Storm
Grandfather used to tell me.
“The sea never starts the fight. It simply reveals who was prepared for it.”
— James Sinclair
The first shot wasn't aimed at us.
It was aimed at the water.
The bullet skipped across the waves fifty yards off our bow, sending a spray into the air.
A warning.
I looked at Ward.
"They're telling us where to go."
His jaw tightened.
"I'm done taking directions from killers."
He grabbed the radio.
"Nathan."
"I'm here."
"How many?"
"Three boats now."
My stomach dropped.
"There were only two."
"There were."
His voice stayed calm.
"Third one just came over the horizon."
Ward looked through the windshield, his eyes narrowing.
"They've planned this."
"They've been planning it for years," I whispered.
Sea Whisper surged forward as I advanced the throttles.
Sea Whisper wasn't built for war. She'd been built for family vacations, lazy afternoons on the water, fishing trips with Grandpa, and quiet sunsets along the coast. She was meant to carry laughter, not gunfire.
But today, she was all that stood between my family and the people trying to destroy us.
She was steady and reliable.
Exactly like Grandpa.
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
We were sailing the legacy he'd left behind.
And I wasn't about to let anyone take it from us.
Below deck, Ivy's fingers flew across her laptop.
"I'm transmitting everything."
Ben leaned over her shoulder.
"To who?"
"Everyone."
She didn't even glance up.
"The Coast Guard."
"The FBI."
"The Texas Rangers."
"The sheriff."
"My cloud backup."
"And..."
She smiled.
"My social media emergency account."
Ben blinked.
"You have an emergency social media account?"
She shrugged.
"I've always believed bad people hate cameras."
Calle laughed despite everything.
"I love the way your mind works."
Nathan's voice crackled over the radio again.
"Ward."
"Go."
"I've got visual."
There was a pause.
Then—
"They're not fishermen."
"No kidding."
"They're wearing tactical gear."
Ward exchanged a look with me.
Professional.
Not hired thugs.
Not smugglers.
Professionals.
That made this far more dangerous.
Ward grabbed a chart.
"They're pushing us east."
Nathan answered immediately.
"Exactly."
Ward spread the chart across the helm.
His finger stopped over a section of water.
His expression darkened.
"No..."
"What?" I asked.
He tapped the chart.
"Old Devil's Reef."
Nathan swore over the radio.
"They're trying to force us onto the reef."
I looked between them.
"What happens if we hit it?"
Ward didn't soften the answer.
"We sink."
Silence filled the bridge.
Even the engines suddenly sounded louder.
"They don't want evidence," I said quietly.
Ward nodded once.
"They want Sea Whisper on the bottom."
My heart twisted.
"They're trying to erase Grandpa."
"No."
Ward stepped closer until his shoulder brushed mine.
"They're trying to erase your entire family."
The radio came alive again.
"Nathan to Ward."
"Go."
"I've got movement."
"Where?"
"Reef line."
Ward's head snapped up.
"There shouldn't be anyone on the reef."
"There is."
Nathan inhaled sharply.
"I count six."
I looked through the binoculars.
At first all I saw were jagged rocks.
Then...
Movement.
Men.
Camouflaged among the stone.
One raised something to his shoulder.
It wasn't a rifle.
My pulse hammered.
"Ward..."
"I see it."
He scooted me over and shoved the throttles hard to port.
Sea Whisper rolled violently.
A heartbeat later—
WHOOSH!
A rocket streaked across the water where we'd been only seconds before.
The explosion erupted behind us, sending a tower of seawater into the air.
The blast rocked Sea Whisper from stern to bow.
Glasses shattered.
Alarms screamed.
Below deck, I heard Ivy yell.
Ben shouted Calle's name.
Ward caught me before I lost my footing.
Our eyes met for one terrifying second.
"They're not trying to scare us anymore," I whispered.
Ward's face hardened into the expression of the Army Ranger I'd only glimpsed until now.
"No."
He looked back toward the reef.
"They just declared war."