Page 55 of Adrift

Calvin leans out of the raft and drops the chum in a quick blast. Red spreads from it in a much bigger circle than I would have thought.

Chapter 23

Life Boat

Zane

Out past the arc of red sinking into the ocean, the Savu Sea just seems endless. The sun bounces off the water, making everything shimmer, and the horizon’s a blurry line between blue-on-blue. Then, outta nowhere, there’s this rumbling sound from below. Before I can even guess what it is, I spot a massive shape moving beneath us. A blue whale!

I can’t believe how huge it is. Even from where we are, it makes our raft look like a kiddie pool toy. It’s wild to think about, especially when all I usually compare stuff to is my life back in Birmingham. The vastness of the sea and the sheer size of that whale—it’s like nothing I’ve ever experienced. The big guy doesn’t get too close, but just seeing it, watching it move about, is nuts. Nature’s properly wild out here. I barely notice the sharks gathering close by.

Haley shakes, but she’s doing all right. I put my arm around her and pull her into my side. “It’s okay, Haley.”

“I know. I know sharks aren’t what the movies make them out to be. That not all breeds are the same.” She’s sounding like a tape from an aquarium.

“True.” I glance over at the diminishing stain we’re floating away from. And while I wish I could tell her there’s nothing to look at, that the sharks aren’t anywhere near us, a fin has broken the surface. But sharks, like dolphins, have learned that boats mean food. And now there’s another fin on the other side of the boat, which means no fishing for us for a while. Not that we would be fishing anytime soon. We’ve all eaten our fill of raw tuna. I’ve never understood sushi, but protein is protein, and it’s better than the high-calorie bars in the toolkit. I’ve eaten one, and that was enough for a while. That’s the point of them: to fill you up. While tasting like cardboard. “Why don’t you tell me more about yourself?”

“Like what? What do you want to know?” Her voice is a whisper below the waves.

“What’s your favorite thing to do at home?” I put my toes on her thigh and give a little poke.

She glances outside the window. It’s too hot and still to put them up. She shakes her head, but I’ve got to get her to calm down. In all the certification classes I’ve taken, they repeat the importance of not letting tempers fly. And the most dangerous thing after dehydration and hypothermia? Boredom. The mind can start playing tricks on you if you’re not careful.

“We should all play. I’ll go first. Back home in Birmingham, it’s me and the boys. It’s a bit, well, typical. We go down to the club and play football. You know, soccer,” I say in my best, worst American accent. “And then later we head to the local pub for a pint. That’s my favorite Saturday.” I look at her, but she’s still not with me. Her eyes are wide, and I’m nervous for her. Grabbing her hand, I pull her to my side and wrap my arm around her. “You go next, Calvin.” I wave at him.

“Hard pass,” he grunts.

“Oh, I was kind of hoping you’d tell me.” Haley’s glued to my side now. “This is helping.”

“I’ll go.” Easton is hanging next to Dante. The bloke hasn’t moved in a while. I’ve been spending far too much time just staring at his chest.

Fuck me. I don’t want him to die, and I also don’t want to pitch his body over the side of the raft for the sharks to have more of a feast.

Easton reaches out and squeezes Haley’s toes. “My absolute favorite day is when I’m home in Florida. When Dad’s not at the estate—house—it’s just Emily and me. She has a habit of dating guys who are absolutely shit. But I get all the shitty food I never let myself eat. Burgers, chocolate-covered peanuts. Popcorn. What else? Oh, pizza. And German chocolate cake. I don’t know if it’s really German, but man.”

“Shut up about the food,” Calvin snorts.

“Then I get in the pool and swim underwater. Or just goof off.”

“For fun you swim?” I’m shocked. I’m not sure why.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” Easton leans forward but then scoots around to the other side of Dante. He’s pinching part of Haley’s foot.

“I guess I figured you’d have had enough of the water with all the training you do.”

He laughs. “I love swimming. It’s work, but I wouldn’t have done it for as long as I have if I didn’t love it.”

I’m not much of a swimmer. I passed the exam for ratings. Putting the jet skis in and out of the water is fine, but I’m not going to spend extra time in there. “I like being on top of the water better.”

Easton nods. “What about you, Haley?”

“I like walking my dog in the park on Saturdays. Not that I have a dog anymore.”

“I’m sorry.” Yeah, thinking about a dead dog isn’t exactly going to cheer her up.

“Oh, the dog is fine. He lives on a farm in New Jersey now.”

“Oh.” I catch Easton nodding his head. We’re all thinking the same thing: someone lied to this girl.

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