Page 94 of Grace on the Rocks

Bryan stared at him dumbly, trying to think what to do, until another crash of thunder made him jump.

“Go!”Lùcyelled, andBryanraced inside withEòghannon his heels.

* * *

The young guardat the ferry office didn’t want to lend him a speedboat or the fuel to take her out.

“It’s me or theCoastGuard.Yourchoice,”Bryangrowled, furious the ferry office hadn’t already called inSearchandRescue.

None too eager to rally the troops over a pair of errant tourists who may or may not actually be missing, the kid relented and handed over a key and three life jackets.Minuteslater,Bryanwas flying towards the castle, peering through the fog for signs of life.Thiscouldn’t be happening.NottoEòghann, not again, and not toBryan, either.

Suddenly his hurt feelings over last night’s words seemed so stupid.Whyhadn’t he told her to wait a day?Whynot promise to put aside everything he’d planned to do tomorrow and just take them?Whatwas a few hours in the grand scheme of his reno­vation?Itwould have been a small price, but now…

Christ.

The water was choppy as he sped across the surf.Theferry guard had pointed out approximately where they’d been spotted, butBryanwas no expert, and out here it all looked the same, just a whole lot of darkness and wind and spray.Hislungs ached, and not just from the cold.Hecouldn’t lose her, couldn’t lose either of them, not like this.

Seeing no sign ofAuntEilidh’sdinghy or anything else in any direction, he turned the speedboat towards the castle.He’djust have to start atKisimul, and if he didn’t find them there, radioEòghannto call for backup and then work his way back toEilidh’splace, and back and forth again if he had to.

The storm finally broke before he reached the island, amping up the sour churn in his stomach.Theyabsolutely could not drown, not on his watch.Howcould he ever faceDiego?OrEòghann?Oranyone else?

Up ahead there was a flash of orange, out of place in the colorless gloom, and he cut the engine, searching for that flash again as the surf crashed nearly over the side of his boat.

Had he imagined it?

He wiped his face on one damp sleeve before staring back out at the water, and there it was again, the bright orange hatWeshad donned that morning, glowing like a beacon.Butthough he squinted through the driving rain, searching until his eyes began to cross, there was nothing to be found, not the boat, not theAmericanInvasion, nothing.

Scenario after scenario flooded his mind, each more dreadful than the last, as the rain soaked through his thin t-shirt.Heshivered, but he didn’t regret not stopping to grab a hat or slicker.

Then he saw something—dark, curly hair floating near the surface—Grace!

Bryan leaned way out of the boat, but he couldn’t quite reach.

A bolt of lightning lit up the sky and the water, and he yanked his arm back when he realized it wasn’tGraceat all, just a bunch of kelp churned up to the surface, all tangled in something that on closer inspection appeared to be the remnants ofEilidh’sdinghy.Themotor was trying to drag it all down through the kelp, but strips ofPVCstill floated at the surface.

He dry-heaved but nothing came up, and he forced himself to slide back down in the boat to catch his breath and get his bearings.

“Call theCoastGuard,” he yelled down the radio. “Thedinghy’s sunk.”

Then he turned the engine back on and slammed the boat forward at speed, praying they had washed up on shore.Thesky was so dark now he could hardly make out the beach aroundKisimulCastleuntil he ran up on some rocks, the hull of his boat groaning in protest.Hecut the engine and vaulted into the water with his shoes still on, dragging the boat as best he could further up onto the tiny beach.

“Rios?” he shouted. “Wes?”

He scanned left and right along the outer edge of the castle.Christ, what a nightmare, but if they had any sense, and the physical ability to do so, they’d have tried to find a way inside.Thegrounds would be locked of course, and the tide was creeping ever closer.

With a first aid kit slung over one shoulder,Bryanmade his way around the tiny island towards the back side of the castle where the building itself might provide at least a little shelter from the driving rain. “Rios!Wesley!” he shouted again, and then suddenlyWesjumped out of the mist, throwing her arms around him.

“You were right,” she yelled. “I’lleat all the vegetarian crow on the planet, you were right.”

“Are you okay?” he shouted, holding her at arm’s length to assess her bedraggled state.

She was bleeding from a scrape on her cheek, and there were bits of bracken tangled in her hair, but she nodded that she was all right, biting her lip and holding back tears. “Inever swam so hard in my life.”

“Grace?” he asked her, hardly daring to breathe.

“Twisted her ankle on the rocks.She’saround the corner,”Wesyelled, pointing in the direction he’d been headed.

“Wait here,”Bryanshouted, pointing at the boat, “and radioEòghannto call off theCoastGuard.”

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