits, I certainly am not an ex with them.”
“Good to know,” Zoya said, looking at him out of the corner of her eye.
“Seriously,” Nick said even though he felt another chuckle well up from the core of his being. “There is nothing there. At all, and hasn�
�t been for a long, long, long time.”
Like go back to their dating years.
Zoya seemed to accept the statement and commented, “I too was married once.”
News to Nick. Guess they didn’t cover everything in those emails.
* * *
Callum stretched, watching Shalie get dressed again. He wished they had time to reverse that action, but they were due on the bridge. Something about a safety briefing.
Like those had helped in the past. His artificial ankle kind of showed that preparation sometimes just wasn’t enough.
He flinched as Shalie drew her shirt over a set of scars on her side. Those would have been from the baby hammerheads. Those were his fault. It almost hurt him to touch them even though Shalie repeatedly reassured him that they didn’t hurt her.
She grimaced as she lifted the shirt over her shoulder. That one she couldn’t pretend didn’t hurt. It caused her pain if she tried to rotate her shoulder. So much for tennis in the future.
“What are you looking at?” Shalie asked from over her shoulder batting those long eyelashes.
“The most beautiful creature in the world,” he replied, laying on the Aussie accent pretty hard.
It got her to smile though, wiping off the frown. “You are a player, my dear.”
Callum chuckled, opening his arm, inviting her back into bed. She sat at the edge of the rather thin mattress. “Only in the quest of your love, Shalie. Only for you.”
She blushed, looking away, rising as she lightly slapped his hip. “We’re going to be late.”
That they were.
He couldn’t help it though as he pulled her back into bed. Who knew when they would have time alone again?
CHAPTER 2
Shalie rushed down the hallway, simultaneously trying to get her hair straightened back into a reasonably straight pony-tail and her shirt tucked back into her jeans.
She didn’t want to look like she’d just had sex, twice, before rushing to the bridge.
“You look fine,” Callum whispered behind her. That was easy for him to say. His big mop of blond hair looked like he’d just rolled out of bed, all the time.
“Help me,” she harshly whispered back. Indicating to her pony tail. But he was a guy, with only one arm, so he was not a lot of help.
Apex Predator Thriller Series Collection (Including the blockbuster new shark park thriller, Salechii) Page 52