Knockdown

by Brenda Beem

  “I need the color of that buoy.” I squinted, trying hard to see for myself.

  “Why do you keep asking what color it is?” Zoë shook her head.

  “If we go to the wrong side of it, we’ll hit rocks.”

  Zoë’s eyes got big. She ran to the rail and studied the buoy.

  The marker kept bobbing up and down in the gray water. The sky was darkening. For some reason, the buoy just looked black. And we were sailing right for it. I didn’t know what else to do.

  “Toni, don’t hit it.” Takumi put his hand on my shoulder.

  “Then tell me what color it—”

  “Green. It’s green!” Zoë screamed. “See? There in the middle. A green triangle.”

  We sailed to the left of the buoy, barely missing it. I exhaled. I didn’t realize I’d been holding my breath.

  When we entered the harbor, the water became calm. The wind began to die. Our progress slowed, but I felt more comfortable with the speed we were traveling.

  “Check for debris. There are two good sized towns here. At least there used to be. Stuff will be floating. I don’t know how close to shore we’ll get.”

  I handed the chart to Takumi. “Did you guys see a good place to anchor when you studied the map?”

  Takumi put his finger on a spot on the page. “The marinas will be wiped out. The problem with anchoring will be the current from all the rivers that enter the bay. There are lots of streams for fresh water, but they make strong currents too. And add that to the tidal changes—”

  “So much for finding a safe harbor.”

  Takumi smiled. “Maybe a marina survived. All we actually need is a piling to tie up to. If a piling survived the tsunamis, it should hold us for a night or two. And we can row to shore.”

  “Fine. I don’t want to be around desperate townspeople though. Help me find an isolated piling, okay?”

  “Got it.”

  We sailed slowly around the bay and studied the possible spots to tie up for a night. Mostly, we tried to see some sign of a normal town or marina. But this bay wasn’t the place to find that.

  I kept my eye on the wind direction arrow that is attached to the top of the mast. I adjusted the wheel enough to miss debris, but not enough to lose the wind in the sails. The closer we got to shore, the more wreckage we found. It became harder and harder to sail. The bay was a muddy brown.

  On shore, I glimpsed boats sitting on top of boats. Some were in the water, some far up on land. A luxury yacht was broken and partially sunken. The top of a fishing trawler stuck out behind what was left of a barn. The foundations of buildings remained, but there were no standing structures. The only creatures moving were seagulls and crows. No sign of people.

  “What do you guys think?” There’d been more than a few near misses and my hands ached from clutching the wheel. “See a place we can tie up and feel safe?”

  “The south side, near the town of Westport. It’s close to the bay opening and there are several damaged marinas with pilings we can tie to. We could scavenge stuff in the town and off wrecked boats,” Nick said.

  “Anyone else?”

  Jervis stood and gestured to the right. “It seemed safer on the north side to me. No towns and lots of rivers. Shouldn’t we anchor there?”

  Takumi studied the chart. “I thought that too, but at least five streams empty into the bay over there. Our anchor might not hold.”

  “I like the idea of the town. Maybe I can find a non-used toothbrush.” Zoë grinned.

  We found a piling at the end of what used to be a marina. It was all by itself. The dock that had been attached to it was completely gone. Whistler could spin around and not touch a thing. And nothing could get to us without a boat or swimming. It took me three tries with the motor on to get close enough to the piling for the guys to tie a line around it. I hated wasting what little gas we had. Dylan could have driven better, but he was still asleep.

  Zoë had her backpack on the second we tied up.

  I tried to get her to wait. “It’s going to be dangerous. Nothing will be stable. And desperate people…”

  Zoë put her hand in my face. “I don’t care if Dracula himself was standing on that shore. I’m getting off this boat.”

  Zoë, Nick, and Jervis offered to go ashore on our little make-shift raft and check things out. They’d search for a dinghy and fresh water if it was safe. A place to boil the water before we brought it on board would be good too. Nick promised to return and row Makala and Angelina ashore if everything checked out. Takumi and I said we’d stay onboard with Dylan and guard the boat.

  Makala and Boots caught the excitement and ran around the deck. Between her squeals of joy and the dog’s barking, there was no way we were going to go unnoticed. But it was nice to be tied up in a gentle bay. We’d have to watch for floating debris, but that was nothing new.

  It was growing dark. I handed a couple of flashlights to the team as they climbed aboard the raft. I glanced nervously at the shoreline. “We can stay around for a day or two if it’s safe. You don’t have to find everything tonight.”

  Hurry back, I almost added. I couldn’t shake the feeling we were being watched.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Grays Harbor, Seven Days Left

  Takumi and I listened to Zoë complain to the guys as they paddled across the water.

  “You just splashed… Is that your foot in my… Ouch! You did that on …”

  Takumi moved to the cockpit seat next to me. “Hope they come back in a real dinghy.”

  “Hope they bring Zoë back.”

  Makala squealed, “Boots! Boots!”

  We heard a splash. Takumi and I jumped and raced to where Makala stood, looking down into the water.

  “Did Boots fall in?” Takumi and I leaned over the rail and searched below. The dog snuck up behind us and barked. I startled and almost went overboard.

  Takumi steadied me, and scooped Boots into his arm. “Let’s go find your leash.”

  “Boots’ ball fell in.” Makala pointed to the muddy bay. “I thought he might jump in for it, but I don’t think he likes to swim anymore.”

  The pain of loss stabbed my heart, and I sat down. “No, I bet he doesn’t.”

  Makala came beside me and lowered her head. “I’m sorry you’re sad.”

  “Thank you, Makala.” I pulled her up onto my lap and hugged her.

  “Boots didn’t mean to kill Cole.” Her eyes overflowed with tears.

  I rubbed her back. “Makala. The tsunami killed Cole.”

  Angelina reached out her arms. “Here, let me take her.”

  I shook my head and waited. When Makala stopped crying I wiped her eyes and turned her face to mine. “Boots didn’t kill Cole. Cole loved you and Boots. He jumped in to save you because he cared so much. But he was sick from hitting his head during the tsunami. It was the tsunami that killed Cole. He wouldn’t want anyone to blame Boots.”

  “Do you think so?” Makala’s hands cupped my face.

  “I know so.”

  She held my cheeks for a few moments and searched for the truth in my eyes. Her face broke into a smile. “Can you get his ball out of the water for me?”

  “Why don’t you ask Takumi?” I smiled back.

  She climbed off my lap and ran to Takumi. Soon they were back with a fishing net. Makala pointed and Takumi tried to reach the ball. Boots continued to bark.

  Angelina joined me. “Thank you for saying that. She was really upset by what—”

  I touched her arm. “It was the truth.”

  A loud cheer erupted from the shore. Zoë, Jervis, and Nick had made it. It was dark and we couldn’t see, but we heard Zoë profess her love of land. I could imagine the happy dance she was doing. I wondered if she actually knelt down to kiss the ground.

  Angelina squinted in the dark and smiled. “Zoë’s funny.”

  Funny was not a word I’d use to describe Zoë.

  Angelina saw my face. “Are you okay?”

 
My eyes began to water. All the ways I wasn’t okay flooded over me. “No, but I’m trying.”

  She folded her hands in her lap, and stared at her feet, exactly like Makala had done a few moments before. “I remember when my father died. Sometimes I felt like I couldn’t breathe. My heart was broken.”

  “How did it get better?”

  “The pain doesn’t go away. Sometimes it feels like he just died all over again. But you get used to it. And you go on.”

  “Go on?” I faced the ocean. “That seems impossible. We still have so far to travel.”

  “Yes.” Angelina followed my gaze. “But see how far we’ve come. We’ve done the impossible. We survived a tsunami. We sailed down the Washington Coast. Just a group of kids. And now we’re family. We’re strong together.”

  I wiped my eyes. “Maybe you’re right.”

  Angelina grabbed my face in Makala fashion. “I am.” She let me go and laughed.

  I really liked Angelina.

  Takumi fished out the dog ball. “Makala! Play with this in the cabin or when you get on land. You’re going to lose it up here.”

  “Come on, little sister. Let’s make some dinner,” Angelina said. “Did you thank Takumi?”

  Makala gave Takumi a hug. He handed her the ball. She immediately turned and bounced it across the boat and down the steps into the cabin. Boots took off after it.

  “Makala!” Angelina scolded.

  “What? I threw the ball in the cabin?” Makala tipped her head.

  “Get downstairs. You know that’s not what…” Angelina continued to lecture as they climbed below.

  I moved on top of the cabin and pulled my knees up to my chest. It was hard to imagine that just five days before, two cities sat on this bay. It was completely dark except for the occasional flashes of light I figured were from our group’s flashlights.

  Takumi showed up with a blanket, wrapped it around me, and stood blocking my view. “How are you doing?”

  I hugged my knees. “I can’t stop seeing Cole. I just…hurt.”

  Takumi leaned over to kiss me.

  I turned my face away. “I want to crawl into bed and never come out.”

  Takumi sat beside me. I wrapped the ends of the blanket around my neck.

  “You just commanded and drove the boat today. You asked for help and opinions and then made some tough decisions. That’s not the way someone who’s ready to give up behaves.”

  I thought for a moment. “It’s my family’s boat and I…”

  Takumi whispered. “You’re a natural leader.”

  “I don’t want to be.” I started to cry. His arm came around me and I buried my face in his chest. Finally I took a deep breath and pushed him away. “It’s all I can do to just keep breathing, Takumi.”

  “What are you trying to say?”

  “Just that I need…” I wiped my eyes. “I think I need to be alone for a while.”

  “I see.” He stood.

  “You do?”

  “I want to be there for you, but if giving you space helps…” Takumi walked away.

  “Thank you, Takumi,” I whispered when he was too far away to hear. Another bout of tears flowed. I sat for a long while by myself on the bow. It was what I asked for, but being alone made missing Cole almost unbearable.

  The splash of oars startled me. Someone was rowing towards Whistler.

  “Nick? Jervis?” I wiped my eyes and peered into the dark.

  “Nick,” he answered. “Look what we found.”

  “Too dark. I’ll get a light and meet you at the stern.” I dropped the blanket and headed for the cabin.

  Angelina, Makala, and Takumi must have heard him, because they came running up. Takumi handed me the spotlight and climbed down the swim step to help Nick tie off the dinghy.

  “Ready to go to town, ladies? And in style? Look at this dinghy. We took it off a huge luxury yacht. It took a while to find oars that would fit, but isn’t it a beaut?” Nick was so excited his words almost ran together.

  Angelina beamed.

  “Can we go?” Makala asked her sister.

  “If Nick thinks it’s safe.”

  Nick talked with his hands. “Well, it’s dark and you have to watch your step. But we got some water and plan to make a big bonfire and boil it. We even found two loaves of French bread that aren’t too moldy and a package of marshmallows. We’re going to make a bonfire, boil the water, and have marshmallow sandwiches. You should all come. We can see the boat from shore.”

  “Dylan’s still asleep. I’ll stay and see if I can get him to wake up and eat something. You guys go.” I motioned for them to leave.

  “Is there room for me?” Takumi avoided looking at me.

  I grimaced.

  “Of course. Didn’t you see how big this sucker is? We could get all nine of us––Toni. Sorry. I didn’t mean…”

  “It’s fine. The dinghy is great. It’s perfect. I’m sure Dylan will be pleased.”

  Angelina asked me where I’d hidden the gun. She lifted it out of the chart table and left for the bedroom. When she returned, she had a box of bullets and began loading the cylinders.

  Nick shook his head. “The gun should stay here.”

  She looked at me.

  I shrugged. “It’s your gun, but it’s dark. You don’t want any accidents.”

  Nick nodded. “We didn’t see any people.”

  Angelina scowled, emptied the bullets, and placed the gun onto the desk. I avoided Takumi by helping Makala with her life vest. The rest of the group grabbed up coats, lifejackets, and were off. As they rowed away, a bout of tears came over me again. Now that Takumi was gone, I wanted him.

  What was wrong with me? Pushing him away wouldn’t bring Cole back. But my heart felt frozen. Every laugh and smile felt wrong.

  I watched the group paddle to shore, and then decided to wake Dylan. He wasn’t happy, but propped himself up and tried to come around. I handed him one of the remaining cans of soda and checked the food cupboard for something the two of us could eat.

  In the back corner of a storage cabinet I found one small can of beef stew. I remembered how Dad always said that every sailor had to have a stash of beef stew for emergencies. I hoped it was true and we’d find cans of it on some of the damaged boats.

  My stomach rumbled while it simmered on the stove and the boat grew warm. Dylan wandered out and sat in the main cabin and on Takumi’s bed. His hair stuck out in every direction.

  “Where are we?” He glanced around the cabin and tossed his phone down on the couch. I saw the ‘no service’ message.

  While I stirred the stew, I told him about sailing into Grays Harbor. He scowled but didn’t say a word. I sat out our plates and was just about to dish up the meal, when I heard a scratching noise.

  I glanced up the stairs. Only a canvas flap kept the cold out.

  Glowing eyes shined in the dark from under the flap.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Six and a Half Days Left

  The creature snarled, exposing glistening fangs. I held the pan of stew in my hand and waited.

  Boots charged out of the girls’ bedroom, barking furiously. The creature at the top of the cockpit opening hissed. The little dog tried to leap up the stairs, but the steps were too steep and far apart. He fell onto his back.

  “What the hell?” Dylan sprang to his feet.

  “There’s a—” I stared at the top of the stairs.

  Boots attacked again. The creature poised to leap. I could finally see its face. It had a pointy muzzle and what appeared to be a black mask around its eyes. I lowered the pan. It was only a raccoon.

  The masked animal’s paw struck out, striking the jumping dog’s tail. Boots yipped and cowered in the corner of the galley. The raccoon started down the stairs, its eyes glued on the dog.

  I hunted for some kind of weapon, realized I still had the pan, and tossed the steaming pot of stew in its face. It snarled and backed up the steps. The flap dropped, hiding the raccoo
n behind the canvas.

  “Give me a knife.” Dylan ran to the galley.

  I handed him a butcher’s knife. He started for the stairs. Boots was at his feet, suddenly brave again. “Get this damn dog out of the way.”

  I scooped Boots up and deposited him in the bottom of the closet.

  Dylan was at the top of the steps when I came back, his hand about to slide back the cockpit cover. There was no sound from the raccoon. It might have been crouched, ready to leap at him, or completely gone.

  “Make noise.” I tapped the pot on the metal stove top.

  Dylan roared, slid back the cover, and held the knife in the air. I followed close behind him, pot poised. The raccoon was nowhere in sight.

  Dylan climbed on deck and stood very still. On the far end of the stern, a huge raccoon arched its back and hissed. Dylan raised the knife and ran at the raccoon while screaming, “Get out of here.”

  The raccoon hissed again and leapt into the water. Moments later three smaller versions of raccoon ran to the bow and dove overboard.

  Dylan and I collapsed on the cockpit bench. I was still shaking. I’d been sure it was a starving mountain lion or wolf.

  Then I started to giggle and glanced at Dylan. “My hero.”

  Dylan chuckled then grimaced.

  He felt guilty about laughing with Cole gone. I understood.

  We sat and let our breathing settle. On shore, the growing fire our friends made sparkled on the calm waters of the bay. I shivered.

  “Now what?” Dylan sighed.

  “I’ll clean the mess and see what else there is to eat.” I knew that wasn’t what he meant, but I wasn’t sure where to begin. It hurt to even face him. He looked so much like Cole.

  Dylan followed me down, grabbed the flashlight, and climbed up top to check for intruders.

  I searched the cupboard, found a can of tomato sauce and some noodles. If I added some spices, it might almost taste good. Twice the stove flickered and I worried we’d run out of gas.

  “Didn’t know you could cook.” Dylan rinsed his plate in the leftover seawater I’d boiled the pasta in.

  “I can’t.” I made a face. “It was horrible.”